AROUND THE NFL : Rams Lose Green to Knee Injury
St. Louis quarterback Trent Green tore a ligament in his left knee Saturday night in the Rams’ 24-21 exhibition victory over the San Diego Chargers in St. Louis and will likely be sidelined for the season.
Green, who completed all 11 of his passes for 166 yards--including a 52-yard touchdown to Isaac Bruce--was injured when he was hit on the back of the knee by Pro Bowl safety Rodney Harrison with 1:31 to go in the first half. Harrison was also called for a personal foul for unnecessary roughness against Bruce in the first quarter.
Green, 29, signed a four-year, $16.5-million free-agent deal with the Rams after a breakthrough season with the Washington Redskins--his first as an NFL starter--in which he threw for 3,441 yards and 23 touchdowns.
In exhibition games, Green was 28-for-32 passing for 406 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
The Rams’ backup quarterbacks are Kurt Warner, who has played in one game in the NFL, and Joe Germaine, the team’s fourth-round draft pick out of Ohio State.
Az Hakim returned punts 89 and 80 yards for touchdowns for the Rams (1-2). The Chargers are 0-3.
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In other exhibition games:
* Tony Martin, acquitted of laundering drug money by a federal jury Thursday, caught a touchdown pass for the Miami Dolphins (2-1) in a 31-10 victory over the Detroit Lions (1-2) at Miami. Martin had five receptions for 67 yards, and his five-yard touchdown reception of a pass from Dan Marino is only one of three scores by the first-team offense in 17 possessions. Cecil “the Diesel” Collins, a rookie running back vying for a starting job, suffered a severely sprained right ankle and is expected to be sidelined at least two weeks.
* Brett Favre, who left a game early last week because of a bruised thumb, was 11-for-19 passing for 162 yards and two touchdowns for the Green Bay Packers (3-0) in a 38-17 victory over the New Orleans Saints (1-2) at New Orleans. Saint quarterback Billy Joe Hobert, who spent last season on injured reserve after rupturing his Achilles’ tendon in the first game, suffered cracked a rib in the first quarter. He still played most of the first half, completing 10 of 15 passes for 179 yards and two touchdowns.
* Rookie quarterback Tim Couch led the Cleveland Browns (2-2) to a 35-24 victory over the Chicago Bears (2-2)--the first win in their new stadium. Couch, using mostly short passes, was 10 for 14 for 128 yards in leading the Browns to 13 unanswered points in the second half. The Bears’ rookie quarterback, Cade McNown, was four for 10 for 42 yards and a touchdown. Cleveland middle linebacker Chris Spielman, who underwent neck fusion surgery in 1997, suffered a neck “stinger” in the first quarter. He was taken to the hospital for an MRI.
* Curtis Martin rushed for 127 yards, including an 80-yard touchdown, in seven carries for the New York Jets (2-1) in their 16-10 victory over the New York Giants (2-1) Jets at East Rutherford, N.J.
* Brad Johnson and Rodney Peete both threw touchdown passes for the Washington Redskins (3-0) in a 27-14 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers (1-2) at Pittsburgh. The Redskins’ starting defense limited Steeler quarterback Kordell Stewart to 36 yards passing in the first half.
* Doug Flutie scrambled 25 yards to sustain a late first-half drive, then threw a 22-yard touchdown pass for the Buffalo Bills (2-1) in a 30-3 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals (0-3) at Cincinnati. Quarterback Akili Smith, the Bengals’ first-round draft pick, made his first appearance, completing one of two passes for five yards.
* Jon Kitna was 12-for-23 passing for 147 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions for the Seattle Seahawks (1-2) in a 41-7 victory over the Arizona Cardinals (1-2) at Seattle.
* The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-0) scored on four of seven first-half possessions, with Mike Alstott getting three touchdowns in a 45-14 victory over the New England Patriots (1-2) at Tampa, Fla.
* Billy Davis caught a 41-yard touchdown pass from third-string quarterback Stoney Case with 10 seconds left to give the Baltimore Ravens (3-0) a 28-24 victory over the Carolina Panthers (1-2) at Baltimore. On the final play, Steve Bono threw a 51-yard pass to Donald Hayes, who was tackled on the Baltimore 7.