He Gets a New Leaf on Life as Charger Starter

Ryan Leaf, who has been rehabilitating his bad-boy image along with his surgically repaired right shoulder, on Saturday regained the San Diego Chargers’ starting quarterback job that he lost during his tumultuous rookie season of 1998.

“I’m happy. I feel very fortunate that I’m getting the opportunity,” said Leaf, who has been doing and saying all the right things this summer. “For me, it’s just a wonderful opportunity.”

Leaf bruised his right hand in Friday night’s exhibition final--a 24-20 Charger victory over the Arizona Cardinals--but was able to grip a football Saturday morning and said he expects no problems in next Sunday’s season opener against the Oakland Raiders.

Leaf was taken by the Chargers with the second pick overall in the 1998 draft and began the season as the starter. But he lost the job by Week 10 because of poor statistics (two touchdown passes to 15 interceptions and four lost fumbles) and a poor attitude.

Leaf was sidelined all of last season after tearing cartilage in his shoulder in the first 20 minutes of training camp and undergoing surgery. He was also suspended four weeks for cursing at then-general manager Bobby Beathard.

He opened camp this season as the third-stringer, and because of questions about his shoulder, Coach Mike Riley kept saying that Leaf was the “X factor” in the competition with Jim Harbaugh and Moses Moreno.

Leaf completed 40 of 63 passes for for 447 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions in exhibition games.

“The way it’s played out is always the way I wanted it,” said Leaf. “It was given to me in my rookie year. Now it looks great in the order it went. I was able to build myself up and earn it and that’s what feels great to me.”

Although Riley wanted the competition to play itself out through the final exhibition game, it had been apparent this past week that the starting job was Leaf’s.

The most surprising part of Riley’s announcement Saturday was that Harbaugh, 36 and last season’s starter, will be the third-stringer. Moreno, like Leaf, is in his third year.

Said Riley: “As soon as Ryan sort of confirmed his physical capabilities, it became more apparent” that he would be the starter. “Physically, he’s got a lot of tools.”

Riley promised there wouldn’t be a quick hook if Leaf struggles.

“I don’t start guys with the expectation of taking them out,” he said.

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Jay Fiedler will start at quarterback in the Miami Dolphins’ season opener next Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks, beating out Damon Huard for the position vacated during the off-season by the retirement of Dan Marino.

Fiedler--the backup to Mark Brunell at Jacksonville last season--was named the starter a day after he completed 10 of 14 passes for 109 yards but had three interceptions in Miami’s 22-17 victory over New Orleans. Fiedler led the first-team offense to its only touchdown in four exhibition games--passing for 41 of the 83 yards on a drive that was capped by J.J Johnson’s one-yard run.

“He’s got a better feel for what we’re trying to do with the offense than Damon at this point,” said first-year Dolphin Coach Dave Wannstedt. “Jay gives us the best chance to be successful.”

Huard, in three exhibition starts, completed 34 of 54 passes for 303 yards with one interception.

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Green Bay’s first-string defense forced its first two punts of the exhibition season and Bill Schroeder caught two touchdown passes as the Packers held on to beat the Cleveland Browns, 34-33, Saturday night at Green Bay in the NFL’s final exhibition game.

Backup fullback Matt Snider converted a short pass from Danny Wuerffel into a 66-yard touchdown that broke a 27-27 tie with 5:28 left.

The Browns put together a late scoring drive with five consecutive completions from Kevin Thompson to Dennis Northcutt--including a 26-yard touchdown pass with 50 seconds left--but Thompson’s pass to Northcutt on the two-point conversion attempt was low and wide.

Matt Hasselbeck and Wuerffel each threw two touchdown passes in place of Brett Favre, who didn’t play for the third consecutive game because of tendinitis in his right elbow. Favre is expected to play in next Sunday’s season opener against the New York Jets.

Embattled quarterback Tim Couch (7 of 11, 96 yards) again struggled to spark the Browns’ offense.

Cleveland (1-3) lost its final three exhibition games, while Green Bay (2-2) won both of its home exhibitions.

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Detroit wide receiver Herman Moore suffered a separated shoulder in the Lions’ 21-13 victory Friday night over the Cincinnati Bengals and will be sidelined four to six weeks. . . . Seattle signed offensive tackle Chris McIntosh--the second of the team’s two first-round picks in April’s draft, to a multiyear contract. McIntosh, 6-feet-6 and 315 pounds, was taken with the 22nd overall pick out of Wisconsin. . . . Safety Omar Stoutmire, a starter last season, was among six players cut by the New York Jets. Stoutmire, who replaced the injured Steve Atwater last year at free safety, came into the exhibition season as a starter but was beaten out by Scott Frost and Kevin Williams. The Jets also released wide receiver Yatil Green, a former first-round selection of the Dolphins who suffered serious knee injuries before each of his first two seasons.