Broncos’ Gary to Miss Rest of Season

The news went from bad to worse Tuesday for the Denver Broncos and their ailing running backs.

With Terrell Davis already hampered by a sprained left ankle, the Broncos learned that backup Olandis Gary will miss the rest of the season because of a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.

Gary, who rushed for a Denver rookie record 1,159 yards in 12 games last season, injured the knee in the third quarter of the Broncos’ 41-36 loss to the St. Louis Rams on Monday night. He remained in the game and had runs of 25 and 13 yards in the fourth quarter.

Tests revealed a complete tear of Gary’s right ACL. An identical injury ended Davis’ season in the fourth game last year.

“It’s quite disappointing,” Bronco Coach Mike Shanahan said during his weekly radio appearance. “I think everybody knows what he did last year. Afterward he said he felt good, so it was more preventive than anything else to get those tests. Unfortunately the tear is there, and he’s going to have to get operated on here shortly.”

Shanahan reported improvement to Davis’ ankle and hoped to have the 1998 NFL MVP back at practice Thursday. Davis injured his ankle in the second quarter Monday night.

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The Indianapolis Colts’ failure to act against a player convicted of beating his wife is “reprehensible” and tells the community that the team tolerates domestic abuse, according to a coalition of domestic violence counselors.

In separate letters sent to NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and the Colt President Bill Polian, the Domestic Violence Network Inc. and the Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence demanded that defensive back Mustafah Muhammad be suspended for three games without pay.

Muhammad was convicted last week of beating his pregnant wife Oct. 28. He received a suspended sentence of one year in jail and was put on probation for a year.

Polian said the Colts would let the NFL decide whether he should face sanctions.

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Veteran tight end Greg DeLong was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars to replace Damon Jones, who was sidelined for the season because of a knee injury suffered during Sunday’s victory over Cleveland. DeLong was waived by the Baltimore Ravens on August 27. . . . Defensive end Neil Smith, a 12-year veteran who played last season with the Broncos, has reached agreement to join the San Diego Chargers. Terms were not disclosed. . . . Cornerback Denard Walker was reinstated by the Tennessee Titans after a one-game suspension under the NFL’s anti-violence policy. The Titans released cornerback Ty Howard to make roster room.

NFC / Aikman’s Status Is Still Uncertain

The Dallas Cowboys hope to make a decision today on Troy Aikman’s playing status, but were approaching things as if Randall Cunningham would be this Sunday’s starting quarterback.

Coach Dave Campo said Aikman, who was knocked out of the season-opening 41-14 loss to Philadelphia after suffering the ninth concussion of his 12-year NFL career, was feeling better Tuesday but still had some symptoms.

Meanwhile, James McKnight will take Joey Galloway’s place at wide receiver. Galloway suffered season-ending knee injury Sunday.

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Defensive tackle D’Marco Farr of the St. Louis Rams will be sidelined about a month because of torn knee cartilage. Farr, who has started every game since the Rams moved to St. Louis in 1995, injured his right knee in the fourth quarter against the Broncos. Jeff Zgonina, an eight-year veteran, will make his first career start in place of Farr on Sunday at Seattle. . . . Paul Gruber, Tampa Bay’s starting left tackle for 12 seasons, formally announced his retirement, saying it wasn’t difficult to decide between spending more time with his family and continuing his effort to return to the Buccaneers from a broken leg.

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The St. Louis Rams’ 41-36 victory over the Denver Broncos on “Monday Night Football” drew a big-market overnight Nielsen rating of 15.9 with a 26 share, down slightly from last year’s 16.1/27 for the opener, which didn’t fall on Labor Day. More impressive, the preliminary rating was 9% higher than the last time the NFL opened on the holiday weekend, in 1998.