Taylor Gives the Jaguars Consolation in 23-7 Loss

Oft-injured running back Fred Taylor showed the Jacksonville Jaguars what they wanted to see, but it was the Atlanta Falcons who came away with a 23-7 NFL exhibition victory in a rain-drenched, penalty-filled game Thursday night at Jacksonville, Fla.

Taylor, in his first game since injuring his left knee Dec. 19, sprinted up the middle on his first run, avoiding a defender with a 360-degree spin move. Then he got hit on the same knee. Taylor’s response?

“It felt good,” he said of the 13-yard run. “It was a good start. It was a confidence builder. Physically, I felt OK and I didn’t have any setbacks. It is a good sign, so far.”

Taylor ended up with four carries for 18 yards rushing and two receptions for eight yards for the Jaguars (2-1). The victory had its downside for the Falcons (3-1), whose receiving corps was further depleted when Dez White, Atlanta’s third-leading receiver last season, hurt his left knee during the first half. Falcon Coach Jim Mora called it a “little knee sprain.”

Michael Jenkins, the Falcons’ first-round pick in 2004, picked up the slack, scoring twice and catching four passes for 35 yards.

“Nothing special for me tonight,” said Jenkins, who caught only seven passes as a rookie. “It just happened that I got open.”

Warrick Dunn, who had eight carries for 65 yards, had a 42-yard run that set up a Falcon touchdown. Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick completed five of 10 passes for 44 yards with a touchdown and scrambled four times for 30 yards.

*

When the Philadelphia Eagles play host to the Cincinnati Bengals tonight, receiver Terrell Owens and quarterback Donovan McNabb will play together for the first time since their public feud began in April.

“He’s running around good,” Eagle Coach Andy Reid said of Owens, who sat out the first two exhibition games.

But the talk hasn’t changed. Owens and McNabb have been giving each other the silent treatment.

Now McNabb hopes the two can get along well enough to lead the Eagles.

“I think it’s very important that we be able to get some work,” McNabb said.

*

Minnesota Viking center Matt Birk could sit out three months because of hip surgery after the Vikings declined to guarantee his contract for 2006. Birk had been cleared to play if he had painkilling injections but asked the Vikings to guarantee his nearly $4-million salary for 2006 in exchange for his taking a risk and playing with the pain.

*

Carolina Panther officials didn’t know some of their players visited a South Carolina doctor suspected of writing illegal steroid prescriptions, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue said in a statement released by the team.

The commissioner added that the league has nearly finished its investigation into allegations of steroid use after a CBS News report in March identified center Jeff Mitchell, tackle Todd Steussie and punter Todd Sauerbrun as having filled prescriptions written by Dr. James Shortt of West Columbia, S.C., for steroids. Several other former Panthers have also been named as Shortt’s patients in subsequent media reports.

*

Fans attending games this season will be subject to pat-downs as part of enhanced security implemented by Tagliabue.

“This new requirement is not a result of any specific threat information,” Tagliabue said. “It is in recognition of the significant additional security that pat-downs offer.”

*

Cedric Benson paid a surprise visit to the Chicago Bears’ training facility at Lake Forest, Ill., the 33rd day of the first-round draft pick’s holdout.

Benson, a running back from Texas who was the No. 4 pick overall, met with General Manager Jerry Angelo, but there were no negotiations. Benson’s agent was not present. Benson stayed for about half an hour.

*

The New England Patriots released safety Antuan Edwards. ... Dolphin rookie Channing Crowder will start Miami’s exhibition Saturday at middle linebacker in place of Zach Thomas, who has a sore ankle.