Culpepper says his season may be over

Daunte Culpepper says he feels sharp pain in his reconstructed right knee a year after surgery and isn’t sure whether he’ll play again this season.

The Miami Dolphins quarterback will sit out Sunday’s game against his former team, the Minnesota Vikings. It’s the sixth consecutive game he’ll miss after struggling through the first four.

“This is one I wish I could have been in,” Culpepper said Thursday. “Unfortunately my knee isn’t as good as my spirit and my soul want to be.”

Culpepper said his knee is improving, but he said it’s possible he’ll sit out the rest of the year.

“I’d be disappointed, but at the same time I won’t be, because I know I’ve got to keep my eye on the big picture,” he said.

“It’s really not about short-term, it’s about long-term.”

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Baltimore Ravens middle linebacker Ray Lewis underwent a minor surgical procedure to have a pocket of blood drained from his swollen back and is unlikely to play in Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons.

However, the seven-time All-Pro wasn’t immediately ruled out and is expected to remain listed as questionable on the injury report.

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Oakland Raiders Coach Art Shell was fined $12,500 for criticizing the officials after last weekend’s 17-13 loss to the Denver Broncos.

Shell on Monday strongly criticized the officials for calling a personal foul on Chris Carr for running out of bounds on a punt late in the third quarter.

“After I said it, I knew it,” Shell said. “It dawned on me what was happening. But hey, I’ll take it. Because I felt strongly about what I said, and I have not changed in that.”

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Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Byron Leftwich won’t practice this week, giving his injured left ankle time to rest before making a decision regarding season-ending surgery.

Leftwich visited renowned orthopedist James Andrews on Monday.

“It’s pretty much the same,” Leftwich said. “I haven’t done anything to test it to really tell you how it feels. It feels the same as it was last week.”

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The Dallas Cowboys’ new stadium isn’t even close to completion and local leaders already are planning a Super Bowl.

A group of public officials and business leaders announced it will bid to bring the 2011 Super Bowl to the Arlington stadium, which is set to open in 2009.

It would be the first Super Bowl for the Dallas area, home to the team that has appeared in an NFL-record eight Super Bowls. The committee must submit a bid to the NFL by April 2, and team owners will vote on it at their meeting in May.

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Minnesota cornerback Fred Smoot was added to the injury report with a groin problem presumably suffered in Thursday’s practice. Smoot is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game at Miami.

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Former Pro Bowl and USC offensive lineman Bruce Matthews was one of three newly eligible players to make the list of 25 semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2007. Also chosen were Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davis and Minnesota Vikings guard Randall McDaniel.