As if being the Miami Dolphins’ first victim of the season wasn’t painful enough, the Baltimore Ravens also lost defensive catalyst Ray Lewis and quarterback Kyle Boller to injuries.
Lewis dislocated his left finger in the third quarter and Boller sustained a mild concussion in the fourth of the Ravens’ 22-16, overtime loss to the Dolphins on Sunday. Neither player returned.
Rookie Troy Smith replaced Boller midway through the fourth quarter, then drove the team 59 yards to the half-yard line with 8 seconds left. Coach Brian Billick decided against trying for the winning touchdown on fourth down and forced overtime on Matt Stover’s 18-yard field goal.
“It’s very tough to go for all or nothing,” Billick said.
The Ravens were already without cornerback Samari Rolle, who missed his second consecutive game with a shoulder injury.
Jets quarterback Kellen Clemens was knocked out of New York’s 20-10 loss to the New England Patriots in the first quarter when he was slammed into the turf by Patriots defensive lineman Richard Seymour. Eugene Wilson intercepted Clemens’ pass at the Jets’ 5 yard-line and ran it in for a touchdown.
Clemens injured a rib on the Jets’ second offensive play and missed the rest of the rainy and blustery game. He was replaced by Chad Pennington, the quarterback that Clemens displaced as New York’s No. 1 signal caller, and Brad Smith, who took nine snaps.
“Instead of taking a sack, I threw it and landed on my right arm,” Clemens said. “It (the pain) wasn’t anything immediate.”
Pennington completed 25 of 38 passes for 186 yards.
The Jets announced that Clemens would probably return, but he didn’t.
“As we looked at it and we talked to the doctors, I thought it was best to continue on with Chad,” coach Eric Mangini said. “When he was called on, he went in and I thought he did a very good job.”
Mangini would not commit to a starter for next week’s game against the Tennessee Titans.
“I’ll have to look at everything and evaluate it,” he said. “We have the injury. We don’t really have as much information now as we will have later on.”
Raiders running back Justin Fargas left in the fourth quarter of Oakland’s 21-14 loss to the Colts with what he described as a sprained MCL in his right knee, but not before he gained 89 yards on 26 carries. He has 1,009 yards for the season.
While Oakland coach Lane Kiffin said he feared the injury was to the ACL, Fargas said it was a much less serious MCL injury. He will undergo an MRI on Monday to make sure.
“It’s definitely the MCL,” Fargas said. “It won’t require surgery. It’s something we’re going to have to check out tomorrow. We’ll come up with a rehab plan.”
Dallas’ Tony Romo struggled playing with a bruised thumb on his throwing hand in a 10-6 loss to Philadelphia. The Cowboys’ QB was 13-of-36 for 214 yards with three picks. He even dropped a ball while cocking to throw.
X-rays showed no break, but it’s at least bruised. Romo had it wrapped and iced during his postgame news conference and insisted, “I’ll be fine.”
Also, Dallas center Andre Gurode and defense end Chris Canty went out with left knee injuries. Gurode is having an MRI Monday, but is expected to be OK. Canty should be fine. Backup safety Pat Watkins sprained his left ankle and tight end Anthony Fasano sustained a mild concussion.
Eagles tight end Matt Schobel sustained a concussion after taking a shot to the helmet while trying to make a catch on the game’s opening series. He didn’t return.
With Vinny Testaverde sidelined by soreness in his 44-year-old body, rookie Matt Moore became the fourth quarterback to start for the Carolina Panthers this season and engineered three scoring drives in the fourth quarter as the Panthers stunned the Seattle Seahawks 13-10. Moore completed 19 of 27 passes for 208 yards, wasn’t sacked and did not throw an interception after coming into the game with a 21.1 passer rating in six brief appearances.
“I’m just glad I managed the game,” Moore said. “I’m glad I didn’t make any major mistakes.”
New Saints kicker, veteran Martin Gramatica, saw his first NFL action of the season after replacing injured Olindo Mare. He hit a 31-yard field goal and four extra points, but pushed a kickoff out of bounds.
Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor left in the fourth quarter with an undisclosed injury, and Green Bay fullback Korey Hall injured his left leg in the second quarter and did not return.
Chargers backup running back Michael Turner hurt a shoulder in the second quarter of the Chargers’ 51-14 victory against Detroit.
The Lions had injuries to guard Edwin Mulitalo (concussion), defensive tackle Langston Moore (quadriceps), cornerback Travis Fisher (hamstring) and linebacker Paris Lenon (right eye).
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