Indianapolis Colts two-time Pro Bowl safety Bob Sanders is headed to injured reserve. He tore his Herculean left bicep against the San Francisco 49ers last weekend, just one game after he made his season debut from an offseason knee injury. That means his 2009 season (just three tackles and one interception) is over and the Colts will be without one of the best free safeties in the National Football League to bolster their defensive secondary.

Bob Sanders, Indianapolis Colts / Image: Zuma Press

To further exacerbate matters, the Colts also places starting cornerback Marlin Jackson on IR. And CB Kelvin Hayden will be sidelined for the next three to four weeks with a sprained knee. That means the currently undefeated Colts (7-0) will most likely field two rookies—Jerraud Powers and Jacob Lacey—at the starting cornerback positions Sunday against the Houston Texans’ third-ranked passing offense. Third-year vet Melvin Bullitt will replace Bob at free safety.

I can’t help but think the Colts don’t exactly feel uncomfortable in this position—at least as far as Bob is concerned. Bob has played in a little less than half of the Colts games since he was drafted back in 2004. So, it seems Indy is always having to find ways to replace him. Of course, when he is healthy, he’s one of the best—thus his two-time Pro Bowl status during the seasons he played in 14 and 15 games respectively. But it really hurts to know there’s no chance he’ll return until next season.

Source: Colts.com, NFL.com

Philadelphia Eagles running back Brian Westbrook returned to practice this week after having missed most of two games with a concussion. He was hit in the head by Washington Redskins linebacker London Fletcher in the first quarter of a 27-17 win back on October 26, forcing him to miss last week’s game against the N.Y. Giants. Normally, I would say the Eagles are a worse different team without the services of perhaps the best all-purpose running back in the National Football League, but they surprisingly had no problem disposing of their division rivals without Brian, 40-17.
When asked about his injury …read more

Dallas Cowboys receiver Roy Williams seemed a bit defensive today when he was asked about his current role with the team. “Number two” receiver Miles Austin has been piling up catches and headlines the past three weeks as a starter (21 receptions, 482 yards, five TDs) while Roy nursed some sore ribs and thought about his poor production since joining the Cowboys 16 games ago (33 receptions, 447 yards, three touchdowns). So naturally, the discussion of Roy’s place in the offensive game plan was going to come up sooner than later.
Roy admitted some turmoil with QB Tony Romo exists, but …read more

In yet another example of just how far a star running back can fall from one of the National Football League’s best to not being wanted by any NFL team, Edgerrin James was released by the Seattle Seahawks today. After seven games, he had just 46 carries for a meager 125 yards. Doing some quick math, that’s 2.7 yards per carry.
As you will recall, Edge was acquired by the Hawks this past August after three years in Arizona, the last of which saw him turn from a disgruntled bench warmer to an integral part of an NFC Championship run. …read more

The San Diego Chargers decided they didn’t have a need for receiver Chris Chambers anymore. The Bolts gave up a second round draft pick just two years ago to get Chris from the Miami Dolphins. But after 31 games, his time in San Diego is finished. I guess the handwriting was on the wall, though. With the emergence of receivers Malcom Floyd and Legedu Naanee, Chris was being fazed out of the Chargers passing game. And the starting lineup. In seven games so far this season, Chris only had nine catches for 122 yards and one touchdown.
In a statement today, …read more

After a week of saying and doing all the right things preceding today’s game against the Green Bay Packers, Brett Favre returned to the place where he is a living legend—where he quarterbacked and led a team for 16 years, Lambeau Field—and exacted revenge beat his former team 38-26. As with his previous win over Green Bay just four weeks ago, Brett was outstanding. He was 17-of-28 passing for 244 yards and four touchdowns this afternoon as the Vikings improved to 7-1 heading into their bye week and the halfway point of this 2009 season.
I couldn’t be more impressed with …read more

After starting the season 0-6, the Tennessee Titans threw caution to the wind and let former starting quarterback Vince Young have his old job back. And following his 15-for-18 passing performance in a 30-13 win over the Jacksonville Jags this afternoon, maybe they wish they would’ve made that decision a few weeks ago. Actually, it was at the order of team owner Bud Adams that Vince start over Kerry Collins today. So head coach Jeff Fisher begrudgingly made the “official” announcement a few days ago and now the Titans have their first win of the 2009 season.
So, where does the …read more

What a difference a day can make. Amidst all the trash talking leading up to today’s Jets-Dolphins game, Dolphins receiver Ted Ginn Jr. was being chewed up and spit out by the media, the fans, and even his own teammates for not playing up to his potential as the 9th overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. Former Dolphins offensive lineman Bob Kuechenberg went so far as to call Ted “an embarrassment and a coward”—pretty strong words.
Dropping passes, especially in crucial situations, will do that to you. And talk of a demotion was brewing. In fact, receiver Brian Hartline ended …read more

The National Football League will honor veterans and active duty members of the military during November, with teams designating home games as special Veterans Recognition Games throughout the month. The NFL has a long history of supporting America’s armed services, including a 44-year partnership with the USO that includes overseas visits to troops and trips to military hospitals nationwide.
The NFL will continue to offer its Game Pass HD service free of charge at USO Centers for military members stationed in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait, Germany, Italy, Korea and Japan. At the USO facility in each of these locations, servicemembers …read more

Before Brett Favre finally signed a contract with the Minnesota Vikings this past summer, the very idea of him running onto Lambeau Field dressed in purple sent a shockwave of hysteria throughout the National Football League—not to mention throughout the national media, who figured such an occurrence would rank right up there with the parting of the Red Sea. But here we are, a mere four days from this event actually happening, and the excitement is somewhat less than what I had anticipated it would be. Sure, there’s a buzz. A lot of people are talking about the Vikings vs. …read more