Ben Roethlisberger is no longer a Pittsburgh Steelers captain and Dennis Dixon is the new Steelers quarterback, at least for the time being.
Ben Roethlisberger is no longer a Pittsburgh Steelers captain and Dennis Dixon is the new Steelers quarterback, at least for the time being.Ben Roethlisberger is no longer a Pittsburgh Steelers captain and Dennis Dixon is the new Steelers quarterback, at least for the time being.
Roethlisberger, suspended by the NFL for the first four games of the season, was not chosen a Steelers captain in a vote by his teammates. He had been selected the previous two seasons. Wide receiver Hines Ward and tight end Heath Miller will be the offensive captains.In a different vote regarding the quarterbacks, Dixon got the one that counted — from coach Mike Tomlin. Dixon was selected over longtime backup Charlie Batch to start Sunday’s opener against Atlanta, although he has started only one NFL game.
Byron Leftwich, reacquired by Pittsburgh during an April trade, was expected to start while Roethlisberger was out, but sprained his left medial collateral ligament Thursday against Carolina.
Around the league
Ravens: Baltimore upgraded its receiving corps again by agreeing to terms with T.J. Houshmandzadeh.
To make room for Houshmandzadeh on the roster, the Ravens traded wide receiver Mark Clayton to the St. Louis Rams for an undisclosed draft pick. Clayton, drafted 22nd overall by Baltimore in the 2005 draft, ranks third in Ravens history with 234 career catches and 3,116 yards.
Houshmandzadeh, a 10-year veteran, was cut by Seattle last week. He signed with the Seahawks as a free agent before the 2009 season and had a team-high 79 catches for 911 yards and three touchdowns.
Jets: Darrelle Revis agreed to a new contract late Sunday night to end his holdout and the All-Pro cornerback took an early morning flight Monday from his home in South Florida. He arrived at the Jets’ training facility after 1 p.m., rejoined his teammates and signed the deal. The Jets and Revis’ agents declined to announce financial terms of the deal, but it is reportedly a four-year deal worth at least $46 million, including $32 million guaranteed.
Texans: Quarterback Matt Leinart has agreed to a one-year deal with the Houston Texans, according to agent Tom Condon.
Leinart was cut by Arizona on Saturday. Condon confirmed in a phone interview with The Associated Press on Monday that Leinart had reached a deal with the Texans.
The Texans would not confirm the deal. The team returns to practice Wednesday, leading up to Sunday's season opener against Indianapolis.
The Texans were looking for insurance
at backup quarterback after Dan Orlovsky threw two interceptions in
Houston's last preseason game last week. John David Booty, another
former Southern Cal quarterback, threw two touchdown passes in that
game, but was cut over the weekend.
Jaguars: Jacksonville running back Maurice Jones-Drew is back at practice. Jones-Drew, who missed most of the past two weeks of work amid reports he was dealing with a knee injury, returned to practice and expects to be ready for Sunday’s season opener against Denver.
49ers: San Francisco waived third-string quarterback Nate Davis, the team’s fifth-round draft pick last year. Coach Mike Singletary had been openly frustrated with Davis’ slow development and work ethic despite the former Ball State star’s dyslexia that makes it difficult to grasp the playbook.