The NFL’s Competition Committee plans to discuss the massive video boards that hang over the field at the new Cowboys Stadium.
Titans coach Jeff Fisher, the committee’s co-chairman, said yesterday he expects more punts to hit the video boards and that it needs to be determined what happens when they do.
The committee can only make recommendations; commissioner Roger Goodell must decide on how to proceed.
The 60-yard long high-definition screens hanging 90 feet over the field appear to be easy targets for punters. Titans rookie A.J. Trapasso booted a ball into the screens in the first game there Friday. But there were 13 other punts that didn’t hit them.
The Cowboys plan to keep the boards at 90 feet, the height determined when consulting with the NFL during construction.
Suits are filed
Two Cowboys employees seriously injured in the collapse of the team’s indoor practice facility in Irving, Texas, filed lawsuits against the company that designed the structure and others linked to its construction and repair.
Scouting assistant Rich Behm and special teams coach Joe DeCamillis filed lawsuits against Summit Structures LLC and others involved in building and repairing the steel and fabric facility. The 88,000-square-foot structure collapsed in a windstorm May 2 during a practice for recently drafted players.
Behm, who was paralyzed from the waist down, and DeCamillis, who suffered a broken vertebrae, seek unspecified damages.
Roethlisberger back
Steelers quarterback
Ben Roethlisberger practiced for the first time since injuring his right foot during the team’s final training camp practice.
Coach Mike Tomlin said the QB will play in Saturday night’s exhibition against Buffalo.
Roethlisberger sat out last Saturday’s exhibition against Washington, two days after left tackle Max Starks accidentally stepped on the QB’s right foot minutes before the Steelers ended training camp.
Meeting of minds
Animal rights groups and the Eagles have met to look at ways they can combat dogfighting.
The team drew criticism after signing quarterback Michael Vick, convicted of being the ringleader of a dogfighting operation. He wasn’t in attendance at the Monday meeting.
Tom Hickey of DogPAC said he believes the upshot of the meeting was that the Eagles have a responsibility to battle dogfighting because of the Vick hire.
Vick will make his Eagles debut tomorrow night. He hasn’t played in an NFL game since Dec. 31, 2006.
Burress plans return
Plaxico Burress says he plans to return to the NFL after serving a two-year prison sentence on a weapons charge. In an ESPN interview last night, the ex-Giants receiver says he isn’t sure about what to expect in prison and is anxious about being separated from his family, revealing his wife is expecting . . . Bills coach
Dick Jauron ruled out
Terrell Owens from playing Saturday because the receiver is not fully recovered from a sprained toe . . . Disgruntled receiver
Brandon Marshall practiced with the Broncos, but it isn’t clear whether he will make his exhibition debut Sunday.
Little, LeBeau finalists
Former Broncos running back
Floyd Little and Steelers defensive coordinator
Dick LeBeau are finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The Hall’s Seniors Committee chose the 67-year-old Little, who gained more than 12,000 total yards in the NFL, and the 71-year-old LeBeau, a star defensive back before becoming a coach. They will join 15 modern-era candidates on the complete list of finalists for the 2010 class, which will be voted on Feb. 6 . . . The agent for
Edgerrin James said the league’s active rushing leader has signed a one-year contract with the Seahawks, as had been speculated . . . The Jaguars re-signed
Ernest Wilford, giving him a chance to make the roster as a tight end. Wilford, a fourth-round draft pick in 2004, left Jacksonville after four seasons and signed a lucrative deal with Miami, where he was a bust . . . Former Dolphins defensive lineman
T.J. Turner died of complications from a stroke in Lufkin, Texas. He was 46. Turner played for the Dolphins from 1986-92, compiling 16 sacks in 101 career games . . .
Serena and
Venus Williams got a firsthand look at their favorite NFL team. The tennis-playing sisters visited the Dolphins’ complex as the latest celebrities to own a small stake in the franchise.
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