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When the preseason mercifully ended for Baltimore and Atlanta on Friday night, Ravens running back Willis McGahee summed it up best. “I’m ready to rock, man,” McGahee said. “It’s time to get down and dirty.” McGahee was one of the few players with name recognition to play in a game decided by second-string kickers.

Peyton Manning and Carson Palmer were spectators for a preseason game that was tough to watch from the sideline — or anywhere else. Neither of the NFL’s Pro Bowl passers got onto the field Friday night, leaving it to the reserves to generate some points and excitement. Neither came easily during the Cincinnati Bengals’ 14-6 victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

The NFL will suspend New England Patriots safety Rodney Harrison four games for violating its substance abuse policy, Harrison said Friday night. “Tomorrow, the commissioner will announce that I’ve been suspended,” a somber Harrison said in a hastily announced conference call. Although the hard-hitting defensive back said he has never used steroids, “I did admit to the commissioner that I did, in…

A Congressional committee will hold a hearing Sept. 18 about compensation for retired NFL players. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation called for the hearing Friday, several months after a House subcommittee heard testimony from retired players, union and NFL officials. The retired players claim the league and the NFL Players Association have been neglectful in dealing with…

The Houston Texans released 20 players on Friday, including Keenan McCardell and Chad Stanley, the only punter in franchise history. The Texans must release two more players to get to the league-mandated 53-player limit by 5 p.m. Saturday. McCardell was signed just before training camp to bolster Houston’s receiving group, but the emergence of third-round pick Jacoby Jones pushed the 37-year-old out…

The Jets won their preseason finale by driving from their 18-yard line to Philadelphia’s 17 with three seconds to play, setting up Mike Nugent’s 35-yard field goal as time expired….

Daunte Culpepper has played in almost a decade worth of ho-hum preseason games. Thursday night was not one of them. The recently deposed Miami Dolphins starter made a strong push to convince first-year coach Lane Kiffin he should be his starting quarterback, completing 11 of 19 passes for 108 yards and leading the Raiders offense to its only touchdown in Oakland’s 19-14 loss to the Seattle…

The San Diego Chargers say they’re ready for the Chicago Bears. The San Francisco 49ers clearly need more work. On a night of faux football that was woefully lacking in star power, Alex Smith punctuated his homecoming with two turnovers that helped the San Diego Chargers beat the sloppy 49ers 16-13 in an exhibition finale Thursday night.

Larry Johnson got the break-in work he needed while supplying a lackluster Chiefs-Rams preseason finale with just a smidgen of star power….

Betty Johnson, the mother of the Jets’ owner, has spent most of her life cultivating the seeds that became her family’s full-bloom passion for the sport.

The Jets won their preseason finale by driving from their 18-yard line to Philadelphia’s 17 with three seconds to play, setting up Mike Nugent’s 35-yard field goal as time expired….

Of all the questions the Giants hoped to answer during training camp, one persists: At some point, will they find defensive end Michael Strahan waiting for them at home?

We will know that Eli Manning has met the big-boy challenge when teammates do not have to defend him so vigorously in the locker room.

Quarterback Tom Brady and every other first-team player on the Patriots’ roster did not play for fear that they could get hurt….

The Green Bay Packers lost their unbeaten preseason record and their top receiver in a 21-13 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars at Lambeau Field last night. After sputtering under the starting quarterback Byron Leftwich, the Jaguars’ offense woke up when David Garrard entered early in the third quarter. Facing the Packers’ second-string defense, Garrard played two series and led the Jaguars (2-1) to two touchdowns….

ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Aug. 30 (AP) — With No. 7 emblazoned across his chest, the high school senior preparing for the season opener Friday night drops back and throws a dart to a receiver in the back of the end zone….