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Englewood, Colo. • Denver Broncos wide receiver Jordan Norwood tore his left ACL in practice Wednesday, ending what was shaping up as one of the league's best comeback stories.
Norwood was trying to catch a sideline touchdown pass from Peyton Manning when Houston cornerback Brandon Harris broke it up. Norwood landed awkwardly and was carted off the field.
The fifth-year pro, who'd been cut five times by four teams and sat out all of last season, was Denver's most consistent punt returner and had worked his way into the receiver rotation.
He had a 20-yard punt return and a 34-yard TD catch against Seattle in the preseason opener.
Wes Welker now moves up to primary punt returner with undrafted rookie Isaiah Burse as another option.
Steelers' Bell, Blount to face pot charges
Pittsburgh Steelers running backs Le'Veon Bell and LeGarrette Blount will be charged with marijuana possession following a traffic stop Wednesday afternoon.
Ross Township police say a traffic officer pulled over a Camaro operated by Bell around 1:30 p.m. after the officer noticed a strong odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle.
The officer found a 20-gram bag of marijuana inside the car. Bell was taken to a hospital to have blood drawn and is expected to be charged with driving under the influence of marijuana.
Bell, Blount and a female passenger were arrested and are expected to receive notice of formal charges through the mail. The possession and DUI charges are both misdemeanors.
The Steelers play in Philadelphia on Thursday night.
Raiders' Reece's injury not as bad as feared
Oakland Raiders fullback Marcel Reece escaped a scare when an injury to his right foot was not as significant as initially feared and he expects to be at full strength when the season opens next month.
Reece was a full participant at practice on Wednesday, two days after undergoing an MRI on the foot he injured during last week's preseason game against Detroit. Reece would not disclose the official diagnosis of the injury, calling it only a "foot issue."
Reece has missed just four games because of injury since becoming Oakland's regular fullback in 2010 and said he never wants to be off the field. He admitted to some concern that he may need to miss some time before getting the encouraging news earlier this week.
"It was a sigh of relief to know that it wasn't as serious as they thought initially," Reece said. "It was definitely a sigh of relief.
"It's been feeling better every day. I had that one day of rest and it's amazing what one day of rest will do for you when you haven't had one in a while." —
NFL preseason schedule
Thursday
• Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m., NFL Network
Friday
• Carolina at New England, 7:30 p.m.
• N.Y. Giants at N.Y. Jets, 7:30 p.m.
• Jacksonville at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
• Oakland at Green Bay, 8 p.m.
• Chicago at Seattle, 8 p.m.