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Cleveland Browns: Kelly Holcomb, recovering from a broken right leg, gets the nod as the starter at quarterback, the Akron Beacon Journal reported.

''Kelly moved around very, very well, so we're back to the starting position where we started the season,'' Davis told the paper.

Holcomb broke his right fibula Sept. 21 in the Browns 13-12 victory at San Francisco and was replaced by Tim Couch. Couch, who sprained his right thumb in a 9-3 loss to New England, was unable to grip a ball in warm-ups and had problems with taking snaps, the paper reported.

Miami Dolphins: Offensive tackle Mark Dixon was placed on injured reserve Tuesday because of an ankle injury.

Dixon had not played in any of the Dolphins' eight games this season. He has missed 18 of the Dolphins' past 30 regular-season games with injuries, and underwent two operations on the bothersome right ankle since August in hopes of playing this year.

Defensive end David Bowens will return to practice this week. Bowens has been on the non-football injury list since summer, when he injured his knee while changing a light bulb at his home.

Bowens must be on the 53-man roster by Nov. 25 to be eligible to return at any point this season.

Pittsburgh Steelers: With his team mired in one of the worst stretches of his 12-year stewardship, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher has vowed to shake up his slumping team. He began that process on Tuesday by benching longtime starting cornerback Dewayne Washington.

The 10-year veteran will be replaced at cornerback for Sunday's matchup against the Arizona Cardinals by DeShea Townsend. It is not known if Washington, who has started in every one of his 151 regular-season appearances in the NFL, will be utilized in any of the "dime" coverage packages.

Cowher alluded to a critical missed tackle by Washington in last week's loss at Seattle, but insisted the right cornerback's demotion was not solely because of that play, but was instead due to a combination of factors. Washington was pulled from the field following the missed tackle, which resulted in a 43-yard catch-and-run by Seattle wide receiver Darrell Jackson in the fourth quarter.

The Steelers coach hinted that he feels Washington, 30, and one of Pittsburgh's two high-priced cornerbacks, is suffering from a lack of confidence.

"I think that has more to do with (his performance) than anything," Cowher said. "Going into this game, we are making the change, and that speaks for itself."

There is a chance that rookie cornerback Ike Taylor, a fourth-round draft choice, could see his playing time increased as well. Townsend, 28, is a sixth-year pro who has played primarily in "sub" defenses and on special teams during his career.

Washington has 28 career interceptions and 140 passes defensed. But he has not had a pickoff this season, through eight games, and has only two passes defensed.

Denver Broncos: Team officials are beginning to wonder when, or if, Ed McCaffrey, who helped form one of the league's most prolific wide receiver tandems of the last decade, will return to the field this season.

The 13th-year veteran, bothered by a quadriceps injury, did not appear in Monday night's loss to the New England Patriots. In fact, McCaffrey, 35, did not even attempt to test his injured leg before the contest. The club is hopeful McCaffrey can play when it resumes its schedule on Nov. 16, after a bye this week, but even that is uncertain.

"All I know is, if Eddie could play, he would play," coach Mike Shanahan said.

McCaffrey has played in six games this season but has posted only eight catches for 73 yards. He has 554 career receptions and four times registered 60-plus catches, with a career best of 101 in 2000. Injuries limited McCaffrey to one game in 2001, but he came back to start all 16 contests last season.

There is a suspicion that the quadriceps injury is worse than the team is letting on and it is clear that McCaffrey is frustrated by his inactivity. "It makes me sick not to be able to play," said McCaffrey, who has now missed three straight outings.

Kansas City Chiefs: Coming off their bye week, the undefeated Chiefs don't need to do much tinkering, but coach Dick Vermeil did make one alteration to the depth chart during the club's hiatus. First-round draft choice Larry Johnson, who has played sparingly in his rookie campaign, has been promoted to the No. 2 tailback spot.

Given that starter Priest Holmes logs most of the carries, of course, the promotion might seem a cosmetic one, but Vermeil insisted he wants to get the former Penn State star a bit more experience in the second half of the season. Johnson, who ran for more than 2,000 yards in 2002, has appeared in just one game for the Chiefs, rushing for 25 yards on six carries in the fourth quarter of a Sept. 21 contest against the Houston Texans.

Johnson was moved ahead of veteran backup Derrick Blaylock, who has carried just six times for 30 yards this season, and who is a standout special teams performer.

"The number of times I see him on the practice field with the ball in his hand, running against our defense, he shows those intrinsic talents and abilities that are hard to coach," Vermeil said of the decision to move Johnson up the depth chart. "Sooner or later, if we need him, I want those skills honed within our own offense."

Minnesota Vikings: Suggesting that his defense has suddenly "hit the wall" at the midpoint of the season, coach Mike Tice is preparing to make changes on that side of the ball for Sunday's game against the San Diego Chargers.

"When you give up 900 yards [in two games]," said Tice, whose team lost consecutive outings to the Giants and Packers, "you can't stand pat."

The modifications to a defense that statistically ranks No. 29 in the league, but which has covered its deficiencies with resourcefulness and takeaways, won't be far-reaching. But it is expected that starting middle linebacker Greg Biekert will be supplanted by rookie E.J. Henderson in some situations, and that Ken Irvin will replace starter Denard Walker at the left cornerback spot. Irvin to this point has been the nickel cornerback.

Biekert said he was apprised by the staff earlier this week that Henderson will replace him in some nickel situations.

Jacksonville Jaguars: Veteran cornerback Jason Craft will return to the practice field for the Jaguars this week, after missing two games with a sprained knee ligament, but he will not return to his starting job.

Coach Jack Del Rio said that rookie Rashean Mathis, who replaced Craft while he was rehabilitating from the knee injury, will remain at cornerback. Mathis, a second-round pick, had started the first six games at free safety. But the Jaguars coaches feel that the fluid Mathis, a natural "ball" athlete, can help more on the corner.

"I like what I see of [Mathis] at cornerback," Del Rio said. Craft probably will play as a "nickel" corner and Deke Cooper, who has started at free safety the last two weeks, will stay in that spot.

Chicago Bears: The Bears have signed fourth-year tight end Dustin Lyman to a one-year contract extension that will keep him with the team through the 2005 season. Lyman, 27, already was under contract through 2004.

After rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament of his left knee last December, Lyman was essentially forced to sign a two-year contract, as a restricted free agent, because he had no leverage with the injury. That deal did not include a signing bonus. The extension means that Lyman will earn an additional $450,000 this year, plus some security.

"I feel like, with everything I've been through, I earned it," Lyman said. "It was time for my luck to change a little."

The team also placed Marc Columbo on injured reserve, ending the second-year tackle's season for a second straight year because of a knee injury.

Columbo started five games at left tackle last season and filled in at right tackle before he dislocated his left knee cap against the Rams. He had two surgeries on the knee, but was placed on the injured list prior to the start of the season.

The 6-foot-8, 325-pound Colombo was a first-round draft pick last year and was expected to be the starter at right tackle this season.

Buffalo Bills: Tight end Mark Campbell avoided becoming an unrestricted free agent by signing a multiyear contract extension with the Buffalo Bills on Tuesday.

Campbell, a five-year NFL veteran, was in the final year of a deal that paid him $650,000 this season. The Bills acquired Campbell for a conditional pick in next year's draft in a trade with Cleveland last February.

Initially noted for his blocking, Campbell has emerged as a capable receiver with Buffalo, helping fill the role vacated by Jay Riemersma, who was released last February and is now with Pittsburgh. In eight games and seven starts this season, Campbell ranks fourth among Bills receivers with 23 catches for a career-high 197 yards.

"Mark's very excited and he's looking forward to being there," Campbell's agent, Steve Forest, said. "They approached us and it was obviously mutual because we feel it was a good deal. And it's always good to be somewhere that you're wanted."

Atlanta Falcons: Offensive guard Travis Claridge, who started the Falcons' first six games, will miss the rest of the season with a strained right knee.

Claridge sat out the past two games, but the knee was still too sore for him to play. He went on injured reserve today after a meeting with coach Dan Reeves.

The Falcons didn't have enough depth on the line to carry an ailing player. Already this week, starting left tackle Bob Whitfield went on injured reserve with a fractured right fibula and ligament damage, which occurred during Sunday's loss to the Eagles.

Claridge was replaced by guard Michael Moore, who went to training camp with the Falcons but was waived before the season. He originally was a fourth-round pick by Washington in 2000.

Atlanta also re-signed linebacker James Cotton to the practice squad. A spot opened up when tackle Dwayne Morgan was promoted to the 53-man roster to replace Whitfield.

The Falcons, who have lost seven in a row, visit the Giants in East Rutherford, N.J., this weekend.

Washington Redskins: Dave Fiore, the first of Dan Snyder's major free agent signings during the Redskins' offseason spending spree, was placed on injured reserve.

The Redskins signed Fiore to a four-year, $6.5 million contract in March, even though he was coming off his fifth knee operation. Fiore started just three games before his knee gave out and hasn't played since, although he had hoped to return after having a sixth operation three weeks ago.

Rookie Derrick Dockery has been starting for Fiore, part of the reason the Redskins have allowed an NFL-high 29 sacks.

In other moves, the Redskins addressed the fact that they have no healthy tailbacks on their roster by signing former Tennessee running back John Simon.

Simon played in 14 games for the Titans as a rookie last season. He had nine carries for 18 yards and one touchdown and caught 16 passes for 167 yards and three TDs.

Trung Canidate, the team's leading rusher, has missed the last two games with a severe ankle sprain. Ladell Betts is out with a broken arm. Chad Morton sprained his ankle against Dallas, and Sultan McCullough broke his hand against the Cowboys.

Of those four, only Canidate is expected back for Sunday's game against Seattle.

The Redskins also re-signed offensive lineman Brad Bedell. Bedell has been released and re-signed twice during a busy two weeks of minor roster changes.

The Redskins also waived cornerback Calvin Carlyle, who was signed last week.