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Jacksonville Jaguars: Six-year veteran wide receiver Troy Edwards, who started 15 games for the Jaguars over the past two seasons, was released Sunday, despite having been the club's second-leading pass-catcher in 2004.

Edwards, 28, appeared only sparingly in the preseason and last week went public about his lack of playing time. It appears Edwards was victimized by the development of the Jags' younger wide receivers. Jacksonville used its first-round choices in each of the last two years on wide receivers, Reggie Williams in 2004 and Matt Jones this year. The staff is also high on second-year wideout Ernest Wilford and rookie Chad Owens.

A first-round choice of the Steelers in the 1999 draft, Edwards has bounced around during his career. After playing with the Steelers (1999-2001) and St. Louis ('02), he signed with Jacksonville early in the 2003 season. In two seasons with the team, he played in 29 games, with 15 starts, and had 85 catches for 1,020 yards and four scores. Last season, Edwards had 50 receptions for 533 yards and one touchdown.

In six seasons, the former Louisiana Tech standout has 201 receptions for 2,389 yards and 11 touchdowns. Edwards has played in 89 games and started 22 times.
-- ESPN.com senior writer Len Pasquarelli

Atlanta Falcons: It appears that the Falcons have lost rookie middle linebacker Jordan Beck, who injured his left foot in Thursday's preseason victory at Jacksonville, for the entire season. A third-round draft choice and a standout in camp and preseason, Beck suffered a broken left foot in the game. The injury was initially diagnosed as a sprained ankle but further tests revealed a fracture on the top part of the foot.

The injury, which will require surgery, occurred when Beck intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter. When he was tackled, his toes bent under his foot. The Falcons will likely place Beck on injured reserve. The former Cal-Poly San Luis Obispo star, winner of the Buck Buchanan Award in 2004 as the outstanding defensive player in Division I-AA, had been the top backup to starting middle linebacker Ed Hartwell.
-- Len Pasquarelli

New York Jets: The team signed defensive back Aaron Francisco and waived linebacker Eric Mahl and wide receiver Brock Ralph.

Francisco was released by the Cardinals last week after signing with them as an undrafted free agent out of BYU. During his senior year, Francisco had 88 tackles, one sack and one interception.

Mahl was claimed off waivers earlier this month after Cleveland waived him July 31. Ralph signed with the Jets in January after two seasons in the CFL.

Also Sunday, rookie safety Andre Maddox was placed on injured reserve with torn ligaments in his knee.

Carolina Panthers: Rod Rutherford, who was vying to be the third-string QB, and rookie wide receiver Taylor Stubblefield were among 11 players released.

Rutherford was signed as a free agent last season and then released in the final round of cuts. But he turned down an offer to sign with the Packers to return to Carolina's practice squad, where he spent most of the year simulating the opposing quarterback.

But the Panthers drafted Stefan LeFors in the fourth round this year, and Rutherford lost the battle with him for the final roster spot behind Jake Delhomme and Chris Weinke.

Stubblefield went undrafted despite ending his career at Purdue as the NCAA's all-time leader in receptions.

The Panthers also released defensive tackle Omari Jordan, who played in five games last season for Carolina, tight end Chad Mustard, cornerback Dwight Anderson, running back Nick Maddox, wide receiver J.R. Tolver and linebacker Marcus Lawrence. Offensive linemen Bill Ferrario, Chase Johnson and Michael Watson were also released.

Chicago Bears: Linebacker Brian Urlacher was fined $5,000 for his hit on Colts tight end Dallas Clark, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Sunday.

Clark was running deep down the middle and was overthrown slightly by Peyton Manning on Aug. 20, when Urlacher flattened Clark as the ball went by. Urlacher was penalized for unnecessary roughness on the play.

The league defended the fine, saying it fell under the NFL's intent to protect defenseless players, according to the paper.

San Diego Chargers: Outside linebacker Shawne Merriman is out for a minimum of two weeks with a sprained left knee, meaning it's possible he'll miss the season opener on Sept. 11 against the Cowboys.

Merriman was hurt on the opening kickoff of Friday night's exhibition loss at Minnesota when he fell on the artificial turf.

"I don't know," coach Marty Schottenheimer said about Merriman's availability for the opener. "That remains to be seen."

Merriman, the team's top pick and the draft's 12th overall selection, has a sprained posterior ligament. An MRI taken Saturday revealed that not enough damage was done to require surgery.

Merriman has played sparingly since reporting a week late to training camp. He missed the first exhibition game with a strained hamstring and played in the second game before getting hurt at Minnesota.

Schottenheimer also said he expects defensive end Luis Castillo, the team's other first-round pick, to return to practice this week. Castillo has missed the past two games with a sore right Achilles tendon.

The team also cut 11 players, with the biggest name being defensive end Adrian Dingle. He was slowed by knee injuries last year and leaves the Chargers with 14{ sacks in 70 games over six seasons.

The Chargers host San Francisco in their exhibition finale Thursday night.

Cleveland Browns: Linebacker Brant Boyer, a 12-year veteran who missed last season because of a foot injury, was one of 13 players released.

The club also cut punter Derrick Frost, giving Kyle Richardson the starting job.

The 34-year-old Boyer was one of four linebackers released along with Justin Kurpeikis, Sherrod Coates and undrafted rookie Kevin Harrison.

Other players released included offensive lineman Javiar Collins, quarterback Lang Campbell, defensive lineman Corey Jackson, safety James King, wide receiver Lance Moore, offensive lineman Clint Stickdorn, tight end Keith Willis and kicker Tyler Jones.

Boyer signed with the Browns as a free agent in 2001 after spending six seasons with Jacksonville. He matched a career high with 80 tackles in 2003 and was one of the club's top special teams players.

However, he got hurt in a preseason scrimmage against Buffalo last summer and was placed on injured reserve.

Cincinnati Bengals: The team placed veteran linebacker Nate Webster on the physically unable to perform list.

Recovering from knee surgery that limited him to three games last season, Webster must sit out the first six regular-season contests. He is eligible to return to practice on Oct. 17.

Webster, 27, is entering his sixth season and second with the Bengals after spending his first four campaigns with Tampa Bay. He has registered 168 tackles and two sacks in 66 career games.

With Webster sidelined for much of last season, the Bengals used Landon Johnson at middle linebacker. In April's draft, the club selected linebacker Odell Thurman in the second round.

San Francisco 49ers: Andrew Williams, San Francisco's third-round pick in 2003, was among 10 players released by the 49ers. Williams, who played defensive end in his first two seasons in San Francisco, had difficulty becoming a linebacker in the 49ers' new 3-4 defensive scheme.

"He could probably do it a little bit, but he's a tweener in my mind," coach Mike Nolan said. "I believe in letting him go this week, it will give somebody else a chance to look at him for a week. I believe he has a possibility of playing someplace else."

The 49ers also waived cornerback Joselio Hanson, who started three games last season, along with defensive end Josh Cooper, receiver Javin Hunter, guard Paul Zukauskas, safety Arnold Parker, tight end Doug Zeigler, kicker Kirk Yliniemi and punter Cole Farden.

San Francisco reached an injury settlement with fullback Brian Johnson, who has an ankle injury. The 49ers must still make two more moves by Tuesday to reach league roster requirements.

Nolan also said tight end Eric Johnson will miss the entire preseason with a foot injury. The coach isn't sure whether Johnson, the 49ers' leading receiver last season with 82 catches for 825 yards, will be ready for the season opener Sept. 11 against St. Louis.

Eric Heitmann, the starting guard who has been playing center during the preseason, will also miss Thursday's preseason finale at San Diego with a knee injury.

Offensive linemen Jeremy Newberry and rookie David Baas will return to practice Monday. Both have been on the 49ers' physically unable to perform list during training camp, but Newberry -- a two-time Pro Bowl center -- is hoping to play through the pain from his surgically repaired knee.

Buffalo Bills: Running back ReShard Lee was among seven players waived. A two-year NFL veteran, Lee was expected to compete for the backup spot behind starter Willis McGahee when the Bills signed him in May. Lee had a disappointing preseason with 16 carries for 44 yards and three catches for 18 yards. His playing time gradually diminished as he was overshadowed by second-year veteran Shaud Williams and rookie seventh-round pick Lionel Gates.

Also released were receiver Tony Brown, defensive back Rob Lee, defensive end Uyi Osunde, linebacker Daryl Towns, quarterback Tory Woodbury and former Southern Oregon punter Steve Baker.

The Bills did not comment on the moves, which were announced prior to the start of a closed practice Sunday, the team's first after a 16-12 loss at Chicago on Friday. The cuts leave Buffalo with a 70-player roster, including rookie tight end Kevin Everett and cornerback Kevin Thomas, who are on the physically unable to perform list.

NFL teams must pare their rosters to 65 by Tuesday and get down to the regular-season maximum of 53 by Saturday, a day after the Bills close their preseason hosting Detroit.

Information from The Associated Press and SportsTicker was included in this report.