Eagles' wings clipped as Westbrook injures knee

The Philadelphia Eagles running backs Brian Westbrook and Correll Buckhalter are both big doubts for the game against the New York Giants.

Brian Westbrook, right, has scored eight touchdowns this season.
Powered by automated translation

The Philadelphia Eagles running backs Brian Westbrook and Correll Buckhalter are both big doubts for the game against the New York Giants. Westbrook, who has a team-leading eight touchdowns this season, is nursing knee and ankle injuries. The All-Pro trained on Wednesday but sat out Thursday and Friday's workout. He is listed as questionable.

Westbrook played through pain last week against Arizona and had his best game of the season, rushing for 110 yards on 22 carries and scoring four TDs - which tied a franchise record - in a 48-20 win. Buckhalter also missed practice with a knee injury and is listed as doubtful. If neither can play, Lorenzo Booker is likely to be called up to start. Meanwhile, the Buffalo Bills quarterback Trent Edwards also sat out of practice yesterday with a groin injury and is listed as doubtful for today's game against the Miami Dolphins in Toronto.

If Edwards is unable to go, as appears to be the case, JP Losman will get the start. Losman replaced Edwards at half-time of last weekend's 10-3 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, finishing 11-of-17 for 93 yards. "It's exciting," Losman said of the possibility of starting. "From my standpoint, I know when I got to play last week, it was fun. Right now, it's exciting knowing that it's a possibility and we'll find out."

Buffalo are 6-6 and in last place in the AFC East, one game behind the Dolphins and the New England Patriots. Today's game marks the first regular-season contest to be played in Canada. The game, which is sold out, is the first of five regular-season contests to be played in Toronto through to the 2012 season. In August, the Bills played the first of three pre-season games scheduled for the city in a five-year span.

The Dallas Cowboys will find out today whether Tony Romo, back from his broken little finger, can be as effective against one of the NFL's elite teams - the Pittsburgh Steelers - as he has been against also-rans. Dallas have won three straight since Romo returned, but the last two have been at home against San Francisco and Seattle, who have won six games between them. This week, the Cowboys go to Pittsburgh to take on the NFC North-leading Steelers (9-3), who beat the Patriots 33-10 in Foxborough last week when they forced five straight turnovers to start the second half.

Romo seems fine now, but two of Dallas' best players have injury problems: the linebacker DeMarcus Ware and running back Marion Barber. Ware injured a knee and Barber a foot in the Thanksgiving Day win over the Seahawks, although both say they expect to play. * Agencies