Dispatches

One AFC scout who watched two Colts preseason games liked what he saw of 38-year-old backup quarterback Mark Rypien, who left the game three years ago to deal with the illness and subsequent death of his three-year-old son, Andrew. "It's amazing how quickly the rust has come off," the scout says. "He's shown excellent accuracy, he has some mobility left and he knows what to do when the pressure comes. He looks better than most backups."...

Packers defensive end Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila made quite an impact in his first start, with three sacks and two pressures of Lions quarterback Charlie Batch in Green Bay's 28-6 win. Gbaja-Biamila, whose name means "big man come and save me" in Nigerian, is a second-year player out of San Diego State....

Trent Green completed 16 of 37 passes in his first game as a Chief, a 27-24 loss to the Raiders, but only three were caught by wideouts. "For us to win," coach Dick Vermeil said, "our receivers have to separate better."...

The Steelers were smart last week to lock up wideout Hines Ward with a four-year, $10 million contract extension. Although Ward is basically a possession receiver, Pittsburgh knows that the expansion Texans will have tons of money to spend on free agents and a shrinking pool of quality talent to choose from before it begins play next year. To Houston, Ward might have been worth $4 million a year....

Of the 44 plays the Cowboys ran in a 10-6 loss to the Buccaneers, only 19 gained yards....

What an amazing opener for Jaguars wideout Jimmy Smith, who'd had intestinal surgery three times in the past 5� months: eight catches for 126 yards and two touchdowns in a 21-3 win over the Steelers.