SAN DIEGO The surgeon's knife can wait. Shawne Merriman is going to play football, two torn knee ligaments and all.
A day after visiting a fourth doctor, the San Diego Chargers' star outside linebacker decided Wednesday to play this season rather than have surgery on his damaged left knee.
“To be as simple as possible, I just want to play football,” he said. “That's what it comes down to. I know what's on the table, I know what's on the line. I put a lot of work in this and I want to play.”
Merriman said late last week he has tears in the posterior cruciate and lateral collateral ligaments in his left knee, which he hurt in a game at Tennessee in December. He spent several days seeking outside opinions. He returned Tuesday after seeing a doctor in Miami.
Merriman said all four doctors he saw said he needed surgery, but there “just wasn't a time frame on that. My knee still looks pretty good. The decision was left up to me to play. If you give a football player a decision to play, you know, I'm going to play.”
Around the league
DENVER: Rookie Ryan Clady has been named the starting left tackle, arguably the most critical spot on the offensive line.
“There's a lot of pressure on him to come in here and start in a league with some very good defensive ends and linebackers who are coming his way,” said quarterback Jay Cutler. “He's doing well right now. He's picking up the offense well because he has been in there since OTAs (organized team activities). By now, he should have it.”
GREEN BAY: Defensive lineman Johnny Jolly Jr. faces a Sept. 16 court date on a felony drug possession charge, according to court records.
Jolly, 25, was arrested July 8 in Houston for possession of at least 200 grams of a controlled substance, a second-degree felony, according to court documents. He posted $10,000 bond and was released. He was originally due in court Wednesday, but that date was reset for next month.
INDIANAPOLIS: Now Peyton Manning can start fine-tuning the mechanics, timing and rhythm.
Just don't expect him to try it in tonight's exhibition against Cincinnati.
Coach Tony Dungy increased Manning's workload Wednesday, one day after he returned to practice and showed no lingering effects from the knee surgery that kept him out the past six weeks.
Manning had surgery July14 to remove an infected bursa sac from his left knee.
JACKSONVILLE: Defensive end Derrick Harvey ended the NFL's longest rookie holdout for 2008, but it might not be soon enough to get him on the field for a game before the start of the regular season.
After holding out for 33 days, Harvey signed a five-year, $23million deal that includes a little more than $17million in guaranteed money.
NEW ENGLAND: The Patriots made their first NFL-mandated roster reduction, trimming from 80 to 75. The biggest surprise was the team's decision to part ways with cornerback Jason Webster, who was signed in the offseason from Buffalo.
A hamstring injury proved to be Webster's undoing. Entering his ninth NFL season, he had been missing from practice since July27 until he returned Monday. He had run out of time to show coaches what he could do.
The Patriots released three players: Webster, running back Kyle Eckel, and rookie offensive lineman Ryan Wendell.
SEATTLE:Lofa Tatupu has a bone bruise in his right knee, but coach Mike Holmgren said the Pro Bowl linebacker will be fine for the season opener Sept. 7 at Buffalo.
DIVERSITY STUDY: The NFL has kept a steady number of black head coaches, while slightly increasing the ranks of Asian and Latino players, earning a B+ in an annual diversity study.
However, the league didn't get a grade for gender diversity for the fourth year in a row.
The NFL is the only pro sports organization that refuses to share its league office data with University of Central Florida's Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports, which also conducts annual studies on the NBA, Major League Baseball, WNBA, pro soccer and college athletics.
@Nyx.CommentBody@