Facial fracture shelves Harrison

BEN ROETHLISBERGER'S sprained left foot might be the least of the Steelers' problems. Coach Mike Tomlin expects his quarterback to play Sunday when Pittsburgh (2-2) hosts Tennessee (3-1).

The same can't be said for linebacker James Harrison, who needs surgery to repair a fractured orbital bone near his right eye and will be out "for a number of weeks."

Harrison sustained the injury in the third quarter of Pittsburgh's 17-10 loss to Houston last week when the forepad in his helmet came down and struck him in the eye as he collided with a Texans player.

The 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the Year returned to the game, but was ineffective at times as Houston drove the length of the field to score the winning touchdown.

The 33-year-old groused the Steelers "stink" afterward but gave no indication of significant damage. Tomlin indicated he won't know how long Harrison will be out until after the surgery.

"I told y'all it's wasn't a concussion!! Lol I'll be ok in time," Harrison tweeted yesterday shortly after the announcement.

The Steelers will slide Lawrence Timmons over from his inside linebacker spot to replace Harrison and start veteran reserve Larry Foote in Timmons' place.

Washington cornerback Phillip Buchanon was back on the field, having served his four-game suspension for violating the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances. Buchanon went through the light practice before the players took off for a 5-day bye-week break before they host the Eagles on Oct. 16. Buchanon declined to say which substance caused him to be suspended.

* Vikings wide receiver Bernard Berrian and a Minnesota state lawmaker have apparently patched up their Twitter feud. State Rep. John Kriesel was tweeting after the team's loss to the Kansas City Chiefs dropped the Vikings to 0-4. He linked to Berrian's Twitter account and seemed to ridicule the player's comment that he is open and should get the ball more. Berrian shot back with an offer to watch game tapes with Kriesel. He then added, "sit down n shut up." Kriesel is an Iraq war veteran who lost his legs in action. He is also backing a bill to build a new NFL stadium in a Twin Cities suburb.

Also, the Vikings signed fullback Ryan D'Imperio, a former Rutgers linebacker, from their practice squad and waived tight end Allen Reisner.

* The home of the New Orleans Saints and site of six Super Bowls will be renamed the Mercedes-Benz Superdome under a 10-year deal with the German automaker, which requested that the financial terms not be revealed.

* Seattle placed linebacker Matt McCoy on injured reserve and signed linebacker David Vobora. The Seahawks also released fullback Eddie Williams and signed defensive end Jameson Konz off the practice squad. McCoy suffered a knee injury early in Sunday's 30-28 loss to Atlanta when a teammate crashed into his right leg on punt coverage.

* Indianapolis defensive tackle Eric Foster will miss the rest of the season after partially dislocating his right ankle. Coach Jim Caldwell says Foster had season-ending surgery less than 24 hours after sustaining a gruesome injury in Monday night's loss at Tampa Bay.

* Hank Williams Jr. issued a statement apologizing for using an analogy to Adolf Hitler in discussing President Obama that prompted ESPN to pull his classic intro song to "Monday Night Football." Williams said in a statement posted on Facebook and his website that his passion for politics and sports "got the best or worst of me." ESPN had no comment. It is not known if the intro, synonymous with "Monday Night Football" since 1989, would be used again.

*  A judge says a videotape of a statement former Denver Broncos cornerback Perrish Cox made in jail can't be used at his sexual assault trial, but written statements from it are allowed. The judge said recordings of statements between Cox and the accuser and Cox and a detective at his home and at the Lone Tree police department also are admissible. In all three, Cox denies touching his accuser.

*  San Francisco has placed defensive tackle Will Tukuafu on the season-ending injured reserve list with a wrist injury.