Unlike Cole, Giants' O'Hara not apologizing

New York Giants center Shaun O'Hara is not apologizing for his actions during a scuffle with Trent Cole and said he is surprised he got fined the same amount as the Eagles' defensive end.

The two were fined $15,000 each for the incident, which took place near the end of Sunday's game at Giants Stadium.

O'Hara, who said he plans to appeal the fine, appeared to stiff-arm Cole in the facemask in the closing seconds of the Eagles' 45-38 win. Cole retaliated by throwing a couple of punches.

Cole already apologized for his role in the incident.

"I know that it was a very physical game and there was a lot going on, a lot of things that escalated up to that point," O'Hara said. "One thing I'll say is I'm always going to stick up for myself and stick up for my teammates. There was certainly a lot of pushing and shoving, but I felt the pushing and shoving was going both ways until it escalated."

O'Hara said he expected to be fined, but was surprised by the amount. He said he was also was stunned both got fined the same amount. O'Hara said that Cole grabbed his facemask, pulled him down and punched him.

O'Hara said his appeal probably won't be heard until February. He isn't very hopeful he will win.

"My Christmas presents are going to be a little bit smaller this year," he quipped.

In other team news, offensive tackle Kareem McKenzie and cornerback Corey Webster missed practice with knee injuries they suffered in Sunday's game against the Eagles. Coach Tom Coughlin said he isn't sure whether either will be able to play Monday night against the Redskins.

* New York Jets coach Rex Ryan says the voting system is all wrong if cornerback Darrelle Revis doesn't win the NFL's Defensive Player of the year award this season. Ryan said he has coached Ray Lewis and Ed Reed in Baltimore when they won the award, but Revis has had even more of an impact than those players. Revis has six interceptions and has routinely shut down opposing teams' top receivers.

* Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan (toe) and running back Michael Turner (sprained ankle) said they aren't sure they will ready to play Sunday against the New York Jets after practicing for the first time in nearly 3 weeks.

* Cleveland spokesman Bill Bonsiewicz said the team had not discussed money with Mike Holmgren, who met with the Falcons for 2 days this week to talk about their director of football operations position. Bonsiewicz would comment on whether the Browns have brought in other candidates. Before Holmgren could be hired, the team would have to interview a minority candidate to comply with the league rules.

* New England quarterback Tom Brady had limited participation in practice after sitting out Wednesday's workout while nursing rib and right finger problems. He is expected to start Sunday at Buffalo.

* St. Louis canceled practice because of an undisclosed number of swine flu cases on the team. Coach Steve Spagnuolo would not say how many players had the illness, but said five or six players had flulike symptoms, and said other players had reported symptoms the last few weeks. The Rams host Houston Sunday.

* Dallas linebacker DeMarcus Ware was back at practice, though the team was unclear about his status for Saturday night's game at New Orleans, which will be less than a week after he strained his neck in a scary headfirst collision against San Diego that required a trip to the hospital.

* A judge handed down a life sentence for the man convicted of attempted first-degree murder in the shooting of former Jacksonville offensive lineman Richard Collier.

The state attorney's office says Judge Mallory Cooper sentenced 33-year-old Tyrone Hartsfield, who was convicted last month.

Collier was shot six times last year as he waited in his car outside a Jacksonville apartment building. He was paralyzed from the waist down and his left leg was amputated.

* The House Judiciary Committee is holding a second hearing on concussions in football on Jan. 4 in Detroit. It's a follow-up to a session in October, when lawmakers grilled NFL commissioner Roger Goodell about his league's concussion policy and whether head injuries in football can be linked to brain disease.