NFL roundup: Chiefs' Charles forced to leave practice
Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamal Charles was carted off the field during practice Monday, but coach Andy Reid said X-rays taken on Charles' injured foot were negative.
The team is treating the injury as a sprain and the injury is not considered serious. His status for Friday night's preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers is not certain, but Reid told NFL.com, "If he is ready to go, he'll play."
Charles also had a foot injury prior to minicamps in the spring. X-rays for that injury were negative as well. He had left that practice after limping off the field.
Charles rushed for 1,509 yards last season. He missed most of 2011 with a torn ACL. He has rushed for at least 1,000 yards in three of the past four seasons.
Rookie Knile Davis, second-year player Cyrus Gray and 25-year-old Shane Draughn back up Charles.
---First-year Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid got his man when he traded for quarterback Alex Smith during the offseason. It turns out that he tried to acquire Smith several times before that.
Reid acknowledged that he attempted to trade for the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback multiple times while he coached the Philadelphia Eagles.
"I just always watched him and thought, 'Man, I'd like to coach that kid,' " Reid told Peter King of mmqb.si.com.
Smith was the No. 1 pick in the 2005 draft. Over the years, Reid was set at the position with Donovan McNabb and later Michael Vick. The Eagles also drafted Kevin Kolb and Nick Foles in recent years. Despite that, Reid said he always had interest in Smith.
---New York Giants safety Antrel Rolle was carted off the field after spraining his right ankle, according to NFL.com. There is no timetable for his return.
Rolle has been a starter for three seasons since coming to the Giants and has not missed a game. He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals as a cornerback in 2005.
He has 230 tackles, 13 passes defended, five interceptions and three forced fumbles since coming to the Giants.
---The NFL moved a step closer to having testing for human growth hormone Monday when the players union agreed on the protocol for an HGH population study, Fox Sports reported.
The NFLPA asked that the study be independent and confidential before approving the study. It is only one of several steps toward the NFL testing players for HGH.
Blood drawn for the population study will only be used to determine the basic levels of HGH present in the players' bodies. The league is hoping to institute testing in time for this season.
---The Chicago Bears agreed to a nine-year deal to continue their training camp at Olivet Nazarene University.
The Bears have trained at Olivet Nazarene University since 2002. The Bourbonnais, Ill., campus is about 55 miles from Chicago.
The Bears training camp attracts about 100,000 spectators during the three-week camp period.
---The Philadelphia Eagles added depth to their wide receiver ranks when they acquired Jeff Maehl from the Houston Texans in exchange for offensive lineman Nate Menkin.
Maehl is no stranger to new Eagles coach Chip Kelly.
The 24-year-old Maehl played for Kelly at Oregon, where he was a first-team All-Pac 10 player as a senior when he compiled 77 receptions for 1,076 yards and 12 receiving touchdowns in 2010. His 24 career touchdowns at Oregon tied the school's all-time record.
Menkin returns to the Texans. The Eagles claimed him off waivers before the beginning of the 2012 season after he was released during the Texans' final roster cutdown.
---Former Green Bay kicker Ryan Longwell, the all-time leading scorer in Packers history, told the club that he has decided to retire as a Packer despite playing six years for the Minnesota Vikings.
Longwell set the all-time Packers franchise scoring record with 1,054 points during his nine-year career that spanned from 1997-2005. He made 226 field goals and 376 extra points during that time. Also, he has kicked five overtime game-winners in his career.
He played for the Vikings during his final six seasons from 2006-2011.
