Ben Roethlisberger's six-game suspension likely will be shortened to four games by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell after the two meet in New York on Friday. Goodell has said he will make his decision after the preseason concludes. The Steelers play Carolina on Thursday night. Although the NFL has not confirmed the exact location or time for the meeting, Roethlisberger is expected to meet Goodell...

The Oakland Raiders have plenty of roster moves they need to make before the start of the season. Apparently trading for Matt Leinart isn't one of them. The Raiders denied a report from ESPN on Wednesday that said the team has had discussions about trading with Arizona for Leinart. "The Raiders have never discussed trading for Leinart," the team said in a statement.

Darnell Dockett finally has the contract he feels he deserves. The Arizona Cardinals announced on Wednesday that they have signed the two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle to a four-year extension worth up to $48 million with $30 million guaranteed. Dockett had two years left on his previous contract, so the new deal runs through the 2015 season.

Mike Singletary had to separate tight end Vernon Davis and wide receiver Michael Crabtree after the players got into a heated discussion at practice Wednesday. Singletary didn't provide details about the incident, but said it was non-football related and is closed. He met with both players immediately in the locker room and they returned to practice separately.

The NFL players' union is looking into whether trades made by four teams this week are attempts to avoid paying money into a rookie pool, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Wednesday. The person, speaking on condition of anonymity because the union has not made the probes public, said the NFL Players Association is reviewing trades made by the Washington...

The NFL will move umpires back to their old spots during the final five minutes of Thursday's preseason games. Previously they were in the old spot for only the final two minutes of each half. NFL spokesman Corry Rush confirmed the adjustment Wednesday. League officials decided to move umpires from the old spot, in the middle of the defense, to behind the deepest running back for safety reasons.

The New England Patriots lost a key player Tuesday when Leigh Bodden, their best cornerback, was placed on injured reserve. Bodden, who led the Patriots with five interceptions last season, went on the season-ending list with a shoulder injury. He had been bothered by a knee injury earlier in training camp and returned to practice last week.

Former New York Giants Super Bowl star Plaxico Burress has come up short in his bid for work release during his two-year prison sentence in a gun case, a denial that could keep him behind bars until at least next spring, prison officials said Tuesday. The state Department of Correctional Services said the nature of his November 2008 crime merited turning down his request for a work furlough, which...

Shaun Rogers wasn't sure if he caught a break. The NFL decided Tuesday to only fine the Cleveland Browns' nose tackle and not suspend him for carrying a loaded gun into an airport. "How's it better?" Rogers said with a laugh. "Well, I'm still losing money. I don't play for free." The league said Rogers will be fined a one-game check -- roughly $400,000 or...

The Seattle Seahawks surprisingly traded starting cornerback Josh Wilson to the Baltimore Ravens on Tuesday in exchange for a conditional 2011 draft pick. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said they felt there was enough depth at the position with Kelly Jennings and rookie Walter Thurmond that they could part with Wilson.