National Football League

The Latest: Graham active for Seattle, returning from injury

Published Sep. 11, 2016 4:06 p.m. ET

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The Latest on Week 1 of the NFL season (all times Eastern):

3 p.m.

Jimmy Graham is active for the season opener as he recovers from a knee injury.

The game Sunday against Miami comes 9+ months after the Seattle Seahawks tight end tore the patellar tendon in his right knee. Graham went through an extensive pregame workout about two hours before kickoff and his name was not on the inactive list.

Graham had 48 catches but only two touchdowns in 2015, his first season with the Seahawks. He was injured in late November in a game against Pittsburgh, just when he was finding more of a role in the offense.

The Seahawks will be without rookie guard Germain Ifedi after suffering an ankle injury in practice this week. Ifedi was wearing a walking boot on his left foot prior to the game.

Miami was without standout center Mike Pouncey (hip) and wide receiver DeVante Parker (hamstring).

- Tim Booth reporting from Seattle.

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2:30 p.m.

Green Bay Packers Jordy Nelson is looking good in his comeback from injury.

Playing a meaningful game for the first time since the 2014 NFC championship, Nelson had a 6-yard touchdown reception late in the second quarter in the team's season opener at Jacksonville. It was his third catch in four plays, hauling in previous completions of 8 and 6 yards. Nelson, who injured a knee in the 2015 preseason and missed the entire season, hasn't shown his usual explosiveness but just being back on the field is huge for the Packers.

- Mark Long in Jacksonville, Florida.

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2:25 p.m.

Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen has been carted off the field late in the second quarter of their game against the Chiefs with what appears to be a serious right knee injury.

Allen was making a cut toward the sideline on a passing route when he went down. He ripped off his helmet as trainers began tending to him, and was helped into the back of a cart and taken off the field.

There was no immediate word on the extent of the injury.

Allen, who missed the last eight games a year ago with a lacerated kidney, had six catches for 63 yards before he was hurt. The Chargers led 21-3.

- Dave Skretta in Kansas City, Missouri.

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2:20 p.m.

Tempers are starting to flare in the Chiefs-Chargers game.

Late in the first half, with the Chargers already leading 21-3, Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters and San Diego offensive lineman Orlando Franklin began jawing with each other.

Eventually, the two teams got into a shoving match on the field.

When play resumed, Chiefs coach Andy Reid had brought Peters to the sideline for a play.

- Dave Skretta in Kansas City, Missouri.

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2:15 p.m.

Tampa Bay backup linebacker Jacquies Smith has been carted to the locker room in Atlanta with a right knee injury.

A third-year player, Smith was injured while covering a punt in the first quarter. The seriousness of the injury isn't yet known, but the Buccaneers say he's done for the game.

Falcons defensive end Brooks Reed also left the field after sustaining a shoulder injury, but was able to return before halftime.

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2:10 p.m.

Jets kicker Nick Folk missed the first extra point of his career, booting it wide right and appearing to hit the upright after a 15-yard touchdown catch by Eric Decker with 9:38 left in the first half - ending a streak of 312 straight made PATS.

Folk had set the NFL record for most extra points without a miss with 322 overall, including the playoffs.

The reliable veteran, who held off Duke rookie Ross Martin in training camp, also had a 22-yard attempt blocked in the first quarter against Cincinnati when Bengals defensive end Margus Hunt tipped Folk's low kick.

Folk, in his seventh season with New York, missed the last eight games of last year with a quadriceps injury.

- Dennis Waszak in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

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2:10 p.m.

In the early going of his Falcons career, Mohamed Sanu is providing quite a complement to Julio Jones in the Atlanta passing game.

Sanu's first catch with the Falcons was a 59-yarder in Sunday's season opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That set up a field goal by Matt Bryant that tied the game at 3.

Then, Sanu hauled in a 5-yard touchdown pass from Matt Ryan to give Atlanta a 10-3 lead at the end of the first quarter. The receiver finished the period with three catches for 68 yards, while Jones was still looking for his first catch of the year.

Sanu was a free-agent signee during the offseason. He had 33 catches for the Bengals in 2015.

- Paul Newberry in Atlanta.

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1:40 p.m.

Saints rookie kicker Wil Lutz is making coach Sean Payton look smart early on. He hit his first regular season field goal opportunity from 42 yards out.

Payton made a surprising move this past week when he cut incumbent veteran place kicker Kai Forbath - who had held off Connor Barth throughout preseason to keep his job. The reason? Payton had given Lutz a tryout and thought it was one of the best kicker workouts he'd ever seen.

Lutz, who was undrafted out of Georgia State, had spent preseason with Baltimore and was cut in favor of veteran Justin Tucker.

Lutz' first field goal tied the Saints' season opener with the Raiders at 3 in the first quarter.

- Brett Martel in New Orleans.

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1:30 p.m.

Shaun Hill is starting for the Minnesota Vikings with Sam Bradford, their pricy late addition at quarterback, backing him up in their opener against Tennessee.

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer did his best to hide his decision on who would replace the injured Teddy Bridgewater as his starter, and Minnesota did not announce anything before the game.

Finally, the decision to go with the 36-year-old Hill became clear when the quarterback walked onto the field with 10:26 left in the first quarter of Minnesota's opener at Tennessee. Hill is in his 15th NFL season, and this is his first start since 2014 when he was with the Rams in St. Louis.

Hill has been with the Vikings and knows the offense very well. The Vikings traded away their 2017 first-round draft pick and another pick Sept. 3 to acquire Bradford from Philadelphia after Bridgewater's season was ended by a dislocated knee in practice last week.

- Teresa M. Walker in Nashville, Tennessee.

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1:20 p.m.

The Carson Wentz era is underway in a big way in Philadelphia. The No. 2 overall draft pick threw a touchdown pass on the opening drive against the Cleveland Browns.

Eagles fans were pumped for Wentz's debut and it was easy to spot plenty of fans tailgating wearing the QB's No. 11 jersey.

Fans booed when Jordan Matthews dropped Wentz's first pass attempt on the opening drive. His second pass turned into a fantastic one-handed grab by tight end Zach Ertz for a 14-yard gain. Wentz capped the drive with a 19-yard TD pass to Matthews.

Wentz threw 24 passes in the preseason before he injured his ribs and missed the last three games. Still, he was elevated to No. 1 after the Eagles traded Sam Bradford to Minnesota.

- Dan Gelston in Philadelphia.

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1:15 p.m.

Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters held his black-gloved fist aloft in a salute reminiscent of Tommie Smith at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics during the national anthem before Sunday's season-opener against the San Diego Chargers.

Peters did stand with his left arm linked with the rest of his teammates as they lined up along the sideline during country music singer Trace Adkins's rendition of the anthem.

The Chiefs said in a statement that they had ''thoughtful discussions as a group'' about what to do for the anthem in light of 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick's protests. The ultimately decided to lock arms in a sign of solidarity, though the statement did not address Peters' actions.

- Dave Skretta in Kansas City, Missouri.

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1:10 p.m.

At MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - just across the Hudson River from the site of the Sept. 11 attacks in New York, several Jets players wore 9/11 memorial T-shirts with the twin towers printed on them during warmups.

Shortly before kickoff, the Jets played an emotional, 9-minute video in the stadium featuring members of the 2001 team and their memories of 9/11.

Bengals linebacker Rey Maualuga lead the entire team out of tunnel carrying American flag. Moments later, Jets safety Rontez Miles did the same to huge cheers from the MetLife Stadium crowd. Each member of the Jets' starting offense was then introduced, with players such as Ryan Fitzpatrick and Nick Mangold running out holding small flags.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was an honorary captain, along with representatives from New York fire and police and the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Tower Foundation. Former wide receivers Wayne Chrebet and Laveranues Coles and linebacker Marvin Jones, members of the Jets' 2001 team, were also at midfield for the pregame coin toss.

The team also held a pregame tribute to remember the victims. About 200 members of Tuesday's Children, an organization that supports youth, families and communities impacted by terrorism and traumatic loss held a full-field American flag.

Broadway actress Heather Headley sand the national anthem, with every member of both teams standing on the sidelines.

Players are wearing commemorative helmet stickers, and coaches have 9/11 lapel pins on their shirts.

- Dennis Waszak Jr. in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

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1:10 p.m.

Vice President Joe Biden joined 120 9/11 first responders on the sidelines during the national anthem before the Philadelphia Eagles game.

Biden helped hold the flag that was the size of the field. Eagles coach Doug Pederson stood next to Biden while a trumpeter player the anthem.

There was a brief video message from President Barack Obama and the Eagles crowd chanted ''U-S-A!'' at the end of the anthem.

None of the Eagles or Cleveland Browns appeared to kneel during the anthem.

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1 p.m.

The ''thrill'' is gone? Saints coach Sean Payton seems to think so. He scratched running back C.J. Spiller for Sunday's regular season opener against the Oakland Raiders.

Until Payton addresses the move after the game, it's not clear whether Spiller's status is performance-related, but indications are that it very well could be. He was not listed on the injury report this week. He also could be seen in black Saints warm-ups on the field, holding a football and looking on while teammates went through pre-game routines in uniform about 45 minutes before kickoff.

Spiller, who has gone by the nickname ''Thriller'' since starring at Clemson, was one of the Saints' high-profile free agent acquisitions in 2015, when he left Buffalo for a four-year, $16 million contract with New Orleans.

The Saints hoped his versatility in the passing game and his open field speed would make him the type of target that quarterback Drew Brees often exploited when Reggie Bush and Darren Sproles were Saints.

But Spiller needed arthroscopic knee surgery last preseason and has yet to live up to expectations. In 2015, he appeared in 13 games and finished the season with 112 yards rushing and 239 yards receiving, his lone highlight being a late-game, 80-yard touchdown catch in a victory over Dallas.

Spiller's best NFL season was 2012, his third as a pro, when he had 1,244 yards rushing and 459 yards receiving.

- Brett Martel in New Orleans.

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12:40 p.m.

The NFL has already ruled at least one 9/11 tribute out of bounds on opening weekend.

Tennessee Titans linebacker Avery Williamson has been told to shelve a pair of cleats he planned to wear to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

According to The Tennessean , Williamson was informed by the league he would be fined for a uniform violation if he wore the shoes. New York Giants receivers Odell Beckham and Victor Cruz are expected to wear similar shoes. Other players, including Atlanta's Julio Jones, already wore similar cleats during warms-ups.

''I don't want to draw negative attention, so I'm just going to focus on playing the game,'' the newspaper quoted Williamson saying. ''Once I heard from them, I didn't even try to argue anything. I just left it alone.''

Williamson's cleats were to be painted red, white, and blue and emblazoned with ''9-11-01'' and ''Never Forget'' on each shoe. Williamson will auction them off to benefit Operation Warrior Wishes.

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