NFL notes

BILLS Williams held out

PITTSFORD, N.Y. - Mario Williams was held out of the Buffalo Bills’ first training camp practice Sunday night after complaining of a sore foot.

Coach Doug Marrone provided few details regarding the nature of the injury. He wouldn’t say which foot Williams had hurt or how and when it happened.

“Mario reported to our athletic training staff that he had a sore foot,” Marrone said, following the two-plus hour session at the team’s training camp facility in suburban Rochester. “So what we wanted to do was hold him out of practice and let our medical staff evaluate him.”

Marrone couldn’t say how much time Williams might miss because the injury is still being evaluated. The Bills are back on the field Monday afternoon.

Williams declined comment after practice, and deferred all questions to Marrone.

BRONCOS Koppen tears ACL

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - Broncos center Dan Koppen is out for the season after tearing his left ACL on Sunday in 9-on-7 drills, less than six weeks after rejoining Denver following J.D. Walton’s setback in his comeback from ankle surgery.

Koppen, an 11-year veteran who played his first nine seasons with the Patriots, was caught in a pile early in the workout and was carted off the field and taken for an MRI, which revealed the season-ending injury.

Manny Ramirez, who took most of the snaps at center during Denver’s offseason practices, stepped in for Koppen, whose teams have gone 108-28 in games he has started. Later in the day, the Broncos signed free-agent center Steve Vallos, pending a physical. Vallos is a six-year veteran who has played in Seattle, Cleveland, Philadelphia and Jacksonville with nine career starts.

“I always cringe,” a somber-sounding Coach John Fox said after practice. “You never like to see players get injured, particularly severely injured. But you understand when you do this long enough, whether you’re a player or a coach, that this happens. You know, you get them back ready. And you’ve got some guys that have worked hard off of injuries last year and it will be no different this year.”BROWNS Lineman returns to team

Browns offensive lineman Ryan Miller returned to the team’s training facility on Sunday and began the NFL’s concussion protocol after being knocked unconscious during practice.

Miller was rushed to the Cleveland Clinic on Saturday after his frightening injury during a routine blocking drill brought the Browns’ indoor workout to a standstill. The 6-foot-7, 320-pounder, who was released from the hospital after a few hours, will be monitored by the medical staff and must pass a series of tests before he can return to the field.

Browns Coach Rob Chudzinski said he visited Miller on Saturday night.

Miller was taking part in one-onone blocking drills inside the team’s indoor field house when he dropped after making contact with his helmet. He lay motionless for several minutes, and his teammates huddled around him in prayer as he was immobilized and strapped to a backboard. The Browns initially feared Miller had suffered a devastating injury, and were relieved to learn he was responsive and moving his limbs.

Browns linebacker D’Qwell Jackson said the only other time he experienced anything as scary was when former Browns kick returner Josh Cribbs was knocked out last season in Baltimore.

“I’ve only witnessed it a few times and anytime that happens you just pray and just hope for the best and hope everything is OK,” said Jackson. “I’ll tell you what, it made everyone realize that at any moment anything can happen.”

The Browns drafted Miller in the fifth round out of Colorado last year. He played in eight games as a rookie and is expected to begin this season in a backup role behind Pro Bowl starter Joe Thomas and Mitchell Schwartz.

CARDINALS First-round pick agrees

The Arizona Cardinals have reached a contract agreement with first-round draft pick Jonathan Cooper.

The four-year deal is worth about $14.5 million, the maximum allowed under the NFL collective bargaining agreement for Cooper as the seventh pick overall.

The 6-foot-2, 311-pound guard from North Carolina missed the first two days of training camp, when the team worked out in shorts. He was en route to Arizona and also missed Sunday’s practice, the team’s first in pads. He was expected to practice Monday.

Cooper had worked out at left guard with the starting unit through the offseason.

The agreement leaves two firstround picks unsigned - cornerback Dee Milliner of the New York Jets (ninth pick overall) and guard Chance Warmack of the Tennessee Titans (10th).

Arizona Coach Bruce Arians got word of the contract agreement when a note was passed to him during his daily briefing with reporters on Sunday.

“Just got word that Jonathan Cooper is done and is on his way,” Arians said. “He still missed time, but I’m a lot happier now. We’re excited to have him in and watch him run the conditioning test - in front of the whole team.”

Although Cooper did miss a bit of training camp, his offseason work leaves him familiar with what’s expected of him.

“He got a zillion reps,” Arians said.

He joins an offensive unit that was called out for poor play by its coach on Sunday.

“That’s the disappointing thing to me right now,” Arians said. “It’s not like our guys didn’t have plenty of reps, because we had two practices going on during all of OTAs. There’s no excuses right now for making the mental errors that we’re making on offense.”GIANTS Hill’s suspendion for ‘pot’

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - New York Giants safety Will Hill says the recent four-game suspension imposed on him by the NFL was for using marijuana last season.

The second-year player, who made the team as a free agent in 2012, said Sunday that the league didn’t impose a penalty immediately because Hill tried to fight it. He was also suspended for four games early last season for using a performance-enhancing drug, which he and the team said was Adderall.

The 23-year-old Hill would miss the opening four games of the season if he makes the team. He said he has not used any banned substances this year. He recently underwent drug rehabilitation in March and April in Boston, and followed that with outpatient meetings in New Jersey.