Sports in brief: Trufant back at practice for Seahawks

NFL: For more than two months, cornerback Marcus Trufant’s back was a question mark.

On Tuesday, Trufant was simply back. The former Pro Bowl cornerback practiced in Renton, Wash., for the first time all season after recovering from a disk injury.

“I want to play right now,” Trufant said afterward. “I wish we had a game this week.”

Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Tuesday was one 90-minute practice during the Seahawks’ bye week before playing at Dallas on Nov. 1.

“I’m working hard and I hope that I can play in Dallas, but we’ll kind of see how things go,” the Washington State University product said.

Same goes for linebacker Leroy Hill, who practiced. He has been out since the season-opener because of a groin injury that will require surgery.

Tuesday was a start in that regard, Trufant’s first practice since suffering a back injury in the week before training camp began.

He was not cleared to begin practicing on July 31 and was placed on the physically unable to perform list. A few weeks later, coach Jim Mora said Trufant was diagnosed with a disk injury.

In other news, Seattle waived fill-in starting left tackle Kyle Williams. The move suggests that Damion McIntosh knows enough of the offense to start in Seattle’s next game on Nov. 1 at Dallas or that nine-time Pro Bowl left tackle Walter Jones will be ready to make his season debut then.

•Cutler signs extension with Bears: The Chicago Bears and quarterback Jay Cutler agreed on a two-year contract extension that runs through the 2013 season. The deal reportedly includes about $20 million guaranteed and $30 million in new money.

Acquired in a blockbuster trade from Denver in the offseason, the Pro Bowl quarterback has completed 110 of 172 passes for 1,201 yards.

•Steelers kicker will play despite arrest: Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin says kicker Jeff Reed will play in Sunday’s home game against the Minnesota Vikings despite being charged with simple assault, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness for allegedly scuffling with Pittsburgh police outside a bar near Heinz Field in the hours after Sunday’s win over the Cleveland Browns.

•Cleveland loses leading tackler for season: Browns linebacker D’Qwell Jackson will miss the rest of the season because of a shoulder injury.

Cleveland placed its leading tackler on injured reserve, two days after he damaged his shoulder during the first half of a 27-14 loss at Pittsburgh.

•Chargers staff member dies after fall: A member of the San Diego Chargers’ game-day staff died 12 hours after falling out of the press box before the Denver Broncos played the San Diego Chargers on Monday night.

Walt Daniels, 66, died at 2:30 a.m. Tuesday at Sharp Memorial Hospital, the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office said.

NCAA football programs struggle

NCAA football: Most of the nation’s college athletic departments are still trying to get out of the red zone.

The NCAA’s latest report on revenues and expenses showed that fewer than 25 percent of all Football Bowl Subdivision schools made money in 2007-08, while the remaining 302 schools competing in Division I struggled to break even.

The NCAA collected data from 2004 through 2008 but did not identify individual schools or teams in the report.

•Bearcats quarterback questionable: Quarterback Tony Pike had surgery to repair a damaged plate in his non-throwing arm, leaving his status uncertain for fifth-ranked Cincinnati’s game against Louisville.

Canadiens down Thrashers in shootout

NHL: Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta scored in the shootout, and the Montreal Canadiens snapped a five-game losing streak with a 2-1 win over the Atlanta Thrashers in Montreal.

Gionta, who scored late in the first period, sealed the win with a backhander past Ondrej Pavelec on Montreal’s third attempt of the shootout.

Glover shoots course record in Bermuda

Miscellany: Lucas Glover shot a course record to dominate the first round of the PGA Grand Slam in Southampton, Bermuda.

Glover hit six birdies and an eagle to finish at 6-under-par 65, but bogeys at Nos. 13 and 16 stopped him from taking total control of the tournament.

He had a two-shot lead over Stewart Cink.

•NBA referees may accept new offer: The NBA’s locked-out referees could be back on the floor in time for the regular season.

The league has made a new proposal, and a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press it will be recommended for approval to the referees Friday. The person said it’s “highly likely” they’ll be on the court for Tuesday’s season opener in Cleveland.