Brown’s Elbow Injury Raises Giant Concerns

Dave Brown’s right elbow, injured in Sunday’s 19-13 victory over Cleveland, swelled overnight, sending a scare through the New York Giants camp.

“We are concerned,” said coach Dan Reeves, who said the team’s starting quarterback would undergo an MRI to determine if there was any ligament damage.

“Hopefully the MRI will turn out negative. He has good movement in it, but it is sore and has some swelling in it.”

Giants trainer Ronnie Barnes said the injury, which occurred when Brown was sacked on the 11th play of the game, was in the area of the tricep, the muscle of the back of the upper arm. It originally was diagnosed as a bruise, and X-rays taken after the game were negative.

“We don’t think he tore any ligaments but we want to make absolutely sure,” Barnes said.

Vikings 23, Chargers 19

Minnesota backup quarterback Brad Johnson, a fourth-year pro, rebounded from an early interception to throw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Quadry Ismail and lead an 80-yard scoring drive in the third quarter as the Vikings beat the Chargers in their exhibition opener Monday night at San Diego.

Raiders finalize Oakland move

The deal returning the Raiders to Oakland became final when club owner Al Davis, after some last-minute contract negotiations, signed a lease committing the team to a minimum 16-year stay.

“Somewhere, someplace, there’s a fat lady singing,” Oakland Mayor Elihu Harris said during a news conference, which was delayed 4-1/2 hours while the sides revised and reviewed details of the agreement.

Under the deal approved by the Oakland City Council and the county Board of Supervisors, the Oakland Coliseum will undergo an $85 million modernization. The Raiders also will receive up to $42 million in loans to pay for relocation expenses and construction of a training facility.

Bettis crashes St. Louis camp

Fullback Jerome Bettis brought his 14-day holdout with the St. Louis Rams to a crashing halt with a bruising, full-contact practice.

Bettis participated in a mid-morning walk-through and donned pads for an afternoon workout in which he took a limited number of snaps. All signs - except for a fumble during 11-on-11 drills - indicated the two-time 1,000-yard rusher was not bothered by his time off.

“The only thing I am behind on is getting the timing together, things like that. I think that just comes with time,” Bettis said.

Un-Saintly conduct

An allegation of sexual assault by “a handful” of New Orleans Saints players is being investigated by the La Crosse, Wis., police and district attorney’s office.

“We received a complaint from an adult female early Sunday morning that involved an allegation of a sexual assault that occurred in the Saints’ dormitory,” assistant District Attorney Ron Kind said.

Kind would not give any specifics of the woman’s allegations. He said she called police at about 5:45 a.m., apparently just after leaving the players’ dorm.

No charges have been filed, but about seven Saints players have been questioned by police with several more scheduled to be interviewed.

Coach Jim Mora acknowledged that a violation of team rules had occurred.

“Currently, we are only aware of violation of club policy,” Mora said. “We are looking into this, investigating this, and we hope to conclude our investigation very soon.”

Around the league

San Diego running back Natrone Means has agreed to a four-year deal worth $7.4 million with the Chargers… . Quarterback Jim McMahon is expected to sign a one-year deal with Cleveland for $178,000 after passing a team physical… . Guard Guy McIntyre, who won three Super Bowl rings in San Francisco, agreed to terms with Philadelphia… . San Francisco signed running back Marion Butts.