Carter ends retirement, joins Miami

Cris Carter came out of retirement and out of the broadcast booth Monday to join the Miami Dolphins, signing a one-year contract to bolster their injury-depleted receiving corps.

The 36-year-old Carter agreed to a one-year contract with $550,000 guaranteed and $700,000 in incentives.

"I really missed playing," he said. "When the call came, I initially said no. Then I began think about it."

Carter, the NFL's second all-time leading receiver with 1,093 catches for 13,833 yards and 129 touchdowns, retired in May and had been working on HBO's "Inside the NFL." He will have two weeks to get ready for Miami's next game at Green Bay on Nov. 4.

The Dolphins (5-2) have been staggered by the loss of quarterback Jay Fiedler and receivers Chris Chambers and Oronde Gadsden to injuries.

Chambers (concussion) is expected back for the Green Bay game, but Gadsden plans to have surgery Tuesday to repair a torn ligament in his left wrist and will miss the rest of the season.

Favre avoids surgery

Brett Favre won't need surgery on his sprained left knee, and the Green Bay Packers are optimistic he won't miss any games.

An MRI on Monday confirmed the team's original diagnosis of a sprained lateral collateral ligament and showed no structural damage to the star quarterback's knee.

"Ice and rehab will be what's going on with him this week as he prepares for the Monday night Miami game," coach Mike Sherman said Monday.

The Packers are idle this week. Their next game is Nov. 4 against Miami.

Favre, a three-time NFL MVP, was injured Sunday during the third quarter of the Packers' 30-9 victory over Washington.

Johnson fractures rib

Tampa Bay quarterback Brad Johnson has a fractured left rib and is doubtful for this week's game against the Carolina Panthers.

Johnson was hurt during the opening quarter of Sunday's 20-10 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles but didn't leave the game until midway through the fourth quarter.

If he is not ready to play against Carolina on Sunday, he will be replaced by backup Rob Johnson, the former Buffalo Bills starter.

Hutchinson to start

Quincy Carter is out as the starting quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys, replaced by rookie Chad Hutchinson.

The Cowboys made the surprising switch Monday, one day after Carter threw four interceptions in a 9-6 overtime loss to Arizona.

Coach Dave Campo said the job belongs to the unproven Hutchinson for as long as he can keep it.

Hutchinson has not played a down in the NFL. He last took a snap in a game in 1997 as a sophomore at Stanford, where he played only 23 games before going into pro baseball.

He spent four seasons in the St. Louis Cardinals organization, pitching in the majors briefly early in the 2001 season.

League fines Titans' Rolle Tennessee cornerback Samari Rolle was fined $7,500 by the NFL on Monday for a helmet-to-helmet hit that left Jacksonville quarterback Mark Brunell with a concussion.

-- From wire reports