IRVING, Texas — Randal Williams claims to be fast, but even the Dallas Cowboys receiver knows he's not 37 yards-in-three-seconds fast.
Williams is being credited with the fastest score to start a game since the NFL began using a scoreboard clock. He returned Philadelphia's onside kick for a touchdown three seconds into Sunday's game.
Officially, it took only three seconds. It might have actually taken almost twice as long, which would still be pretty good.
"I watched it a couple of times. I probably took three or four steps before that first tick came off the clock," Williams said Monday, a day after the Cowboys' 23-21 win. "Hey, that's not my fault. It goes down in the record book."
Replays show clearly that the clock didn't start until after Williams took a few steps, at least two seconds.
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Monday that the play will not be reviewed. So Williams will keep the three-second record.
BRONCOS: Linebacker Ian Gold will miss the rest of the season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. Gold was injured in the first quarter of Denver's 17-14 win Sunday against Pittsburgh while covering a punt.
A hard hitter and one of the fastest linebackers in the league, Gold went to the Pro Bowl in 2001, his second season, and replaced Bill Romanowski as a starter at outside linebacker last year.
JETS: Coach Herman Edwards said there is a "50-50" chance quarterback Chad Pennington will start against the Philadelphia Eagles on Oct. 26.
Pennington, out since the preseason with a broken and dislocated left wrist, will begin doing team drills this week at practice wearing a red, noncontact jersey. Edwards said there is no chance Pennington will start Sunday against Houston, but he could be New York's No. 3 emergency quarterback.
EAGLES: Donovan McNabb will remain the Eagles' starting quarterback despite a sprained right thumb that has limited his effectiveness.
McNabb struggled Sunday in a loss to the Dallas Cowboys, often overthrowing his targets. He was 11-for-26 for 126 yards, his lowest total in a mediocre season. Hurt in the Sept. 29 victory over Buffalo, he played with wrapping around his thumb that extended to his wrist.
VIKINGS: Quarterback Daunte Culpepper will return to the starting lineup this weekend when the Vikings host Denver.
Culpepper missed the Vikings' previous two games after breaking three small bones — and partially fracturing a fourth — in his lower back Sept. 21 at Detroit. Gus Frerotte started in Culpepper's place in Minnesota's wins over San Francisco and Atlanta.
JAGUARS: Quarterback Mark Brunell had surgery Monday to alleviate swelling from his left elbow and won't be able to return to practice for at least a couple of weeks.
Coach Jack Del Rio said the gash Brunell got on his throwing elbow when he slid on the artificial turf in Indianapolis on Sept. 21 resulted in a swollen bursa sac that got worse over time.