BEREA, Ohio – Calling Kellen Winslow’s critical comments a distraction, Browns coach Romeo Crennel confirmed the tight end was hospitalized for a staph infection. Crennel added he may discipline the emotional Pro Bowler for his conduct following Sunday’s loss to the Washington Redskins.

Winslow spent three nights at the Cleveland Clinic for an illness that he did not disclose until Sunday. He said he didn’t reveal he had staph because the team, which has had an alarming number of staph cases in recent years, “didn’t want it to get out.” Winslow said he came forward to protect his teammates.

Crennel, though, felt Winslow’s postgame remarks were inappropriate.

“It’s a distraction for the organization and for Kellen,” Crennel said at his Monday news conference. “He should’ve come to the organization first if he had a problem.”

The Browns, who initially cited privacy laws and Winslow’s wishes for keeping his illness a secret, have had at least six known cases of staph – a bacterial infection that can cause different types of illnesses – since 2005. Winslow got staph following knee surgery after a near-fatal motorcycle accident in ’05. Wide receivers Braylon Edwards and Joe Jurevicius, as well as center LeCharles Bentley and safety Brian Russell, all contracted staph.

Redskins

Jason Campbell’s stumble left him with a sore groin Monday, but the Washington Redskins quarterback isn’t expected to miss any practice time.

“He got treatment today, and I think he’ll be ready to practice Wednesday,” coach Jim Zorn said.

Campbell was hurt Sunday when he stepped awkwardly while throwing a pass in the first quarter of a 14-11 victory over the Cleveland Browns. He didn’t miss a play, but the injury appeared to affect his performance.

“I think it had a little impact on his game,” Zorn said. “He was noticeably inaccurate on several throws that I felt like he should hit, that he felt like he should hit.”

Campbell finished 14-for-23 for 164 yards and one touchdown. He remains the only starting quarterback without an interception this season.

Bills

Reserve linebacker John DiGiorgio could miss the rest of the season with a right knee injury.

Coach Dick Jauron said DiGiorgio was having further tests to determine the severity of the injury. Jauron previously said he wasn’t optimistic about the player’s status.

A special teams standout and versatile reserve who can play all three linebacker positions, DiGiorgio was hurt blocking on a punt return in the second quarter of a 23-14 win over San Diego on Sunday. He was carted off the field and left the locker room on crutches after the game, unable to put any weight on his right leg.

Colts

Tony Dungy exudes consistency. It’s why the Colts’ stoic coach is so frustrated now.

One week, Indianapolis plays like a Super Bowl contender, the next, it reverts to its sputtering, mistake-prone ways, making Dungy weary of the inconsistencies that have suddenly jeopardized Indy’s five-year reign atop the AFC South.

“We’ve been up and down, done some good things but not consistent enough,” Dungy said Monday. “The penalties, obviously, were a big part of it, some little errors that that you can’t afford to make against a good football team that’s playing well …”

Pro Bowl receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne combined for only four catches and 35 yards, and two-time league MVP Peyton Manning was just 21-of-42 and threw two interceptions that were returned for touchdowns.

Buccaneers

When the Tampa Bay crowd cheered lustily after the Buccaneers failed to convert a third-and-short inside the Seattle 10 early in a 20-10 victory on Sunday night, linebacker Barrett Rudd paused to take a look around.

Then he heard the crowd start chanting, “Let’s go Rays!” and he looked at the scoreboard to see his MLB neighbors had tied Boston 1-1 in Game 7 of the American League championship series.

“That happened a lot,” Rudd said. “Every time it did, I’d looked at the scoreboard, and the Rays had scored.”

Rudd could be forgiven for getting a bit jealous. But after owning the Tampa sports scene for so long, the Bucs weren’t about to begrudge the Rays their moment of glory. The Rays have parlayed their first playoff appearance into a berth in the World Series, making the NFC South co-leading Bucs somewhat of an afterthought in a town suddenly baseball crazy.

Ravens

What’s the story with Chris McAlister?

The three-time All-Pro cornerback did not start Sunday and was used in only a handful of plays in a win over Miami. Although McAlister had seven tackles one week earlier in a 31-3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, he appeared to be beaten twice by Marvin Harrison for touchdowns.

So, with Samari Rolle out with a neck injury, the Ravens’ starting cornerbacks against Miami were Fabian Washington and Frank Walker – even though McAlister leads the team with three interceptions.

“It’s a football decision,” Harbaugh said Monday. “We’re always going to put the best 11 players on the field. That’s what we did. … We had the corners out there in those situations that we wanted to have out there.”

Chiefs

Out of work quarterbacks, stay by your phone. Kansas City may call.

With Brodie Croyle out for the season and Damon Huard wearing a bandage on his throwing hand, the Chiefs are down to a third-teamer who ranks 34th among 34 NFL quarterbacks and a fourth-teamer who hasn’t played all season.

Tyler Thigpen, who closed out Sunday’s 34-10 blowout loss to Tennessee, will start at the New York Jets on Sunday if Huard’s injured right thumb does not heal.

Behind Thigpen is Ingle Martin, who hasn’t been activated all season.

“We might bring some (quarterbacks) in,” coach Herm Edwards said. “We’re still putting together the list.”

Cowboys

With three losses in four games, reality has finally hit the Dallas Cowboys.

Those 13 wins and 13 Pro Bowl players last season that led to Super Bowl expectations this season? None of those mean anything now.

Less than halfway through the season, the Cowboys (4-3) already have as many losses as they had all last season. The only victory over the past four-game stretch was a lackluster performance at home against winless Cincinnati, the NFL’s only seven-loss team.

“Our identity is missing. We need to realize and figure out who we are and what we are going to be and be it and live and die by it,” nose tackle Tank Johnson said.

That could apply to the entire team though Johnson was referring specifically to the defense, which allowed 160 yards rushing and three touchdowns by Steven Jackson, the running back Dallas passed on in the 2004 draft and got Julius Jones instead.

America’s Team came into the season with such high expectations, and started by winning its first three games. The Cowboys are instead in third place in NFC East and their only division victory came against Philadelphia, the only team below them in the standings.

Owner Jerry Jones is having to answer about second-year coach Wade Phillips’ job security. Jones on Monday reiterated his postgame comments that no coaching change was planned.

“That kind of talk comes up with coaches all the time when things aren’t going well,” said Phillips, 17-7 with the playoff loss included. “Things aren’t going well here, I understand that. But it’s not going to affect how we prepare this week.”

Before a much-needed bye in two weeks, the Cowboys play a pair of division leaders. They host Tampa Bay on Sunday, then visit the rival New York Giants.

“Now it’s time for us to come together, not only find solutions, but find a cure, and really the only thing that cures that is winning,” James said.

Phillips expressed his disappointment but said he and the players were “determined to turn this thing forward and better.” The coach also indicated that changes would be made.

When pressed about what kind of changes, Phillips said that wouldn’t necessarily be lineup or personnel changes.

“I think we have the right personnel in place,” he said. “But it could be practice, it could be plays, it could be defenses, those kinds of things. We need to identify what we do well and stick with that. … It’s what we do with the personnel and how we are utilizing the players’ abilities and what they are doing.”

The Cowboys aren’t sure when quarterback Tony Romo will be able to play again because of the broken pinkie on his throwing hand.

Romo walked through the locker room when it was open to reporters Monday, but grabbed a pair of shoes from his locker and left without answering questions. His right hand was wrapped.

Asked about Romo’s status, Phillips responded, “To be determined. I think it’s going to be similar to where he was last week.”

Romo, after being limited in his only practice last week after getting hurt, was listed as the backup rather than the third quarterback Sunday. The two-time Pro Bowler threw some in warmups before the game and after halftime.

“He could have gone in, but we didn’t feel like he’d be effective if he had gone in,” Phillips said.

Brad Johnson, the 40-year-old backup in his first start since 2006 for Minnesota, struggled. He was 6-of-18 for 66 yards and an interception while the Rams built a 24-7 halftime lead, then finished 17-for-34 for 234 yards with a TD pass in the final 2 minutes.

While the return of Romo could provide a spark, Phillips said there were a lot of factors that still had to be considered before the quarterback’s status was determined this week.

Defensively, Tank Johnson believes the Cowboys need to get back to basics in their 3-4 defensive scheme.

“We are trying to do so many things that we are getting into our own way,” Johnson said. “We need to get two or three plays and perfect them and beat the hell out of people with them.”

Defensive specialist Phillips acknowledged, without being specific, that such streamlining was possible.

“We lost a game we should have lost, period,” Marcus Spears said. “The season is still prevalent, a lot of things left to still be accomplished. Right now, we’ve got to get better.”

AP-ES-10-20-08 1928EDT