Jerry Jones said the Cowboys expect Tony Romo to be sidelined for 6-8 weeks. That's the initial indication, Jones said.

Jon Kitna will be under center for the Cowboys. Obviously, this is a huge downgrade.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo left Monday night's game against the New York Giants in the second quarter with a fractured left clavicle and will not return.

Romo could be out for an extended time. Jon Kitna will get any playing time that Romo misses. The good news is Kitna inherits some quality receivers and RBs around him and could be just as good an option as any in your league if you are hurting at the position.

Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo injured his left (non-throwing) shoulder with 12:07 to play in the second quarter after completing a pass to wide receiver Miles Austin on Monday night.

His return is unknown.

Romo was hit by Giants weakside linebacker Michael Boley, who came on a blitz.

Romo's left shoulder crashed to the turf as Boley tackled him to the ground.

Jon Kitna took over for Romo and his first pass was knocked down. Romo tried to return to the game with about 11:18 to play but associate trainer Britt Brown pulled him back and slowly walked him to the bench area.

Romo took his helmet off and slammed it down lightly. Surrounded by several trainers and team doctors, Romo was then taken into the locker room for further examination.

If Romo misses any extended period of time, it's the first time he hasn't played since the 2008 season when he suffered a broken pinkie, causing him to miss three games.

The return of Kitna was his first snaps since Oct. 5, 2008 when he played with Detroit.

Mike Martz did what's counterintuitive to him: He went on the defensive.

Two weeks ago, in front of the dining hall at Olivet Nazarene University, the Bears offensive coordinator was asked about the alarmingly high number of times his quarterbacks were sacked, on average, during a season.

''The biggest thing is, if you just look at St. Louis, those numbers aren't as high,'' Martz told the Sun-Times. ''Where we were high is in Detroit. In Detroit, in order to win games, we just had to play basketball, and you're going to get sacked.

''You're going to get sacked.''

Martz had a point. In the two seasons he was the offensive coordinator of the Lions, veteran quarterback Jon Kitna was sacked an astounding 117 times, 47 above the NFL average during that span. But from 1999 to 2005, when Martz was either the offensive coordinator or head coach, the Rams' quarterbacks were still sacked an average of 43 times per season.

Martz's high-risk, high-reward offensive approach historically yields impressive results.

For those eying up Cutler in the middle rounds to serve as your starting QB, this is a reminder to maybe take a quality backup sooner than you may want to.

Philip Rivers doesn't ease up, even in a meaningless exhibition game.

The San Diego Chargers ' $93 million quarterback chased Dallas Cowboys safety Barry Church for about 70 yards before making a touchdown-saving tackle after a turnover on Saturday night. He even popped the ball loose, although the play had been whistled dead.

It was the highlight of what was otherwise mostly a stinker, won 16-14 by the Cowboys on a safety with 3:46 left.

Three plays after Church's return, Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Miles Austin to tie the game at 7.

The Chargers (1-1) committed two turnovers in their first four series. The Cowboys' first-team offense was mostly dreadful, gaining only 49 yards. Quarterback Tony Romo was 4 of 11 for 30 yards with a touchdown and an interception, finishing with a rating of just 37.3, although the Cowboys did score their first offensive touchdowns in three exhibition games.

There were overthrows, underthrows and dropped passes on both sides. Cowboys backup linebacker Jason Williams had all but intercepted a pass by Billy Volek when teammate Brandon Williams accidentally slammed into him, knocking the ball loose.

San Diego went ahead when Marcus Mason scored on a 4-yard run late in the third quarter. The Cowboys tied it when Jon Kitna threw a 19-yard pass to Martellus Bennett early in the fourth quarter.

Mathews had another strong game for San Diego, gaining 53 yards on 12 carries and catching one pass for 13 yards.

Rivers was intercepted by Terence Newman on San Diego's first possession of the game. Romo gave it back six plays later when he was picked off by Eric Weddle.

An MRI confirmed the Dallas Cowboys' fear that tight end John Phillips tore the ACL in his right knee during the Hall of Fame Game, a source with knowledge of the situation told ESPNDallas.com.

Phillips, a sixth-round pick who contributed as a rookie last season, is out for the season.

Phillips, who underwent the test Monday morning, believes he injured the knee Sunday night when he landed after catching a back-shoulder throw from Jon Kitna. It was the second of four receptions for Phillips, who left the game after he collapsed while battling with Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Frostee Rucker as he tried to release into a pass route.

Bears new OC Mike Martz said he was impressed with Cutler's football mind when the quarterback asked him a question about a receiver's "splits" on a play he had just drawn up on the board.

"There was an instant connection," Martz said. "That happened to me with Jon Kitna the first time I met him, too. ... This was very interesting because we were on the same page on so many things."

Martz also said he was excited about what he has seen from the Bears' receiving corps.

"There's plenty of talent there," he said. "I'm real excited about the speed."

Cowboys WR Sam Hurd caught five passes for 79 yards, catching every ball cleanly and doing some damage after he got the ball in his hands. Hurd, who entered the game as the clear No. 4 receiver, also drew a pass interference penalty in the end zone. His performance was tempered a bit by two holding calls, on one the opening kickoff and one on a long Tashard Choice run.
While Cowboys WR Sam Hurd put on a show, Miles Austin dropped the only pass that was thrown his way, a slant from Jon Kitna that hit him between the numbers. WR Miles Austin has had a good training camp, but the gap between Nos. 3 and 4 appears closer than the one between Nos. 2 and 3.

Tony Romo completed 4 of 6 for 36 yards and 1 TD in his preseason opener tonight. Jon Kitna was 7/10 for 87 yards and an INT. Kitna also had two fumbles, but neither was lost.

Sometimes the challenge of the day is completing the most passes in 7-on-7 drills. Sometimes it's being more accurate on a particular route.

Every day, though, Jon Kitna is challenging Tony Romo to something.

Their competitions are friendly but serious, an attempt to make each other better. The one thing they're not competing for is to be the starting QB of the Cowboys.

Kitna understands that is Romo's job. As the backup, Kitna figures one of his duties is keeping Romo as sharp as possible, which is why he's always finding ways to spice up practice.