The Colts have to be concerned about the durability of safety Bob Sanders, perhaps their most important defensive player and one of the keys to their Super Bowl run last year. Sanders, who has missed 22 regular-season games over his first three years, is recovering from surgery on his left shoulder and watched the Colts' minicamp from the sideline last week. The 5-foot-8-inch, 208-pound Sanders has plenty of motivation to return as soon as possible. He can void the final two years of his contract after the season, and if he makes it through the year without injury, he would likely become one of the league's highest-paid safeties. If he doesn't avoid injury, he could still void the contract but probably would have to settle for a shorter-term deal.

Tony Dungy has given lots of big talks, including one in February that turned out pretty well for his Colts. Now he hoped to persuade NFL owners to let Indianapolis host the 2011 Super Bowl. "It's a lot different," Dungy said. "This is not like speaking to your team the night before the game. This will be fun. It'll be exciting." Indianapolis pulled out the star power to help present the city's bid to host the 2011 Super Bowl, with Dungy backed by Tony George, the chief executive officer of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and an executive vice president of the NCAA. The big names were needed with North Texas tapping Roger Staubach, the Hall of Fame quarterback with two Super Bowl rings with the Cowboys, to talk to owners. Glendale, Ariz., was the other finalist.

Safety Bob Sanders was an interested spectator during the Indianapolis Colts' three-day minicamp, which ended Sunday evening. He's still recovering from surgery on his left shoulder. Sanders insisted his rehabilitation is ahead of schedule but stopped short of declaring he'd be ready for the start of training camp in late July. The target date is Sept. 6, which is when the Colts open the regular season in the RCA Dome against New Orleans. "My No. 1 goal this year is to make sure I stay healthy and just focus on continuing to get better and not allow this past year to affect the way I play,'' Sanders said.

His mere presence here for a mandatory weekend minicamp that he technically could have dodged because of his current contract situation spoke volumes about the significance that Colts' star DE Dwight Freeney assigns to things like team unity and his role as a leader on and off the field. And in addressing his status as an exclusive franchise player, a designation the team applied to him before the start of free agency, Freeney said all the right things, too. But the Indianapolis career sack leader, by far the highest profile performer on a Colts' defense that statistically ranked only 21st in the league in 2006, also reiterated that he will not sign the one-year qualifying offer tendered him three months ago.

City leaders confident as 2011 Super Bowl decision draws near As NFL owners prepare to pick the host city for the 2011 Super Bowl, city leaders in Indianapolis said they are confident they have lined up the amenities and funds necessary to make a strong pitch for the championship game. Deputy Mayor Steve Campbell said the city's bid committee will be able to raise $20 million to $25 million before next week's owners' meeting in Nashville, Tenn. "When we make our presentation, we'll have it in hand," Campbell said Thursday.

The Titans signed quarterback Tim Rattay on Wednesday and also claimed linebacker Gilbert Gardner off waivers from Indianapolis. The Titans also signed free-agent offensive lineman Marques Ogden and fullback Jonathan Evans and waived defensive tackle Marcus White and undrafted rookies fullback Nic Luc and defensive tackle Adrian Haywood. Ogden is the younger brother of Baltimore left tackle Jonathan Ogden. Tennessee carried only two quarterbacks on the roster in 2006 with veteran Kerry Collins backing up Vince Young, and Matt Mauck was on the practice squad. Collins re-signed with the Titans this offseason.

Benched for the Colts' playoff run last season, former starting strongside linebacker Gilbert Gardner has now been banished altogether by the defending Super Bowl champions. The Colts have released Gardner, a three-year veteran who began the 2006 season as a starter. The move, which comes after the Colts had tendered Gardner a one-year, $850,000 qualifying offer as a restricted free agent, leaves the former Purdue standout free to sign with another team.