Moss Is Day-to-Day; Portis Expected to Play

Santana Moss did not take part in yesterday's practice, with his sore groin possibly keeping him from playing Sunday against Detroit, and Clinton Portis took limited work but is expected to participate Sunday, Washington Redskins Coach Joe Gibbs said.

Safety Sean Taylor (bruised knee) sat out some drills, but there is no concern about him missing the game; cornerback Fred Smoot (hamstring) returned to practice fully; and wide receiver Brandon Lloyd missed part of practice after being kicked in the shin.

Moss said he hopes to take part in drills today but is evaluating his ability to train on a daily basis. He jogged briefly on the sideline during practice yesterday, doing some agility drills. Of his playing status, the wideout said: "I won't be able to know until I do something football-related. You never know how you're going to feel." Gibbs said Moss will dictate the pace of his workload.

"It'll kind of be up to him as to what point he'd be ready to practice and stuff," Gibbs said. "It'll just be whenever he feels good."

Gibbs was more certain of Portis's recovery, saying that he believes the tailback will play Sunday. Portis suffered a bruised and mildly sprained medial collateral ligament in the team's last game, the loss to the New York Giants on Sept. 23, but was in pads yesterday and took some work. "I think Clinton will be fine," Gibbs said. Portis declined to comment but said he plans to address reporters today, as he usually does on Thursdays.

Taylor played through his knee injury in the loss to the Giants, and coaches and athletic trainers are confident the issue will not limit him Sunday. Lloyd's injury does not appear to be serious, either, Gibbs said, and X-rays were negative.

McCardell Might Play

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Wide receiver Keenan McCardell has practiced just twice with the team and has not played in a game since the preseason, before he was released by Houston, but he could still end up on the field against the Lions.

McCardell, 37, is in good shape despite the lengthy layoff and has impressed the staff with his knowledge of the system and route running. For most players, it would be unusual to even be active Sunday after signing at this point in the season, but Gibbs said McCardell has a realistic chance to play.

"I'm real comfortable with him," Gibbs said. "He gets it. I wouldn't hesitate to play him."

The injuries to Lloyd and Moss could cause some shuffling at wide receiver this weekend, and Gibbs has said that Reche Caldwell, who was inactive for two games after being signed, is ready to begin contributing on game day as well.

Lions: 0-20 in Washington

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The Lions have lost 20 straight games all-time at Washington, including three playoff games, but players and coaches are putting little stock in that statistic. "Do you think anybody's going to remember that?" once the game starts, Lions Coach Rod Marinelli asked during a media conference call. . . .

Former Redskins tailback T.J. Duckett, who signed with Detroit in the offseason after languishing on the bench here, missed part of practice yesterday with an ankle injury, as did Lions rookie wide receiver Calvin Johnson (back). Johnson missed Detroit's last game and Marinelli would not elaborate on the likelihood that Johnson, the second overall pick in April's draft, would play Sunday.