SAN ANTONIO ? For the first time in three days, the New Orleans Saints didn’t spend their afternoon watching news reports of destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina.

They were finally back on the practice field Monday, getting used to their new surroundings in San Antonio.

“I think being on the field and in the meetings is a time that’s away from all that,” coach Jim Haslett said. “It’s good for your mind to get on the field and practice and be where you’re with your peers.”

But for one Saints player, it has been particularly tough getting his mind back on business. Return specialist and special teams player Michael Lewis was born in New Orleans and attended Grace King High School and Bonnable High School in the area.

Lewis said he has more than 30 family members living in the New Orleans area.

“We all talked about what was going on before practice,” Lewis said. “Everybody in my family is OK. But now that we’re here, we know what we have to do.”

Though the Saints still are awaiting word where they will play the balance of their home games, the team expects to practice in San Antonio for the rest of the season. The NFL announced Monday that their second game – which was supposed to be their home opener against the New York Giants – will be Monday, Sept. 19, at Giants Stadium.

The game will begin at 6:30 p.m. on ABC, then be switched to ESPN at 8 p.m., when ABC goes to the regularly scheduled game between Washington and Dallas in Irving, Texas. In New York and Louisiana, as well as other parts of the Gulf Coast, ABC will continue to carry the Giants-Saints game, switching to Redskins-Cowboys when the Saints game ends.

New Orleans Saints coach Jim Haslett gestures as his team warms up. The Saints worked out Monday at the San Antonio School District's Spring Sports Complex in San Antonio.

The team left New Orleans a few days before the storm, then played its final preseason game Thursday night in Oakland, Calif. Players had been off between then and Monday.

They gathered for meetings at the San Antonio Convention Center, then traveled 10 minutes by bus to a practice facility at the San Antonio School District Spring Sports Complex. It’s the same facility the team used temporarily last year while waiting out Hurricane Ivan and also was used by the Dallas Cowboys during training camp in 2002 and ’03.

Saints receiver Joe Horn said the field was “decent.”

“I can take you over to the Astrodome or the Air Force base (in San Antonio) and show you a lot harsher conditions,” he said.

The Astrodome and Kelly USA, formerly an Air Force base, are two locations where displaced residents from the hurricane-affected Gulf Coast region are staying.

Browns

Rookie Charlie Frye has won the backup quarterback job for Cleveland ahead of journeyman Doug Johnson. The Browns hope the third-round pick from Akron can be their future starter. Veteran Trent Dilfer will start the season at No. 1.

Jets

After spending his entire 10-year career with New England, Ty Law will start at cornerback for the Jets on Sunday in Kansas City. Coach Herman Edwards announced the decision Monday. He also said rookie Kerry Rhodes, a fourth-round draft pick, would join Law in the secondary.

Lions

For now, rookie Dan Orlovsky is the Lions’ backup quarterback. Orlovsky, a fifth-round draft choice from Connecticut, had been preparing to be the third-stringer until Jeff Garcia broke his leg in the final preseason game. He played in all four preseason games, completing 29 of 54 passes for 356 yards. He threw one touchdown pass and was intercepted twice.

Bills

Cornerback Nate Clements did not practice Monday because of a shoulder injury, and his status is uncertain for the opener Sunday against Houston.

Bears

Cornerback and kickoff returner Jerry Azumah is expected to play in the opener at Washington after going through his first full practice Monday since arthroscopic surgery on his right hip last month. Azumah last year missed the preseason and the first four games of the regular season after undergoing neck surgery.

Redskins

Tackle Jon Jansen, coming back from tearing his Achilles’ tendon more than a year ago, broke the base of his thumb in practice Monday. Coach Joe Gibbs said Jansen would play while wearing a splint and cast in practice and during games.

Rams

Tight end Jeff Robinson began his second stint with St. Louis, two days after being released by the Cowboys. The Rams released rookie tight end Jerome Collins, a fifth-round pick, to make room on the roster.

Colts

Wide receiver Brandon Stokley has been cleared to play in the opener at Baltimore after missing the preseason with a shoulder injury. Stokley, who dislocated his left shoulder a few days before the team’s game in Tokyo, returned to practice Monday.

Seahawks

Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Ray Rhodes has been hospitalized by team doctors and is undergoing a series of tests, coach Mike Holmgren said. Holmgren would not be specific about the nature of Rhodes’ illness. If the 54-year-old Rhodes isn’t available for the Seahawks’ regular-season opener Sunday, linebackers coach John Marshall would fill in for Rhodes, Holmgren said.