The Jaguars will be without half their starting secondary tomorrow against the Steelers. Safety Reggie Nelson (knee) and cornerback Drayton Florence (groin) will miss the game.

Nelson bruised a knee two weeks ago at Indianapolis when he collided with teammate Brian Williams and sat out last week's game against Houston. Florence strained his groin against the Texans.

Cornerback Will James, a native of Brownsville, and safety Gerald Sensabaugh are expected to start against the Steelers.

Starting cornerback Samari Rolle had neck surgery this week and will be out at least a month. Rolle suffered a stinger in a 28-10 victory Sept. 21 against the Browns after intercepting a pass in the fourth quarter.

Deion Branch will start tomorrow against the Giants, eight months after the veteran receiver had reconstructive knee surgery. Branch and former Penn State star Bobby Engram will make their season debut. Branch tore a knee ligament in Seattle's playoff loss at Green Bay in January. Running back Maurice Morris and receiver Koren Robinson are questionable because of knee injuries.

Jordan Gross' streak of 84 consecutive starts for the Carolina Panthers will end, while fellow starting tackle Jeff Otah is doubtful for tomorrow's game against the Chiefs. Gross was ruled out after being knocked unconscious in Sunday's win against Atlanta. He did not practice all week. Otah, a former Pitt player who has a sprained right ankle, missed his third consecutive practice.