Miller, a prime candidate for the Pro Bowl and team MVP

Among those who won't play for the Steelers (7-8) against the ClevelandBrowns (5-10) is tight end Heath Miller, who sustained multiple torn ligaments in his right knee during the loss to the Bengals.

Miller, a prime candidate for the Pro Bowl and team MVP, has torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments as well as a possible tear in his posterior cruciate ligament.

Typical recovery time would extend well into next season's training camp. Just this past year, Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall, offensive tackle Max Starks and nose tackle Casey Hampton began camp on the physically unable to perform list after sustaining torn ACLs over the first eight days of January.

Kobe Bryant remains optimistic that Howard will eventually overcome

However, the Lakers center said he's already fed up with all of these shooting drills and it's time to solve his shooting woes without help from anybody.

"My mind cannot get clouded with everybody telling me how to shoot a free throw. I just have to go up there and shoot it my way and not get caught up in what everybody else is saying, because that's when I miss."

Howard, who averaged 18.5 points and 11.2 rebounds per game, is only shooting .469 from the free-throw line this season. His struggle from the free-throw line was often capitalized by other teams, who managed to topple the Lakerslate due to Howard's ineffectiveness from the charity stripe.

Still, Kobe Bryant remains optimistic that Howard will eventually overcome his problem on his own.

"I think it's just facing the issue and dealing with it and taking it on head first," Bryant told ESPN. "'This is something that I have to conquer. This is something that I have to master.' And I think he will."