Agent says Polamalu wants to finish career in Pittsburgh

It has been a busy offseason for Troy Polamalu.

He has been rehabilitating an Achilles' tendon injury in Los Angeles. He earned his bachelor's degree in history from USC. He'll have a maximum 99 rating in the "Madden NFL 12" video game when it's released next month.

But has the Pittsburgh Steelers' star safety also been planning a request for a contract extension once the NFL lockout is over?

"The Steelers always have done this sort of thing the year before a contract is up," Marvin Demoff, Polamalu's agent, told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review when asked Thursday about the possibility. "There's been no discussion yet, but I'd say it's highly likely that was because of the lockout. We'd be open to it, sure. Troy's played there eight years and wants to finish his career in Pittsburgh."

Polamalu, who signed a four-year, $30 million extension in 2007, never fully recovered from the Achilles' tendon injury he suffered during a Week 14 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals when he approached the end zone to score a touchdown off an interception return. He missed subsequent games against the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers before returning for the regular-season finale against the Cleveland Browns.

Following treatment and rehab under the care of an orthopedic surgeon with ties to the Steelers' medical staff, Polamalu was expected to be ready by training camp -- whenever that might be.

"Troy tends to be pretty hard on himself emotionally and physically," Demoff said, "and he feels really good about where he is."

Now 30 years old, Polamalu has fully played a 16-game schedule in just four of his eight seasons because of his physical style of play. He has missed 13 regular-season games the last three seasons but still has 17 interceptions and 35 passes defended.

With the Steelers' defense rock solid but aging -- nine of the unit's 11 regular starters last season are either over 30 or about to turn 30 -- the question of a long-term contract might be troubling to the front office. But Demoff doesn't see his client just hanging around to collect a paycheck.

"That's not Troy," Demoff said. "He's not the type to keep playing when he's not at a high level. No offense, but he's not going to be Brett Favre."

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Raiders finish with 6-0 division record, but rival Chiefs advance to play Ravens

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- If this turns out to be Tom Cable's last year as Oakland's head coach, at least he'll know he made history.

After beating Kansas City 31-10 Sunday in their regular-season finale, the 2010 Raiders became the only team since the 1970 merger to go unbeaten in their division and still not make the playoffs. The short-handed Raiders (8-8) wrapped up a division record of 6-0, while the Chiefs (10-6) went 2-4 in the division and will host the Baltimore Ravens next Sunday at 1 p.m. EST as AFC West champions.

The Chiefs are the No. 4 seed, the Raiders are through for the year.

"We are disappointed because we are not going to the playoffs, but at the same time we stuck to the goal and stuck to the plan as we have done very week, and we got our eighth win," said Cable, whose job status with the Raiders has been the subject of speculation. "I'm very happy about that."

Michael Bush rushed for 137 yards and Jason Campbell threw a TD pass for the Raiders, who beat the Chiefs in Arrowhead Stadium for the fourth year in a row and ruined their perfect home record.

Running back Darren McFadden and Pro Bowl defensive tackle Richard Seymour were inactive because of injuries, but the Raiders dominated from start to finish, intercepting two of Matt Cassel's passes and getting seven sacks. The interceptions both led directly to Oakland's last two scores. Jacoby Ford scored on a 10-yard reverse after Michael Huff's interception, and Stanford Routt returned a pick 22 yards for the Raiders' final TD when Cassel was hurried while throwing from his end zone.

The Chiefs were still digesting their lopsided loss several hours later when Indianapolis beat Tennessee 23-20 and determined their seed and first-round opponent.

The Chiefs' worst home game of the season came on the heels of news that offensive coordinator Charlie Weis is returning to college coaching to become Florida's offensive coordinator. Weis, in one year with the Chiefs, has been given much credit for developing Cassel into a top-flight quarterback and turning Jamaal Charles into a Pro Bowl running back.

"Charlie Weis is moving on. He's going to go to the University of Florida as a coordinator," said Chiefs coach Todd Haley. "This is a bittersweet thing for me as the head coach. Charlie was obviously someone I was excited about having in here. That being said, Charlie is a family guy and he's got a family situation, where he can go to Florida and be with his son, who is going to get into coaching. This is a great situation for Charlie and I respect it 100 percent."

Weis was not made available to the media.

The Raiders posted their best record since 2002 amid talk that Cable may be out; the team went to 17-27 since he became head coach four games into the 2008 season. It was the first time since '02, when Oakland went to the Super Bowl, that it didn't lose at least 11 games.

The Raiders had 344 total yards to Kansas City's 201 and held the top-rated rushing offense to 115 yards on the ground.

Asked if he thinks he's coming back, Cable did answer directly.

"We're not losers anymore. We're 8 and 8," he said. "That's not what we wanted. We wanted to be a playoff team. We came here to get the sixth win, which means we went 6-0 in the division and most importantly, we are done with that losing. We are not losers anymore."

Charles, who trailed Houston's Arian Foster by 56 yards for the NFL rushing lead, had 87 yards on 14 carries, including a 47-yard burst that was KC's offensive highlight. He finished the regular season with 1,467 yards and came within a whisker of catching Jim Brown's NFL record of 6.40 yards per carry. He finished at 6.38.

"I wasn't even paying attention that I wasn't in the record books. I wasn't even worried about it," said Charles. "I was just going out there and just running the ball like I do every week. My goal is to go out and win. I'm disappointed we lost, but we've got to bounce back. We've got another week going. The Raiders don't."

The Chiefs' pass protection, good most of the season, began breaking down in the second quarter. Cassel was flagged for intentional grounding and then sacked for an 11-yard loss on the next play by Jarvis Moss.

Campbell got the Raiders going with a 9-yard completion to Zach Miller. On third-and-10 from the Oakland 46, Campbell dumped off to Bush and he turned it into a 16-yard gain. With 7 seconds left in the half, Sebastian Janikowski kicked a 39-yard field goal for a 10-3 lead.

Campbell, after sitting out a series when he apparently hurt his right knee, scrambled 21 yards during a 14-play, 91-yard drive. He hit Jacoby Ford for a 35-yard gain to the 6 and Chaz Schilens was wide open in the end zone for the touchdown pass that gave the Raiders a 7-3 lead.

The Chiefs managed a meager 72 yards in the first half to Oakland's 192, but Charles broke free for a 47-yard run to the 8. From the 5, Charles went in almost untouched for a 10-10 tie the Raiders erased on their next possession.

Aided by a 15-yard face mask penalty against Jovan Belcher, the Raiders moved 75 yards in nine plays. Bush went over the right side of the defense virtually untouched for a 27-yard touchdown, the first TD rushing the Chiefs allowed at home all season.

Notes: Kamerion Wimbley had three of Oakland's seven sacks. ... KC's Tamba Hali had 2.5 sacks, the ninth multisack game of his career. ... Former coach Marty Schottenheimer was inducted into the Chiefs' Hall of Fame at halftime. ... Huff has four career interceptions against Kansas City.

Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press

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Resilient Jets make Texans latest victim of dramatic finish

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Nailbiting, racing hearts and stunning comebacks.

They're all in the playbook lately for the New York Jets.

Santonio Holmes caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from Mark Sanchez with 10 seconds left, lifting the Jets to an unlikely 30-27 comeback victory over the Houston Texans on Sunday.

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"I want to apologize to all the Jets fans for affecting the heart a little bit," coach Rex Ryan said. "But we'll take the win."

Especially since it appeared the Jets were on their way to a heartbreaking loss.

"We don't think we're ever out of it at all," tight end Dustin Keller said. "We tick ourselves off when we put ourselves in those situations, but we know that we're always capable of coming back in any game in any situation."

They've certainly proven that during the last three weeks with consecutive overtime wins on the road and now a victory that appeared improbable.

"I swear it's like `Groundhog Day,'" a beaming Sanchez said.

After blowing a 16-point lead in the fourth quarter, the Jets (8-2) trailed 27-23 with less than a minute left. But Sanchez completed two passes to LaDainian Tomlinson and then had a pretty 42-yard toss to Braylon Edwards with 16 seconds remaining. Edwards was knocked out of bounds by Eugene Wilson, stopping the clock and giving the Jets a chance to win.

On the next play, Sanchez coolly found Holmes streaking into the left corner of the end zone for the winning score, sending the New Meadowlands Stadium crowd into a frenzy.

"It's just me playing football," Holmes said.

A video replay confirmed that Holmes, whose 37-yard touchdown catch won it in overtime at Cleveland last week and set up the win at Detroit with a 52-yard reception in OT, got both feet in bounds.

"We're cutting it awfully close," Sanchez said. "I don't think anybody has any finger nails left if they're a Jets fan."

The Jets were coming off becoming the first team to win consecutive overtime games on the road, and looked as though they were going to fall to 2-3 at home.

But it was another heartbreaking loss for the Texans (4-6), who fell last week on a desperation heave as time expired at Jacksonville. Two weeks ago, Houston lost to San Diego on a late interception after driving for a potential go-ahead score in the fourth quarter.

"We deserve better in these last three games," Texans defensive end Mario Williams said. "We were there. Everything is there and we're doing great and all of a sudden, we let the big play go. It's unheard of. We just keep having it happen to us."

It seemed Houston was in good shape in this one as Arian Foster scored a questionable go-ahead 1-yard touchdown with 2:18 remaining.

Foster, the NFL's leading rusher, was hit at the goal line but reached out as he landed on a teammate and the ball broke the plane for a touchdown. Ryan challenged the call, thinking Foster was down, but the play was upheld after replay review.

Neil Rackers kicked a 22-yard field goal with 55 seconds to go after Sanchez was intercepted by Kevin Bentley -- sending thousands of fans to the exits.

For those who stayed, they were treated to another incredible ending.

"If I have to apologize for it every week from here on out, I will," Ryan said, "all the way to the Super Bowl."

Sanchez finished 22 for 38 for 315 yards and three touchdowns, including two to Holmes and one to Edwards. Holmes finished with seven catches for 126 yards.

New York gets back to work quickly, with another home game Thursday night against Cincinnati.

Foster had 84 yards rushing and two touchdown runs. Matt Schaub, starting after being hospitalized Tuesday night with a knee injury, threw for 254 yards and a touchdown to Joel Dreessen.

"I'm still searching for the adjective for how I would describe it," Schaub said. "It's tough to deal with."

The Jets went up 20-7 on Holmes' 41-yard touchdown catch with 4:38 remaining in the third quarter.

The score came moments after a man jumped onto the field and dashed across the turf for about 80 yards before tripping and then being jumped on by several security officers, including two New Jersey State troopers. He was handcuffed and led away from the field.

Nick Folk kicked a 30-yard field goal to make it 23-7 and giving the Jets what appeared to be a comfortable lead with 9 seconds into the fourth quarter.

Houston then began its comeback with Rackers' 38-yard field goal with 12:21 that made it 23-10.

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The Texans also took advantage of a fumble by Shonn Greene, scoring immediately after Brian Cushing knocked the ball loose and Bentley recovered. Schaub found Dreessen wide open down the left sideline and the big tight end ran into the end zone untouched for a 43-yard touchdown that made it 23-17 with 9:14 left.

"It was a great comeback, then we let it slip away," Texans owner Bob McNair said. "When it's going tough, you've got to step up. They stepped up. We didn't. They are all painful."

Notes: Jets right tackle Damien Woody left with a knee injury and didn't return. Ryan had no update on his status. ... Tomlinson passed Curtis Martin for seventh place on the NFL's career yards from scrimmage list. He has 17,452 combined rushing and receiving yards. Marcus Allen, with 17,654 yards, is next on the list. ... Texans LB Zac Diles (illness) and TE Owen Daniels (hamstring) were inactive, as was Jets WR Jerricho Cotchery (groin).

Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press

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