Tony Romo expected to miss 6-8 weeks because of broken collarbone

Tony Romo doesn’t need surgery on his broken left collarbone but he is expected to miss six to eight weeks of action while it heals.

That could be an eternity for the 1-5 Dallas Cowboys. If their playoff hopes aren’t already squelched, they probably will be by the time their Pro Bowl quarterback is healthy again. Team owner Jerry Jones might end up telling Romo to call it a season and rest up for 2011.

Thirty-eight-year-old backup Jon Kitna, who hadn’t thrown a pass in more than two years before Monday night’s game, finished that contest for the Cowboys.

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Aaron Smith is out indefinitely after needing surgery to repair a torn triceps tendon in his left arm. Such injuries typically are season-ending, but the Steelers (5-1) plan to wait and see how quickly Smith recovers before deciding whether to place him on the injured reserve list.

Adam “Pacman” Jones’ comeback season with the Cincinnati Bengals has been cut short by a neck injury. The Bengals said they put Jones on the injured reserve list because of a herniated disk in his neck suffered in Sunday’s 39-32 loss at Atlanta.

Brett Favre’s second return to Green Bay earned the highest television rating for “Sunday Night Football.”

The Packers’ 28-24 win over Favre’s Minnesota Vikings on NBC earned a 15.4 rating and 25 share. The 25.7 million viewers beat the 25.3 million for the Cowboys- Redskins opener earlier this season.

Baseball: Players’ union open to expanding playoffs

Baseball’s playoffs could be expanding in two years.

The new head of the players’ union says his members are open to adding more wild-card teams for 2012 and possibly extending the division series to a best-of-seven.

Union head Michael Weiner says it’s also possible players would agree to cutting the regular season from 162 games, but that’s more problematic because it would cost teams revenue.

Eight of 30 baseball teams make the playoffs under the current format.

Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig appears to be increasingly in favor of proposing more playoff teams during collective bargaining with the union next year, which will determine the postseason format for 2012 and beyond.

“The wife of ace left-hander Cliff Lee was among family members of Texas Rangers players subjected to obscenities and taunts during the AL championship series at Yankee Stadium. She said fans even were spitting at them from above.

The Yankees are expected to be one of the bidders for Lee when he is eligible to be a free agent after the World Series. Asked if what happened last week could have any impact on his decision, Lee said it wouldn’t.

The Arizona Diamondbacks named Alan Trammell bench coach, Don Baylor hitting coach, Eric Young first-base coach and Charles Nagy pitching coach.

Jim Riggleman will return as the Washington Nationals’ manager in 2011, the team announced.

College Football: North Carolina’s Burney cleared to play

North Carolina cornerback Kendric Burney has been cleared to play this weekend against William & Mary.

Burney recently completed a six-game suspension issued by the NCAA for receiving improper benefits connected to trips, but missed last weekend’s loss at Miami due to what the school described as an “unresolved issue.”

The status of two players — defensive lineman Michael McAdoo and fullback Devon Ramsay — remain in question.

Oklahoma State star wide receiver Justin Blackmon was arrested on a suburban Dallas highway on a misdemeanor DUI complaint and his status with the Cowboys was unclear headed into the final weeks of the season.

Tennis: U.S. Fed Cup team named

Teenager Coco Vandeweghe will join Melanie Oudin, Bethanie Mattek-Sands and doubles specialist Liezel Huber on the U.S. team that will face Italy in the Fed Cup final.

With Serena and Venus Williams sidelined by injuries, U.S. captain Mary Joe Fernandez picked the 115th-ranked Vandeweghe for the Nov. 6-7 Fed Cup final on an indoor hard court at the San Diego Sports Arena.

Fifth-seeded John Isner of the United States eased into the second round of the Open Sud de France in Montpellier with a 7-5, 6-2 win over French wild card Benoit Paire.

Isner’s countryman Taylor Dent beat Romain Jouan of France 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4.

Caroline Wozniacki swept aside Elena Dementieva 6-1, 6-1 in the group stage of the WTA Championships in Doha, Qatar, putting her one win away from ensuring she will remain the world’s top-ranked player for 2010.

Wozniacki needs to win two of her matches in the Maroon Group to fend off a challenge for her top ranking from No. 2 Vera Zvonareva of Russia.

The eight-player tournament features the world’s top performers in 2010, although the Williams sisters are absent due to injury. The top two players from the two groups will advance to the semifinals.

Zvonareva earlier beat a struggling Jelena Jankovic 6-3, 6-0 in the opening match of the White Group. Also, Samantha Stosur of Australia staged a comeback from 4-0 down in the first set against Francesca Schiavone of Italy to win 6-4, 6-4 in the Maroon Group.

Etc.: Paul the Octopus dies

Paul the Octopus, the tentacled tipster who fascinated soccer fans by correctly predicting results at this year’s World Cup, died in Oberhausen, Germany. Paul had reached the advanced age of 2 1/2 years and died in his tank