Tomlinson, Gates sit out practice again

San Diego Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson and tight end Antonio Gates missed a second straight practice Thursday as San Diego continued to prepare for its home wild-card playoff game against the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday night.

Tomlinson, who has a strained groin, is in better shape than Gates, who has a sprained ankle.

“If we were playing today he probably wouldn’t play,” Coach Norv Turner said about Gates.

And L.T.? “Yeah, I think he would,” the coach said.

“Both of them are a lot better than they have been,” Turner said. “It really will be a Saturday decision, how they feel. We’ll get them out there and run around and see how they feel. I’m optimistic about both of them.”

Tomlinson said he felt better than he did on Sunday night, when he was hurt in San Diego’s 52-21 win against Denver that clinched the AFC West for the Chargers (8-8).

By Saturday night, “hopefully it will be good enough to be productive,” Tomlinson said.

“I hope to play, but ultimately it’s not really my decision,” he added.

Tomlinson had his first three-touchdown game of the season Sunday.

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The NFL has granted a second, final 24-hour extension of its television blackout deadline for the Arizona Cardinals’ wild-card playoff game against the Atlanta Falcons on Saturday. The team has until 2:30 p.m. local time today to sell its remaining tickets. A sellout crowd is necessary for the NFL to lift its blackout of the home television market. . . . The Minnesota Vikings reported 8,000 tickets remaining for Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles. The league has granted the Vikings an extension until 3:30 p.m. local time today to reach a sellout and lift its blackout of the home television market.