Steelers Will Try to Quiet Vikings

It doesn’t get any easier for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After ending the Chicago Bears’ eight-game winning streak last weekend to keep themselves in the thick of the AFC wild-card race, the Steelers will try to halt the Minnesota Vikings’ six-game run Sunday at Minneapolis.

The Steelers (8-5) were in their element against the Bears, ending a three-game losing streak on a gray, snowy day in Pittsburgh.

Sunday they will be indoors in the cacophonous Metrodome.

“The noise is a factor. You can’t dismiss that as not being a factor -- that is an issue,” said Steeler Coach Bill Cowher, whose team drew five false-start penalties last month in the RCA Dome in a 26-7 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. “We’ll try to simulate the noise in practice.... Hopefully, we’ll prepare well.

“It will be a big challenge for us, but there’s a lot at stake this time of the year and I think we’re looking forward to it.”

The resurgent Vikings (8-5) are 6-0 since Brad Johnson took over for the injured Daunte Culpepper and have pulled to within one game of the division-leading Bears in the NFC North. But only one of the victories -- over the NFC East-leading New York Giants -- was against a team with a record above .500.

“Every position has to play good ... and basically prove everybody wrong,” defensive tackle Pat Williams said of the Vikings, who are three-point underdogs. “If we beat Pittsburgh, we’re over the hump, so we’re out to prove everybody wrong.”

Elsewhere:

Tampa Bay (9-4), plus 4 1/2 , at New England (8-5), Saturday, 10:30 a.m., Channel 11 -- Tom Brady is 19-0 as a starter, including playoff games, when the kickoff temperature is 40 degrees or colder -- and the Patriots can wrap up their third consecutive AFC East title with a victory. But Brady is questionable because of shin and shoulder injuries suffered in Sunday’s 35-7 victory over the Buffalo Bills.

Kansas City (8-5), plus 3, at N.Y. Giants (9-4), Saturday, 2 p.m., Channel 2 -- Tiki Barber (four consecutive 100-yard rushing games for the Giants) and Larry Johnson (six in a row for the Chiefs) rank 3-4 in the league in rushing, but they’ll be tested by defenses that rank sixth (the Chiefs) and eighth against the run.

Denver (10-3), minus 8 1/2 , at Buffalo (4-9), Saturday, 5:30 p.m., ESPN -- Jake Plummer and the AFC West-leading Broncos can nail down a playoff berth by beating a going-nowhere team that has lost four in succession after falling Sunday to the Patriots.

N.Y. Jets (3-10), plus 8 1/2 , at Miami (6-7), Sunday, 10 a.m. -- The Dolphins, hoping to reach .500 by stretching their winning streak to four games, haven’t given up hope of making the playoffs. But a fourth consecutive loss to the Jets, who ended a seven-game losing streak Sunday, almost surely would doom them.

Arizona (4-9), minus 1 1/2 , at Houston (1-12), Sunday, 10 a.m. -- Still leading the Reggie Bush sweepstakes, the Texans have lost their last three games by a total of 10 points, losing Sunday to the Titans, 13-10, when Kris Brown hooked a 31-yard field-goal attempt wide left as time expired.

Seattle (11-2), minus 7, at Tennessee (4-9), Sunday, 10 a.m., Channel 11 -- Six days before taking on the Colts in a Christmas Eve showdown at Seattle, the Seahawks can extend their club-record winning streak to 10 games and wrap up home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.

San Diego (8-5), plus 7 1/2 , at Indianapolis (13-0), Sunday, 10 a.m., Channel 2 -- Having clinched their third consecutive division title and secured home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs, the Colts will need to hold off the desperate Chargers to join the 1972 Miami Dolphins as the only 14-0 teams in NFL history.

Philadelphia (5-8), plus 3 1/2 , at St. Louis (5-8), Sunday, 10 a.m. -- Two teams accustomed to challenging for NFC supremacy will miss the playoffs, the defending conference champion Eagles having lost six of the last seven, the Rams four of the last five.

Carolina (9-4), minus 9, vs. New Orleans (3-10) at Baton Rouge, La., Sunday, 10 a.m. -- The Panthers, 23-20 losers against the Saints in the opening week of the season, squandered a chance to take control of the NFC South when they lost Sunday to the Buccaneers, further tightening the NFL’s tightest division race.

San Francisco (2-11), plus 15 1/2 , at Jacksonville (9-4), Sunday, 10 a.m. -- Seeking their first playoff berth since 1999, the wild-card-chasing Jaguars open a season-ending three-game stretch that includes games against the 49ers, Texans and Titans, who bring a combined record of 7-32 into this weekend’s games.

Cincinnati (10-3), minus 8, at Detroit (4-9), Sunday, 1 p.m. -- On the verge of winning their first division title since 1990, the Bengals lead the NFL with 38 take-aways, among them a league-high 27 interceptions, and a plus-24 turnover differential.

Cleveland (4-9), plus 3, at Oakland (4-9), Sunday, 1 p.m. -- Assured of their third consecutive losing season for the first time since Al Davis arrived in 1963, the Raiders have turned again to Kerry Collins after Marques Tuiasosopo was sacked six times, lost two fumbles and threw two interceptions Sunday.

Dallas (8-5), plus 3, at Washington (7-6), Sunday, 1:15 p.m., Channel 11 -- One game behind the division-leading Giants in the NFC East, the Cowboys have lost five games by a total of 20 points, among them a 14-13 Week 2 defeat by the Redskins in which they gave up touchdown passes of 39 and 70 yards from Mark Brunell to Santana Moss in the last 3 minutes 46 seconds.

Atlanta (8-5), plus 3, at Chicago (9-4), Sunday, 5:30 p.m., ESPN -- The Bears’ eight-game winning streak came to an end Sunday at Pittsburgh, a quarterback controversy is brewing and the team faces another opponent that desperately needs a victory to stay in playoff contention. The Falcons’ Michael Vick said he would play despite bruised ribs.

Green Bay (3-10), plus 3 1/2 , at Baltimore (4-9), Monday, 6 p.m., Channel 7 -- The Packers rank 30th in the NFL in rushing offense and Brett Favre has thrown a league-high 22 interceptions, two short of his career high. The Ravens’ offense is the worst in club history. And this is a national TV game?