Steelers’ Bettis Will Not Play Against the Bills

Pittsburgh Steeler running back Jerome Bettis will sit out Sunday’s game at Buffalo because of a sprained ankle.

Bettis, who was downgraded Friday, will finish 59 yards short of his ninth 1,000-yard season since breaking in with the Los Angeles Rams in 1993. Bettis has started only six games this season as a backup to Duce Staley but gained at least 100 yards in all six.

Bettis ran for 117 yards in the Steelers’ 20-7 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. He played the entire game but was listed as doubtful on Wednesday’s injury report.

Staley is questionable because of the hamstring injury that has sidelined him for six of Pittsburgh’s last eight games.

If Staley can’t play, third-string running back Verron Haynes probably will get most of the carries against the Bills (9-6), who must win to stay in the AFC playoff race. Haynes is averaging 5.3 yards in 47 carries.

The Steelers (14-1) already have home-field advantage and a first-round bye secured for the AFC playoffs, so Bettis understands the decision to hold him out.

“It’s an incentive to get 1,000 yards, but it’s a bigger incentive to have the opportunity to win the Super Bowl,” Bettis said.

Listed as questionable are receiver Plaxico Burress (hamstring), who played Sunday for the first time in five weeks, and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (ribs). Coach Bill Cowher previously said quarterback Tommy Maddox would make his first start since Sept. 19.

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Carolina Panther linebacker Mark Fields was fined $5,000 by the NFL for unnecessary roughness in last weekend’s victory over Tampa Bay.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the fine was issued this week.

Fields’ sack of Buccaneer quarterback Brian Griese resulted in unnecessary roughness. He grabbed Griese’s face mask and unnecessarily twisted his head, said league spokesman Michael Signora.

The play came with one minute left in the second quarter. Fields blitzed and sacked Griese for an 11-yard loss, but he was flagged for a 15-yard face-mask penalty.

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Cleveland quarterback Kelly Holcomb had a good practice and probably will start against the Houston Texans in the Browns’ season finale Sunday.

Holcomb tied a franchise record with five touchdown passes in his last start, a 58-48 loss at Cincinnati on Nov. 28 but sustained cracked ribs. Rookie Luke McCown started the last four weeks.

Holcomb will try to end the Browns’ nine-game losing streak. He has practiced the last two weeks and plans to wear a protective pad on his left side that attaches to his shoulder pads.

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The Chicago Bears have given a five-year contract extension to punter Brad Maynard. Maynard, an alternate for the Pro Bowl this season, is averaging a career-high 38.8 yards a punt and has dropped a league-leading 31 punts inside the 20-yard line.

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The Green Bay Packers will honor the late Reggie White by wearing a No. 92 decal on their helmets for the last game of the regular season and the playoffs.

They will start wearing the decal, which has 92 in dark block numbers with a clear background, on Sunday in Chicago against the Bears.