Chiefs’ Johnson is likely out Sunday

One of the NFL’s most feeble offenses is almost certain to be without its standout running back for at least a week, and possibly longer.

Larry Johnson, a two-time Pro Bowl player, has a sprained right foot and is questionable for Sunday’s game against Denver, Kansas City Coach Herm Edwards said Tuesday.

Edwards declined to speculate on how long Johnson might be out, saying he did not have enough information.

“He’s got a swollen foot right now so that’s not good,” he said.

Johnson’s foot got caught under the weight of A.J. Hawk and twisted awkwardly as the Green Bay linebacker dragged him down from behind in the fourth quarter Sunday of the Packers’ 33-22 victory.

He was on crutches as he left the stadium.

“The severity of it, I don’t know because I’m not the doctor,” Edwards said. “As far as I know right now, it will be very difficult for him to play this week.”

Into the breach will step Priest Holmes. The three-time Pro Bowl player has made an unexpected comeback after being out of football for almost two years after a spinal injury in October 2005. Rookie Kolby Smith, a fifth-round draft choice out of Louisville, will share the carries.

Big games still drive big television ratings numbers. That is the message resonating in the wake of CBS’ Sunday broadcast of the undefeated New England Patriots’ victory over the previously undefeated Baltimore Colts.

A total of 66.4 million viewers tuned in to all or part (which, by Nielsen rules, means at least six minutes) of the game that became the highest-rated program, sports or otherwise, of the 2007-08 television season.

The average audience size peaked at 33.8 million viewers late in the game as the Patriots staged a come-from-behind victory. The broadcast drew the largest audience for a regular-season NFL game since 1987, which is as far back as CBS and NFL ratings records go.

The second-highest rated television show during the week was ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars,” which drew 21.4 million viewers. The NFL game outpaced the season’s previous ratings king -- the Academy Awards broadcast on Feb. 25, which drew a total of 40.4 million viewers.

-- Greg Johnson

The Carolina Panthers signed quarterback Drew Olson to the practice squad to provide depth with David Carr and Vinny Testaverde banged up.

That means Olson, who played at UCLA, was reunited with another former Bruin, Matt Moore, who signed with the team in September.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell informed the Tennessee Titans’ Adam “Pacman” Jones that the cornerback will serve out his entire suspension for the 2007 season.

Jones had met with the commissioner last week in New York, pleading for some leniency and an early return.

Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Marcus Stroud was suspended without pay for four games for violating the NFL’s steroids and related substances policy. . . . The Minnesotsa Vikings signed Koy Detmer to serve as an insurance policy for a banged-up group of quarterbacks.