Mike Tomlin would not take the bait. No matter how much anyone tried, he would not be lured into begging/asking/telling the Cincinnati Bengals or New England Patriots how and whom to play Sunday.

The Steelers need at least one or perhaps both of those teams to win to help them squeeze into the playoffs. Neither the Bengals, who play Sunday night at the New York Jets, nor the Patriots, who play Sunday afternoon at the Houston Texans, have much at stake.

Neither can earn a playoff bye; the only thing remaining for them is which team gets the AFC's No. 3 seed and which the No. 4.

That may not be enough to prompt either coach, Cincinnati's Marvin Lewis or New England's Bill Belichick, to risk their starters the entire game, especially when they must play the following weekend, particularly their quarterbacks.

The oddsmakers are among those who believe the Bengals and Patriots will take these games lying down. The Texans are six-point favorites to beat New England; the Jets are eight-point favorites to beat Cincinnati.

Last season, with nothing on the line in the playoff-bound Steelers' finale against Cleveland, Tomlin started Ben Roethlisberger and then watched as his quarterback was carted off the field on a stretcher with a feared neck injury.

In light of that, what would Tomlin think if quarterbacks Carson Palmer of Cincinnati and Tom Brady of New England were benched or had their time curtailed Sunday?

"I really have no opinion," Tomlin answered. "I trust that those coaches are going to do what they feel is best for their football teams. I'm going to do what's best for mine. Very rarely do I pass judgment on decision-making of other coaches... , because I don't have a pulse on their group, what they need. I'm sure those guys do."

Is not this an issue that strikes at the integrity of the game?

"I think we're all competitors and we play to win," Tomlin said. "I know I do. Every time we come out of that tunnel, that's the intent. The ramifications, in regard to other teams, [are] irrelevant to me. It's more about the people that I come out of the tunnel with and our commitment to this organization, our fans and our community. So when we come out, we play to win."

There also is the matter that has raised some ire in Pittsburgh: moving the Bengals-Jets game from 1 p.m. to prime time for NBC. If the Patriots do beat the Texans in their 1 p.m. game, it would render the outcome against the Jets even more meaningless for the Bengals.

Again, Tomlin would not admit to any disappointment if the Bengals did not go all out to win.

"I could care less how the Bengals approach what it is they do," he said.

"We created this situation. What we are going to do is control what we can control, and that's our preparation of play for the game."

There was little enthusiasm in Tomlin's report that safety Troy Polamalu ran the past two days "in a straight line" or that he might practice this week. Polamalu has not played in the past six games because of a sprained ligament in his left knee.

"The door's not closed on him participating," Tomlin said.

Here is the status of other players:

• Receiver Hines Ward now has injuries to both hamstrings. Tomlin: "Hines is miserable ... . He's got two hamstrings and a myriad of other issues. It gives him a bad disposition, but he'll show."

• Willie Parker, who might suit up for the final time in a Steelers uniform Sunday, has a shoulder injury. Parker entered his sixth consecutive season as the starting halfback only to be derailed by an early turf toe injury and Rashard Mendenhall's play. Parker has only 104 yards rushing in the past six games.

• Defensive lineman Brett Keisel (stinger, neck) and guard Chris Kemoeatu (wrist) are still having problems. There was no mention of linebacker James Harrison, who the coach said played one-armed Sunday because of an injury to his right biceps.

Rookie cornerback Keenan Lewis' season ended yesterday. Lewis, a third-round draft pick, did not suit up for 11 of the 15 games. He had one tackle on special teams.

He had a back injury early that bothered him all season, and yesterday the Steelers placed him on injured reserve.

To replace him, the Steelers signed Trae Williams, a fifth-round, 2008 Jacksonville draft pick from South Florida, to replace him on the roster.

The Jaguars cut Williams, and he spent last season on the Philadelphia Eagles' practice squad. He was on the Seattle Seahawks' practice squad since November. He's 5 feet 10, 195 pounds, and he will remain Steelers property next season.

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