Panthers RBs Williams, Stewart running for history

Since being voted to his first Pro Bowl Tuesday, DeAngelo Williams had been as elusive with the media as he is with would-be tacklers.

When he finally was cornered yesterday, the Carolina Panthers running back seemed more interested in talking about teammate Jonathan Stewart.

The tight-knit duo has a chance to make history Sunday as the first set of backs since the NFL-AFL merger to rush for 1,100 yards each in a season.

"I didn't even know that," Williams said, looking surprised. "That's pretty cool."

Stewart enters the season finale against New Orleans with 1,008 yards. Despite missing two games and three quarters of another with sprained ankles, Williams has 1,117.

On Sunday, an injured Williams was both a fan and a calculator for Stewart, who set a team record with 206 yards rushing in a 41-9 rout of the Giants.

Williams kept telling Stewart on the sideline how many more yards he needed to reach 1,000 for the season.

They are only the sixth set of teammates since the 1970 merger to rush for 1,000 yards each, but the third in the past four years. The Giants' Derrick Ward and Brandon Jacobs did it last season, and Warrick Dunn and Michael Vick did it in 2006 for Atlanta.

Said Williams, "That was one of our hidden goals.''

Three Raiders fined

Three Oakland players were fined a total of $40,000 for their actions in last week's penalty-filled game against Cleveland. Tight end Tony Stewart ($25,000), defensive end Richard Seymour ($10,000) and cornerback Stanford Routt ($5,000) were the culprits . . . The Bills promoted national scout Buddy Nix to general manager.

- AP