Cromartie rewarded
Chargers cornerback Antonio Cromartie was honored Wednesday as the AFC special teams player of the week because of his record-setting 109-yard return of a missed field goal at Minnesota. Ironically, he won the special teams award even though he's not a featured player on kickoff and punt returns.
Cromartie, who scored his third touchdown in two weeks, said he had to check with the officials to make sure he hadn't stepped on the end line. Then he started slowly, trying to convince the Vikings that he wasn't going to run it back.
"Once I looked up, everybody was walking off the field," he said. "I ran down our sideline, and I had a wall (of blockers), just like I did on my first interception return for a touchdown. I ran down the field, and they threw great blocks."
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The Chargers started their preparation for Sunday's Indianapolis game with center Nick Hardwick (foot), cornerback Quentin Jammer (hamstring) and linebacker Marques Harris (toe) sitting out practice. Defensive end Luis Castillo will be out for the next month to six weeks following surgery to repair a tendon in his ankle. Linebacker Shaun Phillips (groin) didn't play at Minnesota but practiced fully today, as did reserve wideout Craig Davis (ankle).
Coach Norv Turner said he didn't expect Hardwick to be ready by Sunday.
"He's testing it some," Turner said. "But he's not close to getting on the field, so I wouldn't hold out much hope."