Published: November 18, 2009 11:41 pm      

Polamalu wears heavy brace

PITTSBURGH — Steelers safety Troy Polamalu wore a heavy brace on his reinjured left knee while watching practice Wednesday and did not take part in any drills.

Polamalu limped off the field about 30 minutes before practice ended and did not answer questions. He is all but certain to miss Sunday’s game at

Kansas City, and he might not be ready for Baltimore on Nov. 29.

Polamalu injured a knee ligament while tackling Cincinnati’s Cedric Benson on Sunday. He missed four games after hurting a different ligament during Pittsburgh’s opener.

If he starts in Kansas City, backup Tyrone Carter would be in the lineup for the sixth time, compared to five starts for Polamalu. Carter also started once for safety Ryan Clark.

Polamalu was injured in the first half of two of those five starts.