SAN DIEGO (AP) -The AFC West has been won, a first-round bye secured and LaDainian Tomlinson is the most prolific single-season scorer in NFL history.

The San Diego Chargers still have several more accomplishments within reach before their remarkable regular season ends. The biggest is to make sure the road to the Super Bowl on the AFC side of the playoffs goes through Qualcomm Stadium.

If San Diego (13-2) beats the downtrodden Arizona Cardinals (5-10) at home Sunday, or Baltimore loses to Buffalo, the Chargers would secure AFC home-field advantage.

Should the Chargers then win their divisional round playoff game - and remember, that's always a big, big if for teams coached by Marty Schottenheimer - they'd host the AFC championship game.

San Diego has been the home team in the AFC title game only once before, with the Dan Fouts-led Chargers losing to the Oakland Raiders after the 1980 season.

``I think we realize what's at stake here,'' said inside linebacker Donnie Edwards, who grew up watching those Air Coryell teams. ``If we can get this big win this weekend at home, we'll go 8-0 in the season, which hasn't been done in a long time, and No. 2, we'll get home-field advantage for the playoffs. I think that's really important for the city of San Diego and our team.''

Barring an unexpected change of heart by general manager A.J. Smith, who can carry a grudge as tightly as Tomlinson totes the ball - the GM also is at odds with Schottenheimer - Edwards will be playing his final home regular-season game. Edwards, brought to San Diego before the 2002 season by the late John Butler, angered Smith with requests for a contract extension. Smith unsuccessfully tried to trade Edwards, who leads the team with 158 tackles, has 2 1/2 sacks, three interceptions, one fumble recovery and is popular in the community.

The Chargers' 13 wins are the most in club history, and their nine-game winning streak is their longest in one season.

``I tell you, it's something,'' said Philip Rivers, who overcame a shaky start at Seattle last Sunday to deliver a thrilling 20-17 win with a 37-yard TD pass to Vincent Jackson with 29 seconds left. ``It's weird. We all acknowledge it, but we expected it. It's not like it has surprised us, but it has been tough along the way.''

The Chargers' longest overall winning streak is 15, in 1960-61, back at the dawn of the AFL.

If they can extend their winning streak to 13, it would mean they'd be Super Bowl champions for the first time.

To get there, it would help to have home-field advantage.

``I think it's huge,'' Rivers said. ``Again, it doesn't guarantee anything, but, I mean, it's a big accomplishment and a big bonus. If it wasn't, everybody wouldn't be fighting like crazy to get it. We know we can control it all.''

The Chargers can also set a club record by going 8-0 at home. The only time they've been perfect at home was when they went 7-0 at Balboa Stadium in 1963, two years before the Beatles played the downtown stadium.

Last year, the Chargers undermined their playoff chances by stumbling to 4-4 at home.

Tomlinson, meanwhile, can clinch his first NFL rushing title a week after being held without a touchdown for the first time in 10 games. The sixth-year pro leads the league with 1,749 yards. His closest pursuer, Kansas City's Larry Johnson, has 1,651.

Tomlinson can also add on to his NFL single-season records of 31 touchdowns, 28 rushing, and 186 points.

Leading the NFL with 2,243 yards from scrimmage, he needs 128 on Sunday to break the team record and 187 to break Marshall Faulk's NFL record of 2,429 in 1999.

Schottenheimer can join an exclusive club by winning his 200th regular-season game. The only others who've done it were Don Shula, George Halas, Tom Landry and Curly Lambeau. Each of them won multiple Super Bowls or NFL titles. Schottenheimer is still trying to get to his first Super Bowl.

Come January, Schottenheimer will find out if this is the team that can end his run of awful playoff luck. Schottenheimer is 5-12 in the postseason, with his teams losing five straight, including his Bolts in the opening round in 2004, and going one-and-out eight times.

Schottenheimer's Kansas City Chiefs had home-field advantage throughout the playoffs in 1995 and 1997, only to be stunned in the divisional round both times.

Outside linebacker Shawne Merriman, who leads the NFL with 16 sacks despite serving a four-game suspension for flunking a drug test, will be chasing Kurt Warner for the two sacks he needs to break Gary Johnson's 1980 team record of 17 1/2.

The Cardinals, meanwhile, have won four of their last six games, which might not be enough to save coach Dennis Green's job.

Green is 16-31 since taking over at Arizona amid high expectations in 2004. An eight-game losing streak early in the season may have sealed Green's fate in what was supposed to be a breakout season in Arizona's new stadium.

Asked if he still had a burning desire to coach the Cardinals next season, he said only, ``I'm not going to get into any of that stuff.''

With rookie Matt Leinart sidelined by a shoulder injury, Warner will start at quarterback for the Cardinals. Warner relieved the injured Leinart last Sunday and helped lead the Cardinals to a 26-20 victory at San Francisco.

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