Steelers 17, Patriots 24

The Championship Choke

Why does this keep happening to us?! The Pittsburgh Steelers have now lost three AFC Championship Games in the last eight years, all at home, all to teams that we were favored to beat. It happened again today, as horrific special teams play and an overall crappy performance cost the Steelers a chance to go to their sixth Super Bowl. The big play of the first half happened on special teams (of course). After a 64 yard Josh Miller punt was called back on a stupid Troy Edwards penalty, Miller punted again from his own endzone, and kicked it right to all-pro Troy Brown, who returned it 55 yards for a TD. It was the second week in a row that the special teams gave up a punt return TD. The Steelers had been kicking it out of bounds all day, but this time they kicked it right in the middle of the field. Why in the name of all things holy would you kick it right to an all-pro returner?!?!?! It was by far the bonehead move of the century. The Steelers then got a FG, but New England drove again before haltime. QB Tom Brady was knocked out of the game, but veteran Drew Bledsoe came off the bench and threw a TD pass. The upstart Patriots led 14-3 at halftime. Meanwhile, the offense looked like dog crap. Jerome Bettis got stuffed all day, as did the other running backs. The NFL's #1 rushing offense was held to just 58 yards on the ground. It didn't help that we were playing catch-up the whole game either.

The Steelers had a chance to get back into the game early in the 3rd quarter. They drove down and got in FG range, when our special teams killed us again. The Patriots blocked Kris Brown's FG attempt and returned it for a TD! Unreal!! How unbelievably horrible is our special teams? In the last four weeks, they have given up two TD's on FG attempts - on FG attempts - and have allowed two punt returns for TD's, both in the playoffs. And before that it was just as bad (e.g. the missed FG's in the first Baltimore game). The special teams coach should be fired before the end of the night. That play destroyed the Steelers. Give them credit though - they weren't about to get blown out. The Steelers put together two great drives in the 3rd quarter, and got TD's on both of them. One was a run by Bettis and another was a run by Zeroue. But it was too little too late. New England kicked a FG to go up by 7, and Kordell Stewart threw interceptions at the end of the game as the Steelers were trying to put together the game-tying drive.

So now it's all over. The Patriots - not the Steelers - are going to New Orleans to face the Rams. The special teams were horrible all season and it came back to haunt us today. Kordell wasn't too good today either, throwing 3 pics. The running game went nowhere. The defense played tough, but didn't get any help. Bottom line - we did NOT play like a championship team today, and we deserved to lose the game. It hurts, but we're done until next year. Steelers fans are now going to be in mourning for the next few days. I know this is no consolation (even to myself), but this really was a tremedous season. No one ever thought we'd get this far. What the Steelers did for this city was incredible to watch. I went out last night and saw more people out in this town than I've ever seen before. There were Steelers fans everywhere. The whole city was just on fire for this team. They brought us so much joy and so much fun, and for that I am thankful. Again, it doesn't make this loss any less difficult, but it's still worth mentioning. Here are the numbers:

• Jason Gildon: 8 tackles, 2 sacks

Steelers 27, Ravens 10

There will be no dynasty!!

WE'RE BACK!! For the 4th time in the past 8 seasons, the AFC Champonship Game will be played right here in Pittsburgh. The Steelers came out and once again overpowered the hated Baltimore Ravens. We had to win this game, and we did so in a way that left absolutely no doubt as to who the better team was.

A shocking announcement came before the game even began - Jerome Bettis had a bad reaction to a painkiller shot and was unable to play! But it was no problem once again as Amos Zeroue, who beat up on the Ravens last time, carried the load again. I predicted that Elvis Grbac would throw an interception for a TD on his first pass of the game. I was close - Grbac was intercepted by Chad Scott on his first pass of the game, but it only resulted in a FG for the Steelers. However, it set the tone for what would be the defense's best game of the season. Later in the first quarter, the Steelers drove 51 yards and got a short TD run by Zeroue. In the last game, the Ravens kept getting great field position. This time, it was the Steelers who always seemed to have a short field to work with, thanks to the total domination of the defense. Baltimore didn't even get a first down until the end of the half, and they couldn't convert on opportunites. At one point in the first half, the Ravens defense intercepted Kordell Stewart and returned the ball to the 7 yard line, but Brent Alexander picked off Grbac in the endzone, and the threat was over. Meanwhile, the Steelers offense continued to move the ball on a short field and wore out the Ravens defense. Zeroue had another short TD run, this time leaping over the Ravens d-line for the score. When the defense caused a fumble, Kris Brown got into the scoring act. After missing a shorter FG, Brown came out to a standing ovation from the crowd and drilled a 46 yarder! Never let it be said that we have anything to do with hurting Kris Brown's confidence. The Ravens got a desperartion FG before the half, but their offense was too anemic to do anything else. Their "great" defense, which had given up a total of 19 points in their previous 5 post-season games, had given up 20 in the first two quarters of this game! But in their defense, they actually played decently. You can only do so much when your offense is keeping you on the field all the time.

In the second half, the Ravens got a boost when Jermaine Lewis set a post-season record by returning a punt 88 yards for a TD. Unreal - all they talked about this week was how very dangerous Lewis is as a kick returner, and then he burns us like that! That guy is SO good, but fortunately for us, it didn't matter. The defense continued its destruction. Stewart later hit Plaxico Burress for a 32 yard TD. It was a great play, because he stiff-armed former Steeler and future Hall of Famer Rod Woodson on his way into the endzone. The Steelers are so much more physical than the Ravens. At one point, FB Dan Kreider pancaked Ray Lewis into the gorund! That play totally symbolized the way we've owned that team this year. Brent Alexander added another interception in the endzone to ice it. Bill Cowher walked off the field holding two fingers up and saying, "Two more...."

We completely dominated the Ravens for a third and final time, and this one wasn't even close. The defense showed why they are the best in the NFL. Ravens RB Terry Allen, who pounded Miami's supposedly good defense last week, wound up with 11 yards and a fumble! Grbac couldn't do anything against us. They would have been better off this year with Dilfer, because at least he is cheap. Even Shannon Sharpe said after the game, "As much as it pains me to say this, they have a better team than we do." You've got that right, you piece of crap. Now why don't you go join your buddy Goose in retirement. It was so great seeing those cocky losers go down in flames. Brian Billick kept wincing in pain on the sidelines, as if to say, "But I'm such a genius - how could this be happening again?!" The champs have fallen, while the Steelers move on. Pittsburgh will now host the AFC Championship Game for a record 8th time, and it feels so damn good to be back! Here are the numbers:

• Defense: held Ravens to 150 total yards, no TD's; caused 4 turnovers
• Time of Possession: Steelers - 40:45, Ravens - 19:15
• Amos Zeroue: 63 yards, 2 TD's

Up Next: New England beat Oakland in the snow last night in a wild overtime game. The Raiders were hurt by a controversial call, but it couldn't have happened to a nicer team. Now they have something else to cry about for the next 20 years (they were getting tired of crying about the Immaculate Reception and the 1977 Championship Game at Denver anyway). This will be the third time in a row that the Steelers will face the Patriots in the post-season. The Patriots beat the Steelers in the fog of Foxboro in 1996. The Steelers beat them twice the next season, once at New England in one of the wildest games in Steelers history, and then again in the playoffs. Baltimore-Pittsburgh is an intense rivalry, but New England-Pittsburgh, with three playoff games in six years, is no slacker, especially now with the AFC Championship on the line.

Elsewhere in the NFL Playoffs: New England beat Oakland in OT, St. Louis destroyed Green Bay, Chicago lost to Philadelphia

Final 2001 AFC Central Division Standings

Steelers 28, Browns 7

Pittsburgh's backups hammer Cleveland's starters

Do you ever wonder if the city of Cleveland ever gets tired of being completely embarrassed by its football team? Of course, when your city has so much else to be ashamed of, I guess the football team is the least of your concerns. The Steelers headed into this game knowing that they had clinched everything for the playoffs - the division, the bye, and the homefield advantage. They rested starters like Jerome Bettis (who missed his fifth straight game) and Joey Porter, and took out the other starters by the 3rd quarter, and still the Browns could not even make this a close game. Cleveland got on the board first with a touchdown, but the Steelers drove and Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala ran for a 17 yard TD. Fu ended the day with 98 yards. The score was 7-7 at halftime, and then the Steeler backup players went for the kill. Browns KR Ben Gay (classic Cleveland name) fumbled the opening kickoff of the second half, and Troy Edwards returned it for a TD. Backup QB Tommy Maddox hit Bobby Shaw on a 40 yard TD pass. RB R.J. Bowers, a 27 year-old rookie who played at nearby Grove City College, scored on a 21 yard TD run. Underrated CB Deshea Townsend added two interceptions and the defense had 4 sacks. It was snowing like crazy and the Steelers were just flat out having fun at Cleveland's expense.

Even though this game was meaningless, the Steelers needed this win to get back on track for the playoffs. The defense really needed a good performance to erase the embarrassment suffered at the hands of Jon Kitna last week. Plus no one wants to lose to the worthless Browns, who after all that so-called promise early in the season, finish below .500 yet again. The Browns go home to Cleveland to watch the playoffs on TV, while the Steelers prepare to host an AFC playoff game in two weeks. That is going to be quite an event, but for now, here are the milestones set in this magnificent season:

• Hines Ward & Plaxico Burress: 1000 yards receiving (first duo in team history to accomplish this feat)
• Kordell Stewart: 537 yards rushing and 60.2 completion percentage (team record)
• Defense: allowed 74.7 rushing yards per game (team record)
• Defense: 55 sacks (ties 1994 team record)
• Team: NFL Rankings - #1 defense (first time since 1990), #3 offense
• Team: Best record since 1978

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Baltimore beat Minnesota and clinched an AFC Wild Card berth, Cincinnati beat Tennessee, Jacksonville lost to Chicago

Steelers 23, Bengals 26 (OT)

What a total slopfest!

Good God, what an absolutely lifeless effort the Steelers gave today on a cold, sloppy field in Cincinnati. This was by far the ugliest game the Steelers have played in a long time. The Steelers offense looked good early on. Kordell Stewart fired two TD passes to Plaxico, one for 42 yards and another for 28 yards. The Bengals meanwhile blew two opportunities to score inside the Pittsburgh red zone when PK Neil Rackers missed a pair of FG's. The Steelers special teams was no better. Up 14-0, the Steelers lined up for a FG, but holder Josh Miller bobbled the snap and the Bengals picked it up and ran it 56 yards for a TD. It was just that kind of a game. The field was really not suitable for playing football on. They had this same problem in Cincinnati last year. But the sloppy conditions translated over into sloppy play by both teams. The Bengals got a FG before halftime, and cutting the Steeler lead to just 4.

The second half was really awful. The Steelers capitalized on a fumble when Stewart hit Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala for a 37 yard screen pass TD, giving the Steelers a 23-10 lead (Brown missed the PAT, but blame that one on the crappy field). But after that, the Steelers offense went to sleep. They needed to run the ball and kill the clock, but despite leading the league in time of possession, they failed miserably. Fu couldn't run worth crap - can we finally admit that he sucks and we really need Bettis back?? Kordell was no better - he threw FOUR interceptions! The Bengals finally got a drive going and scored a TD with about 3 minutes left in the game. Down by 6, they attempted an onside kick. Bobby Shaw fell on the ball, but under the pile the Bengals managed to rip the ball away and the refs unfairly gave them the ball. The Steelers tried to challenge the ruling, but the refs said it was not a reviewable call. That's funny, because that SAME EXACT PLAY was reviewed and in fact overturned in the Tampa Bay game earlier this season. I like how the refs change the rules of instant replay every single week (just ask the Browns fans). Anyway, you can't pin this loss on the refs. The Steelers defense has lacked a killer instinct, and today it caught up to them. They let the Bengals drive right down the field, and after a cheap endzone pass interference call on Chad Scott on 4th down, Jon Kitna threw a TD pass to former Steeler Danny Farmer (over Dewayne Washington, who can't play in Cincinnati) with only 30 seconds left. The TD tied the game and the extra point would've won it, but Rackers MISSED THE PAT!! Again, this was not really his fault. The field was a complete disgrace.

So the Steelers had new life in OT, especially after winning the coin toss, but they couldn't drive deep enough. After pinning the Bengals at the one yard line, the defense let up again. Kitna drove them all the way down the field again, and this time Rackers didn't miss. We lost to the stupid Bengals - unreal. This was just a worthless performance by the Steelers. They had no running game, Stewart sucked like old times, and the defense let Jon "Piece of Crap" Kitna throw for 411 yards! That's right, 411 yards!! But you know what, it still didn't matter in the grander scheme of things. That's because Denver beat Oakland, so the Steelers now have home field advantage throughout the playoffs regardless. That also means that next week's Cleveland game is still meaningless, which was the only point in winning today anyway. That's the obvious bright side of this dismal loss. The other bright side is that maybe the Steelers got all the crap play out of their system. What I mean is that all this hype from the media, all this expectation from the fans - maybe it was good to lose a game and kind of come back down to earth. I just hate the fact that freakin Cincinnati - the worst NFL team of the last decade - always seems to find a way to beat us at least once. Oh well, it doesn't matter, so let's move on. Happy New Year everyone! Here are the numbers:

• Plaxico Burress: 6 rec, 102 yards, 2 TD

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Baltimore lost to Tampa Bay, Cleveland beat Tennessee, Jacksonville lost to Kansas City

Steelers 47, Lions 14

May God have mercy on the Detroit Lions

Wow, this just wasn't fair. The Detroit Lions, winners of just one game this season, came into Heinz Field to face the best team in the AFC, and they got completely slaughtered. The Steelers rolled over the Lions with their highest point total of the year. The romp got started very early. On the third play of the game, rookie hometown QB Mike McMahon was hit by Joey Porter and fumbled. Jason Gildon picked up the ball and ran it back 27 yards for a TD. People were still coming into the stadium and it was already 7-0 Steelers! Detroit then tried to make it look like they were still trying by stringing together a 74 yard TD drive which tied the game. I still can't figure out why our defense always seems to give up at least one big drive early. However, from that point on, it was all Pittsburgh. Kordell Stewart, who has been mentioned as a candidate for league MVP, played great again. He took the Steelers on a 77 yard drive that included a great pass and catch to Troy Edwards on 3rd and 21. Stewart hit TE Matt Cushing in the endzone to give the Steelers the lead again. The defense then continued its assault on McMahon. They again forced him to fumble, and this time the Steelers recovered at the Lions 15 yard line. That set up a 2 yard TD run by Stewart. Later in the 2nd quarter, Stewart hit Hines Ward for a 5 yard TD. Detroit did get a junk TD before halftime, but the Steelers still led 27-14 at halftime.

In the 2nd half, the defense shut out McMahon and the Lions. Meanwhile, the offense continued to march down the field behind Stewart and RB Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala, who had his first ever 100 yard game. Stewart threw a third TD pass, this time it was a 19 yard strike to Plaxico Burress. Kris Brown kicked a pair of FG's, and Tommy Maddox got into the game and had a nice 5 yard TD run (XFL style). When it was all over, the Steelers had POUNDED Detroit into the ground, handing them their 13th loss of the season. Both the offense and the defense were superb. Josh Miller didn't even have to punt until the 4th quarter. Stewart was great, Fu finally got going, and Hines Ward broke Yancey Thigpen's single-season team record for receptions with his 86th catch. The defense was all over McMahon too. Welcome home, Mikey! The only problem the Steelers still have is with the kicking game. Kris Brown missed two FG's and an extra point! Good God!! You CANNOT be doing this when we're in the playoffs, Kris. And no blaming the fans either - we cheered him louder than anyone every single time he came on the field. We gave him all the emotional support he supposedly needed, and he still screwed up yet again. The Steelers need to at least look at other kickers at this point, although I doubt there is a lot out there. Regardless, the Steelers are marching full-steam towards the playoffs. They now have 12 wins, which matches their all-time high under Cowher, set in 1994. They clinched a first round bye, and have home-field advantage almost completely locked up. Merry Christmas indeed!! Here are the numbers from today's blowout:

• Kordell Stewart: 17-26, 226 yards, 3 TD pass, 1 TD rush
• Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala: 26 rushes, 126 yards
• Defense: allowed 151 total yards, forced 3 turnovers, scored 1 TD

Hail to Pitt: I have to give a quick congrats to my other favorite football team, the Pitt Panthers, who started off this season 1-5 and came all the way back to win the Tangerine Bowl on Thursday, their first Bowl victory since 1989. Game MVP Antonio Bryant had a great farewell performance. If his attitude improves a bit, he is going to make one hell of an NFL receiver.

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Tennessee beat overrated Oakland, Cincinnati was shut out by Baltimore, Jacksonville beat Minnesota, Cleveland lost to Green Bay

Steelers 26, Ravens 21

Steelers win final AFC Central Division title

The Pittsburgh Steelers are the 2001 AFC Central Division champs after an incredible win against the defending Super Bowl champions in Baltimore! Everyone knew this was the game of the year going in. There was so much trash talking during the week from both teams, but the Steelers showed why they are the true division champs. Like the first game in November, this contest was statistically dominated by Pittsburgh, who outgained Baltimore 476 to 207 in total yardage. And like last time, our horrible special teams kept the Ravens in the game. The game started with a nice Steelers drive that resulted in a Kris Brown FG. The defense then gave up their usual early drive, as Elvis Grbac ran in a TD from 2 yards out. It was only a 56 yard drive, because almost every single Baltimore drive started around (or over) midfield. Our kick coverage was at its absolute worst. The Steelers got another FG to make it 7-6 Baltimore. On both of the FG drives, the Steelers stalled because of stupid penalties. Kordell Stewart, who played the best game of his career, was having no trouble moving the ball. Late in the 2nd quarter, the Steelers finally found the endzone. They got some nice running out of Amos Zeroue on this drive. Fu was ineffective once again replacing the injured Jerome Bettis, and Zeroue did a great job of picking up the slack (73 yards) against a defense that no one can run on. Plaxico Burress also played the game of his life, and he came up huge on this TD drive. Burress caught a big 17 yard pass to keep the drive alive, and then he made a circus catch in the endzone, snatching the ball away from CB Chris McAlister, who had pretty decent coverage on the play. Jerkoff Ravens TE Shannon Sharpe said earlier this week that Burress was not physical enough to take on the Ravens, calling him "Plexiglass" (even though plexiglass is strong and doesn't break). Burress made moron Sharpe eat his words big time. By the time the night was over, the 2000 first round draft pick had 164 yards receiving! It is so great to see Plex developing. Now when a team decides to double up on Hines Ward like Baltimore did, they will get burnt on the other side of the field.

The Steelers started off the 3rd quarter nursing a 13-7 lead. They got the ball first and proceeded to put together an 11 minute drive. It was going to be the nail in the coffin, but they again couldn't get into the endzone. So out came Kris Brown to attempt a 32 yard FG and he missed!! Unbelievable! They ate up 11 minutes off the clock and came up with absolutely nothing. The Ravens felt the momentum. They got a long punt return that immediately put them into FG range (more awful kick coverage). However, Elvis Grbac couldn't control his temper. After being sacked (yes, the defense broke the no-sack streak), he got up and threw the football at a player. That drew a 15 yard penalty and ended the scoring threat. There were several personal foul calls in this game, and most were very touchy. It was mostly just jawing and yelling - no physical fighting really - but the refs just decided that they weren't going to let these guys hate each other. Anyway, the Ravens were forced to punt and the Steelers were pinned deep. Ahead by just 6 and facing 3rd and long from their own 10 yard line, Kordell Stewart fired a 90 yard touchdown pass to Bobby Shaw!! It was the play of the year. He hit Shaw with a perfect pass right over the middle. It tied the team record for longest pass play (Bradshaw to Malone in 1981, Brister to Stone in 1990). The Ravens weren't done yet though. After another long kickoff return, they drove for a TD. But the Steelers weren't about the let this one get away. Stewart led the Steelers on a 72 yard drive that included a big 38 yard pass to Burress on 3rd and 7. Dan Krieder ran it in from 4 yards out for the TD. The Ravens got one more TD, but it was too little too late, and the Steelers came out victorious.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have won the AFC Central division for the 15th and final time. How absolutely fitting is that? And they earned it too, going in and beating up the defending champs (again). The Steelers are now 4-0 in PSINet Stadium. At the end of the game, they showed a priceless shot of Ray Lewis crying on the sidelines. I hope someone got a picture - it was great. Perhaps he realized that all their smack talk had just blown up in their faces. Perhaps he realized that the Steelers had stolen away their championship swagger. Or perhaps he was just feeling remorse over all the people he has stabbed to death over the years. Either way, the Ravens had the look of a defeated team. These two teams could very well meet again in the playoffs. I hope they do, because the Steelers have them psyched out right now. I can't say enough good things about Kordell Stewart. He deserves to be in the Pro Bowl this year. This is vindication to the highest degree. So now the Steelers have clinched the division but we still have three games before the playoffs. They will try to beat out Miami/New England and Oakland for a bye and home field advantage. At this point it looks fairly secure, seeing as how we have as many wins as our last three opponents have combined. I wish the playoffs started next week, because right now at this very moment, I believe that the Steelers are the best team in the NFL. Here are the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 20-31, 333 yards, 2 TD's
• Plaxico Burress: 8 rec, 164 yards

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Cincinnati lost to New York Jets, Tennessee beat Green Bay, Cleveland lost to Jacksonville and then their worthless, piece-of-crap fans went nuts

Steelers 18, Jets 7

Marching towards the playoffs

No Bus? No kicking game? No problem for the Steelers, as they defeated the New York Jets today at Heinz Field, raising their all-time record against New York to 14-1, which is the best record by one NFL opponent against another. The Steelers tried to establish a running game with Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala, who started in place of an injured Jerome Bettis, but it never really got going. Fu only averaged 2.4 yards per carry, so it was up to Kordell Stewart to carry the load, and once again he responded to the challenge. Stewart led the Steelers on two great opening drives. Last year, the Steelers beat the Jets by putting together long drives and keeping their defense fresh, and they did the same thing today. The first Steelers drive was 11 plays long and resulted in a FG. The next drive was 12 plays long, and this one resulted in a TD. Hines Ward had another amazing day, and had a key 29 yard reception on the TD drive. Fu pounded it into the endzone for a one yard TD. However, Kris Brown missed the extra point. It was the start of another bad day for Brown. Down 9-0 and desperately needing a win to stay in the AFC playoff hunt, the Jets marched down the field behind Pittsburgh's own Curtis Martin, who threw a TD pass to Wayne Chrebet on a halfback option play. Martin was the NFL's leading rusher coming into this game, and he had a pretty good first half running (and throwing) the football. It was just like old times over at Pitt Stadium, only this time my team was on the wrong end of it! The Steelers got the ball back and drove again behind Stewart, who just continued to look sharp. In fact, we never even punted until the 3rd quarter. Brown kicked his second FG with about 30 seconds left, and then the Steelers got what looked like the biggest break of the season. They squib kicked to the Jets, but the ball bounced off a Jets player and the Steelers recovered at midfield! Kordell then drove down to the Jets 20 and gave the Steelers a chance to take an 8 point lead into halftime, but Brown missed the FG. He was literally booed off the field.

Brown had a chance to redeem himself in the 3rd quarter, but he missed again! He missed two FG's and a PAT. That's not good for a team that plays a lot of close games. I was at the game today, and let me tell you - the fans are out of patience with Brown. When the Steelers got into FG range again in the 4th quarter, everyone booed Brown as he came onto the field. This seemed to really anger Kordell Stewart (I wonder why?) among others, but c'mon - the guy keeps missing at home! To his credit, Brown rebounded by kicking two 4th quarter FG's, giving the Steelers a more comfortable 18-7 lead. It wouldn't have mattered anyway, because the defense COMPLETELY shut down New York in the second half. Vinny "I can't beat the Steelers" Testaverde actually managed to not throw an interception against us for the first time ever, but he still couldn't move the ball at all. The defense also held Martin to just 58 yards rushing, with most of that coming in the first half. It was a truly dominant effort against a good conference opponent. The Steelers are starting to establish some distance between themselves and the most of the AFC. Unfortunately all anyone will be talking about this week is how we should cut Brown, because Steelers fans generally need something to complain about if we don't lose. The real talk should be about the huge game next week. The Steelers will go into Baltimore with a two game lead in the division. If they win next Sunday night, they will basically lock up their 15th and final Central Division title. If you thought today's game was big, just wait until next week. Here are the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 20-36, 214 yards
• Hines Ward: 10 rec, 124 yards

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: New England beat Cleveland, Cincinnati lost to Jacksonville, Tennessee lost to Minnesota, Baltimore had a bye

Steelers 21, Vikings 16

Steelers still lack killer instinct

All season long the Steelers have been unable to put teams away when they have a sizeable lead. It happened again today, and the Steelers came DANGEROUSLY close to blowing an 18-point 4th quarter lead. Minnesota got on the board first, scoring a FG off of a Kordell Stewart interception, but after that it was all Steelers. In the 2nd quarter, the Steelers drove 68 yards, capping the drive with a one-yard Jerome Bettis TD. The Bus went over 1000 yards for the 8th time in his career. He had a good game today, but a brusied hip forced him to sit out the final quarter. Also, Mike Mularkey was digging into his bag of tricks again. The Steelers ran a play in which Kordell walks away from the line of scrimmage all confused and yelling at Hines Ward, and before you know it, they snap the ball directly to Bettis! The play only picked up 5 or 6 yards, but it was still a fun play. Meanwhile, Vikings QB Daunte Culpepper was practically limping. He really should haver never played because of his injury, and he ended up throwing two interceptions to Brent Alexander.

The Steelers only led 7-3 at halftime, but then Troy Edwards took over the 3rd quarter. He had a nice punt return to give the Steelers decent field position, and he scored on 12 yard end-around run later in the drive. Then on the ensuing kickoff, Edwards stripped the ball from KR Nate Jacquet, setting up a short Amos Zeroue TD. Give Edwards some credit. This is three weeks in a row now he has made some big plays, and none of them involved actually catching the football. He had the block against Jacksonville, the punt return against Tennessee, and now the TD run and strip today. So the Steelers were now up 21-3 and thought the game was over, but they were very wrong. QB Todd Bouman replaced Culpepper and promptly threw for 200 yards in the 4th quarter! He threw a screen pass to rookie RB Michael Bennett that went for an 80 yard TD!! Where was the defense on that play?? Then they completed a 62 yard pass to Randy "I play when I feel like it" Moss (Chad Scott burnt long for the second straight week), which resulted in a later TD catch by Moss. A lot of people will blame Cowher for his conservative play-calling on offense while all of this was going on (they just kept handing off to Fuamatu-Ma'afala in an effort to kill the clock), but really the breakdown came when the defense gave up those two huge plays. Then to make matters worse, the Vikings forced Stewart to fumble on his own 10 yard line. It was unreal - the Vikings were down by 5 and had the ball at our 10 yard line with just 2 minutes left in the game after we had an 18 point lead just minutes earlier. However, the defense finally stepped up. They stuffed them on 1st and 2nd down. On 3rd down, Bowman actually threw a TD pass, but he was 5 yards past the line when he did so. On 4th down, Dewayne Washington successfully defended a pass to Moss in the corner of the endzone. Moss wanted pass interference, but you know what Randy - the refs only call interference when they feel like it. So the Steelers barely held on. It was kind of disturbing to see them almost blow a home game that they had dominated for three quarters, especially when the defense completely broke down and started giving up huge plays. However, let's look at the obvious bright side - the Steelers still won, and thanks to Arizona's upset of Oakland, the Steelers are now the proud owners of the best record in the AFC. The next two games (Jets and Ravens) will most certainly determine the fate of this season. Here are the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 19 rushes, 81 yards
• Plaxico Burress: 6 rec, 86 yards
• Bill Cowher: 100th career victory

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Tennessee beat Cleveland, Cincinnati lost to Tampa Bay in OT, Baltimore beat Indianapolis, Jacksonville lost to Green Bay on Monday night

Steelers 34, Titans 24

Another road comeback

Ok, I know I've said this before, but the difference between the good teams and the bad teams in the NFL is that the good teams will find a way to win the close games. This isn't college football where the University of Miami trounces teams by 62 points each week. That's what the Steelers did (again) today, as they swept the Titans, a team who had beaten them seven straight times before the season began. The Steelers got on the board first with a Kris Brown FG, but on Tennessee's first offensive play, Steve McNair hurled a 68 yard TD bomb to Kevin Dyson. Chad Scott was burnt on the play, but he also had no help from the safeties, who were fooled by a beautiful McNair play action fake. The Titans and their fans were fired up for this must-win game. In the 2nd quarter, the Titans put together a long drive that was culminated by a short TD pass to Frank "I catch everything" Wycheck. Why the Steelers haven't learned to cover this guy, especially at the goal line, is beyond me. So just like in Cleveland two weeks ago, the Steelers found themselves trailing on the road, this time 14-3. Last week when the offense needed a boost, Mike Mularkey went no-huddle for a series and it resulted in a TD. This week he did the same thing and got the same result. Kordell Stewart played brilliantly yet again. Everyone keeps focusing on the run and daring us to pass, and Stewart is making them all pay. On this drive he hit Plaxico Burress for a nice 35 yard gain, and found Plex again for the 4 yard TD. Burress, who had his only good game ever against Tennessee in week 7, had his second good game ever today, gaining over 100 yards.

Thanks to the late first half TD drive, the Steelers were only 4 points behind. When they got the ball in the 3rd quarter, they went ahead for good. Stewart ripped off a 48 yard TD run, slicing right through the Tennessee defense. The Titans kiked a FG to tie the game, but then Tory Edwards (is he still alive??) took the ensuing kickoff back 81 yards. That set up a screen pass to Amos Zeroue that went for a 25 yard TD. Kordell and the offense just kept answering all day. Brown kicked a 4th quarter FG to put the Steelers up by 10, but McNair led the Titans down the field and scored on a one yard TD run. Never ever count Steve McNair out of a game. The offense had to punt, and the Titans got the ball back and started driving, only needing a FG to tie the game. It was shades of last year when McNair beat us twice in the final minutes. However, the defense came through. McNair threw a short pass to his boy Wycheck, but Wycheck never turned around. Chad Scott, who had been victimized a couple of times by the long TD and a few penalties, intercepted the ball and returned it 45 yards for the TD! That was the game. Donnie Shell had an interception later just to ice it. I really have to give credit once again to Steve McNair. This guy never gets the credit he deserves because he doesn't have the pretty-boy stats that the media love so much, but he always seems to find a way to give his team a shot at victory. And if it's stats you want then how about this? - he torched the NFL's #1 defense for 334 yards. That being said, the Steelers D still found a way to win it in the end. Ok, enough about McNair - how about Kordell Stewart?? He has carried this team the past couple of weeks, as Bettis again was held in check with 73 yards. The Steelers just keep winning games. How can you not be loving this season?? Here are the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 19-31, 254 yards, 2 TD pass, 1 TD rush
• Plaxico Burress: 8 rec, 114 yards, 1 TD
• Hines Ward: 7 rec, 99 yards

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Cleveland beat Cincinnati, Baltimore beat Jacksonville

Steelers 20, Jaguars 7

Finding ways to win

Jerome Bettis has been the driving force for the Steelers all season, but today he was shut down like he's never been shut down before. The Jaguars held the Bus to just 8 yards rushing for the first three and a half quarters of the game! But the Steelers are showing that they are not a one-dimensional offense. Kordell Stewart played his "best game in years", according to Bill Cowher, and the defense stepped up huge as usual. The first half of this game was slow. Jonathan Quinn was the surprise starting QB for Jacksonville. He played ok, but he was not ready for the Steelers defense, which was all over him early on. The Steelers meanwhile were gaining yards but not on the ground, plus they were not scoring a lot of points. They did get a 48 yard FG from Kris Brown, who continues to show his confidence after that horrible game a few weeks ago. At the end of the half, the Steelers drove deep, but Kordell got called for a crap taunting penalty (even the Jags guy that he was supposedly taunting said he didn't hear Stewart say anything). So that drive resulted in another Brown FG, making it 6-0 Steelers at the half. Basically, the Steelers were just playing a bit sloppy. They even got their first holding penalty of the year.

In the 3rd quarter, the Steelers continued to try the run, but it just didn't work. So Mike Mularkey decided to do something different on a series late in the quarter - he went no-huddle, and it worked to perfection. The Steelers drove down the field, and Stewart hit Hines Ward on a screen pass 28 yard TD. The touchdown was possible thanks to a great block by Troy Edwards. I'll tell you what - the receivers really came through today after dropping everything last week. That made it 13-0 Steelers and finished off the pesky Jags - or did it? On the ensuing kickoff, Elvis Joseph took it back 95 yards for a TD! Kris Brown and Lenzie Jackson (who the hell is Lenzie Jackson??) appeared to have Joseph cornered near the sideline, but he made them look stupid by cutting back inside and going the distance. That play really hurt. We fans at Heinz Field were so pumped after that Ward TD, and then they just go and wipe it out with that kick return. The momentum defintely shifted. Down by 6, the Jaguars mounted a drive with about four minutes remaining in the game. They marched all the way down to the Steelers 18 yard line, until the defense came up huge, as they have so many times this year. They had already stripped the ball from Quinn earlier, and this time Joey Porter hit him from behind and knocked the ball loose. Casey Hampton recovered, and the drive was over. That broke the back of the Jaguars. On the next play, Bettis ran for 40 yards, and on the play after that, Zeroue ran for 28 yards. They had given up by that point. Kordell ran it into the endzone for a fitting 7 yard TD, and just for good measure, the defense stripped Quinn of the ball for a third time, sealing the Steelers 7th win of the season. You have the give Jacksonville some credit. They must be really geared up whenever they play us, because even though they are 3-6 and didn't have Brunell, Taylor, or Boselli, that still was not a cakewalk. But the Steelers proved they can win even when Bettis is held in check. Kordell Stewart had his most passing yards since 1997. He has come such a long way. Hines Ward had his first 100 yard receiving game. Even Jimmy Smith said he should be in the Pro Bowl this year. And the defense is such a proud, proud unit. They pitched the shutout (Jacksonville's only points came on special teams) and made the big plays when we really needed them. The Steelers are 7-2, and now have a bigger lead in the division thanks to the Ravens loss. Here are the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 21-33, 266 yards, 1 TD pass, 1 TD rush
• Hines Ward: 9 rec, 112 yards, 1 TD

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Tennessee beat Cincinnati, Cleveland beat Baltimore

Steelers 15, Browns 12 (OT)

Brown redeems himself big time

For the second straight week, the Steelers outplayed their opponent, but blew a bunch of opportunities. However, unlike last week, the Steelers came through at the end and pulled out an overtime victory against the hated Cleveland Browns. And how's this for justice: Kris Brown scored all of our points, including the game-winner in OT. The game started off very poorly for Pittsburgh. After a punt pinned them at the one yard line, they tries to run Jerome Bettis up the middle. It was a bad call, because he started too deep in the endzone. Former Steeler Orpheus Roye tackled Bettis in the endzone for the safety. The Browns rode that momentum. The free kick gave them good field position, and Tim Couch marched them right down the field for a touchdown. All of a sudden, Cleveland had a 9-0 lead. But the Steelers started slowly coming back, thanks to the Bus, who had another HUGE day. The Steelers put together two nice drives in the first half, and both were led by Bettis' power running. Kordell Stewart also had another decent game, narrowly missing his third straight 200 yard game (18-32, 188 yards). Stewart would have had better numbers had it not been for the absolutely PITIFUL play of our wide receivers. Plaxico Burress dropped a pass in the endzone. Troy Edwards dropped what would've been a TD pass at the end of the half (that one hit him right in the hands). Hines Ward dropped at least one and took a personal foul call (although he did give some guy a concussion with a vicious hit). The Steelers were unable to get into the endzone, but they got two FG's from the suddenly revived Brown.

The Steelers tied the game in the 3rd quarter. After a nice 40 yard run by Stewart put them in range, Brown kicked his third FG of the game. Cleveland got it right back though. They drove and got some cheap calls from the ref. They kicked a FG to take the 12-9 lead. From that point on, the Steelers defense was simply incredible. They totally shut down Couch, and sacked him 7 times (Jason Gildon got him 3.5 times himself). The Steelers still trailed, but had a great chance to take the lead. Amos Zeroue caught a swing pass, and ran 62 yards, but he tripped and fell at the 2 yard line!! But the Steelers were still in business, right? Incredibly, Kordell Stewart fumbled the ball out of the side of the endzone, giving Cleveland the touchback. I CANNOT believe they did not get a single point from that! What an absolute disgrace! The Steelers didn't give up though, and Bettis again came through. He had a 27 yard run to help get the team into FG range. They failed to score a TD (again), but Brown kicked his fourth FG to tie it up at 12. Late in the 4th, the Steelers drove again. Brown had a chance to take the lead with about 1:30 left in regulation, but he missed the 45 yard attempt! Oh no, not again!! The Steelers had so many chances. Burress and Edwards dropped TD passes. Zeroue tripped over the 4 yard line. Brown missed what could have been the game-winner. So the Steelers headed into OT for the first time this season.

Steelers 10, Ravens 13

Brown chokes big time

For five straight weeks, the Steelers played mistake-free football and won. That all changed today. The Steelers looked sharp for the most part, but they blew every big opportunity they had, and you just can't do that when you're playing the world champions. The Steelers effectively used the passing game for the second straight week. Kordell Stewart looked like an all-pro QB today. In the first quarter, Stewart hot a couple different receivers on a nice 11 play drive. That resulted in a FG by Kris Brown. Unfortunately, it would be all downhill for Brown from there. On the ensuing kickoff, dangerous return man Jermaine Lewis took it 53 yards to give Baltimore great field position. Old man Randall Cunningham then threw a TD pass to a wide open Shannon Sharpe. The defense didn't make too many mistakes after that one. The Steelers drove again, but Kris Brown had a FG blocked. However, at the end of the first half, the Steelers again got in scoring position, and this time they finally got into the endzone. After Bobby Shaw dropped an easy TD pass, Stewart hit Plaxico Burress for a 21 yard TD with only 15 seconds left. It was a perfect pass and a great catch by Plex, who finally got his first NFL touchdown.

The Steelers then had a chance to open up a big lead on the champs. Jerome Bettis got going, so much so that he just missed becoming the first player in 44 games to rush for 100 yards against the Ravens defense. The Steelers got in FG range, but Brown missed wide right. The defense then gave us a chance to get it back. Brent Alexander intercepted the old man, but Troy Edwards fumbled on the ensuing possesion. It was the story of the day - BLOWN OPPORTUNITIES. The Ravens then drove for a FG that tied the game. That kick by Matt Stover had to be kicked twice because the refs didn't realize that the 3rd quarter had ended. It was funny - Cowher threw the red flag at the refs while they were huddled up trying to figure it out! Anyway, the game was tied, but late in the 4th, the Steelers again drove inside Ravens territory. This time Brown missed a 48 yard FG, again wide right. Baltimore drove off of that, and Stover made his FG to give the Ravens a 3 point lead with 2 minutes left in the game. Kordell had one last chance, and he led the team down the field, but all the while, you were getting the feeling that we had to get it into the endzone or else. Well, we didn't get it into the endzone. Instead we set up Brown for a 35 yard FG to send the game into OT. Unbelievably, Kris Brown missed his fourth FG of the game, again sending it wide right. What a crappy way to lose a football game! I can't remember the last time our kicker cost us a game like that. Kris Brown is a good kicker. He was 11-13 coming into this game. I don't know what happened. He did get hit on that blocked FG, and it looked like he hurt his knee. Maybe that was it, or maybe he just flat out choked. Either way, this wasn't that bad of a loss. Sure, we missed a great chance to pull away in the division, but you really didn't think it was going to be that easy, did you? Besides, we had to lose eventually. The Steelers outplayed the champs, especially on offense. Pittsburgh outgained Baltimore 348-183, and Kordell played one of the best games I've ever seen him play. He went over 200 yards for the second straight week, and many of his incompletions were drops. And the Bus was effective against possibly the best run defense ever (say what you want about them being overrated - they've gone 45 games in a row without a 100 yard rusher). After the game, Bill Cowher made a promise that his team will bounce back from this and even grow from it. I really believe they will. Here are the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 22-37, 236 yards, 1 TD
• Jerome Bettis: 23 rushes, 91 yards

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville lost to Tennessee, Cleveland lost to Chicago in an absolutely improbable finish, Cincinnati had a bye

Steelers 34, Titans 7

Monday night invincibility

I don't know what it is about Monday Night home games, but the Steelers always seem to rise to the occasion. They did more than that last night, clobbering the defending division champions and snapping the seven game losing streak they had against the Oilers/Titans. Tennessee actually came up with a good game plan - they put all of their focus on trying to stop the run. They knew they could shut down the Bus. They've done it so many times before. Despite having the 30th ranked pass defense in the NFL, the Titans flat out dared Pittsburgh to throw the ball, and to the shock of many, that's exactly what we did. The Steelers started off the game by marching right down the field for a touchdown. That drive was all momentum. The fans were going nuts because it was Monday Night Football, and the offense rode that wave of excitement. If you've never been to a MNF game in Pittsburgh, please make it to one before you die. I promise you won't be disappointed. Stewart completed some nice passes to Mark Bruener (of all people) and then Bettis ran it in for the score. I thought that at that point the Steelers would never have to look back, but I was wrong. After we failed to convert a fumble recovery, the Titans marched down the field themselves and scored a TD. It was just like the old days of Steve McNair and Eddie George wasting our defense. However, that was the only score the defense would surrender. They went on to destroy George (he had 13 yards on 10 carries!). They sacked McNair 3 times and intercepted him twice. Meanwhile, the Steelers offense was having trouble putting more points on the board. That all changed late in the 2nd quarter. Amos Zeroue got stuffed on a 3rd and long play from the Titans 35, but DB Perry Phenix took an incredibly stupid personal foul call, keeping the drive alive. Stewart then hit Hines Ward on a nice 3 yard TD pass. Later in that same quarter, another Steelers drive stalled, so they brought out Kris Brown to attempt a long FG, but instead holder Josh Miller flipped the ball to Brown, who ran for the first down! Oh those tricky Steelers! Then they called another trick play in which Hines Ward attempted to throw a TD pass to Plex. It didn't work, but the Steelers got another FG before the half and perhaps more importantly, they ate up the clock so that McNair didn't have a chance to score again. It was 17-7 Steelers at the break.

For the last couple weeks, the Steelers have been unable to put teams completely away when they've had the lead. That all changed last night. The 3rd quarter was beautiful - they just stuck it to the Titans after all those close games in which they beat us. On our first drive, Plex made the catch of his life. He ripped the ball out of all-pro Samari Rolle's hands and tipped it into his own. Burress dominated the Titans secondary, taking away balls from defenders and drawing pass interference calls. He looked like the star he was supposed to be when we drafted him #1 last year. That particular catch went for 43 yards and set up another Bettis TD. 24-7 Then using more trickery, Hines Ward lined up at QB and proceeded to run for 36 yards. That led to another Kris Brown FG. 27-7 Then the Titans fumbled a kickoff, which set up a 2 yard TD run by Kordell. 34-7 The defense then continued to destroy the Titans, intercepting McNair on the one yard line the only time he got close. This was just like the old Buffalo Monday Night games of the mid-90's - total and complete domination. The only thing that could've made this game better would've been if Neil O'Donnell (whom we fans started chanting for) would've come into the game and taken his beating as well.

Not to take anything away from our big win, but this is not the same Tennessee team we're used to seeing. The interceptions, the fumbles, that huge personal foul - what a total lack of discipline. I would honestly expected more from a Jeff Fisher-coached team. That being said, I can't say enough good things about the way the Steelers are playing right now. They have so much confidence. They honestly believe that they are one of the best teams in football, and they're proving it on the field. The offense proved some things tonight. Plaxico Burress proved that he is indeed capable of big things as a receiver. My God, could you imagine the possibilities if he continues to play like this?? This may have been the boost he needed. On the other hand, maybe it was just a one game fluke! Then there is Mr. Stewart himself, throwing for 232 yards in front of the same crowd he once feared to death. And don't forget about Mike Mularkey and his bag o' Halloween tricks. And all of that was without Bettis having a great game (he only had 62 yards, although he did score 2 TD's). However, the key to winning anything in this league has always been defense, and boy, do the Steelers have a good one. They are punishing teams on both sides of the ball, so much so in fact, that opposing players seem to be giving up. What a game last night, and what a season thus far. We'll see how much longer we can keep this up - we play the champs next week - but right now let's enjoy it. Here are the numbers:

• Plaxico Burress: 6 rec, 151 yards
• Kordell Stewart: 13-22, 232 yards, 1 TD pass, 1 TD rush

The Scoreboard from Hell: Heinz Field features the largest jumbotron in the NFL, and it is an absolute piece of crap. First of all, there are two huge Heinz ketchup bottles that pour out whenever the Steelers get into the red zone. It looks stupid. Then they don't use the TV feed on the screen. Instead they use their own cameras, which means all the replays suck. And that's when you even get to see a replay. After Burress' catch last night (i.e. the best play of the whole season), a Titans player got hurt and they had at least 2 minutes to show that replay, but we never got to see it once! All the fans started booing and chanting "replay, replay", but it was all for not as the scoreboard operators are all morons. I must say though that despite the stupid jumbotron, Heinz Field is a great place for football.

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville lost to Baltimore, Cincinnati beat Detroit, Cleveland had a bye

Steelers 17, Buccaneers 10

The Bus rolls again

For the third week in a row, the score makes it look much closer than it really was. The Steelers flat out dominated a team many had picked to win the Super Bowl, and they are quietly establishing themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the NFL. The Bucs got on the board first with a FG, but after that it was all Pittsburgh. In the 2nd quarter, the Steelers were faced with a 3rd and 2 on the Tampa Bay 32 yard line. Everyone in the stadium figured we would give the ball to Jerome Bettis. Well, we did, but he didn't run. Instead Bettis threw a 32 yard TD pass to TE Jerame Tuman, who was WIDE open. The Bucs "great" defense was completely fooled. The Steelers held the lead at halftime.

In the second half, it was more of the Bus. Bettis ran right through the middle of the Bucs defense - right past Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks - for a 46 yard TD. Are you kidding me?? Bettis actually outran Tampa Bay's defense for a 46 yard touchdown?! Absolutely incredible! Bettis is having quite possibly his best season ever. Kris Brown added a FG later. Tampa Bay spent the whole game trying to play catch-up, but the Steelers defense wouldn't let them. The defense tied a team record by sacking Brad Johnson 10 times. They were all over him - he didn't stand a chance. Four of those sacks were by LB Joey Porter, who probably played the best game of his career. The Bucs finally got into the endzone with 30 seconds left in the game, but it was too little too late, as the Steelers (after some debate amongst the refs) recovered the onside kick. This was probably the most solid game the Steelers have played in years. If it hadn't been for a few stupid mistakes (Kordell threw two interceptions to the same guy and Zeroue had a costly fumble near the end of the game), this would've been perfect. The Steelers are playing good old-fashioned punishing football. This team is so physical on both sides of the ball. On offense, Bettis pounded the Bucs, and Mike Mularkey called a great game. That halfback option play could not have worked any better. Mularkey gets better at this job every week. Meanwhile, the defense made a statement about who really has the league's best D. They came into this game ranked #1 in the NFL, but no one gave them any respect. After the game, some players really talked a lot about how the Buccaneers gave them no respect, and how everyone talks about how great the Tampa Bay defense is. Lee Flowers was especially vocal, calling the Bucs "paper champions". Make no mistake about it - the defense wanted to prove a point, and I think the Bucs got it (just ask Brad Johnson). The Steelers are now 4-1, and will play 7 of their last 11 games at home. If the Steelers are going to make a run at the division title, they will still have to dethrone the two teams - Tennessee and Baltimore - who have ruled it recently. Well, guess who our next two games are against?? If you're not excited yet, I feel real sorry for you. Here are the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 17 rushes, 143 yards
• Defense: 10 sacks (ties team record)

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville lost to Buffalo on Thursday, Baltimore lost to Cleveland, Tennessee beat Detroit, Cincinnati was shut out by Jim Miller and the up-and-coming Chicago Bears

Steelers 20, Chiefs 17

Steelers all alone in first place

Thanks to losses today by the Ravens and Browns, the Pittsburgh Steelers have found themselves in unfamiliar territory - first place in the AFC Central! This is the first time since 1997 that the Steelers have had sole possession of first place. It took a tough road win against Kansas City, as the Steelers opened up a big lead but almost blew it in the end. The first half of this game was incredibly slow. The Steelers definitely outplayed the Chiefs, but had little to show for it on the scoreboard. They drove down the field and kicked a FG to take a 3-0 lead. Then in the 2nd quarter, they drove again. On 4th and 1, Jerome Bettis ran for about 20 yards, but the play was called back because Hines Ward was holding downfield. This WR holding would be a pattern all day. So the Steelers instead had to attempt a long FG, and Kris Brown came through again, nailing a 55 yarder! That ties the team record for longest FG set by Gary Anderson in 1984. Brown has now kicked two 50+ yard FG's so far this season. The Chiefs did manage to score before halftime though. They blocked a punt, and it rolled into the back of the endzone for a safety. The Steelers were only up 6-2 at the half (and you thought you were screwed in your office block pool this week when you got stuck with 6 and 2!).

In the 3rd quarter, the defense broke the game wide open. Chiefs QB Trent Green was itching to throw an interception all day, and he finally did. Chad Scott intercepted a pass near the sidelines and ran it back 61 yards for the touchdown. After that play, the Chiefs seemed to be finished. The Steelers offense then put together a nice 68 yard drive. The Bus continued his early season dominance, and you know who else looked pretty good today? That's right - none other than Kordell Stewart. His numbers don't say much, but he had some sharp passes and the receivers also dropped a few balls. Stewart capped the drive with a 5 yard TD pass to Hines Ward, the first TD pass of the season for the Steelers. However, the game wasn't over yet. The Chiefs mounted an early 4th quarter drive. RB Priest Holmes now joins the elusive list of average players who seem to just dominate the Steelers (see Pickens, Carl or Metcalf, Eric). As a member of the Ravens, Holmes ran all over the Steelers in his last two games against us. Now in Kansas City, he did the same, running for 150 yards on just 20 attempts! He capped this drive with a 26 yard TD run. The Steelers offense then was unable to move the ball thanks to two holding calls on Plaxico Burress! Our receivers did this all day - it was unbelievable!! So Kansas City got the ball back and again drove behind Priest Holmes. He scored another TD, and TE Tony Gonzales caught the two-point conversion, cutting the Steelers lead to just 3 points with about 2:30 remaining. However, as bad teams usually do, the Chiefs blew the comeback. They really managed the clock poorly on that TD drive. Amos Zeroue took a pitch out on 3rd and 4, and ran for a first down, icing the game (I can't believe Kansas City wasn't looking for that). The Steelers kind of blew it a little, but they still won. They now enter a tough stretch of games. No more Kansas City and Buffalo to beat up on. That means they can't keep shooting themselves in the foot each week and expect to get away with it. However, you can't complain too much. The Steelers have now won three in a row, and two of them were on the road. And just in case we don't get to say it for another four years -- the Pittsburgh Steelers are in FIRST PLACE! Here are the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 19 rushes, 112 yards
• Kordell Stewart: 15-25, 141 yards, 1 TD, 47 yards rushing

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Baltimore lost to Green Bay, Tennessee finally won beating Tampa Bay in OT, Cincinnati beat Cleveland, Jacksonville had a bye

Steelers 16, Bengals 7

Bus, Brown, and defense initiate Heinz Field

It's a good thing we haven't played any good teams lately, because the Steelers have looked rather sloppy over the last two weeks. However, they still managed to dominate another opponent, thanks to a physical running attack and a tenacious defense. The Steelers opened up the game with a long drive that was highlighted by a 48 run by Jerome Bettis, who was running like he was about 10 years younger and about 50 lbs lighter. However, the Steelers went 4 and out inside the 10 yard line. They continued to run all over the Bengals defense the rest of the first half. Kris Brown, the other star of the game, kicked a field goal. Later the Steelers mounted a 72 yard drive that resulted in a 8 yard TD run by Kordell Stewart (mark it down: the first TD in the history of Heinz Field). Meanwhile, the defense looked great again. Corey Dillon got some yards early, but just like I said in my preview, have no fear when Jon Kitna is near. On the Bengals only decent drive, he threw a pass right to Chad Scott! But you kept getting the sense that the Steelers should have been up by about 30 points instead of just 10. The Steelers mounted another drive near the end of the first half, but this time Kordell fumbled the snap (Jeff Hartings STILL hasn't quite learned how to play center). The only offensive highlight was the Bus. In the first half, Bettis became just the 14th player in NFL history to go over 10,000 yards in his career. Congratulations to Jerome.

The Steelers continued to blow opportunities in the second half. Amos Zeroue fumbled a handoff from Kordell. The Bus continued to roll, but it wasn't enough to put points on the board. Stewart missed some wide open receivers. I'll tell you what - I'm starting to run out of patience with Mr. Stewart again. I don't care if we're winning games. I support this guy more than most people in this town do (that is to say that I don't scream for the backup every time he throws an incomplete pass). But he is just slowly proving that the only thing he can do well is run. Mike Mularkey calls all these stupid rink-and-dink plays, but I think he has to do that because Stewart can't throw downfield. Brown kicked another FG, but the Steelers couldn't put them away. Down 13-0, the Bengals mounted a late TD drive. This was disappointing, because the defense just let up. I hate this prevent defense crap. If you dominated them all day, why can't you continue to play the same style? Fortunately for the Steelers, Kris Brown bailed them out. After Hines Ward made a nice play to get them into Bengals territory, Brown kicked a clutch 48 yard FG to ice the game. It's funny that the Bengals actually thought they were good there for a while. There were two things that happened today that proves that they are still the same old loser Bengals. First, Dillon was their only offense in the first half. He had 50 yards, but then they totally abandoned the run in the second half, even though they were down by just 10 points. The second thing that proves they are losers is what they did at the end of the game. After Brown gave the Steelers a 9 point lead, the Bengals got the ball back with under two minutes left, but were soon faced with 4th down. So what do they do? They punt!! Unbelievable! Ok, I know - it's unlikely that you're gonna score 9 points in the last two minutes, but tell that to the Eagles, who scored 10 points in the last two minutes to beat us last year. You can't just give up! Anyway, the Bengals are back to earth and the Steelers are now 2-1. We look good, but we could be so much better. I'm just wondering if this offense can hold up against a good team. The good thing about this game was that the Steelers won their first game at the new stadium. The Steelers opened up Heinz Field the same way they won most of their games at Three Rivers - good running and a solid kicker puts some points on the board, and good defense holds the lead. How fitting is that? Here are the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 23 rushes, 153 yards; 10,000 career yards
• Kris Brown: 3-3; 26, 42, 48 yard FG's

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Baltimore beat Tennessee, Cleveland surprised San Diego, Jacksonville lost to Seattle

Steelers 20, Bills 3

Rusty Steelers still good enough to wipe out sorry Bills

The Steelers FINALLY played again today for the first time in 21 days, and it definitely showed. Fortunately their opponent, the Buffalo Bills, are a very sad team, and as a result the Steelers still picked up their first win of the 2001 season. Early on, the Steelers looked very rusty. They moved the ball down the field once in the 1st quarter, but Kris Brown missed an easy field goal. Then they started racking up stupid personal foul penalties. Bill Cowher even got one for running onto the field! Overall, the Steelers were penalized 12 times for 125 yards (ouch). Thanks to the Cowher personal foul, the Bills had the ball in Steelers territory. That's when the defense made the play of the game. They stripped the ball from RB Travis Henry, and Dewayne Washington returned it 63 yards for a touchdown. The defense dominated Henry all day, holding him to 30 yards on 17 carries. That would end up being all the Steelers would need. The two teams traded FG's before the half, and the Steelers held a 10-3 lead.

The second half was mostly just the Steelers trying to protect their lead. That meant lots of running by the Bus, who had over 100 yards. Kordell Stewart did not look real sharp today. He kept throwing low. That has annoyed me his whole career. This ain't basketball, Kordell! You can't bounce your passes!! Anyway, the lone bright spot in the passing game was Hines Ward, who had a career high 9 receptions. Ward is so close to becoming a star receiver. It's too bad that he plays on such a chump passing offense. The Steelers did enough to protect the lead however. Brown made up for his earlier miss by nailing a 52 yarder, and Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala added a nice 22 yard TD run. Meanwhile, the defense absolutely pounded Rob Johnson and the Buffalo offense, holding them to just 172 yards. Jason Gildon, who took out several QB's last year, knocked Johnson out of the game (although I think the fans booed him so much he was probably looking for any excuse to get to the bench). The Bills have a really sorry team this year. The glory years are most certainly over in Buffalo. They are in for a long season. That being said, the defense was stellar today. Good teams beat up the teams they are supposed to beat up. So on the final day of September the Steelers finally get back into action and even their record in the now very tight AFC Central. October was the big month for us last year - will history repeat itself? Let's hope so. Here are the numbers:

• Hines Ward: 9 rec, 79 yards
• Jerome Bettis: 22 rushes, 114 yards

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Cincinnati came back to earth, losing big to San Diego, Cleveland beat Jacksonville, Baltimore beat Denver, Tennessee had a bye

Week 2: BYE WEEK

Steelers, Browns

This game was postponed due to the horrific attack on America which occured on September 11, 2001.

Steelers 3, Jaguars 21

Steelers collapse on opening day

I had a bad feeling about this game. The Steelers are traditionally slow starters, and playing in the intense heat and then rain in Jacksonville today, they fell apart. The game started off well for the Steelers. They mounted a time-consuming drive that ended in a 41 yard Kris Brown FG. From then on, it was all Jaguars. The Steelers defense looked like crap. Jimmy Smith blew past Dewayne Washington and caught a 34 yard TD pass to give the Jags a 7-3 lead. Then Jacksonville blocked a punt, injuring Josh Miller in the process. The Jags drove again, and on a play where the Steelers blitzed only three guys, Smith again found himself WIDE OPEN in the middle of the field for his second TD reception. Meanwhile, the Steelers offense wasn't doing anything. Hines Ward fumbled, giving Jacksonville excellent field position. That led to Mark Brunell's third straight TD pass, a one yard strike to Damon Jones (once again, no one was covering). And just like that, the game was over. The Jags still have an explosive offense, and the Steelers defense looked lost and tired. There were guys getting hurt, dragging themsleves off the field. Everyone knew the heat was going to be a problem for the Steelers.

In the second half, it started pouring down rain, ending any chance at a Steelers comeback (not like their pitiful offense was going to mount a comeback anyway). The best chance they got was when the Jags punter fumbled and the Steelers got the ball inside the 10. However, Kordell Stewart fumbled the snap, and the opportunity was blown. The rest of the game was uneventful. This was indeed a crappy performance by Pittsburgh. Their defense left receivers wide open all day. Their offense couldn't keep the defense off the field long enough to recover from the heat. It was an all-around crapfest, but it was only the first game. The Steelers will recover, despite what some of the moron sportswriters will say this week (Ron Cook wrote in the PG today that this was a "must-win" game; how can the first game of a 16 game season be "must-win"?!). Everyone will blame Stewart (who was 21-37 with 2 interceptions) because that is the easiest thing to do, but the truth is the whole team was horrible, and the defense (which is the heart and soul of our team) was a complete embarrassment. Again, nobody panick just yet. It's only week 1 after all! If we lose at home to Cleveland next week, then we can start to worry. Here's the numbers:

• Amos Zeroue: 9 rushes, 60 yards
• Hines Ward: 7 rec, 82 yards

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Cincinnati beat New England, Cleveland lost to Seattle, Baltimore beat Chicago, Tennessee lost to Miami

Pre-Season

Steelers 20, Bills 0

I know it's still pre-season, but the Steelers really seem to be clicking on all cylinders. We'll see if that continues into the real season. The Steelers were all over the Buffalo Bills, shutting them out 20-0 (just like old times, huh?). There were basically three big stars in this game. On offense, it was Kordell Stewart, who played another great game. Although he only played two series, Stewart threw for over 100 yards and led two long FG drives. The big star on special teams was Troy Edwards. In the 2nd quarter, Edwards returned a punt 78 yards for a TD. It was a great run right up the sidelines that showed what Edwards is capable of if he gets his head out of the clouds. He even screwed up his big moment, high-steeping the last 5 yards as the Buffalo punter nearly caught up to him and knocked the ball out of his hands! The star on defense was Pitt's own Hank Poteat. He saved a TD late in the game by tackling a Bills RB from behind before he could reach the endzone. That tackle preserved the shutout. Then he got an interception which set up the Steelers second TD. Also give credit to Donnie Shell. He was all over the field tonight, and he popped some dude on a punt return. I didn't know Shell could still hit like that! (yeah, it was actually McKeesport Mike Logan, but if they're going to be idiots and let him wear Donnie Shell's number, then I'm calling him Donnie Shell). Meanwhile, Tee Martin played most of the game at QB. Kent Grahm didn't even get to play one final game. He is gone - I guarantee it. The Steelers played well tonight, but it still doesn't count until we go to Jacksonville next weekend. I still hope that this Heinz Field domination becomes a trend. I LOVE that stadium. It is such a great experience to be there. I can't say enough good things about it! Here's the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 9-14, 105 yards
• Troy Edwards: 78 yard punt return TD

Steelers 20, Lions 7

The Steelers opened up Heinz Field today with a solid pre-season performance against the Detroit Lions. After receiving much criticism over the last two weeks, the offense finally stepped up. Kordell Stewart looked very sharp, leading the Steelers on a 12 minute, 96 yard TD drive in the first quarter. WR Troy Edwards, who has had his share of problems this summer, also played well. Edwards made a diving catch and had a nice punt return. In the second half of the game, QB Tommy Maddox moved one step closer towards making the team with a great performance that included a 33-yard TD pass to WR Demetrius Brown. Meanwhile, the players who have been doing well all pre-season kept it going today. Amos Zeroue continues to look good, as does rookie LB Kendrell Bell. The Steelers dominated the Lions, who didn't score until there were just 25 seconds left in the game. It was nice to see the Steelers not look like chumps as they did in Minneapolis last week. It's also nice to be one step closer to the regular season! This was a good game, but let's face it - the real story today was not the football game, it was the stadium. Many of the seats were empty during the game as fans wondered around the stadium checking out all the cool sites, including the Steelers Great Hall, which is a great site to see. As exciting as the new place is, imagine what it will be like when we start playing REAL games there! Here's the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 12-15, 135 yards
• Tommy Maddox: 11-17, 144 yards, 1 TD

Steelers 10, Vikings 24

Ouch! The Steelers looked like crap in their second pre-season game. Actually, it wasn't too bad for the first quarter or so. The first-team offense put together a nice drive against Minnesota's crappy defense. The drive featured some strong running by Jerome Bettis, who had a good night. It led to the Steelers only TD of the game, a 1 yard dive by Kordell Stewart. After that it was all downhill. Kordell played decently (6-9, 50 yards), before throwing an awful interception right before halftime. Tee Martin and Tommy Maddox were unable to capitalize on the opportunity they had been given. Kent Grahm didn't end up taking a single snap, and he probably increased his chances of making the team after the sad performance that Martin and Maddox put in! Then there was our defense. We held up ok for a while, but eventually our cornerbacks were embarrassed by Randy Moss. It's not all that shameful. Moss is an incredible receiver (a jerk, but an incredible receiver). The Steelers had never faced him before, and he made former Viking Dewayne Washington his latest victim, snatching a long pass away from his reach in the 2nd quarter. The whole game was a crap-fest. I'm already SO SICK of the pre-season! But at least we have something to look forward to. Next Saturday is the first game at Heinz Field. I was there last week for the season ticket holder's open house, and let me tell you - what an amazing place!!! I can't wait until they start playing real games there, but for now I'll try to enjoy the last two meaningless games. Here's the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 6 rushes, 38 yards
• Amos Zereoue: 7 rushes, 40 yards

Steelers 17, Falcons 16

The Steelers opened up the all exciting NFL pre-season tonight with a game in Atlanta against the Falcons. It was the typical opening pre-season game. The starters were a complete joke. Everyone looked completely rusty, as the Falcons piled up 13 first half points. Kordell Stewart and Kent Grahm couldn't do anything, and the defense did not look good either. The second half was much more interesting. There were two stars of this game for the Steelers - QB Tommy Maddox and second round pick LB Kendrell Bell. Maddox came in and led a TD drive. He threw a great pass to Plaxico Burress (who also looked sharp) and later hit Burress for the TD. Maddox went 6-10 with 78 yards. Tee Martin then came in and went 6-9 with a nice rushing TD. Even though Maddox and Martin were playing against the scrubs, they still looked like decent QB's. It's like I've been saying all along - Kent Grahm is obviously finished. All Maddox and Martin have to do is play halfway decently, and Grahm and his big salary will be gone before September. Meanwhile, Bell was incredible on defense. He was all over the field. Mike Jones is in serious danger of losing his job. In the end, the Steelers mounted a comeback and won the game, but that of course means nothing. It was still somewhat ugly. The first pre-season game is always the worst. Nobody has been cut yet, so there are tons of scrub players who will never see anything close to a real game in their lives. To make matters worse, the offenses and defenses are totally vanilla. No one wants to reveal their styles before the regular season. That is especially true for Mike Mularkey and the new Steelers offense. Mularkey openly stated this week that he would run a standard vanilla offense because that cheating baby Coughlin had spies at the game (the Steelers open the regular season in Jacksonville). However, it was just nice to see our favorite football team on the field for the first time since Christmas Eve. It was also interesting to get a glimpse of #1 draft pick Michael Vick in is NFL debut. Vick, a former Big East QB, is no stranger to us Pitt fans. I never saw a college player dominate games quite like he did in his three seasons with Virginia Tech. Vick played solidly in his debut. He will have to do a lot to prove himself in this league though. Here's the numbers from meaningless game #1:

• Tommy Maddox: 6-10, 78 yards, 1 TD
• Plaxico Burress: 3 rec, 55 yards, 1 TD

Also: Congratulations once again to Lynn Swann, who FINALLY gets inducted into the Hall of Fame this Saturday. He deserved that for years, and at last justice was served.... The Steelers don't play again for two weeks when they travel to Minnesota. During that time, they will take extra precautions to handle the heat in training camp. As everyone knows by now, Vikings OL Korey Stringer died earlier this week as a result of heat stroke. Stringer's death is very tragic, but at least it won't be in vain. People all over the country are now fully aware of the dangers of working outdoors in the summertime.