Miserable season finally ends

For the fifth straight season, the Steelers played a meaningless final regular season game. This time however, there will be no post-season to follow. The Steelers played horribly once again, getting blown out by Jacksonville and their third string QB. For the third time in the last five games, the Steelers could not score a TD. Bettis even ran for 139 yards, and the Steelers had 205 rushing yards as a team, and they still only scored 3 points! Kordell sucked once again, as did the rest of the team. The season long performance of the offense was summed up beautifully late in the 4th quarter, when three different Steeler WR's dropped three consecutive passes in the endzone. How unbelievably pathetic! The season now ends with the Steelers dropping five in a row, their longest losing streak since 1969! After the Steelers beat the Jags just one month ago,this game was supposed to be a showdown for the division, but instead that turned out to be the Steelers final win, making these last five games all unbearable to watch. This game was so bad that Al Michaels started cursing live on national television.

Final Division Standings

For some of the Steelers, it may have been their final game in a Pittsburgh uniform. Will Wolford is going to retire, as may fellow lineman Jim Sweeney. Then there's this year's list of free agents, which includes Carnell Lake, Darren Perry, Lee Flowers, Mark Bruener, Charles Johnson, Tim Lester, Norm Johnson, and Fred McAfee. None of them went out with a bang. Perry didn't even dress for the first time in his seven seasons here. Lake got burnt a couple of times. Norm Johnson barely cleared the line of scrimmage on his first FG attempt, which went about 15 yards without even being touched. Bruener and CJ both dropped TD passes. The Steelers face several tough questions in the offseason about these free agents. Who do they keep? Do they franchise Lake again? Also, there are other personnel decisions to make. What do they do about Kordell? Do they sign another QB, and if they do, who goes? Tomczack already said he's coming back. I think it's safe to assume Ray Sherman will be fired, but who replaces him? Early rumors are that former Steelers TE and current Steelers TE coach Mike Mularky could be the man. What about the defense? With five coaches being fired on Monday, Jim Haslett is a prime candidate to be an NFL head coach, probably in Philadelphia. Would the Steelers try to lure back Dom Capers, assuming he isn't offered any head coaching jobs? What about former Bears coach and Cowboys defensive coordinator Dave Wannsted? He was actually the Steelers second choice to be head coach behind Bill Cowher. Like I said, some tough decisions have to be made, and that starts earlier than usual this year. Here's the numbers from the game:

• Jerome Bettis: 26 rushes, 139 yards; 8th straight 100 yard Monday night game

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Cincinnati was shutout by Tampa Bay, Tennessee lost to Minnesota, Baltimore beat Detroit

Steelers 24, Bengals 25

Only one more game!

Good God, can it get any worse? I doubt it. The Cincinnati Bengals have now won three games this season, and two of them were against the Steelers!!! That's beyond pathetic. This game just showed how little heart the Steelers have right now. The Bungals took a 10-0 lead because Jamain Stephens missed his block and the guy hit Kordell, got the ball, and ran it in for the TD. Stewart and the offense were pitiful once again. The Steelers got some help from the defense when Carnell Lake intercepted Jeff Blake and scored the TD near the end of the first half. Other than that play, Blake shredded our defense for 367 yards. They hate that guy in Cincinnati, and I don't know why. I guess he only plays well against us, because every time he plays us he looks like an all-pro (remember that Thursday night game in 1995?).

The Steelers got another break on the second half kickoff. David Dunn fumbled, but Chris Oldham picked it up and ran all the way for a TD. Oldham has to be the most underrated player on the team. This guy always seems to end up with the football. He is a money player. If Perry leaves after this year, I say let the old man start in 99. Anyway, that closed the lead to 16-14. Kordell got benched again (no surprise there) and Tomczack hit CJ on a long pass play, evoking memories of 1996 when those two hooked up often on long passes. That set up a TD by Jerome Bettis, who finally got a chance to run the ball and of course, did well. Bettis went over 1000 yards for the third straight season. I still say he's not really slumping - Sherman is just not giving him the ball enough. So the Steelers had the lead, but the stupid secondary blew it on the next play from scrimmage, as Blake threw a 61 yard TD pass, burning Lake and Flowers. Carnell Lake is a great player, and he'll go down as one of the greatest safeties of this era, but folks, Carnell Lake is NOT a cornerback. I know it's not his fault that he gets stuck playing that position every year, but I said this in pre-season. When Scott got hurt, I said we needed to go sign someone to replace him and not move Lake again, and now for the second year in a row, Lake is getting burnt badly late in the season (but hey, the Steelers never listen to me anyway!). The Bungals are so bad that they still tried to give the Steelers the game. They fumbled a punt inside their own 10, and all the stupid Steelers could do was kick a lousy field goal! Cincinnati also got a FG, and took the lead 25-24. That would be the final, because the Steelers have no offense and couldn't even begin to drive for a game-winning FG attempt. The Steelers are now "mathematically eliminated" from the playoffs, even though everyone knew they had no shot anyway. The Bengals sweep the Steelers for the first time since 1990. The Steelers better start looking at personnel changes for next year. At least next week's Jags game is meaningless, so they can play some of the younger guys. Hopefully we'll get to see hometown favorite Pete Gonzales. Here's the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 21 rushes, 104 yards, 1 TD
• Steelers: actually scored touchdowns!

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville lost to Minnesota but still clinched the division, Tennessee lost to Green Bay, Baltimore lost to Chicago

Steelers 3, Buccaneers 16

Man, do we suck or what?

I'm not even gonna say a whole lot about the third consecutive crapfest of an effort put forth by the Steelers today in Tampa. The Buccaneers beat the Steelers for the first time ever on Sunday, and they didn't even have to do much. The Steelers mounted a good opening drive, which of course, only resulted in a FG. After that, the offense could do nothing. Kordell sucked and got benched. Tomczack came in and fumbled at the Steelers 7 yard line. That resulted in the game's only TD. Tomczack then threw an interception, and after crying on the bench (literally crying), arguing with Cowher, and lobbying the other coaches, Kordell was put back into the game. He proceeded to throw two more interceptions, and the Steelers lost. What an ugly season this has become. The Steelers have not scored a TD since the third quarter of the Thanksgiving game! How pitiful is that? Bettis had some good runs, but again, Ray Sherman, who needs to be fired the day the season ends, won't stick with the running game. Mistakes cost the Steelers once again. Bettis' best run was called back on a hold. Turnovers gave Tampa the game, just like last week. The Bucs offense is almost as pathetic as the Steelers. They couldn't score either, but at least their offense didn't give up the ball inside the 10. The defense made a good comeback from last week's debacle, but again, the Bucs have no offense. Any slight hope that the Steelers had for the post-season is long gone now. I really don't have anything else to say. You guys all know that we suck, and you know the reasons why we continue to lose every week. Here's the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 17 rushes, 63 yards
• Steelers: no TD's in last ten quarters (counting OT)

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville lost to Tennessee, Baltimore lost to Minnesota, Cincinnati lost to Indianapolis.

Steelers 9, Patriots 23

Nice effort, losers

That about wraps it up for the 1998 Steelers. After today's lifeless and pitiful performance, the Steelers are pretty much dead in the AFC playoff race. Sure, we could still get a lot of help from the other teams, but the Steelers don't deserve it and can't win anyway, so what's the point? The Patriots, who obviously wanted this game much more than the Steelers, came out with a ton of offense in the first half. The big play was an 86 yard TD pass to Terry Glenn. All these Ohio State guys keep killing us this year! First it was Joey Galloway, then Eddie George, and now Glenn. Fortunately for the Steelers, they were only down 13-6 despite playing horribly on offense and not being able to stop the Patriots on defense.

In the third quarter, the Steelers threatened to get back into the game, but as usual, they couldn't get into the endzone. They kicked their third field goal. That's nine FG's in the last 3 games for Norm Johnson. That's nice for him, but it sucks for our pitiful offense. In the 4th, the Steelers seemed to just give up. Down by four and with no hope of ever finding the endzone, Kordell threw an interception. It was mostly CJ's fault. He had dropped two earlier other passes, and he deflected this one to Ty Law. Again, the Patriots couldn't put it away. They got a FG and the Steelers were still only down by 7. Then on the next possesion Bettis fumbled and the Patriots got the ball inside the 30 again. That was the final straw. After a cheap pass interference call on Kirkland, the only guy that showed any heart all day, the Patriots scored a TD and the game was over. What a joke this team has become! Maybe now that the Steelers aren't going to make the post-season for the first time since 1991 they'll realize that they've got to change some things. The offense has turned into the Pitt Panthers offense! It's so frustrating to watch week after week. They threw short little dinky passes, the WR's dropped everything today, and the Bus had all of twelve carries! Twelve carries - that was unheard of in the past! The defense made some big plays to stay alive, but Bledsoe and Glenn torched them all day. The only exciting thing that happened all day was that wall collapsing at the stadium! Now, I don't mean to imply anything here, but doesn't it seem strange that this happened just 24 hours after that railing collapsed at the Army-Navy game yesterday in Philly? Isn't it strange that both incidents happened just days after PA governor Tom Ridge vetoed that so-called "back door" stadium bill and the rest of those losers wouldn't vote on Plan B until after Christmas, when both Pittsburgh and Philly desperately want new stadiums? Doesn't it seem like now both cities can say, "Hey, we told you we needed new stadiums and you didn't listen. Now look what happened - our old ones are falling apart!" Again, I'm not implying anything here... Here's the numbers from the crap-fest today:

• Norm Johnson: 3 FG's

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville beat Detroit and all but clinched the division, Tennessee beat Baltimore, Cincinnati lost to Buffalo and Neil broke his finger, which means he won't play here in 2 weeks, which was the ONLY thing I was looking forward to for the rest of this season!!!

Steelers 16, Lions 19 (OT)

He said tails!!!

Wow, that was quite the interesting Thanksgiving game. The whole day was filled with fluke plays and horrible calls by the refs. You could tell that both teams only had three days to prepare. The first half was boring. The biggest play was a Lions interception off of several tips that the refs ruled incomplete. It was clearly an interception, but these refs weren't even watching the game, so they just made it up as they went. That resulted in the Steelers getting one of two FG's, but the refs would later make it up to Bobby Ross and the Lions. It was 6-3 Steelers at the half.

The Steelers caused a fumble on the opening kickoff of the second half, but the offense blew it by losing 20+ yards on a fumble. Later in the third quarter the Steelers put together a drive. From the 24 yard line, Stewart rolled out and tried to throw a pass to Bettis, but it was too high and he tipped it up into the air. Blackwell then pulled it out of the air and ran it in for the TD! That kind of stuff happened all day long. The Steelers were up by 10, but the Lions came storming back, and as has been the case many times this season, our defense let them do it. They kicked a FG then mounted a drive in which Herman Moore beat Carnell Lake on three long passing plays, one for a TD. The game was suddenly tied, so what did the Steelers do? They decided to get cute. They tried to run a reverse on the ensuing kickoff with fumble-king Richard Huntley, of all people. Of course, Huntley and Blackwell crashed into each other, and the Lions recovered the fumble on our 8 yard line. Thankfully, it only led to a FG, but the damage was done. Down by 3, the Steelers had one last chance and they began to drive. Kordell hit CJ for a first down, then the Lions defense started self-destructing. On 3rd and 26, their DB got an illegal hands to the face penalty, giving the Steelers an automatic first down. After another pass interference call, the Steelers were in business. They drove down to about the Lion 12 yard line. They only took one shot at the endzone, and it was nearly picked off (Stewart did not play a real good game). Norm kicked the tying FG with one second left, and we were going to overtime.

Now, the overtime coin toss is important, as all fans know, but I can't say that I've ever seen something like I saw today. Jerome Bettis was asked by the referee to call it in the air. Bettis said, "Tails." The referee said, "Ok, heads is the call - tails it is!" What?!? He blew the freakin coin toss. The COIN TOSS!! Dear God, what's next? Bettis and Lake argued. The ref said Bettis called heads then changed it to tails, which Bettis said is "a bald-faced lie". Besides, everyone heard Bettis call tails on TV. My nine year-old cousin heard him say tails. Either way the Lions got to receive, and the Steelers never got the ball. Batch hit Moore for 28 yards on the first play (again on Carnell Lake). The Steelers appeared to take the Lions out of FG range with a sack on third down, but they called Oldham for a 15 yard face mask penalty, and that was game. Hanson easily made the FG, and the Steelers lost 16-13 in overtime. We're going to hear a lot about that coin toss, but it doesn't change the fact that the Steelers played poorly and lost a big game. I've said it before and I'll say it again: the Steelers just don't have the team this year. They're still capable of making the playoffs, but they're not going far. Every time they've won a big game this year they've come right back the next week and lost. You certainly can't win a division playing like that, and you'll struggle to even make the playoffs. This was another pitiful performance today. The offense had chances to put this away and didn't. The defense blew a 10 point lead. The special teams handed the Lions the lead late in the game. Granted, the refs screwed us good, but they had been screwing the Lions as well, just not as bad. The Steelers had to win this game and they didn't, and now the Jaguars can breathe easy once again. Here's the numbers:

• Jason Gildon: team-leading 9th sack
• Kordell Stewart: 21-36 for 225 yards, 1 INT, 1 TD

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville beat Cincinnati, Tennessee lost to Seattle, Baltimore beat the Colts

Steelers 30, Jaguars 15

Dewayne Washington and the Steelers take round one from Jags

It seems like every time this team has their back to the wall they come out and play like champions, especially at Three Rivers. It happened again today. Pittsburgh defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars at home to close Jacksonville's lead in the division to one game, and to keep the Steelers playoff hopes alive and well. This game featured some great defense by the Steelers. It all started in the first quarter when Dewayne Washington stepped in front of a Mark Brunell pass and took it back 52 yards for the TD. That gave the Steelers all kinds of momentum. Jerome Bettis partially broke out of his slump, and the offense played a decent first half. They got two FG's. Normally, I would criticize the fact that they only got two FG's and not 2 TD's, but after last week, I've realized how important it is to get points on the board with a good field goal kicker like Norm Johnson. The defense shut out Brunell and the high-powered Jags offense in the first half. The Jags only good chance to score came off a kick return to the Steelers 27 yard line, but the opportunistic defense caused a fumble on the next play, and the Steelers recovered.

The second half began with what I was afraid of - a Jaguar drive. A long 90 yard Jaguar drive resulted in a Fred Taylor TD and Jacksonville was right back in the game. The Steelers got another FG to make it a 9 point game, but they really needed to get into the endzone. In the 4th quarter, the Steelers mounted a nice 59 yard drive. The key play was a beautiful 3rd and 11 completion to Hines Ward (please, please use him more!!). The drive was capped by a 9 yard TD pass to Bruener (another guy they could afford to use more). So the Steelers led 23-7, but of course, the game was far from over. The Jaguars quickly scored a TD and got the conversion and suddenly, they were within 8 points of tying the game. The offense was unable to run the clock down, so the Jags ended up with two chances. The first time they drove to the Steelers 40 until the drive stalled and they went out on downs. There was a close play where Lee Flowers seemed like he may have interfered with WR Keenan McCardell on a long pass, which would have given the Jags 1st and goal from the 3, but for once the refs gave us a close call. After the Steelers had to punt again, Brunell started marching down the field. They were moving too. Then the player of the game stepped up again. Dewayne Washington picked off Brunell and ran it back 78 yards for his second TD of the day. That iced it, and the Steelers won a huge divisional game. Give credit to Washington. A lot of people around here have beat him up all season for dropping interceptions, which he had been doing frequently, but today he held onto two really important ones and gave the Steelers the win. The Jags have still never won a game here in Pittsburgh. They would've all but clinched the division with a win today, but the Steelers wouldn't let them come in and take what has been theirs for four years. The defense caused four turnovers and held Brunell and Fred Taylor in check. The rematch of this game will be in the last week of the season on a Monday night. Before anyone gets too excited about that or this win today, remember that we've got another game here in FOUR DAYS! Here's the numbers:

• Dewayne Washington: 2 INT, 2 TD, 130 yards
• Kordell Stewart: 25-36, 208 yds, 1 TD

Steelers 14, Oilers 23

Blown oppourtunities cost Steelers huge game

You probably didn't think that Norm Johnson's injury would end up costing the Steelers this game, but it did. The Steelers took a heavy blow to their playoff chances today by losing at Tennessee in the final seconds. The game started with the Steelers driving to the Oilers 20 twice, but getting no points. The first time they went for it on 4th and 1 because rookie Matt George was their kicker for this game. They got stuffed. The second time, they let George attempt the FG but it got blocked. The Oilers then took the lead 3-0, but the Steelers responded with a good 74 yard TD drive. Kordell Stewart and the offense continue to improve. The drive ended with a Mark Bruener TD reception. Bettis then got hurt, and in came the fumble master Richard Huntley. Huntley put another one on the carpet, and the Oilers recovered. Every time he runs the ball he fumbles. Either teach him how to hang on to the ball or waive him. I'm so sick of this guy costing us points. The Oilers came back with a wide open TD pass to Willie Davis. Again, the offense responded, this time with a 7 play, 80 yard drive. Stewart hit Fuamatu-Ma'afala on a third down screen pass, and he rumbled 26 yards for the Steelers TD. The Oilers kicked a FG right before the half, and the score was 14-13 Steelers. At least the offense has pulled out of their slump, but it may be too little too late.

After a big first half of offense, neither team scored in the second half until there were 3 seconds left in the game. The Steelers had about 17 chances to put this game away. The Oilers tried a fake punt that got stuffed, but Hawkins dropped a pass on 3rd down and the Steelers had to punt. The Steelers were later faced with 4th and 1, this time at the Oilers 46. They got stuffed again but fortunately there was a false start penalty and they were able to redo the play and punt. On another occasion, Jahine Arnold dropped a 3rd down pass. The Steelers kept getting into Oilers territory but they couldn't do anything! Then, late in the game, the defense came up with their big play. They stuffed Eddie George on 4th and 1 at the Steelers 45. With about six minutes left, the Steelers took over and once again mounted a drive. This one got all the way down to the Oilers 24, but again, they were faced with 4th and 1. Had Johnson been healthy, they would've definitely kicked the FG and taken a 4 point lead, forcing the Oilers to have to score a TD to win. Instead, Cowher made the horrible mistake of going for it. It would've been about a 40 yard FG for the rookie Matt George, but Cowher showed no faith in him and instead tried for the third time in the game to covert a 4th and 1. Kordell got dropped as soon as the ball was snapped, and the Oilers stuffed us again. This play may just have cost us the playoffs. It almost certainly cost us the division. The Oilers drove with three minutes left. They converted two big third down plays, and Al Del Greco kicked a chip shot with 3 seconds left to beat us. The Oilers also got a TD on the ensuing kickoff because the Steelers were trying to lateral the ball around, but it didn't matter. So now the Steelers will be faced with yet another desperation game next week at home vs. Jacksonville. The Oilers on the other hand are riding high. They swept the Steelers by winning two games in three weeks against us. The Steelers just don't have the team to go real far this season. They win big games against the Chiefs and Packers, but lose three out of their five divisional games so far. They're back to where they were two weeks ago - hoping for a wild card spot. The AFC may just be too competitive this year, and the Steelers keep losing potential tie-breaker games like this one. Cowher is going to take a lot of heat now for not attempting that FG. He deserves it too. Why did they even sign a kicker if they had absolutely no intention of using him? I feel bad for Matt George. He could have been doing something constructive today instead of sitting on the sidelines practicing for a chance that would never come. Here's the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 22-28, 239 yards; 28 yards rushing; 2 TD

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville beat Tampa Bay, Cincinnati lost to Minnesota, Baltimore lost to San Diego.

Steelers 27, Packers 20

Monday Night Romp!!!

How do you like them apples!!! Almost no one thought the Steelers and their struggling offense could beat the almighty Green Bay Packers, even at home. Tonight the Steelers shocked the world. Even though they made it exciting at the end, they still for the most part dominated the two-time defending NFC champions. Kordell Stewart and the offense were on fire! They marched down the field on the first drive. The key play on this drive was a long, 53 yard 3rd down completion to Hawkins. On 3rd and goal, Stewart hit CJ on an 8 yard TD pass. The Packers then mounted their only decent drive, but when they tried a reverse on 3rd and long, Carnell Lake, who was playing injured, stuffed them for a 10 yard loss. Lake was all over the field despite having a high ankle sprain. That took them out of FG range, and the Steelers mounted another drive. Again, the offense came up big on 3rd down. Stewart ran it on 3rd and 7, and gained 30 yards all the way down to the 5, setting up a 1 yd TD run by Kordell. The defense was all over the Packers. Danta Jones kept getting into the backfield. He had 2.5 sacks in the game. The Steelers got a FG, then right before the half Stewart hit Hines Ward on another long 3rd down play, this time for 45 yards. That set up Chris Fuamatu Ma'afala for a 5 yard TD run. The Monday night guys on ABC were all in shock - 24-0 Pittsburgh at the half!! Stewart looked great. His unofficial first half numbers: 11-15, 171 yards, 41 yards rushing, and 2 TD's (1 pass, 1 run). The Steelers converted 9 out of 10 3rd downs! Give credit to Ray Sherman - he's called a near-perfect game.

The second half started with the same Steelers momentum. Washington intercepted Brett Favre and the Steelers got a FG. Green Bay then made sure it wasn't a total embarrassment by kicking a FG, erasing the shutout. The rest of the game should've just been the two teams going through the motions, but the Steelers got too cute. Tomczack came in on 3rd and goal and Kordell lined up at WR. The result was Tomczack getting sacked, fumbling, and the Packers returning it 96 yards for a TD. The Packers scored another TD and a FG to make it interesting, but it really didn't matter - it just made the score look better for Green Bay. Bettis ran up the yardage total to over 100 for the seventh straight Monday night game, and the Steelers ran out the clock. Just like last week, this game was over at halftime, only this time it was in the Steelers favor. The defense stepped up after last week's debacle and virtually shut out Brett Favre and the Packer's high powered offense. The defense played great, but the real story was on the other side of the ball. What a performance tonight by the Steelers offense. Josh Miller didn't have to punt until the 4th quarter! Jamain Stephens, who had to block Reggie White all night, and the rest of the line came through big. Bettis was solid, especially when the Steelers just needed to run time off the clock for the win. All the WR's got open. And, of course, Kordell Stewart played by far his best game of the year. Under intense pressure to perform well, Stewart stepped up and showed why he deserves to be our starting QB. A lot of people wrote off the Steelers after last week. All week we heard about how Kordell should be benched, about how the Steelers aren't gonna make the playoffs, about how the Packers were coming off that huge win against San Francisco - it all became irrelevant after the opening kickoff. No way the Steelers were going to lose two straight at home, no matter who the opponent was. No one expected such a great win however. The Steelers are now right back in the hunt in the AFC. Will we look back at this game at the end of the year as the one that turned the season around? Here's the numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 15-22, 231 yards; 39 yards rushing; 1 TD pass, 1 TD run
• Bettis: 34 rushes, 100 yards
• Steelers: outgained the Packers 274-72 yards in the first half

Steelers 31, Oilers 41

Eddie George runs all over Steelers

Don't let the high score fool you. The Steelers really sucked today, getting blown out at home by a team that couldn't win here even when they were really good. The 31 points were mostly late gimme points because the Oilers were up by nearly 30. The Oilers came out on the first two drives and really did nothing but hand the ball off to RB Eddie George, and the Steelers couldn't stop him! He ran all over us. Those drives resulted in a 10-0 Tennessee lead. The Steelers could have held the Oilers to just a FG on the second drive by declining a 3rd down penalty, but they accepted it and thanks to poor tackling, the Oilers converted on 3rd and 19. It was typical of the poor play by the defense all day. Kordell Stewart, who kind of had a decent game, responded by leading the Steelers on a 74 yard TD drive, which included a long 37 yard pass (yes, a long pass) to Hawkins, and a 9 yard TD pass to CJ on 3rd and goal. That made it 10-7 and it looked like the Steelers were back in the game. However, George and the Oilers again drove down the field. The Oilers got a TD and it was 17-7 at the half. George had 101 yards by halftime, and the game was essentially over at that point.

The Steelers tried to make a comeback in the second half but couldn't do it. They tried a surprise onside kick but that didn't result in any points. Stewart proceeded to throw 3 interceptions in a desperate attempt to get some points on the board. The defense still couldn't stop George, who had a 37 yard TD run. That was right around the time I and about 40,000 other fans left this pitiful game. Tomczack came in and threw some TD passes, but don't be reading anything into that. Tomczack only did so well because the Oilers were up by 30 and were willing to give up points in order to run the clock out. This game was over at halftime, and for once we can blame it on the defense. The defense was injury-riddled. Harrison and Emmons didn't start, Lake got hurt and missed half the game, and Holmes and Kirkland played with casts on. It's still not a great excuse for getting blown out to a divisional opponent. I just don't get this season so far. We're so inconsistent. Maybe this game will be the wake-up call, but that's what I thought after the Bengals game. The Steelers are better than this, and they need to start acting like it. At least the offense showed that they can pass the ball if absolutely necessary, since the running game never got a chance thanks to the early 10 point lead by the Oilers. They still couldn't score points when they needed to. The only good news was that the stats looked nice for Kordell, Tomczack (he was 15-17), and the WR's, but remember, most of these numbers came late after the game had already been decided, so they really don't mean anything:

• Kordell Stewart: 23-32 for 230 yards, 3 INT, 2 TD
• Charles Johnson 9 rec, 115 yards, 3 TD
• Courtney Hawkins: 14 rec, 147 yards

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville had scored 42 points by the 2nd quarter in an easy win over Baltimore, Cincinnati actually gave Denver a game but still lost.

Steelers 20, Chiefs 13

Steelers finally get win to be proud of

The Steelers showed some poise on national TV tonight in a game they really needed to win at Kansas City. Pittsburgh got on the board first. After the Steelers downed a punt on the Chiefs one yard line, the K.C. offense ran three running plays, including a horrible pitch call on 3rd and 8 which nearly resulted in a safety. Since the Chiefs had to punt from their own one yard line, the Steelers decided to rush the punter. Lance Brown, who had downed the Miller punt at the one, came flying up the middle and blocked the kick. Freddy Mac fell on the ball and the Steelers were quickly up 7-0. But the Chiefs struck back with a drive inside the 10 which resulted in a FG. In the 2nd quarter, they again drove inside the Steelers 10 but again came away with just a FG. Actually the Chiefs had a couple of drives where it seemed like they had the ball forever but the Steelers held onto the lead going into the half. The offense slumped as usual, but thanks to three pitiful offsides penalties by the Chiefs, they were able to put together a nice 2 minute drive that resulted in a Norm Johnson FG.

The Steelers caught a huge break at the beginning of the second half when the Chiefs took the kick back all the way but saw it called back on a hold. Then the Chiefs got a break when Darren Perry returned an INT to the 20 but had it stripped loose and recovered by Grbac. When the Steelers got the ball they started to drive. The drive continued thanks to a great 3rd down trick play where Hines Ward took a pitch and then threw a nice cross-field pass to Kordell Stewart! Everyone was waiting for this play; we knew it was just a matter of time. However, with 1st and goal from the 8 the Steelers could not get into the endzone and kicked another FG which made it 13-6. That hurt, because the Chiefs only needed a few plays on the next drive to tie the game at 13. Give credit to the Steelers offense though. They responded with a long, 7 minute drive. Faced with 4th and 1 at the K.C. 11, they went for it and converted. Then on 3rd and goal, Kordell hit CJ for a wide open TD (CJ made a great catch too) and the Steelers regained the lead 20-13. The defense made some big plays, including a Lake interception to hold the lead. Jerome Bettis and the offense then ran a lot of time off the clock, and the defense took care of the rest by causing a fumble to ice the game. So the Steelers finally seemed to score some points and beat a good team at one of the NFL's loudest stadiums. The offense didn't have many passing yards again (82 to be exact) but came through with what turned out to be a game-winning drive in the 4th quarter. Marty's got to be pissed about Kansas City's performance. They got a lot of stupid and costly penalties, which, like the Steelers, is totally uncharacteristic of their team. Still, the Steelers played well, and should feel some sense of accomplishment. They also helped silence some of their critics, at least for another week. Now they're tied for first with some big games ahead, including another Monday nighter at home vs. Green Bay in two weeks. Here's the numbers:

• Bettis: 33 rushes, 119 yards
• Steelers: first blocked punt since 1982!

Steelers 16, Ravens 6

The defense returns

The Steelers needed a solid game to help recover from last week's devastation. This wasn't that solid of a win, but it'll do. For the second time this year, the Ravens offense was helpless against the Steelers 'D'. The bad news: the offense slumped terribly without Jerome Bettis. The good news: we won and the Jags lost (see below). The first half of this game was slow. The Steelers got an early FG thanks to a Baltimore fumble. They should have converted it into a TD, but once again, the offense was unable to convert on important plays, much like the Seattle game, and because of that the game was close. The only big offensive play in the first half was a 48 yard pass to Hawkins that went right through Rod Woodson's hands (Woodson actually got more cheers than boo's when he was introduced today). Other than that, the offense couldn't do much. Richard Huntley was stuffed all day by the Ravens good defense (he had 21 rushes for 52 yards). To make it worse, Huntley fumbled again in the 2nd quarter, setting up a Ravens FG and making it 6-3 Baltimore at the half. The boo's rang out all over the stadium for Kordell Stewart and the offense. The Ravens were all over Stewart the whole game. The offensive line basically just broke down.

Either the Steelers offense woke up at the start of the second half or the Ravens defense fell asleep. Stewart hit Charles Johnson on a wide open 55 yard TD pass. CJ strutted his way into the endzone for the longest pass play of the season. By the way, what's with all the Deion-type celebrating on the Steelers this year? It's getting old, especially since we really don't have much to strut about. Whatever, it still gave the Steelers a 10-6 lead. Then the defense took over. Late in the 3rd, a horrible special teams penalty (it was delay of game against the return team?) allowed the Ravens to continue a drive all the way to the Steelers 14, but Kevin Henry deflected a Zier pass, and Dewayne "Hands" Washington made the interception and ran it back to midfield. Once again, the offense failed to convert, as Kordell threw an interception on a 3rd down play from FG range. Fortunately, Jim Harbaugh and Eric Zier could do nothing against the defense. Lake made a pic, and the Steelers got a FG to make it a 7 point lead. On the ensuing kickoff, Jermaine Lewis basically tossed the ball into the hands of Chris Oldham, and the Norm Johnson kicked his third FG to make it 16-6, the eventual final. When it was all said and done the Steelers had sacked the two Baltimore QB's seven times, caused 5 turnovers, and held the Ravens to just 103 total yards in the second half. The defense is back, although give credit to Baltimore for sucking it up by going their second straight game without a touchdown. The offense wasn't bad if you look at the numbers. Stewart had 200 yards, Hawkins had 82 yards and CJ had 72 yards. They also threw deep with success, and they were without their best player. Still, it was not pretty to watch. They've got to start converting on the chances the defense gives them. They need more points if they're going to beat the good teams. CJ summed it up well when he said "We got a win, but I don't feel like we won." But now the Steelers are 4-2 and right behind the Jags (again, see below) as they head into a big Monday night showdown at K.C. Here's something to smile about: the Browns\Ravens are 4-26 in Three Rivers Stadium, and neither Art Modell owned team has won here since 1989. I love that figure! Here's some numbers from the game:

• Kordell Stewart: 12-27 for 196 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
• Defense: 7 sacks, 3 INT, 2 fumble recoveries

Steelers 20, Bengals 25

Steelers totally embarrased in final seconds

What a complete embarrasment this game was for the Steelers. They blew two fourth quarter leads to the Bengals and let Neil O'Donnell win the game with 14 seconds left on a play that will have football fans everywhere laughing at us tonight on the highlights. This game started with another pretty good showing by the offense. After an early field goal, the Steelers put together a drive that included a 57 yard run by Kordell Stewart, who had over 100 yards on the ground and was our leading rusher in the game. Stewart's run led to a Bettis TD. The Steelers were up 10-3 late in the half and had the ball inside the Bengals 20 when Bettis went down with a twisted knee. He missed the rest of the game. His replacement, Richard Huntley, came in and fumbled on the Bengals 10. That play was big because the Bengals responded. CB Jason Simmons, who had been burnt by Pickens earlier in the game on a deep pass, was burnt even worse by Darnay Scott on a long TD pass. They blew the PAT, so it was 10-9 at the half.

The Steelers offense again came out strong in the second half. They mounted an 8 play drive and all 8 plays were runs by either Huntley or Stewart. Huntley, who played well after the fumble, scored the TD and again the Steelers were in control. Cincinnati got a FG, then in the 4th they drove again. The Bengals WR's wasted our defense all day. No one could cover. Early in the 4th, Lake got burnt for a 30 yard TD by Scott. The Steelers were down, but they put together a decent drive late in the game and Norm Johnson, who hasn't been all that reliable this year, came through with a 40 yard FG and the Steelers had a 20-18 lead at the two minute warning. The Bengals got the ball at their own 7 yard line thanks to a penalty and the Steelers stuffed them on 3 straight plays. It was 4th and 12 from inside the Bengals 10, and there was less than a minute left and the Bengals had no timeouts. It seemed to be all over. But then, a bizzare series of plays occured. On 4th and 12, O'Donnell lofted up what was essentially a hail mary to Pickens. Pickens snagged the ball from Dewayne Washington, and all of a sudden the Bengals had a 50 yard gain that put them in FG range. That was one of the saddest plays. It has become obvious to me that Washington is a good cover guy, but that he has absolutely no sense of where the football is on a given play. After a few runs, the defense was ready for Neil to spike the ball and stop the clock with 14 seconds remaining. But a funny thing happened - Neil didn't spike the ball. Instead, he lofted a TD pass that Pickens again reached up and took right off Dewayne Washington, while the rest of the defense stood there and watched! This was absolutely unacceptable for a team of the Steelers caliber. The defense played amazingly two weeks ago against a good team, but then they laid down and let Pickens get 200 yards and let Neil get 300 yards! I'm sick of this inconsistent crap. Right now the Steelers are looking at wild card, at best. You can't lose divisional games to doormats, especially when you have the game won. Now Kordell is finally playing like he should be, but the defense couldn't beat O'Donnell? This season's games are starting to give me headaches. Here's the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 28 carries, 138 yards
• Kordell Stewart: 13-22 for 151 yards; 103 yards rushing
• Richard Huntley: 20 rushes, 85 yards, 1 TD, 1 fumble

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville beat Miami on Monday night, Tennesee beat Baltimore.

Week 5: Bye Week

Steelers 13, Seahawks 10

Defense wins another one, but offense improves

The Steelers offense finally played a fairly solid game, but the defense continues to be the reason the Steelers are winning games. Today the 3-0 Seattle Seahawks came into Three Rivers looking to stay undefeated. The defense forced two fumbles in the first quarter, one of which led to a Norm Johnson FG. Then Warren Moon and Joey Galloway hooked up for a big play, which eventually led to a Moon TD pass. Galloway had some big plays against the Steelers, but this was the only bad drive for the defense. So with the score 7-3 Seattle, it was up to the offense to finally respond, and they did. The Steelers mounted a great drive. They converted several 3rd downs, including a 15 yard pass to Hawkins on 3rd and 7 (Hawkins had 5 receptions on the day for 42 yards). Jerome Bettis, who had a big day as usual, came up with a nice 12 yard run. The Steelers drove inside to the Seahawks 5 yard line. After a delay made it first and goal from the 10, Stewart pitched the ball to Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala and he basically walked into the endzone.

In the 3rd quarter, the defense forced a third fumble which gave the Steelers the ball inside the 20, but again all the offense could get was a field goal. The Seahawks mounted another decent drive but the defense was fired up enough to hold them to a FG. The game was 13-10 for much of the 4th quarter. As previously mentioned, the offense played solidly, but with Will Woolford and Jim Sweeney both leaving the game with injuries, the Steelers were down to their last offensive lineman (good thing Jamain Stephens was on the bench in street clothes as usual!). Because of these injuries, the offense was unable to put the game away. They failed to convert on 4th and 2 at the Seattle 35, then after the defense got the ball right back on an interception, the offense had to punt. The defense only let the Seahawks get close enough to attempt a 53 yard FG, which they missed. On the game's final drive, the defense was all over Seattle. After Levon Kirkland sacked Moon hard on 2nd down, the secondary broke up two passes and the game was over. The defense is really impressive. This is shades of 1994 we've got here. The offense still needs to come through on the important plays. They only got 6 points off those 4 turnovers. They also need to throw deeper. Regardless, Kordell Stewart settled down this week, and Ray Sherman finally seemed to open the offense a bit, letting Stewart scramble and giving the ball to Bettis much more. Although Stewart didn't have many yards (108), he still had solid completion numbers and more importantly, he had no interceptions or other big mistakes. The Seahawks defense is supposed to be so good, but Bettis ran right through them. So despite all the grumbling about the Steelers this season, they head into the bye week with a 3-1 record and looking like they are in regular season form at last. You can't really complain too much about that, can you? Here's the numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 28 carries, 138 yards
• Kordell Stewart: 16-25 for 108 yards, 0 INT.
• Defense: caused 4 turnovers; held Seahawks to 61 yards rushing

Steelers 0, Dolphins 21

Offense hits a new low

What a sad, lifeless effort by the Steelers offense today in Miami. For the first time since 1993, the Steelers were shutout. One long field goal attempt was all the offense could put together in the rain of Pro Player Stadium. Kordell Stewart looked pitiful for the third straight week. The offensive line not only looked bad, but they also kept drawing penalties. The running game never got going, and the receivers kept dropping balls. After a scoreless first quarter, the defense, which played fairly well (they played great in comparison to the offense), allowed Danny Marino to put together a TD drive. On the first play after that touchdown, Stewart threw yet another horrible pass into double coverage and it was picked off. With the ball deep in Pittsburgh territory, the Dolphins drove to inside the 5 and were faced with 3rd and goal. Marino threw a pass into the endzone that went right through the hands of Dewayne Washington and fell right into the hands of a Miami receiver for the score. It was typical of the whole day. Even when the Steelers seemed to be picking it up, they really weren't. For instance, the Steelers had a good drive where they got to the Miami 30 yard line. They were faced with 3rd and long, and instead of trying to continue the drive, they got all conservative and called a running play, setting up a long Norm Johnson field goal attempt which he missed (in Norm's defense, it looked like it was partially blocked). Another time, Richard Huntley reeled off a nice 20+ yard run to the Dolphin 30 yard line, but the play was called back because Brendan Stai held somebody. Stai had a couple of holding penalties. The offensive line could not protect Stewart too well, and Bettis never got going - he only had 13 rushes for 48 yards.

The second half was even worse. Stewart threw an interception to Zach Thomas which was returned for a touchdown. Then it started to pour down rain, which at least made the rest of the game somewhat interesting to watch. Miami called almost all running plays, because they knew the Steelers weren't about to mount a comeback. Marino threw 22 passes and had just 113 yards, but it was more than enough to beat our sorry team. The defense is still allowing too many rushing yards. Karim Abdul-Jabbar had 108 yards, even though he did have 33 rushes. The defense wasn't the problem - they really only gave up 7 points. The offense showed absolutely no signs of life. It was frustrating to watch. After the game, everyone was defensive. Cowher yelled at a reporter who questioned him about Kordell's performance. Kordell said that "this game doesn't make any difference if we go to the Super Bowl." Well, we're a long way from that right now. The Dolphins are a good team, and the Steelers ran out of luck. Get ready for a whole week of Kordell Stewart and Ray Sherman bashing here in Pittsburgh. It's still early in the season. It's not like we haven't seen this before. At least this time we have some wins to show for it. Things don't get any easier next week when the undefeated Seahawks come to town. They have to get their offense in rythm - no more excuses. Cowher needs to start kicking some ass in that locker room. Here's the only decent number I could dig up from this game:

• Josh Miller: career long 73 yard punt

Elsewhere in the AFC Central: Jacksonville beat Baltimore, Tennesee lost to New England, and Cincy lost to Green Bay.

Steelers 17, Bears 12

Steelers still not in sync

Oh man, it's not the way you want to win games, but we'll take it anyway. For the second straight week, the Steelers played a less than perfect game but still came away with a victory. Today's pitiful opponent was the Chicago Bears. After a boring but quick first quarter, the Bears came out throwing, and Bobby Engram smoked CB Dewayne Washington for a 54 yard TD. The Bears missed the PAT, but they had the 7-0 lead. On the following drive, the Steelers running game finally got moving. Jerome Bettis reeled off a 42 yard run, and the Steelers were in business. After a 5 yard pass to Blackwell on 3rd and 3, and then a gift pass interference call, the Bettis finished off the drive with a one yard TD run. The Steelers then looked like they may add to their lead right before halftime, but Kordell Stewart, who did not have a real good game (17-30 for 137 yards, 1 INT, 1 TD), threw the ball over Andre Coleman's head. Coleman, who was wide open, tipped the ball, and it came right to a Chicago defender. That gave the Bears a field goal, and at halftime the Steelers trailed 9-7.

The Steelers came out in the second half and mounted a decent drive. Stewart came up with some nice passes to Bruener and CJ, and Bettis continued to run hard. Norm Johnson gave the Steelers the lead with a 49 yard FG. The next possesion by the Bears was key. Mays, their tight end, was hit and fumbled the ball to Jason Gildon at the Steelers 27. After a 20 yard pass to Bruener, Stewart hit Andre Coleman on third and goal from the 11. Coleman made a great diving catch and rolled into the endzone for the TD. The Bears got a FG in the 4th quarter, but never could mount a decent drive until the final few minutes. They got all the way down to the 16 yard line, but once again, the defense stood up and took the game. Carnell Lake intercepted Erik Kramer, and the game was over. I can't even begin to count how many games I've seen at Three Rivers where the offense couldn't expand a slim lead, and the defense caused a turnover to ice the victory. It's happened time and time again. So now the Steelers are actually 2-0, if you can believe that! At least they were improved over last week, especially Bettis and the line, but they still need work. Once again, this is nothing new. We always start slow, but a 2-0 slow start isn't bad. It should also be noted that besides Bettis, the stand-out player in this game for Pittsburgh was Josh Miller (yes, Josh Miller). He averaged 51.1 yards on 8 punts! Let's see if Cowher's screaming at him now. The other numbers:

• Jerome Bettis: 21 rushes, 131 yards, 1 TD
• Carnell Lake: 7 tackles, game-sealing int

Steelers 20, Ravens 13

Steelers fortunate in Baltimore

Here's what's great about pro football: there are no polls - an ugly win is still a win. That's what the Steelers got on opening day 1998 in Baltimore. As usual, the Steelers started the season slow. The first half was basically a complete debacle. After a nice opening drive that netted a field goal, the offense could do nothing. Kordell Stewart played his normal first half, throwing two interceptions. Kordell overthrew CJ on what would have been an easy TD pass from 50 yards out. He also threw a near interception to Rod Woodson that would have been returned for a TD had Woodson not dropped it. That was the story for the Ravens in the first half - missed opportunties. Kicker Matt Stover missed three field goals in the game, and Baltimore receivers were dropping passes left and right. Even worse for Baltimore, Jim Harbaugh was knocked out of the game by Carnell Lake. Despite a non-existent running game and a poor passing performance by the Steelers, the game was actually tied at halftime 3-3.

The Steelers looked sharper in the second half. They mounted another decent drive to make the score 6-3. Then came the turning point of the game. Backed up at their own 20, Baltimore was set to punt the ball away to the Steelers. Long snapper Harper La Bel snapped the ball low and it went bouncing passed punter Kyle Richardson. To make matters worse, Richardson actually kicked the ball backwards a few yards and the Steelers tackled him inside the 5 yard line, setting up an easy Kordell TD run. This was by far the biggest break for Pittsburgh. They plain gave us that. Anyway, the Steelers proceeded to play better. Stewart hit Charles Johnson on a 20 yard TD strike to cap a 73 yard drive that pretty much sealed the game. You gotta feel for Richard Huntley. He came in the game with the Steelers trying to finish the win and reeled off a 52 yard run but had the ball knocked loose near the endzone causing Baltimore to regain possesion. Lee Flowers, who played poorly all day, let the Ravens score a 64 yard TD with only minutes left that brought them to within 7 points. Fortunately, Captain Clutch - Josh Miller - came in and iced the game with a great 64 yard punt that pinned Baltimore inside their own 5 yard line. Give credit to the Ravens defense. Bettis had only 41 yards on 23 carries. Witman looked bad, and so did the newly formed offensive line. Our defense held up well also. The Steelers won on opening day for just the second time in the last six years. Overall it wasn't a real great game, but compare it to opening day every other year and it looked just fine. It's a road win and it's a divisional win. Don't worry about the offensive line or Stewart, because just like every season they'll improve as time goes by. The Ravens meanwhile proved why they have no chance in hell of competing in our division. The numbers:

• Kordell Stewart: 14-27 for 173 yards, 2 INT, 1 TD pass, 1 TD rush
• Charles Johnson: 4 rec for 68 yards, 1 TD

The Curse of No-Name Stadium: Art Modell has always been superstitious, so when his new stadium opened what better way to christen it he thought than to beat his arch-rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers (we're his arch-rivals; I doubt that anyone in Baltimore has a sense of how intense the Pittsburgh - Cleveland rivalry was before Art took it away). Apparently when they were building No-Name Stadium - that's right, their dumb stadium does not have a name - a worker from Pittsburgh buried a Terrible Towell beneath the field! If Art is still as superstitious as he used to be, I'll bet he's pretty worried about his stadium now. His team did everything possible not to win their opening game, CJ jumped into a crowd of Steelers fans after scoring his touchdown, and their starting QB got hurt. I wonder if Modell will have the stadium torn down now?