CLEVELAND -- It ended so disappointingly yesterday for the Steelers, all because the quarterback didn't throw a pass he should have thrown and the running back threw a pass he shouldn't have thrown.
That, though, is what happens to teams who have lost 17 of their past 23 games.
Even on a day when Jerome Bettis rushed for 122 yards on 23 carries and showed there is nothing wrong with his 28-year-old body.
"It's a tough one to swallow," Bettis said.
It was for Bettis, a four-time Pro Bowl running back, because the 23-20 loss to the Cleveland Browns probably does not come down to those botched final seconds if he doesn't underthrow Hines Ward on a halfback option pass in the third quarter.
That mistake came right after the Steelers took a 20-17 lead on Bettis' 10-yard touchdown run, exactly two plays after outside linebacker Jason Gildon punched the ball away from Browns receiver Darrin Chiaverini and cornerback Chad Scott recovered at the Cleveland 23.
"Hines was open," offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride said. "It was there."
But Bettis underthrew the pass, and Browns cornerback Corey Fuller made the interception. In one instant, the Steelers took a running back who had already rushed for 100 yards and turned him into a quarterback, right when it appeared they would keep running the ball at the middle of the Browns defense.
"At minimum, we should have got three points there," Bettis said. "I'm very disappointed in that because I let my teammates down."
That was the only time Bettis let down his teammates. He followed up his poor performance in the season-opening loss to the Baltimore Ravens with his first 100-yard game of the season and second in his past four regular-season games.
And he did it against an improved and financially enhanced Browns defense that a week ago held Cincinnati's Corey Dillon to 41 yards rushing on 12 carries. All Dillon did against the Browns in 1999 was rush for 360 yards in two games.
"We knew they were going to run the ball," said Browns cornerback Corey Fuller. "We didn't think they were going to run it that well."
But the Steelers did, attacking the middle of the Browns defense with Bettis, who had just 8 yards on 9 carries two weeks ago. On several occasions, Bettis even kicked the runs outside when the middle was clogged, showing that the injured knee that forced him to miss most of the preseason is no longer a hindrance.
"We hoped we'd be able to run the ball because we've run the ball on them in the past," Bettis said. "We felt real confident and we worked real hard the last two weeks on getting prepared to run the ball. So we felt real good about it."
The Steelers felt even better about it when Bettis had 60 yards rushing at halftime, then came out in the third quarter and picked up the pace. That became evident on the second possession of the third quarter, right after the Browns had padded their lead to 17-13 on Phil Dawson's 23-yard field goal.
Starting at their 20, the Steelers needed only eight plays to take their first lead. Bettis carried four times on the drive and also caught an 11-yard pass. Three of the runs were for 10 yards. The last one went right up the middle, and the hole was so big that Bettis' 252-pound frame went untouched into the end zone. The touchdown gave the Steelers a 20-17 lead. What's more, it provided them with momentum.
"We had an opportunity to run the football," Bettis said. "It wasn't that I was more determined today than any other day. We had an opportunity to run the football and we pounded it in there.
"The [offensive line] played great. They came off the ball play after play and they gave me an opportunity to get going. If I can get in the secondary, it's going to be a rough day. It's a good sign because we need to be able to run the football."
Which is why the decision to let Bettis throw the ball on second-and-7 at the Browns' 20 was surprising. Keep running the ball, score another touchdown, and the game's over. After all, the Steelers have had proven success in games where Bettis rushes for more than 100 yards, going 22-7 in his four previous seasons. Bettis' performance pushes his career rushing yards to 8,593, just 4 shy of tying Jim Taylor for 15th place on the NFL's all-time list.
Last year, though, the Steelers had success with the same play -- Bettis threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Ward in the first quarter of their 31-24 home loss to the Ravens.
"I threw a touchdown with it last year," Bettis said. "And in practice we got it down there. I just didn't get it done in the game."
"We had it if Jerome throws it," Coach Bill Cowher said. "It was that type of execution that cost us. We have to understand the situation and make the right decisions."
The same is true for the coaching staff.
Browns pick off Bettis' pass, momentum 
