The Steelers introduced the perfect offense to fit their spanking new Heinz Field. It is so s-l-o-o-o-w to develop.
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Kordell Stewart is upended by the Bengals' Steve Foley yesterday in the third quarter. Stewart rushed for 61 yards and the Steelers' only touchdown. (Matt Freed, Post-Gazette) |
Those were what Coach Bill Cowher called "baby strides" his offense took yesterday. Jerome Bettis, meanwhile, took flying leaps through Cincinnati's defense, and the Steelers christened Heinz Field with a 16-7 victory.
Bettis looked like a supercharged Bus as he ripped through the Bengals for 153 yards and soared 99 yards past the 10,000-yard career mark.
The Steelers' passing game, as usual, did not quite measure up, but quarterback Kordell Stewart delivered on the ground with 61 yards and completed a crucial pass near the end that kept Cincinnati (2-2) at bay. The Steelers also kept the Bengals' Corey Dillon bottled up, holding him to 64 yards rushing to go with Cincinnati's meager passing game.
"It was a great day," Steelers President Dan Rooney concluded.
All in all, Rooney was right as the Steelers jumped out to a 2-1 record and fulfilled their determination not to get off to a poor start to the season.
They got off to a quick start but could not translate that into any points early in the game. Bettis, who needed 54 yards to reach 10,000, ripped off 48 on his first carry to the Bengals' 5.
But the Steelers did not score. They botched that one, missed another when they reached Cincinnati's 8 and fumbled away the snap, and settled for Kris Brown's 26-yard field goal when another drive stalled at the Bengals' 8.
Stewart scored the offense's second touchdown of the season when he ran 8 yards up the middle for a 10-0 halftime lead, and Brown, who also kicked a 42-yard field goal, sealed the victory with a 48-yard field goal with 1:52 left after Lorenzo Neal scored a touchdown for the Bengals.
"We made this game a lot closer than I think it should have been," Cowher said. "... It was one of those games that you walk away from and feel that you could have played a lot better."
They could not have done much better on the ground. With Bettis, Stewart and Amos Zereoue's complementary 60 yards, the Steelers combined for 274 yards rushing, the most since the last game of the 1988 season when they ran for 305 vs. Miami.
With Franco Harris and Rocky Bleier among the many former Steelers in attendance for the Heinz Field inaugural game, Bettis and his stable of backfield runners are off to a blistering, record-setting 3,000-yard pace for the season.
They might need it the way their passing game is going.
Stewart completed 15 of 24 passes for only 151 yards. He did not throw an interception but it wasn't as if he didn't try.
He had his chance to throw his first touchdown pass of the season on the first drive. Stewart threw a fade pass from the 5 to receiver Plaxico Burress in the right corner of the end zone that was woefully short and nearly intercepted by cornerback Rodney Heath.
"He made some good plays running the ball and got us in key situations, but we have to step it up in the passing game," said Hines Ward. "Hats off to Jerome ... but as far as the receivers and quarterback, we have to find a way to get this passing game going."
Ward is off to a sizzling pace. He had eight receptions yesterday to give him 23 on the season, but typical of the passing offense, they covered only 68 yards.
That first drive ended when Cowher decided to go for the touchdown on fourth down from the 1. Stewart bobbled the center snap and handed off to Bettis, who was stuffed for no gain.
"I just felt that in that situation that we could get a yard, and I just thought that it was the right thing to do at the time," Cowher said. "I want to play to win."
The Steelers took a 3-0 lead early in the second quarter on Brown's 26-yard field goal after two pass plays failed. From the 8, Stewart threw a pass to Bobby Shaw in the end zone that was broken up by -- Ward, who also tried to catch it. On the next play, Stewart's pass to Shaw was nearly intercepted by safety Chris Carter.
Stewart, though, did find Ward on a slant earlier on that drive for a 21-yard reception, and he later hit Ward with a pass that put the game out of reach.
In the meantime, Bettis ran through the Bengals as if they were stick figures, and when he needed a break, Zereoue took over.
"To get into the secondary before I'm getting touched, that's something," said Bettis, who gave credit to his line for blowing open holes all day. "I'd like to think that I can negotiate the cornerbacks and safeties myself. Once I get into the secondary, good things happen."
Cornerback Chad Scott intercepted a Jon Kitna pass at the Steelers' 2 in the second quarter to preserve their slim lead, and the Steelers' offense put on their best and most diverse drive of the season to take a 10-0 lead.
On third-and-2 at midfield, Stewart faked perfectly a handoff to Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala inside and pitched left to Zereoue, who took it 22 yards to the 29. Two plays later, Stewart faked a pass and ran around end behind three blockers that included Bettis for 11 yards.
Then, on third-and-4 out of the spread offense, Stewart dropped back into the pocket and ran up the middle for an 8-yard touchdown.
"The one thing that I did like was that we got him involved in the game running with the ball -- that's what he does best," Cowher said of his quarterback.
Stewart did improve on his throws as the game wore on. He hit Burress on three passes in a five-play sequence that went: A Burress 17-yard reception and fumble (recovered by tight end Mark Bruener), a Burress 9-yard catch, a Bettis 6-yard run, a Burress 11-yard catch and a Bettis 7-yard catch.
With 27 seconds left before halftime and the ball on the Bengals' 8, it was a chance to run the count to 17-0 and virtually put the game away. But on the next play, Stewart fumbled the snap from center.
Stewart and Kitna claimed the footballs were too slick and not properly rubbed down by the home team and the officials. The Steelers fumbled four times and lost two. The Bengals did not fumble.
One of the fumbled snaps turned into a good thing for the Steelers when Stewart picked it up and ran 23 yards on a drive that ended with Brown's 42-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
The Bengals responded by methodically moving behind Kitna's passing to their only touchdown, Neal's 1-yard catch with 4:45 left.
The Steelers needed another score or to run out the clock to put it away. They faced third-and-5 at their 43 when Stewart threw his best pass of the day, a 24-yarder to Ward, running a slant, for a first down.
Eventually, Brown went out and kicked a 48-yard field goal with 1:52 left after a discussion with Cowher.
"I told him to play it inside-left," Cowher said. "I can putt, but I can't get to the green in golf."
The Steelers showed again that they can run, but whether they can get to the end zone through the air anytime soon is another matter.
Punishing running game christens Heinz Field with 274-yard effort; Bettis cruises past 10,000 
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