PITTSBURGH -- Heinz Field looked a lot like Three Rivers Stadium to the Cincinnati Bengals -- and Jerome Bettis looked a whole lot like Jerome Bettis.
The Pittsburgh Steelers finally played in their new stadium and dominated Cincinnati with their running game -- something they did often in Three Rivers -- as Bettis went over the 10,000-yard career rushing mark in a 16-7 victory today.
Bettis needed 54 yards to become the 14th player in NFL history to rush for 10,000 yards. He got them on his first five carries, gaining 103 yards by halftime and finishing with 153 in his eighth 100-yard game against Cincinnati since 1996.
Not that Bettis anticipated any problem gaining yards against one of his favorite opponents. The Bettis Bus that sits outside the stadium during every home -- his nickname is the Bus -- already was painted with a logo proclaiming him as a member of the 10,000-yard club before the game.
As they have throughout this interrupted season, the Steelers (2-1) again had their offensive problems, twice moving inside the Bengals 10 without scoring. The Steelers' opening drive ended when Bettis was stacked up at the line of scrimmage on fourth-and-goal from the 1.
But while Kordell Stewart's passing was as imprecise and inconsistent as ever as he completed only three of his first 10 attempts, he was much more effective running the ball. He scored the Steelers' only touchdown on an 8-yard run with 5:27 left in the second quarter, setting up the score with runs of 11 and 9 yards as the Steelers outrushed the Bengals 274-65.
Kris Brown kicked field goals of 26 and 42 yards as the Steelers opened a 13-0 lead before the Bengals drove for their only scoring, with Jon Kitna flipping a 1-yard touchdown pass to fullback Lorenzo Neal to make it 13-7 with 4:45 left. But the Steelers answered with a scoring drive ended with Brown's 48-yard field goal.
Even the new, improved Bengals (2-2), trying for their first 3-1 start since 1990, couldn't do much in a city where they have had only sporadic success over the years. They waited 10 years for their first victory in Three Rivers and lost seven of their last 10 there.
With Kitna going 19-of-34 for 164 yards and an interception, the low-scoring loss was the Bengals' second in a row in Pittsburgh following successive victories there in 1998 and 1999, their only road victories against a non-expansion team since 1996. They lost in Three Rivers Stadium 15-0 last season.
The crowd of 62,335 was 2,115 below capacity, although all tickets were sold. Heinz Field was to have opened Sept. 16 against rival Cleveland, but that game was postponed by the terrorist attacks.
Steelers down Bengals, 16-7; Bettis hits 10,000-yard milestone 
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