Some people look past the Steelers' disappointing start and envision plays that will snap the team out of its lethargy. Maybe a 75-yard sprint by Willie Parker or a 90-yard hookup between Ben Roethlisberger and Hines Ward or perhaps an 88-yard punt return by Willie Reid.

What I'm looking forward to is another taunting penalty or another excessive celebration penalty -- preferably both in the same game. Not because I want to see the Steelers in trouble but to see how Bill Cowher reacts.

That would be real fun. That would test the measure of Cowher.

When the Steelers committed those penalties -- taunting by Mike Logan and excessive celebrating by Parker and Verron Haynes -- in their loss Sunday to the Cincinnati Bengals, Cowher spit out the answers to questions about the plays.

In his toughest tough-guy voice, with teeth clenched, he said: "I will accept responsibility. That will not happen again. That's on me. It will not happen again."

Asked later if Logan's taunting penalty was stupid or selfish, he said: "Both. Stupid, selfish, both of those. Just like the celebration. There is no reason for those things. Like I said, it will not happen again."

He spoke with such conviction that you had to know he made it clear to his players that such behavior will not be tolerated. Which is why it will be so revealing to view how Cowher reacts if they reoccur.

In reality, beyond tough talking, there's not much a coach can do to correct behavior of that nature. Cowher might cut or bench Logan, a veteran backup. But he certainly couldn't do the same to Parker.

Truth be known, it's too late to curb the adolescent, classless behavior that has become part of most athletic competition above the high school level.

Sixteen years ago in Giants Stadium, when Steelers linebacker Greg Lloyd stood over a fallen Al Toon, a man with a history of concussions, and counted Toon out, the world, even Steelers fans, were horrified by this display of poor sportsmanship, by this total lack of humanity. Even from a bad guy like Lloyd, such behavior was stunning.

When Logan taunted a fallen Brad St. Louis, who could have been seriously hurt, the crowd again was horrified. But not because of Logan's classless act but because of its stupidity. Neither Logan nor most of the crowd cared a whit about St. Louis, who had been knocked senseless. They cared that Logan's stupidity had cost the Steelers a 10-yard penalty.

We've become so immune to the lowlife behavior of athletes that not only do we accept it as the norm, but we often also adopt that behavior.

Humility has been dead for a long time and sportsmanship is not far behind.

It's not Cowher's fault, it's the fault of coaches everywhere. They were given a sacred trust -- to maintain the level of sportsmanship and fair play that for decades were integral to athletic competition -- and have failed miserably. Those traits, in fact, were two of the largest reasons sports became so popular in this country.

Coaches everywhere understand that only a certain number of demands can be made on players. Consequently, they prioritize what is important. Once it was sportsmanship and fair play. Now it's winning and winning. Few rules are placed on players regarding how they behave on the field. The players call it "having fun."

Can you imagine, say, Franco Harris coming off the bench and running onto the field, which is what Haynes did, to engage in an orchestrated celebration with Rocky Bleier?

Can you imagine Carnell Lake standing over a fallen opponent and taunting him?

Harris, Bleier and Lake had too much dignity to behave in such a manner. To them, and for players for most of the history of competitive sports in this country, the enjoyment, the fun, came in doing a job well, not in behaving like a show-off, a clown or an idiot -- take your pick -- immediately afterward.

Logan is one of the last guys on the team from whom such behavior might be expected. Where did he learn to behave in such a manner? That's easy to answer. He was just emulating his peers.

That's too bad because there once was a time when sports set the bar for societal behavior and set it high. Now, with a large assist from the media in general and television in particular, the players who behave in the most outlandish fashion and in a manner most opposite to the norms of society are the ones who get the most TV face time.

My real hope for this season is that there is no more taunting, no more excessive celebrating by the Steelers or any other team and that Cowher's warning will be heeded. Even if it is heeded without a Super Bowl, that would give this season a touch of success.