The road to the Super Bowl does not necessarily go through Cincinnati. The road to the NFL playoffs does.

It's a road anyone can drive from here, a road that connects three dots for the Steelers: Cincinnati, Cleveland and Baltimore. Win enough times against those three and the playoffs are yours.

The Steelers are trying to prove that again this season, that they can play mediocre football against those outside the division yet make the playoffs with a dominant performance against their AFC North foes.

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Today

• Game: Steelers (8-3) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (4-7).
• When: 8:15 p.m.
• TV: WPXI.

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They have a 4-0 record in the division with the Bengals up tonight for an 8:15 kickoff. Against everyone else, the Steelers are 4-3.

"We just emphasize winning the games in your division,'' Hines Ward said. "Win your division and get into the playoffs.''

It's an automatic ticket: All four division champs and just two wild cards earn playoff berths in each conference. Before realignment took place in 2002, teams made the playoffs just as easily as a wild card with three of them joining the three division champs.

"Especially now since we changed the format, you have to win your divisional games if you want to go far,'' guard Alan Faneca said. "You can win every other game and lose your divisional games and you probably won't make the playoffs.

"It's harder to earn a wild card, so you have to win your division."

Faneca is a rare breed; he is one of four remaining Steelers on the team the last time they had a losing record against their division foes. In 1999, they went 3-7 in the old six-team AFC Central Division. Since then, they have not had a losing record within either the Central or North.

They've split their games three seasons but otherwise the Steelers have dominated their division, as they have this season. They are 16-6 since the AFC North was born in 2002, when they got off to a fast start.

The '02 Steelers weren't particularly good -- against teams outside their division. They went 6-0 in the North and 4-5-1 elsewhere, yet they won the division and would have had the best record in the AFC had it not been for a shocking loss at home to expansion Houston.

It was a perfect example of following Bill Cowher's philosophy of taking care of the division games first.

"With our division opponents, we've always seemed to have rivalries, always a bigger game, bigger trash talk," Faneca said. "It brings out the best in the team. Bill always did a good job getting us ready for them, stressing that, talking about the division and where we were and what we needed to do in our division.''

Mike Tomlin's first team is off to a fast start, too, perfect in four games against AFC North foes. The Steelers have beaten Cleveland twice, but tonight's second meeting against the Bengals (4-7) may be more difficult.

The visitor has won the past seven games in this series, with Cincinnati winning their past two in Heinz Field and three of the past four.

The Steelers won in Cincinnati, 24-13, Oct. 28 when the Bengals did not have wide receiver Chris Henry, running back Rudi Johnson and offensive tackle Willie Anderson. All will play tonight.

Cincinnati also has won two of its past three overall, including its most impressive victory of the season last week, 35-6 against playoff contender Tennessee.

At 8-3, the Steelers cling to a one-game lead in the AFC North over hard-charging Cleveland. Building on their 4-0 division record can only help get them into the playoffs. Since their 3-7 record in the old AFC Central, the Steelers have not made the playoffs when they either had that one losing record or broke even (three times) against division foes. Every time they had a winning record, they made the playoffs.

"I think our division is the hardest in the league,'' defensive end Brett Keisel said. "You know you have to play well in our division or you're going to be done. Other teams can play decent and still make the playoffs in their division.

"We understand if you don't win the division, you might not make the playoffs.''