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Monday, December 31, 2001

Four wretched hours of football. A 13-point lead frittered in the final minutes. A 26-23 overtime loss to the lowly Bungles, for cripes-the-stripes sake.

Undeterred by everything he saw in Cincinnati yesterday, Brent Jones -- CBS's version of Miss Cleo on such matters -- continues to forecast Super Steelers for February.

"I'm still picking them to go," said Jones, who began making such glowing forecasts one year and one week ago, when the Steelers closed out the 2000 season. "Too many weapons. Too many good players. Just need some refinement.

"So this isn't an earth-shattering loss. It's a painful reminder that you have to play four quarters. If anything, this game will prove to them a wake-up call. I still think they're the team to beat.

"In the playoffs, I think the team you really have to watch out for is the Patriots. I think everybody else will go by the wayside in the AFC. They'll probably meet in the championship game.

"That means St. Louis and the Steelers in New Orleans. I don't think the Rams have as much advantage as everybody thinks. The Steelers have played on turf over the years. I think they'll just cause the Rams' offense some trouble. So I'm sticking with my Steelers the whole way."

Don't discount Jones' prediction.

He is Steelers psychic.

This, after all, was the guy who, Dec. 24, 2000, remarked in the Steelers-San Diego broadcast: They have the core players in place to really make a serious run next year.

This was the guy who, Oct. 14 this season, remarked in the Steelers-Kansas City broadcast: The Steelers will win the AFC Central ... and Plaxico Burress is too good physically not to be a dominant player in this league.

This onetime Steelers tight end is getting so good at divination, he should rewrite his resume to say that he graduated Santa Claravoyant.

Kordell Stewart knows. When the Steelers' starting quarterback sat down Saturday for his broadcast-production meeting with Jones, announcer Gus Johnson and the rest of this CBS-TV team, he invoked Jones' prognostication from 53 weeks earlier. "Everybody in our crew was like, 'Dang, he remembers exactly what we said,' "Jones said after yesterday afternoon's broadcast, but before Oakland's loss cinched home-field advantage for the Steelers. "Kordell and Jerome Bettis, they know I'm driving this bandwagon. I'm sticking with the fellas. Nothing I've seen has convinced me otherwise."

Yesterday wasn't pretty, to be sure. Four-hundred-eleven yards passing to Jon Kitna? A winning field goal by a more-troubled, more-booed AFC kicker than even the Steelers' Kris Brown? A loss to Bungles who dropped their seven previous games? "That should have never been," Jones said of the Steelers' defeat.

"You know what, that whole game hinged on one play: Josh Miller dropping that snap [on a second-quarter, field-goal try]. If that doesn't happen, the Bengals are never in the game, mentally or physically. Being down 17-0 over 10-7 ... still, there were two or three other times they should have been out of it. Boy, that onside kick -- that was a raw deal for the Steelers. There were a few fluky things that went on.

"There were times when the Steelers were sharp; there were times when they were lackadaisical. Maybe they weren't as aggressive in play-calling; maybe they didn't want to get guys hurt. I always feel like toward the end of the year, you always have a game where you don't play as well. The Steelers have been so good all year at avoiding that letdown. You'd rather get that out of the way now, right?

"You want to play well into the first-round bye. You want to have some momentum. So they have to play everybody next week [against Cleveland]. They have to go full out to win that baby. Maybe that'll be the best thing for them.

"And I think the Bus needs some carries next week. He needs 12 to 15 carries. You can't simulate that in practice. You don't want to go into the playoffs not having Jerome run against a defense for five or six weeks."

His recent forecasting record aside, the guy has 49ers world-championship rings to back this up.

"The Road to the Super Bowl goes through Pittsburgh," said Jones, who likely won't get pressed into any CBS duty in the postseason. "Maybe I'll pay my own way to the AFC championship game. I'm just hoping I can get a Terrible Towel out of the deal."

Did anyone else believe this strongly about the Steelers as far back as last Christmas Eve?

In addition to The Big Picture, Chuck Finder writes a general-sports column exclusive to the http://www.post-gazette.com/ every Tuesday. He can be reached at cfinder@post-gazette.com