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Tuesday, August 20, 2002

By Ed Bouchette, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

Move over, Jerome Bettis. There's a new mode of transportation in town. Call it the Airbus.

The Steelers' passing game might be more than a complement or a diversion to the Bus and the NFL's No. 1 running attack. After two exhibition games, the passing attack has generated yards and touchdowns -- everything but victories.

And it has been the two veteran backup quarterbacks who have pumped so much air in the ball.

Sunday night at FedEx Field in Landover, Md., Charlie Batch followed up Tommy Maddox's excellent opener by outdoing him. Batch completed 8 of 9 passes for 118 yards and a touchdown after entering the game earlier than he expected when Kordell Stewart left with an injury.

Batch also left early with a cut on his chin that required 10 stitches. Coach Bill Cowher said both injured quarterbacks should be fine to practice today when the Steelers resume training camp at St. Vincent College in Latrobe.

Tee Martin played the final 2 1/2 quarters and did nothing to expand his minute chances of making the team by completing 8 of 20 passes for 85 yards. He threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Antwaan Randle El but also threw a bad interception, missed open receivers and fumbled on the goal line to allow Washington to come back to score the winning touchdown.

Maddox, who will serve as Stewart's top backup, completed 12 of 16 passes for 147 yards against the Jets.

After two preseason games, the Steelers have 545 yards passing and just 166 rushing. They have two touchdown passes and just one rushing, and that was scored by receiver Randle El on a 32-yard reverse. They have run 49 times and passed 72. They have 25 first downs passing, just five rushing.

Stewart wasn't surprised by all the balls in the air.

"It's part of our game. If it's not broke, don't fix it. We're still a passing team as well. To actually go out and throw the football, that's part of the game."

Running Randle El

The Steelers' leading rusher after two exhibition games is Randle El, who has two reverses for 43 yards, including his 32-yard touchdown run against the Redskins Sunday night.

"What can you say?" Cowher said. "He's a very exciting player with the football in his hands. He's got excellent hands. He's going to help us this year. He's come a way. He missed a 'hot' one time. He got in the way or he probably would have had another touchdown."

Randle El also caught a 17-yard touchdown pass from Martin, but he saved the ball from his first touchdown rather than his first touchdown reception.

"It's preseason, but it's the first one," said Randle El, who complimented Martin and guard Alan Faneca for blocks they threw to help him score untouched on his long run.

"That helped me out and gave me the opportunity to score in the open field."

Randle El has 17 yards more than Bettis. "I won't outrush him in the regular season, so enjoy it right now, I guess."

Best Foote forward?

Rookie Larry Foote replaced linebacker Kendrell Bell when he left the game with a severe high ankle sprain in the first half. The Steelers will put a cast on Bell's left ankle to stabilize it for a week and Cowher said he is cautiously optimistic Bell will be ready to play in the opener Sept. 9 against New England.

Until then, Cowher is not certain if Foote will start for Bell or if someone else will. John Fiala and James Farrior have been sharing time at the other inside linebacker spot, the buck position, as they compete for the job. Neither has practiced this summer at the "mack" inside linebacker, the one Bell played.

Halfback Amos Zereoue also left the game with a sprained ankle, but it was not as severely injured as Bell's ankle.

Tough loss

The Steelers' locker room was unusually somber after an exhibition game, an atmosphere that comes with blowing a 24-0 third-quarter lead, whether the game is meaningless or not.

"This was a game we really wanted," safety Lee Flowers said after Washington outscored the Steelers, 21-0, in the fourth quarter to win, 35-34. "It was unfortunate how we dominated the first half and came back and lost.

"We don't like losing. Coach Cowher sent us a message during training camp and told us this was a big game for us. I think we were disappointed by giving up a great first half."

Cowher seeing red

From now on, Cowher said you will see red when he does.

Instead of trying to buzz officials with a device that seems to malfunction more than it works, Cowher will throw a red flag onto the field to signal that he wants to challenge a call with instant replay.

Sunday night, he tried in vain to signal the officials with a buzzer when he wanted to challenge a catch in the back of the end zone by Washington's Derrius Thompson. He ran onto the field pushing the button on the device and hollering at the officials as the Redskins lined up for the extra point after the touchdown.

When he finally got the officials' attention after the Redskins made the kick, they refused to consider his protest. Cowher angrily snatched the buzzer box from his hip and slammed it to the ground. He picked it up, wound up and slammed it into the grass again.

"I'm not using that machine again," Cowher said. "I'm using that old flag. I hit that thing and I hit that thing. I tested it. It doesn't work. I'm done using it. We don't need it anymore."

Despite spiking the buzzer box into the ground twice at FedEx Field, it didn't break, not that it was working properly beforehand.

"The grass was too soft," Cowher said.

Quick hits

The Steelers resume practice today at 3 p.m. at St. Vincent College. It is open to the public. ... Rookie Bob Jones handled all the long-snapping Sunday night. He did well on punts, but he was low on place-kicks. Tommy Maddox got the hold down on three bad snaps that Todd Peterson managed to make for two extra-point kicks and a 28-yard field goal. ... Nijrell Eason had his second interception in two games and three other Steelers joined him by picking off Redskins passes: Hank Poteat, Justin Kurpeikis and Brent Alexander. ... Troy Edwards dropped what would have been a touchdown pass from Martin. ... The Steelers' special teams weren't perfect but they were improved -- there was no blocked kick.