The Steelers' rivalry with the Oakland Raiders has featured forearms to the head, deflated footballs, greased jerseys, contested deflected passes and charges of a criminal element. But, in the 28 years since these teams started disliking each other, there had not been a spitting incident.
That all changed, though, in the fourth quarter yesterday when Raiders defensive end Regan Upshaw spit in the face of punter Josh Miller after Miller's 40-yard punt went into the end zone. The incident was caught by television cameras and replayed several times, though no penalty was called.
Afterward, Coach Bill Cowher began his postgame news conference by denouncing the incident, which is certain to draw a hefty fine from the NFL.
In 1997, Denver Broncos linebacker Bill Romanowski was fined $7,500 by the league after he spat on San Francisco 49ers wide receiver J.J. Stokes.
"I have a lot of respect for [Raiders Coach] Jon Gruden, but No. 91 spit in our punter's face and that's wrong," Cowher said. "That's absolutely wrong. I know it's a rivalry, but what's done on the field should be left on the field."
Asked if Upshaw should be fined, Cowher said, "He should be."
"That was terrible," said running back Jerome Bettis, who rushed for 128 yards on 24 carries. "You go back, there was a guy in Denver who did the same thing. We should expect the same type [of fine]. There should be a suspension and a heavy fine. That's poor sportsmanship."
Upshaw admitted he spat on Miller, who did not retaliate. Miller pointed to his face and showed an official what happened, but no penalty was called.
"Yeah, I did," Upshaw said. "There was a little altercation and I lost my temper, which I shouldn't have. He called me out of my name a few times, used a few cuss words and I got angry. But I dealt with it in the wrong way."
The incident occurred behind the play, after Miller's punt went into the end zone. Upshaw, who was rushing on the play, appeared to be exchanging words with Miller as the two players stood face-to-face. There was no physical altercation, not even a shove.
"Nothing," Miller said. "I kicked the ball in the end zone. I was upset, and he came over to me and just said, 'Hey, you know what? You suck,' and spit in my face. Obviously, we had the last laugh. I hope someone saw it in the league.
"He's a good athlete, the Raiders are a good team, but you don't need that to intimidate. I don't know. Everybody's brought up differently."
Miller, who is 6 feet 3, 219 pounds, said he did not initiate the trash talk with Upshaw, who is 6-4, 260, because "defensive linemen aren't one of the guys I go after."
"The guy just doesn't like punters, I'm thinking. I definitely wouldn't go seek out a D-lineman to talk garbage to. I didn't say much. I'm a smart guy. I pick and choose my battles.
"It's part of the game, I guess. I hope the league does something about that. It's out of my hands."
Miller said the official didn't see Upshaw spit on him. He didn't retaliate because he said the official would have seen that and then he would have been subject to a fine.
"If I had done anything back, [the official] would've seen that and I'm sure they'd give me 10,000 reasons why I should be upset if I did retaliate. You're a grown man. You get spit on in a game. It bothers me, but we won. I'm happy about that."
Miller was asked if the incident resulted from all the pregame talk about the Steelers' rivalry with the Raiders. He quickly scoffed at the notion.
"If that's the case, there should have been gunfire in Cleveland," Miller said, referring to the team's rivalry with the Cleveland Browns.
The incident with Upshaw spoiled what had been an intense, bitterly contested game between the Steelers and Raiders, one that was reminiscent of their playoff tussles in the 1970s.
"I've never been to the playoffs, but that's how I see it on TV," said left tackle Wayne Gandy. "Don't give an inch, don't take an inch."
Raiders' Upshaw adds fire to old rivalry 
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