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Monday, October 22, 2001

By Dejan Kovacevic, Ron Cook and Bob Smizik

Steelers (4-1) vs. Titans (2-3), 9 p.m. next Monday, Heinz Field. TV, radio: WTAE; WDVE-FM (102.5), WBGG-AM (970). The Steelers are 38-26 in their all-time series against the Tennessee franchise but losing ground quickly. They have lost the past seven meetings, the previous victory coming in 1997.

Brent Alexander, Steelers FS, left in the third quarter because of a left hip pointer. He later returned and does not expect to miss any playing time.

Jason Simmons, Steelers CB, left in the fourth quarter because of a hamstring injury but is not expected to miss any playing time.

Hines Ward, Steelers WR, left in the third quarter with a sprained left ankle but is not expected to miss any playing time.

Keyshawn Johnson, Buccaneers WR, left in the fourth quarter because of a strained right hip flexor and did not return.

TE Mark Bruener wouldn't recommend to his worst enemy the scenario he faced near the end of the game yesterday. Tampa Bay had just cut the Steelers' lead to 17-10 with 28 seconds remaining, and Buccaneers PK Martin Gramatica's onside kick fell into the hands of leaping teammate Brian Kelly. But Bruener swatted the ball away as Kelly was coming down, and a scrum was on. Problem for Bruener was that his was the only black jersey in sight. "I saw the football on the ground, and there was a melee, a lot of white jerseys," Bruener said. "Fortunately, I was able to get underneath there and get it." It didn't happen without a significant struggle. "You start with the fingernail, then the finger, and slowly I was able to work the ball my way. By the time I got it to my other hand, I was able to pull it to my chest and hold on. It's not for the meek of heart to be at the bottom of a pile." Officials on the field initially ruled the Steelers had recovered but quickly reversed their decision, saying Kelly had possession when he hit the ground. Replay officials then confirmed Bruener had stripped the ball before Kelly landed. Kelly disputed the call: "When I came down, I had possession of the ball. My butt was the first thing to hit the ground, not my legs."

QB Kordell Stewart threw his first interception in 76 attempts with 9:48 left in the first quarter. From the Tampa Bay 48, he hit WR Plaxico Burress with an accurate pass to the 6, but Burress failed to grip it, and it was picked off easily by CB Ronde Barber. Stewart finished 10 of 16 for 100 yards and another interception, an overthrow intended for WR Hines Ward but nabbed again by Barber with 1:48 left in the third quarter. Stewart spoke only of the team's success afterward. "It's an excellent thing. We're going home for a Monday night game, and we haven't been 4-1 since I've been here. I'll take it. I couldn't be happier. ... You have to ask yourself: Which team won the Super Bowl last year? And how did they win it? How you do it doesn't matter."

The Steelers were content to give up short passes to Buccaneers WR Keyshawn Johnson, who finished with 10 catches for 159 yards. They were more interested in stopping RB Warrick Dunn, who had 13 carries for 31 yards and caught two passes for 16 yards. "We felt Dunn was the guy who could take it to the house," Coach Bill Cowher said. Even though Johnson had big numbers, S Lee Flowers wasn't impressed. "All they threw to him all day were out patterns. That wasn't going to beat us ... And where was he at the end of the game anyway?" Told that Johnson left with a hip flexor, Flowers said, sniffing, "That figures. It's not like it was something you can X-ray, is it? I don't think he wanted to be out there."

The Steelers lined up for their first play of the second half without a quarterback. Ward, a part-time quarterback in college, took the snap from center and ran for 9 yards through the surprised Tampa Bay defense. "When they didn't see Kordell in the game, I'm pretty sure they didn't know what to look for," said Ward. [Offensive coordinator] Mike Mularkey came up with that in practice on Thursday," said Cowher. "Those guys keep coming up with new stuff every week. They like it. I like it. Who knows what they'll come up with next week?" Although he's a full-time wide receiver, Ward said he doesn't neglect his passing skills. The next time he lines up in the backfield, it's something else for the opposing defense to think about."

S Mike Logan showed why the Steelers have great depth in their secondary. He came in after Brent Alexander bruised his hip in the second quarter and broke up one pass, intercepted another and sacked QB Brad Johnson, one of 10 sacks the Steelers had. "I hated missing all the fun," Alexander said. "I was all over Mike. I told him he was getting all my plays. But I'm happy for him. He played a great game."

LB Joey Porter, who had four sacks, has a name for the defensive unit. "Don't call us No-Name," said Porter. "Call us Big Nasty D."

Tampa Bay Coach Tony Dungy, believed to be in jeopardy of losing his job by many here, seemed to take the defeat hard: "This was a very disappointing loss. We have to make the plays, and today we didn't come up with the big plays. We have to stay together and be a team. ... We're frustrated, but we still have a very good football team."

Dungy burned a timeout when his replay challenge was rejected with 9:48 left in the third quarter. Officials on the field ruled Buccaneers WR Karl Williams landed out of bounds while making a diving catch, and replay officials supported the original call, saying his left elbow hit the sideline before the rest of his body hit the ground in bounds.

The Steelers scratched TE Matt Cushing, C Chukky Okobi, G Keydrick Vincent, OT Mathias Nkwenti, LB Justin Kurpeikis, DE Chris Combs and DT Chris Hoke. The Buccaneers played without LB Jeff Gooch (shoulder), FS Dexter Jackson, DE Ellis Wyms, RB Aaron Stecker, G Russ Hochstein, G Shane Grice and WR Milton Wynn.

Steelers RB Jerome Bettis, who ran for 143 yards on 17 carries, overtook Ottis Anderson for 13th place on the NFL's all-time rushing list. Bettis has 10,354 yards, Anderson 10,273. He passed Anderson with his 48-yard run in the third quarter.

The defense tied a franchise record with 10 sacks, previously achieved Nov. 30, 1997, against the Cardinals in Tempe, Ariz. LB Joey Porter had four, DT Kimo von Oelhoffen three, each setting a career high.

The Steelers have rushed for more than 200 yards in three consecutive games -- 481 yards in that span -- for the first time since Sept. 11-25, 1983 vs. the Packers, Oilers and Patriots.

Coach Bill Cowher improved to 1-2 against the Buccaneers, leaving only the Cowboys and Vikings as teams he has not beaten in his career. He is 0-2 against each.

The capacity crowd of 65,538 marked the 33rd consecutive sellout since the Buccaneers moved into Raymond James Stadium in 1998.

RB Jerome Bettis' passer rating is 158.3, the highest possible under the NFL's complex formula. He completed his only pass for a 32-yard touchdown.

The Buccaneers' home winning streak ended at six. Tampa Bay is 20-6 at home since 1998.

The Steelers' defense has allowed four offensive touchdowns in the past four games.

Lee Flowers, Steelers SS: "Tell Brad Johnson he needs to give Joey Porter some of his money. Half of his salary needs to go to Joey Porter."

The usual gaggle of reporters huddled around Steelers QB Kordell Stewart in the locker room after the game. But before the interview session was three minutes old, RB Jerome Bettis walked by, and nearly everyone followed.

That left Stewart virtually alone, and he wrapped up his final answer by cutting himself off in mid-sentence.

He smiled.

"Yeah, that's OK with me. I love it. "