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Monday, October 29, 2001

Compiled by Ed Bouchette

Bobby Shaw tied Hines Ward to lead the Steelers with 672 receiving yards last season. After five games, Shaw, a slot man, has just 57 yards on six catches. Shaw has found himself throwing more blocks than running routes as the Steelers have forged the NFL's No. 1 rushing attack.

"As wideouts, we have to assume different roles," he said. "It's not so much pass catching and stuff but blocking and doing other things."

Shaw could be excused if he felt more like a tight end than a wide receiver. "If blocking is what I have to do, then that's what I have to do. The way we're running the ball, it's tough to assume a lot of the route-running duties because we're going to be blocking and keep our running game going."

He had a healthy average of 16.8 yards per catch last season. Ward predicted early in the season that Shaw would be their main deep man. "That obviously to this point hasn't happened," Shaw said.

The Steelers have lost only two home games in the month of October since Bill Cowher became their coach in 1992. In that span, they have had a 14-2 record.

Even though Titans RB Eddie George has just 290 yards and a 2.7-yard average per carry, he will be priority No. 1 for the Steelers' defense tonight, although QB Steve McNair is a close No. 2. "The key is going to be stopping Eddie early," DE Kimo von Oelhoffen said. "Steve has been winning the games late in the fourth quarter. He's somebody that at the end of the game can run the ball and gain yardage. We have to watch that."

The Steelers won't cut loose on McNair with their blitz packages the way they did last week against a more stationary Brad Johnson of Tampa Bay. "No, we're going to have to have somebody account for him always," von Oelhoffen said. "He's won the last two games for them, bottom line. He has to be contained late in the game, no matter what."

Stopping McNair can be frustrating, as the Steelers found out in their games against the Titans last year when McNair zipped the offense to a late touchdown to win at Three Rivers Stadium and completed a fourth-down pass in Nashville, Tenn., to keep a winning field-goal drive going. He and Kordell Stewart are two of the best open-field runners at the position.

"He can break tackles," von Oelhoffen said. "He's almost as fast as Kordell and he knows how to run, he wants to run. It's a backbreaker as a defensive lineman, when you're stuffing them the whole game and keeping Eddie contained, and late in the fourth quarter of a close game you have a good rush and he steps up and runs for 12. That hurts."

The Titans are hoping that All-Pro cornerback Samari Rolle will start on the right side tonight. He has missed the past two games with a neck injury. ... Titans WR Chris Sanders will miss his second game in a row with a back injury; they will start Kevin Dyson and Derrick Mason. ... Blaine Bishop, a Pro Bowl strong safety who has been switched to free safety, might not play because of a mid-foot sprain. If he does not, Perry Phenix will start in his place. ...The Steelers expect all of their starters who had been on the injury list to play.