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Tuesday, November 06, 2001

Compiled by Ed Bouchette

Steelers (5-2) vs. Cleveland Browns (4-3), 1 p.m. Sunday, Cleveland Browns Stadium. TV, radio: KDKA; WDVE-FM (102.5), WBGG-AM (970).

OT Wayne Gandy didn't quite know what to do Sunday at Heinz Field. It's the first time he hasn't been in uniform for an NFL game since 1994. Gandy had his streak of 102 consecutive starts broken and his streak of 118 consecutive games played come to an end because of a hamstring injury. He watched from the sideline with little to do but cheer and watch his replacement, Oliver Ross.

"I felt like I needed a microphone or [was] writing a column about the game," Gandy said.

He played most of last season with a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder, but he felt he would hurt his team if he played with the hamstring injury. "When you play a lot of games consecutively, you think you're going to go out in a blaze with a broken leg or something," he said. "To have it be some 2-inch muscle that keeps cramping up, it really puts your spirits down for a while."

Gandy saw what Dermontti Dawson went through the previous two seasons and did not want his hamstring to get worse. "The concern is, like Dermontti, you go out there and play a series and miss three games. I didn't want to go through what he went through." Gandy said he will play on Sunday.

One day after he missed four field goals in the Steelers' 13-10 loss to Baltimore, Kris Brown took the heat from some teammates. "We joked around with him," WR Hines Ward said. "Nothing that has anything to do with football. Just little things, just playing around with Kris. He's a fun guy."

The Steelers seem determined not to abandon a kicker who had been dependable for them until Sunday. "You can't fault Kris. He's still going to make some big kicks for us," Ward said. "I'm sure he's feeling bad now because he wished he went out and did it, but there's no sense of harping on it and looking back. Let's move on. There's still plenty of football left."

Rookie Casey Hampton and Kendrick Clancy continued to share the job at nose tackle, only Hampton played more Sunday against Baltimore and likely will continue to play more often than Clancy in Cleveland. Clancy started the first five games of the season but the two alternated series. Then, Hampton made his first start in the sixth game against Tennessee. On Sunday, the every-other-series exchange ended as Hampton got most of the playing time.

Ward threw a block on Baltimore S Rod Woodson Sunday that apparently was effective. "He didn't particularly like me very well," Ward said after that. "That's just what I bring to the table. It's starting to get recognized throughout the league that when you play the Steelers you have to keep your head on a swivel and watch out for their receivers. My whole theory is just hit them before they hit you. If you go across the middle and jump up to catch the ball, they're going to be the first one to try to lay you out. My theory is until that happens, I'm going to continue to try to pound on you because I know you're going to hit me when you get an opportunity."

Ward has been the Steelers' best blocking receiver the past three years, and he also gets under opponents' skin. Against Tennessee, he goaded S Perry Phenix into a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that proved crucial. Later, Ward shouted at Phenix from the sideline. "Everything's legal," Ward said. "I don't do anything dirty or anything. It's all within the rules. Defensive backs just don't like a guy pestering him while he's trying to tackle Jerome Bettis. They get frustrated. By the fourth quarter, they're tired of getting hit by a receiver and then trying to tackle Jerome. It really helped us because Jerome almost had 100 yards."

The Steelers are still ranked No. 1 in the NFL on defense, No. 1 defending the pass and No. 1 running the ball based on yards. They have the sixth-ranked offense in the NFL. They still allow the fewest points per game, 11.1.

Bettis is third in the NFL with 703 yards rushing. ... Ward is sixth in the AFC and 10th in the NFL with 42 receptions. ... Joey Porter is third in the AFC with seven sacks. ... The Steelers' kickoff receiving team ranks last in the NFL. Their average drive after kickoffs starts at the 22.6. San Diego has the best, at 33.3.

Eight winners were crowned in the NFL Gatorade Punt, Pass & Kick competition before the Ravens-Steelers game. Winners were Amber Weigle of Valencia (8-9 girls), Brian Ripper of West Mifflin (8-9 boys), Darcy Smith of Pittsburgh (10-11 girls), Zaire Washington of Clairton (10-11 boys), Karlee McQuillen of Johnstown (12-13 girls), Stephen Paskorz of Gibsonia (12-13 girls), Robin Craig of Butler (14-15 girls) and Alex Holland of Clairton (14-15 boys).