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Saturday, November 23, 2002

By Gerry Dulac, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

The temperature is falling, snow has become a part of the forecast and the ground has become more of a liability to navigate.

	Jerome Bettis makes his first start tomorrow since running for 33 yards against the Colts Oct. 21. (Matt Freed, Post-Gazette)

It can only mean one thing.

Time to put away the sports car, change the tires and bring out the sport utility vehicle.

The Steelers intend to do just that.

That's why they are expected to put away their scatback, Amos Zereoue, and roll out Jerome Bettis for their 1 p.m. game tomorrow against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field.

"You get to November and December, this is where you got to be physical, you got to tough it out," Bettis said. "This is where that tough yard comes into play."

And nobody does that better than Bettis, the 12th-leading rusher in National Football League history who needs 29 yards to pass O.J. Simpson on the all-time rushing list.

Bettis has not started the past four games because of a sprained ligament in his knee. In his absence, Zereoue has posted back-to-back 100-yard games -- the first of his four-year career -- and become the team's leading rusher with 512 yards on 132 carries.

But Bettis is expected to return to the starting lineup against the Bengals (1-9), a team with the second-worst run defense in the league. And a team that has yielded more 100-yard rushing games to Bettis than any other team in the NFL.

"I think that's where I earn my living," Bettis said. "I don't earn my living with the big plays. I earn my living with 4 yards on first down and giving the offense a chance to be effective, keep moving the chains. That's what I pride myself on.

"You got to play ball-control and keep the ball away from the other team now because the elements are going to start coming into play. That's the biggest difference now -- you got weather as a major factor."

The Steelers slowly have become known as a passing team, a metamorphosis that began when Tommy Maddox became the starting quarterback. For the first time since 1995, their passing offense (seventh) is ranked higher than their rush offense (10th). The only times they've finished a season that way were 1978 and '80.

But, the Steelers want to get their running game rolling for the final six games of the season, and they want to start against the Bengals.

"I think the running game has to be really, really dominant at this time of year," Bettis said. "What happens is, you get to control the game, and it's very important for us to be able to control the game. Is it a problem we've been prolific in terms of throwing the football, that we've had some big plays? I don't think that's a knock against us. I don't think that's a negative. But you have to control that ball."

Last year, the Steelers led the NFL in time of possession (34:10), which meant opponents had the ball, on average, for 25 minutes, 50 seconds. Through 10 games this season, the disparity is not nearly as great. The Steelers possess the ball, on average, only 31 seconds more than their opponents (31:22 to 30:51).

Couple that with the AFC-high 25 turnovers the Steelers have committed, and the result is more opportunities for the opposing offense.

"And they get a chance to see more of our defense," Bettis said. "They get to see all the packages we have, and you take advantage of the defense a lot more. You go into the second half and make adjustments, and you've seen a majority of the packages, now you go out and attack us a lot different.

"Now, from next week's standpoint, teams are seeing some of the coverages and know what we like to do in certain situations. They're able to game plan us a lot better. So we have to do a better job of holding onto the football and keeping our defense off the field."

The Steelers are hoping to change that against the Bengals, who allow an average of 137.2 yards rushing per game. In the first meeting in Cincinnati, the Steelers rushed for a season-high 211 yards on 35 carries, with Bettis gaining 109 yards on 21 carries and scoring two touchdowns.

It was the 10th 100-yard game Bettis has managed in 13 career meetings against the Bengals. If he does it again, it will be the third time since he joined the Steelers in 1996 that he had two 100-yard games against the Bengals in the same season.

Bettis has 332 yards rushing on 87 carries this season, but he did not play in two games, appeared for just one play in another and carried only four times for 6 yards in the loss at Tennessee.

Still, if he wants to gain 1,000 yards, something he has done every season with the Steelers, he'll need to average 111.3 yards in the final six games. If they were all against the Bengals, Bettis might have a chance -- he averages 106.6 yards every time he faces them.

"I don't worry about that at all," Bettis said. "This phase of my career, I'm past that."