Steelers may run ball more often

Pittsburgh learned that it will be hard to beat the Bengals by just passing.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Ben Roethlisberger dropped back and let it fly 41 times. He threw deep, he threw short, he threw everywhere.
This was a side of the Pittsburgh Steelers that no one had seen before.
The last time they played the Cincinnati Bengals, the Steelers tried to beat them in a shoot-out. Roethlisberger set career highs in every category while going 29-for-41 for 386 yards and three touchdowns.
Bad move. Pittsburgh learned the hard way that it's tough to beat the Bengals (11-5) in a wide-open game.
As they prepare for their rematch in the first round of the playoffs Sunday, everyone expects the Steelers (11-5) to get back to what they do best -- let Roethlisberger hand the ball to someone else.
"I know the Steelers would love to come in and run the football," Bengals running back Rudi Johnson said.
He gets no argument in Pittsburgh, which is at its best when it stays basic. Forty-one passes?
"Not 40," Steelers running back Jerome Bettis said. "That's too many. That's usually a sign of being behind."
The cutoff point
So, where is the cutoff point for passing?
"Thirty? Well, that's still a little high," the Bus said. "I think 25 is about the optimum number. I'm comfortable with that."
Some other numbers back him up. In the past 31 games, the Steelers are 30-0 with one tie when a running back reaches 100 yards. They came to Cincinnati on Oct. 23 and ran 47 times for a season-high 221 yards, setting up a 27-13 win. The running game was so dominant that day that Roethlisberger threw only 14 times, completing nine passes for 93 yards.
The Bengals were surprised that the Steelers went out of character in the rematch, running only 28 times while throwing it 41 times. The game turned on three interceptions by Roethlisberger, who was playing with an injured thumb.
Roethlisberger then led the Steelers to four straight victories and the final AFC wild card. He wouldn't mind trying to one-up Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer again on Sunday.
"The last time we played them at home, we threw a lot more," said Roethlisberger, who hasn't thrown more than 20 times in any game since. "I think if we don't turn the ball over, then we probably win that game. So if it comes down to that, I think we can [win]."
Ward is confident
So does receiver Hines Ward, who had nine catches for 135 yards and a pair of touchdowns in Pittsburgh. He even tweaked the Bengals by doing the Ickey Shuffle -- their celebration dance from the 1988 Super Bowl season -- after one score.
"If we don't turn the ball over, we win that game," Ward said. "That's just point-blank.
"We may not be a passing team, but if they keep putting eight or nine [at the line of scrimmage] and we're not getting anything done, then you have to pass the ball. You pay the quarterback big money, you pay the receivers to make big plays. You have to go out and use them."
It makes more sense to run. Kansas City's Larry Johnson ran for 201 yards and a career-high three touchdowns Sunday in a 37-3 win over Cincinnati, which looked disinterested in the final regular-season game.
Defensive reminder
Coach Marvin Lewis had his players watch film of their win in Pittsburgh this week to remind them of what they need to be as a defense.
"Just to see the kind of passion we played with in that game, even when things didn't go right," defensive tackle John Thornton said. "That's how you've got to play. And when you don't, the result will be what happened [in Kansas City] when you don't play a game like everything's on the line."
Everyone knows what's on the line. And the Bengals figure the Steelers are going to let Bettis and company take their best shot and running them out of the playoffs.
"Guys in this locker room are used to playing Pittsburgh, so it's not like there's anything mysterious out there," linebacker Brian Simmons said. "We know who they are and what they're about."
At least, they thought they did.