STEELERS Flowers defends rant after win over Jaguars

Coach Bill Cowher has suggested that the defensive back button his lips.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- To defensive back Lee Flowers, the Pittsburgh Steelers will have enough problems Sunday taking on the Houston Texans. They don't need to be taking on the Steelers, too.
Flowers is trying to smooth over remarks made following Sunday's 25-23 victory in Jacksonville in which he accused an unidentified offensive player of trying to create a rift between the offense and defense.
His angry response -- in which he said the defense, not the offense, built the Steelers into a contending team -- brought a shut-it-up message from coach Bill Cowher.
Just such remarks, Cowher said, often make him "cringe" whenever he sees Flowers standing before a bank of microphones.
Flowers said Wednesday he got the message, but doesn't feel badly for speaking out because "it was something that needed to be said. We need to stick together as a team.
"When you sit on the sideline and want to point fingers during a game, that's not fair because we've never done that. It's not a cool thing to do, and it was good I said it."
Mystery man
Flowers declined to identify the player who criticized the defense, and several offensive players said they had no idea what he was talking about.
"We're a team, so I don't know why anybody would say anything," wide receiver Plaxico Burress said. "He probably said those things to get the defense hyped up. I don't think anyone would say anything about the offensive side, so I doubt anyone said anything about the defense."
Quarterback Tommy Maddox, who was on the sidelines all day, also seem baffled.
"This locker room has always been tight and I don't see anything changing that," Maddox said. "We've won the last two weeks and everybody's been chipping in."
In cautioning Flowers to be careful about what he says, Cowher reminded him of comments last year criticizing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for being "paper champions."
The Steelers play in Tampa on Dec. 23 and, Cowher said, "In a couple of weeks, there will be some things he said that will be thrown up on their board."
Running back Jerome Bettis (broken nose) did not practice Wednesday and wasn't expected to practice today, but expects to get some work in Friday.