STEELERS Bengals return in the nick of time

The struggling Steelers could use an easy opponent to regain their footing.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- The Pittsburgh Steelers are missing a lot more than Tommy Maddox.
As they go into today's game against Cincinnati with only a half-game lead in an AFC North race they figured to have wrapped up by now, the contrasts between this 5-4-1 team and their 13-3 club of a year ago couldn't be more glaring.
The NFL's No. 1 defense of a year ago has tumbled to 19th, unable to get off the field on third down or keep teams out of the end zone. Already, five opponents have scored at least 30 points -- as many as in the past three seasons combined.
"It's like, 'Oh my God, the Steelers can't stop this, they can't do that,' " defensive coordinator Tim Lewis said. "Everybody's talking about what we can't do."
Like run the ball, perhaps? The running game that was the NFL's best last season has ground to a halt, with the frequently injured Jerome Bettis on pace for the worst season of his career. The offense that averaged 173 yards rushing last season managed 45 yards in last week's 31-23 loss at Tennessee.
The kicking game is in such shambles -- Todd Peterson is out after missing a league-high nine field-goal attempts -- that the Steelers will go with a rookie kicker. Word of warning: Jeff Reed will be kicking in his first NFL game in a stadium, Heinz Field, that already has devoured two Steelers kickers in two years.
Reed is a true farmhand, too, and not just in a rookie sense of the word -- he was working part-time on a North Carolina farm before winning a four-way tryout in Pittsburgh last week.
Right on time
No wonder the Steelers might have been waiting at Pittsburgh International Airport with open arms when the trusty Bengals (1-9) arrived. It's the second time this season Cincinnati has conveniently shown up on their schedule during a crisis time.
Six weeks ago, the Steelers were 1-3 and threatening to unravel with one more loss before manhandling the Bengals 34-7, their 15th victory in 21 games against Cincinnati under coach Bill Cowher.
That victory started them on a five-game unbeaten streak with Maddox at quarterback, one that didn't end until the troubling loss at Tennessee marked by Maddox's frightening injury. Despite being briefly paralyzed by an apparently insignificant hit, Maddox is fine, but will sit out as Kordell Stewart makes his first start since Sept. 29 against Cleveland.
Stewart was upset and unsettled by his benching, but earned his teammates' respect by not speaking out. Now, the Steelers are turning to their 2001 MVP to get them righted at a critical point in their season.