PITTSBURGH Steelers, Chargers playing for pride
Bill Cowher and San Diego's Marty Schottenheimer are still close friends.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- NFL coaching rivalries don't get much friendlier than that between Bill Cowher and Marty Schottenheimer.
Cowher played or coached for Schottenheimer for 11 successful seasons in Cleveland and Kansas City before becoming the Pittsburgh Steelers' coach in 1992. Since then, they've talked through good times and bad on at least a weekly basis, missing only when their teams played each other.
Between them, they have 30 seasons of NFL head coaching experience and have taken 19 teams to the playoffs. Through it all, they've stayed close friends, despite five head-to-head matchups, including an overtime playoff game won by Schottenheimer's Chiefs during the 1993 season.
All those good teams and good times never prepared them for this.
Meaningless matchup
No doubt, Schottenheimer and Cowher never envisioned coaching against each other in a game as inconsequential as today's between the long-since-eliminated Chargers (3-11), losers of six of eight, and Steelers (5-9), losers of eight of 11.
In terms of matching two teams with comparably bad records, this is the Steelers' worst December home game since they were 5-9 and the Bengals were 2-12 going into Pittsburgh's 17-10 victory on Dec. 15, 1991.
Both coaches are saying all the right things, such as teams need to win late to create a carryover effect for the following season. But their words can't disguise the disappointment they must feel.
"I think it is amazing for Marty Schottenheimer to be in this league for 18 years and have one [prior] losing season," Cowher said. "I think anybody that stays in this business long enough can really appreciate what he's done on a consistent basis.
The same can't be said of the Steelers, who must sweep San Diego and Baltimore to avoid the franchise's fifth double-digit loss record in 71 seasons and their second in five years under Cowher.
And while their teams can accomplish little by winning over the last two weeks, except to drop themselves lower in the draft, several players have individual milestones of note.
Bettis needs 60 yards
Steelers running back Jerome Bettis (12,184 yards in 11 seasons) needs 60 yards to move past Marcus Allen into seventh place in NFL career rushing, and 129 to overtake Jim Brown for sixth place.
Tommy Maddox, despite missing the impact he had upon becoming the Steelers' quarterback last season, has 3,146 yards passing and could threaten Terry Bradshaw's 1979 club record of 3,724 with two above-average games.
And, despite San Diego's lack of success, running back LaDainian Tomlinson has rarely been slowed while leading the NFL with 2,011 yards from scrimmage.