QB impresses von Oelhoffen

The Pittsburgh defender likes how Cincinnati's Carson Palmer runs the no-huddle offense.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Only six days after going against Peyton Manning, the Pittsburgh Steelers defense contends Sunday with the Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer.
At least one Steelers defensive starter isn't certain which challenge is greater.
"You have to get after him," defensive end Kimo von Oelhoffen said of Palmer, the NFL's top-rated passer. "He is the best quarterback in the NFL right now. Peyton's got a great scheme but, in the true essence, I think Carson is one of the best and his wide receiver corps -- whoa, they're great."
Palmer better than Manning? That's strong praise coming from a player whose team has gone against -- and lost to -- both the Colts' Manning and the Patriots' Tom Brady this season. And Palmer has never beaten the Steelers, throwing five interceptions against them in three losses over the last two seasons.
Also, the Steelers are one of only two teams -- Houston is the other -- to hold the Bengals below 20 points this season, effectively controlling Palmer during a 27-13 victory on Oct. 23 in Cincinnati.
Despite that loss, the Bengals (8-3) lead the Steelers (7-4) by one game heading into a pivotal AFC North game in which the winner will be in position to take the division.
Playing better now
After watching tape this week, several Steelers players said it is evident Palmer is playing better now than he was during the earlier game, spreading the ball among receivers Chad Johnson, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Chris Henry and out-of-the-backfield threat Chris Perry. Johnson and Houshmandzadeh both have more catches than Steelers leader Hines Ward's 47, and Perry has only one fewer catch.
Palmer's 107.1 passer rating eclipses Manning's 104.5 and Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger's 103.5, and Palmer's 2,922 passing yards are second only to Brady's 3,030 yards.
"They get better every week," Roethlisberger said of the Bengals. "They're probably a better team than we faced the last time. They avoid injuries -- I don't think they've had many injuries at all -- they're just a great team in every aspect of the game."
What worries von Oelhoffen is how effectively Palmer runs a no-huddle offense. The no-huddle hampers the defense's ability to substitute on each play and, in von Oelhoffen's mind, creates an edge for the offense.
"There's too much advantage and rules will be changed. Indy has started a trend -- there's just too many garbage yards that can be picked up," von Oelhoffen said. "I'm old school. Let's play football, and not try to catch people running on and off the field. But that's what they do and it works for them."
Von Oelhoffen may not like how the Bengals are gaining their yards, but he admires how coach Marvin Lewis and players such as Palmer, Johnson and running back Rudi Johnson have turned around what for years was the NFL's worst franchise.
Von Oelhoffen is a more than an interested bystander to what's going on a few hundred miles down the Ohio River. He spent the first six of his 12 NFL seasons in Cincinnati, playing on teams that went a combined 32-64. Three of the six teams won four or fewer games, and only once did the Bengals finish .500, going 8-8 in 1996.