Snow negates Bear-ball

Pittsburgh remains a game behind in the AFC wild card chase.
By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
PITTSBURGH -- Had Mother Nature ventured inside the Steelers locker room following Sunday's 21-9 victory over the Chicago Bears, chances are excellent that coach Bill Cowher would have given her a game ball.
The Steelers (8-5) took advantage of snowy conditions of Heinz Field to snap a three-game losing streak that keeps their flickering playoff hopes burning. Pittsburgh remains a game behind in the AFC wild-card chase.
By reviving their trademark power running game, the Steelers rushed for 190 yards against the Bears (9-4), the NFC North Division leaders who had won eight consecutive games but saw their division lead melt to one over the Vikings (8-5).
Conditions helped
"The good Lord helped us today with their pass rush," said Cowher after a second half that looked as if it was being played inside a shaken snow globe.
"Let's face it -- it wasn't the best of field conditions. When the snow came, it negated some speed."
Specifically, the Bears' defensive speed.
Once snow began falling steadily in the third quarter, the Steelers fired up tailback Jerome Bettis, who finished with 101 yards on 17 carries.
"The field really played into my favor," said Bettis, who explained that his success in sloppy conditions comes because "I know where I'm going and they don't.
"I can get a head of steam going and they've got to play off blocks," Bettis said. "It's hard for those guys to stay in there and get leverage on me. Being a big guy, this is very beneficial to me."
Bears coach Lovie Smith didn't disagree.
Not up to par
"You can't let a back like Jerome Bettis get going," Smith said. "Defensively, we didn't do any of the things that we've been doing. We are a lot better defensive football team than we played today."
Bettis said the situation "really set up for me well -- the weather conditions, the field. I've been known to be a 'mudder' so this field really played into my favor being able to run the ball downfield. And the offensive line did a great job."
A key factor was the Steelers pouncing for an early lead as they struck the Bears with a first-possession touchdown.
The big moment in the five-play, 66-yard drive was quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's screen toss to tailback Willie Parker, who rambled for a 45-yard gain.
"We knew they like to blitz on second down and we wanted to take advantage of them blitzing hard," said Roethlisberger.
Another screen pass -- this one to Hines Ward -- capped the drive as the wide receiver bounced off four Bears defenders for the 14-yard touchdown.
Final yards
"They played it pretty good," Ward said. "I just kept pumping my legs and got close to the end zone, and I kind of dove for it."
The Bears responded with their only score of the first half, a 14-play march that culminated in Robbie Gould's 29-yard field goal.
Midway through the second quarter, the Steelers increased their lead to 11 points after grinding out 73 yards on nine plays.
On an 11-yard run, Parker was stopped inches short of the goal line, setting up Bettis' 1-yard plunge for a 14-3 lead at halftime.
Snow swirled throughout the third quarter, making footing and positioning difficult for the Bears' aggressive style of play.
The Steelers' advantage grew to 18 points after a 12-play scoring drive that featured nine runs. Bettis scored from the 5 for a 21-3 lead with 5:28 remaining in the third quarter.
"Their strength is speed [so] the field conditions did help us, no doubt about it," center Jeff Hartings said.
Single touchdown
The Bears used the first three plays of the fourth quarter to score their only touchdown. Rookie quarterback Kyle Orton began the drive with a 27-yard pass to tight end Desmond Clark.
Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor got his hands on Orton's next pass near the goal line, but wide receiver Bernard Berriman took the ball away and stepped out of bounds at the 1. Tailback Thomas Jones scored on the next play and Gould's missed kick kept the Steelers ahead, 21-9.
Down the stretch, the Steelers rode The Bus often as Bettis' runs churned out first downs and gobbled time.
"It was great to get Jerome back out there," said Roethlisberger who completed 13-of-20 for 173 yards and a passer rating of 109.
The Steelers contained Jones to 72 yards on 14 carries. Orton passed for 217 yards by completing 17-of-35.
williams@vindy.com