STEELERS 21, COLTS 18 IS LABEL

STEELERS 21, COLTS 18 IS LABEL
Indy-scribable is the main head
It was anybody's game in the last few minutes as Pittsburgh escaped possible defeat.
By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
INDIANAPOLIS -- In his fourth NFL playoff game in 366 days, second-year Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger used his arms, his legs, his brain and an extremely rare tackle to make Peyton's Place his own.
For three quarters of Sunday's Division playoff game at the RCA Dome, the Steelers stunned the Colts by grabbing a 21-3 lead on the AFC's top-seeded team.
Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, a two-time NFL MVP, revived his team with two fourth-quarter touchdowns, a two-point conversion and a late field-goal attempt to force overtime.
Reputation gets chink
But Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt, one of the NFL's most reliable, missed wide right, enabling the Steelers to hold for a gutwrenching 21-18 victory that sent them to their third AFC Championship Game in five seasons.
Next Sunday at 3 p.m., the Steelers (13-5) will battle the Broncos (14-3) at Denver's Invesco Field, with the winner advancing to Super Bowl XL in Detroit.
For Steelers coach Bill Cowher -- whose teams have lost four of the five AFC Championship games played in Pittsburgh in the past 12 seasons -- playing on the road isn't a problem.
"Maybe this is the way to do it," Cowher said after his team survived, thanks in part to Roethlisberger's inconceivable tackle after a Jerome Bettis fumble when the game was seemingly in the bag.
On what appeared to be the Colts' final possession, Manning, the NFL's two-time MVP, was sacked twice and threw an incomplete pass.
Near the goalline
Linebackers Joey Porter and James Farrior buried Manning at the Indianapolis 2 with 1:20 to go. Because the Colts had three timeouts, Cowher chose to give his 275-pound tailback the ball rather that take three knees and risk turning the ball over on downs.
"We score there and the game's over," Cowher said, "and you certainly don't question that. The last thing I thought we would do is fumble with Jerome Bettis."
On the Steelers' first play, Colts linebacker Gary Brackett smacked The Bus, creating his only lost fumble of his 13th season, and cornerback Nick Harper scooped the ball up and started racing.
Roethlisberger, with an assist from tight end Jerame Tuman, stopped him at the Indianapolis 42.
"I turned to watch and make sure [Bettis got] to the end zone," Roethlisberger said. "All of a sudden I see the ball fly. My first reaction was to go get it, but then I knew there was no way to get there in time.
Shake and bake
"So I was trying to slow him down, do something so our guys could come up and make a play," Roethlisberger said. "I think I turned him enough times that as he got close to me he didn't know which way to go. So as I saw his leg I went and I grabbed it and he went down."
Manning then completed passes to wide receivers Reggie Wayne (22 yards) and Marvin Harrison (8 yards). But two more incompletions sent Vanderjagt onto the field.
"He hasn't missed very many kicks since I've been here," said Tony Dungy, the Colts' fourth-year coach. "I know he's very disappointed but I told the team that we've got to rally around him.
"That wasn't the play that lost the game for us," Dungy said. "We had many opportunities to get points. They blitzed and that's their style. They passed and we didn't get them all picked up."
The Steelers defense held Manning in check for most of three quarters. His strong fourth quarter helped him finish with 290 yards on 22-of-38 passing. Running back Edgerrin James was held to 56 yards on 13 carries.
Disruptive defense
"We mixed it up and did a good job of dropping eight and bringing pressure and trying to disrupt them and get them out of their rhythm," Cowher said. "For the most part, we did it, but you're not going to contain them for 60 minutes."
The Steelers shed their power-running image by having Roethlisberger come out firing as he engineered two first-quarter scoring drives for a 14-0 lead.
"To come out and put points on the board, and them not score, that was big," said Roethlisberger, who hit wide receiver Antwaan Randle El and tight end Heath Miller for 6-yard touchdowns.
Ahead 14-3 late in the third quarter, the Steelers shifted to their running mode after Randle El's 20-yard punt return to the Colts 30.
After a run by Willie Parker for 10 yards, Bettis carried five straight plays, diving in from the 1 for a 21-3 lead.
williams@vindy.com