Monday, November 20, 2006
Against Cleveland, Steelers receivers stepped up to make plays.
By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
CLEVELAND -- For at least one more week, the regular season still matters for the defending Super Bowl champion Steelers.
After losing six of their first eight games and landing in the bottom of the AFC North Division standings, the Steelers have rebounded with two straight come from behind victories.
Sunday, the Steelers (4-6) will play the first-place Ravens (8-2) in Baltimore. A loss would put the Steelers five games behind the Ravens with five to play, essentially ending their postseason hopes. (It's doubtful that a seven-loss team will qualify as an AFC wild card.)
Ward upbeat
"We may have been down, but we never gave up regardless of our record," said wide receiver Hines Ward, who suffered a lower leg injury in the fourth quarter but returned to action in Sunday's 24-20 victory over the Browns.
Three first-half interceptions by quarterback Ben Roethlisberger helped the Steelers dig a 10-0 ditch at halftime. One came shortly after Sean Morey's 76-yard kickoff return that had Pittsburgh threatening.
"It wasn't going well early, but the funny thing about this game is that there was never a feeling that we were in trouble," Roethlisberger said. "I felt that we kept stopping ourselves."
Helping keep the Steelers in the game was a much better second-half by Roethlisberger plus a second-quarter touchdown-saving tackle by safety Troy Polamalu a week after suffering a concussion.
With the Browns leading 7-0 late in the second quarter, quarterback Charlie Frye hit wideout Braylon Edwards with a sideline toss. Cornerback Ike Taylor slipped trying to make a tackle and Edwards broke for the Dawg Pound.
Polamalu raced to stop him at the Pittsburgh 19 and the Steelers defense held the Browns to Phil Dawson's 23-field goal.
"I had a good angle on him," Polamalu said. "You have to have a good angle on him -- he's very fast."
Getting philosophical
Shrugging off his injury, the fourth-year safety said, "We can only play for today, and today is really all that's guaranteed."
Linebacker Larry Foote said he wasn't surprised that Polamalu bounced back.
"He practiced all week," Foote said. "It wasn't that bad of a concussion [so] we knew that he was going to play. He's got something inside that makes him great. I think he has the fastest 10 yards in football.
"He's made plays I've never seen anybody make, and I've played the game for a long time," Foote said.
In the second half, Roethlisberger's improved accuracy and costly penalties by the Browns propelled the Steelers' rally.
"Those guys did a good job of pushing [upfield]," said Roethlisberger of receivers Ward, Nate Washington, Santonio Holmes and Cedric Wilson. "We took a couple of shots deep ... and they really found ways to get open underneath.
"I was getting the ball into their hands as quickly as I could, and they were making plays."
Ward had five receptions for 81 yards while Holmes had five for 75.
Explanation
"They tried to blitz so we ran some high routes," said Ward of the Browns defenders. "We they tried [to defend with] man-to-man we ran crossing routes. Every receiver on this team stepped up and made plays."
When the Browns led 20-10, they committed three defensive penalties on Pittsburgh's next series. The killer was a 15-yard facemask infraction on linebacker Kamerion Wimbley during a sack.
Also flagged were safety Sean Jones for a facemask and linebacker Orpheus Roye for a personal foul, both inside the Cleveland 5-yard line.
williams@vindy.com