steelers ‘Old’ Pittsburgh back in first

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH

Mike Tomlin never met a bye week he didn’t like.

Few, however, are as timely — and as satisfying — as this one.

The Pittsburgh Steelers get some much needed time off after a 24-17 victory over Cincinnati on Sunday, a win that propelled the defending AFC champions into first-place in the AFC North. The Steelers are 7-3, a half-game clear of the Bengals and Ravens.

Not bad for a team labeled “old” and “slow” following an unimpressive opening month that saw the Steelers split their first four games. Wins in five of their next six have followed, including a physical victory over the quickly improving Bengals.

Pittsburgh struggled protecting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (sacked five times) and running the ball effectively, yet this time it didn’t matter thanks to a defense that produced its first multiple turnover game this season.

The Steelers came in with just four takeaways through nine games, on pace for the fewest in league history.

They’ve won anyway and stressed whenever the turnovers would come, they would come in bunches.

For a quarter anyway, they were right.

Pittsburgh halted a pair of Cincinnati’s fourth-quarter drives with interceptions. Cornerback William Gay, who was beaten badly by Baltimore’s Torrey Smith for the winning touchdown in the final seconds a week ago, tipped Andy Dalton’s pass to teammate Lawrence Timmons for one stop.

Then Gay provided the clinching pick by stepping in front of Dalton’s pass deep in Pittsburgh territory with around 3 minutes to play.

Redemption? Not to Gay, who figures he was just doing his job.

“We all around just played some good football,” Gay said.

The kind of football the Steelers expected to play all season even as they’re getting production from unexpected places.

Wide receiver Antonio Brown, who had all of 16 receptions a year ago, has emerged as one of Roethlisberger’s favorite targets.

His five-catch, 86-yard performance against the Bengals gives him 44 receptions.

Jerricho Cotchery, signed as a free agent during training camp, caught his first touchdown of the season and had another wiped out by a questionable penalty on tight end Heath Miller.

While Cotchery and Brown starred, veteran Hines Ward watched for long stretches on the sideline after Cotchery bumped Ward to No. 4 on the depth chart, though Tomlin stressed this isn’t a changing of the guard.

“We were just looking at some personnel groups and looking at ways we wanted to attack these people,” Tomlin said.