Steelers running back Jerome Bettis fends off San Diego Chargers defensive end Igor Olshansky in his regular season debut with the Steelers. "I feel great, I feel fresh," Bettis said after rushing for 54 yards and catching a 16-yard pass in the game.
Sunday, October 23, 2005
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
A lot of unusual things can happen when a football team loses two out of three games. Even a player's name can change.
Take, for example, the Steelers' starting running back. When the Steelers were trampling Tennessee and Houston, teams that today have a combined 2-9 record, their starting running back was Fast Willie Parker.
Fast Willie opened the season by running around and through the Titans for 161 yards on 21 carries. He added 48 yards on a screen pass. A week later, he ran 25 times for 111 yards against the Texans. Everyone, including Jerome Bettis and Duce Staley -- veterans he'd pushed to the background with his performances -- was praising Fast Willie.
But after the competition improved markedly in games against New England, San Diego and Jacksonville, he lost his first name. He's just plain Willie Parker these days, a struggling young guy trying to hang onto his starting job.
As the Steelers take on the Cincinnati Bengals this afternoon in an AFC North game bordering on crucial -- with a loss putting them two down in the loss column -- Parker remains the Steelers starting running back, but barely.
Who would have thought after he averaged almost 6 yards a carry in the first two games, Parker would be fighting for his starting job four games later? But his 2.8-yard average against the Patriots, Chargers and Jaguars casts doubt on his ability to be an every-down back in the NFL and certainly precludes anyone calling him Fast Willie.
Part of Parker's decline can be attributed to the fact the offensive line hasn't dominated in recent games the way it did earlier. In fact, there have been times when it has been dominated, and that can't be minimized in evaluating a running back.
"If the offensive line is performing poorly, a good running back will be average, at best,'' Bettis said. "You can't run over everybody and make everybody miss, unless you're Barry Sanders."
The running game is vital today because the Steelers, as much as ever, if not more, must control the football. Not only might their passing game be restricted because of injuries to wide receivers, but the best way to stop Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer is to keep him off the field. The Bengals have the No. 1 offense in the AFC and Palmer plays a large role in that success. He has completed 73 percent of his passes, throwing for 13 touchdowns and only two interceptions. His passer rating is 113.6. Only Ben Roethlisberger has a higher rating. No quarterback has thrown for more touchdowns or has a better touchdown/interception ratio.
The question concerning Parker is this: How long does he get to prove himself against a Cincinnati defense that is ninth in the AFC against the run?
The answer: Not very.
Bettis, stunningly overlooked by Bill Cowher in the team's loss to Jacksonville, is healthy and eager to return, if need be, to full-time duty.
This is just another saga in the amazing Bettis story. He was dismissed -- here and elsewhere -- after the 2003 season as an unnecessary part of the '04 Steelers. But he was kept around anyhow and proved his critics wrong by once again becoming not just the team's feature back, but a successful one.
He was dismissed again this season with the emergence of Parker and yet another injury.
But in a game that could be pivotal, Bettis is certain to get an early call, either to give Parker a breather or take his place.
There's something to be said for what a veteran running back means to an offensive line.
"The longer you play with [running backs], the more you get used to them," said all-Pro guard Alan Faneca. "[Bettis] has been here since I got here. I can look at a defense and have a real good picture of where he's going to hit the hole because I've played with him so long and run the same plays with him."
Because last week he was embarrassed by his failure to use Bettis is situations that called for his running style, Cowher might be more apt than usual to go with Bettis.
Although he has played in only two games and carried only 21 times this season, Bettis is acting like a frisky young colt. Could he handle 25, maybe 30 carries?
"That's not a problem," he said. "That's what I've always been able to do."
Willie Parker, maybe even Fast Willie Parker, might be the future of the Steelers. But for the present -- today against the Bengals -- Bettis, once again, should be the man.
(Bob Smizik can be reached at bsmizik@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1468.)
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