Steelers clicking on all cylinders

Steelers tight end Jerame Tuman celebrates his third-quarter touchdown.

By Mike Prisuta
PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, September 23, 2007

The caliber of competition remains questionable, although in offensive coordinator Bruce Arians' opinion, that was a top-10 defense the Steelers' offense scored 23 points against Sunday at Heinz Field.

What can't be debated is the 3-0 Steelers are firing on all cylinders in the wake of their 37-16 hammering of San Francisco.

The offense stayed patient and managed a touchdown with 37 seconds left in the first half and a field goal on its first possession of the second half, establishing control on the scoreboard in a game the Steelers were dominating on the field.

The defense came within a missed sack by Brett Keisel of scoring one more touchdown than it allowed. Keisel got a hand on quarterback Alex Smith but couldn't get him on the ground just prior to Smith finding Taylor Jacobs for a meaningless touchdown.

"It's a fine to me," Keisel said, ignoring the play's degree of difficultly. "I was very upset that I missed that play. I just came too hot. And he stepped up at the right time, and I got nudged in the back at the right time."
You can't have everything.

What the Steelers got from their offense and defense was more than enough, and they received more than they envisioned from their special teams.

After the Steelers allowed 63- and 44-yard kickoff returns a week ago against Buffalo, coach Mike Tomlin said he wanted that stuff cleaned up.

The special teams responded and contributed a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Allen Rossum for good measure.

"Probably my easiest touchdown that I've ever scored," Rossum said. "I was untouched. I only had to make one move.

"My 4-year-old could have run through that hole."



Steelers returner Allen Rossum returns a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown during the first quarter Sunday against San Francisco at Heinz Field.

Rossum's return, which immediately wiped out the first deficit the Steelers had faced this season (3-0), was designed to go left. His one move involved cutting back to the middle before eventually finding the far sideline.

It came off a tweaked kickoff-return formation not previously displayed by the Steelers.

Instead of lining up in their standard 6-3-2, the Steelers opted for a 6-1-2-2.

The difference was tight end Jerame Tuman lining up 10 or so yards behind the first line of six and approximately 20 yards ahead of what previously had been a wall of three blockers directly in front of deep men Najeh Davenport and Rossum.

"Their kicker does a great job of that surprise onside kick, the lob kick," Tuman said. "I was at a distance where I could play that and still get back on the return."

Tuman did so, and the return worked like clockwork.

"I'm supposed to come back and trap the 'four' and (Rossum) runs right off my butt," Tuman said. "That's pretty much what he did."

The special teams also came up large when punter Daniel Sepulveda, subbing for Hines Ward on the "hands" team, recovered an onside kick with 2 minutes, 30 seconds left.

"I talked to (49ers kicker Joe) Nedney after the game," Sepulveda said. "He said as soon as they saw me that's right where they were going."

The Steelers had been preparing Sepulveda for just such an emergency.

At 3-0, they've got all their bases covered.


Mike Prisuta is a columnist for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He can be reached at mprisuta@tribweb.com or 412-320-7923.