By Bob Smizik, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Peter Diana / Post-Gazette
Running back Najeh Davenport crosses the goal line for the Steelers' first touchdown of the game against the Ravens yesterday in Baltimore. (at Ravens 12/30/07)
BALTIMORE -- As the Steelers proved two years ago, when they turned a No. 6 seed into a Super Bowl championship, all things are possible in the NFL postseason. You just wouldn't want to place a serious wager on this Steelers team going much further than, say, one game in the NFL's impending 12-team tournament.
"Ready or not, here we come," was the spin coach Mike Tomlin put on the Steelers' division playoff game Saturday night against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Heinz Field. It was apt phrasing because there are serious questions as whether the Steelers are ready for the kind of competition they'll face in the playoffs, particularly from Jacksonville.
Unlike the 2005 Steelers, who peaked at the end of the season by winning eight in a row, the current version peaked in early November with a decisive four-touchdown win against the Baltimore Ravens. It has been mostly downhill since for the Steelers, who will go into the playoffs having lost four of their final seven games.
The most recent loss was to those same Ravens yesterday at M&T Bank Stadium, 27-21. It might not be fair to place a lot of stock in this defeat since the Steelers were playing without Ben Roethlisberger, Hines Ward and Troy Polamalu, all of whom were rested because of nagging injuries. But the absence of those three players were more than matched by a plethora of injuries to the Ravens, who had lost nine consecutive games and hadn't won since Oct. 14.
If the game was virtually meaningless for the Steelers, it was equally so for the Ravens.
The Steelers rallied from a 20-point deficit in the fourth quarter to make a snoozer a bit exciting, and that prompted Tomlin to say he was "proud of the way our men fought." But it was those same men who fell behind, 27-7, after three quarters to one of the worst teams in the NFL.
What was particularly disheartening about the loss was yet another savaging of the Steelers' one-time superb run defense. Fifth-year pro Musa Smith, in his first career start, gained 83 yards on 22 carries. Second-year pro Cory Ross, who had never carried the ball from scrimmage in an NFL game until yesterday, gained 72 yards on 12 carries. All told, the Ravens rambled for 180 yards on 40 carries.
If the Steelers can't handle the unheralded Smith and Ross, what are they going to do with the Jacksonville tandem of Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew, who torched them for 216 yards two weeks ago?
"It's disappointing to us," defensive end Brett Keisel said. "This team loves to stop the run, prides itself on stopping the run and we haven't been able to do that. Teams are going to keep attacking us like that, especially Jacksonville. They have those two good backs and we definitely have to come up with some answers or we're going to be watching the playoffs."
Just as big a problem for the Steelers in stopping the run will be mounting a rush offense of their own. When they lost to Jacksonville at Heinz Field, 29-22, Dec. 16, they had a strong running attack of their own. Willie Parker gained 100 yards that afternoon on only 14 carries. But Parker is done for the season after breaking his leg against St. Louis Dec. 20. He led the NFL in rushing at the time of his injury and the Steelers simply do not have anyone remotely ready to replace him.
The notion thrown around on talk shows and the Internet last week that the Steelers would be better with 247-pound Najeh Davenport replacing the 209-pound Parker was blown to smithereens yesterday. Davenport was in the third start of his six-year NFL career for good reason. He might be a big back, but he's not a power back. He's not the reincarnation of Jerome Bettis. He's not going to give the Steelers the power-running game Bettis did.
On 12 carries against the Ravens, Davenport picked up 27 yards. Gary Russell, in only his third NFL game, carried six times for 20 yards.
"We didn't get enough of a look at Najeh or Russell because of the circumstances of the game," Tomlin said.
In fact, Tomlin might have got too much of a look at what now constitutes the Steelers' running game.
Clearly, a game plan has been established for Jacksonville: Roethlisberger, Roethlisberger and more Roethlisberger.
There was a lot of bravado in the Steelers' locker room.
"We've got a lot of prideful men on our defensive side," Ward said. "I don't see Fred Taylor doing that to our defense twice."
Maybe not, but just like the chances of the Steelers advancing, you wouldn't want to bet on it.
Bob Smizik can be reached at bsmizik@post-gazette.com.
First published on December 31, 2007 at 12:00 am
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