Harrison: Steelers will have A-game with Troy

By George Willis
New York Post
http://www.nypost.com
January 21, 2011

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison (92) and Brett Keisel (99) congratulate teammate Troy Polamalu (43) after he returned an interception for a touchdown against the Cincinnati Bengals during the second quarter of their game on December 12, 2010. (AP)

PITTSBURGH — Steelers linebacker James Harrison wasn’t trying to trash talk. He was just trying to be real when he said the Pittsbugh defense isn’t as good without Troy Polamalu as it is with him.

That means the Jets didn’t see the best defense the Steelers have to offer when they defeated Pittsburgh 22-17 at Heinz Field on Dec. 19.

“Troy brings this defense from a C defense to an A defense,” Harrison said yesterday. “He’s someone you have to account for.”

On any grade scale, C is average, which is something Harrison and the Steelers might have been against the Jets but haven’t been for most of the season. They led the NFL in at least eight defensive categories, including points allowed (232), touchdowns allowed (22), total sacks (48), rushing yards per game (62.8) and yards per play (4.5). Pittsburgh was second in total yards, allowing 276.8.

But without Polamalu, who missed the Jets game with an ankle injury, the Steelers had trouble containing Gang Green, who rushed for 106 yards, the highest total Pittsburgh allowed all season.

The hard-hitting Harrison made no excuses for the defeat, not even the absence of Polamalu.

“A loss is a loss,” he said. “It counts on the record whether Troy is in there or not.”

Polamalu will be on the field for Sunday’s rematch against the Jets in the AFC Championship. If you go by what Harrison said, it will allow the Steelers to bring their A-game instead of their C-game.

“They were a total better team,” Harrison said of the first meeting. “We have to do better. We have to pick our game up.”

His first objective is to not let the Jets’ running game have the kind of success it enjoyed in December.

“We have to contain the running game because that’s what they do best,” the former NFL Defensive MVP said. “If we let them go and run the ball up and down the field on us, that leaves things open in the passing game. If you can’t stop the run then you definitely won’t be able to stop the pass, and they’ll just play-action pass you and throw it over your head.”

Despite having won two Super Bowl rings, Harrison still has an intensity that comes through even when he’s standing in front of his locker for a reluctant interview. He vowed yesterday’s chat with the media would be his final offering of the week.

“Talking to y’all is not going to help me win a game,” he said. “It’s not going to prepare me. It’s not going to do anything. It’s just going to give y’all stories that you can run out there and write.”

And don’t bother to ask him about the estimated $100,000 in fines he has accumulated during the season, when he has served as the unofficial poster boy for the NFL’s crackdown on helmet-to-helmet hits. When someone tip-toed toward that subject yesterday, Harrison held out a stiff arm.

“Was that a Jets question? Was that a Jets question?” he repeated. “Well, I ain’t answering it.”

The only answers Harrison wants are how to disrupt quarterback Mark Sanchez and the Jets’ offense.

If he plays anywhere near as well as he did against the Ravens, then the Jets are in trouble. Harrison was a beast, recording three sacks, two passes defended and seven total tackles in the Steelers’ 31-24 win. It only adds to his reputation for making big plays in big games, the biggest being his 100-yard interception return for a touchdown in a Super Bowl XLII over the Cardinals two years ago.

A third Super Bowl victory would rank this era of Steelers among the franchise’s all-time greats. But Harrison won’t let himself think beyond Sunday.

“My focus is on the Jets,” he said. “If we don’t win that, there’s no need to look no further than that.”

Expect the Steelers’ A-game come Sunday.

george.willis@nypost.com


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