Like Ravens, Steelers dealing with injuries, questions on defense

By Matt Vensel
The Baltimore Sun
http://www.baltimoresun.com
November 16, 2012

Is this the year their aging defense finally kicks the bucket? How will they survive without the face of the defense in the huddle every Sunday? Can they get their once-feared pass rush back?

Sound familiar?

Since they reported for training camp in late July, the Pittsburgh Steelers have had to defend themselves against similar questions to the ones that have dogged the Ravens (7-2) over the past 3 1/2 months. But unlike their AFC North rivals from Baltimore, whom they will host at Heinz Field on Sunday night, the Steelers (6-3) have come up with better answers.

"We don't let that get to us. We can't care what people say," starting cornerback Keenan Lewis said. "Everybody is going to have something to say to us. But that's all they are, just opinions."

The historically stingy Steelers haven't just survived without perennial Pro Bowl safety Troy Polamalu, and with other veteran defenders, such as safety Ryan Clark and sack-happy outside linebackers James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley battling injuries — they actually continue to thrive, despite the fact they will likely start seven 30-something defenders Sunday.

The Steelers rank first in the league in total defense, pass defense and yards allowed and seventh in scoring defense, carrying on the tradition of a unit that has dominated the NFL since 2008.

Over the past five seasons, the Steelers have allowed a league-low 16.2 points per game and an NFL-fewest 271.9 yards per game (the Ravens rank second and third in those categories, respectively).

They say they have been able to keep it going thanks to contributions from younger defenders such as Lewis, inside linebacker Lawrence Timmons and defensive end Ziggy Hood. Lewis has knocked down a team-high 19 passes. Timmons had the game-turning interception in Monday's win over the Kansas City Chiefs. Hood is doing his best to replace Aaron Smith, who retired before this season.

"It's the mentality here. It's always the next guy up. There can't be [any] drop-off," Steelers nose tackle Casey Hampton said Friday. "The Steelers don't bring a lot of [marquee] free agents in. We bring in guys and put them through the system. The next guy up has usually been in the system for a few years and knows what he is doing. That helps out a lot when we have injuries."

Sound familiar?

The Ravens have been ravaged by injuries — and a few key free-agent departures — but they are still waiting for young players such as defensive end Pernell McPhee, nose tackle Terrence Cody and outside linebacker Paul Kruger to become consistent contributors. Another recent draft pick who has disappointed, cornerback Jimmy Smith, is now sidelined after sports hernia surgery.

With inside linebacker and emotional leader Ray Lewis and cornerback Lardarius Webb on injured reserve and Pro Bowl defensive tackle Haloti Ngata and outside linebacker Terrell Suggs trying to play through injuries, the Ravens rank 27th in yards allowed and are 13th in scoring defense. They have just 16 sacks, but have averaged two takeaways per game.

Like that proud Ravens unit, the Steelers also believe they have plenty of things to fix if they are to get back to playing the brand of smothering defense on which they built their reputation.

The Steelers are tied with the Ravens and two other teams for 22nd in sacks. Only one team has forced fewer than the Steelers' nine takeaways, something that has been a regular topic of discussion in Pittsburgh's meeting rooms this week. And they are in the middle of the pack in third-down defense and red-zone defense, two areas that could be the difference in Sunday's showdown.

"We had quite a few young players who were taking on a larger role. I think they're growing and some of the guys that are coming back in are getting their football reactions better," Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau said. "But teams should get better as you go through the year. We hope we have a lot of improvement in front of us. We sure need to get better."

Harrison and Woodley, two recent tormentors of the Ravens, are back after missing games earlier in the season, though they have combined for just four sacks. Clark, a Pro Bowler for the first time in 2011, has suffered concussions in two of his last three games, but says he has been cleared to play Sunday. Polamalu, who has only played in two games, has been ruled out.
"We've had some injuries, but every team goes through that," defensive end Brett Keisel said.
Polamalu, whose long curly black hair is the most iconic aesthetic of the Steelers defense, has made many pivotal plays in this rivalry, like his interception return for a touchdown in the 2008 AFC championship game and his soaring strip-sack of Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco two seasons ago. But with Polamalu sidelined by a nagging calf injury, the Steelers are struggling to recreate that kind of chaos.
"He's a different type of cat," Hampton said. "It's just the speed that he plays at. He's going to cause [turnovers]. He brings a different dimension, and you definitely can't replicate that."
Still, even without Polamalu's freelancing, the scheme is similar. In LeBeau's zone-blitz scheme, the Steelers send blitzers from all angles and disguise their coverages behind their pass rush.
Their plan of attack against the Ravens should also remain the same. While showing Flacco and his speedy set of receivers their due respect, the Steelers say their priority will again be to stymie Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice with a rushing defense that is ranked sixth in the league.
"Our guys like a test. Every week is a test in itself, but now you go against a great defense," said Cam Cameron, whose Ravens offense is averaging 17.5 points on the road. "It's a division game. It's got all the markings of why you do what you do as players and coaches in this business."
With the inside track to the AFC North title on the line Sunday night, the records and rankings and newspaper clippings will get tossed into the Monongahela River on the way to Heinz Field.
The aging and injured Steelers know more work needs to be done to get where they want to go. And no, it's not the top of the NFL's defensive rankings. It's the Super Bowl in New Orleans.
"There's a lot of areas we need to improve," Keisel said. "But all we care about is winning games."
Sound familiar?
matt.vensel@baltsun.com
twitter.com/mattvensel

Ravens shouldn't expect an easy road with Roethlisberger out

By Peter Schmuck
Baltimore Sun
http://www.baltimoresun.com
November 14, 2012

It's certainly tempting to look at what happened to Ben Roethlisberger on Monday night and assume that the balance of power in the AFC North has shifted dramatically in the favor of the Ravens, because that would seem to be a pretty fair assumption.
The loss of Big Ben to a rare rib cage injury might even be a watershed moment in the history of the Ravens/Steelers rivalry, depending on just how serious that injury turns out to be.
But, if you think that means the Ravens will waltz into Heinz Field on Sunday night and walk over the Steelers in the first of two head-to-head meetings over a span of just 15 days, you might want to take a quick history lesson.
Roethlisberger has missed four games against the Ravens for various reasons during the course of his great career and the Ravens have taken advantage of his absence to win all four of those games, but every one of them was a typical, hard-fought rivalry showdown that was decided by no more than six points and could have gone either way right up to the end.
There's really no reason to think that Sunday night will be any different, though no one would be foolish enough to discount the impact of the latest in a string of injuries to some of the NFL's top quarterbacks.
The oddsmakers certainly haven't. The Steelers were favored by 3 1/2 points when the Week 11 betting lines opened. Now, the Ravens are favored by a field goal, which means that the people who make their living figuring out what the score might be believe that Pittsburgh would be about a touchdown better if Roethlisberger were healthy.
That's a big, big difference in this new era of NFL parity — and it's something the Ravens need to exploit if they are to position themselves for another deep playoff run — but they know that it would be foolhardy to underestimate highly-experienced backup quarterback Byron Leftwich.
"We can't take him for granted," Ravens safety Bernard Pollard said. "This guy is very capable of going out there and shredding us."
Even without Roethlisberger, the Steelers remain a highly talented offensive team and their defense ranks No. 1 in the league in total yards allowed. The Ravens defense, meanwhile, is still adjusting to the loss of Ray Lewis and Lardarius Webb and could be vulnerable in the secondary if Leftwich gets enough time to spread the ball around to Mike Wallace, tight end Heath Miller and the rest of a deep receiving corps.
"I'm sure they have a whole offense up for him," coach John Harbaugh said. "…You defend the offense. They've got weapons all over the field. They are arguably one of the most talented, if not the most talented, offenses in football. All those guys are going to be out there playing, and Byron Leftwich or Charlie Batch is fully capable of running that offense very well."
Still, it's hard not to look at the dramatic change in the competitive dynamic of each of these teams over the past few weeks and think that the Ravens have a big opportunity to solidify their position atop the AFC North during a stretch that — until very recently — seemed like it might be a major road block on the way to the playoffs.
Two weeks ago at this time, the Ravens were smarting from a one-sided loss to the Houston Texans and the Steelers were surging back into contention after a slow start. The Steelers survived Monday night's overtime scare from the Chiefs to win their fourth game in a row and remain one game behind the Ravens in the division standings, but the immediate implications of the loss of Roethlisberger and the uncertainty about his future clearly have cast a big shadow over the rest of their season.
The Ravens, perhaps because there is no such thing as an easy game against the Steelers, are looking at Sunday's game the same way they would have if Big Ben was heading into it at the top of his game.
"We're going to prepare for the Pittsburgh Steelers,'' linebacker Terrell Suggs said. "I don't think the gameplan is pretty much going to change depending on who's under center. They're going to be who they are. They are going to do what Pittsburgh does. They're going to play Pittsburgh football. And we're going to show up and prepare all week to play Ravens football."
peter.schmuck@baltsun.com
Read more from columnist Peter Schmuck on his blog, "The Schmuck Stops Here" at baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog and listen when he co-hosts "The Week in Review" at noon Fridays on WBAL (1090 AM) and at wbal.com.
Orioles Insider | Live scores | Photos | Baseball app

Roethlisberger's injury impacts AFC

By John Clayton
ESPN
November 13, 2012

Highlight Of The Night

Big Ben injured in Steelers' win.Tags: NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs, Ben Roethlisberger,Mike Wallace, Jamaal Charles, Lawrence Timmons

NEXT VIDEO 

• Did The Steelers Look Past Chiefs?

QB Ben Roethlisberger's right shoulder injury has added a level of uncertainty to what appeared to be a clear AFC playoff picture.

For weeks, the Pittsburgh Steelers appeared to be among five 2011 AFC playoff teams -- Houston, Denver, New England and Baltimore being the others -- set to return to the playoffs. But the timing of Roethlisberger's injury couldn't be worse for the Steelers. They trail theBaltimore Ravens by a game in the AFC North, but the next three weeks give the Steelers the chance to climb back into the division race.

For now, the Steelers list Roethlisberger as questionable for Sunday's home game against the Ravens while they seek more information about his injury.

If Roethlisberger misses any one of the next three games or all three, the Steelers could be forced to lower their hopes of being a division winner to just hanging on to a wild-card spot. The possibility of missing the playoffs also creeps into the equation.

One of the reasons the Ravens have the one-game lead over the Steelers is because Baltimore has beaten the 2-7 Cleveland Browns twice. The Steelers haven't yet played a Browns team they have dominated through the years. The Steelers were counting on sweeping the Browns.

Since Sunday night's Ravens game is in Pittsburgh, the Steelers felt optimistic about their chances. Coach Mike Tomlin didn't show any panic at his Tuesday news conference, but the Steelers' offense drops off when backup Byron Leftwich plays instead of from Roethlisberger. Leftwich's long, slow release leaves him vulnerable to sacks, injuries and incompletions.

The sad overall state of the AFC, though, still gives the Steelers a chance to earn a wild-card berth if they have trouble in their two games with the Ravens over the next three weeks and their Nov. 25 game against the Cleveland Browns.

The Ravens already are 3-0 in divisional games. The Steelers beat the Cincinnati Bengals on the road, and five of their last seven games involve the AFC North.

If Roethlisberger misses Sunday's game against the Ravens and the Ravens win, the top four seeds will be taking shape in the AFC. The Houston Texans at 8-1 are running away with the AFC South. They lead the Indianapolis Colts by two games, and the Colts face a tough road trip to New England this week. The Patriots (6-3) lead the Miami Dolphins by two games in the AFC East. The Denver Broncos could open a three-game lead over the San Diego Chargers in the AFC West if they beat the Chargers at home Sunday.

That would leave the Colts and Steelers as the front-runners for two AFC wild-card spots. But Roethlisberger's injury gives hopes to three 4-5 teams that trail the Steelers (6-3) by two games -- the Dolphins, Chargers and Bengals.

The Chargers visit Pittsburgh Dec. 9. If Roethlisberger is out four games and the Steelers drop both games to the Ravens, the Chargers could bolster their wild-card chances if they fall out of the AFC West race. The Bengals play the Steelers in Heinz Field on Dec. 23 with some hope of catching them if the Roethlisberger injury lingers.

The Steelers also have a problem when it comes to tiebreakers. Their early-season success came at the expense of the NFC East. The Steelers were 3-0 against the NFC East, but they are 3-3 in AFC games. Two losses to the Ravens and any other AFC losses down the stretch would make it much tougher to make the playoffs.

For the Steelers to make it without Roethlisberger for any period of time, they will have to rely on their defense. In 2010, the Steelers pulled out a 3-1 record thanks to their defense when Roethlisberger opened the season with a suspension. One of those wins was against the Ravens.

It doesn't help that safety Troy Polamalu is doubtful for this week's Ravens game, but Steelers fans will be waving their Terrible Towels trying to beat their top rival.

• RECOMMEND79
• TWEET6
• COMMENTS118
• EMAIL
• PRINT

Season rests on Roethlisberger's shoulder

By Jamison Hensley
AFC North
ESPN
November 13, 2012

AP Photo/Don WrightWithout Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh may make the playoffs, but it won't be able to win a Super Bowl.

PITTSBURGH -- There was no collective sigh of relief at Heinz Field, even after Shaun Suisham's 23-yard field goal allowed the Pittsburgh Steelers to escape with a 16-13 overtime win over the hapless Kansas City Chiefs. That won't happen until the results of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's MRI are revealed.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said after the sloppy win that he doesn't know the status of Roethlisberger's injured shoulder. Sources have told ESPN that Roethlisberger sprained his shoulder but the extent of the injury is unknown. That means the Steelers' season is officially in limbo.

Pittsburgh can win regular-season games without Roethlisberger. It can get to the playoffs without him. But it can't win a Super Bowl without him.

Week 10 Coverage

• Hensley: Steelers' season in limbo
• Kuharsky: Texans silence Bears talk
• Sando: Rams, 49ers undecided
• Graziano: Cowboys back in the hunt
• Hensley: Ravens happiest at home
• Seifert: Vikings full of surprises
• Walker: Dolphins fail maturity test
• Yasinskas: Falcons fall to earth
• Clayton: Last Call
• Week 10 scoreboard | Week 10 photos
• Monday Night HQ

It's true that Pittsburgh has survived without Roethlisberger before. The Steelers went 3-1 to start the 2010 season when he was suspended. The difference is the Steelers haven't gone more than four games in a season without him and they haven't been without the two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback in the postseason. It was only last season when the Steelers' title run ended when Roethlisberger began to limp with an ankle injury.

Roethlisberger is in the midst of the best season of his career and perhaps mounting an MVP campaign. In adapting to offensive coordinator Todd Haley's quick-hitting passing attack, Roethlisberger has the NFL's sixth-best QBR and is the league's best on third downs this season. How valuable has Roethlisberger been this season? Half of the Steelers' six wins have come from game-winning drives led by him. This is his team.

Even on a night when everything seemed to go wrong for the Steelers, there was a sense that Pittsburgh would eventually pull out the win because it had Roethlisberger. That is, until the third play of the third quarter when he got sandwiched by two Kansas City pass rushers and got his right shoulder driven into the ground. It's unclear how long Roethlisberger will be out, but it didn't look promising when he left the field holding his right arm close to his body. He then was driven down the tunnel on a golf cart before being taken to the hospital for tests.

Tomlin wouldn't characterize his level of concern with the franchise's all-time leading passer.

"I don't live in the hypothetical world," Tomlin said. "I wait until I get information, and then I respond accordingly to that information."

When Roethlisberger left, backup Byron Leftwich took over in his first appearance since the 2010 season. It looked like he hadn't stepped onto the field for two years, based on his ragged play. In his first snaps with the starting offense since training camp, he completed 7 of 14 passes for 73 yards in nearly one half of work, with several of his passes being overthrown (including a potential touchdown toss to Mike Wallace).

In the five drives led by Leftwich, the Steelers managed only a field goal. He was able to get the Steelers deep out of their own territory with a 31-yard pass to Emmanuel Sanders. But the two big plays that got Pittsburgh in field goal range were a 22-yard defensive pass interference penalty and a 14-yard flag for roughing the passer, both of which converted third downs.

[+] Enlarge
AP Photo/Gene J. PuskarThe Steelers may have to look to Byron Leftwich to carry them to the playoffs if Ben Roethlisberger is out for an extended time.

"The great thing about Byron is he's got a very consistent demeanor, a very calming presence," Tomlin said. "It wasn't a pretty body of work by any of us."

Leftwich is experienced and tested, but he's no Roethlisberger. His lack of mobility and ridiculously long throwing motion (it resembles a pitcher's windup) make him a sitting target on nearly every throw. And he's not going to scramble for 14 yards on third down in the red zone like Roethlisberger did late in the second quarter Monday.

There are seven weeks left in the regular season. Leftwich should be able to lead the Steelers to at least four wins to get them to 10 (Pittsburgh plays the Browns twice and has games against San Diego and Cincinnati at home). But it's hard to gauge what Leftwich can do for an extended period. He hasn't started more than six games in a season since 2005 with Jacksonville. He is 1-1 in the playoffs for his career.

Leftwich was asked whether the Steelers can win the Super Bowl with him at quarterback. "We will see," he said. "We are not going to worry about the Super Bowl right now. We are just going to prepare to try to beat the Baltimore Ravens."

The Steelers have to wonder how many more injuries they can endure this season. They're playing without their leading rusher for the past three seasons (Rashard Mendenhall). They're playing without their leading pass catcher (Antonio Brown). They're playing without their starting fullback (David Johnson) and two starters on the right side of the offensive line (guardDavid DeCastro and tackle Marcus Gilbert). That's not even counting the loss of the quarterback of the defense (Troy Polamalu).

Now, Pittsburgh has a short week to prepare for the Ravens -- in what will be a battle for first place in the AFC North. And the Steelers may have to play without one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.

"It hasn't gone our way for a couple of years now," left tackle Max Starks said. "But we still manage to rise to the occasion in spite of those things. That speaks to the depth and the quality of players on this team. We really have 45 guys who could be starters anywhere else in this league. That's the comforting thing. That's why we don't feel uneasy going into this short week."

There was talk last week that Roethlisberger could miss Sunday night's game against the Ravens because of the birth of his son. Now, the Steelers can only hope they will be without him for one week.

"We have been in this situation before when Ben has gone down," Leftwich said. "[Tomlin] has full confidence in me, so nothing is going to change."

The offense may not change without Roethlisberger. But if he is lost for multiple games or for the season, everything changes for the Steelers.

Chiefs discover new ways to fail

Posted on Tue, Nov. 13, 2012

By SAM MELLINGER
The Kansas City Star

The Chiefs’ best game of the year ended in the most appropriate way possible: a turnover and a loss. Now comes the part where they push and pull about what it means. Everything up to the jobs of the head coach and general manager may hang in the balance.

That we’re now into the second half of the season with the Chiefs having one win and talking about their best game ending in a loss would be sadder if we weren’t well past the point of worrying about such signs of ineptitude.

The Chiefs played tough, and fearless. And even though they blew what turned out to be a 16-13 loss in overtime here on Monday night, as long as the men in charge are still in charge they have a chance to stay in charge.

Hey, if nothing else, they finally ended that ridiculous season-long streak of never leading while the clock was running. They looked, mostly, like a real NFL team. Like they practice and everything.

“The guys played their hearts out,” coach Romeo Crennel said. “If the guys keep playing that way, we’ll get this turned.”

It remains virtually impossible to imagine them doing it, but in a season of such historical and thorough failure you can hear quarterback Matt Cassel say this was “without a doubt” the Chiefs’ best game of the year and nod your head with understanding.

But looked at from other angles, the Chiefs found new ways to embarrass themselves. So we picked up a few more anecdotes to rehash if and when owner Clark Hunt decides to make major changes.

He already had all the reasoning he needs, but an unforgettably creative one came in the third quarter when the Chiefs did the Chiefs-est thing of the season: a “group celebration” penalty for a touchdown that didn’t count on their way to 1-8. The refs called back the score on a penalty, but did enforce the penalty.

So to review: the guys tied for the worst record in the league got flagged for celebrating a touchdown that never happened. This is officially the cockiest terrible team in NFL history.

Every once in a while, a dirty mop bucket of a season breaks for comedy.

Starting today, the Chiefs will publicly try to spin this as a positive turning point. They will talk about how hard they played and how they took a Super Bowl contender into overtime on the road, but they’re just as likely to have peaked as continue to ascend.

Because how much longer will the defense continue to play this hard when the quarterback goes 11 for 26 with the game-ending interception?

How much longer will Jamaal Charles continue to run so hard for a team going nowhere, each hit taking a bit off the already perilous career of an NFL running back?

The Chiefs very clearly took this matchup against their old coach on their sport’s biggest stage personally, and part of how this season ends up will depend on how Hunt interprets it.

He can be impressed with the effort, or frustrated that personal vendettas are required to bring it out.

He can think about taking one of the NFL’s model franchises to the wire, or he can think of the stupid mistakes and embarrassing moments that made it end in another disappointment.

A missed field goal, a kickoff out of bounds, a kick return fumbled and picked up twice, continued problems covering the tight end, a hole at left guard, more dropped passes, the knucklehead star receiver taunting Pittsburgh’s defense on a touchdown that got called back, and this list could keep going.

Remember, a miniature meltdown in New York served as the final sin that allowed Scott Pioli to fire Todd Haley last year.

In strictly football terms, the Chiefs just played their best game for a coach and GM who will need more of it to stick around long-term. There’s a banner scheduled to fly above Kansas City rush hour traffic Friday morning that represents a vocal segment of the fan base rooting against that.

The Chiefs’ future depends in part on whether the buttoned-down owner cares more about a team playing hard, or the embarrassing moments that did them in.

To reach Sam Mellinger, call 816-234-4365, send email to smellinger@kcstar.com or follow twitter.com/mellinger. For previous columns, go to KansasCity.com.

© 2012 Kansas City Star and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved. http://www.kansascity.com

Steelers 16, Chiefs 13 (OT)

By Jamison Hensley
AFC North Blog
ESPN
November 12, 2012

PITTSBURGH -- My thoughts on the Pittsburgh Steelers' 16-13 overtime win over the Kansas City Chiefs:

What it means: Whether they were looking ahead to Sunday's game against the Ravens or simply unfocused, the Steelers (6-3) barely beat one of the NFL's worst teams on a rainy night at Heinz Field. Their fourth straight victory allowed Pittsburgh to remain one game behind the AFC North-leading Ravens (7-2). Pittsburgh had to come back from an early 10-0 deficit, the first time this season that the Chiefs (1-8) have led during a game. It marked the third time the Steelers have rallied from a double-digit hole during the win streak. The Steelers have now won 15 straight Monday night games in Pittsburgh.
Roethlisberger hurt: This could be a costly victory for the Steelers. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger hurt his right shoulder after being sandwiched by Justin Houston and Tamba Hali on the third play of the third quarter. Roethlisberger was seen leaving the stadium with his shoulder in a sling. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he was getting an MRI at a local hospital. Roethlisberger left with the game tied at 10 and finished with 9-of-18 passing for 84 yards. In his first game since 2010, backup Byron Leftwich looked ragged in replacing Roethlisberger.

Coming through in overtime: After giving up the tying field goal in regulation, the Steelers defense stepped up in overtime. Pittsburgh linebacker Lawrence Timmons intercepted Matt Cassel on the second play of overtime, and Shaun Suisham kicked the winning 23-yard field goal.

Flinching in the fourth quarter: The NFL's top-ranked defense couldn't stop the Chiefs in the final minute of the fourth quarter. With 22 seconds remaining, Cassel hit Dwayne Bowe for a 27-yard pass on fourth-and-15. That set up Ryan Succop's game-tying 46-yard field goal as time expired in regulation.

Capitalizing on penalties: Suisham's 31-yard field goal put the Steelers ahead 13-10 with 12:37 left in the fourth quarter. The key plays in the drive were a 22-yard pass interference penalty and a 14-yard roughing the passer penalty on Hali, both of which converted third downs.

Getting lucky: The Steelers were helped by the Chiefs playing like the Chiefs in the second half. With the game tied at 10, Succop, who had only missed twice in the first eight games, sliced a 33-yard field goal attempt wide right in the open end of Heinz Field. After the Steelers went ahead in the fourth quarter, Chiefs wide receiver Jon Baldwin had a pass broken up at the Steelers' 25-yard line.

Spectacular catch: Steelers wide receiver Mike Wallace, who has had his share of drops this season, made the best catch of the night with a one-handed touchdown grab. With the Steelers trailing 10-3, Wallace caught Roethlisberger's pass in the end zone with his outstretched right hand and cradled the ball in for his sixth touchdown of the season.

Costly turnover: Isaac Redman got the start but a turnover reduced his playing time. He fumbled at the Steelers' 11-yard line late in the first quarter, which was converted into a field goal to extend Kansas City's lead to 10-0. It was Redman's first fumble since he coughed it up twice in the 2011 regular-season opener. Just before the turnover, guard Willie Colon was called for two penalties: holding and unsportsmanlike conduct for cursing at an official.

What's next: The Steelers play host to the Ravens on Sunday night. They face Baltimore twice in three weeks.

Steelers forge foundation for long-term success

By Adam Teicher
The Kansas City Star
November 11, 2012

PITTSBURGH | In trying to explain why the Pittsburgh Steelers never seem to have a down season, coach Mike Tomlin stumbled on to an analogy that also fits tonight’s game between his team and the Chiefs.

“There’s a fine line in this league between drinking wine and squashing grapes,’’ Tomlin said. “We understand that, know that and embrace that.’’

There isn’t any doubt which of tonight’s contestants is quaffing a fine varietal. The 5-3 Steelers are again in the playoff hunt and could well make the postseason for the ninth time in the last 12 seasons.

The 1-7 Chiefs are the ones with the red feet. They’re also more than a little red in the face.

Chairman Clark Hunt held up the Steelers as the model franchise for the Chiefs when they were preparing to change administration of their football operation. In December 2007, almost a year before the Chiefs made the transition at general manager from Carl Peterson to Scott Pioli, Hunt said he hoped the Chiefs would be able to follow Pittsburgh’s unique methods and, by extension, their success.

“I’m a strong believer that continuity at the head coaching position is very important to long-term success,’’ Hunt said then. “Probably you could point to the Pittsburgh Steelers as the best example of that. They do a great job of drafting players, developing them and playing them and they have tremendous continuity with their head coaches. They have a system and an approach about how they do it and it’s important we develop that kind of mind-set here.’’

It should go without saying the Chiefs have failed. Midway through Pioli’s fourth season, the Chiefs are already on their second head coach and the prospects don’t look good for Romeo Crennel to make it to 2013.

Pioli’s draft record could generously be called spotty. Some higher round picks like Jon Baldwin and Dexter McCluster don’t appear to be any better than when they arrived in Kansas City.

Most importantly, other than a 10-6 record and a division title in a weakened AFC West in 2010, the Chiefs haven’t been able to reach the playoffs even though Pioli inherited a roster stocked with skilled young players.

So as they prepared to face the Steelers, there was little for them to marvel at an opponent who made a seemingly easy philosophy work.

“To be able to maintain the continuity and the consistency that they’ve been able to do, how many teams _ you can probably count them on your hands _ have that kind of consistency?’’ said Crennel, who went winless in eight games against the Steelers while he was coaching for Cleveland from 2005 through 2008. “In the NFL, about 30 percent of the teams will change coaches every year, so it’s hard to develop the kind of consistency that the Steelers have, that I know the Giants used to have and some other teams in this league.

“It’s never just one thing. It’s always just a combination and a total. It’s draft, it’s developing players, it’s coaching players, it’s players taking ownership, it’s the whole gamut. When you talk about an organization being a solid, good organization, all of those things are involved in it.”

Tomlin is Pittsburgh’s third head coach since 1969. That’s when the Steelers hired Chuck Noll. Bill Cowher came along in 1992 and Tomlin in 2007.

“It’s not only the head coaches,’’ Crennel said. “It’s the organization. They have a philosophy and . . . from top to bottom, they have good people. Everybody is on the same page and all of those things that have to occur to make a team a good team.”

In Tomlin’s five complete seasons, the Steelers have made the playoffs all but once. They made two trips to the Super Bowl, winning once.

Tomlin’s two immediate predecessors often had great teams as well. Tomlin’s Steelers operate much the same way as they did under Cowher and Noll.

They draft and then develop those players as well as any team. Of Pittsburgh’s 22 usual starters, 18 were drafted by the Steelers and two joined them as undrafted free agents out of college.

The Steelers rarely feel the need to venture out into the free agent market. Only one of their starters, safety Ryan Clark, was acquired as an unrestricted free agent.

“The Steelers in general have always done it a certain way for a long time,’’ said quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh’s top draft pick in 2004. “It was done here long before me. I don’t want to say the players coach themselves but drive themselves. We don’t really need coaches yelling and screaming at us because the players push themselves and it’s been that way since back in the day. You have a tradition of excellence and you want to live up to those former players and the traditions and stuff like that.

“Ever since I got here we’ve always had veteran leader guys that really pushed other players so coaches didn’t have to.’’

The Chiefs have tried to imitate Pittsburgh’s way. Among their normal starters, 17 were drafted by the Chiefs and another joined them as an undrafted rookie.

But because the Chiefs haven’t drafted or developed players as well, they had to go to the free-agent market more often. Just this year, the Chiefs signed tight end Kevin Boss, quarterback Brady Quinn, offensive tackle Eric Winston, running back Peyton Hillis, safety Abe Elam and cornerback Stanford Routt and each started at least one game.

“If you draft a guy, you can mold him because he’s a lot younger and hasn’t been exposed to as much,’’ Crennel said. “Sometimes when you go get guys from other places, they have a predetermined notion about who they are and about how they should fit and sometimes they have to adapt and adjust to your system. Some guys can make that transition smoothly. Other guys struggle with the transition. You see it all the time in the NFL. Teams bring guys in and then they let guys go because of those reasons I just mentioned.”

The Chiefs’ experience with Routt points straight to the potential flaws in taking another team’s player. Rather than sign their own starting cornerback, Brandon Carr, this year when he was an unrestricted free agent, the Chiefs went for a cheaper option in Routt, who spent seven inconsistent seasons with Oakland, a team that has its own peculiar way of doing things.

The Chiefs found Routt to be such a bad fit they released him last week eight games into a three-year contract.

That’s the kind of mistake that leads to 1-7 records. It’s the type of mistake occasionally made by the Chiefs but rarely if ever by the Steelers.

Offensive line paving the way

By Jamison Hensley
AFC North Blog
ESPN
November 7, 2012

Charles LaClaire/US PresswireWhen Mike Adams (76) stepped in for Marcus Gilbert on Oct. 11, the Steelers started to build cohesion along the offensive line that didn't exist a year ago.

The Steelers are looking like the Steelers again. The old-school Steelers. The ones who ran the ball down defenses' throats and wore down teams late in games.

The change has been initiated by offensive coordinator Todd Haley. The plan has been carried out by the unlikeliest of players -- the Steelers offensive line. Bashed the past few years for being the weak link of the offense, the linemen have flexed their muscles during Pittsburgh's three-game win streak and have become the backbone of an attack that will be a force to be reckoned with for the rest of the season.

The Steelers' offensive line has been the most improved unit. It has been the most dominant one recently. And, at the midway point of the regular season, these linemen have been Pittsburgh's most valuable players.

Establishing chemistry and a nasty attitude, the offensive line turned a Steelers run game, off to its worst start in 62 years, into a surprisingly successful one. Pittsburgh has produced a 100-yard rusher in three consecutive games. How big of a role has the line played? When Rashard Mendenhall and Isaac Redman were hurt, the line opened holes for Jonathan Dwyer to gain more than 100 yards in back-to-back games. When Dwyer and Mendenhall were sidelined last Sunday, this line paved the way for Redman to crack 100 yards.

The message is clear: This line gives running backs a chance to succeed. The difference has been the push generated off the line. In the first five games of the season, Steelers running backs were hit in the backfield 19.8 percent of the time, according to ESPN Stats & Information. In the past three games, runners have been hit in the backfield just 12.1 percent of the time. If Redman gets hurt again, maybe Jerome Bettis could suit up and gain 100 yards against the Chiefs on Monday night.

In the past, the offensive line drew more criticism than compliments. The high number of hits on Ben Roethlisberger and the problems in the running game used to be blamed on the line.

"Everyone wants to jump on (the offensive line) when they’re not playing good, but no one talks about them when they’re playing great,” Roethlisberger said recently.

[+] Enlarge
Jason Bridge/US PresswireRamon Foster (73) has proven an athletic complement to Mike Adams (76) on Pittsburgh's line.

During an offseason in which president Art Rooney II made it a priority to run the ball better, the Steelers had hopes of improving the offensive line although they had a different vision for it. Pittsburgh used its first two draft picks this year on guard David DeCastro and tackle Mike Adams. But DeCastro suffered a severe knee injury in the preseason and Adams didn't win the starting job in training camp.

The difficulties with the rookies weren't the only hurdles that this line had to face. There were question marks on the left side of the line, where tackle Max Starks was months removed from ACL surgery and guard Willie Colon was converting from right tackle. Instead of having a first-round pick in DeCastro at right guard, the Steelers went with Ramon Foster, who was undrafted three years ago. There was even an issue with two-time Pro Bowl center Maurkice Pouncey, who had to sit out a game because of a knee injury.

Where the line came together was Oct. 11, when Adams stepped in for Marcus Gilbert after he injured his ankle. Adams has moved defenders off the line of scrimmage, and the Steelers started to build cohesion that didn't exist a year ago. Last season, the Steelers used an NFL-high 26 different offensive line combinations, according to ESPN Stats & Information. In eight games this season, the Steelers have used six different offensive line combinations.

This line was a work-in-progress early. After three weeks, the Steelers ranked 30th in rushing yards per game (65.0) and were tied for last in yards per carry (2.6). No running back had cracked 50 yards in a game, much less 100.

Over the past three games, Pittsburgh gained 155.0 yards rushing per game and 5.1 yards per carry. Colon and Foster have been equally athletic and aggressive in pulling from one side to another on the team's counter plays.

Steelers Rushing

A look at how the Steelers have turned around their ground attack:

Point of season	Yards per carry	Rush yards per game	TDs
First five games	2.9	74.8	3
Last three games	5.1	155.0	2

The line has played so well that there are no guarantees that Gilbert and DeCastro will get back their starting jobs once healthy. Gilbert could be available for next week's game against the Ravens, and DeCastro might be ready by December. This isn't a problem, though. Having too many solid options is a luxury.

By next season, Gilbert is expected to take over at left tackle and DeCastro will take back his spot at right guard. For now, the Steelers might not want to mess with continuity. Starks said the success in the running game goes beyond consistency on the offensive line.

"By committing to a primary runner as opposed to a runner by committee has also played a big role in that," Starks told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette this week. "Having a guy know he can run -- and if it doesn't go well, they're going to shelve him and put a guy in for couple plays. Knowing you're committed to him and allowing him to get a feel for the game, to get into a rhythm with us, I think that's the biggest thing, having that continuity."

Roethlisberger remains one of the best quarterbacks in the league. Mike Wallace is still one of the fastest receivers. And tight end Heath Miller is a reliable target in the red zone. They can all make plays when they need to do so. But the pressure is not all on them anymore.

The Steelers have returned to their roots with this physical style of football, which makes them more balanced and stops pass-rushers from teeing off on Roethlisberger (he's only been sacked 17 times in eight games after suffering 40 sacks last season). They're wearing down teams with the second-best time of possession in the NFL and they're finishing off teams in the fourth quarter. The Steelers haven't been able to do this in recent years. But they haven't had this strong of a line during that time either.