Aug 11, 2002 By Jim Wexell For The 4 min read

These are the thoughts of a sportswriter who, right now, would rather have LaMont Jordan running the football than Jerome Bettis: * Yeah, it’s only two series from the first preseason game of the year, but the concern in this corner about the Pittsburgh Steelers’ running game has not diminished. Running back is a young man’s position and the Steelers have a 30-year-old coming off the most serious injury of his career and a third-down back coming off a near-fatal liver condition. Not good.

* And, yes, Bettis normally plays himself into shape, but that will take plenty of playing. In fact, it wouldn’t be a bad idea if Bettis left camp and continued working with his speed trainer, Bob Kersee, for another month.

* So few running backs have been as productive as Bettis throughout a nine-year career, and even fewer have been productive longer. It takes the discipline of a Walter Payton to increase an off-season, hill-climbing, hellish workout regimen with age. In fact, 29-year-old Curtis Martin of the Jets told a sideline reporter Thursday that he moved into his team’s training facility this off-season and told his personal trainer to “break me every day.” That’s what it takes.

* Not that we’re questioning Bettis’ discipline, but we are reporting – and have been since May – that the groin injury has set his conditioning back greatly.

* Funny how that story was refuted back in May by one of the greats in the national media, and that same reporter wrote after Thursday’s game that Bettis “looked relatively trim (by his standards).” Whatever that means.

* Zereoue, on the other hand, made progress from his stale first week of practice. That’s a good sign because he’s still so young. But he’s still far from the level needed of a Super Bowl running back.

* The Jets, in Martin and Jordan, have two Super Bowl running backs.

* Inside linebacker James Farrior could’ve greatly improved his standing on the depth chart by tackling Jordan at the goal line. Farrior came over from the buck backer position and stepped over a blocker just in time to get a side shot at Jordan’s massive thighs, but came up short. Farrior did come back nicely by tackling Jordan for a loss on a fourth-and-one play.

* The Jets are a good-looking team. Wow, what speed at WR! And they also have the espirit de corps that the Steelers had last preseason. Defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell ran off the field shouting, “We can stop the run!” And cornerback Jamie Henderson is being lauded in the Big Apple for his two goal-line tackles of Bettis. “That’s the first time I’ve seen that, a cornerback tackling Jerome Bettis like that,” said Jets Coach Herm Edwards. Said Henderson: “He’s heavy … a lot of butt.”

* If this is the beginning of the end for Bettis, not one member of the media will take the slightest bit of pleasure in it. Not one.

* As for the special teams, it’s believed that only deposed coach Jay Hayes could manage a smile.

* The comical event of the evening occurred when right guard Kendall Simmons and left guard Keydrick Vincent each pulled, but in opposite directions, and ran into each other. The only one not laughing was sacked quarterback Charlie Batch.

* Oliver Ross played poorly at RG, as did Simmons. Does Vincent, who had a decent game at LG, move back into the mix? Nah. Simmons will come around.

* The most-improved player at Latrobe is backup left tackle Mathias Nkwenti.

* Anyone else uncomfortable with the congratulatory attitude between the Post-Gazette and ESPN Radio over faux news reports? Since the two media outlets have so many common employees, incest is the word that comes to mind.

* By playing in such a weak division, the Steelers are guaranteed of a playoff berth. But unless Bettis gets untracked, they are facing early elimination. If that were to happen, would Dan Rooney look for a new running back or a new coach?

* Solve the latter by promoting the former. Bettis could rely on his assistants to coach and he’d make for great copy and PR every Tuesday at noon. An added bonus of naming Bettis head coach is that Bill Cowher wouldn’t be able to attend special teams meetings.

Jim Wexell is a Herald-Standard correspondent.