Steelers will have to contain Vick
PITTSBURGH – After missing the last two games with a knee injury, Jerome Bettis is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons. Even if he’s healthy, though, Bettis may not return to his starting position.
Amos Zereoue, who had the first 100-yard rushing game of his pro career last Sunday as Bettis’ replacement, could get the call once again.
“If he can go through the week, we probably would still go with Amos,” said Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher.
“But that remains to be seen. If he has a good week, we may go with Jerome. I guess we’ll find out on Sunday.”
Zereoue rushed for 111 yards on 29 carries and caught five passes for 62 yards in full-time duty against the Cleveland Browns. Both Bettis and Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala missed the game with injuries. Fuamatu-Ma’afala will sit out again Sunday because of a torn pectoral muscle.
“He was ready for the load,” Cowher said of Zereoue. “He handled it very well. He’s a solid player. You’re happy for him.
“He’s a guy who came back from a lot this off-season. He used training camp to get himself in shape and he’s gotten progressively better, just physically, with his body as this season’s gone on. He went through a pretty traumatic off-season. So he’s right where he needs to be and, really, right where we need him to be, particularly at this time when we’ve counted on him very heavily.”
Zereoue leads the Steelers in rushing with 373 yards on 86 carries (4.3 average). Bettis has rushed for 326 yards on 83 carries (3.9 average), a pace that would give him 652 yards and barely top his career-low of 637 yards in 1995, the year before he was traded to the Steelers.
Cowher also has a personnel decision to make at center, where both Jeff Hartings (knee) and his replacement the last two weeks, Chukky Okobi (hip), are listed as probable.
“If Jeff is ready to go, then Jeff will go,” said Cowher, who, like most around the team, felt Okobi played very well in relief.
“It was very nice to see Chukky come in and perform the way he did,” Cowher said. “I think that was a little bit of an unknown. I mean, he performed well in the preseason, but he stepped up in these last two games and performed very well and that was very encouraging to see.”
Also listed as questionable this week is passing-downs safety Mike Logan (hamstring). Listed along with Hartings and Okobi as probable are wide receiver Plaxico Burress (ankle) and back-up tight end Jerame Tuman (quadriceps).
GOING FOR IT: Against the Browns, Cowher went for first down on fourth down three times instead of kicking. Cowher explained that he did it more out of enthusiasm for his offense rather than dissatisfaction with his kicking game.
– One fourth-and-3 from the Cleveland 27 late in the first half, a conversion was followed two plays later by an interception.
“It was a gut instinct to go for it. I wouldn’t read any more into it,” Cowher said.
– On fourth-and-4 from the Cleveland 30 early in the third quarter, Tommy Maddox passed incomplete.
“I knew that was going into the wind. It was right on the fringe for (placekicker Todd Peterson). Again, fourth-and-four, I felt good about the offense taking a shot to go for it.”
– On fourth-and-9 from the Cleveland 33 with 6:59 left in the game, a completed pass gained only six yards.
“Maybe in hindsight, to punt it and give them a little bit longer field might have been the right thing to do. But in that situation I erred on the side of being aggressive. That was probably the one that was the toughest decision to make.”
WHERE WERE THE RUN-STOPPERS? It was pointed out to Cowher that neither Kendrell Bell, Casey Hampton or James Farrior played one snap of the fourth quarter because the Steelers were using their dime defense to stop the Browns’ passing game.
“For all the right reasons,” said Cowher, who was then asked if Bell might begin working back into the dime defense.
“Yeah,” Cowher said. “Clark Haggans has performed very well. He really has. He’s been very, very productive, so it’s a nice situation to have.”