Oct 7, 2002 By Mike Ciarochi 4 min read

NEW ORLEANS – Steelers coach Bill Cowher wouldn’t understand the irony, but didn’t you just know that once the Seelers offense got its act together the defense would begin falling apart? We witnessed both Sunday on the fake grass of the Louisiana Superdome.

The offense, behind new starting quarterback Tommy Maddox, looked sharp against the Saints. The defense was … well, defenseless. Not only did they have no answers for the Saints, they didn’t appear to know the questions.

Of course, this is not a new problem. Instead, it is a growing problem that may not be fixable this season. Through four games, the Steelers have been exposed as vulnerable in the secondary, which has been scorched, at linebacker, where the loss of Kendrell Bell has been more devastating than it should be, and along the line, where aggressiveness is being used against the team with cutback runs, like the 52-yarder that Duece McAllister put on them Sunday.

McAllister’s run was not the only big play turned in against Pittsburgh Sunday. There was a 64-yard bomb from Aaron Brooks to Jerome Pathon in which Chad Scott bit so hard on a double-move, the CBS cameramen had a hard time keeping Scott in the shot.

There also were pass plays covering 14, 18 and 21 yards in the Saints first possession after the Steelers had climbed to within a touchown, 26-21, midway through the third quarter.

And on and on and on.

Remember when Cowher’s catch phrase was getting off the field on third downs? Well, the Steelers actually are improving in that area … and what good has it done? The Saints converted only 5 of their 12 third downs, yet they won handily.

And, while we’re on that subject, don’t believe for a second that the Steelers were ever truly in that game. They wanted no part of being there from the outset. And, especially on defense, it showed.

“I didn’t play a very good game today,” understated corneback Chad Scott.

Scott wasn’t the only culprit. He wasn’t even the worst. That would be Dewayne Washiongton, who got beat regularly, yet managed not to even make the stat sheet. Could you imagine being beaten so badly you’re not even close enough to make a tackle?

Yet, these Steelers all believe they can get it right. They believe they can turn around what has been a miserable first month of the season, win their division and make the playoffs.

Maybe they’re right. If so, they had better start proving it on the field. Sunday’s performance looked eerily familiar to the defense Dwight White referred to as “soft and cheesy” a few years back.

The most troubling aspect of the defense’s play to date is the relative ease with which teams have been beating it. They never come out and begin a game strongly. When was the last three-and-out the team registered on its first defensive series? It’s been a while, hasn’t it.

Offensively, Cowher and offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey should be ecstatic about the play of quarterback Tommy Maddox, running backs Jerome Bettis and Amos Zereoue. Maddox got off to a rocky start, but battled through it until good things started happening.

Maddox looks like he can keep the offense running smoothly for the rest of the season, but the defense is quite another story. This is a unit, don’t forget, that the Steelers invested heavily in over the last 18 months. Neither Washington nor Scott is going away anytime soon. Neither is Jason Gildon or Joey Porter or any of the other starters. Safety Lee Flowers is the only defensive starter whose contract expires after this season and he has been the most consistent defender so far this season.

So, what do you do? The only thing the Steelers can do play their way through this funk and hope they can get their game turned around in a hurry. Playing well in Cincinnati next Sunday would be great, but we won’t get a true test until Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts come to town for a Monday night game the week after next.

That gives them two weeks to clean up their game or face another prime time embarrassment.

Sports editor Mike Ciarochi may be reached at mciarochi@heraldstandard.com