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

PITTSBURGH – They are not Joe Montana and Dan Marino, but then again Jon Kitna and Tommy Maddox aren’t leading the 0-5 Cincinnati Bengals and 1-3 Pittsburgh Steelers into anything resembling the 1984 championship game. Yet, both quarterbacks have caused stirs in their respective fandoms, and both the Bengals and Steelers will continue using the quarterbacks who ignited those sparks in last week’s losses.

Kitna regained his starting job with the Bengals and led the team to three touchdowns. They had scored only one offensive touchdown prior to last week’s 28-21 loss to Indianapolis.

Maddox made his first start in 10 years last week, and helped keep the Steelers in their game against the New Orleans Saints.

Maddox passed for a season-high 244 yards, a season-high three touchdowns, a season-high 95.1 rating and a season-low one interception. Oh, and the Steelers rushed for a season-high 120 yards.

“With Tommy throwing the ball successfully,” said center Jeff Hartings, “that opened up the running game.”

Yet, the Steelers lost. In falling behind by 13-0 early in the second quarter, the plodding Steelers had thrown five passes in 13 offensive plays. In scoring 29 points in the final three quarters, the Steelers threw 33 passes in 57 plays.

So the question begs, dear Tommy Gun, why not come out winging it?

“I think one of the reasons we were throwing it and running it so well is we were keeping the defense guessing on what we were going to do,” Maddox said. “If we can continue to do that, continue to keep teams off-balance a little bit by doing both, it’s the best of both worlds. I think if you come out with four wides, it kind of limits what they have to prepare for.”

Plaxico Burress added even more insight. The big wide receiver would seem to benefit most in a wide-open game, but he said thanks, but no thanks.

“When you do that,” Burress said, “all you do is put more pressure on the passing game to be successful. With Tommy in, teams are going to tend to play a lot more zone, as opposed to when (Kordell Stewart)’s in there. A lot of teams put one man on Stew and spy him out of the backfield. It kind of changes the game plan for the defense. It kind of makes their job easy; just sit back in the zone and blitz.”

But hasn’t the passing game been nothing short of spectacular in coming from behind? After all, Maddox threw 13 times in 20 plays during his game-winning relief appearance against the Cleveland Browns.

“Yeah, but when you’re in that position teams are not going to blitz,” Burress said. “Teams are going to let you nickel and dime us down the field. They won’t want to give up the big play when they’re ahead.”

The Bengals have a similar dilemma. At heart, they are a running team. Corey Dillon strikes fear in the hearts of Steelers defenders, and last week the Bengals simplified their offense so that Dillon and fullback Lorenzo Neal could batter the Colts and middle linebacker Rob Morris.

Dillon gained a season-high 164 yards last week while Kitna passed for 244 in rallying the team from a 21-0 deficit.

But if the Bengals line Dillon up in the I-formation, the results could be similar to last season when they fell behind the Steelers, 23-10, after three quarters.

The Bengals, of course, used a spread offense to rally in the fourth quarter. In doing so, they not only beat the Steelers, they showed the rest of the league how to beat them.

“That wasn’t our game plan going into that game,” Kitna said, “and it won’t be our game plan going into this week. We had to do it out of necessity.”

Of course, the Bengals and Steelers – two sub-.500 teams that have shown the ability to spread the field and throw the ball – are running teams. That’s what they do. That’s what they will always do. Until they want to win.

“When we’re at our best, we’re balanced,” reasoned Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward. “We got the running game going and we made some plays in the passing game. If we can do those two, we’re a deadly team. That’s why we were deadly last year. When we get back to that, things will be all right.”

NOTES – Kendrell Bell (ankle) again practiced on a limited basis. Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala (ribs) and Mike Schneck (elbow) missed practice.