Gay shuns praise for his play
CINCINNATI — Willie Gay was the goat a week ago and stood up and took the blame for the Steelers’ loss to Baltmore.
A week later, when he was the hero of the Steelers’ 24-17 win over Cincinnati, Gay pushed all of the credit to defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau and his teammates.
“All I did was play the coverage that coach LeBeau called,” Gay said after having a hand in both of Pittsburgh’s interceptions of Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton.
But it sure looked like Gay jumped the route when he intercepted Dalton late in the game to preserve the win, didn’t it? You saw him sprinting toward the receiver as soon as the ball left Dalton’s hand, didn’t you?
“All I did was play the coverage,” Gay said. “That was some good defense being played out there. Our whole team played well.I was just in the right position to make the play, but it was coach LeBeau who put me there.”
Sounds like Gay was just being humble, which he was, but there also is a good measure of truth I what he said, according to Ryan Clark, who tried to take the blame from Gay a week earlier.
“When you are just playing the coverage, all that means is you’re not getting beat deep,” Clark said. “When you jump the route like Willie did, that’s what you’re supposed to do in that particular coverage.”
That Gay made the play is further proof that he is having his finest season as a pro, even if the fans perhaps don’t appreciate it. Gay has grown into a dependable cornerback nobody outside the organization thought he could become.
Of course, the Bengals tried picking on Gay the whole game. That’s how he ended up with four passes defended and three tackles, along with his heroic interception.
“That’s football,” Gay said. “We are all trained to just play within the system. We did that pretty well today.”
He teamed up with Lawrence Timmons to get the defense’s first turnover of the game. He batted a pass away from a receiver and it went right to Timmons, who tucked away the interception.
Those two turnovers give Pittsburgh’s defense a grand total of six on the season, which is one fewer than the offense gave up in the season opener. But the Steelers still are 7-3 as they head into their bye week.
“They say turnovers come in bunches,” linebacker James Farrior said. “It was good to get those two today. Those were two key plays. They helped us win the game.
“I’m especially proud of Willie Gay after the abuse he took last week from the media and some of our fans. He made the game-winning play this week.”
Whether he’s willing to accept the glory or not.
Sports editor Mike Ciarochi may be reached at mciarochi@heraldstandard.com.