Steel City Jim

The so-called "trap game" came and went. The concern in these parts was that the Bengals might come in here and catch the Steelers unprepared and beat them. There was a temporary cause for this anxiety as the Bengals took the opening kickoff and marched 69 yards for a touchdown. They even made it look easy, although I thought some of their completed passed looked like rainbows. But it turned out that that TD was the only scoring the Bengals would accomplish, while the Steelers put 23 unanswered points on the board.

The Steelers ran up and down the field for the rest of the game, but the offense couldn't score a touchdown. Their drives were constantly hampered by penalties, mostly holding. But they were able to get far enough downfield to allow Suisham to kick field goals, three in all. But what a show the defense put on, and particularly Troy Polamalu who intercepted two Carson Palmer passes, one for a TD. (Palmer and Polamalu were roommates at USC.) LaMarr Woodley also made a pick six. And Benson, the Bengal featured runner, who predicted a 100-yard game, gained a total of 19 yards on 8 carries. In total, the Bengals gained 34 yards on the ground for the afternoon's efforts.

Some observations:

1. Randle El has become the forgotten man. He was bought back to be the No. 3 receiver behind Ward and Wallace, but two rookies, Sanders and Brown, have made so much progress that Randle El has become the fifth receiver. He hardly gets a hat anymore. But on Sunday, subbing for the temporarily injured Sanders, Randle El made a leaping, one-handed catch that will make the highlight film.

2. What can you say about Ben? With one foot and a busted nose, he sported a clear shield on his helmet designed to prevent further damage to his nose. (The surgeon who put his nose back in place last Monday said it looked like corn flakes.) But with the rain beating down the whole game, the water on the shield (no windshield wipers) blurred Ben's vision. So, he threw away the shield at halftime, exposing his nose, and had a good half.

3. The hue and cry around here revolves around officiating. It seems that all Steeler defenders have to do is touch an opposing quarterback and the refs are reaching for their flags. But on four separate occasions Sunday, Ben was roughed up and there were no flags. The refs seem to have no regards for Ben's safety. Last week in Baltimore, the guy who redirected his nose was fined thousands of dollars, but there was no flag on this flagrant infraction. The Steelers suffered at least three holding calls Sunday. Two were on successive plays. But the Bengals weren't flagged once for holding. Tape shows that Harrison was held on practically every play, and one guy tackled Woodley from behind, which even I saw on TV. No flag.

4. Interestingly, in the pre-game show on CBS, someone asked who might get Albert Haynesworth next year. Bill Cowher replied that if were coaching, he wouldn't touch Haynesworth. This is a statement he made after some experience with disruptive players he has had to deal with in the past. Plaxico Burress comes to mind, as do Joey Porter and Santonio Holmes. Cowher put up with Burress as long as he could and sent him packing. Porter's mouth and behavior got him into trouble. As effective as he was, the Steelers let him go as well. Finally, Tomlin got rid of Holmes at the end of last year. Remember, Holmes' catch won Super Bowl 43. You simply can't have malcontents and bad actors on your football team. I think that successful franchises just don't put up with this type of player. Belichick sent Moss packing this season. Football is arguably the ultimate team sport, and when you have these type of distractive players, you must get rid of them. Some people do turn themselves around. Michael Vick seems like a prime example. Ben, too, seems like a different guy since his off-season antics and subsequent suspension.

5. I was thinking of the above while watching the hapless Bengals. With Ochocinco and TO vying for attention, the team concept takes a back seat. One commentator stated that with these guys crying all the time, they get an inordinate number of passes. Opposing teams know this and load up against them. This could have led to some of the Steeler interceptions Sunday. Palmer keeps throwing to them instead of spreading the ball around, the secret to other teams' success.

6. How could the Lions have beaten the Packers? And the Dolphins defeated the vaunted Jets? I know that if Holmes had held on to the ball in the end zone, the Jets would have pulled it out. But what about the rest of the game? Where were the Jets? The Bills beat the Browns. I didn't see that coming. Yes, I know the Browns fumbled five times. You can't win when you fumble five times. But give a little credit to Chan Gailey. He's a fine coach. Boy, did the Chargers undress the Chiefs. Shut 'em out. How did that happen?

7. So much for pre-season rankings. Pitt was ranked No. 3. Tennessee killed the Panthers ... at home yet! Tennessee is a great team, but are Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia, Connecticut and the other Big East teams chopped liver? Pitt better regroup ... and fast. There aren't any more Riders on their schedule.

8. The Penguins' streak continues ... now at 12. They play the Flyers on Tuesday night. That will be a barn burner.

9. The Pirates signed some free agents. I think I've figured them out. They sign these guys for a year hoping that one or more will have a sensational first half. Then, they trade them to a contender for some younger guys. This happened last year when Octavio Doctel did very well and the Dodgers coveted him enough to send MacDonald to the Pirates. MacDonald did very well and figures mightily in their future plans. So, the signing of Dotel resulted in MacDonald and therein lies the plan. It's OK if it works. Most for their free agent signings have been duds, however.

10. Hey, maybe the Yankees won't get Lee after all. Wouldn't that be wonderful. Maybe, for a change, and for some dollars as well, Lee will stay in Texas, depriving the Yankees of their superstar signing for this off-season. Meanwhile, the Red Sox signed two apparent All-Stars, putting them in the driver's seat, at least while the snow flies. But pity the poor Oriole fans. Here comes another season with nary a chance. Baseball sucks, right, Oriole fans?