Chiefs Get Upstaged at Home by Unsung Steelers in 20-13 Loss

Jerome Bettis and Kordell Stewart did what they’re expected to do in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 20-13 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday night. But unsung players such as Lance Brown, Fred McAfee, Hines Ward and Josh Miller also helped to determine the outcome.

Bettis ran for 119 yards in 33 carries and Stewart threw a five-yard touchdown pass to Charles Johnson with 10:05 left in the game for the decisive score.

But as the Steelers annually replace free-agent defectors with little-known players who become all-pro caliber, they also get key contributions from reserves and special-team players.

The special-team players made their impact on the first possession for the Chiefs, who had an 11-game home win streak.

After Miller’s 47-yard punt on was downed on the Kansas City one-yard line, Brown blocked a punt that McAfee fell on for a touchdown.

“That’s the special teams opportunity of a lifetime to cover a ball in the end zone,” said McAfee, a 30-year-old reserve running back who also had 36 yards rushing in a late first-half drive that resulted in a Norm Johnson field goal.

Ward, a running back/wide receiver/quarterback at Georgia acted like the new “Slash” by taking a handoff from Stewart, the old “Slash,” and throwing back to him for a 17-yard gain in a third-quarter drive that led to Johnson’s second field goal.

The victory lifted Pittsburgh (5-2) into a tie with Jacksonville for first place in the AFC Central, while Kansas City (4-3) fell three games behind Denver and a game behind Oakland in the AFC West.

“We’ve taken a lot of criticism and a lot of it is just,” said Steeler Coach Bill Cowher, whose team scored as many as 20 points for only the third time this season. “I think this team has a closeness to it but we’re not going to play pretty games.”

Neither did the Chiefs.

“Pittsburgh played well, but the outcome of the game was the result of our mistakes,” said Chief Coach Marty Schottenheimer.

In the first quarter, Tony Richardson fell near the goal line as Elvis Grbac threw what appeared to be a touchdown pass and the Chiefs had to settle for a 20-yard field goal by Pete Stoyanovich.

On the opening kickoff of the second half, Ted Popson was called for holding on what would have been a 95-yard return for a touchdown by Joe Horn.

But the biggest mistake was the first, the blocked punt. Aguiar, who had never had a punt blocked in 587 previous attempts as a pro, didn’t have a chance. Brown broke through and McAfee fell on it among a swarm of Steelers to give Pittsburgh a 7-0 lead less than five minutes into the game.