Win Is in the Refrigerator for Steelers

On a day when quarterback Ben Roethlisberger finally looked like a rookie, the Pittsburgh Steelers got some much-needed help from a seasoned veteran:

Old Man Winter.

If not for a frigid breeze blowing into the face of New York Jet kicker Doug Brien, the Steelers might have been gone with the wind Saturday. Instead, they’ll be playing host to the AFC championship game for the fifth time in 11 years, thanks to a 20-17 overtime victory in a divisional playoff game.

Brien missed two field-goal attempts in the final 2 minutes 2 seconds of regulation, allowing Pittsburgh’s Jeff Reed to clinch the victory with a 33-yarder on the Steelers’ only overtime possession.

Reed knows well the perils of kicking in his home stadium, where fickle winds can push the ball in unexpected directions. Visiting kickers have made only 19 of 43 attempts from 40 yards or longer -- a woeful 44.2% -- in the four-year history of Heinz Field. Brien’s misses came from 47 and 43 yards. Meanwhile, Reed has made 14 of 19 at home from that distance. He credits part of his success to an understanding of the local meteorology.

“I live on the Weather Channel the day before the game because it changes like crazy here, especially this time of year,” said Reed, whose game-winner came with the wind at his back. “It was 75 for Thursday’s practice, I was sweating, the ball was flying. Then I come out here today and it’s ... rather cold.”

The 28-degree weather was no colder than Roethlisberger, whose two worst days as a pro have come against the Jets. He completed 17 of 30 passes for 181 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. It was only a slightly better showing than his performance against the Jets a month earlier, when he finished with a season-low passer rating of 33.6.

“I came out pretty calm and relaxed,” said Roethlisberger, who is 14-0 as a starting NFL quarterback. “I approached it like another game. We couldn’t afford to lose, just like during the whole season, we always felt that way. Maybe I need to feel a little more stressed and nervous for next week.”

There were rumors that Roethlisberger was hampered by soreness in the thumb of his throwing hand. He was vague when asked if there was any truth to that, saying, “I’m not going to use any excuses. I’m fine.”

He might not have liked every decision the rookie made, but Steeler Coach Bill Cowher was pleased with the way Roethlisberger hung tough when things weren’t going smoothly.

“He’s unflappable,” Cowher said. “He’s going to continue to grow and continue to learn. I just kind of like the look in his eyes, even when the game was on the line and he threw the interception. You had a sense that he is a very focused quarterback.”

Neither of New York’s touchdowns was scored on the Steeler defense. The first came when Santana Moss returned a punt 75 yards, and the second was on an 86-yard interception return by Reggie Tongue. Pittsburgh’s defense was typically stout, surrendering only a 42-yard field goal by Brien in the second quarter.

“We’re not the No. 1 defense by fluke,” linebacker Joey Porter said. “There’s a reason we’re the No. 1 defense.”

Pittsburgh’s offense wasn’t entirely on the fritz. Hines Ward caught 10 passes for 105 yards with a touchdown. Jerome Bettis rushed for 101 yards in 27 carries, and Duce Staley chipped in with 54 yards in 11 carries.

“I’m just happy that Coach had faith in me,” said Staley, who sat out much of the season because of a hamstring injury. “I’m thankful that he gave me the ball as many times as he did. It’s hard to stop Jerome and me when we’re rolling.”

The most important thing, Porter said, was the way the Steelers reacted to adversity. Saturday marked the first time in six home games that Pittsburgh had to play from behind.

“We were tested today, the worst test you can have,” Porter said. “We were tested to see if we were going to fold, point fingers. Teams in the past, we’ve had guys blow up on the sideline when stuff isn’t going good. It’s not like that now. Pat a guy on the back, because we’re going to need him when we go out on the next series. That’s all we can do is keep patting him on the back.”

No amount of back-patting would have soothed Brien, whose 47-yard attempt bounced off the crossbar with 1:58 to play in regulation, and whose 43-yarder sailed wide left on the final play before overtime.

A pack of reporters at least five deep crowded around Brien’s locker after the game. He stood with wet eyes, his baseball cap pulled low, softly fielding questions for about five minutes and groping for answers.

“This is going to be hard,” he said. “It’ll take a while to get over.”

The ending was poetic for the Jets, whose loss followed the same story line as their upset victory at San Diego a week earlier. In the first-round game, Charger Coach Marty Schottenheimer took the heat for getting too conservative in overtime and therefore putting his kicker in a tough spot. This time, it was Jet Coach Herman Edwards who got conservative, and it was Brien who missed.

Edwards was asked whether the end of the Charger game ran through his mind in crunch time against the Steelers.

“No, not at all,” said Edwards, whose team finished the season with three consecutive overtime games on the road. “It was a different game, different incident as far as I’m concerned. We had opportunities to win the game and we did not do it.”

That’s OK with the Steelers, who came perilously close to seeing their dream season end. One by one, they pulled on their heavy coats, slung bags over their shoulders and headed out into the cold. The glorious cold.

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Head linesman John McGrath pulled a hamstring while trying to keep up with Moss’ second-quarter touchdown return and had to leave the game. McGrath was taken to a locker room for treatment, and was replaced by backup official John Schelyer.

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First-Strike Capability

Since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970, four rookie quarterbacks have led their teams to victory in their first playoff game: