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Wednesday, December 25, 2002

By Ed Bouchette, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

Ravens (7-8) vs. Steelers (9-5-1), 1 p.m., Sunday, Heinz Field. TV: KDKA. Radio: WBGG-AM (970), WDVE-FM (102.5) and the Steelers Radio Network. The Steelers still have a chance to gain a bye in the playoffs, but they need a victory to keep that hope alive.

CB Chad Scott had surgery yesterday to repair his broken right hand and will not play in the regular-season finale Sunday against Baltimore at Heinz Field. Coach Bill Cowher said he is "cautiously optimistic" Scott will be ready for a playoff game if the Steelers must play in the first round the first weekend in January. Deshea Townsend will replace Scott in the starting lineup, and Hank Poteat will play in the dime defense. Cowher said they resisted the urge to claim Deion Sanders on waivers from Washington.

QB Tommy Maddox will be listed as questionable with a sprained ankle that was injured when Tampa Bay DT Warren Sapp rolled into him after he threw a pass in the second quarter. Sapp was penalized for roughing the passer on the play, although it appeared a teammate had inadvertently bumped him into Maddox.

"Just looking at it this morning from one angle, it looked pretty much like it wasn't something, from the other you couldn't tell," Cowher said. "A flag was thrown, so there was some question to the intent. I saw Warren say something to him afterwards, on the next play or something. He has not had a history of being that type of player. I would like to think it was just a coincidental thing that took place."

LB James Farrior (shoulder) and S Mike Logan (back) also will be listed as questionable this week.

Bill Cowher gave the Steelers a true Christmas present -- the day off today. It's the first time he could remember giving his players off Wednesday before a game. His original plan was to have his players report at 10 a.m. today, but after they beat the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay, 17-7, Monday night, he opted to give them the entire day off.

"I don't know if I have ever done that," Cowher said. It was not premeditated if they won, he said. "No, given the game and how it unfolded, and how it was played, I said, 'Let's come in Thursday.' They earned it. They need a couple days off ... get all the emotion and enjoy what you have accomplished and let's come back Thursday with a clear mind. It will be a short week. Come back ready to work. We will be ready to play on Sunday. They earned that, and I know they appreciated it. It is a long year. Maybe coaches can spend Christmas, and Christmas Eve with their families. It will not distract us. We will be fine come Sunday, trust me."

It was easier to give the players the day off, he said, because they are playing Baltimore. "That was a big part of it, that we are playing an opponent we know. It is a divisional opponent, and we know they are going to be ready to come in here. We are not underestimating them at all. But we know them. They know us. It was a long night. It was an emotional night. It was a very physical football game. I just felt that they needed to get two days off. They needed to get away from it for a while so they can come back here Thursday on a short week. We have to get ourselves prepared to play a game with a lot at stake."

That gave some players, such as Lee Flowers, an extra day at home. Flowers planned to fly home to Atlanta to visit his wife and family yesterday morning and return to Pittsburgh last night. With the extra time, he was able to stay until today. The same thing was true for Hines Ward, who planned to fly to Atlanta to visit his mother.

Ward and the rest of the wide receivers adopted a family and donated all their fine money accumulated through the season to buy them Christmas presents. "It lets them have a Merry Christmas," Ward said.

In past years, the Steelers have played many times on the road on Christmas Eve -- at San Diego in 2000, at Green Bay in 1995, at San Diego in '94 and at Tampa in '89.

G Kendall Simmons was fined $5,000 by the league for leg-whipping against the Houston Texans. However he's doing it, he's getting the job done. Simmons neutralized Pro Bowl DT Warren Sapp all night on Monday. Sapp had one tackle.

Offensive linemen Oliver Ross and Chukky Okobi were the culprits who picked up an orange Gatorade bucket and spilled its contents of water onto Cowher's back in the waning seconds of the game Monday night. Cowher could not remember the last time that happened to him on the Steelers' sideline, but it did happen at least once -- in his first game as their coach. The Steelers upset the Oilers in Houston, and he was doused with water on that day, too.

The Steelers rank fifth on offense and fifth overall on defense in the NFL. They are the No. 1 defense against the rush. ... The Steelers are only 4-6 in regular-season finales under Cowher, but are 3-1 at home and have won their past two.