Friday, October 10, 2003

By Gerry Dulac, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

LOOKING AHEAD

Steelers vs. Broncos, 4:15 p.m. Sunday, Invesco Field at Mile High Stadium, Denver. TV: KDKA. Radio: WDVE-FM (102.5), WBGG-AM (970) and Steelers Radio Network.

NOTEBOOK

Already hurting on the offensive line, the Steelers had another setback when RT Todd Fordham was added to the injury list with a strained back. Fordham, who is listed as probable, did not practice yesterday, forcing the team to consider more juggling for Sunday's game in Denver. If Fordham can't play, Oliver Ross would move to right tackle and Mathias Nkwenti, a fourth-round pick in 2001 who has never appeared in an NFL game, would start at left tackle. Nkwenti, who left practice Wednesday with back spasms, also was added to the injury list as probable. However, he returned to practice yesterday, eager to get his first action. "I think three years is a lot to sit down," Nkwenti said. "After a while, you want to feel useful. You want to play. I do love the game." Nkwenti did not dress for a game in 2002 and was active just one his rookie season, a November game against Baltimore when LT Wayne Gandy was injured. He was active for only the second time two weeks ago against Tennessee when LT Marvel Smith did not play because of a pinched nerve in his shoulder. Smith, who played for one series in Sunday night's loss to the Cleveland Browns, will not play against the Broncos. "You want to contribute," Nkwenti said. "You want to feel tired at the end of the day. You get used to playing in the preseason and you miss it." Coach Bill Cowher said Nkwenti will not be tried at right tackle because he's accustomed to playing the left side. "That's a coach's observation," Nkwenti said. "As a player, you want to be versatile. I can play right tackle."

TE Jay Riemersma, who has a rotator-cuff contusion, practiced for the second day in a row and said he is hoping to play against the Broncos. "At first I couldn't get my arm above my head," said Riemersma, who did not play against the Browns. "But that's all gone. Now I'm getting the strength back in there."

OLB Jason Gildon and TE Mark Bruener are the only players who were around in 1995 when the Steelers were whipped by the Cincinnati Bengals, 27-9, on a Thursday night nationally televised game to drop to 3-4. The Steelers came back to win eight consecutive games and ended up in the Super Bowl. "I remember that game vividly," Gildon said. "It was a Thursday night game and they lit the scoreboard up on us." The situation is similar to this season, especially after the way the Steelers were embarrassed by the Cleveland Browns in a Sunday night nationally televised game. "You definitely have to keep working hard," said Gildon, a third-round pick in 1994. "You just can't find yourself in situations where you think, it doesn't matter, we're out of it, I'm not going to go out and work as hard. You have to keep plugging away. It's a long season and strange things can happen."

When LB Clark Haggans was called offside on a kickoff against the Browns, forcing Jeff Reed to kick again, the penalty proved to be costly to the Steelers. Andre Davis returned the second kick 69 yards to the Steelers' 23, setting up a touchdown that gave the Browns a 23-10 lead and turning the momentum. "That's hard when you have to kick again," Reed said, "especially when you pinned them down there the first time. It's hard to regroup and get everyone ready again because they focused their energy on stopping them the first time." The Baltimore Ravens know all about that. They had to re-kick to Kansas City's Dante Hall two weeks ago and he returned the second chance 97 yards for a touchdown

Despite not playing last week, Ravens RB Jamal Lewis leads the NFL in rushing with 611 yards -- 196 more than the Steelers have managed as a team. Once the league's No. 1 rushing attack, the Steelers have dropped to 26th in the NFL, averaging a meager 83 yards per game. QB Tommy Maddox acknowledged the problem but said the deficiency is being exaggerated because of the Steelers' history for running the ball. "The focus is there," Maddox said. "If we were another team running it the way we're running it, it probably wouldn't be as big a deal. Sometimes we can make too big a deal out of it."

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