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The haunting Up-and-coming Steelers shaking off hangover effectPosted: Thursday July 25, 2002 10:04 AM
LATROBE, Pa. -- The weather in the picturesque Laurel Highlands couldn't have been better for the first day of the Pittsburgh Steelers training camp at St. Vincent College. The mild temperatures and low humidity ushered in by Tuesday afternoon's thunderstorm combined to leave Wednesday's skies brilliantly clear and blue. It's a good thing, too, because I have a feeling that if ever a football team was susceptible to the haze of a hangover effect in 2002, it would be these Steelers. Almost six months ago to the day, the Steelers' glorious 2001 season ended in ignominy: a 24-17 upset home loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game, aborting Pittsburgh's presumed Super Bowl run. It's still hard to fathom. Remember? New England's plucky Patriots scored 14 of their points on two huge special-teams collapses by the Steelers, stunning a Pittsburgh team that had entered the game at 14-3, with just one home loss all season. The Steelers sure remember. Like it was yesterday. "Guys definitely haven't forgotten about it," Steelers cornerback Dewayne Washington said Wednesday, moments after reporting to St. Vincent. "I think we're still dealing with it. We were a very, very confident team last year, and in some ways I think we might have taken that team [the Patriots] for granted. "But they came out and played great football that day. They beat us. We've got to wipe the slate clean and start over, but it's something that will always be in the back of your mind this year. If we get that opportunity again, we've got to be able to seize it. No matter who the team is." Plenty of folks seem to think that Pittsburgh will do just that. If there's a consensus AFC Super Bowl favorite at this point, the still-young-and-hungry Steelers would be it. Pittsburgh returns 19 of its 22 starters from a year ago, didn't lose anybody more significant than linebacker Earl Holmes, and has a schedule so soft in its final 14 games that it ought to be investigated by the league. Which all would be very encouraging were it not for one other little detail: Great expectations will get you nowhere in today's NFL. St. Louis, Baltimore and New England won the past three Super Bowls without being burdened by them. Meanwhile, in recent years, presumed Super Bowl contenders like Tampa Bay, Miami, Minnesota, Indianapolis, Oakland and Washington have fallen considerably short of their hype. Talk to a few Steelers for longer than 30 seconds this preseason and you'll discover that the loss to the Patriots is like the pink elephant in the room. It's impossible to ignore. How they deal with it will make all the difference. Will it be the uplifting motivation, or just add to the crushing weight of expectation? Jerome Bettis is the Steelers veteran whom I trust the most. His judgment is usually sound, and more often than not he has just the right handle on the situation in Pittsburgh. If Bettis is cautious, it's probably time to be cautious. If Bettis is confident, start making those reservations for San Diego. On Wednesday, arriving for his 10th NFL training camp, Bettis sounded a little of both. "We know we have the pieces in place," Bettis said. "That's evident. You look at last year, with us being a game away. So we know that. The question going into this camp is can we create that same chemistry? Can everybody play at that same level that we played last year? Can we be that same football team? In this business, that's the hardest thing to do." There is one very piece of encouraging history to cling to if you're a Steelers fan. In 1994, the Bill Cowher-led Steelers also looked like they were going to the Super Bowl. They went 12-4, lost just once at home, and hosted the AFC title game against an upstart team that nobody gave much chance of winning. But San Diego did win that day, narrowly, and in the process deflated the entire city of Pittsburgh. And the next year? The Steelers hitched up their belts, went back to work, and again won the right to host the AFC Championship. This time, Pittsburgh finished the job, beat the upstart Colts, and went on to face Dallas in Super Bowl XXX. The Steelers lost, but it's still the high water mark of Cowher's 11-year tenure. That's why I think it's a good thing if the Steelers this year are haunted by the loss to New England. I say use it for all it's worth, making something positive out a mind-numbing negative. Still shocked by how one or two plays can trash an entire season and turn a success story sour? Then vow to never again let it come down to a blocked field goal and a punt return. "I couldn't watch that game film until we came back to minicamp after the draft," Steelers linebacker Jason Gildon said. "It was painful, because we watched the defensive cut-ups, and there was no special teams in there. You watched that and said, 'I can't believe we lost this game.' "We did enough to win that game offensively and defensively, but two out of three phases aren't good enough, not when you're playing for a championship. I think if we can keep that in mind, we'll handle it different and come out on top if we're ever in that situation again." Another Steeler who found the football viewing distasteful in light of Jan. 27 was receiver Hines Ward. Don't ask Ward who won Super Bowl XXXVI. He still doesn't know. Or at least he doesn't care. "Oh, I didn't even watch it," Ward said. "I was just sick. Nobody wanted to watch it around here. I was so disgusted. I didn't want the Patriots or the Rams to win. I felt like we were the better team, but we just didn't go out and prove it. We were one game short. Starting today in training camp, I'm going to be working on all those what-ifs that I thought of all offseason." Even the venerable Dan Rooney, the Steelers owner who has seen decades worth of the highs and lows that professional football can offer, shook his head Wednesday and admitted that the loss to the Patriots was a blind-side hit to all who bleed black and gold. "It was tough," Rooney said. "It was one of the toughest games ever for us. Our players really felt badly. Maybe we were overconfident, I don't know. ... But it was hard, because we thought we were going to make it. We've come back from something like this before, so let's hope that's the way it goes again. "I think this team is committed to that. They talk about having a window of opportunity. We think with team being as young as it is, that the opportunity should be there for a while." The Steelers, of course, won't have to wait too long for an opportunity to gain partial revenge. On Monday night, Sept. 9, Pittsburgh will help christen New England's CMGI Stadium in a game that might draw the first-ever 100 percent TV rating in greater Western Pennsylvania. Care to be the Steelers' new special teams coach in that one? "That's all we've thought about since the schedule came out, playing them on Monday night," Ward said. "That's why I'm here at camp now, that Monday night game. Losing that game hurt. But now we just want to get back there. Starting off with us and them on Monday night? That's classic. That's art." The Steelers have to start their long road back somewhere. It might as well be in New England, against the team that ended their journey last year.
Don Banks covers pro football for CNNSI.com.
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