Bengals rally past Steelers
The Associated PressCINCINNATI - Sam Cooke's song "A Change is Gonna Come" played on a continuous loop in the Cincinnati Bengals' locker room, providing the musical score for a groundbreaking win.
In five frenetic minutes, the Bengals earned some legitimacy and won back their town.
Carson Palmer's 4-yard touchdown pass to Andre Caldwell with 14 seconds left provided a 23-20 win Sunday that ended the Pittsburgh Steelers' nearly decade-long domination in Cincinnati, one that appeared set to go on indefinitely until the final drive.
"Priceless," offensive lineman Bobbie Williams said. "The past is the past. This is a new team and a new day."
For once, it was their day.
Pittsburgh (1-2) had won its last eight games on Cincinnati's home field. The last time the Bengals beat them at Paul Brown Stadium was 2001, when Chad Ochocinco was a rookie who rarely started and still went by the name of Johnson.
Ochocinco doesn't remember much from that long-ago game. The Bengals (2-1) won't soon forget this one.
The defending Super Bowl champs dominated most of the game but wasted chances to put the Bengals away. Jeff Reed missed another field goal, and Limas Sweed dropped a pass in the end zone, keeping it close to the end.
"If we score touchdowns in the first half, it's not even a game," Steelers receiver Hines Ward said. "It's 24-0 or 24-3. It's not very good. You've got to put up seven points instead of 3s. That's how you finish a team off."
Instead, the Bengals finished them off.
Palmer led the Bengals on a 16-play, 71-yard drive against one of the league's best defenses, repeatedly converting there-or-else throws. His 11-yarder to running back Brian Leonard on fourth-and-10 moved the ball to the 4. After a spike to stop the clock, Palmer found Caldwell open in the middle of the end zone.
"We've got a quarterback who's comfortable at those points in the game," coach Marvin Lewis said. "He's got a calm about him."
It was reminiscent of Palmer's long touchdown drive at the end of the season opener against Denver, which the Broncos then salvaged with a tipped, 87-yard touchdown catch. This time, there would be no weirdness.
Ben Roethlisberger's final, frantic heave was knocked down, giving the Bengals a game they viewed as a chance to prove that they can contend in the AFC North.
"It's huge," defensive lineman Tank Johnson said. "This team is a very good football team. If we eliminate the immature mistakes, the sky is the limit."
Beating the Steelers at home was no small thing. Thousands of Steelers fans were sprinkled throughout the crowd of 64,538, waving their yellow towels almost nonstop as Pittsburgh dominated but repeatedly failed to take advantage of scoring chances.
And, in the end, the defense failed to make a play to finish off the Bengals, reminiscent of the way Pittsburgh missed two second-half field goals in Chicago, then let the Bears pull out a 17-14 win on a field goal with 15 seconds left.
"We strive to be a great defense and make those plays," defensive end Brett Keisel said. "If we don't start making them, it's going to be a long year."
When Roethlisberger and Santonio Holmes had a miscommunication on the third play of the second half - the quarterback made a quick throw, the receiver kept going - cornerback Johnathan Joseph intercepted and ran 30 yards for a touchdown that made it a game.
Roethlisberger was 22 of 31 for 276 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown pass to Willie Parker and a 1-yard scoring sneak. He was sacked near midfield on a third-down play as Pittsburgh tried to protect a 20-15 lead, giving the Bengals one last chance with 5:14 to play.
All they needed.
"Indescribable," said Palmer, who was 20 of 37 for 183 yards. "The fans wanted it as much as we did, and it felt great to see those hands go up signaling a touchdown and hear them roar."
The Steelers hadn't started 1-2 since 2006, the last time they were coming off a Super Bowl win. They opened 1-3 that season and finished 8-8, missing out on the playoffs. With two straight last-minute losses, the Steelers are again finding out how tough it is to be a defending champ.
"We feel like we beat ourselves," Roethlisberger said.
NOTES: It was Roethlisberger's first loss as a Steelers QB in his native state of Ohio. He had been 11-0 in Cleveland and Cincinnati. ... Ward became the first Steeler to have 10,000 yards in catches during his career. ... Steelers rookie WR Mike Wallace had seven catches for a career-high 102 yards. ... Bengals rookie LB Rey Maualuga was carted off the field with a left knee injury in the second half, but returned to the field a series later.
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09-29-09 8:51 AM
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BLOGSNIPER..99% 0F YOUR 97% LOSE THEIR MILLIONS IN ALIMONEY COURT. THEY MADE THE MISTAKE OF THINKING THESE BEAUTIFUL BLONDE CAMP FOLLOWERS MARRIED THEM FOR THEIR BRAINS
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gordon65
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09-28-09 11:41 PM
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This is suppose to be "Central Pa" NOT Pittsburgh Central!!! I agree that the Mirror and TV10 show favoritism toward Steelers & Pirates when we have the Eagles and the Phillies (both of which I am fans,esp Phillies) there's no doubt there are more PBurgh fans in our area but when the Phillies paved their way to and WON the World Series it was merely a blip on the local media's radar! The Pirates haven't had and will not have(for quite some time) a viable run at a Pennant & yet the Phillies coverage is non-existent around here! I'm not saying to NOT root for your favorite team but at least be adult enuf to recognize other GREAT teams right here in our own State!!! Trash-mouthing & politicizing sports teams (and their fans) is juvenile & stupid! But let's face it-the average "sports" fan around here knows 5 things about sports:Steelers,Pirates,Penguins,Pitt,&Penn State. When actually quizzed about sports as a whole they usually come up short on kn
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PizaDude
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09-28-09 11:29 PM
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Hey mocus and the others whats the Steelers record....yea that's what I thought
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85counts
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09-28-09 4:24 PM
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IT NEVER CEASES TO AMAZE ME HOW GROWN ADULTS CAN BE SO CONCERNED OVER THE OUTCOME OF A SPORTING EVENT. HOW THE AVERAGE MAN, WITH THE PROBLEMS OF EVERY DAY LIVING, CAN GIVE A****ABOUT THE REDICULOUS PROBLEMS OF MILLIONAIRES AND IN MANY CASES MULTI-MILLIONAIRES. IT IS THE VERY LEAST OF MY CONCERNS.
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KMadak
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09-28-09 3:23 PM
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Mocus, I have never agreed with you about anything up until this point.
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mocus1
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09-28-09 1:00 PM
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Hey Pizzaface, if you want to read about the Eagles, why don't you read the Philthydelphia Inquirer? Yer right, we dont' give a rat's rear end about Philthy, it's crime or it's corrupt Democrat political machine. Just take it all away please. Inquiring minds want to kow.
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TheWizardOfOZ
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09-28-09 9:34 AM
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Steelers has caught the Post Super Bowl Flu, just like the last time....
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Aces20
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09-28-09 7:38 AM
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The search for Limas Sweed's hands continue. That guy couldn't catch a cold during flu season.
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PizaDude
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09-28-09 5:24 AM
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Not all Pa teams did bad!!!!!! How about them EAGLES!!!!! Oh that's right, the mirror like channel 10 could care less about any team from Philly. Like the Phillie's, they will keep talking about the Pirates until the end and they are over 100 loses band the Phillie's are still playing and nothing will be said about them!!!
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