Roethlisberger, Steelers look to right listing ship
Ben Roethlisberger doesn’t see anything wrong with Pittsburgh’s offense on Wednesdays and Thursdays. It’s the Sundays and Mondays that are the problem.
Roethlisberger, who went through his rookie regular season without losing a game two years ago, suddenly finds himself unable to win.
The Steelers are 0-3 when he starts, a slump that has touched off debate about what’s wrong with the quarterback who came into this season with a 27-4 record, a Super Bowl championship and the two highest single-season passer ratings in team history.
Lingering effects of his June motorcycle crash? His Sept. 3 appendectomy? A sore elbow? Or merely the Super Bowl hangover that has seen a number of teams and players perform at a much lower level the season after they reach the NFL’s biggest game?
“I feel great,” Roethlisberger said Wednesday as the Steelers (1-3) began preparing for Sunday’s home game against Kansas City (2-2). “I forget all about the accident and the appendectomy until I talk to you guys (the media) every week. You guys are the ones who bring it up. I feel healthy.”
He can’t say the same thing about a Steelers offense that has been unable to sustain drives, turns the ball over consistently and seems unable to build on the success it has early in games. The Steelers have been in position to win each of their four games, but haven’t won since their Sept. 7 opener against Miami.
Owens shows frustration
Terrell Owens screamed it on the sideline against Philadelphia, in the locker room after a loss and repeated it again: “Why am I here?”
The volatile receiver admits he’s frustrated with his role on the Dallas Cowboys, but not simply because he’s off to his worst start in years. According to Owens, he’d be fine if Dallas was winning and he had mediocre statistics.
“I do have a problem when I don’t feel like I’m involved enough,” he said. “I know I can make a difference. That’s not me being arrogant. I just know what I bring to the table. … I want to win. I came here to help this team win.”
Benson breaks through
It’s not a bad time for the Chicago Bears. They’re 5-0 for the first time since 1986, when they won their first six. And the nation will get another chance to acquaint itself with the NFC’s only undefeated team when Chicago visits Arizona for a Monday night game.
Cedric Benson can’t help but look ahead.
A four-year starter at Texas, he finished sixth on the NCAA’s and second on the Longhorns’ all-time rushing lists with 5,540 yards. Benson was the fifth back in NCAA history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in each of his four seasons, and his 64 touchdown runs ranked third.
While the Bears passing game soared, the ground attack stalled the first few weeks this season.
Now, the running game seems to be in gear.
Thomas Jones rushed for a season-high 109 yards last week against Buffalo after gaining 98 against Seattle, and Benson carried 14 times for 48 yards and scored his first two NFL touchdowns.
“I’ll probably never really get in a groove, unless I get into the starting role,” Benson said. “But I’m going to try hard to find it.”
Around the league
Carolina linebacker Dan Morgan will miss the rest of the season as he struggles to recover from at least the fifth concussion of his career. … Two-time MVP Peyton Manning missed the first regular-season practice of his nine-year career so he could attend his grandmother’s funeral in Mississippi. … San Diego linebacker Steve Foley was charged with drunken driving stemming from a confrontation last month with an off-duty Coronado police officer that resulted in Foley being shot three times. … Denver Broncos defensive end and former No. 1 overall pick Courtney Brown, whose career has been plagued by injuries, will miss the rest of the season and undergo another operation on his troublesome left knee.