National Football League

Steelers put aside troubles, fines to start 6-2

Published Nov. 9, 2010 10:59 p.m. ET

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Ben Roethlisberger is playing with the erraticism of a quarterback who's missed half the season. No lead is truly safe in the fourth quarter, just like last season. Two games were decided in the final few seconds, another in overtime.

The Pittsburgh Steelers can't seem to do it the easy way, can't seem to stay out of trouble. One minute they're scary good, the next they're scaring their fans by threatening to give away a 20-point lead in less than a quarter's time.

Roethlisberger was summoned to Commissioner Roger Goodell's office during the offseason for his misbehavior. James Harrison, the NFL leader in fines, was ordered there last week for all of his dangerous hits. Star safety Troy Polamalu is railing against the league's punishment system and suggests Goodell's powers need to be usurped.

Somehow, despite enough disruptions and fourth-quarter failures to derail even the most experienced and accomplished of teams, the Steelers keep chugging along. A franchise that has averaged nearly 11 regular-season victories per season since Roethlisberger arrived in 2004 keeps doing what it always seems to do.

The Steelers arrived at midseason with the same 6-2 record they've had during each of coach Mike Tomlin's four seasons, and five of the last six seasons. They also possess the confident air of a team that cares nothing about style points as long as they're atop the standings, and a Super Bowl run remains possible.

''We're far from perfect, but we're 6-2,'' Tomlin said.

A season that began with nervous uncertainty due to Roethlisberger's four-game suspension is settling into a familiar scenario. The Steelers, as usual, are among a handful of AFC teams that believe they can play into February.

''We find ways to win games,'' Roethlisberger said. ''That's what makes this team special in all phases. When one fails, another picks them up. I'm really proud of the way guys have played, and we proved that we can win close games when it counts. We've got a long way to go, but we know that.''

Of course, they also felt this way last season, when their 6-2 start was quickly followed by a season-destroying five-game losing streak. Of their seven losses, five came after they led in the fourth quarter.

They've lost once that way this season, falling to Baltimore 17-14 on Oct. 3 after leading in the final minute. They nearly let it happen again Monday when, despite leading 27-7, they probably would have lost to the Bengals if Carson Palmer had connected with an open Terrell Owens in the end zone during a frantic drive that ended at the Pittsburgh 12 with 34 seconds remaining.

Was Tomlin thinking about last season's string of collapses during that final, failed Cincinnati possession?

''No,'' he said.

Tomlin's message: We've moved on since last season, and for the better.

When they start the second half of the season Sunday night against New England (6-2), the Steelers will expect a lot more out of Roethlisberger. He had three touchdown passes during his Oct. 17 return against Cleveland but has three in three games since, throwing for more than 200 yards only once.

The normally reliable kicking game is erratic; Jeff Reed, one of the 10 most accurate kickers in NFL history going into the season, has missed six of 20 attempts and is 0 for 4 between the 40- and 49-yard lines.

The fourth-quarter fades are a major concern. The Steelers have given up only 60 points in the first three quarters, an average of less than a field goal per quarter, but 63 in the fourth quarter alone.

The schedule isn't especially easy, either. They play AFC North rivals Baltimore (6-2), Cleveland (3-5) and Cincinnati (2-6) once each, with only the Bengals at home, plus the Patriots, Jets (6-2) and the improving Raiders (5-4). Five of the next seven are at home.

''The biggest thing is to keep moving forward in the division,'' wide receiver Antwaan Randle El said. ''We know we have a loss to Baltimore, but we've got to keep moving forward and keep winning divisional games. Those are important at the end of the year.''