The Sports Monitor

So, how do you feel about the Pittsburgh Steelers now? Maybe a trip to the playoffs is enough to make you forget about those ugly early season losses. A win over a solid Kansas City team like Sunday's 20-12 win can do that. Now, the Steelers need a win next Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals for the AFC North crown. They're peaking at the right time, so anything's possible. And the way the defense played Sunday, it's not so wrong to think that. After all, Jamaal Charles, the main cog in the Chiefs offense, didn't do much. That's a big boost for a beleaguered defense. Sunday's win was enough to get me excited for a playoff run, something that's been missing for a couple seasons now. Let's savor the win before we get ready for the Bengals.

I watched Sunday as things fell into place for the Steelers to make the playoffs. Then the refs blew it. Twice, in fact. They missed a call on an illegal formation in the Chargers-Chiefs game. If they make the call, the Chiefs get a chance to kick the winning field goal again. That seemed to be the big news. I didn't see a lot of news on the fumble. The refs mysteriously blew a whistle, to signal the end of the play, on a fake punt by the Chargers in overtime. The Chiefs, however, insist they forced a fumble and no whistle was blown. If the play would have stood, the Chiefs would have gotten the winning TD in OT. Oh, well. It's not sour grapes. The Steelers put themselves in that position by losing to teams they had no business losing to. Hopefully, they'll be able to retool in the offseason.

The Pittsburgh Steelers sure know how to make an inferior opponent look good on Sunday night. After escaping a game with the terrible Indianapolis Colts earlier this season, the Steelers survived the Kansas City Chiefs. A defense that had six takeaways all season entering the game took four away from Chiefs quarterback Tyler Palko in Sunday's 13-9 win. The clincher was an interception by Keenan Lewis with less than a minute to go. And you have to thank Chiefs wide receiver Dwayne Bowe for his lack of effort on the game-ending interception. Bowe looked deathly afraid to take a hit with the game on the line. But for as strong as the defense looked, the offense never found a rhythm. Throughout Sunday's game, the announcers praised the Chiefs' defense. However, the Chiefs had the 28th-ranked rush defense in the league, and Rashard Mendenhall picked up just 57 yards for the game. However, when Mendenhall did get the ball, he looked strong. Roethlisberger looked fin...