Like many of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ rivalries, the one with the Cincinnati Bengals goes back to the 1970 AFL/NFL merger. The Steelers are comfortably ahead on the win count, both at home and in Cincinnati. The last decade saw the Steelers with a 6-4 advantage in games played in Pittsburgh.
The 1995 draft saw the Steelers use their first-round pick on tight end Mark Bruener. They picked Kordell Stewart with their second choice. It was the highest they had selected a quarterback since using a first on Mark Malone in 1980. It showed they considered him a future starter.
Initially, Stewart was used in a variety of roles. His athleticism allowed him to be a wide receiver or running back as well as the quarterback position that earned him two Bowl victories with the Colorado Buffaloes. Our Myron Cope admired his versatility and nicknamed him “Slash,” and the fans were quite happy to go with that.
Stewart became the Steelers starting quarterback at the beginning of the 1997 season leading them to the AFC Championship game. They lost 24-21, but he had confirmed himself in that position for four years.
Three of those years were lean ones, but in 2001 Stewart led the team to a 13-3 regular season which ended in the AFC Championship game in New England.
The Steelers went into the 2002 season with Stewart as their starter and a big question over whether he could put together solid back-to-back seasons? Stewart was backed up by Tommy Maddox and Charlie Batch.
The Steelers opened the new season against the Super Bowl champions in New England. Stewart versus Tom Brady. The Steelers lost 30-14. They next lost their home opener to the Raiders 30-17.
After a very early bye week, they hosted the Browns. Coach Cowher warned Stewart that he might replace him if his performance wasn’t up to scratch. And so, it proved. Down 13-6 late in the fourth quarter, Stewart threw an interception. That was the sign for Cowher to bring on Tommy Maddox.
After the Steelers’ defense held their opponents to a punt, Maddox took just two minutes to draw the Steelers level. The stadium erupted as the fans expressed their relief with the game now heading towards overtime.
The Steelers won the game with a field goal. After their first win on the season, the quarterback controversy began despite Coach Cowher indicating that Stewart would remain the starter.
At a team meeting on the Wednesday before their next game against the Saints, Cowher announced Maddox as the starter. Maddox, who started four games for Denver a decade earlier, was now the man. Cowher had lost patience with Stewart and had turned to the 2001 XFL MVP.
After a 32-29 loss in New Orleans, Maddox would lead the team to four wins and a tie. They travelled to Tennessee on top of the division at 5-3-1, one game ahead of Baltimore and Cleveland.
The Steelers were struggling against the Titans when Maddox went down after being tackled and lost consciousness. He was taken to hospital for tests and fortunately released with not lasting effects.
Stewart attempted to bring the team back from a 31-7 deficit, but his two touchdown passes, and two point-after conversions were not enough.
With Maddox on the sidelines, Stewart was now back as the man, and he was looking forward to it. “When people doubt you, people let you down or people tell you that you can’t do this and turn their backs on you, I love it that way,” Stewart said. “That’s the best way of doing it.
Knowing everyone thinks you’re done, and you always knew you weren’t. To actually have the opportunity to go out and do it when you feel in your heart not too many people are with you but your teammates. God, that’s the best feeling ever.”
In addition to the absence of Maddox, the Steelers had lost their kicker Todd Peterson to a rib injury. Rookie Jeff Reed won the kicking contest held on the unreliable Heinz Field turf.
The Steelers faced a Bengals team coached by Dick Lebeau. He was in his third year as the Bengals head coach after three years as their defensive coordinator.
The (5-4-1) Steelers vs the (1-10) Bengals; November 24, 2002
When the Steelers scored on the opening drive, the Bengals must have thought it was going to be another drumming at the hands of their rivals. Kordell Stewart’s passing combined with the running of Jerome Bettis moved the chains two times before Oliver Ross took it over with a 1-yard touchdown run. Jeff Reed kicked the extra point.
The Bengals also moved the chains twice on their first possession, but the drive stalled on the Pittsburgh 29. In a desperate attempt to break their bad run, Cincinnati went for it on fourth down. Corey Dillon hauled in Jon Kitna’s pass but came up four yards short of the line to gain.
Starting on their own 24, the Steelers took just three downs to score again. Stewart connected with Hines Ward for a 64-yard touchdown.
When the game went in the second quarter, Jeff Reed added a field goal from 33 yards before the Bengals began a fight back. Two touchdown runs by Dillon of 10 and 2 yards in six minutes brought Cincinnati within three points at the half.
Reed added a 43-yard field goal at the start of the third quarter.
Midway through the final period, Kitna found his rookie receiver Matt Schobel with a 20-yard touchdown pass. After Neil Rackers kicked the extra point, the Bengals held a surprising 21-20 lead.
Pittsburgh was held to a three and out on their next series with a Cincinnati team now on top. Josh Miller punted. T.J. Houshmandzadeh caught the ball. He made a couple of cuts upfield before Clark Haggans stripped the ball. Steelers Mike Jones recovered the loose ball to blunt the Bengals momentum. Reed kicked another field goal, this one from 45 yards to compound Cincinnati’s despair.
After the Steelers held the demoralised Bengals to a three and out, Stewart struck again. A 37-yard completion to Ward was followed by a touchdown run of 24 yards by Bettis to increase the Steelers advantage to 29-21.
With three minutes remaining, a 44-yard punt return by Houshmandzadeh gave the Bengals hope. That prospect was snuffed out by the Steelers defense as Pittsburgh took the victory.
The Pittsburgh Steelers 29 vs the Cincinnati Bengals 21
The Bengals finished 2-14. Having previously never won less than three games in a season, their head coach Dick LeBeau was sacked. He rejoined the Steelers in 2004 as their defensive coordinator and enjoyed a decade of success in Pittsburgh.
Tommy Maddox would return in week 15 to lead the Steelers into the playoffs where they would lose the divisional game 31-34 in Tennessee.
Maddox would be the starter in 2003. Following a 6-10 record, the Steelers were able to draft Ben Roethlisberger the next year. When Maddox was injured in week 4, Roethlisberger inherited the starting role earlier than was expected. The first team he faced as a starter were the Bengals in Pittsburgh. The Steelers won 28-17.
