The Associated Press

PITTSBURGH - Jerome Bettis' future with the Pittsburgh Steelers is in doubt following a second straight injury-interrupted season.

In a surprising development only three days after their season ended, coach Bill Cowher said Tuesday the Steelers are weighing their options not just with benched quarterback Kordell Stewart, but with Bettis.

The Steelers have been expected to trade or release Stewart since he lost his starting job to Tommy Maddox three months ago. But there had been no previous indication they were considering a similar move with Bettis, the 10th leading rusher in NFL history.

"We are going to have to talk about the direction and the options we have in regards to those players," Cowher said. "We have to sit down and look at the direction we are going, as it relates to our roster and cap. That is something that will be taking place in the upcoming weeks."

Bettis will have arthroscopic surgery Jan. 27 to repair torn cartilage in his left knee. The Steelers previously said Bettis only had a mild tear of the medial collateral ligament.

Bettis injured the knee early in the second half Oct. 21 against Indianapolis. He missed four games because of the injury and did not have a 100-yard game after getting hurt.

Bettis' 666 yards were the second-lowest total of his career, and he had only 5 yards on four carries in two playoff games, including Saturday's 34-31 overtime loss to the Titans. He was limited to one 100-yard game all season, gaining 109 against Cincinnati on Oct.13.

"I was nowhere near 100 percent," Bettis said. "It was just a matter of how much pain I could endure. I'm on one leg."

If the Steelers decide they cannot risk paying Bettis $2.75 million next season because of health issues, it would be the second time in four years they cut one of their signature players.

They released longtime Pro Bowl center Dermontti Dawson after the 2000 season after he twice cut short seasons because of hamstring problems.

Bettis was the centerpiece of the Steelers' offense from 1996 through last season, gaining at least 1,000 yards in every season. But he has spent significant time on the sidelines the last two seasons with groin (2001) and knee (2002) problems.

Bettis signed a $30 million, six-year contract in 2001 that included a $6.5 million signing bonus. If the Steelers cut Bettis, they must count the remaining $4.4 million of his prorated signing bonus under the cap.

"There are a lot of questions that people have in regard to not just whether they (Bettis and Stewart) will come back, but the roles they will play," Cowher said.

Cowher apologized for charging referee Ron Blum at the end of the Steelers' overtime playoff loss at Tennessee.

Cowher was upset with a running-into-the-kicker penalty on Dewayne Washington that allowed the Titans Joe Nedney to kick a game-winning 26-yard field goal. He also was unhappy the Steelers were denied a timeout just before the kick.

Immediately after Saturday's 34-31 loss, Cowher described the penalty on Washington as "ludicrous" and said, "We had something taken away from us today" - an implication the officials cost his team the game.

"I want to make very clear that the last play did not decide the football game," Cowher said Tuesday. "I don't feel any differently than what my responses were (Saturday). But certainly, as I said last week, I don't believe any one play decides a game. I don't want to be a hypocrite and sit here a week later and say that it did. We had plenty of opportunities in that game."

TEXANS: Houston added a link to the city's NFL past by signing offensive tackle Andy Stensrud, the son of a former Oiler.

BROWNS: Cleveland added another former Dallas coach to its defensive staff , hiring Clancy Pendergast as linebackers coach. Pendergast, who spent seven years with the Cowboys, replaces the fired Keith Butler. He joins former Dallas head coach Dave Campo, Cleveland's defensive coordinator, and defensive line coach Andre Patterson.

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