Eight yards for Bettis. Then 5, 4, 4, 1 and 1 for the touchdown. We've been seeing this almost since football was invented. Jerome's TD made it 14-3. The Bengals were Bus-ted again. On the Steelers sideline, coach Bill Cowher acted like a starstruck fan, slapping every back he could see. Cowher knew the psychological hammer had been laid on the Bengals head.

In addition to propping up psyches, Marvin Lewis has also tried to bring a tougher mindset to Cincinnati. He saw the importance in that from watching and working for Cowher's Steelers teams. Lewis watched it again Sunday.

PHOTO GALLERY

Photos of Sunday's game

Pittsburgh's first TD came when wideout Hines Ward toughed his way into the end zone, after taking a monstrous pop from Mark Roman. The hit made Ward dizzy, but it didn't stop him from scoring.

Being good in the NFL isn't always about having the best players. If parity is to be believed, the best players are everywhere. Sometimes, it can be as simple as busting the other team's players in the mouth, and seeing how they react.

Since the Bengals have had little experience in overcoming a serious mouth-busting, Sunday's outcome was predictable. Lewis and his players can come at you all day about the need for "better execution" and "making more plays." Occasionally, it's as simple as stiffing your neck and believing you're good enough to bust some mouths.

"You've got to win your job every play," Lewis said after the 17-10 L that wasn't that close. Or as Kevin Hardy put it, "It's 60 minutes. The unfortunate part today is, we played 45."

The Bengals evacuated this game without finding any answers for what perpetually ails them. Corey Dillon missed the second half with a groin pull. It's the second time in as many weeks the Dillonator has missed entire quarters. It's fair to wonder if, after seven years in the league, taking as much punishment as he gives, Dillon isn't starting to experience some major engine wear.

Jon Kitna completed 8-of-10 passes in the first half, none for any effect. He finished 16 for 24, but made no big plays, in a game begging for one. You'd suggest pulling his plug, but the alternatives, Shane Matthews and Carson Palmer, aren't going to make the scoreboard dance, either.

Twice in the first half, Lewis opted to punt, when field goals were the braver option. When you're in a close, low-scoring game, you don't pass up 53- and 50-yard tries. If you don't believe your kicker can make those, even occasionally, then maybe you should find a kicker who can.

It didn't help when punter Nick Harris made both decisions look worse by spiraling two kicks straight into the middle of the end zone. The Steelers, meanwhile, used a fake field goal to set up their first score.

All of which added up to a 10-17 game that nobody in the stands thought the Bengals could win.

"It's right there for us," Hardy decided, and you could agree or not. If you've seen the past 12 years here, you need more proof than keeping it close while getting run over by yet another Bus.

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E-mail pdaugherty@enquirer.com

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