By Mark Curnutte
Enquirer staff writer

PITTSBURGH - The Bengals left their leading tackler behind and probably will play without their most valuable offensive player today against the Steelers.

FIRST DOWN

Trick, treat and terrible By going 1-2 in September, the Bengals' pre-Oct. 1 record for the past 14 seasons, including 2004, dropped to 11-41. The October record is bad, too. The Bengals went 2-1 in October last season, raising the franchise's record in the 10th month to 10-39 since the start of the 1991 season. Except for last year, pro football season has ended early in Cincinnati. The Bengals are 21-80 in pre-Nov. 1 games during their 13-year playoff drought. Can't make it up The Bengals' road losing streak to teams with winning records stands at 41. They have a chance to snap it today against the 2-1 Steelers in the city where the Bengals last beat a team with a winning record. The Bengals defeated the 6-5 Steelers 16-12 on Dec. 2, 1990. The streak reached 41 on Dec. 21, 2003, when the Bengals lost at the 11-3 Rams. The list NFL leaders in pass attempts through Monday: Carson Palmer, Bengals 117 Vinny Testaverde, Cowboys 114 Marc Bulger, Rams 114 Aaron Brooks, Saints 112 Brett Favre, Packers 108 Highlight reel Tight end Matt Schobel caught an 18-yard touchdown pass from Jon Kitna with 13 seconds remaining to lift the Bengals to a 24-20 victory on Nov. 30 at Heinz Field. Schobel calls the catch the most memorable play of his two-year career. Cowher of power Steelers coach Bill Cowher is 17-7 in 12 seasons against the Bengals, his best mark against any team. Cowher has a career record of 117-77-1, giving the Steelers the third-best record in the NFL behind Green Bay and San Francisco. Not counting expansion Houston, which entered the league in 2002, the Bengals' 61-134 record (.313) is the league's worst in the span of Cowher's career. Melt steel Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson has 346 receiving yards (115.3 average) in his last three games against the Steelers, including a career-high 152 in 2002. High praise Former Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw likes what he sees from current Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. "He's pretty impressive," Bradshaw said on Sporting News Radio. "A lot of poise. Big kid, big arm, (and) I'm very impressed. It looks good for my team that they have a guy, if they keep him healthy, looks like they got the real deal for the next 10 to 15 years." Appreciation Steelers running back Jerome Bettis has 1,587 rushing yards in 16 career games against the Bengals. He has 14 career rushing TDs against the Bengals. Bettis is sixth on the all-time NFL rushing list with 12,366 yards. Series history • The Pittsburgh Steelers lead the all-time series 39-28. • The Steelers are 23-11 in games played in Pittsburgh. • The game, as the 68th against the Steelers for the Bengals, ties Pittsburgh with the Tennessee/Houston franchise as the Bengals' most frequent opponent.

Injuries continue to exact a toll on the Bengals. The latest loss was middle linebacker Nate Webster, who became the 11th player placed on a reserve list this year after suffering a season-ending knee injury against the Ravens.

And wide receiver Peter Warrick, downgraded Friday to doubtful with a shin injury, probably will miss the game. Warrick presents matchup problems for linebackers as the slot receiver and is a good blocker in the run game.

But these patchwork Bengals have a chance to enter their bye week at 2-2 if they defeat AFC North rival Pittsburgh. It would be a major accomplishment given the obstacles they've encountered in the season's first month.

A 2-2 start would be just their second since 1996. The 2001 Bengals were 2-2 under coach Dick LeBeau, who will try to stop the Bengals' offense as the Steelers' defensive coordinator.

The Bengals were 1-4 going into the bye week last year.

"It's important," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said. "It really is important."

Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer, who will make his fourth start, is coming off his worst NFL performance.

Palmer won't be the most inexperienced quarterback on the field. Steelers rookie Ben Roethlisberger will make his second NFL start.

"It's a huge game," Palmer said.

A .500 mark would help a variety of injuries - physical and emotional - heal more quickly.

"We'd love to go into our break 2-2, of course," Palmer said.

Warrick, free safety Kim Herring and center Rich Braham are players the Bengals are expecting to get back healthy after the bye. Offensive lineman Levi Jones and Larry Moore, though expected to play today, also need the rest to overcome nagging knee injuries.

A victory would ensure the Bengals of no worse than a three-way second-place tie in the division at the season's quarter post. First-place Baltimore can move to 3-1 with a victory Monday night at home against Kansas City.

The Ravens manhandled the Bengals 23-9 last Sunday, rushing for 254 yards. Palmer committed four turnovers. Monday brought some calls for Lewis to replace Palmer with veteran backup Jon Kitna and more questions about Lewis' personnel decisions - especially on defense, where eight of the 11 front-line starters are players he signed as free agents or drafted. The Bengals rank second to last in the NFL in run defense and face another challenge with Pittsburgh tailbacks Duce Staley and Jerome Bettis.

The Steelers rushed for 153 yards in defeating Miami on Sunday night and are expected to test the Bengals on the ground.

Lewis' response to the criticism was to create an "us-against-the-world" shield around his team for the past six days.

In a meeting, he showed them 20 newspaper clippings from around the country that questioned the performances and decisions of other NFL teams.

"Our expectations are high," Lewis said. "People are chipping at them. That's why I close them in and protect them as much as I can because of that. It's nature. It happens all the time."

Lewis put the media in its place, too, though he stopped short of demonizing it.

"I tell (players) that you're not their friend, basically," Lewis said in his news conference Wednesday. "As nice a guy as you are, you've got a job to do - just as they've got a job to do. And let's make sure that we understand that."

Lewis doesn't want his players to try to explain what happens on the field or to show emotion publicly that might place fault on a teammate.

Finally, Lewis - putting into action lessons apparently culled from a management textbook - took all the blame for how the Bengals have played.

"Ultimately, I get the bullet," he said. "I don't need to shun it off on anybody else. I'm responsible for how we play, how we prepare and everything we do."

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E-mail mcurnutte@enquirer.com

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