Jets have proved they can rattle Roethlisberger

PITTSBURGH -- The New York Jets rattled him into uncharacteristic mistakes and made him look just like a rookie during his most miserable afternoon in the NFL so far.

What they didn't do was beat Ben Roethlisberger.

That may be the biggest challenge confronting the Jets in today's divisional playoff game. Beating the Pittsburgh Steelers means beating Roethlisberger, something no college or pro team has done in 26 games dating to his final season at Miami of Ohio.

With his 13-0 record, Roethlisberger long ago won over a Steelers-mad city with his poise, maturity and can't-beat-me attitude and energized a franchise that is convinced it is ready to win the fifth Super Bowl trophy it has chased for a quarter-century.

"When you win 13 games in a row, each game there is a little more pressure that mounts, and he has handled it with style and grace," said Jets quarterback Chad Pennington, who, like Roethlisberger, is a former Mid-American Conference star. "I don't expect him to be any different come Saturday."

The Jets came the closest to solving the Roethlisberger riddle, frustrating him repeatedly during a season's-worst performance -- 9-of-19 for 144 yards and two interceptions -- in Pittsburgh's 17-6 victory Dec. 12.

But the Jets seemed to wear down by the fourth quarter and Roethlisberger hit four of his final five passes for 99 yards, though it was running back Jerome Bettis who threw the decisive touchdown pass.

Roethlisberger should get a boost from the return of defense-stretching wide receiver Plaxico Burress, who sat out the earlier Jets game with a sore hamstring. But, just like last month, the Steelers expect coach Herman Edwards' team to sell out to stop running backs Jerome Bettis and Duce Staley and force Roethlisberger to beat them.

After all, rookie quarterbacks can't win in the postseason, can they?

"They used five linebackers and brought the safety up sometimes, and that was the first time I'd seen that one," tackle Marvel Smith said.

The Steelers are seeing a lot of firsts during their franchise-best 14-game winning streak, many from Roethlisberger. Still, what they're asking Big Ben to do is unrivaled -- no NFL team with a record (15-1) as good as Pittsburgh's has entrusted such a task to a rookie quarterback in the postseason.

Only one straight-from-college rookie QB has won his first playoff game since the 1970 merger, Tampa Bay's Shaun King in 1999, though two NFL rookies coming from other pro leagues did it.

"Ben will be fine," coach Bill Cowher said this week. "He's had a lot of scrutiny through the course of the season, and we have played in some big games, and he's really been unflappable when it comes to those type of things. So when Saturday comes around, it's just going to be another football game."

Pennington only wishes it were that simple. He threw three interceptions and looked out of sync throughout the Pittsburgh loss, his second game following a three-week rotator cuff injury layoff. That performance stirred the debate whether he possessed the arm strength and fortitude to take the Jets deep into the playoffs.

Those doubts persisted as the Jets lost three of four, but Pennington bounced back with a strong game (23-of-33, 279 yards, two touchdowns) -- and, yes, a strong arm -- in last week's 20-17 overtime win in San Diego.

That's why, for all their similarities -- equally strong ground games, highly ranked defenses and coaches who once were NFL teammates and assistant coaches together -- the Jets and Steelers realize the better quarterback probably will determine the winner.

The weather should be better than previously forecast, partly cloudy skies with temperatures in the low 20s.

"We are excited to get another chance, but we know what our challenge is: We are playing the best team in the AFC," Pennington said. "But it is a challenge I think our team likes."