Chargers-Steelers Preview

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• Countdown Daily Recap: Chargers-Steelers

SCOUTING REPORT

Chargers-Steelers: 10 observations After breaking down film of both teams, Scouts Inc. offers 10 things to watch in this week's Chargers-Steelers matchup. 1. San Diego needs to continue its physical play: In their first two games, a win over a hapless Raiders team and a loss to the Ravens, the Chargers got pushed around by their physical opponents. But San Diego came out with an attitude and played toe-to-toe against the Dolphins and Miami was the first team to blink. The Chargers can expect the Steelers to come out angry after their first loss to the Bengals since September 2006.

· Full Scouting Report

Matchup
	W-L	PF	PA	HOME	ROAD	DIV	CONF
SDG	7-3	269	205	3-2	4-1	4-1	5-3
PIT	6-4	231	184	4-1	2-3	1-2	4-3
· Complete Standings

Individual Leaders

San Diego Passing   CMP% YDS TD INT Rivers 63.2 2621 17 6

Pittsburgh Passing   CMP% YDS TD INT Roethl... 68.9 2867 17 10 Batch 50.0 17 0 0

San Diego Rushing   CAR YDS AVG TD Tomlin... 135 458 3.4 6 Sprole... 60 210 3.5 1

Pittsburgh Rushing   CAR YDS AVG TD Menden... 134 689 5.1 4 Parker 67 218 3.3 0

San Diego Receiving   REC YDS AVG TD Jackso... 47 788 16.8 7 Gates 52 709 13.6 2

Pittsburgh Receiving   REC YDS AVG TD Ward 63 798 12.7 5 Holmes 50 764 15.3 1

Full Player Stats: San Diego | Pittsburgh

TEAM AVERAGES & NFL RANKS
TEAM OFFENSE	TEAM	PER GAME AVERAGE
Total Yards	SDG	336.0
	PIT	380.0
Yards Passing	SDG	248.3
	PIT	268.1
Yards Rushing	SDG	87.9
	PIT	111.6
TEAM DEFENSE	TEAM	PER GAME AVERAGE
Yards Allowed	SDG	321.1
	PIT	277.9
Pass Yds Allowed	SDG	202.6
	PIT	208.7
Rush Yds Allowed	SDG	118.5
	PIT	69.2

HEAD TO HEAD MATCHUPS (SINCE 2001)
Pittsburgh leads 5-1
Jan 11, 2009	SDG 24, PIT 35
Nov 16, 2008	SDG 10, PIT 11
Oct 8, 2006	SDG 23, @PIT 13
Oct 10, 2005	SDG 22, @PIT 24
Dec 21, 2003	SDG 24, PIT 40

The road hasn't been kind to the Pittsburgh Steelers this season. Maybe a return to Heinz Field will help.

Pittsburgh tries to avoid its first three-game losing streak in three seasons Sunday night when it looks to maintain its home-field dominance over the San Diego Chargers.

Coming off three-point losses at Chicago and Cincinnati, the defending Super Bowl champion Steelers (1-2) are off to their worst start since 2006, when they opened 1/3 and finished 8-8.

"Finishing as Super Bowl champions and starting 1-2 is not how we envisioned our season starting," wide receiver Hines Ward said.

Finishing has been a problem for Pittsburgh, which has been outscored 24-0 in the fourth quarter of its last two games.

The Bears scored 10 unanswered in the final 6:21 to defeat the Steelers 17-14, and the Bengals had two touchdowns in the last 9:14 to pull out a 23-20 victory last Sunday.

Pittsburgh has not lost three straight since Oct. 22-Nov. 5, 2006.

"We have some work to do and we have a top-quality, familiar opponent coming in here that is a playoff-caliber team, and has been one perennially," coach Mike Tomlin told the team's official Web site. "We respect that, and we are excited about doing it back at Heinz Field in front of our fans."

Since Dec. 7, 2003, the Steelers have won 34 of 43 at Heinz Field.

The Chargers have never won in 13 regular-season matchups in Pittsburgh, and they lost 35-24 at Heinz Field in the divisional round of last season's playoffs.

LaDainian Tomlinson missed that game due to a groin injury as the Chargers were held to 15 yards rushing, and he could sit out a third consecutive game Sunday with a sprained right ankle. However, the five-time Pro Bowler was back at practice Wednesday for the first time since getting hurt in the season opener.

San Diego (2-1) is off to its best start in Norv Turner's three seasons as coach despite being last in the AFC with 66.3 rushing yards per game. Darren Sproles is averaging 2.4 per carry while getting most of the attempts in Tomlinson's place.

"You can move the ball, but if you're going to be the type of football team we want to be, you're going to have to run the football," Turner said. "If you look at the good teams and the type of teams we would like to be, you see them run the ball."

Pittsburgh has the NFL's sixth-ranked run defense, allowing 76.7 yards per contest.

The Steelers' own ground game, though, has problems. It ranks 27th in the league with 81.0 yards per game and leading rusher Willie Parker missed practice Wednesday with a toe injury.

"It's painful, but it's something I can deal with, so we'll take it day by day," said Parker, who rushed for a season-high 93 yards against Cincinnati.

Parker was expected to share some carries with Rashard Mendenhall, but the second-year back did not get one last week.

"Young guys have to earn their opportunities," Tomlin said. "They have to make coaches confident with their ability to execute details of their assignments. (Mendenhall) didn't do that to my satisfaction last week and didn't get any playing time on offense as a result. I took action, but I don't take any baggage into this week."

Tomlin also can't be very happy with his kicker.

Jeff Reed hit 87.1 percent (27 of 31) of his field goals in 2008 but already has missed three this season, including two fourth-quarter tries versus Chicago.

The play of wide receiver Limas Sweed is also a concern for Pittsburgh. The second-round pick in 2008 may be deactivated Sunday after dropping Ben Roethlisberger's pass in the end zone in the third quarter of Sunday's loss.

"Quite frankly, he's not catching the football when he's deep down the field," Tomlin said.

Shaun McDonald could get the nod Sunday if Sweed does not play.

San Diego has been much better in the passing game, ranked second in the league with 315.7 yards per contest with Philip Rivers off to a strong start.

After throwing for a career-high 436 yards and two TDs in a 31-26 loss to Baltimore on Sept. 20, Rivers had 303 passing yards and a five-yard rushing touchdown in Sunday's 23-13 victory over Miami.

Rivers' run was his second career rushing touchdown and the Chargers' only TD in 11 trips inside the red zone the last two weeks.

"When you look at the tape, I think the problems we're having are correctable," Turner said. "I thought we had a chance a couple of times to throw a couple of touchdown passes. We just missed."

Rivers hasn't had a problem finding Vincent Jackson, who is second in the NFL with 105.7 receiving yards per game.

San Diego linebacker Shawne Merriman is questionable against the Steelers after leaving in the third quarter last Sunday with a groin injury.

Politics on hold as OT Runyan joins Chargers

Politics will have to wait for offensive tackle Jon Runyan, who has practiced for the first time with his new team, the Chargers.

Big Ben practices; backup Dixon takes snaps

Ben Roethlisberger has practiced despite sustaining a concussion against Kansas City and is expected to play Sunday in Baltimore.

Outsiders: Week 12 previews

Football Outsiders analyzes Week 12 in the NFL. Ideas: Oakland isn't THAT bad; Reggie Bush is poised for a big game vs. New England; Pittsburgh needs to play better in the second half; David Garrard gets knocked around too much and a plan for Houston.

Clayton: Pressure falls on Pats in Monday night showdown

The Saints have the burden of protecting a perfect record, but the Patriots will be feeling the most pressure on Monday night, writes John Clayton.

AFC West: Stability keeps Chargers out of turmoil below

There is a major New England Patriots influence in this division. Denver fired long-time head coach Mike Shanahan and replaced him with 32-year-old Josh McDaniels, who spent eight years with the Patriots including the last three as offensive coordinator.

Chargers' Merriman working his way back

A tag cloud is a visual list of key terms associated with a piece of content. Larger and bolder tags are more relevant to the content.

Stadium developer unveils proposal, but Chargers balk

" Local developer Perry Dealy unveiled his proposal to replace Qualcomm Stadium in Mission Valley Thursday, a day after the San Diego Chargers called his plans unrealistic in a fax sent directly to him.

Majestic Realty terminates negotiations with Walnut over proposed NFL stadium

Majestic Realty has terminated negotiations with Walnut over a proposed NFL stadium, saying city officials requested a "wish list of tens of millions of dollars" that had little to do with the project.

Versatility remains Bingham's specialty

Ryon Bingham is a contender for Igor Olshansky's starting spot at defensive end.

Ward helping out young receivers

Wide receiver Hines Ward watched the play unfold in the Steelers indoor practice facility during OTA's and then walked over to first-year running back Stefan Logan and shared a little bit of advice.

Steelers' rookie tries to overcome obstacle

Mike Tomlin knows a thing or two about motivating players. So it probably shouldn't come as any surprise that the Steelers coach regularly tells rookie center A.Q. Shipley, "Man, those arms are looking short." The length of Shipley's arms is a big reason why 225 players were selected before the Moon Area High School graduate in April.

Steelers players brighten some spirits

John Harris is a sports columnist for the Tribune-Review. He can be reached via e-mail or at 412-481-5432. An excited Heather Miller of Bedford got a chance Wednesday to meet her favorite football player, Steelers nose tackle Casey Hampton, as part of her Make-a-Wish Foundation request.

Steelers' LB Davis seeking his seat on bus

The BMOC of UCLA has been MIA in Pittsburgh. Linebacker Bruce Davis went from what he called a "rock star" in college football to almost rock bottom with the Steelers.

Mundy impresses Steelers with smarts, skills

Twenty-nine has significance for Steelers safety Ryan Mundy beyond the fact that it is his uniform number.