OAKLAND RAIDERS RAP
FLASH RECAP:
Quarterback Kordell Stewart throws for two touchdowns and rushes for another to rally Pittsburgh past Oakland before a revved-up crowd of 55,811 fans at Three Rivers Stadium on Dec. 3, 2000. Stewart's 17-yard touchdown run on the second play of the fourth quarter lifts the Steelers (7-6) into a 21-17 lead. Trailing 21-20, Oakland (10-3) blows a chance to regain the lead when Sebastain Janikowski is short and wide left on a 44-yard field goal attempt with 3:59 remaining. Janikowski makes kicks of 40 and 42 yards earlier in the game. Oakland drives to the Pittsburgh 41 in the waning seconds, but the Steelers gain possession and run out the clock after Rich Gannon's fourth-down pass falls incomplete. The Raiders build a 17-7 halftime advantage on touchdowns by Eric Allen (27-yard interception return) and Randy Jordan (21-yard reception) and a Janikowski field goal.
PRIME-TIME PLAYERS:
QB Kordell Stewart -- Engineers two second-half touchdowns after being sidelined (and ruled out for the rest of the game) late in the first quarter because of a knee injury. Accounts for at least three touchdowns for the third straight contest. His 19-yard pass to WR Bobby Shaw opens the scoring in the first quarter. Slash then throws a 6-yard touchdown pass to TE Mark Bruener in the third quarter. Stewart erases a 17-14 deficit on a 17-yard scoring run 12 seconds into the final quarter. On his scoring dash, the Steelers' much-maligned quarterback breaks a tackle by Raiders safety Anthony Dorsett at the Oakland 16. Stewart completes 14 of 23 passes for 136 yards and two TDs, and also rushes for 33 yards on three carries.
RB Jerome Bettis -- Rushes for a game-high 128 yards on 24 carries. He picks up 100 of those yards on 16 attempts in the dramatic second half. On his 24th and final carry, The Bus fumbles for the first time in 379 rushing attempts. Pittsburgh OT Wayne Gandy recovers the fumble.
FS Brent Alexander -- Has six solo tackles and forces a fumble.
TE Mark Bruener -- Literally wills his way into the end zone on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Kordell Stewart with 5:50 left in the third quarter. After Bruener catches the pass at the Oakland one, he's pushed back to the four by Raiders defensive back Calvin Branch. In a mano-on-mano tug-of-war, Bruener escapes Branch's tackle and rambles for the touchdown.
ILBs Ernie Holmes and Levon Kirkland -- They help hold Oakland's rushing offense to 117 yards, 30 below its league-leading average.
WR Tim Brown -- Has a game-high seven catches for 99 yards. He makes a 6-yard reception to midfield on fourth-and-one to keep Oakland's final drive going with under 40 seconds remaining.
CB Eric Allen -- Returns a Kent Graham interception 27 yards for a second-quarter touchdown. It's Allen's 50th career interception, fourth highest among active NFL players.
MLB Greg Biekert -- Contributes 11 tackles (nine solo) and one of Oakland's five sacks.
RB Randy Jordan -- Scores on a 21-yard pass from Rich Gannon to give Oakland a 17-7 lead late in the second quarter.
GOAT OF THE GAME:
Oakland running back Tyrone Wheatley coughs up two fumbles. The Steelers don't score after each turnover (in the second and third quarters), but the Raiders lose valuable possession near midfield on each occassion.
TURNING POINT:
With Oakland leading 17-7 early in the third quarter, Kordell Stewart picks up his fumble near the Steelers goal line and gains 17 yards on second-and-16 for a first down. The Steelers proceed to march for their second touchdown (culminated by Stewart's 6-yard scoring pass to TE Mark Bruener). Pittsburgh controls the ball for nine minutes, 10 seconds on the 16-play, 91-yard drive to open the second half.
KEY DRIVE:
The Steelers move 47 yards in four plays for the winning touchdown 12 seconds into the fourth quarter. Two plays after a 30-yard run by Jerome Bettis, Kordell Stewart scores on a 17-yard run to erase a 17-14 Oakland advantage.
BY THE NUMBERS:
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2: Fumbles lost by Oakland RB Tyrone Wheatley.
5: Touchdown passes by Pittsburgh's Kordell Stewart the past two games, including two against Oakland.
7: Catches by Raiders WR Tim Brown.
15: Regular-season losses by Oakland in December since 1994.
199: Yards rushing allowed by Oakland's defense.
THEY SAID IT:
Raiders DT Darrell Russell
"We can't make mistakes against a team like Pittsburgh. They played a good game. They had a lot to lose and everything to gain. We're sitting here pretty at 10-2 while they have to stay above water to go to the playoffs. We had to realize they weren't going to accept losing."
"It was a great win. We had to win this one. We've been struggling to win the big games. This time we had the resolve to take the close game."
Steelers LB Levon Kirkland
DID YOU KNOW?:
Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher is 3-0 against the Raiders. His Steelers also beat the Raiders 21-3 in 1994 and 29-10 in 1995.
Pittsburgh's Jason Gildon (92) exults after Oakland's Sebastian Janikowski (11)misses a 44-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter by The Associated Press
