Bucs Streak Past Steelers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are peaking and peeking -- their eyes focused squarely on the playoffs.

Back in the race after appearing all but eliminated three weeks ago, the Bucs beat the reeling Pittsburgh Steelers 16-3 in the rain Sunday for their first three-game winning streak of the season.

Mike Alstott scored on a 3-yard run and a defense that's regained its bite the past month forced five Pittsburgh turnovers. The Steelers, losers of three straight, have not scored a touchdown in nine quarters.

Tampa Bay (7-7) climbed to .500 for only the second time this season, then did some scoreboard watching for an update on other playoff contenders.

The Bucs began the day tied with Arizona and New Orleans for the final NFC wild-card playoff spot. The Cardinals beat Philadelphia in overtime to keep pace, while the Saints lost to Atlanta and fell one game back.

"The greatest thing about this victory is we finally showed some consistency," quarterback Trent Dilfer said. "We won all three of these games the way we like to -- by playing unbelievably good defense, running the ball and making key plays in the passing game."

Michael Husted kicked field goals of 39, 37 and 21 yards for the Bucs, who beat the Steelers for the first time in history and will play their final two regular-season games on the road at Washington and Cincinnati.

"As long we take care of business," Bucs defensive tacke Warren Sapp said, "we will be all right."

The AFC wild-card picture is much more jumbled, but the loss was very costly for Pittsburgh, which loses out in most tiebreakers with other contenders.

The Steelers were limited to 168 yards total offense, and Kordell Stewart was intercepted three times and Mike Tomczak once.

The game turned when Tampa Bay's Steve White sacked Tomczak, forcing a fumble that Sapp recovered at the Steelers 7 just two plays after the backup quarterback replaced an ineffective Stewart in the third quarter.

Alstott scored two plays later to make it 13-3.

An upset Stewart could be seen lobbying coach Bill Cowher to get back into the game. He did after Tomczak threw an interception on the only other possession he played.

"He just wants to play. He's a competitive guy. It's the first time he's ever been benched," Cowher said, adding that he was looking for a spark on offense.

Kordell Stewart and the Steelers couldn't get anything going against the Buccaneers and now haven't scored a TD in the last nine quarters. (AP)

"He's a young man that's growing up. Part of that process is probably what took place today. My obligation is not to Kordell Stewart. My obligation is to this football team. I'm going to make decisions I think are in the best interests of this football team."

The second go-around wasn't much better for Stewart, who finished with 9 completions in 20 attempts for 88 yards. Jerome Bettis gained 63 yards rushing on 17 carries.

The Steelers haven't scored a touchdown since the third quarter of their overtime loss to Detroit on Thanksgiving Day and have managed only two offensive TDs in the last 18 quarters.

Stewart said being yanked "almost makes me feel like a loser, and that's not my style."

"Sometimes you are so frustrated, you just want to scream and yell and say things you normally don't say. It just eats you up," Stewart added. "Being with the Steelers, and all the success that they've had, the down time is hard."

Trent Dilfer was 9-of-18 for 111 yards, while Alstott rushed for 78 yards on 24 attempts for Tampa Bay.

Much of the first half was played in driving rain that virtually assured the teams would stick with game plans of trying to seize control with their running games.

Each team had only one possession in the opening quarter with each resulting in a field goal. Bettis ran six times for 30 yards on a drive leading to Norm Johnson's 27-yard field goal, while the Bucs took nine minutes to go 54 yards t position themselves for Husted's 39-yarder on the last play of the quarter.

Jacquez Green returned a punt 46 yards to the Steelers' 27 to set up Husted's second field goal for a 6-3 lead that held up until Alstott's TD gave the Bucs more breathing room.

Tomczak's fumble, setting up the Tampa Bay touchdown, came one play after a holding call wiped out a long Bettis run that would have gotten Pittsburgh out of a hole.

Stewart returned after Tomczak's poorly thrown pass was intercepted by John Lynch and returned to the Pittsburgh 40. The Steelers wound up not being hurt by the mistake, but it did convince Cowher that it was time to get his starter back in.

"You can sit down and analyze everything. We've got to score touchdowns. We've got to score points. Right now, we're not doing that," Cowher said. "Until we solve that problem, we can't ask our defense to go out there and shut them out every week."

Notes