Watch out, Steelers, there’s a new top dog in town

It’s been a long while since anyone would even think of uttering this phrase, but the Steelers… It’s been a long while since anyone would even think of uttering this phrase, but the Steelers are no longer the best football team in Pittsburgh.

With no cable or access to the Internet in my new apartment, I’ve been reduced to listening to sporting events on the radio. While it has done wonders for my imagination, I would have to guess that the Steelers looked just as bad on television on Sunday as they did in my head.

In the 12 seasons that Bill Cowher has been head coach, the running game has been a staple in the Steelers offense. With that said, it has been safe to assume that, whenever a Pittsburgh quarterback throws for over 300 yards, the Steelers would win, because they probably would have rushed for over 100 yards, as well.

So when Tommy Maddox threw for 336 yards on Sunday against the Chiefs and Pittsburgh’s offense outgained Kansas City by almost a hundred yards, you would think the Steelers would win, right?

Not quite.

When the ground game nets only 60 yards rushing, your quarterback throws three interceptions – two of which came in Kansas City territory – and your usually solid run defense gives up 158 yards rushing, you aren’t going to win too many games.

Never mind the fact that the special teams allowed Dante Hall to gain 208 yards on punt and kickoff returns – he returned one kickoff 100 yards for a score. Oh, those special teams.

Surprisingly, there were some positives that came from this debacle.

Pittsburgh’s normally spongy passing defense held Trent Green to just 125 yards passing. Jeff Reed kicked a 51-yard field goal.

What excitement. I think I’m going to wet my pants.

I’m not really going to, but a loss is a loss no matter what good comes out of it.

So who is the best football team in Pittsburgh? To find out, just look down the hallway from the Steelers’ locker room in Heinz Field.

All right, so maybe it’s a little premature to say the Panthers have surpassed the Steelers, but considering how Pitt has played the teams it’s supposed to beat this year, things are looking up.

Last season, Pitt played five teams – Ohio, Alabama-Birmingham, Rutgers, Toledo and Temple – that it should have beaten. In those games, all of which Pitt won, the Panthers won by an average of 12.8 points.

In the two games it has played this year, Pitt has won by an average of 30.5 points, and both games were against teams that the Panthers should have beaten.

Despite a seemingly uninspired first half against Ball State and a defensive lapse on three of the Cardinals drives, the Panthers have looked like a sound team.

The offensive line, despite having two new starters and injuries to centers Justin Belarski and Rob Frederick, has performed well enough that the running game is well ahead of where it was last season.

Against Kent State, halfback Brandon Miree rushed for 113 yards, and as a team, Pitt ran for 202 yards and averaged 4.5 yards per carry. Although he only gained 73 yards on the ground, Miree scored a career-high three rushing touchdowns last week against Ball State. Last year at this time, Miree wasn’t even a starter.

Probably the most enticing statistics so far this season have been those of quarterback Rod Rutherford.

Yeah, he hasn’t faced any difficult defenses this season, but it’s hard to ignore his numbers for the year.

Rutherford has thrown for seven touchdowns, competed 64.3 percent of his passes and leads the nation in passer efficiency with a rating of 191.5. Also, Rutherford is among the top five candidates for the Heisman Trophy, according to CNN/SI’s Luke Wilson.

That might be a stretch, especially considering Pitt has yet to enter the difficult part of its schedule. But compared to where Rutherford, Miree and the rest of the Panthers were last year, there could be plenty of good things ahead.

Joe Marchilena is the sports editor for The Pitt News and feels that he has fallen off from the high standards that he set last year. What a slacker.