Steelers win 5th straight
Last Updated: Tuesday, November 10, 2009 | 1:36 AM ET
The Associated Press
Brett Keisel of the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrates after a sack in the second quarter on Monday. (Doug Pensinger/Getty Images) Safety Ryan Clark got his wish: replacement Tyrone Carter took one to the house and Clark got to fly home with his teammates this time.
Carter started in place of Clark as a precaution Monday night and made the big play that sparked the Steelers to their fifth straight win, taking the first of his two interceptions 48 yards for a touchdown in Pittsburgh's 28-10 win over the Denver Broncos.
Clark nearly died following a game in Denver two years ago because of a rare blood disorder that is aggravated by playing in high altitude, so Steelers coach Mike Tomlin decided to hold him out of the game.
He said he didn't want to risk Clark's health or burden his teammates and family members with worry.
"Ryan likes to play," Tomlin said. "He's probably hacked off at me that I didn't play him. But he will get over it."
He already is, apparently.
"My goal for this trip was to go back with the team on the plane," Clark said. "Last time I came out, I didn't make it back with them."
Significant weight loss
Clark was admitted to hospital in Denver in October 2007 when complications from sickle-cell trait prevented oxygen from flowing into his spleen. He later needed operations to remove his spleen and gall bladder, and he lost more than 30 pounds before he finally began feeling better more than two months later.
He missed the second half of that season but recovered and resumed his career last season, when the Steelers won the Super Bowl.
Carter capped his night with his second interception with 15 seconds left, and Clark, dressed in charcoal sweats and a smile on the sideline, jumped up and down in celebration, then clicked the heels of his tennis shoes as he exited the field.
"I was excited for him," Clark said. "It was a big win. He did an awesome job. His first interception really put us in the game."
"I might be like Wally Pipp," he added with a chuckle. "I'd better get back fast."
Hines Ward caught two short touchdown passes from Ben Roethlisberger, including one in which he hauled in a pass in the flat and hurdled cornerback Champ Bailey on his way into the end zone, a final indignity for Denver that capped the scoring with 1:22 remaining and emptied the stadium.
Rashard Mendenhall rumbled over the Broncos for 155 yards on 22 carries as the Steelers (6-2) handed Denver its second straight loss after the Broncos opened the season 6-0 under rookie coach Josh McDaniels.
Turnover proves costly
Carter's first interception return gave Pittsburgh a 7-3 halftime lead even though the Steelers had generated just three first downs and were outgained 183-54 in the first half.
An ecstatic Clark was among the first players to swarm Carter, the first defender to pick off a Kyle Orton pass all season. His only interception before throwing three Monday night was a Hail Mary that Patriots wide receiver Randy Moss pulled down in a game last month.
"I'll tell you, Ryan is like a brother to me," Carter said. "We've been in this thing together for a long time. The bond is so tight between all of us. But to know that he can't play today and knowing that he wanted to be out there, I just wanted to make sure that I went out there and played for him, and let him know I'm there for him, that we were still going to be all right."
With the Steelers clinging to a 14-10 lead in the fourth quarter, safety Troy Polamalu snared another Orton pass, this one at the Broncos 25-yard line, leading to Roethlisberger's 25-yard TD toss to rookie Mike Wallace.
The Broncos stopped themselves over and over again on offence, with Orton making poor passes and bad decisions and his receivers making uncharacteristic mistakes.
Carter, who was Polamalu's fill-in for a month when Polamalu had an injured knee earlier this season, had an easy pickoff when rookie running back Knowshon Moreno, Orton's target, ran into an official as Orton was releasing the short pass over the middle, and Carter raced into the end zone untouched for a 7-3 lead.
Roethlisberger, who was 21 for 29 for 233 yards, drove the Steelers 80 yards in four plays, hitting Ward with a 3-yard strike over the outstretched right arm of linebacker D.J. Williams to put Pittsburgh ahead for good, 14-10.
Clark was one of three Steelers defensive starters sitting out, joining defensive end Travis Kirschke (calf) and linebacker Lawrence Timmons (ankle). It hardly mattered as Denver managed just 59 yards on six second-half drives.
