Game balls
With his second touchdown catch of the night, Pittsburgh WR Hines Ward passed Hall of Famer John Stallworth to become the Steelers' all-time touchdown reception leader. He finished with 11 catches for 90 yards and two touchdowns.
Key stat
With Najeh Davenport inactive, the Steelers relied soley on Willie Parker on the ground. Parker lost two fumbles and had had two more challenged and overturned, including one that would have given the Bengals a touchdown. The Steelers won despite turning the ball over four times. The Bengals also hurt themselves with costly penaltes. They had a safety and a three-and-out stop in the fourth quarter nullified because of infractions.
Noteworthy
Parker moved into sixth place on the Steelers' all-time rushing list ahead of Barry Foster. ... Bengals are 1-6 on Sunday nights on the road. ... T.J. Houshmandzadeh leads the NFL with 88 receptions. ... The Steelers' nine wins is one more than last year's total. ... Roethlisberger has thrown for 25 TDs on the season. The only other QB to throw for more than 23 TDs in a season for the Steelers was Terry Bradshaw (28 in 1978, 26 in 1979 and 24 in 1980).
