Pittsburgh offense vs. San Francisco defense

	STEELERS OFFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	Run	11
	Pass	28
	Tot. Yds.	25
	Scoring	17
	Int's allowed	7
	Sacks allowed	15
	49ERS DEFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	vs. Run	15
	vs. Pass	30
	Total yds. allowed	29
	# of Ints.	10
	# of Sacks	20
	Turnover differential	-5

A lot of things need to improve for the Steelers offense to start producing but all arguments always circle back to QB Kordell Stewart's inconsistency. Stewart must start doing what he does best -- be himself. With so many people -- coordinator Kevin Glibride, Bill Cowher, his receivers -- trying to get into his head, Stewart is unable to just relax and play football. He has demonstrated the ability to be a pocket passer, as well as a scrambler, but neither will work if he's thinking too much.

One thing that will go a long way in helping Stewart regain his confidence is some better play from his receiver corps. The Steelers should be able to get rookie Troy Edwards and Will Blackwell deep against the Niners' struggling secondary.

The Niners will start a different cornerback combination this week -- R.W. McQuarters and Craig Newsome -- with rookie Pierson Prioleau inheriting the nickel role. This trio gives the 49ers their most physically capable lineup of the season but the Steelers can't be afraid to test them deep. Look San Francisco to come out with a blitz-heavy scheme that will target OC Roger Duffy. Pittsburgh is getting solid play from OTs Wayne Gandy and Anthony Brown but injuries have really softened them inside. On Sunday, the onus will be on FB Jon Whitman and nickel back Richard Huntly to pickup the blitz and keep the Niners out of Stewart's throwing lanes.

RB Jerome Bettis was slowed by injuries but he has gained 191 yards the past two weeks and appears to be getting his legs back. Look for the Steelers to pound Bettis early as they hope to wear down the Niners and diminish the impact of their blitz schemes.

San Francisco has played fairly well against the run but they had trouble containing Minnesota's Leroy Hoard prior to their bye week. Defensive coordinator Jim Mora Jr. has stressed the importance of tackling the past two weeks and it will be interesting to see if his unit responds. The Niners need a big game from MLB Winfred Tubbs, whose play has dropped off after solid start. Tubbs should be able get penetration on run blitzes inside without Dermonti Dawson in the lineup.

To his credit, Niners QB Jeff Garcia has weathered intense heat all season but he needs to start making better decisions with the football. Garcia can't afford to force the ball into coverage and give Pittsburgh's struggling offense a short field to work with. Garcia will sorely miss the services of starting TE Greg Clark, who suffered a collapsed lung against the Vikings.

The success of San Francisco's offense, especially with Garcia at the helm, is largely based on getting production from the tight end position. With neither Chad Fann nor Tony Cline as a true option, the Niners must compensate by taking advantage of J.J. Stokes' size in the underneath passing game. Stokes, who only has 15 receptions all season, is nearly as big as many tight ends in the league but he rarely uses that size to his advantage.

The Niners' biggest weapons against the blitz will be RBs Charlie Garner and Lawrence Phillips. Both players have caught the ball well out of the backfield this season but Phillips' continued struggle with blitz pickups is making it too predictable that he will get the ball when he enters the game. Coach Steve Mariucci will use dump-offs to Garner in order to slow down the pass rush and give time for Garcia to take some shots downfield.

Pittsburgh's linebacker corps will make it extremely tough on the Niners to run the football. Garner has had the majority of his success on quick-hitters up the middle but those types of plays rarely materialize against instinctive ILBs Levon Kirkland and Earl Holmes. Regardless of whether they have success on the ground early, San Francisco must stay committed to run game in order to keep the Steelers from teeing off on Garcia.