Mendenhall redeems himself with Steelers

PITTSBURGH - They gave Rashard Mendenhall a new blocker, and the opportunity to redeem himself following one of the most embarrassing weeks by any Pittsburgh Steelers running back.

Most of all, they gave him the football, and not just once or twice in a game already decided. They gave it to him when it was scoreless, and when they had a big lead. They gave it to him near the goal line, and in long-yardage situations.

Maybe that's all Mendenhall needed after doing little for 18 months to show he deserved to be a first-round draft pick out of Illinois.

Only a week after coach Mike Tomlin wouldn't let him off the bench in Cincinnati because he couldn't correctly run plays in practice, Mendenhall ran over the San Diego Chargers for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns during the Steelers' 38-28 victory Sunday night.

He didn't just successfully replace the injured Willie Parker, he made a big push to keep the job when Parker recovers from his left big toe injury. Mendenhall gave the Steelers (2-2) the goal-line back they've been looking for - he scored from the 1- and the 2-yard line - and ran for 70 yards during the fourth quarter alone.

"I was able to be me and be comfortable," Mendenhall said. "All I wanted was a chance to be out there and to play and for people to be able to see me and who I am, because people haven't seen me play too much to this point."

This certainly wasn't the Mendenhall the Steelers saw when he gained only 103 yards in his first seven career games - the runner who appeared to be trying to get by on talent alone.

Last season was a lost one for Mendenhall, who missed the final four months with a fractured shoulder, and this season was starting out that way, too.

It's bad enough to get benched for fumbling, or not producing, or failing to block. But to get sent to the bench for not knowing the plays? These are the Steelers, the franchise of Franco Harris and Jerome Bettis, and that simply isn't supposed to happen.

"It's frustrating being a player, a competitor - last week not being able to play," Mendenhall said. "When you finally get a chance, you've got to be able to take advantage of any opportunities you get."