Rodney Peete's NFL debut was the things dreams are made of - for Bubby Brister, that is.
Brister completed a team-record 15 consecutive passes and hit 21 of 27 for 267 yards, including a 48-yard touchdown strike to Louis Lipps.The 15 straight completions topped the Steelers record of 13 by Bill Nelson set in the 1966-67 seasons. The team's previous one-game record was 11 by Mark Malone in 1984 against San Diego.
"I didn't know how many I had," Brister said. "I didn't care because it didn't matter. I just wanted to win."
That he did, as the Steelers defeated the Detroit Lions 23-3 Sunday, ruining the debut of Peete.
A sixth-round draft pick out of Southern Cal, Peete had been sidelined with a knee injury sustained in exhibition play. Against the Steelers, last year's runner-up in the Heisman Trophy balloting completed 15 of 30 passes for 160 yards with one interception before being replaced late in the third quarter.
"Rodney was rusty," Detroit Coach Wayne Fontes said. "His knee was sore and we didn't think he was as sharp as we wanted, so we decided to sit him down before he lost confidence."
Pittsburgh's defense came up with three sacks, two interceptions and recovered two Detroit fumbles. The Lions gained only 18 of their 240 total yards on the ground.
All four Pittsburgh scores came off Detroit turnovers. The Steelers improved to 2-2 while the Lions, who have yet to win either an exhibition or a regular-season game with their new run-and-shoot offense, are 0-4.
Detroit rookie running back Barry Sanders, slowed by a hip pointer sustained a week ago, gained only one yard on five carries and lost a fumble. He sat out the second half.
"It's tough any time you lose a football game, and we haven't won a game yet this season," Peete said. "But you can't throw in the towel. We have to believe we're going to turn it around and go up to Minnesota next week and beat the Vikings. We're not going to quit."