Bill Cowher knows who to blame for a second-half slump that is threatening to keep the Pittsburgh Steelers out of the playoffs for the first time since 1991.
The coach isn't blaming the offense, the defense or the schedule. He's not even blaming the crumbling walls at Three Rivers Stadium.He does blame Bill Cowher.
Saying he has final and full responsibility for all aspects of the Steelers' preparation and play-calling, Cowher said Tuesday that criticism directed at quarterback Kordell Stewart or offensive coordinator Ray Sherman is misdirected.
Unlike some coaches, who transfer all in-game responsibility for defensive alignments and offensive play-calling to their coordinators, Cowher said he never will.
"I'm the head coach," he said. "I'm very much aware of what we do offensively, defensively and on special teams."
INSTANT REPLAY ON HOLD: The NFL's push for instant replay is on hold.
"Right now it remains a possibility, not yet a probability," NFL spokesman Joe Browne said Tuesday, the day after the league announced it is considering a form of replay for the playoffs.
The basic problem is the one replay proponents have faced for the past seven years -- how to unite behind one system.
But it's already led to the kind of bickering, even within teams, that has doomed previous attempts to reinstate it.
COATES FACES ASSAULT CHARGE: The mother of one of Ben Coates' children testified Tuesday that the New England Patriots tight end pushed her to the pavement and hit her head on a car outside his condominium.
Jennifer Marshall testified on the first day of Coates' trial on an assault-and-battery charge stemming from a confrontation outside his Franklin home on July 26. He has pleaded innocent, saying he was defending himself from an attack by Marshall.