LAST SEASON: 13-3, lost to Patriots in AFC championship
PROJECTION: 1st in AFC North

	Gildon & Co. have the QB in their crosshairs.

STRONG SIDE

LB: The Steelers have made a name for themselves by letting big-play guys leave and finding bigger-play guys to step in. This time the team let MLB Earl Holmes go to Cleveland, and all he'd done was lead the D in tackles for three straight seasons. So, hello to FA James Farrior, who was third in the NFL in tackles for the Jets in 2001. Farrior is younger and faster, and he fits right into this unit's strength. Jason Gildon, Joey Porter and Kendrell Bell, the NFL defensive Rookie of the Year, can all run and combined for 30 sacks in 2001. These are every-down guys who can cover and crush, so Farrior will be fighting for PT.

WEAK SIDE

ST: Far from special last season; in fact, they may have cost the Steelers a trip to the Super Bowl. Two of the three TDs they gave up in the AFC championship game came against the special teams. Jay Hayes was fired as special teams coach and replaced by the Colts' Kevin Spencer. Kicker Kris Brown, who missed a league-high 14 FGs, was replaced by Todd Peterson, who has been inconsistent in his career.

AFC North

1. Steelers

2. Browns

3. Bengals

4. Ravens

Scouting Report Index

OTHER UNITS

QB: Kordell Stewart thrived under O-coordinator Mike Mularkey, completing 60.2% of his passes and rushing for 537 yards and 5 TDs. If he can lift Pittsburgh's passing O (21st in the NFL) closer to its running O (No.1), the Steelers will be in the Super Bowl hunt. Again.

RB: Jerome Bettis led the league in rushing before he suffered a groin injury and missed the last five games of the season. The Bus has shed some weight, to 240, and should rumble to a seventh consecutive 1,000-yard season. Amos Zereoue is a quality backup with breakaway speed.

WR: The returning starters, Hines Ward and Plaxico Burress, are both coming off 1,000-yard seasons. The team brought in veteran Terance Mathis and drafted a rising star in second-round Slash clone Antwaan Randle El (QB/WR at Indiana).

OL: This unit creates plenty of holes for Bettis. Losing RG Rich Tylski will hurt, but Alan Faneca, a Pro Bowler, is on the other side. Throw in T Wayne Gandy and first-round pick Kendall Simmons, and there's no reason to believe the Steelers will slow down on the ground or in the air.

DL: The LBs may get all the glory in the Steelers D, but that's because the line keeps them free to make offenses sick. Casey Hampton, the team's No.1 pick in 2001, anchored the NFL's No.1 D at the nose. Ends Aaron Smith (8 sacks) and Kimo von Oelhoffen (4 sacks) provide plenty of pressure.

DB: All four starters return, and backup CB Deshea Townsend re-upped, so the AFC's No.2 passing D is intact. CB Chad Scott is the playmaker -- he led the team with 5 picks last year, returning 2 for TDs.

This article appears in the September 16 issue of ESPN The Magazine.