BIG BEN ANSWERS COACH'S CONCERNS.

Byline: BILLY WITZ

PITTSBURGH - A banner hanging from the railing Sunday at Heinz Stadium read: Big Ben God Send.

It has been nine months since the Patriots made Ben Roethlisberger look mortal. Since then, the Steelers quarterback, who won all 14 of his regular-season starts as a rookie, has given other indications that he's human.

They began when Roethlisberger and Steelers coach Bill Cowher sparred over the extent of an injury to his hand in the aftermath of the AFC Championship Game loss to New England.

Speculation that there was tension between the two gained legs later in the offseason when Cowher became irked that Roethlisberger, in the wake of Kellen Winslow's motorcycle accident, refused to stop riding his bike.

Then in the preseason, Roethlisberger was downright awful. He completed 16 of 36 passes for 145 yards with two interceptions and a 32.8 quarterback rating. In 18 drives, Roethlisberger led the Steelers to three points.

The Steelers would be without injured tailbacks Duce Staley and Jerome Bettis in the season opener against Tennessee, and had lost receiver Plaxico Burress, their best deep threat, in free agency.

Cowher was concerned enough to meet with his quarterback last week.

``Just relax, coach,'' Roethlisberger said. ``We'll be OK.''

``OK,'' Cowher said. ``Show me.''

On Sunday, Roethlisberger did. He completed 9 of 11 passes for 218 yards, two touchdowns and a perfect passer rating of 158.3.

Concerns about Burress were also misplaced. Roethlisberger hit Antwaan Randle El for a 63-yard touchdown pass, the longest in Heinz Field history.

The lesson to be learned is this: Preseason games don't count for a reason. It was a lesson taught around the NFL in the opening weekend.

The Broncos were undefeated in the preseason, then laid an egg in Miami, losing 34-10. The Colts lost all five preseason games, but looked like Super Bowl material in a 24-7 win at Baltimore. Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer, who had some equally shaky preseason moments, completed 26 of 34 passes for 280 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in a 27-13 win over Cleveland.

``To me, (Roethlisberger's) history has been that he showed up on game day and he plays very well,'' Steelers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt said. ``That's all I can judge it by.''

Whisenhunt said in the preseason the schemes are bland. For example, Roethlisberger threw virtually every pass from the pocket. On Sunday, he was rolling out - his strength - all but twice.

``Football isn't like basketball where LeBron James can take over a game or baseball where Barry Bonds can take over a game,'' Steelers tackle Max Starks said. ``Everyone has to be in sync and that's hard in preseason. You start off with 80 guys, so you don't get a lot of reps in games and we played three games in 12 days. The regular season is a different story.''

If the rest of the Steelers weren't worried, neither was Roethlisberger.

``I have confidence in myself,'' Roethlisberger said. ``I knew that when the regular season got here and we would have a game plan and really play football when it mattered, we'd be OK.''

Elsewhere around the league in Week 1:

--Chargers general manager A.J. Smith might have gone from Executive of the Year to Kevin Malone of the Year. Smith, who shrewdly rebuilt the Chargers into AFC title contenders, placed Antonio Gates on the Roster Exempt List when negotiations on a new contract with the All-Pro tight end weren't going anywhere. That meant Gates, who caught 13 touchdown passes - an NFL record for a tight end - was suspended for the opener despite agreeing on a new deal three weeks ago.

Do you think the Chargers might have missed Gates when they had a first down at the Dallas 7-yard line with 1:30 left and Drew Brees threw three incompletions and interception that sealed a 28-24 loss?

If Smith is smarter than he is stubborn - and he is both - he'll stand before the team and say: ``This one's on me.''

--Addition by subtraction didn't add up for Minnesota. Whether they were missing Randy Moss or former offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, who helped Miami put up 34 points, the Vikings didn't score an offensive touchdown for the first time in four years.

--Coincidence or not, in addition to the Saints' dramatic win at Carolina, two colleges in the path of Hurricane Katrina played inspiring games this weekend. LSU scored 28 fourth-quarter points to beat Arizona State in a game that was moved from Baton Rouge to Tempe, and Division I-AA Nicholls State, located in Thibidoux, La., came within 37 seconds of an upset at Indiana, losing 35-31.

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