PITTSBURGH, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- Linebacker Joey Porter caused a key fumble late in the fourth quarter and Kordell Stewart accounted for 317 total yards and two touchdowns Sunday as the Pittsburgh Steelers opened some breathing room in the AFC Central with a 20-7 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Jaguars were facing a 13-7 deficit late in the game when they drove 69 yards to the Pittsburgh 18. But Porter stripped the ball from quarterback Jonathan Quinn and rookie defensive tackle Casey Hampton recovered at the Steelers' 21.
"He really didn't see me coming from the blind side," Porter said. "We are coached to try and strip the ball when (the quarterback) is not looking. I was thinking strip the whole time."
Held in check most of the afte"He really didn't see me coming from the blind side," Porter
said. "We are coached to try and strip the ball when (the
quarterback) is not looking. I was thinking strip the whole
time." rnoon, Jerome Bettis rambled 40 yards on the next play. Amos Zereoue broke off a 28-yard run and Stewart capped the 79-yard drive with a seven-yard keeper.
Quinn also fumbled on the Jaguars' last drive as they lost for the sixth time in seven games and fell to 3-6.
"At 13-7, we had the ball down at the goal line. We had our big-play people in the game," Jacksonville coach Tom Coughlin said. "We had a three-step drop. Quinn held the ball too long. He got hit and the ball came out. You have to give Pittsburgh credit."
Pittsburgh (7-2) has won seven of eight and opened a 1 1/2-game lead over second-place Baltimore.
"It's a fine line between a 7-2 team and a 2-7 team," Steelers safety Lee Flowers said. "We have to understand right now we have the edge. We won a lot of close games. You can never underestimate what happens."
With Bettis a non-factor, Stewart enjoyed his best game in years. He completed 21 of 33 passes for 266 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 50 yards and a score on just five carries.
"Based on how things were managed, I can't remember when I played this well," Stewart said. "This was just a performance where everybody picked up. That allowed us to be successful on certain plays. I like to feel it was a usual day because we worked so hard to get to this point."
"They said they were not going to let the running game beat us, and Kordell had to step up," said Bettis, who led the Steelers with 52 yards on 21 carries. "It is just great when a guy does what he has to. They were blitzing all day and didn't give our running game a chance to get going."
Stewart had three key third-down completions on a 57-yard drive that ended with Kris Brown's 48-yard field goal. That came after Jacksonville's Mike Hollis was wide left on a 47-yard attempt on the game's initial possession.
The Jaguars' next five drives ended with punts, but the Steelers could not get anything going until their final possession of the first half. Stewart completed six of seven passes for 60 yards, then spiked the ball to stop the clock for Brown's 28-yard field goal six seconds before halftime.
Pittsburgh also scored in the final minute of the third quarter as Stewart hit Hines Ward for a 28-yard touchdown that extended the lead to 13-0. Ward had a career-best 112 yards on nine catches.
"Coach Mularkey (offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey) finally put me back there on the screen," Ward said. "Against Buffalo, I got a first down. Today, tremendous blocking downfield from Troy Edwards and Bobby Shaw. With those blocks, I was able to dance right in."
Jacksonville silenced the Heinz Field crowd moments later as Elvis Joseph returned the ensuing kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown that made it 13-7. But it was the Jaguars' only trip to the end zone against the NFL's top-rated defense.
With starter Mark Brunell sidelined with a strained left quadriceps, Quinn completed 17 of 31 passes for 225 yards. But he was sacked five times and fumbled three times.
"I didn't play good enough," Quinn said. "The first fumble, the guy came up the middle. I thought I had tucked it under, it just slipped out. Second fumble, a three-step drop, a split-second, the guy hit me in the back. On the third fumble, I got hit again in the back.
"Obviously, the fumbles took points off the board. I just have to hold onto the ball."
Quinn also was Jacksonville's leading rusher with 39 yards on four carries. Joseph and Stacey Mack combined for 12 yards on 11 attempts.
