Quotebooks

By Times staff writers
© St. Petersburg Times
published December 24, 2002

BUCS

Photos/audio: Click here John Romano: Gimme five! Gary Shelton: King and his court look like jesters

Quarterback Shaun King on the offensive performance:

"We didn't play well enough to win. We couldn't get anything consistent going. We'd make a couple plays, we'd miss a couple plays. Pittsburgh came in and had a good plan against us and played well enough to win."

Receiver Keyshawn Johnson on next week:

"It's not over. Hopefully we can get that second seed; our sights are set on it. There's no way we can get the first seed. Hopefully the Jets will do us a favor."

Johnson on King:

"A few throws got away from him; it took him a while to settle in."

Defensive tackle Warren Sapp on the first quarter:

"We came out, had a (bad) first drive, they scored on us, we turned around and gave the ball right back to them, they scored again. You're not going to win many games putting yourself behind 14 points to a quality team like that. It kind of nailed the coffin. We made no plays tonight. None."

STEELERS

Coach Bill Cowher on the game's intensity:

"Just the Monday night, what you could sense, the intensity on that field was as great as any playoff game I have ever been involved in. These were two teams that had a genuine dislike for each other."

Cowher on the team playing its best football in December:

"We are playing well at the right time of year. I said that last week. I think last week (30-14 win over Carolina) was the closest thing we came to playing our most complete game in all three years. I thought even tonight that the kicking game was solid; we had the one turnover and really that was the only blemish, I thought."

Safety Lee Flowers on Sapp:

"Sapp is a guy who every time a camera comes on he has something to say. He said what he had to say. I said what I had to say and it's over with. Good luck to them in the playoffs. This wasn't a game about me and Sapp. We played as a team and the score reflects it."

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