with the pacemaker and I knew I ha

PITTSBURGH -- When Ben Roethlisberger returned to the field in Baltimore on Nov. 6, just 20 days removed from surgery on his left knee, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin sent a message to his offensive line: protect Roethlisberger or else.He said `we cant let him get hit, guard Ramon Foster. We need Ben standing up.Things didnt exactly go as planned. Roethlisberger took two sacks in a lethargic and rusty 21-14 loss and hit the deck once the following week while getting clipped late by Dallas in a 35-30 defeat that dropped the Steelers to 4-5. A once promising season on the brink of spiraling out of control, Pittsburgh instead switched direction midstream.The talk of averaging 30 points a game died down. The ball found its way to running back LeVeon Bells hands with borderline alarming regularity. And Roethlisberger and offensive coordinator Todd Haley crafted game plans that called for shorter routes, ramping up a mindset thats evolved in recent years as Roethlisberger morphed from hang in there until the last second gunslinger to decisive CEO.Roethlisberger has been sacked just twice during the four-game winning streak the Steelers (8-5) take into Cincinnati (5-7-1) on Sunday. The Steelers are second in the NFL in fewest sacks given up (18) and Roethlisberger is on pace to go down the fewest times in his 13-year career. Call it the byproduct of playing behind one of the leagues top offensive lines and some very basic math.If hes in, we win, Foster said. Keeping him protected is our No. 1 goal.One Roethlisberger takes as seriously as the guys in front of him. With Bell producing at a record-setting pace, the play calling has become far more flexible. The Steelers passed it 24 times and ran it 13 in the first half last week against Buffalo, a ratio that flipped to 26 rushes and just five passes after halftime in a 27-20 victory.Coach has definitely stressed that, simplifying it, eliminating mental errors, guard David DeCastro said. Just getting back to basics and it really worked out for us. Weve found out what works too. If the run works, stick with it and if the pass works, stick with it.The struggling Bengals dont quite pose the same threat as they have in recent years, though theres something about the Steelers that brings out an extra level of vitriol. The last time Roethlisberger took snaps at Paul Brown Stadium, he guided Pittsburgh to an emotionally charged and physically draining win in the wild card round of last seasons playoffs. Roethlisberger basically played the last drive with his right arm basically numb after being driven into the ground while getting sacked by Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict.The Steelers survived thanks in large part to a full-on meltdown by Cincinnati (Burfict included) in final moments. Things were relatively tame in the first meeting this season, a relatively tame 24-16 Pittsburgh win that Burfict missed while serving a suspension as penance for a variety of violations. Hell be back this time around, and Roethlisberger will be watching.You just have to know where he is, Roethlisberger said. He takes his chances as well. Hell shoot gaps and come up to try to stop the runs. And also, you saw last week or two weeks ago, he gets interceptions as well.Roethlisberger is hoping to improve on last weeks three-interception performance in Buffalo, mistakes the Steelers were able to survive rather easily thanks to Bell. Thriving when its franchise quarterback is having an off day is a luxury Pittsburgh often couldnt afford. The way Foster figures it, this simply means Roethlisberger is due for a breakout, one thats only capable so long as his No. 7 is in the huddle.For all of Bells remarkable talent, the Steelers will continue to go as Roethlisberger does.The more and more we keep him up and not looking around, the better it is for us, Foster said.Game notesFoster practiced for a second straight day after missing the Buffalo game with a chest injury. .. G Marcus Gilbert (ankle), G B.J. Finney (concussion) and NT Javon Hargrave (concussion), also practice. ... WR Darrius Heyward-Bey (foot) and RB DeAngelo Williams (knee) did not practice.---For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFLCheap Royals Jerseys . Radwanska, making her debut in the Seoul tournament, hit eight aces in a match that lasted 1 hour, 4 minutes at Olympic Park tennis stadium. 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As he recorded his 23rd and 24th points of the evening, a segment of the sellout Air Canada Centre crowd expressed their appreciation for the Raptors point guard with a smattering of MVP chants.Laura Muir set a new British womens 1500 metres record at the Diamond League meeting in Paris.The Scot, who finished seventh in the Olympic 1500m final in Rio, took over two seconds off her previous best to lower the British record to a time of three minutes 55.22 seconds.The race was amazing, Muir told paris.diamondleague.com. I couldnt believe the time, especially since I didnt do one track session since Rio.I just went with the pacemaker and I knew I had to dig in and hold on during the third lap.The star of the night, however, was Olympic 3,000m steeplechase champion Ruth Jebet who set a new world record for the event.Teenager Jebet, the Kenyan now competing for Bahrain, ran the second-fastest time in history to win gold in Rio less than a fortnight ago.But she went seven seconds quickerr than her Rio time to set a new world record of 8mins 52.dddddddddddd78secs.I tried many times to beat the world record, and today we decided to push each other to go for a good time, said Jebet. The pacemaker was very strong as she was in the Olympics. I was not expecting such a big difference with the record.Great Britains Lorraine Ugen was second in the womens long jump with a leap of 6.80m.Desiree Henry (22.46 seconds) finished second to Hollands Dafne Schippers (22.13) in the womens 200m, with Cindy Ofili (12.66) third in the 100m hurdles.British sprinters Joel Fearon (10.05) and Chijindu Ujah (10.15) finished fourth and eighth respectively in the mens 100m. ' ' '