Well, in a way it did. He wasn't actually suspended for the Pittsburgh game, the battle of 5-1 division leaders, nor was he fined. But his most recent indiscretion - blowing off treatment for his sprained neck during the week prior to the game - resulted in head coach Tom Coughlin's decision not to start him. In fact, he didn't appear in the game until 11:27 remained in the second quarter.

For this game, the hot topic was defense, the kind that inundated the Steelers, who are now 5-2, the kind that sacked quarterback Ben Roethlisberger five times, the kind that turned four of his passes into interceptions, the kind that limited the Steelers to 95 yards rushing.

In the end, this new set of packages installed by coordinator Steve Spagnuolo not only harassed Big Ben but confused his play-calling, audibles and even his receivers, and it was enough for the Giants to fly back home with a 21-14 victory and a somewhat firmer grasp on the NFC East lead.

"Give them credit," said Roethlisberger. "They are the reigning champions and they played that way. Some of the sacks were cover sacks. Some were on me, and a few were communications problems, as in we didn't know which of the rushers were actually going to rush. At times, they all did, they just pinned their ears back and went for me all-out."

The leading culprit in that technique was defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka, who had three sacks, as well as three tackles for losses, three quarterback hits, five tackles overall and a forced fumble. He now has five sacks for the season, third on the team. The other end, Justin Tuck, leads with six while tackle Fred Robbins has 5.5.

The defense also doubled its season output in interceptions, picking off four Roethlisberger passes. Rookie free safety Kenny Phillips' interception ended the Steelers' final attempt to tie the game with 1:24 remaining. The Giants now have eight interceptions and 26 sacks for the season

"That is an outstanding defense," said Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin, who is something of a defensive guru. "They just don't give you a chance to breathe."