Who's got it? Steelers do, 23-22

MIAMI - With the game up for grabs, Ben Roethlisberger found himself part of an end-zone scrum so frantic that the officials were unable to determine who had the ball.

That gave the game to the Steelers.

A video review determined Roethlisberger's late touchdown instead was a fumble, but because it was unclear who recovered it, by rule, Pittsburgh kept the ball. On the next play, Jeff Reed kicked what proved to be the winning 18-yard field goal with 2:26 left as the Steelers beat the Miami Dolphins, 23-22.

"Just a bizarre kind of play. You hate to win it that way, but you'll take a win," Roethlisberger said.

With Pittsburgh trailing 22-20 and facing third-and-goal at the 2, Roethlisberger took two steps back, then ran up the middle on a quatterback draw and lunged for the end zone. Chris Clemons hit him to jar the ball loose. "I thought he broke my arm, he hit me so hard," Roethlisberger said. "My arm kind of went numb."

The play was ruled a touchdown as both teams scrambled for the ball. After a review, referee Gene Steratore announced Roethlisberger fumbled before scoring. But Steratore said replays were inconclusive regarding which team recovered, and the Steelers (5-1) were awarded possession at the half-yard line.

"I have to have clear video evidence of the team recovering the fumble," Steratore said. "It is a pile of bodies in there, and you don't have a clear recovery."

Several Dolphins argued that Miami linebacker Ikaika Alama-Francis recovered. Francis said he stood up with the ball. "I just don't understand the ruling," he said. "I had possession."

Said Roethlisberger, "I saw the ball sitting right in front of me. One of their guys jumped on it, and it squirted between them, so I was able to grab it under the pile."

Roethlisberger said he cradled the ball in his right arm, but he conceded a Dolphins player - Francis - also had a piece of it. "I'm not denying he [was] holding on to it," Roethlisberger said. "How do you tell who recovered the ball?"

Miami (3-3) took a 22-20 lead when Dan Carpenter kicked his fifth field goal with 5:17 left. But the Steelers' Emmanuel Sanders returned the kickoff 48 yards and Mewelde Moore turned a short pass into a 29-yard gain to set up the controversial play.

"The refs called a wonderful game - for the Steelers," Miami's Channing Crowder said. "We shouldn't have put it in the refs' hands. As we see, they can make some bad calls sometimes."

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, still shaking his head when he met with reporters, seemed eager to leave. "Make it quick," he said. "We've got the buses warming up."