PITTSBURGH - They've said the proper things all week, praising Eli Manning's arm strength and reminding that nothing is given on a football field, even when a team on an 11-game winning streak meets one on a six-game losing streak.

But the closer the Pittsburgh Steelers' defense gets to facing No. 1 draft pick Manning, the more excited they get. They see the hesitancy in his eyes and the tentativeness of his throws, and they can't wait to get at him.

While none of the Steelers wants to provide bulletin board material for the slumbering New York Giants by saying they erred by drafting Manning, it's obvious they don't feel he's on the same plane as their own rookie quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger.

To them, Roethlisberger has never seemed nervous or intimidated, or exactly how they expect Manning to be when the Steelers (12-1) play the Giants (5-8) Saturday at Giants Stadium.

"He should be (nervous)," linebacker Joey Porter said Wednesday. "There's some pressure we're going to throw at you. We're going to do some things to try to rattle your cage. Just out of respect for our defense, you should be nervous a little bit. I'm not saying you should be scared to go out there and play - you're not supposed to do that - but, at the same time, the intimidation factor, you should be thinking about it a little bit."

Pittsburgh's top-ranked defense is tied for second with 38 sacks and hasn't allowed more than 16 points in any of its last six games. Earlier, the Steelers held two of the NFL's best quarterbacks, the Patriots' Tom Brady and the Eagles' Donovan McNabb, to a combined two touchdown passes on successive weekends.

With the Steelers still playing for a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs, they welcomed the news Manning would start again rather than former starter Kurt Warner.

"We don't mind having him in there as quarterback," linebacker James Farrior said. "We know he's a young guy and we're going to try to give him a lot of different looks and try to confuse him. I'm sure Kurt Warner would probably be a better quarterback in that situation since he knows a lot about the game and would be able to read us better."

There are plenty of comparisons being made between Manning, the No. 1 draft pick who has yet to win a game, and Roethlisberger, the No. 11 pick who has yet to lose a game. But Manning's rookie season actually parallels a different Steelers rookie quarterback: Terry Bradshaw in 1970.

Manning's one touchdown pass and six interceptions in four-plus games, projected over a full season, would come close to matching Bradshaw's six TD passes and 24 interceptions in 14 games in 1970.

The difference is Bradshaw, as young and as unprepared as he was to play immediately, presided over a turnaround of sorts as the Steelers went 5-9 after going 1-13 in 1969. By 1972, they would be 11-3.

Now, the Steelers don't want to be the team that gives Manning's career a boost with his first NFL victory or first solid performance. Manning had a 0.0 quarterback rating Sunday, completing only 4 of 18 passes for 27 yards and two interceptions during a 37-14 loss to Baltimore.

"We don't want to think about any letdowns," Porter said. "We want to stay focused and do what we do best. We'll keep our minds on where we're supposed to be and everything will be all right."

Roethlisberger sympathizes with Manning, even though he felt he should have been the first quarterback drafted in April, not Manning.

"It just takes time. He's trying to learn and adjust on the run and it's tough sometimes," Roethlisberger said. "I got put into a great situation with the guys around me."