PITTSBURGH — His teammates and coaches were yelling, "Get down, get down!" but Pittsburgh Steelers strong safety Troy Polamalu wouldn't listen. Not a chance.

After intercepting a pass in the closing minutes of a tight game against Cincinnati, Polamalu cut to his left, then back to his right, running wildly, instinctively and, for a moment, almost out of control. This was a play made for him, and he wasn't stopping even at the risk of turning the ball back to the Bengals.

His long, black hair flowing behind him, Polamalu sidestepped one defender, then another, and another still. Finally, the only player in his path was, of all people, Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer — his former Southern Cal teammate, roommate and one of his best friends.

Polamalu probably could have put on yet another move and dodged Palmer, but, hesitating not a moment, ran over him to complete a 26-yard touchdown return and, with it, a 28-17 Steelers victory.

Hey, friendship is one thing, but this was football and, for that instant, Palmer wasn't Polamalu's buddy but just another guy in an orange-and-black helmet who was in his way.

Now, more than a year after Polamalu took advantage of his friend's lack of tackling skills to score his first NFL touchdown, Palmer said that play illustrates why he would rather go against almost any defensive player in the league than Polamalu."In my eyes, he's the best defensive player in the league," Palmer, the Pro Bowl quarterback, said of Polamalu, the Pro Bowl safety — and, yes, still his close friend. "He's a phenomenal player."So good, in Palmer's mind, that he wishes he didn't have to go against him so often. The two will meet for the third time this season Sunday in the first Steelers-Bengals playoff game in the 36 seasons the close-by franchises have played in the same division.While Palmer and Polamalu probably won't have one of their regular phone chats this week, it's obvious how each feels about the other — their respect is real, their praise comes from the heart."I was angry," Palmer said of the Steelers' decision to move up 11 spots in the 2003 draft and choose Polamalu. "You knew he was just going to get better once he got into the NFL. I wasn't hoping for or looking forward to that."Each credits the other with hastening his development. Palmer said going against Polamalu in practice was great preparation for anything he saw on game day. Polamalu said trying to read Palmer prepared him for much of what he sees in the NFL."I learned more from him than I learned from anybody," Polamalu said of Palmer, whose passer rating trails only the Colts' Peyton Manning. "He taught me a lot about offenses and what quarterbacks think."How each plays Sunday could very well determine which AFC North team advances to the divisional round.The Steelers, winners of four in a row, know they cannot give Palmer the time and the freedom to throw the way he did last month in a 38-31 victory in Pittsburgh that all but wrapped up the division for Cincinnati. Palmer, beating the Steelers for the first time in four career starts against them, was 22-of-38 for 227 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.Conversely, the Bengals cannot let the Steelers' defense take over the game the way it did in Pittsburgh's 27-13 victory in Cincinnati on Oct. 23, when the Bengals' only touchdown came in the final minute.