PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers put together something resembling a game plan for Saturday night's exhibition game against Buffalo. They stayed with the practice routine and weekly schedule they use for the games that count.

The practices lasted as long as they will during the season. The starters got as much work as usual.

Calling this the NFL's version of a dress rehearsal, Mike Tomlin dared to suggest his starters might see a territory rarely visited during the preseason: the second half.

If Tomlin doesn't like what he sees, if quarterback Ben Roethlisberger hasn't taken enough snaps or his defense isn't playing to the level he expects, there's a possibility his regulars may play past halftime.

That probably won't happen but, given that some coaches won't play their starters a single down next week, Tomlin's approach is a bit of a throwback to the days when the regulars didn't sit down after a couple of series.

"We're going to get at the very least a half of play," Tomlin said. "We'll kind of analyze it at the half and go from there. We're not worried about a snap count or anything that you worry about in the first two games. We want to see 30 minutes of Steelers football and then kind of make a determination from there."

So far in the preseason, 180 minutes of Bills football haven't produced much offensively to get excited about, at least from the starters. That's why coach Dick Jauron is putting as much importance as Tomlin is on an otherwise inconsequential game.

One major concern is a Buffalo no-huddle offense that's been more of a no-points offense — so far, the Bills starters have produced only 253 yards, 12 first downs, a field goal and no touchdowns.

It hasn't helped that wide receiver Terrell Owens has missed the last two games and will sit out Saturday because of a sprained toe, but the Bills are running out of time to get this working before the games matter. Quarterback Trent Edwards was under constant pressure while throwing an interception and losing a fumble in five series against Green Bay last week.

"We've got to score some touchdowns and, obviously, this week there will be more of an emphasis on that," Edwards said.

If the Bills wanted a test of where they are offensively, they may get it from the Steelers defense, which was No. 1 overall, No. 1 against the pass and No. 2 against the run last season. The Bills also usually struggle against 3-4 defenses like Pittsburgh's; they were 0-6 last season inside the AFC East, where every opponent used the 3-4.

The Steelers starters allowed a lone field goal in their first two preseason games, against the Cardinals and Redskins, although they played only about one quarter in each game.

Former Penn State defensive end Aaron Maybin, Buffalo's first-round draft pick, will play for the first time since signing Aug. 21, but is expected to work with the backups. The Bills probably won't use starting running back Fred Jackson (sprained left wrist); the Steelers may be without running back Willie Parker (hamstring), kicker Jeff Reed (sprained ankle) and wide receiver Santonio Holmes (back).

The Steelers' goal is to get their starters enough playing time that they get into a rhythm, before the backups take over and start sorting out some of the roster decisions that still must be made.

"You can't simulate game speed," wide receiver Hines Ward said. "It's important to go out there and get the game speed down because next week we probably won't play much."

Roethlisberger will go as long as the other starters do, despite sitting out against Washington last week after injuring his right foot in practice. Tomlin said there are no restrictions on the quarterback, who played one quarter against Arizona in his only preseason game to date.

"We're trying to make it as close (to the season) as we can," Roethlisberger said. "We do the game-planning a little bit. We have scouting reports. We try and simulate it as best as we can. I think a lot of us will get a lot of playing time. ... We do go into it more like a regular game."

If this game is as close as it gets to the regular season, the Bills must be hoping their offense isn't as far away as it's looked so far.

"I don't think we've got to ... light up the scoreboard, but I think we definitely have to play better than we did last week," wide receiver Lee Evans said. "We've got to start getting ready for the season, especially against these 3-4 teams."