PITTSBURGH — There were plenty of fireworks at Heinz Field in the first half Sunday, but the Zambelli family was nowhere in sight.

Instead, the Steelers provided the pyrotechnics as they displayed the skill, power and ferocity that they used to win Super Bowl XL and that had been missing so far in 2006.

In the first half against Kansas City, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was the Big Ben of old, his receivers caught the ball for big gains and defensive back Troy Polamalu and the rest of the defense smothered Chiefs quarterback Damon Huard and running back Larry Johnson.

All that added up to a 31-0 Steelers halftime advantage that they carried to a 45-7 victory over the Chiefs (2-3).

"It was a great team effort," coach Bill Cowher said. "A lot of big plays and, certainly, our offense got on track, and Ben had a big game. I was happy for him."

Roethlisberger was like a human highlight film of his previous career success, zipping accurate passes and decisively taking command of the offense, two things that mostly were missing in his previous three starts — all Steelers losses. In the first half, Roethlisberger was a stunning 13-of-15 for 224 yards and his first two touchdown passes since last season's AFC Championship game.

He didn't do it all alone. The offensive line provided the best protection of the season, which allowed Roethlisberger to work his magic.

"I think Ben threw the ball well and we did a good job protecting him," Cowher said. "If we protect our quarterback, he's pretty good."

"The pocket today was big," Roethlisberger said. "I had lots of time to sit in there. The line did an excellent job. I can't say enough about how good those guys did."

However, he wasn't about to say he's completely regained last season's form.

"I won't say I'm back, but I felt good out there," Roethlisberger said. "I felt that things were really clicking and things were going well. I'd love to have that feeling every week."

When he was pulled from the game in favor of Charlie Batch midway through the fourth quarter, Roethlisberger was 16-of-19 for 238 yards and the two touchdowns.

Huge chunks of that yardage were contributed by receivers Santonio Holmes, whose 50-yard reception set up the first Steelers touchdown — a 3-yard run by Willie Parker at 10:45 in the first quarter — and Nate Washington, who pulled in a 47-yard touchdown pass with 50 seconds left in the quarter to give Pittsburgh (2-3) a 14-0 lead.

Holmes said the big plays helped Roethlisberger more than it did the offense in general.

"It didn't really do anything for the offense, but it kind of helped Ben get his confidence back," he said. "He was telling us, 'Just make plays for me. That's all you guys have to do, and we'll continue to move forward.'"

Hines Ward made his presence felt in the second quarter when he grabbed a Roethlisberger pass over the middle and recorded a 17-yard reception that set up the second touchdown of the game for Parker, who netted 109 yards on 22 carries on the game.

On the Steelers' next possession, Ward gathered in a 13-yard touchdown pass — his second of the season — to give Pittsburgh a 28-0 lead.

Jeff Reed connected on a 32-yard field goal with two seconds left in the half to send the Steelers into the locker room with a 31-0 lead.

While Pittsburgh's offense was racking up piles of points and 372 yards of total offense in the first two quarters, its defense was denying the same to Kansas City.

Huard, Johnson and company could muster only 47 yards of offense. Johnson picked up 16 yards on nine carries and Huard was 6-of-11 for 27 yards.

But it was Polamalu who was on fire Sunday, recording seven tackles in the first half and appearing to be everywhere on the field.

During one series in the second quarter, the fourth-year pro almost single-handedly forced a three-and-out on the Chiefs with three tackles of Johnson on three straight plays, including one for a 2-yard loss on a third-and-one.

The win did much to brighten the atmosphere after the Steelers' sluggish start, but Cowher said he still has things in perspective.

"There's so much football left," he said. "People were giving us a eulogy and writing our epitaph this whole week. We still have long way to go. You don't assume you've got there in one game."