When Pittsburgh is rocked by an earthquake, it usually has something to do with the Steelers. Yesterday's tremor reached far and wide, with no victims so far. But it's early, and a national sports icon is at stake.

Reports that the Rooney family wants to restructure the team's ownership and that at least one major outside investor is interested in acquiring a share rattled many Pittsburghers, not to mention Steeler Nation. Everyone had grown accustomed to the Rooneys making one smooth generational transfer of authority after another. Now a confluence of developments could alter the ownership firmament.

While the average fan cares little about who occupies the big chairs in the owners' box, what matters is that this team remains the Pittsburgh Steelers. Sensing that, team Chairman Dan Rooney issued a statement Monday saying, "I will do everything possible to work out a solution to ensure my father's legacy of keeping the Steelers in the Rooney family and in Pittsburgh for at least another 75 years."

Maybe no one truly intends to uproot this franchise, but it is precisely at such moments of uncertainty, when shares are being assessed and co-owners bought out, that a sports team is vulnerable to a bidding war that can end in a convoy of moving vans.

At least two developments are afoot. The Rooneys want to comply with a National Football League rule that prohibits owners from associating with racetrack and gambling interests. That means Mr. Rooney (and his son, team President Art Rooney II) must acquire the Steeler shares held by the brothers who own a harness racetrack in Yonkers, N.Y., and a dog track in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Enter the interest of Stanley Druckenmiller, the billionaire chairman of Pittsburgh-based Duquesne Capital Management. The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that he would like to buy the team and let the Rooneys continue to run it. Part of that is a relief, but part of it is worrisome after seven decades of Rooney control.

Perhaps the in-house maneuvering is only natural in a multimillion-dollar family enterprise (if there is actually a feud, we are sorry that it's happening). Perhaps partnering with a wealthy outsider, one who has built his business in Pittsburgh, is a way to secure the team's future here. But forgive the Steelers fan who is consumed with doubt, not to mention the possibility that this can do great harm to Pittsburgh. To see what can result under a shifting sports ownership, one need look only at the Pirates.

In 2001, when the Steelers inaugurated Heinz Field, a $281 million stadium built largely with public dollars, it was the renewal of a commitment -- to spend the next 30 seasons in Pittsburgh. That promise runs deep, not only in time but also in history, symbolism and the fabric of Western Pennsylvania.

Yes, it's only a football team, athletes paid handsomely to entertain once a week, 16 times a year. But the close identity Pittsburgh has with its Steelers is unlike that of any other city.

The Rooneys' steady hand and their history as Pittsburghers are big reasons for that. It would be hard to see the team under anyone else's control.