  The excitation function of the in-plane directed flow of nucleons is studied
within a non-equilibrium transport approach. It is demonstrated that a local
minimum in the excitation function of the directed flow develops, which is not
related to a transition into a quark-gluon plasma (QGP) phase. It is a
consequence of the dynamical softening of the underlying equation of state, due
to the onset of resonance matter and particle production. Thus, the
interpretation of this minimum as a 'smoking gun' signature for the creation of
a QGP is premature.
