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The 2005 Steelers (Part 3): Champions At Last · Pittsburgh Sports Memories

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_01: Hello and welcome to another uh edition of Pittsburgh Sports Memories Podcast.
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_01: I'm your host, Steve Wirt, and I'm with Hey everybody, I'm Tim Hannon.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_01: And uh we're your co-host, and uh we're going to guide you through the uh final installment of our uh Super Bowl 40 trilogy.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_01: If you missed the other first uh two parts on the regular season and the one just on the Colts game, uh go back and listen to them.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_01: Um you certainly can just start with this one too.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_01: That's okay if you just want to skip to the good stuff.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, it's all good, it's all fun, right, Tim.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_01: That's right.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_01: Great season.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_01: So um so just to uh kind of uh I guess we're gonna do our like, you know, what what's the little TV like catch you up the speed kind of thing here?
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_01: Previously on Pittsburgh Sports Memory.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, there you go.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_01: On a very special episode, yeah.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_01: Starring Nancy Reagan, yeah.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the Steelers, um, they had been perennial playoff contenders for most of the 90s and 2000s.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Bill Cower was considered a run first, play defense kind of coach.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_01: He always had a game manager quarterback.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um going in uh Bill Coward had not won a road playoff game in his coaching career going 0-3.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um The Steelers had not won a Super Bowl since Super Bowl 14 over the Rams at the end of the 1979 season.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the Steelers had six AFC Championship game appearances from 1980 to 2004, but they had only won the game once in 1995.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_01: After 95, the only Super Bowl appearance they had, they lost to Dallas on the infamous Neil O'Donnell.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_01: You know, you play your whole career for free agency interceptions.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_01: But um in general, um, the professional teams in Pittsburgh had not won a championship since the 92 Stanley Cup against Chicago, and at that point had been 13 years.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_01: And um, I looked this up that that's the longest non-including, non non-uh professional sports streak, I guess.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_01: Or no, that's the second longest.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_01: Because 1925 to 1960 is 35 years.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_01: That was the longest.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_02: If you don't include the Pitt National Championship since they aren't a professional team, but I guess it's the longest for the time where we had three professional teams.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_02: Would that be accurate?
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_01: Well, at least two, yeah, because well, I'm saying that the uh 92 to 2005 would be the longest with all three.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_01: Correct.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, since yeah, we're we're only four years or three years removed now.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_01: The last one.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_01: Um the uh the pirates and pit football were garbage most of the 90s and uh maybe mediocre.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_01: So there like wasn't like anything else to fall back on, really.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_01: It was kind of the Steelers were your best hope for uh for a championship.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um I like Katim and I have said in earlier episodes, we're part of the generation that kind of missed out on the glory of the 70s.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_01: And I I still even for the Penn's cups in 91-92, I was I think I was a little young to really appreciate them.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I just kind of thought, oh, this is what you do every year.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_01: You win a Stanley Cup.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: It's like, oh, cool.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_01: So I imagine there's like people in Boston that like kind of you know can't relate either, like some younger people, like, oh what, we're just not gonna win a Super Bowl this year.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_01: It's like, oh, what, huh?
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_01: You know, but um ever since the uh Sid Slid uh in '92, it seemed like Pittsburgh Sports were doomed to have like Cleveland-like disappointments.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_01: Uh some ex some uh great examples here were uh the Pengu losing to the Islanders in game seven, uh the Flyers beating the Penguins in 2000 in a five overtime game on a shot by Keith Primo.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um the three AFC championship losses that all and they all came like with the Steelers, they all came in the last two minutes of the game in those AFC, like you know, Cordell you know, throwing an interception, or I think the defense gave up a big third down to Shannon Sharp.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_01: So you know, well, I mean I guess the the Patriots one was the least of the closest, but they did kind of make a late charge.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_01: So but they are all definitely disappointing, no matter what.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um the season before the Steelers had gone 15 and 1, but had come up short.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_01: We went over that um in the other podcast.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_01: Uh going into the playoffs uh to set up the playoffs, the Broncos were the second seed at 13-3.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_01: The number one seed was the Colts.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um, the Patriots had made the playoffs at 10-6.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_01: And uh I would say the favorites going into the playoffs probably were you know the Colts and the Broncos.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_01: Not the maybe the Colts and the Patriots, maybe not the Broncos, because they had Jake Plummer, so people might not believed in Jake Plummer as much as you know Tom Brady.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_01: So and I'm sure the TV wanted you know another Brady Manning, you know, playoff matchup.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_01: So that was, I'm sure, what most everybody you know in national media was angling for.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: Said the Steelers at 11-5, and uh that 11-5 record uh clinched the sixth seed, which was the final seed at that time, and they had to do that by winning the last four games of the season.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um Peter King, I remember, called the uh Steelers at the time the best sixth seed in NFL history.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_01: So um at that point, no sixth seed had uh in 2005, no sixth seed had ever won the Super Bowl.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: And in 2005, I think the 80 Raiders and the 98 Broncos, which was the team, one of the teams the Steelers had lost to, uh, and the 2000 Ravens, they had won a Super Bowl as a wild card team, but I don't think any of them were a six seed.
• 6:29
  SPEAKER_01: So and um the Steelers would be on the road for three weeks in a row for the whole playoffs.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_01: And going into this cower, I think I said as 0-3 on the road at that point in his career, had never won a road playoff game, and had lost plenty of uh playoff games at home.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_01: So the first matchup was the um the divisional round, and that was against a familiar divisional foe, the Cincinnati Bengals.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_01: The Bengals had had a great regular season and they were at home because they had beaten the Steelers at Hines Field.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_01: They had split the season, you know, their season series, you know, they had the Steelers had won in Cincinnati and the Bengals had won in Hinesfield, and the Bengals had an 11-5 record.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_01: They won the division.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_01: Um the Bengals had faded late in the season, especially on defense.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_01: They had a pretty good offense.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_01: Their offense had kind of carried them later in the year.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, the Bengals had lost the last two games of the season going into that playoff game.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, the Bengals had an excellent offense.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and they could run the ball too.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_01: Rudy Johnson had 1,458 yards and 12 touchdowns.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_01: And they also had this guy, Carson Palmer, at quarterback, who's really good.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_01: He was from USC.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_01: Um, did he win a Heisman?
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_01: I didn't look that.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_01: I think I remember if he went high.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_02: I'm pretty sure he did.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_02: And remember, remember they drafted him and they they didn't rush him in.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_02: They had John Kitna playing.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_02: They took their time bringing him in, and then by the time he got in there, he was he was great.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think this was his second year.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_01: This was actually his first year actually starting, but it wasn't his first year in the NFL.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_01: And they had Chad Johnson, TJ Hushmanzada, and and a guy named Chris Henry from West Virginia at wide receiver.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_01: So they had three pretty good wide receivers.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_01: So we'd said in the TJ Hushmanzada had wiped his shoes with Terrible Tau after the game at Heinz Field.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so that was kind of like, you know, typical Bengals shenanigans, you know how they are.
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_01: They get a little they were really fired up after they beat the Steelers in the regular season.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_01: They had thought they had arrived.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_01: Um, Delta O'Neill, the defensive back for the Bengals, he actually had 10 interceptions on the air, which I think that's still a lot.
• 8:53
  SPEAKER_01: Because like, is 12 still the record by Dick Night Train Lane?
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_01: I think twelve is Yeah.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, double digit interceptions is like unheard of.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_01: Like, yeah, Rod Woodson got like eight one year.
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_02: Like with the defensive player of the year.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, that's just and that was within like six or seven games, and then like people just like it's hard to get those last couple interceptions because people just like, okay, we're not throwing over there.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: Like it, yeah.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_01: It's kind of the deion Sanders effect.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_01: The Cincinnati defense uh is definitely more of a they had like kind of like that turnover style of defense.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_01: They give up some points and a yards, but they they try and thrive on getting you to turn over and get the ball back to their offense.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the head coach of the Bengals was Marvin Lewis.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_01: He would be a head coach for them for a long time.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_01: He was from uh Fort Cherry, so he was a western Pennsylvania guy.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_01: He'd been an assistant with uh the Steelers from 92 to 95, and from Pitt from 90 to 91.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the Bengals had scored 38 points in their first, in their second in that win over the Steelers.
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_01: Uh this was the first playoff game in Cincinnati in 15 years.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_01: So the fans, this is kind of like almost like their uh, what would I say, like pirates versus you know, Cincinnati Reds game, you know?
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_01: So the fans were fired up.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_01: And this was shockingly enough, the first time the Bengals and the Steelers had met in the playoffs, which is I guess maybe because the Bengals weren't that good for so long.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_01: I guess.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_02: Well, and they didn't really, the the Steelers were good in the 70s and 90s, and the Bengals were good in the 80s, so they never really overlapped when they were both good.
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_01: That makes sense.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_01: Uh both teams, like you said, 11 and 5 record.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Phil Sims in the pregame said that uh the Bengals will need Carson Palmer to play exceptional.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_01: Phil Sims, uh-oh.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Joey Porter in the pregame warm-ups, which was just great.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_01: Like he I think he did this a lot.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: He stood like, remember, he would pull up his shirt and like show off his like awesome six-pack and yell at the other team.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_01: Well, he did that that game.
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_01: Like he yelled at the Bengals.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, I'm not sure if Jerry Porter was there.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I don't think Pac-Man Jones.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_01: I think Pac-Man Jones was still in college, so he definitely wasn't around.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the Bengals were really psyched up for the game.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_01: Half a Kentucky and all all of Cincinnati was definitely ready.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_01: Like I said, that that that was like one of those ones where you're not just playing the Bengals, you're playing like all of Ohio and Kentucky.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_01: They're ready to go.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_01: Paul Brown Stadium is electic.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and I and I and I like I certainly get their fans being excited.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_02: Like you said, that's a that's a great comparison.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_02: The um the pirates playing the Reds.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_01: And it was funny that it's Cincinnati too, yeah.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_02: Right, yeah, kind of roll reversal.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_02: So so certainly it was very cool that the the fans were psyched up.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_02: I I really hated that team, that Cincinnati team, because they were so they there was like no humility in any of them.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_02: Um, you know, this was a franchise that that was I mean, it wasn't just that they missed the playoffs for 15 years, they were often like the number one draft pick, like two and fourteen type of records.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_02: They were the the worst.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_02: And here they are, they finally have a good season.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_02: Good, you know, kudos to them.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_02: They won the division.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_02: But man, they acted like they had already like like the like they should have just gotten like an automatic imitation of the Super Bowl.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_02: That's how they carried themselves.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, you talked about that year with the Pirates.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_02: They had to go play the Cardinals in the playoffs that year, and the Cardinals were this established franchise, and you know, the Pirates ended up losing.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_02: But I don't I just don't recall the Pirates players just acting like, oh yeah, we World Series is ours.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_02: We we deserve it.
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_02: We're entitled to it.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_02: I it was very like entitlement kind of mentality for the Bengals, and boy, did I want them to lose that game.
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_01: On to the game.
• 12:55
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the Steelers get the um actually got the opening kickoff.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_01: They actually started with the ball, and Marvell Smith takes a penalty.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_01: So Ben Ben makes a nice throw to Varon Haynes, but it's a it's a late throw across the middle.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_01: But like one of those Patrick Patton did Patrick Mahomes where he kind of runs around and you think it's gonna be an interception, but uh only Ben did it before it was cool to do it, you know, and nobody really gives him credit for it.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_01: But um be that as it may, the Steelers drive dies out at midfield.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_01: So the Steelers punt.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_01: And um after, and so the Bengals get the ball back and they're at their like own like 20 or 25.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_01: After a running play, the next play is the big play.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_01: This is the one that causes a lot of controversial, I was still debated about.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_01: Carlson Palmer drops back and he completes a deep pass to uh Chris Henry, who's on who's being defended by DeShea Townsend.
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_01: And Chris Henry runs for like 66 yards before being tackled by DeShea Townsend.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_01: It he saves the touchdown, but it's a big huge play.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_01: And it's like everybody's going crazy, and it looks like, oh my gosh, this is gonna be like a shootout, or you know, it all of a sudden like every the camera pans back and like Carson Palmer's laying on the ground writhing in pain.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: Apparently what happened during the play was key move on O'Haufen was rushing the quarterback, and um I it came on all hoffen was definitely more of a run stopper than a pass rusher, but he kind of like the offensive lineman kind of blocked him into him and he hit Carson Palmer's knee, and he didn't like it, what I never thought it was a cheap shot, it just was kind of a fluky play.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_01: Like Ben had almost had the same thing happen to him in San Diego earlier in the season, and Palmer's knee is totally destroyed, he tears up his knee, and he was completely out for the game, like and like definitely the air went out of the stadium, but the Bengals like respond to it, like they don't like everybody thinks, oh, that's it, it's over for this game.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_01: It's not, it really isn't.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm as we go on, you'll see like the Bengals like did not like that play did not determine the play.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_01: I think like Bengals fans make too much out of it.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_01: Like you told you had a lot of opportunities, and you'll see they led for a long time in this game after that play.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_01: So they um like I said, it wasn't a cheap shot, and it they it wasn't like I think it wasn't a rule per se, like it is where you can't hit the quarterback, you have to hit the quarterback between the knees and the shoulders.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_01: And then that had happened to Trent Green and Ben Rothelsberger, and then like they finally, you know, when it happened to Tom Brady, you know, oh no, everybody got all mad because the league can't be losing money, not having Tom Brady around for a year.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_01: So they you know, typical NFL overreaction, they changed the rule.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_01: So I don't know, maybe it was just a cumulative effect, you know, of all those quarterbacks getting hurt over the year, but so in walks, like we said, John Kitna.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_01: John Kitna by this career was the backup, by this point in his career, was the backup for the Bengals.
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_01: He had played uh N-A-I-A football, which is not NCAA football for Central Washington.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_01: And he's actually in their uh two their Hall of Fame.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_01: He was inducted in the Central Washington Hall of Fame in 2006, so uh go Central Washington.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_01: Uh he had been in the NFL since uh 96.
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_01: He started for the Sea Seahawks, even started up a playoff game in '99, which the Seahawks lost to the Dolphins, ironically enough, and Dan Marino.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_01: And they had like a 10-point lead in that game, too.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_01: So the Seahawks were uh so impressed with Kit Kitna, they did not re-sign him after the 2000 season.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_01: He was he was the Bengals starter for two years before the Bengals drafted Carson Palmer.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_01: He was also in a game in 2001.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_01: Kitna exposed the Steelers secondary.
• 17:06
  SPEAKER_01: He passed it for like 35 completions for 411 yards and two touchdowns.
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_01: He was actually named the AFC offensive player of the week.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_01: So he had success against the Steelers defense, although that was like Chad Scott and Dwayne Washington and not you know Troy Palomalo, Brian McFadden and such.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_01: So the Bengals have the ball inside the Steelers 20 on a long completion.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_01: The Bengals pick up another first down.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: Um they get a running play, gets stopped.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_01: Um Kitna throws twice the Hushman Zada.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_01: One is over his head, the other is short in the end zone.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the bay he gets tackled.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_01: Kitna uh uh Hushmanzada gets tackled, and the Bengals have to settle for a field goal.
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_01: So it's 3-0.
• 17:51
  SPEAKER_01: But another influential thing that happens is Chris Henry gets hurt at the end of that drive.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: So by the end of that drive, driving down the field, they've lost two of their major offensive weapons, Carson Palmer and Chris Henry.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_01: So the you know, maybe they maybe lose and Carson Palmer definitely, I mean, that was definitely a major loss, but then losing Chris Henry on top of that probably didn't help.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um Steelers get the ball, but they commit a bunch of false start penalties.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_01: Like the Steelers are just absolutely shooting themselves in the foot early in the game.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_01: It makes for third and eighteen, and they don't get it.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_01: They throw like a short pass to Heath Miller, just not turn the ball over, and they punt the ball back to the Bengals.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: So the Bengals, uh, to their credit, they go no huddle.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_01: And uh Kitna catches the defense and like kind of like um, you know, I guess a substituting or whatever, like he gets them in a favorable defense, and he he passes this guy, Kevin Walter, who's the guy filling in for Chris Henry.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um, they drive down the field, and um Rudy Johnson breaks a 20-yard run for a touchdown, breaking uh Palomalo tackle, and he dives, makes a nice dive for the corner of the end zone.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_01: It's now 10-0 Bengals.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_01: So I mean, like I said, the Bengals are now up 10-0, and you know, they they've you've kind of you know survived the shock, I think, of Carson Palmer going down.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, Steve, you're you're so um you're so right about that narrative.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_02: You know, that narrative was, oh, they lost Carson Palmer, it was so unfair, it was a cheap shot, which it wasn't, and then we had no chance to win the game after that.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_02: But like you said, you know, Kitna was a veteran.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_02: Like, like I think the biggest um problem when your starting quarterback goes down is that you can't move the ball.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_02: So if like like when Duck Hodges, the Steelers, the season that the Steelers had to go with Duck Hodges, they like couldn't do anything on offense.
• 19:45
  SPEAKER_02: They had to throw like safe passes and hand the ball off.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_02: Well, Kitna could still move the ball, and they had a 10-0 lead.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_02: So that narrative that that just totally ended the game, that's false.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, I mean Kitna isn't Carson Palmer, but he's like a competent.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, he was a st he was their starting quarterback before Palmer, and he was effective.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_02: And yes, definitely a s way a step way down.
• 20:11
  SPEAKER_02: But uh a two-score lead, you know, you gotta hold that with your your defense, was didn't wasn't missing anybody at that point.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_01: Um fun thing that another fun thing that happened was uh Quincy Morgan, who was our kick returner that year, got hurt.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_01: And uh so they put Ike Taylor back there, returned kicks.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_01: And I remember I forgot that Ike Taylor used to return kicks.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_01: And why in good good good gravy would you put Ike Taylor back there?
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_01: I don't remember that at all.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_01: But he was really fat.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_01: I do remember him returning other kicks, but it's like that's kind of like I remember when I was watching your replay, which like I was like really scared.
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_01: Uh like even in replay, I was like, oh my goodness, that's Ike Taylor.
• 20:50
  SPEAKER_01: That's kind of scary.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_01: Uh my DVD, I I bought it the DVD for this game from the NFL, and like they they packaged it kind of funny, and it got scratched up.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_01: So I had to watch this on the internet, and the internet was like a feed from Canada with all the CBS promos still on it.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_01: So uh with that in mind, um, you know, Albert Brooks was uh gonna be the guest that week on the late show with David Letterman.
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_01: So uh have to go back and catch that one.
• 21:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_01: I think it was Finding Nemo was maybe out or something.
• 21:23
  SPEAKER_01: Um on another third down, um, on the first third down of the next drive, Ben runs for a big first down.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_01: Um there's a weird personal foul call that hurts the Bengals.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um Randwell had run on a reverse and he had both feet on the sideline, but he kind of like leans in from the sideline, and a guy from the Bengals hit him, but he was out of bounds, and um they threw a flag on the Bengals for that.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_01: And it wasn't completely like it wasn't as bad as some of the other stuff that had been going on.
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_01: Like to that point, like after especially after Carson Palmer got hurt, like the game got really chipy.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_01: And I think the refs just kept letting it go, let go.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_01: And he even like in the commentary, like Phil Sims was saying, like, you know, oh my goodness, like if they somebody's gonna they're gonna throw a flag on somebody.
• 22:15
  SPEAKER_01: And it just happened to be that Bengals guy.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_01: And like I said, Randuel was his feet were out of bounds clearly.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_01: It wasn't even close.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_01: And he was like running.
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_01: Like it was kind of one of those ones because it was a reverse he ran out of bounds, but he leaned into the guy and the guy hit him so I I don't know.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_01: It was kind of like just you know the Bengals start maybe they got their emotions maybe this is when the especially on defense like their emotions started to got uh get a little bit of the better of them.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_01: So that's a big 15 yard penalty.
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_01: Got the Steelers inside the Cincinnati 30.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_01: They throw they they run a well executed screen pass to Willie Parker.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_01: It goes for 19 yards and a touchdown.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_01: When Parker got the ball in the pass there really wasn't like a Bangle within like I don't know twenty thirty yards of him.
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_01: So it's now Bengals 10 Steelers 7.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_01: And like I said I think the Bengals like defense like maybe not on offense but on defense I think their emotions started to get the better of them.
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_01: And uh on the next Bengals drive they try to go deep to Chad Johnson but Ike Taylor is there.
• 23:24
  SPEAKER_01: And of course he has like a perfect chance to catch an interception and of course Ike drops that but you know he cats he caught the kickoff you know I I don't know so in classic Ike fashion at least Chad Johnson didn't catch the ball on another play Palomalo almost picks off a deflected pass and um while he is standing there with the ball and this is Troy Palmalo okay?
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_01: He throws the ball at a Bengal player and he actually gives the Bengals a first down inside the Steeler 10 yard line and as I say like this game was really getting chippy like Troy Palomalo taking a personal foul like Tim I mean I don't I I didn't bother to look it up but I can't imagine that outside of this there are too many Troy Palomalo like personal fouls where he took like because it was a bad one.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_01: It was like you know he he literally deserved it he like he caught the he might have caught the ball might not and then he stood up and he like the guy from the Bengals was like it was like an offensive lineman or something was just talking trash or something and he just literally took the ball and shoved it in the guy's face.
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_01: It's like if you've done something to tick off Troy Palmolo you're you're pretty awesome.
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_02: I mean that's just TJ Hushmanzato told a story years later not from this game but from some other game where he TJ Hushmanzato talked a lot of trash and he was talking trash on Troy and Troy came Troy looked at him and said oh God bless you TJ and and TJ Hushmanzato said I felt he said I felt so bad.
• 24:56
  SPEAKER_02: He said I never said anything negative to him again because you know he was such a good guy and and that's yeah that's who Troy was so yeah that was pretty shocking to see him lose his call I I don't think you know how many years was he here 13 14 years I don't think he ever did that any other time that I can think of and that was a bad time to do it.
• 25:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah so instead of the because the Bengals would have had to settle for a field goal and so um a couple a couple plays later the Steelers take an illegal contact penalty on James Farrier.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_01: It was just like one of those you know pass interference kind of things.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_01: And uh like I said in the first half the Steelers are taking a lot of penalties now on defense not just offense.
• 25:39
  SPEAKER_01: So Steelers the the Cincinnati finally scores after a 14 play drive that was aided by some big penalties.
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_01: It's a catch by Hushmanzada Hushmanzada was wide open and the score now is Steelers 7 Bengals 17 so it's like the Bengals have responded like once again there's kind of another nail in that coffin you know oh the Bengals just totally fell no they they responded actually at least on offense so the next drive is big Ben Ben uh completes a huge pass to Cedric Wilson if anybody remembers him I'm only good in the playoffs and uh for 54 yards and that was a big pass play and the bank because the Bengals were up by 10 points with six minutes to go and a half Jerome Bettis gets a chance to throw a half pass half back pass and like he gets so excited he like kind of fumbles the ball and just kind of has to like run for like a one yard loss.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_01: Or no no he did throw the ball he threw the ball way open of way short of Heath Miller who was wide open.
• 26:46
  SPEAKER_01: So like like I said I think the Bengals on defense are totally like fired up and just go like they're just chasing the ball at that point.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_01: Because like you can see the screen passes and the fake passes they're just totally falling for but no worries it's like this would happen a lot like when the Steelers would have adversity or something would happen in the playoffs the Steelers would overcome it.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_01: And that was kind of like you know their theme this year I guess.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_01: Ben Ben throws a nice pass to Heinz Ward for a TD over the middle and the Steelers have answered the Bengals and the score is now four Steelers 14 Bengals 17.
• 27:23
  SPEAKER_01: So you know it's kind of turning into this back and forth shootout kind of game.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_01: And uh hey Tim did you know there's a new CSI Miami coming on CBS tomorrow stay stay tuned for that I wonder if Jim Nance ever got sick of reading those promos.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_02: I'm sure he did.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_01: So the half comes to a close with both defenses getting stacked on the opposing offenses and the score at the half is still Steelers 14 and the Bengals 17 and the Steelers have trailed the whole half and most of it by 10 points.
• 27:59
  SPEAKER_01: So Sean Kitna has had a solid first half he's 14 of 10 for 109 yards and a touchdown and uh they come out and uh Cincinnati has the uh ball on uh to start the or no yes they have the ball to start the second half so Cincinnati um definitely has a chance to increase their lead again hey Steve do you remember there was a report and I don't know if it was ever like verified but there was a report that they got into a fight in their locker room at halftime the Bengals no I've never heard that before yeah yeah and they were winning yeah I don't I don't remember the impetus for it I don't remember who was involved but it was and I don't remember if it was physical or verbal but it apparently got pretty heated in their locker room at halftime and if that's true again you know to your point about the Steelers being able to overcome adversity and the Bengals just not being ready for something this big I think that was a that was really the difference between those two teams going into that game.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah because like it and I always felt like with this game like maybe I'll I don't know I was kind of going to save this for the end I just felt like the Steelers weathered the storm in the first half like between the crowd and the Bengals like if you could just kind of keep it close and get the game into the second half all those emotions are going to fade and then you're gonna be able to play you know just make a play and that's kind of what the Steelers you know had to do.
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_01: Chad Johnson made a nice toe tap catch on third and 10.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_01: It moves the ball inside the Steelers 20 um I don't know there was a challenge somewhere in here and I think Cower won it but it didn't matter because they picked up a first down on the next play for Cincinnati.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_01: So so like you know like I said the Bengals are still playing hard and still making plays.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_01: The next three plays are two runs for not much yarded and an incomplete pass.
• 29:55
  SPEAKER_01: So the Steelers defense holds the Cincinnati offense to a field goal attempt.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_01: So and the Bengals line up for a 33 yard field goal which that I mean I don't know about you too but in the pros shouldn't that be pretty much automatic that's automatic yeah and it wasn't bad weather or snowing or raining or yeah and so this is where I think you know this is where the Bengals like you said maybe something happened at halftime their emotions like they just they start to fall apart.
• 30:23
  SPEAKER_01: You know maybe it's just the black and gold uniforms or whatever but yeah the the Bengals start to fall up part.
• 30:30
  SPEAKER_01: The Bengals line up and it's a bad snap the snap is over the holder's head and the kicker has to fall on the bad snap so they don't even get to attempt the field goal and it wasn't like they missed it.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_01: They didn't even get to attempt like a bad snap you don't see that that often so with 951 in the third quarter the Steelers still trail 14 to 17 but the Bengals didn't score any points on the first drive of the second half and that's always big.
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_01: When you don't score you know if you can score at the end of the half in the beginning of the second half in if you can do that you know you can really put a stranglehold on the game.
• 31:10
  SPEAKER_01: So in the following drive Bettis picks up a first down on third and one barely another third and one Bettis picks it up again this time by a little bit more than that.
• 31:20
  SPEAKER_01: They didn't have to measure that second time and uh Ben throws a deep pass to Randall he's open and catches the ball for a second but the Cincinnati defender knocks it out um the next play the refs call a ridiculous pass interference call in Cincinnati and it sets up the Steelers a first and goal at the five yard line it wasn't I didn't think it was pass interference but I just don't like I don't like like ticky tack calls I'd rather the refs just not call them but yo you're gonna like once again the Bengals are you you're gonna have some stuff go against you and you got to overcome it.
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_01: So first and goal at the five yard line Fettis has like a nice five yard run.
• 31:59
  SPEAKER_01: He makes a move on one of the defensive uh the Cincinnati defenders and the three other defenders like I don't know they just don't try and tackle him they just like get run over and it wasn't it's just like Cincinnati's defense just was like yeah we're taking this playoff it was just very odd in a playoff game that you know it that like that's the go-ahead touchdown too like I don't understand it I realize there's still a lot of time to go in the game but you know you hold the Steelers to a field goal it's only it only would have been what a tie game so so now it's 21 Steelers 21 then the Bengals 17 and it's there's still five minutes to go in the third quarter and this is the first time the Steelers have finally taking the lead in the game.
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_01: So they did not take the lead until five minutes to go in the third quarter.
• 32:49
  SPEAKER_01: So and um yeah the uh cold case will be on this week uh it's gonna feature the music of Bruce Springsteen if you're in the oh the boss yeah yeah I'll have to set my D VR I say wait this is 2005 I'll have to set my VCR to record that yeah Bruce is I don't know what I think he's singing glory days or something so if you're into Bruce um the next series of the uh is a big one for the Bengals this in the Steelers defense kind of gets going here they get a sack and they first a force a third and 20 and on the third and 20 the Steelers literally only rushed two people because I think they just decided they weren't going to blitz Kitna they were just going to put everybody back in coverage and like Kitna wasn't like good enough to run for like 30 yards you know he's not really a running quarterback.
• 33:39
  SPEAKER_01: This is the one where you see like I remember this play too like Kitna runs around for like seems like forever and then he like hits the ball off his own knee and fumbles and falls on it and it was just kind of a disaster so the Bengals are definitely in like full on like I would say self-destruct mode and the Steelers are starting to uh kind of fast forward that on that third and two from the Bengals 50 this is the uh infamous the Steelers run a trick play um Randuell he gets the snap and then he runs to the one sideline and then he laterals the ball back to Ben who throws the ball down the field to a wide open Cedric Wilson again in the Steelers now score it's 2817 Steelers.
• 34:27
  SPEAKER_01: And actually that's the play where like if you listen to the replay like you'll hear Phil Sims like does call that you know I'm I'm never a big Phil Sims and I don't know why I'm like starting to get annoyed with Tony Romo now too because it's I I don't know what to say but Tony sure makes a lot of money to say pretty obvious observations but uh hey good for him.
• 34:52
  SPEAKER_01: So so Phil Sims actually called he said oh that's a touchdown and it's 20-17 and the Bengals are in free fall um and this is really I don't think it was really that good of an insight by Phil Sims.
• 35:05
  SPEAKER_02: I think it was just he could see he could see what you couldn't on the TV replay the fact that Cedric Wilson standing way 40 yards down the field with nobody even close to him.
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_02: And so as Randall is throwing the ball back that then Phil Sims is like touchdown.
• 35:19
  SPEAKER_02: Like he like because Wilson was nobody would like they totally fell for that fake and like you said self-destruct.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_01: I mean they were in complete breakdown self-destruct mode well yeah and I remember too like people say like the uh like players saying the Bengals started like after that to the oh we thought you were the Pittsburgh Steelers you're supposed to run the ball and be physical and it's like you're losing 28 to 17 you gave up another touchdown like what does it matter you know that's your trash talk okay yep we're not the Pittsburgh Steelers we didn't outphysical you we'll just take our win and go on you know but that's kind of how the Bengals roll um and this is really I think this is like at even at 2817 I think the Bengals still had a chance and on the next drive John Kittner throws a pass that's intercepted by James Farrier and the Steelers defense has the Cincinnati offense figured out and I think that was kind of you know they al they always show like we'll talk about the Palamalu but I think this that was kind of where it it just that was just kind of like that was the beginning of the end for them.
• 36:33
  SPEAKER_01: The Steelers now start to run the ball they're running the ball with Willie Parker and Bettis they get inside the Cincinnati five they uh run some weird trick play with Randall again it doesn't work but the drive dies out and the Steelers settle for a field goal unlike the Bengals they kicked their field goal and now it is 31 to 17.
• 36:54
  SPEAKER_01: And I just really think that farrier interception like just took the life like the Bengals still had hope and then after that it was just kind of going through the motions especially when they were able to kick a field goal they didn't even have to score a touchdown.
• 37:10
  SPEAKER_01: The Steelers punt the Bengals get the ball back there's like exchange of possessions and then Kitna drives them to the other side of midfield and now throws the that's the play you always see because this really is the nail in the coffin the Palomalu interception and during the interception of course Troy Troy had a like not a very smart game this game did he he tries that stupid lateral play and like you know I think the Dick LeBeau or somebody must have yelled at him for it.
• 37:38
  SPEAKER_01: Because I remember this the infamous Joey Porter just when you make the line from dumb and dumb or just when you do that do the dumbest thing ever you go and totally redeem yourself you know yeah and and like the emphasis like you go into something like this and totally redeem yourself.
• 37:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah there's a great there's such a great NFL films clip that catches Joey Porter saying that to Troy on the sidelines.
• 38:00
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah yeah so um that's it it's like a mind-numbing lateral to Chris hope who wasn't going to score anything and uh so basically at that point it's um yeah Tim stay tuned for 60 minutes uh which will be shown in its entirety except on the West Coast and that's it Steve was uh it was murder key wrote on after that game was that still on by that point I think that was no sixty minutes remember because of oh yes yes except on the West Coast yeah yeah it would be show I don't know who was on 60 minutes that week so 2005 was probably like Dick Cheney talking about the uh war in Iraq or something I don't know you talked about you talked about Jim Nance reading the promos uh Pat Summerall there was this when he used to read the promos because murder she wrote used to be on Sunday nights on CBS and if everybody calls that show murder she wrote and but if you looked at the title it was murder comma she wrote was how it was so he wrote it with the punks.
• 38:56
  SPEAKER_02: So Pat Summer would always be like after the game it's murder he wrote like he would always pause for the comma so nice I still like like I they were replaying uh Super Bowl thirty one the one the one in 1999 the second no it was 30 the second Broncos Super Bowl where they beat the Falcons that was a memorable one.
• 39:19
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah and Summer all had to read a promo for Family Guy believe it or not I can't and it was like the first episode it's like the family guy will be on after the Super Bowl yeah fortunately probably nobody was watching that game by then because I think Denver was probably winning by 30 points or something.
• 39:39
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah and the final is Steelers 31 Bengals 17 the Steelers end up scoring uh 24 on an unanswered points kitna really didn't fall apart until the second half I think when they changed their defense and adjusted to the no huddle and like they didn't have like I said this time Kitna didn't have like you know Chad Scott and you know Tim Lewis coordinating the defense number one he didn't have Chad Scott and Dwayne Washington on defense and he just yeah they paid all played a lot of coverage and Kitna just wasn't able to take advantage of it.
• 40:18
  SPEAKER_01: Ben and the offense unlike the Cincinnati offense don't turn the ball over and the special teams played well too and the Steelers defense adjusted um they blitzed less and they played coverage um and uh believe it or not this is the first road playoff win for Bill Cower.
• 40:36
  SPEAKER_01: Yay Bill um so it was on to Indianapolis that was a big win that was the infamous Hood you know chant after the game in the locker room with Bill.
• 40:48
  SPEAKER_01: If you want for the in-depth coverage of the indie uh game like I said uh at the beginning listen to part two for the complete rundown um here's the Cliff Notes version uh this should be fun Steeler takes a big lead the first half on some TD passes to Ben Rothelsberger indie comes running back with the help of a dubious review call Joey Porter sacks Peyton Manning but Betis fumbles on the next play Ben bails everyone out makes the tackle on the car Mike Vanderjack misses a field goal and goes back to Canada fans have heart attacks I swear in front of my mother and uh we remake those travel plans going to Denver that's a great summary that's so there it is there's the Indianapolis game yeah maybe we should do all our podcast could be like five minutes long if we were yeah so um on to Denver Denver was 13 and 3 that season they were 8-0 at home they had not lost a home game and at that point in uh Denver's uh illustrious uh franchise history they had never lost an AFC championship game at home the Steelers were on an absolute hot streak after upsetting the Colts um Bill Cower had won two playoff games in a row wow cool um Jake Plummer is the Denver quarterback uh Mike Shannon is their coach Denver had traded uh running back Clinton Portis for defensive back Champ Bailey because I guess uh Shannon figured it was easier to get a running back than a defensive back they also had like a bunch of defensive linemen they picked up from Cleveland they used to call them the Browncos I remember that and uh Denver they're the running team with a stable of good running backs like Tatum Bell and Mike Anderson that that portis trade a lot of people were like what are you doing?
• 42:32
  SPEAKER_02: Clinton Portis was one of the best running backs in the league but that was a great trade for them because they were like one of the first teams that kind of like jumped on board with that whole like you don't you you know it's more important to have a shutdown cornerback or a good defense than a superstar running back.
• 42:48
  SPEAKER_02: Running backs were kind of a dime a dozen so I I at the time a lot of people thought they lost that trade but I think in the long run they absolutely won that trade.
• 42:57
  SPEAKER_02: Do you agree?
• 42:59
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah because it like I said I think it's harder to find like a Cham Bailey comes around once every like 10 years whereas like Clinton Porters was a really good running back but Tatum Bell and Mike Anderson were just as serviceable and they scored just as many points it didn't you know they didn't really lose anything having those guys playing so the Broncos had actually beaten the Patriots 27 to 13 in the divisional playoff game like and that was a blowout game and Champ Bailey had a big interception I think return for a touchdown in that game.
• 43:32
  SPEAKER_01: So when everybody said oh the Steelers never beat the Patriots well the Patriots didn't win in Denver so that's the Patriots problem.
• 43:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um I remember for the first time in a long time especially after the experience of the week before I really wasn't worried about this game.
• 43:45
  SPEAKER_01: I I thought this is the type of team like especially that defense like you just didn't run on that defense.
• 43:53
  SPEAKER_01: You weren't gonna run and Casey Hammond James Ferry and Liv Larry Foote Aaron Smith you know Joey Porter Clark Hagen's throw in James Harrison.
• 44:02
  SPEAKER_01: You just weren't going to run that that that like stretch offense.
• 44:06
  SPEAKER_01: You know, that little that running game they have wasn't going to be that effective against the Steelers.
• 44:12
  SPEAKER_01: They were going to be able to stop it.
• 44:13
  SPEAKER_01: And I just and I I didn't think Jake Plummer was good going to be good enough to you know score enough points to beat us.
• 44:21
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I I remember the overwhelming thought I had was we're we're playing we're playing us.
• 44:29
  SPEAKER_02: We're playing the Steeler teams that lost four AFC championship games at home.
• 44:34
  SPEAKER_02: Like Denver Denver's hosting the AFC Championship game with a team that's built on a really good defense and a good running game and a game manager quarterback.
• 44:43
  SPEAKER_02: That was that was Bill Cower's teams from the time he started until the year before, basically.
• 44:50
  SPEAKER_02: And so it's like, man, it it was such a weird like role reversal.
• 44:55
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm like, if we can't if we lose to this team after we lost in that situation so many times, I I just kind of would have been shocked at that point.
• 45:03
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it definitely was the role reversal.
• 45:06
  SPEAKER_01: I I didn't think of it that way, but because they ran like I guess it was kind of a power running game, but and like I mean, is Jake Plummer game manager, yeah.
• 45:17
  SPEAKER_01: And they had a good defense, like I said, they rebuilt their defense with the Browns off defensive line in Champ Bailey, and they had John Lynch, too.
• 45:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, but they also had this guy named Dominique Foxworth, who we will talk about.
• 45:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's right.
• 45:30
  SPEAKER_01: Poor Dominique Foxworth.
• 45:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 45:32
  SPEAKER_01: So the Broncos get the ball first and they get a couple of first downs, but then they punt.
• 45:37
  SPEAKER_01: And after an incompletion to Ron, after an incompletion to Rod Smith, that almost gets picked off.
• 45:41
  SPEAKER_01: And Rod Smith was really good too.
• 45:43
  SPEAKER_01: He was really good.
• 45:45
  SPEAKER_01: But Ben completes a 15-yard pass to Randoyle against Dominic Fosquorth Foxworth.
• 45:52
  SPEAKER_01: On third and three, he throws this questionable pass against Champ Bailey that Bailey like almost get almost picks off.
• 45:59
  SPEAKER_01: It ball bounces like high in the air, and Heinz Ward makes a great catch.
• 46:04
  SPEAKER_01: And then John Lynch on a play that will probably get you like 15 yards and like kicked out of the game, like absolutely drills Heinz Ward in the head, helmet to helmet, full uh everything that they don't want people doing anymore.
• 46:17
  SPEAKER_01: John Lynch did the Heinz Ward.
• 46:20
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, but uh to his credit, Heinz Ward uh makes makes the catch.
• 46:24
  SPEAKER_01: And uh Tunjoken says uh Ward is tougher than woodpecker lips.
• 46:28
  SPEAKER_01: He calls them.
• 46:30
  SPEAKER_02: If if you wanted to submit like the Heinz Ward Hall of Fame like play, to me, to me, that's that's the that's the signature play of his career because he that was like that was almost it wasn't quite a jump ball, but he had to fight off the best cornerback in the league to get it.
• 46:46
  SPEAKER_02: Then he had to absorb a hit from the hardest hitter in the league to hang on to it.
• 46:50
  SPEAKER_02: Like literally, he did both of those things in the span of two seconds.
• 46:53
  SPEAKER_02: It wasn't a flashy play, it wasn't a play that you know scored a touchdown, but like that's what that's that was his MO.
• 47:00
  SPEAKER_02: He was just tough, and he made plays like that, little plays like that, that again you wouldn't see on the highlight sheet.
• 47:06
  SPEAKER_02: So I I I always remember that play.
• 47:09
  SPEAKER_02: I thought that was so so Heinz.
• 47:13
  SPEAKER_01: It was that's so Heinz.
• 47:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um on third and three, um, uh Willie Parker almost fumbles, but his ball, his elbows down, and Terry McCauley reverses the call because they let it be a fumble, but if he was it really wasn't even that close.
• 47:27
  SPEAKER_01: It really wasn't a fumble.
• 47:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um, they go to third and seven again, and Nate Washington now, who actually would become a like a very have a very like I didn't look at he had like a five or seven year NFL, very successful NFL career.
• 47:40
  SPEAKER_01: And he made a big uh third and seven catch against Dominic, poor Dominic Foxworth.
• 47:44
  SPEAKER_01: He's getting even score, you know, torched by Nate Washington.
• 47:48
  SPEAKER_01: But Nate Washington was good.
• 47:50
  SPEAKER_01: So although uh was a Greg Gatusso who was the uh coach at Duquesne and then at Pitt, he was a defensive line coach, called Nate Washington the best small college receiver he had ever seen.
• 48:02
  SPEAKER_01: So Nate Washington had that going for him.
• 48:06
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the Steelers um they do settle for a field goal by Jeff Reed.
• 48:10
  SPEAKER_01: It's three to nothing.
• 48:11
  SPEAKER_01: On the next drive by Denver on a second and four, Joey Pummer, Joey Porter hits Jake Plummer and forces a fumble that is recovered by Casey Hampton.
• 48:23
  SPEAKER_01: So um the Steelers are making plays on defense now, and on the offense, Ben Rothesberger hits Heath Miller for a nice catch for 24 yards, and then Ben puts a pump fake on Champ Bailey, and uh Bailey falls for it, and Cedric Wilson makes another big catch in the playoffs.
• 48:42
  SPEAKER_01: He's wide open for a touchdown, and the Steelers are now up 10 to nothing.
• 48:46
  SPEAKER_01: And like the Broncos are kind of like playing.
• 48:49
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know if anybody's college fan, if you ever played the Naval Academy, like once you get up by like two possessions on them, their offense is kind of like not scary at all because it's just like whatever.
• 49:00
  SPEAKER_01: If you want to run three yards in a collar to us, even if you score, you're gonna just take all the time off the clock.
• 49:06
  SPEAKER_01: So at that point, you know, the Broncos are kind of getting into a little bit not.
• 49:12
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, 10-0 isn't a big hole, but that's definitely not where they want to be.
• 49:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um on a third and long, the Broncos run this screen pass, and that's like another one.
• 49:21
  SPEAKER_01: Palomolo has a great game, too.
• 49:23
  SPEAKER_01: He like jumps through like some offensive linemen and makes a unbelievable tackle, and it brings up a fourth and one, but the Broncos do pick it up, but it's only on second effort by the running back Mike Anderson, and it's barely, barely it.
• 49:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um later in the drive, the Steelers forced the Broncos to a third and ten.
• 49:41
  SPEAKER_01: Um and it's a I like watching this, re-watching this game, it was the total quitter play.
• 49:46
  SPEAKER_01: Like, like Shanahan just like gave up on the team.
• 49:49
  SPEAKER_01: I don't I he like he just ran this like draw play that had no chance of scoring.
• 49:56
  SPEAKER_01: And it just like they get five, the they get like seven yards, but they weren't gonna get like you know, a first down on that play.
• 50:04
  SPEAKER_01: So they settle for a field goal and it's like 10 to 3.
• 50:07
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, I guess they cut it to a one possession game, but they like you could have probably thrown like especially in Denver.
• 50:13
  SPEAKER_01: It wasn't like I forget what the ball was, but they are they are pro I think they were inside the 20, like inside in Denver, too, and they had a pretty good kicker.
• 50:21
  SPEAKER_01: Just you know, why not throw the ball in the end zone?
• 50:23
  SPEAKER_01: If it's incomplete, you kick the field goal anyway.
• 50:26
  SPEAKER_01: So it was a curious, very conservative and curious call by Mike Shanahan.
• 50:31
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, again, what we used to do in playoff games all the all the time under Coward.
• 50:36
  SPEAKER_02: Get very conservative, get that Marty Schottenheimer style coaching.
• 50:41
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 50:41
  SPEAKER_01: On the Steelers' next drive, they're consistently in third and long, and they pick up first down passes to Cedric Wilson, Heinz Ward, and Antoine Randall.
• 50:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um, they're not able to run the ball, but that like I said, the Browns defense is pretty good, but they're passing the ball like really well.
• 50:57
  SPEAKER_01: They pick up another first down at the two-minute warning with another pass to Varon Haynes on a third and long again.
• 51:04
  SPEAKER_01: Um they kind of run the uh I know this is uh Jerome Bettis runs into the end zone.
• 51:09
  SPEAKER_01: That was the next uh touchdown, and they just Alan Fanica levels like whoever the linebacker was for uh Denver and Bettis runs over somebody.
• 51:18
  SPEAKER_01: It was a nice run by Bettis.
• 51:19
  SPEAKER_01: So now it's 17 to 3.
• 51:21
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, if you're a Broncos fan, things are about to, you know, this you this one's slipping away.
• 51:27
  SPEAKER_01: Then now they're down 14 points.
• 51:29
  SPEAKER_01: If you know they're they're getting uh the hole's getting deeper, and on the first play of the Broncos drive, they decide to you know throw a pass, and Jake Plummer throws like a pass that's like literally to Ike Taylor.
• 51:41
  SPEAKER_01: It's so too Ike Taylor that even Ike Taylor can't drop it.
• 51:45
  SPEAKER_01: He intercepts the pass intended for the Broncos tight end, and he holds the ball like he's holding like like a Ming Vase.
• 51:52
  SPEAKER_01: And I just I just remember talking to your dad too after this game.
• 51:56
  SPEAKER_01: He was like, Yeah, like he held it like it was like the most precious thing in the world.
• 52:00
  SPEAKER_01: It's like because Ike could drop so many.
• 52:05
  SPEAKER_01: So I Ike makes an interception, and um the Steelers score on a nice uh running play to Jerome Bettis, but the play is called back on some sort of procedure.
• 52:16
  SPEAKER_01: They didn't have somebody covered up the tight end, or I don't know, it's one of those weird rules.
• 52:21
  SPEAKER_01: But it doesn't matter because the Steelers on the next play, Ben throws a total strike to Heinz Ward for a touchdown, and uh Heinz, I guess he was the one who had lined up in the wrong spot on the previous play when they scored the touchdown.
• 52:34
  SPEAKER_01: He makes up for his att his mistake, and now the route is on.
• 52:38
  SPEAKER_01: The Steelers lead 24-3 at the half.
• 52:41
  SPEAKER_01: And um by this time, I mean, I mean you and me normally I mean are nervous the whole way through.
• 52:47
  SPEAKER_01: The the game was over.
• 52:49
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I remember being like there still was that nagging thought in the back of my head, but I thought, eh, I don't know.
• 52:54
  SPEAKER_01: I mean it just seemed like, especially with Denver, like they're they're getting they're not gonna come back from what is this, 21 points now?
• 53:03
  SPEAKER_01: It would be a major collabs.
• 53:06
  SPEAKER_01: Um the second half, um, not much and not much to talk about in the second half.
• 53:12
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, basically all the damage was done in the second that 24 points in the first half, especially against Denver's defense and the way they played, just really put Denver behind the eight ball.
• 53:22
  SPEAKER_01: Plummer did hit Ashley Lilly for a Denver Broncos score.
• 53:26
  SPEAKER_01: They made it 24-10, but there were three minutes left in the third quarter.
• 53:30
  SPEAKER_01: Like I said, it's like the Naval Academy.
• 53:32
  SPEAKER_01: Like, if you're gonna run this, you know, it's gonna take so much time off the clock, it's not really gonna matter.
• 53:38
  SPEAKER_01: Um the Steelers respond.
• 53:40
  SPEAKER_01: They hit some a big pass play to Cedric Wilson.
• 53:43
  SPEAKER_01: They settle for another field goal.
• 53:45
  SPEAKER_01: It's 27 to 10.
• 53:47
  SPEAKER_01: Denver scores a late.
• 53:48
  SPEAKER_01: I call it garbage time TD by Mike Anderson, who was always I always liked Mike Anderson.
• 53:53
  SPEAKER_01: He was always a fun player to watch.
• 53:55
  SPEAKER_01: He was like one of those tough running backs, and it was 27 to 17.
• 53:59
  SPEAKER_01: It is a 10-point game in the fourth quarter, but Larry Foote gets another interception and runs around.
• 54:06
  SPEAKER_01: And Brett Keisel forces a Jake Plummer fumble on fourth down.
• 54:10
  SPEAKER_01: It was kind of like one of those sack fumbles, and it was fourth down and it was short of the line, so it didn't matter.
• 54:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then the infamo the uh there's a play late in the game, and they run this play where like Ben gets the ball and he kind of bootlegs and scrambles and dives into the end zone, and that was the final score of the game, and it's 34-17.
• 54:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it's funny thing about that touchdown is later in um 2020, Ben said he tore a ligament in his throwing arm on that play, and that was one of the ligaments he didn't get fixed until 2019.
• 54:44
  SPEAKER_01: When he got the full Tommy John surgery.
• 54:46
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I don't know if that's Ben just saying stuff or I don't know, but that's odd to me.
• 54:53
  SPEAKER_01: That yeah, he would play like what was that, 2005, 14 years with your arm not quite right like that.
• 54:59
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know.
• 55:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um fun thing is this is uh I think as far as I know, as of this podcast in 2020, um, it's still the only time Denver has lost the AFC Championship game at home.
• 55:12
  SPEAKER_01: So um it's on to the Super Bowl.
• 55:16
  SPEAKER_01: It was a great aver atmosphere at the end, like all the Steelers fans and Dan Rooney was there.
• 55:20
  SPEAKER_01: And it was like you said, it was like we we had seen this happen so many times at Heinz Field, another team come in and just you know celebrate the AFC Championship.
• 55:29
  SPEAKER_01: So we got to do that and uh and another team.
• 55:32
  SPEAKER_01: And Ben kind of had this tradition too where he had started where he would give game balls to Jerome Bettis, you know, he won for each playoff win.
• 55:40
  SPEAKER_01: So that was becoming like a pretty cool thing.
• 55:43
  SPEAKER_01: Like Ben after the game would give Bettis a game ball.
• 55:49
  SPEAKER_01: So um we're going on to Super Bowl 40.
• 55:52
  SPEAKER_01: It's uh obviously the Steelers' first Super Bowl appearance in 10 years.
• 55:57
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, they're the first sixth seed to even reach the Super Bowl.
• 56:01
  SPEAKER_01: No sixth seed had ever won an AFC championship game.
• 56:06
  SPEAKER_01: And the Steelers are playing against the Seattle Seahawks, which had been an AFC team, but had moved to the NFC.
• 56:14
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Seattle went 13-3 and was the first seed in the NFC.
• 56:18
  SPEAKER_01: They had beaten the Washington football team in the Carolina Panthers.
• 56:25
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Sean Alexander, he was really good that year.
• 56:29
  SPEAKER_01: 1,880 rushing yards and 27 touchdowns.
• 56:33
  SPEAKER_01: He was really good, yeah.
• 56:35
  SPEAKER_01: But he was kind of infuriating because like he would never take a hit.
• 56:39
  SPEAKER_01: He would like get his five yards and he would get like five yards, but then he would kind of like find the the like he would never like take on a defensive back.
• 56:48
  SPEAKER_01: He would kind of jump on the ground, it seemed.
• 56:50
  SPEAKER_01: So he kind of had like the uh I don't know how to describe like the uh Franco Harris kind of rep there.
• 57:00
  SPEAKER_01: Uh on another note, the game is in Detroit.
• 57:02
  SPEAKER_01: In Detroit's only like what four hours, five hours maybe.
• 57:07
  SPEAKER_01: So it's so close to Pittsburgh that everybody from Pittsburgh decides to visit Detroit in February.
• 57:14
  SPEAKER_01: And it's like a Steelers crowd.
• 57:16
  SPEAKER_01: It's like a Steelers, it becomes almost like a Steelers home game with all the Steelers fans in town.
• 57:21
  SPEAKER_01: And it's really odd because the Super Bowl normally isn't like that.
• 57:25
  SPEAKER_01: Normally it's like you know, a very corporate crowd.
• 57:28
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I was I was fortunate enough to be there for that game.
• 57:33
  SPEAKER_02: And like you said, it was like a four-hour drive.
• 57:35
  SPEAKER_02: I think we drove up in the morning and drove home at night, so we didn't even stay there.
• 57:39
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and you're right, it was all it was all Steeler fans.
• 57:43
  SPEAKER_02: There were some people that made the truck from Seattle, and there were some people that were probably just there because you know, kind of like corporation corporate boxes.
• 57:51
  SPEAKER_02: Right, right.
• 57:52
  SPEAKER_02: But I mean the the it was it felt like a home game because it was snowing, it was terrible weather in Detroit.
• 57:58
  SPEAKER_02: So there's snow everywhere, and people are tailgating, like they they when for that Super Bowl, and probably what they do for every Super Bowl, there's like this whole perimeter around the stadium.
• 58:08
  SPEAKER_02: You can't even get close to the stadium until you go through all the security.
• 58:12
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so people were finding just parking lots randomly in town, and there were tailgate parties in the snow.
• 58:18
  SPEAKER_02: It just it was so weird.
• 58:20
  SPEAKER_02: It felt like a Steeler like Heinz Field in a Steeler home playoff game, which we hadn't had one of those that year.
• 58:26
  SPEAKER_02: So it was really neat to be able to be there, and it's really cool to see the atmosphere.
• 58:30
  SPEAKER_02: We did it in style, baby.
• 58:32
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 58:33
  SPEAKER_01: Jerome Bettis, of course, the big story was Jerome Bettis was returning this to Detroit.
• 58:37
  SPEAKER_01: That was like kind of I think they gave him a key to the city, Kwame.
• 58:41
  SPEAKER_01: I think was it Kwame Fitzpatrick, I think was the mayor back then, uh, who became infamous later.
• 58:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um it gets a lot of press, and um, it's just like a feel-good story.
• 58:52
  SPEAKER_01: And I think Detroit, too, because like the Lions have been so bad.
• 58:55
  SPEAKER_01: I almost felt like Detroit, like kind of like maybe not not deep, but like we were kind of like their adopted football team, you know, that week, you know.
• 59:04
  SPEAKER_01: Especially to like, you know, Pittsburgh's a Rust Belt town.
• 59:07
  SPEAKER_01: It's a you know, kind of there's a lot in common with Detroit.
• 59:10
  SPEAKER_01: So there wasn't there wasn't a lot, like Joey Porter had made news before like the Colts game, and then he had made sure he was quiet before the Denver game.
• 59:20
  SPEAKER_01: And I guess Cower kind of told him to be quiet like this game, but Jeremy Stevens, who was a first round kind of draft pick tight end for the Seattle Seahawks, said in an interview, the story of Jerome Bettis returning to his hometown is heartwarming, but it's going to be a sad day when he doesn't walk away with that trophy.
• 59:40
  SPEAKER_01: Which really, I mean, in the history of trash talk, is that really that bad?
• 59:46
  SPEAKER_01: So Joey Porter, you know, he needs that to get him going.
• 59:50
  SPEAKER_01: So Joey Porter's now going.
• 59:52
  SPEAKER_01: He's too soft to say something like that.
• 59:55
  SPEAKER_01: This is Porter's response.
• 59:56
  SPEAKER_01: He's going to have the opportunity to back up his words.
• 59:59
  SPEAKER_01: I'm going to have the opportunity to back up my words.
• 1:00:02
  SPEAKER_01: So it's something I'm looking forward to, and I'm ready to get going.
• 1:00:05
  SPEAKER_01: Porter also called Stevens a first-round bust who barely made some plays this season.
• 1:00:11
  SPEAKER_01: He also said of the player, Stevens' stature has a lot of nerve to say what he said about Bettis.
• 1:00:17
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, that was it was just like, I guess, like it's almost like the media.
• 1:00:22
  SPEAKER_01: Like, did somebody in the medium pay him to pay?
• 1:00:24
  SPEAKER_01: It's like we're not getting anything but the feel-good stories.
• 1:00:26
  SPEAKER_01: We need some negativity here.
• 1:00:28
  SPEAKER_02: No, I think that was just Joey Porter being Joey Porter.
• 1:00:31
  SPEAKER_02: And and Jeremy Stevens, he like you said, that was nothing.
• 1:00:35
  SPEAKER_02: That was a nothing comment.
• 1:00:36
  SPEAKER_02: He he once, he's like, Yeah, I I, you know, I hope we're gonna win.
• 1:00:40
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I I just to me that wasn't a big thing.
• 1:00:42
  SPEAKER_01: How dare you say you hope you're gonna win?
• 1:00:44
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 1:00:45
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, lose horribly, you know.
• 1:00:47
  SPEAKER_02: It just, I mean, it it was a little bit of trash talk, but I mean it was kind of like wink wink.
• 1:00:52
  SPEAKER_02: It was to me, that was nothing.
• 1:00:54
  SPEAKER_02: And Porter blew it up into this big thing, which I remember when that happened, I was like, dude, what are you doing?
• 1:00:59
  SPEAKER_02: Stop! Like, we don't need this distraction.
• 1:01:02
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, I I was down on Joey Porter at the beginning of that season.
• 1:01:06
  SPEAKER_02: I really thought his time was up, he was washed up, and then he had this really strong playoff, and then I was down on him again for starting this whole controversy, like making a mountain out of a molehill.
• 1:01:18
  SPEAKER_02: But I think both times I was wrong because you know it ends up it ends up actually impacting the game, as I'm sure you'll get into.
• 1:01:25
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, Jerry, Jerry Porter does well.
• 1:01:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um just on a personal, like you said, you actually got to go to the game.
• 1:01:32
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I did not have I did not go to the game, but I did get to celebrate it with my parents and my my kids and my wife.
• 1:01:40
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, we had like and normally like we don't my parents don't do a big like football thing or even Super Bowl party, but I mean I figure how many times am I ever going to see the Steelers in the Super Bowl with my mom and my dad, and you know, so it was just like one of those you thought this is it's a once in a lifetime, like almost like a wedding or so, you know.
• 1:02:01
  SPEAKER_01: So I we went over there.
• 1:02:02
  SPEAKER_01: My mom, I remember my mom make bade made a cake like with one, like had like a football field that said stealers on it, and she couldn't fit the word the whole stealer.
• 1:02:10
  SPEAKER_01: She didn't plan off the icing, right?
• 1:02:12
  SPEAKER_01: So it said like steal and then dash.
• 1:02:16
  SPEAKER_01: We harassed my poor mother for that, but the cake was still good.
• 1:02:19
  SPEAKER_01: But it was fun, it was a fun time.
• 1:02:20
  SPEAKER_01: I had a lot of fun over my parents' house watching it.
• 1:02:23
  SPEAKER_01: It was just a great memory, and just one of those things you'll remember for the rest of your life.
• 1:02:27
  SPEAKER_01: So I mean, you know, it's one of the reasons this you know, this podcast, it's great to re living and just so many great memories, and I'm sure you know we'll go on and on about this after it's after the game's over, but let's talk about the game.
• 1:02:39
  SPEAKER_01: You know, hey, they played a game.
• 1:02:41
  SPEAKER_01: Can you imagine that, Tim?
• 1:02:43
  SPEAKER_01: Um, Seattle starts the game with the hurry-up offense, and Daryl Jackson has uh like a lot of early catches, but the Seattle uh drive stalls and the Seahawks punt the ball into the end zone.
• 1:02:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um on the first defensive drive, the Steelers once again, they kind of like it's kind of like the Cincinnati game all over again.
• 1:03:01
  SPEAKER_01: They start taking penalties and they're definitely nervous to be there.
• 1:03:05
  SPEAKER_01: And uh they punt the ball back.
• 1:03:07
  SPEAKER_01: Later on the second, on Seattle's second drive, Hasselback on third down, throws a pass to Ike Taylor.
• 1:03:13
  SPEAKER_01: He throws it right to Ike.
• 1:03:15
  SPEAKER_01: But Ike um this time doesn't you know treat the ball like it's a Ming Voz.
• 1:03:20
  SPEAKER_01: He he drops it.
• 1:03:21
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, because that would have been a big play if he could have you know caught that ball.
• 1:03:25
  SPEAKER_01: But um it still gets him off the field.
• 1:03:28
  SPEAKER_01: The Steelers do nothing on offense again, and they have to punt.
• 1:03:31
  SPEAKER_01: Hasselback um does throw a TD to Darryl Jackson, who's having a great first quarter, but um the official throws a flag for offensive pass interference.
• 1:03:41
  SPEAKER_01: It is a little ticky-tack.
• 1:03:43
  SPEAKER_01: It's not as bad as the one I thought in the Bengals because there was he did extend the arm.
• 1:03:47
  SPEAKER_01: And the flag was not late.
• 1:03:49
  SPEAKER_01: If you watch the replay, like the official went to go grab the flag as soon as he saw the arm extend.
• 1:03:55
  SPEAKER_01: He just missed it.
• 1:03:56
  SPEAKER_01: Like if you watch it, he he actually like double clutches because when he goes to he had it, I guess he had it because they tuck it into their pants.
• 1:04:03
  SPEAKER_01: I think he had it tucked, and he just didn't get it, you know, it was too tightly tucked, so it took him the second pool to really, you know, get it out.
• 1:04:11
  SPEAKER_01: So even the officials were going a little too quick for their own good, I guess.
• 1:04:16
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that was that was a close call.
• 1:04:18
  SPEAKER_02: And offensive pass interference you don't see often.
• 1:04:21
  SPEAKER_02: But if if you look at the replay, like you said, he does he does extend his.
• 1:04:25
  SPEAKER_02: I think it was Chris Hope, right?
• 1:04:26
  SPEAKER_02: Was the guy covering him?
• 1:04:27
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, and it was a safety, yeah.
• 1:04:29
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and Jackson does like use his arms to push Chris Hope the other direction before he makes the catch.
• 1:04:36
  SPEAKER_01: So and I'll say this, the Steelers had the same thing happened to them on that play in Denver and in Indianapolis, and they still scored a touchdown after those penalties, or you know, came back to make a play.
• 1:04:48
  SPEAKER_01: Seattle has three more plays after that penalty.
• 1:04:51
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, nothing was stopping you from scoring on those next three plays.
• 1:04:57
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, except for the Steeler defense, but I mean that's yeah, but you know what I mean?
• 1:05:01
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I know it's tough, but like this is another example of like Seattle didn't take advantage of the opportunities which they had, and they did have opportunities.
• 1:05:11
  SPEAKER_01: That's kind of the theme of I think the Super Bowl for Seattle, at least.
• 1:05:15
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, this is another false narrative.
• 1:05:17
  SPEAKER_02: You know, the narrative after this game is that the refs is Seattle.
• 1:05:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we'll go over.
• 1:05:21
  SPEAKER_01: I have that.
• 1:05:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, let's let's go through the so Seattle kicks the field goal 3-0 when they could have been up 7-0, even after the bad penalty call, they could have, yeah.
• 1:05:32
  SPEAKER_01: Um, the refs pick up a flag on a parent headshot by a Seattle defender on Heinz Ward.
• 1:05:38
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, people would say, Oh, it's favoring the Steelers.
• 1:05:41
  SPEAKER_01: They they picked, they you know, they were just I think this crew just called it really tight.
• 1:05:45
  SPEAKER_01: Uh if if I have to go back and say anything.
• 1:05:49
  SPEAKER_01: On a third and two, Jeremy Stevens gets hit by Steeler safety Chris Hope and drops the pass.
• 1:05:55
  SPEAKER_01: It was very close to like a catch and a fumble.
• 1:05:58
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and and then it becomes The punt fest.
• 1:06:01
  SPEAKER_01: Seattle punts, everybody's just punting.
• 1:06:03
  SPEAKER_01: Like after that like initial shock of like whatever Seattle was doing on offense, I guess the Steelers defense settled in, and it just kind of like you know goes back and forth, and it's three-nothing.
• 1:06:15
  SPEAKER_01: And uh finally, uh Randall L makes a bobbling catch on third and eight, and it's the Steelers' first down of the game with 10 minutes in the second quarter.
• 1:06:24
  SPEAKER_01: They did not get a first down until 10 minutes to go in the second quarter.
• 1:06:28
  SPEAKER_01: So Seattle had what?
• 1:06:30
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, how long is a quarter?
• 1:06:33
  SPEAKER_01: 15.
• 1:06:33
  SPEAKER_01: So they had 20 minutes to do something on offense and didn't.
• 1:06:38
  SPEAKER_01: So another missed opportunity, you know, while another team is kicking itself, you know, you could have been taking even the Bengals did that.
• 1:06:45
  SPEAKER_01: They didn't hold on, but you know, even the Bengals took them.
• 1:06:48
  SPEAKER_01: Then uh Heinz Ward um runs with a reverse for like 18 yards.
• 1:06:53
  SPEAKER_01: So that kind of the offense kind of gets going.
• 1:06:56
  SPEAKER_01: But Ben makes a horrible play.
• 1:06:58
  SPEAKER_01: He throws an interception to Michael Bluer, which is a really nice interception, but probably a pass he probably shouldn't have thrown.
• 1:07:05
  SPEAKER_01: The Steelers are playing really tight, like I said, like especially on offense.
• 1:07:08
  SPEAKER_01: I think I don't think on defense they were they settled down after the first, but on offense they're really, really playing nervous.
• 1:07:17
  SPEAKER_01: The Steelers get the ball after a Seattle three and out.
• 1:07:21
  SPEAKER_01: And uh and uh Steelers start to drive.
• 1:07:23
  SPEAKER_01: They pick up a third down and a shovel pass to Heinz Ward.
• 1:07:27
  SPEAKER_01: And uh they have another nice pass to guess who?
• 1:07:30
  SPEAKER_01: Cedric Wilson.
• 1:07:31
  SPEAKER_01: Um Ben puts a very catchable pass to Heinz Ward, and it's in I think it was in the end zone, and he has uh he has it go off his fingertips, and um, which is a rare drop.
• 1:07:41
  SPEAKER_01: Like we said, normally Heinz Ward makes that play, but I think everybody was just kind of tight that first that first half.
• 1:07:48
  SPEAKER_01: After um an offensive pass interference and a sack, the Steelers find themselves in a third and twenty-eight.
• 1:07:55
  SPEAKER_01: And this is this game really does boil down to a couple big plays, and this is one of them.
• 1:07:59
  SPEAKER_02: So so Steve, I just want to emphasize what you said there.
• 1:08:02
  SPEAKER_02: The reason the Steelers have third and twenty-eight in this situation is because they also were flagged for offensive pass interference.
• 1:08:09
  SPEAKER_02: And they did it, and they gave up a sack, yes.
• 1:08:12
  SPEAKER_02: Right, but but the Seattle was not the only ones who got called for offensive pass interference.
• 1:08:16
  SPEAKER_01: No, no, no, Tim, you you must uphold the narrative at all costs.
• 1:08:20
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, to your point, you still have a chance to do something even after a penalty.
• 1:08:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, in third and twenty-eight, like how many times do you convert third and twenty eight in like five to ten years?
• 1:08:30
  SPEAKER_01: Like you just unless it's a penalty, like you rarely see it.
• 1:08:34
  SPEAKER_01: So Ben, this is like an icon.
• 1:08:36
  SPEAKER_01: Ben scrambles to his left, he doesn't cross the line of scrimmage, and then he throws it back across his body, so it ends up being like a 40-yard pass, and he hits Heinz Ward at like the three-yard line, but Heinz can't get in the end zone, but it's enough for a first down, so it's first and goal at the three.
• 1:08:54
  SPEAKER_01: So once again, like Seattle, like you know, gave up a third and 28, you know, and that's you know, on a play, you probably like if you just give up 10 yards there, Pittsburgh's kicking a field goal, you know.
• 1:09:10
  SPEAKER_01: After two uh Jerome Bettis runs, uh give the Seattle defense credit, they stack them up and they gain nothing.
• 1:09:16
  SPEAKER_01: The Steelers are faced with a third and goal with the one-yard line, and the Steelers run that play.
• 1:09:21
  SPEAKER_01: Remember, uh, we were just talking about that play from um Denver that Ben had hurt his arm on and then never got fixed or whatever.
• 1:09:30
  SPEAKER_01: So they run that play.
• 1:09:32
  SPEAKER_01: And if you watch the replay, when I watched the replay, like then dives for the end zone, and when you watch the lineman who's spotting the ball, he comes in, and like even Bill Hilgrove on the air says, Oh, he's short, because like it looked like the guy was gonna spot him short, but then he puts up his hands and signals touchdown.
• 1:09:51
  SPEAKER_01: So I guess I don't know if he changed his mind halfway through, or it just took him a second to process it, but it definitely is a weird call from the official on that one.
• 1:10:02
  SPEAKER_01: But he calls it in, and it's a very, very tight call.
• 1:10:07
  SPEAKER_01: You can't really see where the ball is in relation to the end.
• 1:10:11
  SPEAKER_01: You know the ball's in his arm, but you can't clearly see if the ball's across the line or not, or if it's short of the line, too, conversely.
• 1:10:20
  SPEAKER_01: It's kind of like wasn't there a Marc-Andre Fleury play on the goal line where he put his his uh goalie catcher thing over the puck and you couldn't see where it was on the goal line.
• 1:10:32
  SPEAKER_01: And they couldn't call it a goal because they couldn't see where it was.
• 1:10:35
  SPEAKER_01: I think it was against Philadelphia, but anywho, back to football.
• 1:10:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um they challenged the call, or no, it was under, I think it was it under it was either they challenged it or it was under two minutes.
• 1:10:51
  SPEAKER_01: It was a scoring play, right?
• 1:10:52
  SPEAKER_01: So well, no, they didn't review scoring plays back then.
• 1:10:56
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, okay.
• 1:10:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 1:10:58
  SPEAKER_02: So it must maybe it was challenged.
• 1:10:59
  SPEAKER_01: I think it was challenged.
• 1:11:00
  SPEAKER_01: I think it was still outside of two minutes.
• 1:11:03
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, okay.
• 1:11:03
  SPEAKER_01: If it was inside of two minutes, they they would automatically review it.
• 1:11:08
  SPEAKER_01: So they they you know, Bill Levy couldn't find a reason that it wasn't a touchdown, which is basically what you're trying.
• 1:11:15
  SPEAKER_01: Like it's so critical.
• 1:11:16
  SPEAKER_01: If he would have called it the other way short, and then they cower would have challenged it, he would have kept it short.
• 1:11:22
  SPEAKER_01: But because they called it touchdown and Holmgren challenged it, they had to prove it was a touchdown.
• 1:11:29
  SPEAKER_01: So you know what I mean?
• 1:11:30
  SPEAKER_01: It really is that initial ruling is very critical.
• 1:11:34
  SPEAKER_01: It wasn't this case for sure.
• 1:11:35
  SPEAKER_01: Yep.
• 1:11:36
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's almost like innocent until proven guilty.
• 1:11:38
  SPEAKER_01: You know, there's a difference between guilty and proving yourself innocent and innocent until proven guilty.
• 1:11:43
  SPEAKER_01: And that's another debate for the legal podcast with Tim and Steve.
• 1:11:49
  SPEAKER_01: Do you think if it would have been reversed, do you think Coward would have gone for it there?
• 1:11:52
  SPEAKER_01: He said he would have.
• 1:11:54
  SPEAKER_01: because they have that infamous um like uh soundbite of like Troy coming up like give it to me get over the top.
• 1:12:01
  SPEAKER_01: Troy wanted Yeah.
• 1:12:02
  SPEAKER_01: Troy was curious.
• 1:12:03
  SPEAKER_01: He wanted he wanted to go in the game and leap over the line.
• 1:12:07
  SPEAKER_01: I might have I might have been half if I didn't have Bettis, I might have been half inclined to give it to him.
• 1:12:12
  SPEAKER_01: Give it to the kid, you know?
• 1:12:14
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, you're gonna have to even if he fumbles, as long as it doesn't go back for a touchdown the other way.
• 1:12:18
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, but then you have like like why are you not gonna give the ball to Bettis, your Hall of Famer, you know, or Ben, you know.
• 1:12:25
  SPEAKER_01: I'm a big believer on fourth down.
• 1:12:28
  SPEAKER_01: You always give it to your best offensive player with your best offensive play.
• 1:12:32
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 1:12:32
  SPEAKER_01: So it does get upheld, so Troy doesn't get his moment of Super Bowl glory, unfortunately.
• 1:12:40
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Seattle tries to uh mount the two-minute drill.
• 1:12:43
  SPEAKER_01: They get to the Steelers 40 and they almost score, but Daryl Jackson catches the ball out of bounds like twice.
• 1:12:50
  SPEAKER_01: Like, and by out of bounds, I don't mean like toe touching the line.
• 1:12:53
  SPEAKER_01: I mean like both feet were on the white when he caught the ball.
• 1:12:56
  SPEAKER_01: Like it wasn't it was the easiest call in the history of like call.
• 1:13:00
  SPEAKER_01: Like that guy's way out of bounds.
• 1:13:04
  SPEAKER_01: So Seattle tries a long field goal, 54 yards in a dome.
• 1:13:08
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, that's a long field goal, but you should probably make that, right?
• 1:13:12
  SPEAKER_01: Well, their kicker misses wide right.
• 1:13:14
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, this easy game could have easily been seven to six going into the half, but it's seven to three.
• 1:13:22
  SPEAKER_02: Seattle blew so many chances in that first half that you already talked about.
• 1:13:26
  SPEAKER_02: In that drive, not only did they, you know, Jackson being out of bounds, but do you remember they also like had no sense of urgency getting to the line?
• 1:13:35
  SPEAKER_02: Like they wasted a lot of time.
• 1:13:36
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and they they like completed passes in bounds, I think, too.
• 1:13:40
  SPEAKER_01: And yeah, it was it was ugly.
• 1:13:43
  SPEAKER_01: So the Steelers get the ball first out of the out of the half because Seattle started the game with it.
• 1:13:50
  SPEAKER_01: And on the second play of the of the second half, we have a like a probably second, like a one of the bigger plays in Steeler history, uh, definitely of this Super Bowl.
• 1:14:01
  SPEAKER_01: Willie Parker takes the ball, runs, runs to the right, I guess, and goes for like 75 yards and a touchdown.
• 1:14:10
  SPEAKER_01: And it's just awesome.
• 1:14:12
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm the the whole you know forward field goes insane because it's all Steeler fans.
• 1:14:18
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, it's a great run by fast Willie Parker.
• 1:14:22
  SPEAKER_01: And um now it's 14-3 early in the third quarter.
• 1:14:27
  SPEAKER_02: And that was shocking.
• 1:14:28
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, the the fact that he had a 75-yard run, that that was on second and ten because on the first first down, they it was an incomplete pass.
• 1:14:37
  SPEAKER_02: And so, like, I think everybody in the stadium knew it was gonna be a running play, and he still springs that, like you said, Fannica makes that great block.
• 1:14:44
  SPEAKER_02: And to be up 14-3 at that point after really doing zilch on offense for the whole first half, like that was amazing.
• 1:14:54
  SPEAKER_02: I could not believe we were winning 14-3 at that point.
• 1:14:57
  SPEAKER_01: It was a great run.
• 1:14:58
  SPEAKER_01: And um now to follow that up, once again, like Seattle, you know, it isn't like that was the end of the game.
• 1:15:05
  SPEAKER_01: Seattle got the ball early in the third quarter, and they're down, they are down 11 points, but they got a pretty good quarterback and hassleback, and they got a pretty good offense.
• 1:15:16
  SPEAKER_01: So they drive the ball into the Steelers territory, but um they miss another 50-yard field goal.
• 1:15:25
  SPEAKER_01: So, I mean, it's just you know, there that's another like it could at least have been, you know, 14-9 if they just hit their field goals, right?
• 1:15:33
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 1:15:35
  SPEAKER_01: So now here's where like I think the game kind of like this is the play where the narrative comes from for Seattle.
• 1:15:44
  SPEAKER_01: Because at this point, I think the game was at uh at like the precipice of just becoming one of those blowout second half blowout Super Bowls.
• 1:15:53
  SPEAKER_01: So the Steelers drive down to the Seahawks seven-yard line, and Ben had Cedric Wilson wide open in the end zone for a touchdown.
• 1:16:02
  SPEAKER_01: All he if he just throws the ball to the back of the end zone, the worst case scenario is it's an incomplete pass, but he just like lollipops his little pass and it's easily intercepted.
• 1:16:13
  SPEAKER_01: And that's and that's a bit it's a big play by the Seattle defense, but I I think too, it was like a really bad, more a bad play by Ben than and Ben had a pretty bad Super Bowl, quite honestly.
• 1:16:24
  SPEAKER_01: But even in his bad Super Bowl, he made like two really big plays, scoring the touchdown from the one-yard lane in a third and twenty-eight.
• 1:16:32
  SPEAKER_01: So I mean, even when you know Ben's having a bad game, he's still you know making some plays and contributing.
• 1:16:39
  SPEAKER_01: And this is what kind of like turns the game and makes the second half competitive.
• 1:16:47
  SPEAKER_01: Even if they kicked a field goal, like what they would have been 17 to 3.
• 1:16:53
  SPEAKER_01: So that even would have been, you know.
• 1:16:55
  SPEAKER_02: They they call that was a third down, and they called timeout before that play, or maybe Seattle.
• 1:16:59
  SPEAKER_02: There was a timeout before that play, and I I was sitting there in the stadium with my brother, and we're saying, okay, what do you do here?
• 1:17:07
  SPEAKER_02: Like, do you call something safe?
• 1:17:08
  SPEAKER_02: Like, you know, because the all the momentum was in Pittsburgh's favor.
• 1:17:13
  SPEAKER_02: So to your point, I would have been perfectly happy with um incomplete pass or like a fade pass in the end zone, something safe, and just kicking the field goal, because at that point, Seattle was just falling apart, and there's just the absolute worst-case scenario for him to throw that interception and then Herndon turned it all the way back to the team.
• 1:17:32
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 1:17:33
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 1:17:33
  SPEAKER_01: And um and that's really I really think that's the reason Super Bowl 40 is remembered the way it is.
• 1:17:40
  SPEAKER_01: Like if they if they score there, like all the people and we'll go over, you know, the the media in a little bit, but yeah, they they don't have anything to say about it.
• 1:17:51
  SPEAKER_02: No, that that narrative never exists if not for this one play, because it's the only time in the game that Seattle did anything period.
• 1:17:59
  unknown: Yeah.
• 1:18:01
  SPEAKER_01: So um to their credit, you know, this Seattle scores a touchdown pass to Jeremy Stevens, who definitely makes a play.
• 1:18:10
  SPEAKER_01: And on the next Steelers drive, they go three and out, and then the teams exchange punts.
• 1:18:16
  SPEAKER_01: So in the fourth quarter, Seattle does drive to the Pittsburgh one.
• 1:18:20
  SPEAKER_01: So now it's a game.
• 1:18:21
  SPEAKER_01: It's what 14 to 10.
• 1:18:23
  SPEAKER_01: And Sean Lockler gets called for a hold, which takes away the big pass play and moves the Seahawks back to the 30-yard line.
• 1:18:31
  SPEAKER_01: And it it was a pretty blatant hold.
• 1:18:34
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, and I've seen them not call it, I've seen them call that, I've seen them not call it.
• 1:18:38
  SPEAKER_01: So I mean, I I I don't know.
• 1:18:40
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, once again, you know, the Steelers had had calls go against them, they had made bad plays, and they still would overcome them.
• 1:18:48
  SPEAKER_01: So Seattle still could have at least kicked a field goal here, you know, and it would have been a one-point game, and they would have just needed to kick another field goal to take the lead.
• 1:18:58
  SPEAKER_01: But the next play, Casey Hampton gets uh gets his first sack in a long time, and it sets up a third third and eighteen.
• 1:19:04
  SPEAKER_01: And on the third and eighteen, you know, it hassle back just makes an egregious area.
• 1:19:08
  SPEAKER_01: He he throws the ball for the second time right to Ike Taylor, but Ike this time doesn't drop the ball, and this is probably your third like well, this is yeah, your third big play of the game.
• 1:19:21
  SPEAKER_01: It just totally stopped Seattle, and he threw it right to Ike.
• 1:19:26
  SPEAKER_01: Ike might need a nice play, but you know, I mean, how many you just can't keep throwing the ball to Ike Taylor?
• 1:19:31
  SPEAKER_01: He's not gonna drop every bath, every one.
• 1:19:34
  SPEAKER_01: So and I just feel like Seattle doesn't take responsibility for their, you know, you want to complain about the refs, that's fine.
• 1:19:40
  SPEAKER_01: But what about this interception?
• 1:19:42
  SPEAKER_01: What about the early interception you almost threw?
• 1:19:45
  SPEAKER_01: What about three missed field goals?
• 1:19:48
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I mean where the you know, you sometimes, you know, if you just make those plays, you you're at least in the game for a Hail Mary at the end, you know.
• 1:19:58
  SPEAKER_02: What about giving up a third and twenty-eight or allowing a 75-yard run on second and ten on a on a oh well our our starting safety was hard.
• 1:20:06
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, on a play that everybody knew was going to be a running play, or poorly managing the clock before halftime.
• 1:20:12
  SPEAKER_02: I mean I I yeah, I I yeah, well, again, we'll get into that more later, but what what that uh that that narrative just always struck me as like people people just making excuses.
• 1:20:25
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and so uh on the next drive, Ben scrambles for a big first down on third and two, and the next play is the iconic play of Super Bowl 40.
• 1:20:33
  SPEAKER_01: Whenever they show Super Bowl 40, this is the play they always show.
• 1:20:37
  SPEAKER_01: It's the uh trick play which they had ran against Cleveland from two podcasts ago.
• 1:20:43
  SPEAKER_01: It was so long ago.
• 1:20:45
  SPEAKER_01: Uh they hand the ball to Willie Parker, hands it to Randwell, Ben throws a block, everybody's fooled, Seattle's fooled on a play that the Steelers had already ran early in the season, Seattle, so it's on film.
• 1:20:58
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, your defensive, you know, maybe you should have been prepared for it.
• 1:21:03
  SPEAKER_01: But so you know, Antoine Randwell throws a pass to Heinz Ward, and he scores, and it's 21 to 10, and that's pretty much your ball game.
• 1:21:14
  SPEAKER_01: And it it was just that it was a great play all around.
• 1:21:17
  SPEAKER_01: It was a nice play call.
• 1:21:19
  SPEAKER_01: And it, you know, it's between the 40s, so it's a good good spot to call the call the trick plays.
• 1:21:25
  SPEAKER_01: So I you know, I once again I guess it's Seattle's backup safety, but you know, I I don't know what to say to Seattle.
• 1:21:34
  SPEAKER_01: Sorry you didn't make enough plays.
• 1:21:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um on the next play, uh, Seattle does drive to the Steelers 45.
• 1:21:43
  SPEAKER_01: Deshea Townsend gets a sack on third down, it brings up fourth and long.
• 1:21:47
  SPEAKER_01: And Mike Holm punts with seven minutes left and down 11 points, which is kind of I don't I don't understand that.
• 1:21:56
  SPEAKER_01: So on the next drive, on third and six, the Steelers pick up a big first down on a screen pass, and they have a new set of downs with four minutes left.
• 1:22:04
  SPEAKER_01: On third and three, Ben picks up a first down on a broken play that was supposed to be a run with Jerome Bettis.
• 1:22:11
  SPEAKER_01: That's another like NFL films moments where like Jerome Bett or Bill Cowers like boom, baby.
• 1:22:16
  SPEAKER_01: He's like, yeah, Ben kept it.
• 1:22:19
  SPEAKER_01: Um that first down pretty much effectively ended.
• 1:22:22
  SPEAKER_01: That was the nail in the coffin, you know.
• 1:22:25
  SPEAKER_01: Seahawk gets the ball back, they get some more garbage time.
• 1:22:29
  SPEAKER_01: Jeremy Steven drops the ball on a fourth and seven.
• 1:22:32
  SPEAKER_01: So and uh the Steelers uh bring home Super Bowl uh Super Bowl 40.
• 1:22:38
  SPEAKER_01: So uh like I said, I I like uh we've kind of mentioned it.
• 1:22:42
  SPEAKER_01: I I get ti I'm getting tired of people trashing certain teams.
• 1:22:46
  SPEAKER_01: Like it's kind of happened in the 2020 season with when the Steelers went undefeated.
• 1:22:51
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, they stink and you know, Mickey Mouse this and Mickey Mouse that.
• 1:22:54
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm just getting tired of it.
• 1:22:56
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's it's it's gotten old.
• 1:22:59
  SPEAKER_01: Let people enjoy their team.
• 1:23:00
  SPEAKER_01: Like I'm not gonna sit here and criticize Kansas City in the year they won the Super Bowl because they were down three different times, like what, 18 to 21 points.
• 1:23:09
  SPEAKER_01: Does that make their Super Bowl win any less legitimate?
• 1:23:12
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I I don't know that they were losing to Houston, Houston and Bill O'Brien by 21 points.
• 1:23:19
  SPEAKER_01: I mean and it's just it's it's a trend, and I I don't know if it started here or when, but it just seems like it's just gained speed, and like anytime, especially like a popular team, like like like I guess the Patriots, like I don't do I hope we don't do this to the Patriots.
• 1:23:37
  SPEAKER_01: I mean the Patriots won six Super Bowls, and you might not like it, and you might think they stole signals and stuff, but whose fault is that for not changing their signals the time.
• 1:23:44
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, we don't want we definitely do it to the Patriots.
• 1:23:48
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, but I mean, you know, well, you know, if you knew they were stealing your signals, why didn't you change them?
• 1:23:52
  SPEAKER_01: It's like it's the easiest thing to do.
• 1:23:55
  SPEAKER_01: Like, and you could totally mess with his head doing that.
• 1:23:58
  SPEAKER_01: Why wouldn't you mess with Bill Belichick's head?
• 1:24:00
  SPEAKER_01: It's just gonna be good fun.
• 1:24:02
  SPEAKER_01: I any anyway, I it's just I just get tired.
• 1:24:05
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's more with the media than the fans, because fans are gonna be fans, like you know, it's like you know, Cleveland fans are gonna like celebrate when the Steelers lose.
• 1:24:15
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, Pitt fans do it when Penn State loses, and yeah, it's just just the way it is.
• 1:24:20
  SPEAKER_01: And an example of this was Jason Whitwalk.
• 1:24:23
  SPEAKER_01: He wrote he wrote an article that Bill Levy, Bill Levy and his crew ruined Super Bowl 40.
• 1:24:30
  SPEAKER_01: And am I the only one who would like to hear them defend their incompetence?
• 1:24:35
  SPEAKER_01: And Seattle had so many opportunities, and yeah, I think we've highlighted them, you know, going over him so many times.
• 1:24:43
  SPEAKER_01: It's just just take advantage of your opportunities that were there.
• 1:24:47
  SPEAKER_01: You had some stuff go against you, but if you take advantage, you're at least in the game at the end.
• 1:24:51
  SPEAKER_01: So don't throw an interception to Ike Taylor for like the third time.
• 1:24:55
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like it really should have been two interceptions for Matt Hasselback of like Ike can just catch the ball.
• 1:25:01
  SPEAKER_02: So they there there was I I thought there was one bad call.
• 1:25:06
  SPEAKER_02: It was when Ike made that interception, they called like a block in the back or something on the return against Seattle.
• 1:25:13
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was on Hassel, but they had called that before.
• 1:25:16
  SPEAKER_01: It was a stupid rule.
• 1:25:17
  SPEAKER_01: I think they got rid of it.
• 1:25:19
  SPEAKER_02: But but that was probably the only bad call, and that didn't like the the interception had already been thrown.
• 1:25:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 1:25:24
  SPEAKER_02: So it gave the Steelers a few yards, but it that didn't really change anything.
• 1:25:28
  SPEAKER_02: And all the other calls, offensive interference, the holding, the the the bend sneak, like those were all those weren't bad calls, those were close calls.
• 1:25:37
  SPEAKER_02: Those were close calls, and sometimes in games, the close calls go against you.
• 1:25:42
  SPEAKER_02: It's just bad luck.
• 1:25:42
  SPEAKER_02: It's happened to the Steelers a million times, too.
• 1:25:45
  SPEAKER_02: But they weren't bad calls.
• 1:25:46
  SPEAKER_02: Like I there was nobody wanted to make that differentiation between close calls and bad calls.
• 1:25:51
  SPEAKER_02: And I I thought that the best back then, um the best media member that that that um analyzed that game, I thought was inside the NFL, the show that was um, I think at the time on HBO.
• 1:26:04
  SPEAKER_02: They they actually went through every call and they were showing why it wasn't a bad call.
• 1:26:09
  SPEAKER_02: It was a close call.
• 1:26:10
  SPEAKER_02: You know, maybe you don't always call offensive pass interference, or maybe you don't always call holding, but it wasn't egregious, it wasn't a bad call.
• 1:26:17
  SPEAKER_02: And the media, like the sports media, especially, they either they're they're either lazy where they go with like the narrative, like somebody just puts out a narrative and everybody just kind of kind of jumps on the bandwagon, or they try to go counter to that sometimes and they like try to establish like a hot take where they you know come up with some hot take that'll shock everybody.
• 1:26:38
  SPEAKER_02: And I think the the hot take thing took off more after this era when you had Twitter and all that kind of stuff.
• 1:26:45
  SPEAKER_02: I think back then it was just more common to see the the go along with the um you know with the uh narrative kind of crowd, and everybody just kind of jumped on board with that.
• 1:26:55
  SPEAKER_02: It was easy for Seattle fans, it was a good way for them to just you know find an excuse to why they lost.
• 1:27:01
  SPEAKER_02: But but to your point, they they played a terrible game.
• 1:27:04
  SPEAKER_02: It was a terrible like that was the other thing about that game.
• 1:27:07
  SPEAKER_02: I it was a terrible game, like but both teams did not play well, and it reminded me of like one of those games where the Steelers play like one of those like three-win teams, but they played poorly, but then they just end up winning because they just do enough to win, and you're just kind of like walking away from the game going, oh, glad we escaped with a win there.
• 1:27:26
  SPEAKER_02: But this was the Super Bowl.
• 1:27:29
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I didn't care, I didn't care.
• 1:27:30
  SPEAKER_01: I remember not caring, you know.
• 1:27:32
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I didn't care about that either.
• 1:27:33
  SPEAKER_01: I don't care either.
• 1:27:34
  SPEAKER_01: Why not it to your grave?
• 1:27:35
  SPEAKER_01: Because I don't hear like Patriots fans apologizing for all their Super Bowl wins or Denver or you know, San Francisco or any of them, or Dallas, or you know, I don't hear any of them.
• 1:27:47
  SPEAKER_01: And uh maybe it's just like this new culture, like I don't know, like the younger people, like you know, with the cancel culture and stuff like like I don't know if that plays into it.
• 1:27:56
  SPEAKER_01: And like too, like I think like also like you said, there wasn't Twitter or anything or Facebook.
• 1:28:02
  SPEAKER_01: And like it was you might hear that on like sports talk radio, but I don't think it was as widespread.
• 1:28:08
  SPEAKER_01: Now you post that on Twitter and Facebook and you draw people in that wouldn't have been like part of that conversation.
• 1:28:17
  SPEAKER_01: You know what I mean?
• 1:28:18
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 1:28:19
  SPEAKER_01: And it gives it journalists a chance to be the news as well.
• 1:28:23
  SPEAKER_01: Because it's like so and so posted this hot take and then it's yeah you know well Colin Cower, like I I've said that like that guy just he he'll say he does I don't think he does it like as much as he used to, but I remember on ESPN he used to he'll say a take and then like after the commercial break he'll say the opposite of that take.
• 1:28:42
  SPEAKER_01: Or like you know what I mean?
• 1:28:44
  SPEAKER_01: And it's like did you just think I forgot what you just said before the commercial it's like no I don't think he does that as much and he tries to come off but I think too he just likes to like you said the there's just certain like reporters that want to antagonize the fans to get reaction and get themselves clicks and likes and you know ratings.
• 1:29:04
  SPEAKER_01: That's definitely part of it.
• 1:29:06
  SPEAKER_01: So um with the positive um and and what's great about this Super Bowl win is the Steelers had to overcome a lot of adversity to win the Super Bowl.
• 1:29:14
  SPEAKER_01: You know between the sixth seed and you know having to play all the they played what two number one seeds a number two seed and a number three seed.
• 1:29:23
  SPEAKER_01: You know all really good teams all on the road except for well I guess the Super Bowl was kind of a home game.
• 1:29:29
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe that's why they played so bad because it was like a home game.
• 1:29:32
  SPEAKER_01: They needed a hostile crowd to get them going.
• 1:29:37
  SPEAKER_01: It's uh their fifth Super Bowl win at the time.
• 1:29:41
  SPEAKER_01: Cower wins his first and only Super Bowl.
• 1:29:44
  SPEAKER_01: It's almost like a lifetime achievement he gets to celebrate with his uh late wife and his uh daughters which I mean I can I I I thought it was just special with my family.
• 1:29:54
  SPEAKER_01: You know I can only imagine you know what what that memory is for uh Bill and I can see why Bill never wants to come back to coaching ever again.
• 1:30:03
  SPEAKER_01: Just you know why not just stay on CBS make some money and have fun and why put yourself back in that coward is now lives in New York City does a CBS pregame show.
• 1:30:16
  SPEAKER_01: In his room and every time there's like a New York Jets or Giants job or like Carolina like they rumor Bill for getting that and I don't think he's gonna come back I don't see that but I don't either yeah I he's too happy he's just just too happy up there with his life.
• 1:30:34
  SPEAKER_01: He does what everybody knows knows he's gonna do he retires at the game and um he does some uh national media stuff but I guess that kind of fizzes out I does he still he used to do Notre Dame stuff but I don't know if he does that anymore I think why they kept Doug Flutie over him I I don't understand that.
• 1:30:53
  SPEAKER_01: And I never thought Bettis was that bad on the TV yeah so yeah so uh Jerome still does a local Steelers preview show on channel 11.
• 1:31:04
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Heinz Ward is your Super Bowl MVP it's like you know ends up being like a great thing he gets to tour the world actually goes back to South Korea the place of his birth and is like like a huge celebrity over there.
• 1:31:17
  SPEAKER_01: Bill Cower, another great moment he gets to hand the Lombardi trophy to Dan Rooney.
• 1:31:23
  SPEAKER_01: Another great one was uh Ben handing the game ball to uh Jerome Bettis which he had done every playoff win that year and of course the media kind of got hip to that so there was a lot of cameras there but um yeah it was it was that was pretty awesome I'm sorry Jerome has that ball fouled away somewhere at home but yeah it's gonna be pretty special I had a great time at my parents' house we had fun I remember driving home like you said in all the snow you were in Detroit I was in Pittsburgh but it still snowed and it was like horrible and I I went to the Super Bowl parade and that's the first like I've heard because once again it was like oh how many times am I ever going to see a championship it's like it hadn't happened in so long.
• 1:32:00
  SPEAKER_01: So I went to the Super Bowl parade and it was it was poorly planned like they I I don't think they figured like how many people were going to show up downtown because normally they do the they did this route that went through the middle of town and it was like it was so crowded you couldn't move it was almost like it it got maybe a little dangerous not from like people being aggressive or anything there was just so many people and people were so excited like every time like a steal they had the steelers in cars and they would try and come through the crowd and like people would just go nuts ah the steel like I just remember like there's like Rean Wallace I remember that guy like he's like I don't I think he was on the practice squad they have a sign telling you it was and people went nuts for that guy I never mind like I remember like yelling like the Ken who was in on don't leave don't go because like he was a right rumor for the Raiders job like you don't want to work for Al Davis you know just like fun stuff and Craig Wolfley was here and Bill was like three sheets to the wind to Kaur.
• 1:33:00
  SPEAKER_01: I mean it was it mayor o'connor and the late mayor o'connor it was just oh man it I remember the county police like being like they have the horses and they're like had to bring the horses in to like kind of maneuver people all the way and the crowd was so crazy even the horses normally when the horses come out like I've been in enough like events where like people were getting rowdy like like when the county horses come out normally people kind of head for the hills not this crowd man they were too hyped but um I uh any anything else to uh add for uh your aftermath memories there Tim so um it it was for me like I like we've been talking about this whole you know trilogy of of these episodes this was like for me this was the the win for our generation for those of us that were were babies when the Steelers of the 70s were winning Super Bowls and I had gotten to the point by by 2005 I I gotten so resentful of the 1970s.
• 1:34:00
  SPEAKER_02: You know they they would bring out those old players every year at the stadium and and you know they would the before games on TV they'd show clips of Lynn Swan or Joe Green and and I just I got so resentful of that I'm like that's somebody else's memories right I never got to live through that and I just wanted a championship that I could see and I like to me it wasn't even one for the thumb it was like one for the other hand because like that era was gone it was it was great but it was it was you know 26 years ago at that point.
• 1:34:33
  SPEAKER_02: And so to see the Steelers win a championship like in in you know in our era right and growing up watching them and never seeing that before it it was just it was probably I don't know if I'll ever experience something like that as a sports fan again just because of what it went through to wait for it.
• 1:34:50
  SPEAKER_01: And I remember the I I bought every possible I was just about to bring that up like I like as soon as the game was over and they run because I guess locally they run the commercial go to your dicks or call on it I I was like you I was like okay hat shirt beat sign me up yes everything my wife um took me to the hall of fame for my birthday that year and and and like they had a whole hall of fame thing on the the Steelers winning the Super Bowl.
• 1:35:16
  SPEAKER_02: So um but I remember the you know one of the many things I got was the DVD and the the opening of the DVD they actually go through the four AFC championship game losses at home and the Super Bowl loss to Dallas and and man that just made it like that really hit home like oh my gosh we waited through a lot of like all these like it I don't know it was a different feeling than a team that like stunk for years and then finally turned it around.
• 1:35:43
  SPEAKER_02: It was like we we had these great teams and we came so close so many times and just couldn't get over the hump and starting the DVD off that way just gave me kills and made me even more grateful.
• 1:35:54
  SPEAKER_01: I think too like they set it up where um there was this nice juxtaposition of like like Cower with his daughters at Super Bowl 30 when they were very young and he goes up sometimes you win, sometimes you lose there's that like NFL executive that looks very freaking uncomfortable which I don't blame him because that's normally the position I'm in.
• 1:36:14
  SPEAKER_01: I'm that guy with the suit standing there where like some poor guy like pours his heart out to his kids you know I always feel bad for that guy.
• 1:36:21
  SPEAKER_01: He just looks like he wants to like melt into the Arizona desert but then the joy in the celebration in Detroit with him and his wife and his daughters and they're all fully grown and just I can I can only imagine what that's like for Bill Tower and what what what a great what a great thing we'll always have and his daughters will always have.
• 1:36:43
  SPEAKER_01: You know and I'm sure his wife had you know his his late wife you know what amazing huh?
• 1:36:49
  SPEAKER_01: I I just like you said it's very special and I think I I never felt resentful of the Steelers but I think too what's cool is like the Steelers from the 70s like when we got that other one it was like they gave us like the head nod like okay you're in the club yeah you know what I mean?
• 1:37:04
  SPEAKER_01: Like there was always kind of like I think that I did it like oh we always won all the championships you guys never did.
• 1:37:11
  SPEAKER_01: But once we got that one it was kind of like you know the old you know your old man giving you the okay you you you got my respect now you know so I think yeah that totally earned and then the you know later we'd win another one but they definitely totally earned the respect of the 70s Steelers and who knows if we don't win a Super Bowl for a while you know maybe there'll be young people that'll feel the same way.
• 1:37:35
  SPEAKER_01: Those darn 2000 Steelers I don't like them very much yeah.
• 1:37:41
  SPEAKER_01: Steve thanks for taking us through this uh season um yeah just really fun to relive we went a little long but I I don't I don't care I enjoyed it I had fun um thank you um you can check out our website uh check out all our other podcasts um I'm Steve Word and uh that was Tim Hannon and uh thanks for tuning in and uh we'll definitely catch you next time with another great Pittsburgh sports memory