On this day in Steelers history: Pittsburgh snags ‘one for the thumb’

The road to the 2005 Super Bowl was a long and uncommon one. The Pittsburgh Steelers snapped a three-game losing streak to win the final four of the regular season and made the playoffs on a blessing and a prayer.

At 11-5 and second in the AFC North, the Steelers were the final seed and had to do the unthinkable — win three playoff games away from the confines of Heinz Field to reach the pinnacle of all sports.

First up, the Cincinnati Bengals. Ben Roethlisberger rallied the Steelers back from a 10-point deficit to eliminate the Cardiac Cats in the wild-card round, 31-17.

The next week, in the divisional round, Roethlisberger made a tremendous shoestring tackle to save Colts cornerback Nick Harper from taking Jerome Bettis’ goal line fumble all the way. The Steelers pulled off a three-point win to continue to Denver. They held the Broncos to two touchdowns and a field goal and earned a trip to Super Bowl 40 in Detroit against the Seattle Seahawks.

Something like a fairytale

Pittsburgh had won eight consecutive matchups, including the postseason, after a 7-5 record at Week 13. As the sixth seed, the Steelers became the first team in league history to defeat the top three seeds on the road to reach the Super Bowl.

Steelers fans are renowned for being one of the best traveled in the NFL, but nothing could get as close to a home game as Detroit. Any Seahawks fans at Ford Field washed away as a sea of Terrible Towels took over Motown for the showdown.

It started as a low-scoring affair. By the end of the first half, Pittsburgh had scored on a (controversial) one-yard diving touchdown by Roethlisberger. The touchdown, set up by running back Jerome Bettis, made it 7-3 at the midway point.

On the Steelers opening drive to start the second half, future Hall of Fame guard Alan Faneca threw a key block on linebacker LeRoy Hill. That block shot “Fast” Willie Parker out of the cannon for a 75-yard touchdown, the longest run in Super Bowl history.

Big Ben was intercepted on the Steelers following drive. A pass intended for Cedrick Wilson was picked off by Seahawks cornerback Kelly Herndon, who returned it 76 yards. The play set up a touchdown to bring the Hawks within four, 14-10.

With under 11 minutes left, Pittsburgh paid Seattle back with an interception of their own — by Ike Taylor on a critical 3rd-and-18. The Steelers wasted no time taking advantage of the Hasselbeck hiccup. Off a gadget play, Hines Ward tossed a perfectly-thrown 43-yard touchdown to Antwan Randle El. It would come to be the game-sealing touchdown for a final score of 21-10.

The touchdown also sealed something else — MVP honors for Ward thanks to his five-reception, 123-yard day.

Ford Field would be the last stop for “The Bus,” who closed out the playoffs with just 180 yards on 56 attempts. Bettis was a goal line machine with nine touchdowns on the season, but Cowher saw that The Bus got minimal wear on his tires. He ran for 368 yards on 110 carries, a career low. He announced his retirement during the presentation of the Vince Lombardi Trophy.

Though Cowher didn’t officially resign from football until the following January, Super Bowl 40 was also his last game.

The entire season was something like a fairytale as so many things needed to fall into place for the Steelers to win one for Cowher, Bettis… and the thumb.

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