Steelers Takes from a Beat Writer

I was around the Steelers from 2006 to 2014 on a regular basis and so many things stand out from covering the team. Here are 10 of them in no particular order.

Surreal in the Super Bowl: Who knew a Cardinals team that went just 8–8 in the regular season would give the Steelers such a fight in Super Bowl XLIII? The Cardinals would have won if James Harrison didn’t return an interception 100 yards for a touchdown at the end of the first half and Ben Roethlisberger didn’t lead the finest fourth-quarter drive of his career after the Steelers’ defense inexplicably faltered. Roethlisberger and Santonio Holmes hooked up for one of the greatest plays in Super Bowl history and Holmes’ six-yard touchdown catch delivered a 27–23 win. And it was only the second-best play in that game.

Troy Polamalu’s Touchdown in 2008 AFC Championship Game: The safety whose soft voice made him hard to hear in group interviews produced a roar for the ages with the play that secured the Steelers’ spot in the Super Bowl. The Steelers were holding a tenuous 16–14 lead over the Ravens when Polamalu’s pick-six sent fans into a frenzy. Even in the closed press box at Heinz Field it became ear-splittingly loud as Polamalu weaved his way to the end zone after intercepting rookie quarterback Joe Flacco. An exceptional moment delivered by an exceptional player.

Tim Tebow Throws Steelers for a Loop: The general feeling in the press box prior to a 2011 playoff game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High: no way would the Broncos beat the Steelers because their quarterback simply couldn’t throw the ball with any consistency. All Tim Tebow did was pass for 316 yards—a number that had extra if not eerie significance given his strong religious convictions—against a defense that had led the NFL in passing defense in the regular season (171.9 passing yards allowed per game). Tebow passed for a grand total of 175 yards in non-preseason NFL games after that evisceration of the Steelers and he was soon out of the league.

Making a Statement for Dick LeBeau: Steelers defensive players wore LeBeau’s No. 44 Lions jersey on multiple occasions to promote his candidacy for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The gestures epitomized their love and respect for the longtime Steelers defensive coordinator. LeBeau’s 62 career interceptions still rank 10th (tied) on the NFL’s all-time list and he made all of those picks during a time when some coaches viewed the forward pass with as much suspicion as they did Communism. LeBeau should have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame long before 2010, but when he finally got the call, coach Mike Tomlin made sure busloads of Steelers players were in Canton, Ohio, for his induction speech. The thing about LeBeau is he may be a better person than he was a player and coach.

Ben Roethlisberger’s Redemption: Roethlisberger won two Super Bowls before he turned 27 but crashed hard in 2010 when he was accused of sexual assault for the second time in nine months. I give a ton of credit to Roethlisberger, who was never charged following either accusation, for turning his life around and becoming a worthy ambassador of the Steelers. And yes, he needed to make major changes but I always pose this question too: How would you handle the success and fame after becoming the youngest quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl? Covering Roethlisberger’s fall from grace was exhausting and seemingly never-ending. But he worked hard to re-gain the trust of the organization and will go down as one of the most significant figures in franchise history.

The Steelers’ Run to the Super Bowl in 2010: Few could have seen this coming in the wake of the Roethlisberger mess and his four-game suspension at the start of the season. Dennis Dixon, who would have entered the season at the No. 3 quarterback, started the first two games. Charlie Batch, who would have been the odd man out at quarterback if not for an injury suffered by backup Byron Leftwich at the end of the preseason, started the next two games. All the Steelers did was win three of those games. And only a late touchdown drive by the Ravens prevented the Steelers from winning all four games during Roethlisberger’s suspension. The us-against-the-world mentality that coalesced in Pittsburgh’s locker room became apparent after the Steelers trounced the Buccaneers 38–13 in Tampa. Coach Mike Tomlin took a defiant stance at his postgame news conference, saying that the Steelers hadn’t listened to the naysayers or “elevator music” that preceded their 3–0 start.

From 0–4 to the Playoffs…Almost: The start of the 2013 season was an unmitigated disaster. The Steelers dropped their first four games and bottomed out with a London loss to the Vikings and journeyman quarterback Matt Cassel. Yet the Steelers would have made the playoffs had Ryan Succop not missed a 41-yard field goal in a Chiefs loss to the Chargers in one of the last games of the regular season. A Kansas City win was one of eight things that needed to happen for the Steelers to make the playoffs going into the penultimate week of the season. Seven of those things did happen…before the Chiefs lost in overtime. I will never forget those of us watching in disbelief in the Heinz Field press box as the Chiefs nearly beat the Chargers. The end produced a scene right out of Peanuts—Lucy pulling the ball away as Charlie Brown went to kick—leaving the Steelers to wonder what might have been had they not lost games to the Vikings and Raiders earlier in the season.

The Brilliance of Antonio Brown: One of the Steelers’ off-season narratives for years? Their need to draft a tall wide receiver for quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. They found that transformative wideout late in the sixth round in 2010 in a player who is listed at 5’10” and 186 pounds. Brown plays much bigger than his size and his emergence pushed Hines Ward out of the starting lineup near the end of the 2011 season. The four-time Pro Bowler has put up staggering numbers—his 375 catches from 2013 to ’15 are the most in NFL history during a three-season span—and helped change the perception that a wide receiver has to be a certain size to dominate a game. As easy as Brown makes it look while he routinely shreds opposing secondaries, he is not just a product of his immense physical gifts. Brown is a tireless worker, something that has elevated his game and those who are around him on a regular basis.

A Long Goodbye: A 2014 playoff loss to the Ravens produced a hushed Steelers locker room and a moment I can still see as if it happened yesterday. Brett Keisel was walking out of the locker room for the final time as a player when fellow defensive end Cameron Heyward grabbed him in a hug and didn’t let go. Mentor and protégé spoke quietly as Heyward desperately tried to do the impossible and stop time. He didn’t want Keisel to go any more than Steelers fans did, but everyone’s time is up eventually. That scene offered a cruel, poignant reminder of that—and a metaphor for life in general.

An Unforgettable Experience: What started as a story about Steelers fan Heather Miller, who passed away in 2009 at the age of 11, turned into an unforgettable journey. Heather had formed a strong bond with Casey Hampton, Heath Miller, Troy Polamalu, and others in the Steelers organization during her fight against cancer and gave them as much as they gave her and her family. I wrote about that bond in 2010 and eventually Heather’s mother, Wendy, and I wrote the book, Heaven Sent: The Heather Miller Story. Many things have stuck with me from that experience, including my belief that stories such as Heather’s should be told at the NFL’s annual rookie symposium. NFL players have the opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives and it is something they should not take lightly.