In the history of the Pittsburgh Steelers, one that is long and illustrious, some key plays stand out above the others in franchise history.
There’s the Immaculate Reception, of course, which gave birth to the Steelers’ dynasty in the 70s. There’s also the James Harrison 100-yard pick-6 in the Super Bowl XLIII win over Arizona, not to mention the Troy Polamalu pick-6 against Baltimore to send the Steelers to the Super Bowl, or the Antwaan Randle El pass to Hines Ward to seal Super Bowl XL over Seattle.
Those plays are all great, but three plays in Steelers history were highlighted amongst the “most impossible throws” in NFL history, and they all came in Super Bowl wins for the Black and Gold. From tight-window accuracy to spectacular arm strength, watch the most impossible throws in NFL history.
In Super Bowl X, a 21-17 win over the Dallas Cowboys for the Pittsburgh Steelers on January 18, 1976, quarterback Terry Bradshaw and wide receiver Lynn Swann hooked up on a 64-yard touchdown, which held a place in the most impossible throws video for NFL.com.
Late in the fourth quarter with the Steelers holding a 15-10 lead over Dallas and facing a 3rd and 4 from their own 36 yard line, the Steelers dialed up a deep shot.
Swann, who made some spectacular catches prior to this play, beat Dallas cornerback Mark Washington deep for the 64-yard strike from Bradshaw, helping put the game out of reach in an eventual 21-17 win for the Steelers.
On the play, Bradshaw took a massive hit after avoiding pressure from Dallas linebacker D.D. Lewis on the blitz, stepping up in the pocket to deliver a dime downfield. It was one of just nine passes Bradshaw completed on the day, but it was his longest and helped lead the Steelers to the win.
Bradshaw finished 9-of-19 for 209 yards and two touchdowns, finishing with a 122.5 quarterback rating, while Swann finished with four receptions for 161 yards and one touchdown, dominating the Cowboys through the air all game long, earning Super Bowl X MVP honors.
Four years later, Bradshaw made another “impossible throw” to seal a Super Bowl, this time to fellow Hall of Famer John Stallworth.
Facing a 3rd and 8 from the Pittsburgh 27 yard line trailing 19-17 with 12:15 left in the fourth quarter, Bradshaw dropped back and fired a strike to Stallworth, who broke a tackle and raced home for the 73-yard touchdown, giving the Steelers a 24-19 lead.
It was a perfect throw from Bradshaw with tremendous touch, dropping it right in the breadbasket to Stallworth over the leaping Rod Perry, resulting in the 73-yard touchdown.
Later in the fourth quarter, following an interception by linebacker and future Hall of Famer Jack Lambert, Franco Harris plunged in from 1-yard out to seal the 31-19 win for the Steelers, giving them their fourth Super Bowl championship of the decade.
It would take just over 29 years later for the Steelers to have an “impossible” throw in the Super Bowl, and it came at the biggest moment of the game.
Trailing 26-23 with 42 seconds left, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threw a dart to the back right corner of the end zone where wide receiver Santonio Holmes was able to toe-tap both feet down for the eventual game-winning score, cementing himself and the Steelers into history with six Super Bowl titles and one of the greatest catches in NFL history.
Talk about impossible.
Game on the line, three defenders in the area, the smallest of windows and Roethlisberger made it look like he was right next to Holmes and could hand it to him with the accuracy on the throw, beating defensive back Aaron Francisco for the game-winning score.
It might not have been his best throw of the night, either. One play prior, Roethlisberger threw a dime to Holmes on the left side of the end zone that went through Holmes’ hands in what would have been an even better play. Things happen for a reason though.
While many of the “most impossible throws” in the video from NFL.com were from regular season and playoff matchups, it’s pretty telling that the Steelers were featured three times offensively, and all three came in Super Bowl wins.
