It’s been a while since the last time the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Seattle Seahawks in Seattle. How long you ask? Well, on October 23, 1983, Synchronicity by The Police was the number one album in America, while Steelers RB Franco Harris ran for 132 yards and a touchdown as the Steelers beat the Seahawks in the Seattle Kingdome 27-21.
The Steelers have had five chances to win again in the Emerald City, but to no avail. Quarterbacks such as Mark Malone, Neil O’Donnell, Tommy Maddox, and Ben Roethlisberger have all had chances to win at the Kingdome, Husky Field, and Lumen Field (previously Qwest Field and CenturyLink Field), but all have come up empty.
Sure, the Steelers haven’t played out in Seattle very often, but 40 years is still a long time, especially considering the Steelers have marched into Seattle with some damn good teams. The 1994 Steelers made the AFC Championship Game, but Seattle proved too much for them as O’Donnell tossed four picks as the Steelers fell 30-13 to the eventual 6-10 Seahawks. The 2015 Steelers had one their best offenses in recent memory and went in and put up 30 points on the Seahawks ‘Legion of Boom’ defense but still couldn’t come away with a victory even after WR Markus Wheaton caught nine passes for 201 yards and a touchdown.
Tomorrow, QB Mason Rudolph has the chance to end the 40-year drought and win in Seattle. Although Rudolph has not played in many games and has only played meaningful snaps in 13 of them, one of the games was against the Seahawks. In fact, his first career snap came against Seattle in 2019 as he came in for an injured Roethlisberger who infamously injured his elbow that day. Rudolph went 12/19 and threw two touchdowns and one interception against Seattle in a loss 28-26 at Heinz Field.
Now is as good of a time as any for Pittsburgh to win their first game at Lumen Field which opened back in 2002. While a loss may not eliminate the Steelers from playoff contention, it certainly makes it much harder. That’s what makes tomorrow so important. If Pittsburgh wins, they just need to beat the Baltimore Ravens in Week 18 when the Ravens may be resting their starters, and get just a bit of outside help. But, all that will be irrelevant if Rudolph and company can’t end the Steelers’ losing streak in Seattle tomorrow.
A lot has changed since 1983, The Police broke up, the Steelers won two Super Bowls, and the Seahawks won a Super Bowl. But, some things have stayed the same, like Pittsburgh not winning in Seattle. Hopefully, the Steelers can catch up with the times and win in Seattle for the first time in 40 years and keep their playoff hopes alive.
