Throughout his career, former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley made a lot of memorable plays in the Black and Gold, including the game-sealing strip-sack of Kurt Warner in Super Bowl XLIII.
Across seven seasons with the Steelers, Woodley had 57.0 sacks, becoming a force off the edge on the opposite side of James Harrison for more than half a decade.
During an appearance on the JJ & Alex Show in Houston on KSL Sports Zone 97.5 FM with former teammate Stevenson Sylvester as a co-host, Woodley recalled one specific game during his Steelers tenure that he’s most proud of.
It isn’t one you’d expect either.
No, it was the 2008 season opener at then-Heinz Field against the Houston Texans, which happened to be Woodley’s first career start after coming off the bench as a rookie in 2007. That day against the Texans, Woodley burst onto the scene. He earned the NFL’s GMC Defensive Player of the Week honor and put himself on the path for a great season that ultimately culminated in a Super Bowl title.
“I’ll go with my first week starting as a Pittsburgh Steeler. I was the GMC Player of the Week,” Woodley said, recalling his first career start against the Texans, according to audio via KSL Sports on YouTube. “I got my first start, I got my first interception that I’ve ever got my entire life.
“I got a sack and I think I got a forced fumble. I was the GMC Player the Week as a first-time starter in the NFL, too. And then we went off, win the Super Bowl.”
Sometimes, players can incorrectly recall things from their playing careers. That wasn’t the case with Woodley here.
In his first start, the Steelers rolled to a 38-17 win over the Texans. In that 38-17 win, Woodley was a force.
The former Michigan standout recorded three tackles, two tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, one sack, one fumble recovery, one interception, one pass breakup and was all over the field, breaking out in a major way.
Early on in the blowout win over the Texans, a game in which the Steelers held a 35-3 lead after three quarters of play, Woodley made his presence felt.
On a first and 10 from the Pittsburgh 42-yard line midway through the first quarter, Woodley introduced himself to Houston quarterback Matt Schaub with a thunderous hit coming off the edge, coming unblocked for the sack.
Schaub was slow to get up after the sack and was very clearly feeling the full force of Woodley off the edge.
Later in the first half, Woodley made his presence known again with Schaub, this time undercutting an out route for a one-handed interception.
Woodley dropped into coverage and undercut the out route to receiver Kevin Walter, getting a paw on the ball and corralling it for his first career interception, igniting the home crowd.
It was a ball that Schaub should have never thrown, and Woodley made him pay in impressive fashion.
That interception on a third and 4 from the Houston 34-yard line set up the Steelers for another touchdown as two plays later Ben Roethlisberger found Hines Ward for a 13-yard touchdown and a 21-0 lead.
Later in the game, Woodley capped his first career start in impressive fashion, tracking down a James Harrison strip-sack for a fumble recovery, setting up a Jeff Reed field goal in the process to put a bow on the 38-17 win.
After his breakout, Woodley was named the NFL’s GMC Defensive Player of the Week, and then turned that honor into a great season for the Steelers. In 2008, Woodley had 60 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, four fumble recoveries, two forced fumbles, two passes defensed and the one interception.
Ultimately, he closed the season in style with the strip-sack of Warner in the Super Bowl, giving Pittsburgh its sixth Lombardi Trophy in franchise history.
Michigan Memory Vault – LaMarr Woodley ices Super Bowl XLIII 〽️ #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/zjVveJpHJW
— Michigan Football on UMGoBlue (@UMGoBlog) February 9, 2023
