Welcome back to a series that I started last summer to help get us through the offseason. Together we looked at some of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ best moments in Retro Game Diary format (inspired by Bill Simmons). Being that the Steelers have had so many notable moments it was impossible to cover them all last offseason, so we are going to take another trip down memory lane today.
Let’s go back to 2008. The Steelers are hot off a divisional-round win against the San Diego Chargers and are facing off against the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship. They say it’s tough to beat a team three times in a row, but that’s what the Steelers are looking to do after they swept the regular season series 2-0. They’ll have to shut down rookie QB Joe Flacco to get it done.
Let’s fast forward to the fourth quarter. The Steelers lead 16-14 with just under seven minutes to go, but the Ravens have the ball, attempting to drive down the field and take the lead with even a field goal.
(6:50 to go, 1st and 10, BAL 14): The Steelers crowd is going nuts. Flacco hands the ball off to Willis McGahee who had a bit of a down year after being a Pro Bowler in 2007, but is still one of the better running backs in the game. McGahee attempts to run to the left end, but the play is completely blown up by Ryan Clark. Ray Rice has to enter the game for McGahee, who was shaken up by the hit, as “Here We Go Steelers!” chants pour down from the stands.
(6:21 to go, 2nd and 12, BAL 12): Flacco runs a play-action to Ray Rice. The Steelers get some decent pressure here, but a likely hold by rookie left tackle Jared Gaither on James Harrison gives Flacco just enough time to find Todd Heap across the middle for a chunk play. First down.
(5:13 to go, 2nd and 8, BAL 34): A first down handoff to Rice goes nowhere, and then the Steelers crowd forces Baltimore to burn a time-out. Pittsburgh sends the heat, as James Farrior blows by Gaither, forces Flacco to step up in the pocket, and leads to a sack from LaMarr Woodley, his second of the game. Woodley broke out in 2008, totaling 11.5 sacks after having just four as a rookie, and set up a difficult third down for Baltimore here.
(4:39 to go, 3rd and 13, BAL 29): The Steelers send five, looking to speed up the young Flacco here, and it works. James Harrison gets his revenge on Gaither for the missed holding call and gets to the quarterback quickly. Flacco is forced to get rid of the football as Harrison hits him, looking for Derrick Mason down the field. The throw doesn’t have the needed power on it, and Troy Polamalu streaks in to intercept the pass. He gets a few key blocks, including one from Ryan Clark, and then completely reverses the field. The Ravens offensive line gives a cursory attempt at bringing him down, but it’s no use. Polamalu scores and Jim Nantz states that the Steelers might be heading to Super Bowl 43 because of number 43.
Anyway, here’s the All-22 of Troy Polamalu’s pick six in the 2008 AFC Championship game. pic.twitter.com/Q3Gr60zayI
— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) June 7, 2024
This touchdown and extra point put the Steelers up by two scores and was a catalyst in sending them to the Super Bowl. McGahee would fumble two plays later, all but locking the win for Pittsburgh, and ultimately resulting in their sixth Super Bowl victory.
Polamalu had many highlight plays in his career, but there may have been none more exciting and influential than this one. Sure, had the pass fallen incomplete or something, the Ravens would have had to punt, but with the way the Steelers were struggling to put points on the board all day, the Ravens may get the ball back with a chance to win the game. And if they do pick up that first down, they’d almost be in field goal range, and have a chance to run the clock down pretty low before scoring. In short, it took a 50/50 game into a near-certain win for the Steelers. Polamalu would be a Steelers legend regardless, but this put him into a category of his own in the eyes of fans.
