Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from “Legendary: The 2008 Pittsburgh Steelers Defense, The Zone Blitz, And My Six Decades In The NFL.” Written by former Steelers DC Dick LeBeau, the book will be released later this month. This excerpt, which is a Steelers Depot exclusive, centers on the 2008 AFC Championship Game. It starts after Baltimore Ravens RB Willis McGahee scored on a 1-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. The Steelers got the ball back, clinging to a 16-14 lead.
We went three-and-out but caught a break when Baltimore got called for an unnecessary roughness on the punt return. That backed the Ravens up to their own 14-yard line, but they completed a 20-yrd pass on the second play of the drive to keep the pressure on us. After a 2-yard run, the Ravens called a timeout, and I had a chance to talk to the guys.
“This is the drive,” I told them. “We’ve got to get off the field here.”
Todd Heap had been a very impactful presence on the previous drive, and the Ravens hit their star tight end on every crucial down. I said to Troy Polamalu, “I’m going to put you on Heap. Don’t take your eyes off him because I’m pretty sure the ball’s going to him. That’s what I want you guys to be ready for. Get us off the field.”
We went out, and Heap lined up in the backfield with Willis McGahee, and they kept Heap in to block. They were sure that we were going to blitz. When Polamalu saw Heap staying in and blocking, his attention went to Joe Flacco, who turned the ball loose on a crossing pattern to Derrick Mason. He was coming open, but with Heap staying in the backfield, Polamalu intercepted that damn ball and ran it back 40 yards for a touchdown.
Polamalu did what he was coached to do, and it was a little serendipitous for us. His guy was working in the backfield, and he just looked for work.
Probably my biggest concern going into the game was Troy. He could hardly practice that week because of a pulled calf muscle. We did not know going into Sunday if he would be able to play. We were making provisions for him not to play, knowing there was always a good chance he would play because he was Troy Polamalu.
Once he got loose in pregame warm-ups, he looked pretty good. He did not just play; he played a fantastic game. On his interception, he had the perfect break on the ball, and that’s just Polamalu. He did that a lot of times but few in more critical situations.
If the Ravens get a field goal there, they’re probably going to win the game. They had just finished driving about 80 yards for a touchdown. From being in a perilous spot, we went to easy street because Polamalu picked that damn thing off.
I don’t know too many people who could have made that interception, but he made it easily and he could have run 200 yards with the way he was running. He was weaving and bobbing, and they could hardly touch him.
You would have never known he was injured.
