After establishing their dynasty in the 1970s, the Pittsburgh Steelers went on a long drought without a Super Bowl victory. For over two decades, the Steelers failed to add their fifth championship. That all changed with Super Bowl XL. The Steelers finally captured one for the thumb, defeating the Seattle Seahawks. Former Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander recently reminisced about that game, talking about his team’s game plan going into that matchup.
“I always want to kick myself because I carried the ball probably about 25-27 times a game,” Alexander said on The Lou Holtz Show. “You know how you do the first 15 [plays]? I was probably eight carries, sometimes seven and maybe two passes, eight-nine touches in the first 15. In the Super Bowl, I only had five. It was because Coach [Mike] Holmgren’s a genius and we love him.
“But he thought, ‘If I bait the Steelers, who are known for stopping run, and we throw the ball, we’re going to jump out on these guys with some quick hits.’ The game plan was good. We moved the ball a lot, but we didn’t just [move] right down the field like I like.”
That season, Alexander was the league MVP. He was sensational, carrying the ball 370 times for 1,880 yards and 27 touchdowns. There’s no denying that he was the engine of the Seahawks’ offense.
That’s why it was a little strange that Holmgren didn’t start the game by feeding Alexander. It’s true that the Steelers’ run defense was superb that year, allowing the third-fewest rushing yards in the NFL. Still, Alexander was the Seahawk’s greatest weapon. He was almost unstoppable all year.
Alexander explained how he wanted Holmgren to utilize him more in that Super Bowl.
“We ended up losing the Super Bowl. It’s just hard because part of me wanted to be like, ‘Coach, give me the ball. We’re going to win the Super Bowl. 30 times, in their face, let’s mash them.’ But I didn’t want to throw the coach off,” he said.
That had to be difficult for Alexander. Despite the Seahawks not feeding him like they usually did, he still had an excellent game. Alexander posted 20 carries for 95 yards. Looking at the success he ultimately had against the Steelers, maybe Holmgren shouldn’t have overthought his game plan. Alexander seemed ready to meet the challenge that the Steelers presented.
Unfortunately for the Seahawks, the Steelers’ defense was strong against the pass as well. However, like Alexander says, his team still found some success moving the ball against Pittsburgh. Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck threw for 273 yards and one touchdown. However, Ike Taylor made him pay once, recording a fourth-quarter interception against Hasselbeck.
That play essentially ended the Seahawks’ chances of winning the game. The Steelers would score on their following possession, making the score 21-10 with just under nine minutes remaining.
Perhaps if the Seahawks had gone to Alexander earlier, they would’ve been able to wear the Steelers down more. Ben Roethlisberger turned one of the worst statistical quarterback performances in Super Bowl history, so the Seahawks had chances to win.
Instead, the Seahawks were unable to get out to a quick start and jump on the Steelers. They punted on four of their first five drives. They also missed two field goals in the game, which didn’t help matters. Holmgren was an incredible coach, but he might’ve been thinking too outside of the box in that game. That was to the Steelers’ benefit, though. It helped them give Jerome Bettis a perfect ending to his career.
