17 years ago, on February 6, 2006, the Pittsburgh Steelers captured their fifth Super Bowl Championship by defeating the Seattle Seahawks 21-10 in Super Bowl XL. The Steelers were counted out from the beginning of the playoffs. No one expected them to go on the road and become the first team ever to win a Super Bowl as a 6th seed.
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There were countless storylines that came out of this game, but none bigger than that of Steelers RB Jerome Bettis' "last ride" and homecoming as Detroit, Michigan was the place he would call it a career. Especially, with the emotional play that took place that almost halted the Steelers' playoff run in the divisional round against the Indianapolis Colts.
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"This is just like a formality for me because I was the closer. One-yard line, it wasn't even a question mark." Bettis continued on his thought process right before the play and then as it happened. "I kind of turn sideways to squeeze through and boom, ball hit, goes up in the air... and I tell you, it was like slow motion. It was the most painful thing you ever want to see, the ball goes up in the air."
He continued. "By the time I get up, he's [Nick Harper] running, and he's zig-zagging, and I see Ben turn around running. And I'll tell you what, he made the most incredible tackle that a quarterback probably has ever made in that type of open-field scenario because he tricked the guy into staying on the short side of the field when he really should've used the field to outrun Ben because Ben would've never held up if the guy just went b-lined to the other sideline and just outran him."
The Seahawks initially took a 3-0 lead in Super Bowl XL, but it would be the only lead they would have the rest of the night. The Steelers finally jumped out to a lead late in the first half when Roethlisberger dove across the goal line (some Seahawks' fans will still argue that he didn't get in) to give the black and gold a 7-3 lead going into halftime.
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Then on the first possession of the second half, the Steelers rushing attack finally broke free for a long 75-yard touchdown run when RB Willie Parker showcased the reason he was given the nickname "Fast Willie." The Steelers took a 14-3 lead with 14:38 remaining in the 3rd quarter.
After a missed field goal on the ensuing Seahawks drive, the Steelers would go on another long drive, but it would eventually give life to the Seahawks after a Roethlisberger interception that was taken back 76 yards all the way to the Steelers' 20-yard line. The Seahawks capitalized to bring the score to 14-10.
Steelers CB Ike Taylor destroyed the Seahawks' attempt to take the lead in the 4th quarter when he came up with a crucial interception. The ultimate dagger ended up being the beautiful iconic pass from Antwaan Randle El to Super Bowl XL MVP Hines Ward who skips into the end zone smiling as he always did.
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A crazy journey from the end of the regular season and the wild ride the Steelers had as playoff road warriors in the 2005-2006 NFL season, but former Steelers head coach, Bill Cowher will remember it forever!
"It was special. It was a really special team," said Cowher via Steelers.com. "It might not have been our best team during my time there, but it was our closest team. I think you realize in this business that the chemistry that you have on the team is more important than the talent that you have. We had good players, we had great players. We had a very special team. They were close to one another, they played for one another.
"Nothing was more evident of that than what they were able to do with Jerome at the forefront of that journey to Detroit. It was a great year. Our backs were against the wall with four games to go in the season and we go on to win eight straight games and win the championship. It was a very special journey."
What are yinz favorite Super Bowl XL memories? Sound off in the comment section below, or on Facebook, Twitter, and/or Instagram!
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