The Pittsburgh Steelers gutted out a victory on a night when they really needed it on Christmas Eve. It kept them in the playoff hunt, which was important, but to lose the game against the Las Vegas Raiders on the 50th anniversary of the Immaculate Reception and what had turned into a memorial for Franco Harris, would have been a devastating blow to the franchise and Steeler Nation.
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Jeff Hathhorn was in attendance on Christmas Eve, and he joined The PM Team w/ Poni & Mueller Monday afternoon to share his impressions of what the frigid, less than perfect victory meant to Pittsburgh. He was asked to compare the in-stadium environments for the Harris tribute and Ben Roethlisberger’s final home game last season:
“Everybody in attendance had seen Ben play,” Hathhorn began. “Most of them remembered his Super Bowl wins and the things that he'd done. The weather was warmer and that is a factor. Ben's was probably a little bit louder, but Franco’s was more spontaneous. Franco cheers out of nowhere, Cam [Heyward] coming out with the 32 flag was pretty special.”
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The Roethlisberger career finale at home was a special moment and after the game, his victory tour around the field seemed like it would never end, and the fans didn’t want it to either. It was a Monday Night Football game, and the entire country knew it was the last time he would play at home.
The fact that Harris passed away three days before his ceremony and that NFL Network chose not to show the video that evoked so much emotion from his teammates, made it special for those who braved the elements to honor Harris:
“The halftime ceremony was awesome,” Hatthorn continued. “The way that they won it, with their two rookies hooking up on a dart of a throw, into the wind into the tough part of the stadium to score on that day, and how many people stayed. People stayed out there for four hours, that is remarkable. It reminded me of people who travel to Steeler games because you have to make the effort. These people made the effort to stay, and it was a lot louder than the attendance would have you believe.”
It was almost poetic that the game came down to the final moments and the crowd seemed to will the Steelers back during the fourth quarter. Great plays were met with noisy explosions as the entire stadium was sounding off like it was roll call on the first day of bootcamp in Franco’s Italian Army. The offense didn’t duplicate the Immaculate Reception, but Kenny Pickett to George Pickens was a sweet way to end the Christmas Eve comeback:
“I think it was a great throw,” Hatthorn raved about the Pickett to Pickens play. “He had to throw it between defenders, secondly it was into the wind. It reminded me of that throw he made last year against [North] Carolina to win that game. Those conditions were brutal and a few of us said the Raiders have it made with the wind here in the fourth quarter. That throw was a really good throw.”
Flanked by former Pittsburgh greats, Franco Harris and Rocky Blier, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin hoists the championship trophy. The Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the New York Jets 24-19 to win the AFC Championship game on Sunday, January 23, 2011, at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Doug Kapustin/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
The Steelers started the season 2-6 and have gone 5-2 since and incredibly have a small chance to make the playoffs. The black and gold struggled before the bye, but the talent that has been accumulated is starting to sporadically overcome the coaching. Changes to the coaching staff could result in a major step forward, but based on the track record of the organization since Mike Tomlin took over, if the Steelers do finish 9-8, they may not be forthcoming:
“Regardless of what happens in the next two games, there are going to need to be some honest conversations in that room about can this continue to improve from what we saw after the bye week,” Hatthorn concluded. “Is Matt [Canada] willing to make changes? How does Kenny feel about working with Matt Canada? It’s not that you have to run everything by your quarterback, but it is your first-round pick. When we were 2-6, there were questions about whether he would finish the season, now it’s going the other way, not that it’s lighting up the scoreboard.”
The 2023 Steelers would benefit immensely from a new direction on offense. The defense will be a year older and reinforcements in both trenches should be the number one, two and three priorities for the black and gold. If the Steelers complete the season at 9-8, no matter what happens, the pundits will rave that Tomlin is a genius and give him the insulation to continue business as usual. The real issue is whether the organization is going to tolerate .500 records with no playoff wins as that business model.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? Do you think 9-8 warrants keeping the coaching staff intact? Please comment below, or on my Twitter @thebubbasq.
