Monday, February 6, 2006

The Play That Changed Super Bowl XL

By Bill Hazell

Even in a Super Bowl that turned out to be a subpar day for both starting quarterbacks, it seemed inevitable that one of these efficient, gutsy warriors would make a play to establish himself as a winner and a champion. Such a moment is merely standard operating procedure for a game of this magnitude. This play would and did occur, not dramatically or climactically in the fourth quarter like so many great Super Bowl games had previously unfolded, but in the second.

The first half was a battle for field position as both offenses struggled. The Steelers, however, struggled mightily, and were unable to manage a simple feat such as a first down until nearly 20 game minutes had expired. To top it off, the play after that breakthrough was a Seattle interception. While the Seahawks led 3-0 going into the latter stages of the first half, many viewers entertained the thought that perhaps Pittsburgh may not score any points in this Super Bowl until it was too late and Seattle had already gotten their share. Perhaps the black and gold may not even score at all (which would be a Super Bowl first).

When the Steelers finally did manage a drive into Seahawk territory and field goal range, the offense took a turn for the worse yet again. Go-to receiver Hines Ward dropped what, for him, would be a routine 22-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone. Hardly the play of a Super Bowl MVP. A curious 10-yard offensive pass interference call and a Grant Wistrom sack later, the Steelers were facing an endless 3rd-and-28 from the Seahawk 40. Yet another promising drive stalled short of points, or so it seemed.

The most realistic goal of this 3rd-and-28 play was to perhaps gain 10 yards and a decent shot at a Jeff Reed field goal to tie the game at three. Yet on a night where the glitches had been exposed in Big Ben's Steel Machine, even that seemed unlikely.

Roethlisberger faded back and instantly found Wistrom ready to pounce on him once again. No. 7 calmly felt the pressure, stepped up in front of the pocket and juked around to the left, narrowly evading the defensive end as he lunged futilely to the turf. While the young quarterback saw that there wasn't a defender in front of him for easily 10 yards, he danced sideways rather than running downfield, as he treated the 40-yard line of scrimmage as if it was the edge of a cliff.

It was decision time for our hero, but unlike the defense, he had never given up on the pass all along. The play took on a surreal quality as Big Ben stopped completely, planted himself inches behind the 40, and took a moment to look back at the shattered defense behind him, as if to say, "can I really do this?"

Patiently, he straddled the line of scrimmage for another precious second or two before finally letting loose a laser-guided missile with coordinates pre-set for Hines Ward. The star receiver had come open near the goal line for just an instant, and Roethlisberger had found him. Had this pass sailed so much as nine inches to the left, it may have easily become the second interception for Seattle safety Michael Boulware.

Who may have guessed that at that moment as the ball sailed towards the two combatants, the game's outcome and the Super Bowl MVP honors may have been up for grabs (a number of defensive players have won the MVP with two interceptions, assuming no offensive player particularly shines and his team wins)? Ward was looking to redeem and erase the memory of the dropped TD pass that started this series. He came down with it cleanly thanks to his quarterback's sniper-like accuracy, presence of mind, and poise under pressure that equalled a truly special play. Pittsburgh was now set up 1st-and-goal at the Seahawk 3, ready to finally break their offensive drought.

Three plays later, Roethlisberger kept the ball for a barely-legal score diving over the goal line. This gave the Steelers a 7-3 lead and the confidence to believe they could, in fact, win the big one, even on a bad day.

Many will point to Willie Parker's longest-TD-rush-in-Superbowl-history play that opened up an 11-point Steeler lead or the brilliantly designed "gadget" play that got Antwaan Randle El a clean shot at a 43-yard TD pass to Ward off a reverse, thus nearly sealing the MVP award for Hines, as the Super Bowl's most significant or most memorable moment.

Yet this was what ultimately seized the momentum from the Seahawks wave of metallic blue. It was a broken play, one in which Roethlisberger again exceeded the challenge with every physical and mental tool at his disposal. He out-ran, out-smarted, and out-threw the opposition all in a single play. Once again, as he had done throughout this NFL postseason, the QB with the funny last name on his back had revealed his inner champion.