Steelers Win!!!!!!!!!!!

[o0Stream140o]

Originally posted by Red Tail 444
Seattle choked on it bigtime...could advance well enough, but couldn't close the deal. They earned their loss.

Period.

Here, Here... my thoughts exactly.

[Ripsnort]

Every poll on every sports site that has a "How will Superbowl XL be remembered?" , "Bad refereeing" was #1.

Steelers=Lucky
Seahawks= Had opportunities they blew, but would have won if the refs called a fair game.

Steeler fans that are intelligent and know football also know they got away with one. I've spoke to some of them. They are very happy they won, and know they got lucky.

[soda72]

Originally posted by Ripsnort
Every poll on every sports site that has a "How will Superbowl XL be remembered?" , "Bad refereeing" was #1.

Poll results taken in Seattle....  

[Ripsnort]

Originally posted by soda72
Poll results taken in Seattle....  

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/5310192

52% at ESPN.

I've never felt so empty being right. I feel dirty. I wish I'd been wrong. The Steelers did not deserve to win this game. They were not the better team. O'Connor was right. Seattle was the better team.

So, Paul Tagliabue, how does a team lose when it outgains an opponent by 57 yards, controls time of possession and wins the turnover battle?

Like a crazed CIA analyst running through the halls of Langley screaming into open offices about some impending calamity, I've been shrieking hysterically about the terrible officiating in the NFL and warning that some day the brutal calls were going to affect the outcome of the Super Bowl.

That some day was Sunday.

Every single questionable, marginal or outright bad call went against the Seahawks.

Their first three big plays were all wiped out by penalty calls. On their second drive, Darrell Jackson caught an 18-yard pass on 3rd-and-6 that would have given Seattle a first down at the 23. But Chris Gray was called for holding James Farrior. When Farrior pushed upfield, Gray did hook him with his right arm, and Farrior went down. When referee Bill Leavy flagged Gray, it was a bad omen for the Seahawks. Instead of being on the edge of the red zone, they came away without any points.

On their third drive, the Seahawks looked to take a 7-0 lead when Jackson separated from Chris Hope in the end zone and Matt Hasselbeck delivered a perfect strike to his outside shoulder. The back judge looked uncertain — sound familiar, Patriots fans? — then finally jerked his flag out and called offensive pass interference to wipe out the touchdown. The replay showed receiver and defender hand-fighting, with Jackson getting the slightest push into Hope's chest before turning to catch the ball. ABC's John Madden thought the call was dubious. FOX analyst and all-time great offensive lineman Brian Baldinger had no doubts, calling it "absolutely horrendous" on his FOXSports.com Super Bowl Instant Analysis. ESPN's Steve Young and Michael Irvin also had no uncertainty, dismissing the call as ticky-tack and insisting the Seahawks got robbed of a TD.

[soda72]

Jackson getting the slightest push

They say "slightest of push" as though it makes it ok...

It's only ok if you don't do it right in front of the ref...  

[Bear76]

Originally posted by lasersailor184
Yes, bad calls on the Refs.  How dare they not let a wide reciever push off of a cornerback!

If that was a push off then every pass play should get flagged

[Bear76]

Originally posted by o0Stream140o
Here, Here... my thoughts exactly.

who asked u:p You got a gift..enjoy it.

[o0Stream140o]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/5310702

   
Super Bowl XL goes to the Pittsburgh Steelers 21-10 in a back-and-forth championship game.

It was a game highlighted by a clutch and a superbly coached Steelers defense, a brilliant gadget play, a legendary run, spine-tingling moments for a coach, owner, and running back, missed opportunities by the Seahawks, and horrific officiating.

Let's examine all of the above.

With Pittsburgh up 14-10, the fourth quarter starts with Seattle executing on three quick plays, with a Matt Hasselbeck pass to Bobby Engram, followed by two strong Shaun Alexander runs, enough to move the chains to the Steelers 19. Seattle is in a groove.

On the next play from scrimmage, Hasselbeck fired a strike for a completion to Jerramy Stevens, who otherwise couldn't catch a cold in this game, at the 1-yard line.

But hold on.

There's a flag on the play. Bill Leavy tells America it is holding on Sean Locklear. But nobody saw it live, and as ABC ran replay after replay, as John Madden said, nobody saw it on tape, either. This was a horrible phantom call. And it changed the flow of the game.

But give Pittsburgh credit here. They could've still allowed the Seahawks to march down the field. Instead, Casey Hampton made one of the biggest plays of the game with a key sack on Hasselbeck. Two plays later, the quarterback unleashed a pick into the arms of Ike Taylor.

It was a huge momentum turner in this game.

And to make it even more sweet for the Steelers, the officiating crew was totally lost on a chop block call on Hasselbeck, who wasn't blocking, but was tackling Taylor low on the return. This was a legal play and the extra yards should have never been tacked on.

On the ensuing drive, Roethlisberger then barreled up the gut for a first down on a third-and-2 draw, nicely called by offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt.

The play that followed was the biggest of the Super Bowl.

Roethlisberger took the snap, handed the ball to running back Willie Parker running left, who gave it to Antwaan Randle El. You knew what was going to happen as you were watching. The former Indiana quarterback fired a bullet to a wide open Hines Ward for what would result in the game-winning touchdown at 21-10. Did the Seattle defense watch any film of this team?

Hines Ward runs by Seahawks defensive back Marcus Trufant for a 43-yard touchdown on a pass from Antwaan Randle El. (Jeff Roberson / Associated Press)

And down the stretch, to seal the deal, how about Dick LeBeau's call on a third down blitz with cover corner Deshea Townsend? Matt Hasselbeck didn't have a chance. And that's what makes LeBeau one of the best in the business, and that play really epitomized the play of the Steelers in the postseason.

Ward, who had a few uncharacteristic key drops early in the game, finished with five catches for 123 yards, including the dagger score, and was named the game MVP.

In a game filled with a few true difference-making plays, Willie Parker had an enormous one to start the second half. "Fast Willie" darted 75 yards, sprung loose by an Alan Faneca block, for the longest running touchdown in NFL history to make the score 14-3 Pittsburgh.

And it looked like the Steelers were going to run away with it when they were knocking on the door later in the quarter.

But on a third-and-6 in the red zone, Roethlisberger got picked off on an awful pass in the flat by Kelly Herndon, who returned it 76 yards.

A few plays later, Hasselbeck hit Stevens for a touchdown to make it a game at 14-10.

Actually, Seattle for the most part outplayed the Steelers in the first half, but couldn't take advantage on the scoreboard.

Seattle committed too many costly penalties, ranging from a Chris Gray holding call on a Darrell Jackson catch on an early third-and-6 to a big punt return by Peter Warrick to start the second quarter negated by holding.

And then there was the Jackson touchdown called back on offensive pass interference.

I honestly thought that was a football play, hands moving between receiver and defender, with nothing blatant on the play. I thought that was the wrong call and totally agreed with both Steve Young and Michael Irvin. Seattle wrongly lost seven points.

Now, I also wasn't convinced, and truly couldn't tell, if Roethlisberger was in the end zone on his third-and-goal run for a score at the end of the half. But it was tough to overturn via instant replay with a lack of conclusive evidence.

Darrell Jackson's concentration lapses cost the Seahawks valuable yardage. (Brian Bahr / Getty Images)

But in the end, Seattle made too many mistakes. Jackson didn't even bother to pay attention to the sideline on a few patterns where concentration and knowing where he was on the field could've equaled big gains. The Seahawks couldn't capitalize on the early Michael Boulware pick. Stevens had hands of stone. And the clock management at the end of both halves was just awful.

And the end of the first half, with timeouts in the bag, Mike Holmgren foolishly managed the clock. He called a bizarre run with Shaun Alexander and then didn't follow with a time out as time ticked away with Matt Hasselbeck flustered. The chaos resulted in a way too long field goal attempt from Josh Brown from 54 yards. There was no reason he had to kick from that far out. The kick had the distance, but sailed away. Better management and play selection would've given Brown a better shot. This was eerily similar to the fourth quarter of the Seattle loss in Washington on Oct. 2.

And down two scores at the end of the game, Holmgren needed to kick a field goal when he got in range. Instead, Seattle once again looked totally out of it.

That notwithstanding, what a priceless moment for the Rooney family, Bill Cowher and Jerome Bettis.

Bettis wins that previously elusive Super Bowl, then announced to the world that he will retire. The Bus will be a Hall of Famer and he is the epitome of class. And with his rugged, physical style of play, he captured the hearts of Steelers fans in the hard-working city of Pittsburgh. I got the chills when he raised his arms with the Lombardi Trophy resting in between. This was a fitting end to a brilliant career. Thanks for the memories, Jerome.

And what a moment for the Rooney family, as they finally get "one for the thumb." The patient and loyal owners deserved to be rewarded. I'm sure every Steelers fan got choked up when Cowher handed 73-year-old Dan Rooney the trophy. It was a beautiful moment.

And you have to feel great for the die-hard Steelers fans that flood NFL stadiums, home and away.

And feel great for the Steelers greats from prior years, yearning for that "one."

And with all of that sentiment, the person I felt so wonderful for was Cowher.

Think about the last two years. First, a 15-1 overachieving season with a rookie quarterback. Cowher never deserved to be ripped for losing to New England; he deserved to be praised for basically going unblemished.

2004 is followed by an unpredictable Super Bowl march. There were serious doubts about this team, starting with yours truly, entering the season. Remember the conversation after the Steelers lost to the Bengals on the first Sunday in December? Pittsburgh wasn't winning the division. The guard in the division was changing. The 7-5 Steelers, facing the Bears a week later, were seriously on the bubble to even make the playoffs.

And Cowher's boys never lost another game.

And now we are talking about a legend in Pittsburgh, and Hall of Fame credentials for the coach.

And we need to mention the brilliant work of LeBeau and Whisenhunt, plus offensive line coach Russ Grimm.

The sixth-seeded Steelers beat the three best teams the AFC had to offer, then knocked off the NFC's top dog. This was a Super Bowl run for the ages that will be celebrated in Pittsburgh, and by Steelers fans everywhere, forever.

Offensive player of the game — Pittsburgh's Antwaan Randle El
I know Ward was the MVP, but that was a brilliant throw by the receiver for the dagger.

Offensive dud of the game — Seattle tight end Jerramy Stevens
Had a huge drop on a 3rd-and-2 in the second quarter, another one on a perfect pass in the early third, and one more for good measure late. These were great throws by Hasselbeck and should've been completed. Stevens did more talking than playing this week.

Defensive player of the game — Pittsburgh defensive back Deshea Townsend
That well-sold blitz in the 4th quarter was one of the biggest plays of the game.

[DoKGonZo]

In an evenly called game the outcome would have been tougher to predict. Put the Steelers down 10 going into the 2nd quarter with only 1 first down and its a completely different game. The ref's changed that.

It's really a shame. The rotten officiating will overshadow the good things the Steelers did. People outside of Pitt will remember this game for what the refs did.

[killnu]

"Every single questionable, marginal or outright bad call went against the Seahawks."

stephens first incomplete pass that was actually caught then fumbled?

"will remember this game for what the refs did."

refs did not cause seattle to lose game, seattle did. get over it.  drop balls, miss field goals, dont manage the clock, give up sacks at key times, throw interception on way to end zone...thats what loses games.  steelers won with a bad call that didnt go their way against Indy(team many considered, and still do, the best team in football this year).  good teams will win with a few call not going thier way.  good teams wont win when they make more mistakes than another good team they are playing.

[Pongo]

I watched every steelers game this year and was rooting for the steelers. It was the worst game they played in the post season by far.
People say that seattle couldnt close the deal. Well the officials made sure of that.

Take away a touchdown.
Take away a catch on the one yard line.
Count a steelers touchdown that never happend.
Ignore blatant holding by ward on bens scramble on 3rd down right befor wards  TD play. Ward was water sking behind a line backer! lol


The only true failing by the seahawks was on kick returns and punts. They never pinned the steelers once. and they never returned a good one once. Any half decent return team would have had the steelers pinned so deep in the first half they would have scored 10 points on safety.

But no, in a game that was won by 11 points the 21 point spread manufactured by the officials was way over the margin of victory.

in a year that had some pretty silly officiating the saved the best for the super bowl. That was the weakest performance by a SB winning team in memory.
I mean the officials always managed to spot the patriots the three points they needed to win but they at least played well in thier victories.
The steelers couldnt even fake a good game to keep up appearences.

[soda72]

The sixth-seeded Steelers beat the three best teams the AFC had to offer, then knocked off the NFC's top dog. This was a Super Bowl run for the ages that will be celebrated in Pittsburgh, and by Steelers fans everywhere, forever.

[Pongo]

Oh it was a super bowl run for the ages all right. I have every steelers play off game recorded in HD. The RUN was great. The game was sucketh. And it was the steelers and the officials that sucked it up.

[DoKGonZo]

Killnu, I don't think I ever said the Steelers couldn't have won anyway. Seattle didn't exactly play well. And I had no vested interest in who won - so there's nothing to "get over."

I just wanted to see the two teams meet on an even playing field and see which one was better or which one sucked less or both. I can deal with brain-dead refs if they call it bad on both teams - the game becomes idiotic in such cases, but at least it's fair.

What I saw Sunday wasn't fair. As a fan of the game Sunday's SB was an insult. Has nothing to do with the two teams involved, really.

[killnu]

The pathetic whining of "the refs beat us" crap is getting old.  The underlying tone to all of it is that seattle played well but was ONLY held back from winning by the refs...and that is flat out wrong.  the refs were not playing the game.  the refs didnt have a 75 yd run broke off in them, or a trick play(in the super bowl).  the list of mistakes by seattle are listed, so the crying like they played well is what im talking about when i say, get over it.  both teams played like crap, seattle just worse.  and yes, there was a imo, 2 bad penalties, which were surrounded by bad plays.

holding_next play, casey hampton sack to push 3rd and real long.  A good team playing well would of overcome the penalty, real or not.   next play?

interception and during return_low block.  once again, the interception is what is key in that sentence.  the refs didnt throw the pick, they didnt blow that drive.

I understand being upset, thinking your team shoulda won, but they shoulda won if they played better...not the refs winning it for them.  I wanted pitt to play better, that for dang sure.  They ended up playing just well enough not to lose, while seattle played to lose.