The Pittsburgh
Steelers have a rich championship history. BTSC lists the best not to win MVP
honors.
While they may have company around 10:00 p.m. on Sunday
Evening, the Pittsburgh
Steelers saw their reign as six-time Lombardi winners reach ten
years on Friday. Nobody can forget the five men whose MVP performances made
those victories possible. Guys with monikers like Franco, Swan, TB, Hines and
Tone have been immortalized in Steeler Nation for winning Best in Show honors.
But many more men to don the hypocycloids on their domes besides Franco Harris,
Lynn Swann, Terry Bradshaw, Hines Ward and Santonio
Holmes were responsible for those six rings. BTSC has
prepared a ranking of the best-of-the-best not to be awarded the MVP trophies
on those six championship teams.
HONORABLE
MENTION
FRANCO HARRIS
- SUPER BOWL XIV
Franco, the MVP of Super Bowl IX, was paramount in every big
game of the 70s. Two of Harris’ 46-yards on the grounds led No. 32 to paydirt,
the first and last scores of the contest. Franco also added three receptions
for 66-vital yards.
LYNN SWANN SUPER
BOWL XIV
Swan was knocked out of the game in Pasadena by Pat Thomas in
the third quarter of this game, but his contributions were considerable. No. 88
battled double coverage for an acrobatic 47-yard score and left with five grabs
for 79 total yards.
LARRY ANDERSON -
SUPER BOWL XIV
The return specialist was far down the list of names of the
Steelers’ Dynasty of the 1970s, but his performance in Super Bowl XIV was
phenomenal. No. 30 had five kick returns for 162 yards and an average of 32.4 yards
per run.
JACK LAMBERT -
SUPER BOWL XIV
With 5:24 remaining in the game, the Rams were
trailing by five and drove all the way down to the Steeler 32. When a touchdown
could have been lethal, “Jack Splat” went airborne to snag a Vince Ferragamo
pass and essentially put the champagne on ice for the team’s fourth
championship of the decade.
IKE TAYLOR -
SUPER BOWL XL
Ike was never known to have the best hands; he only had 17 career
picks in 12 NFL seasons. But one of those rare interceptions came with the
Steelers clinging to a 14-10 lead in the fourth quarter. Matt
Hasselbeck heaved a third-down pass towards Darrell Jackson
near the Steelers’ end zone. Ike pulled the pigskin out of the air and raced 24
yards. Less than two minutes later, Antwaan Randle-El tossed the legendary TD
pass to Hines Ward and the final score of the first Steeler SB victory in 26
years.
LAMARR
WOODLEY - SUPER BOWL XLIII
Woodley was usually a force in the post season. His first
sack of Kurt Warner in Tampa was big. But his second, a strip sack, was
recovered by Brett Keisel to
secure Lombardi #6.
THE TOP TEN
(10) WILLIE PARKER
AND ALAN FANECA -
SUPER BOWL XL
Typically a Steeler running play in 2005 consisted of
FB Dan Kreider blasting
a hole for Willie Parker to run through. But on second-and-ten at their own 25,
the Steelers called for the 34 Counter Pike. This play was mostly a
short-yardage, one-back set run used for Jerome Bettis on
the goal line. But on the second play of the second half, Alan Faneca pulled
and blasted Seattle LB Leroy Hill to
free “Fast Willie”. Parker would sprint 75 (of his 93 yards on the day) to give
Pittsburgh a 14-3 lead and own the longest TD run in the history of the Super
Bowl. It was quite possibly the greatest combo of block and run in Steeler
history.
(9) DWIGHT WHITE -
SUPER BOWL IX
“Mad Dog” holds the distinction of being the first
Pittsburgh Steeler to score in a Super Bowl. His safety, the result of tackling
the ultra-mobile Fran Tarkenton in the end zone after a fumble, was impressive
on its own. So was his batted-pass that resulted in a Joe Greene interception.
But doing those things hours after losing 20 pounds and just having been
released from the hospital shortly following a bout of viral pneumonia at a
rainy Tulane Stadium in New Orleans is stuff of legend. No. 78 spent the week
after the Super Bowl back in the hospital.
(8) LYNN SWANN -
SUPER BOWL XIII
The balletic Swann loved playing the Cowboys.
Three years after an MVP performance over Tom Landry’s club, No. 88 hauled-in
seven passes for 124 yards and the decisive 18-yarder with 6:57 left to play.
(7) JOE GREENE -
SUPER BOWL IX
On a rainy and muddy day in Louisiana, “Mean Joe” led a
dominating defense that shut out the Minnesota offenses do held them to 17
yards rushing and 119 total. If it wasn’t for a blocked punt, the Vikings would
have been the only team to be held scoreless with the Lombardi on the line. No.
75 had both a crucial interception and a fumble recovery on his stat line as
well.
(6) L.C. GREENWOOD
- SUPER BOWL X
“Hollywood Bags” had a glamorous day in Miami in 1976. In a
tight game that didn’t feature a lot of scoring, the man with the golden shoes
set up a time share in Roger Staubach’s real estate. Although sacks were not an
official stat, Greenwood tallied four that day.
(5) JOHN
STALLWORTH - SUPER BOWL XIII
Had the Alabama A&M star not been injured to miss the
second half of football, his stat line could have been legendary. Stallworth
caught only three balls, but they garnered 115 yards and two scores - one 75
yards and another for 28.
(4) JACK LAMBERT -
SUPER BOWL X
Lambert had 14 tackles at the Orange Bowl that
day, but his biggest one was the tone setter. Kicker Roy Gerela made a TD
saving tackle on the opening kickoff that badly bruised his ribs and affected
his kicking. With the Steelers down 10-7 in the third, Cliff Harris mocked
Gerela for missing his second FG attempt by patting him on the head, Lambert
reacted and threw Harris to the ground to show Dallas that the Steelers
couldn’t and wouldn’t be intimidated. The action by No. 58 spearheaded the
turnaround and the Steelers won 21-17.
(3) BEN
ROETHLISBERGER - SUPER BOWL XLIII
Ben’s Super Bowl debut in February of 2006 wasn’t great at
all, but it helped bring back Lombardi to Pittsburgh. His second foray could
have netted him the last Cadillac Escalade to be awarded to an MVP, but the
ride went to Santonio Holmes who caught Ben’s game-winning TD pass with :35
left. To get there, Big Ben engineered an 88-yard drive that culminated in one
of the greatest plays in the history of the big game. On the day,
Roethlisberger completed 21-of-30 for 256 yards and that one score for six
yards to put the Steelers ahead for good.
(2) JAMES
HARRISON - SUPER BOWL XLIII
James Harrison had four tackles and two quarterback hits in
Super Bowl 43, but the big story was his decision to drop into coverage at the
end of the first half. The Steelers worked on this scenario in practice a few
days before and it paid off. Kurt Warner had led the Cardinals to
the two-yard line and was on the verge of taking a 14-10 lead into the half.
With the Steelers on an all-out blitz, Warner looked for Anquan Boldin who
should have been all alone. But Harrison started his blitz and then dropped
back to intercept the ball. Thwarting the drive wasn’t good enough for Deebo as
he followed a convoy of blockers for 100 swerve and lung-collapsing yards and a
17-7 lead at the half. It would become one of the greatest defensive plays and
the longest score in Super Bowl lore.
(1) JOHN
STALLWORTH - SUPER BOWL XIV
Terry Bradshaw was once again the MVP of the Super Bowl, but
Stallworth very well could have won the distinction for his epic performance at
the Rose Bowl in
January of 1980. No. 82 only had three catches on the day, but they were huge.
With 12:15 remaining in the game, the original TB12 found Stallworth for a
73-yard score on a third-and-eight on their own 27. This gave the Steelers the
lead back. But on third-and-seven at their own 33, the duo put the game away
with a 45-yard collaboration. Stallworth’s Non-MVP day ended with 121 yards and
a fourth Lombardi for the Steel City.
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