Steelers Advance to 7th Super Bowl

AFC Championship: Pittsburgh Steelers Defeat Baltimore Ravens 23-14, Advance to Super Bowl XLIII

The Pittsburgh Steelers advanced to their 7th Super Bowl appearance overall and second in four seasons by defeating the Baltimore Ravens 23-14 in the AFC Championship Game at Heinz Field.

Pittsburgh scored on their first drive following the game's opening kickoff, driving 50 yards in seven plays, the key play of the drive was a 45-yard pass up the middle from Ben Roethlisberger to Hines Ward deep into Ravens territory.

Facing a 3rd-and-3 at the Ravens 16, the Steelers had the Ravens defense in single coverage howevr Pittsburgh was unable to score a touchdown as Roethlisberger's pass to Keith Miller on the right side was a little too long and incomplete.

The Steelers settled for a Jeff Reed field goal from 34 yards and 3-0 lead. It was the Steelers first score on an opening drive in 9 games.

On the Raven's second possession of the game with 7:36 remaining in the first quarter, quarterback Joe Flacco was intercepted on 3rd-and-8 from the Ravens own 29 yard-line. Flacco's short pass to the left was intended for wide receiver Derrick Mason, but was instead intercepted by Steelers cornerback Deshea Townsend at the Ravens 37 yard-line. Flacco was forced into rushing the pass due to pressure from Steelers outside linebacker LaMarr Woodley. It was Flacco's first interception over his previous 99 pass attempts.

Starting from the Ravens 35, the Steelers were able to advance the ball to the 24. On 1st-and-10 from the 24, the Steelers offensive line picked up the blitz and Roethlisberger connected with Santonio Holmes deep right all the way to the Ravens 1 against All-pro safety Ed Reed. Holmes held on to the ball as he stretched out to make the catch with 6:33 remaining in the first quarter.

However, the Ravens challenged the call on the field and upon review the pass was ruled complete as it was judged that Holmes lost control of the ball.

The Ravens pressured Roethlisberger on the next two plays and force incompletions. On 4th-and-10 from the 24, the Steelers had to settle for Jeff Reed's second field goal of the game from 42-yards and a 6-0 lead.

On the ensuing series, the Steelers held the Ravens offense to another 3-and-out. Punting from his own 29, Sam Koch booted a 52-yarder which Holmes picked up at the Steelers 19 and returned for 9 yards. However, Anthony Madison was penalized for holding and the Steelers were moved back to their own 10-yard line.

The Steelers moved the ball 31-yards to their 41 and appeared to mounting another scoring drive. However, with 2:20 remaining in the quarter on 2nd-and-2, running back Willie Parker was stripped of the ball by Ray Lewis. Ravens'strong safety Jim Leonard recovered the ball at the Steelers 43.

The Ravens were unable to capitalize as the Steelers defense held strong. On 3rd-and-1 from the Steelers 34, a Willis McGahee run off right tackle was stopped by James Farrior and LaMarr Woodley for no gain. On 4th-and-1, all-pro safety Troy Polamalu dove over the line on a perfect timing play and stopped Flacco on the quarterback sneak for no gain.

Three plays later (3rd-and-9) and barely a minute into the 2nd quarter, Roethlisberger avoided the Ravens pressure and connected with Santonio Holmes on the right side of the field at the Ravens 49. Holmes eluded several Ravens defenders as he cut across from right to left and scored on a spectacular 49-yard run after the catch. Jeff Reed's PAT gave the Steelers a 13-0 advantage one minute into the second quarter.

After swapping possessions, the Steelers punted from their own 20 with 3:51 remaining. Mitch Berger punted the ball to the Ravens 38, which Jim Leonhard was able to return for 45-yards all the way to the Steelers 17. It looked as if the Steelers would shut down the Ravens, but on 3rd-and-9 Steelers cornerback Bryant McFadden was penalized for defensive pass interference while covering Derrick Mason on a pass deep-right in the end zone. On the next play, Willis McGahee scored with 2:40 remaining in the half from three yards out to cut the Steelers lead to 13-7.

With 1:14 remaining in the half, Santonio Holmes returned Koch's punt 25 yards to midfield. On the next play, Rothlisberger threw deep left to a wide-open Limas Sweed for a certain touchdown. However, Sweed was unable to make the catch as it appeared he took his eyes off the ball at the last moment.

The Ravens were able to force the Steelers into punting, but Ravens linebacker Edgar Jones was penalized 15 yards for roughing the kicker. No apparent contact was evident on the replay, but the play was not reviewable.

From the Ravens 35, Roethlisberger connected with tight end Heath Miller for a 14-yard gain who was able to get out of bounds at the Ravens 21. Two plays later Roethlisberger's short pass up the middle to running back Mewelde Moore netted 9 yards with 16 seconds left in the half. With no timeouts remaining, the Steelers needed to line up quickly and spike the ball and stop the clock. However, the Steelers were unable to stop the clock and missed the opportunity to extend their lead.

The Steelers had dominated the first half, but all they had to show for it was a 13-7 lead as momenutm had shifted in the Ravens favor towards the end of the first half. The Steelers closed out the half with 188 passing yards against a Ravens defense that was only giving up 179.2 passing yards per game.

The Ravens started with the ball in the 3rd quarter but their drive was stopped by two key plays on defense by Polamalu. On 1st-and-10, Polamalu stopped Flacco for an 8-yard loss. And then, on 3rd-and-11, Polamalu tipped a deep pass up the middle intended for Derrick Mason.

Jeff Reed converted his third field goal, a 46-yarder, with 3:38 left to play in the third quarter to increase the Steelers lead to 16-7 as the Steelers defense continued its dominate 3rd quarter play. In the previous week, the Steelers defense held the Chargers to only one play on offense and had only given up 29 points in the 3rd quarter for the entire season.

The Steelers dominance on defense continued into the 4th quarter. However, a poor Steelers punt with 12:48 remaining in the game gave the Ravens at the their own 42. On 1st down, a reverse Derrick Mason gained 16-yards. Flacco then connected with Mason on two short passes for 14 and 11 yards later in the drive which were subsequently aided by a defensive pass interference penalty on the Steelers that placed the ball on the Steelers 1-yard line.

McGahee's one-yard run on the next play with 9:29 remaining allowed Baltimore to come within two points of the lead, 16-14.

On the next series, the Ravens defense held the Steelers and got the ball back into Flacco's hands with 6:50 remaining in the game. Starting from their own 14, the Ravens were able to advance the ball out to their 29. However, on 3rd-and-13, Joe Flacco's short pass intended for Derrick Mason was intercepted by Polamalu. Polamalu returned the ball 40 yards into the end zone for a 23-14 Steelers lead.

On the ensuuing drive Baltimore's Willis McGahee caught a short pass in the middle and advanced the ball 11 yards before colliding with Pittsburgh's Ryan Clark. The helmet-on-helmet collision forced a fumble which Pittsburgh recovered, but left both players on the ground. After a few minutes, Clark was able to walk off the field with light assistance, but McGahee would continue to lay on the ground. McGahee was moving but had to be taken off the field by cart. Slow-motion replays showed that the helmet-on-helmet collision caused McGahee's head to snap back.

When play resumed, the Ravens held the Steelers to yet another 3-and-out and were given another chance of getting back in the game with 1:48 remaining. However, on the third play from scrimmage, Flacco's short pass up the middle intended for Ray Rice was intercepted by Tyrone Carter at midfield.

The Steelers ran out the clock and advanced to their seventh Super Bowl appearance.

Roethlisberger led the Steelers offensively, completing 16-of-33 passes for 255 yards with one touchdown for a passer rating of 84.8. RB Willie Parker rushed 24 times for 47 yards (2.0 avg.). Santonio Holmes caught two passes for 70 yards (35.0 avg.) and one touchdown.

Defensively, the Steelers sacked Flacco three times, including two by LB LaMarr Woodley, his third consecutive postseason game with two sacks, and one by DE Aaron Smith. Townsend and Carter accounted for two of the Steelers three interceptions.

The difference in the AFC Championship was the Steelers defense and, in particular, the play of Tyrone Polamalu at key times.

The Steelers now have the opportunity to become the first NFL franchise to win six Super Bowls when they face the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII on February 1.

 

Pittsburgh Steelers 23 Baltimore Ravens 14

January 18, 2009 Heinz Field, Pittsburgh PA

 

 

Final Team Statistics Baltimore Ravens vs Pittsburgh Steelers

 

Individual Statistics

RUSHING:

Bal. McGahee 20-60, 2 TDs; Clayton 1-16; McClain 1-3; Rice 1-2; Flacco 2- (-8).

Pit. Parker 24-47; Moore 1-6; Washington 1-1; Roethlisberger 2- (-2).

PASSING:

Bal. Flacco 30-13-3, 141.

Pit. Roethlisberger 33-16-0, 255, 1 TD.

RECEIVING:

Bal. Rice 3-43; Mason 3-41; Heap 3-26; Clayton 2-18; McGahee 2-13.

Pit. Miller 3-62; Ward 3-55; Washington 3-21; Holmes 2-70, 1 TD; Sweed 2-20; Davis 1-20; Moore 1-9; Parker 1-(-2).

 

 

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