I think Hasslebeck deserves some of the blame too, as it appears that he had absolutely no game awareness at the end of either half. Why the heck did he throw a one yard out on third down? What good does that do, even if the guy gets out-of-bounds? If you aren't going to do more than that, you may as well go for the FG on third down.
And what was the deal at the end of the first half? The way Suze Kolber descirbed it, with Holmgren calling a play, Hasslebeck audibling, Holmgren calling another play, and Hasslebeck audibling again? It sounds like they were having a pissing match. That's inexcusable, especially in the middle of the Super Bowl.
(edited by ges7184 on 5.2.06 2117) The Bored are already here. Idle hands are the devil's workshop. And no... we won't kill dolphins. But koalas are fair game.
Originally posted by StaggerLeeThat had to have been the most unorganised end of a half AND game ever in the history of football.
Congrats to the Steelers!
Good game for a change!
Since the 49ers massacred the Chargers 11 years ago, there have been 7 or 8 good Super Bowls. Broncos/Falcons, Ravens/Giants and Bucs/Raiders(although that had it's moments) have been the only duds in that time frame. It's no longer the joke that it was from the early 80's through the mid 90's where the good game was the exception and the Bud Bowl was the only thing that was on the line after halftime. I know Mike Martz was interviewing for a job in Detroit last week, but did his spirit just take over the bodies of Seattle's quarterback and coach at the end of each half? The end of the first half was pathetic, punting with 6 minutes down by 11 at midfield was inexcusable and the last drive was mindnumbing. I'd say it was worse than the Eagles last year because it happened in both halves, and the Eagles at least got the ball with the chance to tie or win the game in the last minute. This is now 2 poorly coached Super Bowls by Holmgren. If not for Desmond Howard on special teams he would be heading for the coaching hall of shame. And that's not even mentioning the interception at 14-10 on 3rd down where a field goal means even a Pittsburgh touchdown leaves it as a hard 1 possession game. I'll give Pittsburgh credit: They were on the ropes at the end of the 3rd quarter and survived.
(edited by redsoxnation on 5.2.06 2217) Any complaints about the preceding post can be directed at the time traveling aliens who edited it.
Originally posted by BullittI only saw one terrible call by the officials...the penalty on Hasselbeck. I'm not sure where all the ref hate comes from.
The offensive pass interference to negate a touchdown seemed a bit unnecessary. I'd rather the refs let them play the game than call something that probably goes on (and doesn't get called) several times a game.
That said, Seattle was outplayed enough to lose the game, and whatever went on at the end of the first half and the game was both bewildering and inexcusable. Pittsburgh didn't dominate offensively, but Parker's long run and the reverse pass were backbreakers, as was Hasselbeck's interception. Good to see Bettis get a ring, and I'd like to see him hang it up. Making him a non-practicing running back who gets in 10 times a game (which is what the announcers hinted he'd like to become) just doesn't fit him.
Besides that, Seattle spent most of the first half on the Steeler side of the field and only came out with 3 points to show for it, and that's all the posessions that didn't involve questionable offensive pass interference calls.
I'm amazed that no one else has mentioned the best part of this game.
Joey Porter standing tall over the prone body of big-mouthed Jeremy Stevens after the final play of the game. What a fitting way to end this one. Congrats, Steelers!
Originally posted by It's FalseI'm amazed that no one else has mentioned the best part of this game.
Joey Porter standing tall over the prone body of big-mouthed Jeremy Stevens after the final play of the game. What a fitting way to end this one. Congrats, Steelers!
I think you're confusing which of those two is the big mouth...
As much as I'm not at all a Steelers fan, I've never had anything against Bettis so it was kinda nice to see a truly great player win a championship in his hometown and then announce he was riding off into the sunset.
He's got that hand-waving deal. He can become INVISIBLE! This means MONEY, Dawg! - AWARulz on Cena.
First of all lemme congratulate the Steelers, who deserve this, and congrats to Cowher, Ward, Bettis, etc.
For talking all of their shit, where in the f*** was Jerramy Stevens and Joey Porter??? Jerramy Stevens dropped several key plays, that could have buried the Steelers, and Joey Porter was damn near non-existant until that final play when he was standing over Stevens and celebrating with Cowher. The two biggest talkers of the buildup week, and all we got was a lousy touchdown catch, that only helped redeem at the moment 2 big drops? Talk about underwhelmed.
After the Gadget Ben to Randle El to Ward catch, I knew that Ward would have to be MVP, the dude was just clutch all day. Pittsburgh needed a big play, they'd call up #86, and he'd bring the goods. Very impressive.
In the end, I come away feeling Seattle did more to lose this game than Pittsburgh did to win it, but considering they weren't expected to beat all the teams they did in the playoffs, I can't hate on them, because as they say, sometimes its better to have luck...
There were 2 calls during the game that I, and the people I was with at the bar disagreed with.
1) The offesive penalty that was called against the Seahawks during the Touchdown That Never Was. He barely touched the defenseman as he went to catch the ball.
2) The 3rd and short run by Big Ben where he was tackled at the end. Replays showed time after time the ball did NOT at any time pass the goal line until Ben blatantly moved it over the line. If that decision is reversed, Pittsburgh settles for a Field Goal.
That's an 11 point swing I see right there. Those two plays get called properly, game on.
Some local ABC affiliatae sports clowns here in St. Louis said it was one of the worst Super Bowls they'd ever seen. I don't know if I'd agree with that, but I'll at least agree that this wasn't a good game at all. Suspect officiating, poor clock management by Seattle, mostly crappy commercials. Just not really enjoyable. About halfway through the third quarter I started doing other things while I listened to the game in the background.
The stupidest thing the Panthers could have done was come right out and say "If Luck's in, we're taking him". Why would he want to leave a good situation at Stanford and go to THAT offensive line?