Forget the first 55 minutes, when the Pittsburgh Steelers dominated the Indianapolis Colts. And no one will remember much how they scored all the points.
What they'll be talking about in Pittsburgh for years to come is those last five, thrilling minutes, as I screamed at the television , a wild finish made of missed opportunities, gut-wrenching twists and one unimaginable play after another.
The Steelers won their sixth straight game Sunday, 21-18 over the Colts. When the Steelers (13-5) catch their breath, they'll head to Denver, with the winner next Sunday representing the AFC in the Super Bowl.
Pittsburgh spent three quarters building a 21-10 lead with a pass-first game plan that could've come straight from Indy.
All-Pro safety Troy Polamalu made a diving interception of Peyton Manning at the Pittsburgh 48 with 5:26 remaining. He got up to run and fumbled the ball, but recovered.... only to have it mysteriously overturned by referee Pete Morelli.
fucking bull shit!!! should have never happened, and the game should have been pretty much over there!!!
Peyton Manning capitalized with passes of 20 yards to Marvin Harrison and 24 to Reggie Wayne before a 3-yard touchdown run by Edgerrin James and a 2-point conversion pass to Wayne....
Pittsburgh was forced to punt, but with about 1.5 minutes remaining, the befuddled Manning was sacked for the fifth time, on fourth down at his 2.
Game over, right?
Not on your life. The surehanded Bettis fumbled when popped by linebacker Gary Brackett. Nick Harper, whose knee was cut with a knife Saturday in an apparent domestic dispute with his wife, grabbed the ball and headed toward a highly improbable winning touchdown.
But Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, brilliant all game with his arm and head, tumbled, reached out a hand and made a saving tackle at the Indy 42.
"Once in a blue moon, Jerome fumbles," Roethlisberger said. "Once in a blue moon, I make a tackle. They just happened to be in the same game."
Two passes got the ball to the Pittsburgh 27, and Vanderjagt lined up for a 46-yard field goal to send it to overtime....
Wide right!!!!
Vanderjagt slammed his helmet to the turf, obviously forgetting how fortunate he was to have had the chance....
It was the first time the Steelers won two straight playoff road games....
With wide-open passing, hardly their forte, and ferocious defense -- definitely the Steelers' style -- Bill Cowher showed why he has been among the league's top coaches since 1992.... The Steelers, who won at Cincinnati last week while the AFC South champion Colts were off, built their lead thanks to a superb game plan they seemed to steal from Indy.
Pittsburgh has one of the league's most varied running attacks, but Cowher opted to open it up... Roethlisberger threw for two first-quarter touchdowns while Manning was wildly missing his first four passes and feeling pressure from everywhere....
When the Steelers needed to run, they turned to the speed of Willie Parker and the power of Bettis....
It was a bitter loss for Manning, who has few major wins to go with his individual honors. Until the frenzied final minutes, he was mostly a non-factor.
"There is no question we were in good position with home field and having the bye," Manning said. "At this point, it is hard to swallow."
