From coldhardfootballfacts.com
A game for the ages
Cold, Hard Football Facts for the week of Jan. 13-19, 2005
(Note from the chief angry troll: This story is based largely upon one we published earlier this season in anticipation of a New England-Pittsburgh AFC title game meeting. Seemed like an obvious time to dust it off, complete with updated Cold, Hard Football Facts.)
***
There’s no other way to put it. New England at Pittsburgh in the AFC title game is one of the most compelling contests in NFL history. Here’s why:
It’s a game for the record books. The Patriots (15-2) and Steelers (16-1) enter the contest with a combined record of 31-3 (.912 winning percentage). Only twice in NFL history have two teams with a better combined record met in the postseason. In Super Bowl XIX, San Francisco (17-1) and Miami (16-2) were a combined 33-3 (.917). The 49ers won, 38-16. You have to go back more than 62 years to find the game that tops the list. In the 1942 title game, Washington (10-1) and Chicago (11-0) were 21-1 (.954). The Redskins won, 14-6.
The Patriots seek redemption. The Steelers hammered New England, 34-20, in Pittsburgh on Halloween, ending the longest win streak in pro football history at 21 games.
The Steelers seek redemption. The last time the two teams met in the playoffs, the heavily favored Steelers lost to New England, 24-17, at home in the 2001-02 AFC title game. Pittsburgh’s players and fans shot their mouths off, insisting the Steelers were still a better team, even after New England went on to win the Super Bowl. This game will be a chance to put some ammunition in the vocal chamber.
The ghost of Vince Lombardi is watching. Bill Belichick has earned the reputation as the best coach in football today. With a victory in the AFC championship game, he will tie Lombardi for the best postseason coaching record (9-1) in NFL history.
Bill Cowher’s legacy hangs in the balance. The Cowher-era Steelers enter this game with eight division titles, nine playoff appearances and 130 regular season victories in 13 seasons. All they have to show for it is a single AFC title and one crushing Super Bowl loss. A defeat at the hands of New England would be Cowher’s fourth loss in an AFC title game.
The city of Pittsburgh’s morale is at stake. A fourth AFC title game loss – with all four coming at home – would be a crushing blow to the morale of a football-loving city that has appeared in just one Super Bowl in 25 years.
Ben Roethlisberger looks to supplant Tom Brady. Roethlisberger will try become the first quarterback to beat Brady in the playoffs, he could upstage Brady’s 2001 Super Bowl run and he could put himself in position to supplant Brady as the youngest quarterback to win a Super Bowl. Brady enters this AFC title game with a career record of 55-14 (.797), the best in NFL history, and a playoff record of 7-0, also an NFL record. It was a career that began when Brady replaced an injured veteran in his second year in the league. Roethlisbeger replaced an injured veteran in this, his first year in the league, and has already set records for consecutive and total victories by a rookie QB. He enters this game on a 15-0 run and has never lost an NFL contest.
Once and future dynasties will clash. Three championships seem to be the magic number needed to ascend to dynasty status. The Patriots are on a quest to become the first dynasty of the 21st century and just the third team in NFL history, and the first from the AFC, to win three championships in four years. Not even the great Steelers of the 1970s, who won four titles in six years, achieved that kind of dominance in a four-year period. This year they stand to defend the franchise’s honor. Players and coaches may not care, but fans certainly will.
A win over New England will be a tasty addition to Pittsburgh’s victory feast. Pittsburgh has rattled off 15 straight victories and reestablished itself as one of the dominant forces in football. But none of these victories would come close to the thrill of dethroning the defending Super Bowl champs and earning a spot in the Super Bowl, where the Steelers would be a clear favorite to win their first championship in 25 years.
A win at Pittsburgh will be a tasty addition to New England's victory feast. The buffet table in New England has been filled with one thrilling and historic win after another over the past four seasons, highlighted by two last-second Super Bowl victories and last week’s throttling of Indy’s record-setting offense. Squashing the 16-1 Steelers and muffling a rowdy Pittsburgh playoff crowd once again would be another tasty treat for gluttonous New Englanders fattened by victory.
No matter the outcome, New England at Pittsburgh in the AFC title game will be a game for the ages. The contest is still five days away, but even the stoic and emotionless Cold, Hard Football Facts are excited by the prospects of watching this one.
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A game for the ages
Cold, Hard Football Facts for the week of Jan. 13-19, 2005
(Note from the chief angry troll: This story is based largely upon one we published earlier this season in anticipation of a New England-Pittsburgh AFC title game meeting. Seemed like an obvious time to dust it off, complete with updated Cold, Hard Football Facts.)
***
There’s no other way to put it. New England at Pittsburgh in the AFC title game is one of the most compelling contests in NFL history. Here’s why:
It’s a game for the record books. The Patriots (15-2) and Steelers (16-1) enter the contest with a combined record of 31-3 (.912 winning percentage). Only twice in NFL history have two teams with a better combined record met in the postseason. In Super Bowl XIX, San Francisco (17-1) and Miami (16-2) were a combined 33-3 (.917). The 49ers won, 38-16. You have to go back more than 62 years to find the game that tops the list. In the 1942 title game, Washington (10-1) and Chicago (11-0) were 21-1 (.954). The Redskins won, 14-6.
The Patriots seek redemption. The Steelers hammered New England, 34-20, in Pittsburgh on Halloween, ending the longest win streak in pro football history at 21 games.
The Steelers seek redemption. The last time the two teams met in the playoffs, the heavily favored Steelers lost to New England, 24-17, at home in the 2001-02 AFC title game. Pittsburgh’s players and fans shot their mouths off, insisting the Steelers were still a better team, even after New England went on to win the Super Bowl. This game will be a chance to put some ammunition in the vocal chamber.
The ghost of Vince Lombardi is watching. Bill Belichick has earned the reputation as the best coach in football today. With a victory in the AFC championship game, he will tie Lombardi for the best postseason coaching record (9-1) in NFL history.
Bill Cowher’s legacy hangs in the balance. The Cowher-era Steelers enter this game with eight division titles, nine playoff appearances and 130 regular season victories in 13 seasons. All they have to show for it is a single AFC title and one crushing Super Bowl loss. A defeat at the hands of New England would be Cowher’s fourth loss in an AFC title game.
The city of Pittsburgh’s morale is at stake. A fourth AFC title game loss – with all four coming at home – would be a crushing blow to the morale of a football-loving city that has appeared in just one Super Bowl in 25 years.
Ben Roethlisberger looks to supplant Tom Brady. Roethlisberger will try become the first quarterback to beat Brady in the playoffs, he could upstage Brady’s 2001 Super Bowl run and he could put himself in position to supplant Brady as the youngest quarterback to win a Super Bowl. Brady enters this AFC title game with a career record of 55-14 (.797), the best in NFL history, and a playoff record of 7-0, also an NFL record. It was a career that began when Brady replaced an injured veteran in his second year in the league. Roethlisbeger replaced an injured veteran in this, his first year in the league, and has already set records for consecutive and total victories by a rookie QB. He enters this game on a 15-0 run and has never lost an NFL contest.
Once and future dynasties will clash. Three championships seem to be the magic number needed to ascend to dynasty status. The Patriots are on a quest to become the first dynasty of the 21st century and just the third team in NFL history, and the first from the AFC, to win three championships in four years. Not even the great Steelers of the 1970s, who won four titles in six years, achieved that kind of dominance in a four-year period. This year they stand to defend the franchise’s honor. Players and coaches may not care, but fans certainly will.
A win over New England will be a tasty addition to Pittsburgh’s victory feast. Pittsburgh has rattled off 15 straight victories and reestablished itself as one of the dominant forces in football. But none of these victories would come close to the thrill of dethroning the defending Super Bowl champs and earning a spot in the Super Bowl, where the Steelers would be a clear favorite to win their first championship in 25 years.
A win at Pittsburgh will be a tasty addition to New England's victory feast. The buffet table in New England has been filled with one thrilling and historic win after another over the past four seasons, highlighted by two last-second Super Bowl victories and last week’s throttling of Indy’s record-setting offense. Squashing the 16-1 Steelers and muffling a rowdy Pittsburgh playoff crowd once again would be another tasty treat for gluttonous New Englanders fattened by victory.
No matter the outcome, New England at Pittsburgh in the AFC title game will be a game for the ages. The contest is still five days away, but even the stoic and emotionless Cold, Hard Football Facts are excited by the prospects of watching this one.
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