The Men of Steel traveled to Florida to take on the Dolphins in week 7, and escaped with a win on what would prove to be a controversial call by the referees.
Great Games by Great Players
In his second week back from suspension, Ben Roethlisberger threw for 302 yards and two touchdowns. He had no picks, but did fumble three times with one of them being lost. Miami scored a field goal on the ensuing possession.
Hines Ward collected 131 of those yards and one of those touchdowns while Mike Wallace found 53 yards and a touchdown on only two catches. In the highlight package below, check out Ward’s touchdown. If he is not in the Hall of Fame someday, it will be a crime.
The defense played the way it did all year, allowing only 64 yards on the ground. The Dolphins were able to move the ball through the air against the Steelers. Miami QB Chad Henne throw for 257 yards and a touchdown but had one interception.
To Close for Comfort
The turnover battle, which can be a good indicator of who is winning or won a football game, was a tie. Miami had an interception and a fumble lost while they recovered two fumbles by the Steelers. The final score of the game was 23-22.
As an aside, if you look at the turnover numbers of a game and nothing else, you can get a good indication of what is going on in the game. Check it out sometime. It might be the single most telling stat in football.
The Steelers’ defense played bend-don’t-break with the ‘Phins. They allowed a lot of yards through the air, but only a single touchdown. The Miami kicker was busy with five field goals.
The Steelers did score two touchdowns and three field goals, but one of those field goals came off the play that changed this game, which made the game a lot closer than it should have been.
The Play
On 3rd and goal from the Miami 2-yard-line, with 2:37 left in the game, Big Ben lined up in the shotgun and rushed up the middle for the go-ahead score. On the field, the refs called a touchdown, but there was a scramble for the ball in the end zone.
At the time, it looked like Ben had broken the plane of the end zone and then lost the ball, which Miami had recovered.
Miami challenged the call of a touchdown and the challenge was upheld. The problem was that because the ball had been declared dead on the touchdown, there was no way to determine who had actually recovered the fumble.
In a call that people in Miami would be talking about months later (and which Steelers fans will probably hear about the next time the Steelers play the Dolphins), the ball would belong to the Steelers and be placed on the Miami 1-yard-line.
Here’s the kicker: It was the correct call! In accordance with the rules of football, the refs got this one right. (Unlike some of the historic calls they have made screwed up against the Steelers. Thanksgiving against the Lions?)
The Steelers kicked a field goal on the next play to go ahead by one point. The Steelers’ defense allowed the Dolphins four yards on the next three plays and then intercepted Henne to essentially end the game.
Take a look at how the Steelers escaped Miami with a win on a bizarre, but correct call (Courtesy Youtube. The play is at the 2:35 mark of the video.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiXI9oFPMTM&feature=related