When You're a Die-hard Steelers Fan, it's More than "Just a Game"

This loss hurt, but it wasn’t completely unexpected as the game played out. During the first quarter, when Hampton and Keisel went out and the offense should have produced more than a 6-0 lead, I had an ominous feeling. Never thought the Broncos would put up a 20 spot and Tebow would hit on so many long passes. As I’ve said before, the mounting injuries topped off after the final game, felt like it would be a tremendous uphill climb. The 2005 Steelers were a much healthier team compared with this group.

Gut wrenching losses are tough in the playoffs, and the ones which stand out to me are the following: 1976 versus Oakland, 1982 & 1995 versus San Diego, 2001& 2004 versus New England, 2002 versus Tennessee, and 2007 versus Jacksonville.

One thing which tempers the disappointment is all the incredible success this franchise has had over the last 40 years. If the Steelers were like 90% of the rest of the NFL it would hurt more. If you’re a Steelers fan which has experienced the winning since 1972, I think it helps in terms of the big picture. If you know the Steelers struggled big time for decades before the 70s, it helps as well. I’m very optimistic about the future, teams like Denver, you just don’t know. Inconsistent passers have a tough time making a Super Bowl.

The Pirates are kind of like the reverse of the Steelers. 90% of the 20th century saw many successful teams, and several world titles. If you experienced the great decade of the 70s, that makes it a little easier to get through the post-1992 losing. Many current MLB franchises historically still haven’t achieved what the Bucs did in that decade. You couldn’t pay me enough to be a Rangers, Astros, or Brewers fan. For me, the 1972 NLCS loss to Cincinnati hurt more than 1992, since the Bucs were defending World Champs.

Penguins mostly struggled until the late 80s, but it’s been mostly successful since then.
If you’re a Pens fan who experienced the 1975 & 1982 Islander and 1981 St. Louis gut wrenching playoff defeats, that made the back to back Cups even more satisfying.

Well its day two i guess it has soaked in we are out of the playoffs my heart goes out to steeler nation and the MEN who played in the game hold your head up nation after everything we went through this season we still went 12-4 just wasnt in the cards for us this year so now its time to get healthy in the off season we are STEELER NATION and i will wear my BLACK N GOLD with pride the loss hurts but it just gives us fire to come back next year and show them wat its all about to be STEELER NATION

Some people do not get it. My boss asked me on Monday, now that the Steelers are out, “who is my B team to root for?”

What, Steeler Fans do not have a 2nd team. Only those teams that play the Pats, Cowboys and 49ers and possibly the Packers. Do not want them to win another SB.

If you were a diehard Democrat or Republican would you switch parties, because your candidate lost, no. Would you change religions, no.

There are 2 types of seasons, either the Steelers win the Super Bowl or you are rebuilding to win another. We set high expectations and we get there more often than others.

The Standard is the Standard.

I think this piece is the best I have ever read in capturing the emotions (not fully rational admittedly) that are attached to being a serious Steelers fan. This loss for me was the hardest since the Pats playoff loss in the year Pitt was 15-1 in the regular season. That said, I sent Ike Taylor’s website an encouraging email and that made me feel somewhat better and I suspect that I will be a completely normal (more or less) person again within a few days.

BTW-Pitt should be in the serious hunt for Super Bowl runs for at least the next 3-5 years. Thanks again for a fantastic article!

I especially love this:
“I’m kind of glad I feel the way I do right now. There’s a saying that without villains in the world, there would be no heroes. Well, as a die-hard sports fan, you need to experience the ultimate lows because it makes the ultimate highs that much sweeter.”

Thank you Steelers for a great season, I wish there could’ve been more, but I’m looking forward to next year.

My love for the Steelers is illogical and hard for some of the people in my life to understand, even the other Steelers fans. To be honest, I don’t really understand it myself.

I’m not a sports guy at all. I don’t follow any other sport and I only halfheartedly follow one or two other teams in the NFL. Living in New York at the moment, I’ve tried to fall in with the Giants or the Jets, but it just doesn’t hold the same sway. There is simply something about this team that speaks to me and it goes beyond the players or the coaches or the ownership (as exemplary as it is). There is some x factor at the very core of this astonishing team. Perhaps its the blue collar work ethic or the storied pedigree and larger than life figures (I’m looking at you Jack Lambert). But, this… this is a special team. And I don’t simply mean this particular year’s iteration. The Steelers are truly something special and that is why this loss, and usually every other to varying degrees, hurts.

Thanks for the post, Anthony. I needed that.

San Diego, Oakland, Dallas, and Tennessee. Home non-divisional games will be Denver, Kansas City, Philadelphia, Washington and the Jets

I cannot see them going better than 8-8 next year without significant changes and upgrades!!

I could not agree with you more Anthony. The Steelers are an integral part of my life. It started with Andy russel and the loss to Miami in the playoffs. It carried my as a young boy during a period when I had to adjust to a new environment. Their resilience, ability to overcome personal and professional issues as well as the integrity of the team from top to bottom registered with me and permeated my very being. I truly identified with the team on so many levels. There teams are studded with personas that exuded leadership, excellence in what they have done and the integrity that the Rooneys cast upon their organization.

I remember watching the steelers win the super owl with my dad while he was dying in a hospital bed. We spoke occasionally through the game but the ties that bound us that afternoon will be carried with me for life.

So, they are right it’s only a game, but to me it’s more. Thank God my wife and 2girls appreciate this as do my friends. To me the Steelers are part of the fabric of my life, it has it’s proper place but is meaningful none the less.

I still cannot believe we lost to the Denver Tebows. I know our Steelers were too stubborn in our approach, but I am still scratching my head over this…

I don’t understand why no one is giving the Steelers coaching staff some grief over this loss. Let’s completely forget that they called a run D on that play because, well, it actually makes sense considering Denver had never passed on first down the entire game.

The bigger problem is that the coaches did not prepare the team for the new overtime rules. When Ike decided to go up high when trying to tackle Thomas, there’s little doubt in my mind that he was thinking the old overtime rules applied. All he had to do was TACKLE HIM before he crossed the goal line. Instead he tries to go up high and get the ball, thinking Prater would come in and kick a field goal to win the game. This was NOT THE CASE. If they held Denver to a field goal then the Steelers would have got another series to at least equal or best the field goal. Total failure on the Steelers coaching staff and it’s infuriating.

And why not at least try the long field goal at the end? In Denver. There were three stinking seconds left. What are the chances of the Broncos blocking it and returning it for a TD? How many times does that happen in a season even when the kicking team ISN’T prepared for it? Total Steelers coaching failure. Ugh.

when Pitt loss to Nova in the Elite Eight in the 09’ NCAA tourny. The loss was so heartbreaking that it was the only thing I could think about for two weeks. “Heartbreak” would not even describe it. At-least the Steelers have Super Bowl victories. Eventually, I did get over it and it slipped into history, but even to this day, it’s difficult to think about.

But ya, great post here. I especially liked your comment about how the dejection fuels the thrill of a big time victory, because you know what the alternative would be. And, the only team that really gets the thrill is the team that wins the championship. All other n – 1 teams (where n is the number of teams in the sport) have to feel dejected at the end of the year, but that is why the one team who wins the championship can be so thrilled. They know how all the other n – 1 teams feel.

and this is a great post and well written. I’m glad you wrote it because it DOES express the way I felt in our loss to Pittsburgh. Another bad one was the Sunday night Troy Polomalu strip fumble game. I was at that game and having a great time. All night I felt great thinking “we got this one!” There were seated terrible towel toters all around me for most of the night while purple clad fans were standing up and cheering . Until….that play.
Then it shifted to seated purple fans and cheering black and gold fans waving terrible towels as we filed out of M&T with our heads hung low.

If it doesn’t sound to strange, I was of the mindset that I wanted the Steelers to beat Denver in the last game with the logic being that in any case, we would be afforded the best case scenario for getting to the big dance. But as a Ravens fan, I must admit that that feeling lasted about 30 seconds after the kickoff. Of course I’m glad that Denver won, and that’s not rubbing it in, its just me being honest. I was as amazed by that td pass as you guys were shocked by it. I’m sure you would feel the same way if the reverse were true.

This post though, shows the commonality between sports fans and makes great points.
These rivalries that we have are a result of these things being important to us while not really important in fact, and I can’t really explain it either but I “get it” too.

I really thought that the result of that game would have been the typical 4th quarter comeback by the Steelers but it just didn’t happen that time and I was surprised. I thought almost for sure that we would see each other again in the playoffs and was honestly looking forward to it as I’ve stated on here many times throughout the season even when you guys were down on yourselves.

The reason I state all of this is to convey that yes, I do take pleasure in a Steelers loss, but more than that, I LOVE the fact that the Steelers exist, especially in my division. The truth is that I wouldn’t want it any other way. We make each other better through our tough brand of football that is typical of the toughest division if not thye best in the NFL!
I’m very proud to be an AFC North team. On any given sunday we can beat any team. Even the Browns played tough this season in spite of their record as we can attest to through our experience with them. On another note, watch out for the up and coming Bengals in the years to come.

So from a Ravens fan, trying not to be cliche’, don’t take it too hard …

You’ll be back.

Life is not the same when you anticpate them in a win situation…and I could care not a damn for what goes on now in the rest of the playoffs…maybe ripping Brady’s head off and getting fined like poor old Harrison..maybe a new NFL commish, who does not hate the Steelers, thus stopping all the penalities we get called for and the other team skates,,or maybe some other team having more injuries than us…or maybe a better conditioning coach thta makes sue we don’t have half the team sidelined due to HAMSTRING injuries..or etc or etc…so now I sulk until draft day and hope for CB’s and BIG LINEMEN in our Black and Gold future,,,,and maybe a QB to replace Batch