Loss adds to pain for ailing Steelers
Plucky effort falls just short
DENVER — The Pittsburgh Steelers came here beaten up physically. They left just beaten.
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, recovering from an ankle sprain, got Pittsburgh into overtime against the Denver Broncos on Sunday. But on the first play of OT, Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow launched an 80-yard touchdown pass that gave his team a 29-23 wild-card playoff win.
Was Steelers linebacker James Farrior surprised that Tebow, who had struggled in three consecutive losses, threw for 316 yards and two touchdowns without an interception against a Pittsburgh defense ranked No. 1 in a lot of categories, including against the pass?
“It was a little surprising,” Farrior said. “I guess that he’s been working hard, and he’s taken a lot of criticism in the past few weeks about his throwing motion, his passing game. . . . But he’s a competitor. And a guy like that who’s a competitor, he’s going to beat you one time.”
Pittsburgh came in minus injured rushing leader Rashard Mendenhall (torn knee ligament), injured center Maurkice Pouncey (ankle) and safety Ryan Clark, held out of the game at mile-high altitude because of a blood condition. During the game, the Steelers lost starting defensive linemen Casey Hampton and Brett Keisel to injuries, as well as starting tackle Max Starks.
In place of Mendenhall, second-year pro Isaac Redman ran for 121 yards and a touchdown. But he didn’t achieve his goal of a victory and dedicating it to Pittsburgh running backs coach Kirby Wilson, severely burned in a fire at home Friday.
“We’ve been fighting all season,” Redman said. “We’ve been dealing with a lot of injuries, and Coach Wilson going what he’s going through, it’s kind of sad we couldn’t bring the game ball home to him.”
Clark watched from the sideline. He has sickle cell trait, an inherited condition. After a game here in 2007, he developed complications that resulted in surgeries to remove his spleen and gallbladder.
“We lost, and it’s not because I didn’t play,” Clark said. “We had other guys very capable that have played well. I think Tim Tebow offensively, and Denver, they made more plays than us.”
Roethlisberger led a 55-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 31-yard touchdown pass to Jericho Cotchery, that tied the score at 23-23 with 3:48 left.
The early going in the game and the final seconds of regulation were Pittsburgh’s undoing. The Steelers settled for two field goals early, then couldn’t get in position for a potential winning field goal in the final seconds.
“It’s always disappointing,” said Roethlisberger, now 10-4 as a playoff starter. “Offensively, you feel like you can do so much more, and you don’t do it. Give credit to their defense.”
Farrior was among the Pittsburgh defenders who bit on the run fake before Tebow threw the winning TD pass in overtime to wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, who eluded an attempted tackle by cornerback Ike Taylor.
“It was a great play-action play,” Farrior said. “And I think a lot of guys were committed to the run. They were running the ball kind of well. I know I hopped in on the run fake. . . . I thought it was a good call by them. We just didn’t make the play.”
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin saluted the Broncos. “They made the significant plays tonight, particularly the chunks that allowed them to win,” he said.
Was he surprised that Tebow passed 21 times? “No, the number of attempts wasn’t surprising,” he said. “The number of long completions was.”
So the Steelers begin a long offseason.
“We accept responsibility,” Tomlin said.