The Greatest Game: Super Bowl XLIII Pittsburgh Steelers VS Arizona Cardinals

Written by: Danny Albers

In the 2008 NFL offseason, nobody would have predicted a Superbowl between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Arizona Cardinals. Both teams had their respective challenges to overcome. Both teams were led by veteran quarterbacks who’d won a Super Bowl in their career. Ben Roethlisberger had an up and down season. Throwing for 3,301 yards, the big quarterback had 17 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. The Steelers were only 20th in team total offense, and 17th in passing. As for the Cardinals, despite being 9-7, they were 4th in total offense and 2nd in passing. Originally led by Matt Leinart, the Cardinals ultimately decided to go with veteran quarterback Kurt Warner who had a career resurgence in the 2008 season. Kurt Warner threw for 4,583 yards and had 30 touchdowns. The game promised to be a battle between a top defensive unit VS a top offensive unit. 

The Steelers defense was their strength, but a lot of people expected teams such as the Indianapolis Colts or the Tennessee Titans to be playing for a title. The Steelers had the hardest schedule in the NFL and still managed a 12-4 record. In fact, the Steelers beat the Baltimore Ravens (11-5) 3 times, the third being in the AFC title game. They had wins against the Dallas Cowboys (9-7), New England Patriots (11-5), Washington Redskins (8-8), 2 wins against the Chargers (8-8), and the Houston Texans (8-8). Their losses came against some of the best teams in the NFL, losing to the Tennessee Titans (13-3), Indianapolis Colts (12-4), New York Giants (12-4), and the Philadelphia Eagles (9-6-1). Although the Steelers were good all year long, they played their best football in the playoffs. They’re passing and rushing attack was balanced, going 177-165 and and 275-225 against the Chargers and Ravens. They were playing their best football going into their meeting with the Cardinals at Super Bowl XLIII. 

The Cardinals were lucky to get into the playoffs. After losing to the Minnesota Vikings 35-14, and the New England Patriots 47-7, the Cardinals beat the 4-12 Seattle Seahawks 34-21. The Cardinals were the only team in their division over .500. There were two teams (the Seahawks and the Rams) that were 4-12. They opened the postseason against the Atlanta Falcons at home. Kurt Warner threw for 271 yards. The Cardinals defense picked Matt Ryan off twice. They’d go on the road and dominate the 13-3 Carolina Panthers 33-13. They’d win the NFC title game against another surprise team, the Philadelphia Eagles 32-25. 

1st Quarter - Steelers Strike first

Pittsburgh started with the ball. The first play of the game was a hand off to Steelers running back Willie Parker for 2 yards. On second down, Ben would go deep to Heinz Ward for 38 yards. He went out of bounds at the Arizona 32. The next two plays were hand-offs to Willie Parker who gained 10 yards and another set of downs. Ben kept the pressure on the Cardinals, he’d hit tight end Heath Miller up the middle for 21 yards to the Arizona 1. After 2 blown up plays, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger scrambled for 1 end which was called a touchdown. After review, it appears he never got in, and the Steelers were stuck to lean on Jeff Reed to hit a chip shot. Steelers lead 3-0.

The following drive by the Cardinals was a mess. It only went 5 plays. It got blown up by an offensive holding call that pushed them back to the 27. After that, Kurt Warner would be stripped of the ball, but Cardinals running back Edgerrin James would recover the ball.The Cardinals would eventually have to punt the ball away. The Steelers would get the ball back and run the rest of the 1st quarter down. 

2nd Quarter - Steelers start to pull away 

The Steelers began the second quarter in the Arizona red zone. They got down there when Ben hit Santonio Holmes on a short pass who took the ball 25 yards to the Arizona 44. A couple plays later, Holmes would get the ball again, this time going only 5 yards to the Arizona 39. Ben would extend the drive a couple plays later on 3rd and 10 finding his tight end Heath Miller for an 11 yard gain. Steelers running back Willie Parker would get involved on the drive with an 8 yard run, followed by Santonio Holmes 3rd catch of the drive for 7 yards down to the Cardinals 14. Content with running the clock down, the Steelers would run a half back dive for a 2-yard gain and end the 1st quarter. The second quarter would begin with a 4 yard pass to Heath Miller from Ben, taking it to the Arizona 1. The Steelers would finish the drive by putting back up running back Gary Russell in to push the ball in a yard for a touchdown. This would give the Steelers a 10-0 lead. 

The Cardinals offense was still in a slump to start the next drive. However, an 11-yard breakout pass completion from Kurt Warner to Cardinals running back Edgerrin James got the Cardinals on the Steelers side of the field. Some life was breathed back into the Cardinals offense. On a second and 7, Kurt Warner broke the drive wide open when he found Anquan Boldin deep on a 45-yard pass to the Pittsburgh 1. Warner would finish the drive by hitting tight end Ben Patrick for a 1-yard touchdown pass. The Cardinals got right back into the game 10-7. With 2 minutes left in the 2nd quarter, the Cardinals got a key interception that put them in a position to take back control of this game. With good field position starting at the Pittsburgh 34, Kurt Warner was driving the Cardinals down the field, setting up 1st and goal with 17 seconds left in the half. Unknown to the Cardinals and the fans watching, the Steelers defense would make a play that would be credited for winning this game when it was least expected. Warner dropped back and threw an interception at the goalline to Steelers linebacker James Harrison who returned the interception 100 yards for a touchdown. Instead of the Cardinals going ahead 14-10, the Steelers would make it a two-possession game and lead 17-7 at halftime. Unknown at the time, but with how strong the Cardinals played in the second half, this play was as important as the game winning catch by Santonio Holmes. 

4th Quarter - Cardinals take the lead

Skipping ahead to the 4th quarters, since both teams were quiet in the third. The Steelers led 20-7 and looked like they were going to coast to a Super Bowl victory. The Cardinals would get the ball with 11:30. Warner would find Boldin right away for a 13 yard gain. The very next play, Warner would find Jerheme Urban for 18 yards. That was Urban’s only catch of the game. Warner then would dump a short pass to running back J.J. Arrington who’d break out for a 22-yard gain. With the Cardinals driving, Warner would lean on star wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald in Steelers territory. He’d find Larry for 18 yards who’d take it down to the Pittsburgh 10. He’d go back to Larry for a 6 yard pass taking it to the Pittsburgh 4. On 3rd and goal, Warner would go to Fitzgerald for his third catch of the drive, and his first touchdown of the game. The Cardinals were back in the game down 20-14. 

After both teams would have failed drives, the Steelers got the ball back with a chance to run the ball pinned down in their own end zone. The Cardinals defense increased the pressure knowing this could change the game, and it did. With the Cardinals bringing the pressure, and the Steelers trying to avoid disaster, offensive lineman Justin Hartwig would commit a holding penalty in his own end zone resulting in a safety. The game was now 20-16, and the Steelers would have to punt away to the Cardinals. Once the Cardinals got the ball back, Warner used the momentum and hit the home run shot. He’d hit Larry Fitzgerald down the middle of the field who’d go 64-yards for the touchdown and to give the Cardinals a 23-20 lead. The Steelers would have 2:30 to either win or tie the football game. 

On 1st and 20 on the Pittsburgh 12, needing a big play, Ben would find Holmes for a 14 yard pass gain. On 3rd and 6, Ben would go back to Holmes, this time for 13 yards and to the Pittsburgh 39. Now in no huddle, and the foot on the gas, Ben would hit wide receiver Nate Washington who took it 11 yards to the 50. The Steelers called their second timeout with 1:02 left in the game. Needing a big play, Ben went back to Holmes. He’d scramble and hit Holmes deep for 40 yards. The Steelers would have to use their last timeout with 49 seconds left. With 42 seconds left, Ben would once again face pressure by the Cardinals defensive line. Scrambling to the corner of the field, Ben threw the ball into triple coverage. What looked like an absolute disastrous mistake, would turn into one of the most iconic throws in Steelers history. All 3 Cardinal defenders would miss the ball, and it would find its way to Holmes in the far corner of the end zone. He’d catch the ball and keep both feet in. The Steelers completed the game-winning drive and would go up 27-23. The Cardinals would have a shot with Warner getting to the Pittsburgh 44, but on the last play of the game, Warner would be stripped and the Steelers would recover to secure the win. 

The Legacy of this game 

This is without question one of the most memorable Super Bowl victories of all time. It was the first and only Super Bowl for Steelers coach Mike Tomlin as a head coach. Legends were made in this game. Kurt Warner and Ben Roethlisberger both had Super Bowl victories, but this battle of future Hall of Famers has stuck with people more than Ben’s win over the Seahawks and “The Greatest Show on Turf.” But who benefited the most from this game was the receivers. Larry Fitzgerald’s 7 receptions, 127 yards, and 2 touchdowns made him a household name. And Santonio Holmes, the problematic receiver who caught 9 passes and had the game winning touchdown, would never eclipse 1,000 yards again in his career. 2009 was the pinnacle of his name, and without this game, nobody would know who Holmes is. As for James Harrison, with all the legendary defenders in the “Steel Curtain” history, James Harrison remains one of the franchises most popular players.