The Pittsburgh Steelers still remember how amazing Super Bowl XLIII was. It was one of the greatest games of football ever played, and it had everything in it. Defensive Player of the Year James Harrison broke the record for longest play in Super Bowl history with a 100-yard pick-six, and Santonio Holmes capped it off with a legendary toe-tap touchdown to win the game, which led to him winning MVP of the big game. There may never be a contest like that one ever again.
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Santonio Holmes runs with the football during Super Bowl XLIII
Holmes was a massive part of that final drive, even before he won the game. He caught four passes on that one drive alone, as he got them most of the way down the field. That also includes a 40-yard catch-and-run to get Pittsburgh to the six-yard-line, where the go-ahead touchdown was eventually thrown. There was no doubt that he deserved MVP of the Super Bowl.
That almost never happened, as disaster nearly struck before that. While making an appearance on Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger, Holmes explained to Ben Roethlisberger what happened during his big catch-and-run to set up the eventual score.
"When I felt [the defender] hit that ball -- and still to this day, I feel that cringe of me almost fumbling that football," Holmes said. "I still feel that cringe. When I see that on film and I'm watching, I'm like, 'Ooh, like man, that could have been bad.'"
Safety Aaron Francisco was able to save the touchdown, and he almost knocked the ball out to outright win the game for the Arizona Cardinals and record their first Super Bowl victory in franchise history. Luckily, Holmes was able to just hang on and give the Steelers first-and-goal. Nobody remembers that tackle anymore, but it might have been the play of the game if the ball did come loose.
If he did lose the ball on that play, Holmes' legacy would have done a complete 180. Instead of being remembered as a hero and a beloved leader, he would be seen in the same light as Rashard Mendenhall, who fumbled away Super Bowl XLV as the Steelers eventually lost to the Green Bay Packers. Now, everyone can just laugh about that moment with the Lombardi Trophy in hand.
Steelers.com
Steelers' Mike Tomlin looks on before Super Bowl XLIII.
Holmes still cringing makes perfect sense though. Even though he didn't actually cost the Steelers the contest, that's still a very scary moment. The thought of what could have been would haunt anyone in that scenario, let alone a world-class athlete. As many people still cringe about what they've done in the past -- whether that matters to today or not -- the receiver still hates the thought of what he almost did.
Steelers Have Had History Of Game-Losing Fumbles In Key Situations
There was the aforementioned Super Bowl fumble where Mendenhall lost the ball. It was in the fourth quarter while the Steelers had a chance to march down the field and take the lead. However, that ended up being the third turnover of the game for Pittsburgh as nothing was going right for them offensively. They eventually went on to lose by six points, so that fumble did make a big difference.
In 2015, the Steelers were in a tough battle with the Denver Broncos despite missing so many key players. It was a real back-and-forth game until running back Fitzgerald Toussaint coughed the ball up. Denver was able to score off of that and never look back as Pittsburgh ended up losing by just seven points in what was an amazing battle.
A lot of this should be expected, however. For a team that constantly makes the playoffs and is tied for the league lead in Super Bowl victories, there are always some bad times that come with it. They are one of the lucky ones that have multiple Lombardi trophies to help soothe the sting of the mistakes from previous failures. Holmes got to be on the good side of that.
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