Football is a game of offense vs. defense. This is typically where games are won or lost, but that is not always the case. Special teams often play an enormous role in the outcome of a game. For years Steelers fans have been all too aware of the importance of special teams. In fact, it can be successfully argued that poor special teams had a hand in eliminating the Steelers from the playoffs no less than three times during the Bill Cowher era. It is also not a strange coincidence that whenever the Steelers finally got serious about special teams, the team won its first Super Bowl in 26 years. This week the America Loves Countdowns® series will take a look at the best special teams plays in Steelers history while taking time to examine the worst plays as well.

Josh Miller Goes Out in Style (2003)
The final game of the 2003 season was perhaps the most miserable football game I’ve ever watched. The Steelers were closing out a terrible season while the Ravens were trying (unsuccessfully) to get The Drug Dealer the single season rushing record. The Steelers offense could do nothing all night, but the special teams pulled off a memorable fake punt which had punter Josh Miller throwing a pass to safety Chris Hope, who went 81 yards for the team’s only touchdown. After the Steelers unceremoniously dumped Miller following the season, he said that he could always take comfort in the fact that he threw one of the longest touchdown passes in Steelers history during his final game with the team.

Roy Jefferson Embarasses the Cardinals (1968)
In a game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Steelers kick returner Roy Jefferson broke thru at least 7 tackles on his way to an 80 yard punt return score. Just about all 11 players on the Cardinals punt coverage team had a hand on him at some point during the return, but Jefferson scored anyway. The play was so amazing that it was named one of the 50 greatest touchdowns in league history by NFL Films.

The Fake Reverse Return (1997)
Steelers WR Will Blackwell always amazed me. The guy never did anything significant but remained on the team for several years. Even after he was cut, he still practiced with the Steelers receivers and he somehow got into the Playboy Super Bowl party. He was a total groupie! In a 1997 at Baltimore, Blackwell had his one shining moment. The Steelers were down 24-7 when Blackwell faked a reverse on the opening kickoff of the second half and was gone for a 97 yard touchdown. It turned the course of the game and led to the biggest comback in Steelers history.

The Mulligan (2002)
In what would soon become one of the most bizzare endings ever, the Steelers lined up to kick the game-winning field goal in overtime of a game against Cleveland. The kick was blocked by the Browns but recovered by the Steelers. Because the ball did not advance past the line of scrimmage and because the Steelers had kicked on 3rd down, they got to kick again! It was essentially a do-over, like a mulligan in golf. On the second attempt, the Steelers kicked the field goal and won the game. It was a huge win too, as their record was 0-2 at the time and a loss may have very well killed that entire season.

Jeff Reed Shows Doug Brien How It’s Done (2004)
In the 2004 AFC Divisional Playoffs between the Steelers and Jets, kicker Doug Brien missed two field goals in the final minutes which would have given New York the upset victory at Heinz Field. In overtime, Steelers kicker Jeff Reed had his shot at winning the game. He did what his counterpart could not do, drilling a 33 yarder to send the Steelers to the AFC Championship Game. It was one of only two times in Steelers history that they won a playoff game on a field goal.

An Ugly Play Turns Into Gold (1978)
The Steelers had just taken a 28-17 lead against the Cowboys in Super Bowl XIII when PK Roy Gerela slipped on the ensuing kickoff. Instead of driving the ball deep into Dallas territory, Gerela’s kick bounced along the turf and was picked up by LB Randy White, who was one of the upbacks on the Dallas return team. The Cowboys were about to have great field position, but Tony Dungy hit White and jarred the ball loose. Dirt Winston recovered the fumble, and all of a sudden the Steelers could smell the kill. One play later Terry Bradshaw hit Lynn Swann on a beautiful touchdown pass to put the Steelers up by 18. Dallas never recovered and the Steelers won their third Super Bowl thanks in big part to a play that could have been disastorous.

Jack Lambert Has Enough (1975)
The flashy Cowboys were outplaying the Steelers in the first half of Super Bowl X, and things got even worse for Pittsburgh when kicker Roy Gerela missed a yard field goal. Dallas’ Cliff Harris ran up beside Gerela as he walked off the field to tap him on the helmet and “congratulate” him on blowing the kick. LB Jack Lambert, who was on the field goal team, saw this and became enraged. He came up behind Harris and threw him to the ground. The game was all Pittsburgh after that. I know – this really wasn’t a “play”, but it was so significant. It not only got the Steelers fired up in that game, but it also defined everything that was different about those two teams, and why it was so great to see the blue-collar Steelers say “enough is enough” to the Cowboys and their cocky “America’s Team” image.

The Best Opening Kickoff Ever (1982)
No NFL post-season game has ever gotten off to a wilder start than the 1982 AFC first round playoff game between the Steelers and Chargers at Three Rivers Stadium. San Diego kick returner James Brooks bobbled the opening kickoff and Steelers rookie Guy Ruff pounced on it in the endzone to take a 7-0 lead just 12 seconds into the game (to this day, that remains an NFL record for quickest score to begin a post-season game). Amazingly, Brooks then fumbled the ensuing kickoff as well before finally falling on it inside his own 5 yard line. Ironically, the Chargers calmed down after that and would go on to win the game 31-28.

The Super Bowl Surprise Onside (1995)
The Steelers had just cut the Dallas lead to 20-10 in the second half of Super Bowl XXX and were preparing to kickoff when Bill Cowher and special teams coach Bobby April decided to make the gutsiest calls in Super Bowl history. They would try a surprise onside kick. If it failed, Dallas would have had great field position and probably would have iced the game right there. PK Norm Johnson angled the kick towards the sidelines and CB Deon Figures – who had barely played all season – picked up the football. The Cowboys never saw it coming, and the Steelers fed off of the momentum to score a touchdown. They would have completed the comeback if not for — well, you know the rest of that story already. That onside kick will still go down as an all-time great gamble. NFL Films even caught some audio of the refs coming over to the sidelines to tell Cowher how impressed they were by that play.

Gary Automatic Silences the House of Pain (1989)
The Steelers began the 1989 season by getting trounced by a combined score of 92-10 in their first two games, but they would claw their way back to squeeze into the playoffs with a 9-7 record. In the AFC Wild Card game, they had to travel to Houston to take on a team that had beaten them twice already that season and to play in a dome where the home team almost always won. The two teams battled into overtime, where a Rod Woodson fumble recovery set up Gary Anderson for a 51 yard field goal attempt. Anderson made it look like an extra point, calmly drilling it right down the middle. The Oilers and their fans were devastated, while the Steelers had one of their greatest upsets.

Honorable Mentions:

• The Fight (1996): Steelers punter Shayne Edge got into a fight with the Houston Oilers following a safety in his own endzone. Punches were thrown and Edge was ejected from the game. When your punter gets into a fight, you can be certain that it will immediately become the stuff of legend.
• Saving the Comeback (2002): In the 2002 AFC Wild Card Playoffs, the Steelers pulled off one of the greatest wins in franchise history, twice erasing a 17-point deficit to shock the Browns at Heinz Field. But that comeback would have not been possible had it not been for a brilliant 66 yard punt return score by Antwaan Randle El early in the game. It was the team’s only offense of the entire first half. Had they been down 24-0 in the 3rd quarter, that great comeback would have been unlikely.
• Squib of Good Fortune (1974): Nursing a 2-0 lead, the Steelers kicked off to open the 3rd quarter of Super Bowl IX. Roy Gerella’s unintentional squib kick was fumbled by Minnesota and the Steelers recovered. The play eventually led to their first TD of the game.
• The Rarest Play in Steelers History (1957): In a 1957 game against the Chicago Cardinals, Bob O’Neill returned a blocked field goal 73 yards for a touchdown. Why is that significant? Because 50 years, 5 world championships, and many great teams later, no one has ever returned a blocked FG for a touchdown again.
• Mike Vander-Choke (2005): I didn’t want to include missed field goals by other teams on this list since I was trying to focus more on plays made by the Steelers rather than mistakes by their opponents. However, when the most accurate kicker in the history of the league shanks a field goal so far to the right of the post to blow a playoff game and give the Steelers a shocking upset in the wildest ending of all-time, then it at least deserves an honorable mention.