SUPER BOWLS XLI THROUGH XLIII
SUPER BOWL XLIII RETROSPECTIVE
STEEL CITY SIX PACK
Santonio Holmes caught a 6-yard touchdown pass in the back right corner of the end zone with 35 seconds left as the Steelers rallied to win their record sixth Super Bowl title. Holmes’ touchdown grab averted what would have been the largest comeback in Super Bowl history, as the Cardinals had scored 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.
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| Date | February 1, 2009 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Stadium | Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Santonio Holmes, Wide receiver | ||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Steelers by 7[1][2] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Terry McAulay | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 70,774[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Ceremonies | |||||||||||||||||||
| National anthem | Jennifer Hudson ASL translation by Kristen Santos | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coin toss | Gen. David Petraeus | ||||||||||||||||||
| Halftime show | Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band | ||||||||||||||||||
| TV in the United States | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | NBC | ||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Al Michaels, John Madden, Andrea Kremer and Alex Flanagan | ||||||||||||||||||
| Nielsen ratings | 42.0 (national)[4] 53.6 (Pittsburgh) 47.5 (Phoenix) US viewership: 98.7 million est. avg., 151.6 million est. total | ||||||||||||||||||
| Market share | 65 (national) 79 (Pittsburgh) 80 (Arizona)[5] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Cost of 30-second commercial | $2.4 million–$3 million [6][dead link] | ||||||||||||||||||
The Steelers began the game with a long drive. Ben Roethlisberger had a 1-yard touchdown run overturned by replay, and the Steelers settled for Jeff Reed’s 18-yard field goal. Holmes’ 25-yard catch began the next drive, and Gary Russell capped it with a 1-yard run for a 10-0 lead. Arizona responded immediately as Kurt Warner completed a 45-yard pass to Anquan Boldin to set up Ben Patrick’s touchdown catch. Karlos Dansby’s interception at the Steelers’ 34 with 2:00 left in the half gave the Cardinals the opportunity to take the lead.
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| Watched the game at a neighbor's house on Lake Geneva in DeWitt. |
On first-and-goal from the Steelers’ 1 with 18 seconds left in the half, James Harrison stepped in front of Warner’s quick-slant pass intended for Boldin. Harrison deftly maneuvered down the right sideline and raced 100 yards for a touchdown, barely breaking the plane as Steve Breaston and Larry Fitzgerald attempted to corral him. Harrison’s return ended the half, was the longest play in Super Bowl history, and gave the Steelers a 17-7 lead.
With 3:34 remaining, the Cardinals, faced with fourth-and-20 at the Steelers’ 36, punted. Ben Graham’s punt was downed by Mike Adams at the 2-yard line. A penalty pushed the Steelers back to the 1-yard line, and on third-and-10, Justin Hartwig was penalized for holding in the end zone. The safety cut the lead to 20-16 with 2:58 to play. Two plays later, Warner hit Fitzgerald with a short pass over the middle, and Fitzgerald raced untouched for a 64-yard touchdown and 23-20 lead with 2:37 remaining.
The Steelers began on their own 22-yard line, but a holding penalty pushed them back to their 12. On third-and-6 from their own 26 with 1:56 to play, Roethlisberger connected with Holmes on a 13-yard pass play. On second-and-6 from the Cardinals’ 46 with 1:02 to play, Roethlisberger found Holmes with a pass on the right side. Holmes slipped past one defender before being tackled at the 6-yard line. On second-and-goal, Roethlisberger’s pass to the back right corner appeared high, but Holmes stretched, kept both toes on the ground, and held on to the ball despite Aaron Francisco’s tight coverage. The touchdown capped an 8-play, 78-yard drive in 2:02, with the last eight plays covering 88 yards following the holding call.
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