Steelers earn Superbowl berth with win over Ravens

Despite the fact that they’ll be facing a team making their maiden Superbowl appearance, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been in plenty of them.  Pittsburgh reached their second Superbowl in four years and the seventh in team history by virtue of a 23-14 win over a gritty Baltimore Ravens team.  While Baltimore’s defense received all of the pre-game hype, the Steelers’ stop unit held the Ravens to just 198 yards of total offense.

Jeff Reed got the Steelers on the board first with a 34 yard FG at 11:22 of the first quarter and added another just over five minutes later to put his team up 6-0.  Early in the second period, Ben Roethlisberger hit Santonio Holmes on a big 65 yard pass play to increase the Steelers’ advantage to 13-0.  Baltimore finally got on the board late in the half as Willis McGahee ran one in from three yards out to cut the Steelers advantage to 13-7 at the break.

Reed would kick another FG for the only points of the third quarter, leaving the Steelers with a 16-7 advantage entering the final period.  McGahee would score his second TD of the game to cut the margin to 16-14.  Baltimore got the ball back and was driving for a potential go ahead score when Troy Polamalu unceremoniously killed the drama by intercepting Joe Flacco and returning the ball 42 yards the other way for a backbreaking touchdown that produced the final margin of victory.

After the game, Roethlisberger commented on the hard fought victory and budding rivalry between the Steelers and Ravens:

"It's always that way. This is always a 12-round slugfest. We always go at it. It's always violent from start to finish. I was ready when I took a knee at the end, you never know when somebody is going to fire off the ball."

The Steelers can become the only team in NFL history to win six Superbowl championships (Dallas and San Francisco have won five each), and at age 36 Mike Tomlin can become the youngest winning coach in league history.  After the game, Tomlin praised his team’s workmanlike approach:

"They did it tonight the way we've done it all year. We've got a very humble group, a very selfless group."

Pittsburgh and Arizona will face off on February 1 in Superbowl 43 at Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium.