Steel City Blitz
After the Pittsburgh Steelers became part of the NFL in 1933, they played the Green Bay Packers regularly until the 1970 merger. At the time they joined the league, Green Bay and Chicago were the giants of pro football. The Same Old Steelers lost the first 12 contests against the Packers.
At the time of the merger, they had a more respectable 7-18 record. Since the merger, the Steelers have won 10 and lost 5. The teams’ record of games played in Pittsburgh is tied at 9-9 while the only time they met post regular season, the Steelers lost Super Bowl XLV 31-25.
The Steelers entered the 1998 season following a disappointing 21-24 loss in the AFC Championship game the previous year.
They used their first draft pick on Alan Faneca. Hines Ward followed in the third, Deshea Townsend in the fourth and Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala in the sixth. All would contribute to the team in the years ahead.
The Packers had made it to the previous two Super Bowls. They beat the Patriots 35-21 in Super Bowl XXXI and lost 31-24 to the Broncos the following season. They were hoping to win their fourth straight division title.
The Steelers 41-31 loss to the Tennessee Oilers in week 9 saw them slip behind Jacksonville in the AFC Central standings. Their aim of winning their fifth straight division title took a hit and they needed to beat the Packers to get back on track.
Coach Cowher blamed the Oilers defeat on “Poor tackling and poor technique.” He acknowledged, “That was uncharacteristic of our football team because the one thing we’ve always done well is tackle.”
The (5-3) Steelers vs (6-2) Packers; November 9, 1998
The Steelers certainly showed they meant business, scoring on their first two possessions. Kordell Stewart led the team on a 9-play drive of 85 yards which included a third down pass of 53 yards to Courtney Hawkins. Charles Johnson’s 8-yard touchdown catch, and Norm Johnson’s extra point opened the scoring.
After Green Bay missed a 51-yard field goal attempt, Stewart directed the team on a drive of 59 yards. On the ninth play, Stewart took it over with a 1-yard run for the touchdown to extend the Steelers advantage.
In the second quarter, the Steelers continued to control the game as their defense kept their opponents quiet. Johnson kicked a field goal from 45 yards before Stewart oversaw another scoring drive. His third down pass of 45 yards to Hines Ward extended a series which finished with a 5-yard touchdown run from Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala. The Steelers went into the locker room at the half 24-0 ahead.
As Green Bay attempted to come back at the start of the second half, Dewayne Washington’s interception brought it to an abrupt halt.
The teams exchanged field goals before the game went into the final period. Johnson was successful from 21 yards before Ryan Longwell kicked one from 42 yards.
As the Steelers were leading by twenty four points and the game...
