2005 Pittsburgh Steelers season

2005 Pittsburgh Steelers season
OwnerThe Rooney Family
General managerKevin Colbert
Head coachBill Cowher
Home fieldHeinz Field
Results
Record11–5
Division place2nd AFC North
Playoff finishWon Wild Card Playoffs
(at Bengals) 31–17
Won Divisional Playoffs
(at Colts) 21–18
Won AFC Championship
(at Broncos) 34–17
Won Super Bowl XL
(vs. Seahawks) 21–10
Pro Bowlers
5
AP All-Pros
3
Team MVPCasey Hampton
Hines Ward
Team ROYHeath Miller
The defending champion New England Patriots playing at the eventual Super Bowl champion Steelers, September 25, 2005

The 2005 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 73rd season as a professional sports franchise and as a member of the National Football League (NFL). It was the 6th season under the leadership of general manager Kevin Colbert and the 14th under head coach Bill Cowher. The Steelers failed to improve upon their 15–1 record from 2004 and in 2005, the Steelers struggled. At one point, they were 7–5 and in danger of missing the playoffs but rose to defeat the Chicago Bears on December 11 and started a four-game win streak to finish the season at 11–5.

The Steelers qualified for the playoffs as a wild-card team as the #6 seed and became just the second team ever (and the first in 20 years) to win three games on the road after they beat the #3 seed Cincinnati Bengals (11–5),[1] the top-seeded Indianapolis Colts (14–2),[2] and the #2 seed Denver Broncos (13–3) to become the American Football Conference representative in Super Bowl XL.[3][4] They defeated the NFC champion Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XL to secure their league-tying fifth Super Bowl title.[5][6] In doing so, they also became the only team at the time since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger to win a Super Bowl without playing a single home playoff game; though the New York Giants would repeat the feat two years later.[7]

  1. ^ Labriola, Bob (June 23, 2008). "2005 AFC Wild Card Game". www.steelers.com. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  2. ^ "Steelers survive as Colts' attempt to tie sails wide". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on February 12, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  3. ^ Isherwood, Mark (January 16, 2006). "Steelers overcome adversity to reach AFC Championship game". KUSA.com. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  4. ^ Labriola, Bob (June 23, 2008). "2005 AFC Championship Game". www.steelers.com. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  5. ^ Flaherty, Dan (June 13, 2014). "The Story Of The 2005 Pittsburgh Steelers". thesportsnotebook.com. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  6. ^ Signorelli, Nick (May 12, 2009). "2005 Pittsburgh Steelers: One For The Thumb, Finally". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  7. ^ Defeo, Anthony (July 2, 2015). "The '05 Steelers were no Cinderella team". Behind the Steel Curtain. Retrieved July 18, 2022.