Following a close overtime victory over the New York Jets, the Pittsburgh Steelers hosted the New England Patriots in the 2004 AFC Championship Game. The two teams had met the previous Halloween where the Steelers had ended New England's 21-game winning streek. At 16-1 the Steelers felt supremely confident in their ability to defeat the 15-2 Patriots.
But the Patriots, who had defeated the Steelers in two previous playoff matchups, came with a determination and the firepower to avenge the Halloween loss. Steelers sensation Ben Roethlisberger had been shaky in his playoff performance against the Jets, and the Patriots exploited that shakiness right away by picking off one of his first passes. They also stopped running back Jerome Bettis, who'd hinted at possible retirement after the season, on downs and raced to a 10-0 lead. A Steelers field goal was answered by a Patriots drive ending in a nine-yard screen pass touchdown from Tom Brady to David Givens, and bad went to worse for the Steelers as they drove down field but a Roethlisberger pass was picked off by Rodney Harrison, who ran it back for a back-breaking touchdown.
The demoralized Steelers nonetheless managed a pair of touchdowns in the second half, but the Patriots never let them back into the game and raced to a 41-20 lead in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, leaving a devastated Steelers team and fanbase grasping futilely at some hope of a comeback while also pondering whether Bettis or coach Bill Cowher would return.
