Lake Fong, Post-Gazette Who could have imagined the morning after the Steelers lost to the Bengals Dec. 4 when the front page asked ominously -- Is the season over? -- that the Steelers would find themselves raising their arms in joy 63 days later in Detroit?

By Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette It kicked off in March in Maui when the Steelers' president proclaimed it was about time the team won a Super Bowl.

Maybe Art Rooney II should proclaim it's about time Pittsburgh's streets turn to gold or it's time the Pirates had a winning season. He seems to have the touch.

See an interactive, close-up look at the fan photos forming the Vince Lombardi Trophy photo montage above.

A Trophy Season Leaders of the pack: Five players that made a difference A Reporter's Essay: From the cradle ... to the grave Ten plays that defined a season: Fantastic highlights that turned super The Vince Lombardi Trophy and the Steelers Nation Steelers Fan Mailbag: All they want is a chance to say thank you Championship building blocks Editor's note: The coverage

In truth, why wouldn't Rooney think it was time, or anyone else who worked for the Steelers? They had gone 15-1 in 2004 and lost at home in another AFC championship game, and they actually improved themselves for 2005. They flirted so often either with getting to the Super Bowl or winning it since Bill Cowher became their coach in 1992 that surely sooner or later they were going to win one.

Rooney wanted sooner, not later. And he and everyone else were rewarded last Sunday with a fifth Vince Lombardi Trophy from a game played in Detroit before the largest group of fans for one team ever seen at a Super Bowl.

Like many things worth earning, this one did not come easily.

It began with a loss, a seemingly big one when Plaxico Burress, a 6-foot-5 receiver, departed to sign as a free agent with the New York Giants. The Steelers never made him an offer even though their rookie quarterback sensation made public pleas to keep him.

The Steelers signed their only outside free agent to replace Burress, 5-10 Cedrick Wilson, who caught 47 passes in the pathetic 49ers' 2004 offense.

The team would lose 40 percent of its starting offensive line in free agency -- guard Keydrick Vincent and tackle Oliver Ross -- along with a dynamic but oft-injured Kendrell Bell at inside linebacker.

None of it would matter.

Burress may have attracted more double teams early on, but the combination of Wilson and Antwaan Randle El proved more accountable and almost as productive in the big-play department. It took guard Kendall Simmons and tackle Max Starks more than half a season, but by the end they were playing as well as Vincent and Ross. Bell did not start a game in 2004 anyway and Larry Foote proved to be a more dependable linebacker if a less spectacular one. Foote, who started all 16 games for the injured Bell in 2004, led the team in tackles this season.

The Steelers had gained elsewhere. Ben Roethlisberger was 13-0 as the NFL rookie of the year at quarterback in '04, so the experience itself would make him better. Troy Polamalu and Chris Hope each had one year of experience starting at the two safety positions. The only change on defense came at cornerback, where young and fast Ike Taylor replaced aging Willie Williams.

Peter Diana, Post-Gazette Injuries allowed unheralded Willie Parker to step into the starting lineup. His speed allowed him to remain there. Click photo for larger image.

The problems began, really, in training camp. Hines Ward held out for two weeks, and things started to become bitter between him and the Steelers. Halfback Duce Staley and linebacker Joey Porter had knee surgery in August. Ben Roethlisberger played like Ben Stiller at quarterback in the preseason. Jerome Bettis' calf was injured in August.

Suddenly, the Steelers were down to their No. 3 halfback as their starter, an undrafted second-year player who could not start in college -- Willie Parker. And Cowher and coordinator Ken Whisenhunt huddled over what was going on with Roethlisberger.

The Steelers went 3-1 in the preseason, but their offense looked like a train wreck.

"I like this group of guys," Cowher said at the time, "but we are nowhere near where we need to be right now. We've got some work to do."

Ward ended his holdout and received the biggest signing bonus in Steelers history the week before the regular season.

"This is good for the team," said Bettis, who helped keep the communication lines open between Ward and the Steelers. "It keeps team morale up. Whenever you get a player of his caliber signed it shows the commitment the organization has to its players. I think it reinforces a positive message that, if you go out there and perform on the field, we'll take care of you. I think that makes a very, very conducive environment for us to go out there and work."

	Peter Diana, Post-Gazette It likely will be written that the Steelers' difficulty to call signals in November at Indianapolis helped them win there in January. Click photo for larger image.

That would become a theme for 2005 and would prompt Cowher to declare this group of players his closest team.

They began the regular season with a bang and Roethlisberger turned back into Big Ben. They crushed their first two opponents with the quarterback near perfect and the no-name halfback leading the conference with 273 yards rushing.

Their rematch back home against the two-time defending Super Bowl champions did not go as well, even though Roethlisberger engineered a 51-yard drive that tied the score with 1:21 left. The Patriots won, as usual, behind a Tom Brady drive that led to the winning field goal with one second left, 23-20.

"They're the Patriots," Ward said. "That's why they're champions. ... They just have Brady back there. He's the man. He's definitely the best in the league."

On to San Diego, where the Steelers were staring at 2-2. But Roethlisberger led them on two late drives and Jeff Reed's field goal with six seconds left produced a 24-22 victory. In the process, Roethlisberger's left knee was injured.

One big difference between 2004 and 2005 is that Roethlisberger missed four games this past season, and Oct. 16 would be his first. Tommy Maddox replaced him, lost a fumble and threw three interceptions, including one returned in overtime for Jacksonville's victory at Heinz Field.

"Sometimes you get the bear," defensive end Kimo von Oelhoffen said, "sometimes the bear gets you."

The Steelers and Roethlisberger bounced back with a stirring victory against the upstart and first-place Bengals in the AFC North the next week, and edged Baltimore back home to go 5-2. But it would be a costly victory against the Ravens.

Roethlisberger's right knee was injured. Doctors wanted to operate, but Roethlisberger resisted and asked to wait until after the season. He relented and had surgery Nov. 3 to remove cartilage.

"I always want to play," Roethlisberger said. "I want to be out there for the guys. I'm going to do everything I can to be healthy and be out there for them."

Roethlisberger missed three games, the Steelers won two with Charlie Batch at quarterback. But then he also was hurt. Tommy Maddox played in Baltimore and the Steelers lost in overtime.

Also during this period, the Steelers lost their Pro Bowl left tackle, Marvel Smith, who would miss three games and most of a fourth with sprained ankles and the line did not play as well without him.

Roethlisberger returned the next week. The Steelers lost again, in noisy Indianapolis to the unbeaten Colts, 26-7. This time, his thumb was sprained.

The Bengals came to town for a division showdown and came away crowing that the torch had been passed in the AFC North after they won, 38-31.

"It's time for a change," Cincinnati receiver Chad Johnson proclaimed. "It's like going from a black-and-white TV to a color TV. It was Pittsburgh; it's Cincinnati now and it'll probable be that way for a while now."

The Steelers had lost three in a row to slip to 7-5. They virtually lost the division title to the Bengals and needed to win their remaining four games to make the playoffs as a wild-card team -- provided they also got help along the way from other contenders that had to lose.

"I still think we're a good football team," Cowher declared.

And this from the pages of the Post-Gazette: "Their task is difficult yet clear: If they win their next seven games, they likely will play in the Super Bowl."

Right. And donkeys will one day rule the Earth. Actually, unknown to the public at the time, Cowher talked to his players about Christopher Columbus defying the skeptics and finding a New World. He also erased all mention of their previous 12 games and told them to go out and win one. They did, as Bettis ran over All-Pro linebacker Brian Urlacher and the Chicago Bears with 100 yards in the second half of a 21-9 victory in the snow.

Win one more. They did, indoors, 18-3, against Minnesota.

Win one more, and this was easy, on Christmas Eve, 41-0, in Cleveland.

One more, at home, against the pathetic Detroit Lions in Bettis' last game at Heinz Field. After falling behind, 14-7, the Steelers pulled it out, 35-21, and with it the dubious honor of having the sixth seed in the playoffs. They had to win all three on the road to reach the Super Bowl, something only one team had ever done. Christopher Columbus? More like Goodbye, Columbus.

First stop, Cincinnati, passing Columbus, Ohio, along the way.

"Bring 'em on. I can't wait," defensive end Brett Keisel said. "I like playing against Cincinnati. I think we have something to prove."

They fell behind in Cincinnnati, 10-0, but von Oelhoffen's hit knocked Carson Palmer out of the game with a severe knee injury on the Bengals' second play from scrimmage. The Steelers wore down replacement Jon Kitna in the second half to win, 31-17.

That set up another dubious reward: At Indianapolis against Peyton Manning and Co.

Cowher would call their loss in Indianapolis Nov. 28 one of the most fortuitous results of the season because his team was better prepared this time for the noise, using a silent snap count.

The end of that game already is embedded in Steelers lore with The Fumble by Bettis, The Tackle by Roethlisberger and The Miss by kicker Mike Vanderjagt. The Steelers, 10-point underdogs, upset the Colts, 21-18, and rolled into Denver for the AFC title game more confident than a Kodiak scooping salmon. They played their best game in weeks and won, 34-17.

Columbus could see land, the Steelers were headed to the Super Bowl.

"The toughest route they said to take was the scenic route, and that ended up being the best route for us," declared linebacker Joey Porter.

One more win, one for the ages after 26 years without a Super Bowl victory.

Bettis went home, Ward went to the top of the charts, Cowher finally found his promised land and Pittsburgh ruled the football world again.

"We're so proud to bring it back to Pittsburgh," Dan Rooney said.

At 7-5, Detroit wasn't even on the radar. Skeptics wondered if the Steelers would even make the playoffs let alone play deep into January. Then Bill Cowher enrolled his team in History 101 and suddenly a whole new world opened before them.