It was one of the more consequential plays in Super Bowl history. The Arizona Cardinals had the ball at first and goal with 18 seconds left in the first half of Super Bowl XLIII. They were down three points, and, at worst, looked to go into the locker room tied.
Then, James Harrison happened.
The Steelers linebacker dropped back into coverage and intercepted Kurt Warner’s pass before taking the ball 100 yards the other way for a touchdown. The massive swing in points and momentum was why the Steelers won, 27–23. But amid the 100-yard scamper to the end zone, it’s easy to overlook Larry Fitzgerald’s effort to make the tackle. He was so close to saving the game for Arizona.
Former Cardinals offensive coordinator Todd Haley blames one guy … Antrel Rolle.
Fitzgerald had more than enough speed to catch Harrison, but as we can see, his pursuit was impeded when Fitzgerald bumped into Rolle on the sideline. Had Rolle been standing back, Fitzgerald likely makes the tackle. It’s a great sports “what if?” and Haley hasn’t gotten over it.
He said:
“Larry makes one of the all-time Super Bowl plays if Antrel Rolle’s not standing in the way. And I love Antrel, I’m sorry, but you’re supposed to stand where you’re supposed to stand.”
Fitzgerald made a similar joke at the end of the video, but behind every joke, there’s a bit of honesty. It’s been 10 years, and they still understandably aren’t over that play.
