FANS STEEL THE SHOW AT HISTORIC PITTSBURGH WIN IN DUBLIN
By Stiofán Mac Fhilib
History was made in Dublin when the ‘home’ team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, took down the Minnesota Vikings 24-21 in a game that wasn’t decided until the final ten seconds. A crowd of 74,512 at Ireland’s national stadium for Gaelic games, Croke Park, were treated to a remarkable spectacle in Ireland’s first-ever regular-season NFL game.
The Rooney family, owners of the Steelers since their inception in 1933, moved to the USA from Newry. Co. Down in the 19th century. Dan Rooney, the son of Art Rooney Sr., who founded the franchise, served as the US Ambassador to Ireland from 2009 to 2012, and was also heavily involved in philanthropic work throughout the island. The current owner, Dan’s son, Art Rooney II, was keen to honour his family’s legacy and bring the Steelers to Ireland for the first NFL International Series game on the island.
Head Coach, Mike Tomlin, explained after the game that “we talked a lot about the late, great ambassador Rooney last night. I know he’s smiling at us today. It’s just an honour to fulfil his vision, to bring NFL football to Dublin”.
DT, Cam Heyward, added, “I could tell Art Rooney was very excited about this game. He was carrying around his hurling stick, and he was explaining that sacred ground we got to play in and the importance of this game to the family. I think that resonates with a lot of our players”.
For GAA fans among the vast crowd, there were a few familiar nods to Irish sporting culture. The Artane Band played before the game, though with some more modern tunes in lieu of the traditional Irish country songs for which they are better known. And the Irish national anthem, Amhrán na bhFiann, was sung before kickoff, though in a more theatrical and American style, by Cork performer Lyra.
These games are an excellent opportunity for fans of all NFL teams here to see their favourite sport live. As always, there was a smattering of shirts from fans of teams across the league. But there were Terrible Towels in abundance, and it was clear that the ‘home’ team would have the appropriate advantage.
The crowd was loud and raucous, especially with the Steelers on defense. The false start and delay of game penalties on the Vikings were a testament to that. Star Pittsburgh LB, TJ Watt, noted after the game that “to be able to get a team on a silent count on the road, even though technically it was a home game for us, it was massive. I was so impressed with the fans knowing when to cheer, especially when we were on defense. It was huge for us, and that definitely gave us an edge today”.
QB, Aaron Rodgers was effusive in his praise for the fans and the entire occasion. “I thought the atmosphere was outstanding. I come out early. In most NFL stadiums, there’s two hours when the stadium opens, and it starts to trickle in. Somebody came back in the locker room at like 11:00 and goes, man, there’s a ton of people out there already. I was like, yeah, we’re not in the States anymore. This is a different type of fan.
I loved it. I thought the crowd was fantastic. A lot of terrible towels there, but I felt like there was probably some good old Irish getting in the mix too waving those towels around a little bit. The music was great. The fans were cool. The field was pristine. I thought the field was really, really good. Conditions were good.
We had a nice sunny Irish day. I feel like a normal Irish day is overcast and drizzling. I thought it was extra, extra nice today. The whole experience was fantastic. Shout out to the country and everybody who made this happen. Win or lose, I would have said the same thing. I just felt like the reception from the people here was outstanding”.
‘Sweet Caroline’, a staple of the International Series games in Europe, got its airing at the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter. But it was at the end of the third quarter that the famous old stadium was at its loudest, as the Cranberries belted out Zombie, with some assistance from most of those in attendance. As Cam Heyward observed, it did not go unnoticed by the players on the field. “When they were playing Zombie and watching everybody just into it, that was really fun. And everybody was into every song, and you could just feel the energy behind everybody there. I don’t think it mattered if you were a Steeler fan or a Viking fan, that crowd was electric today”.
For such a historic occasion, NFL history at least was not on Pittsburgh’s side. The Vikings arrived in Dublin with a perfect 4-0 all-time record in the International Series. The Steelers were not only 0-1, but that loss itself came at the hands of the Vikings, at Wembley back in 2013.
That said, the last time the Vikings had run onto the field of conflict in Dublin was the Battle of Clontarf in 1014. That did not end well for them either. And while Aaron Rodgers may not be High King of Ireland, Brian Boru, he too sent the men from the north home empty-handed, leaving the poor Vikings 0-2 in Dublin in the last 1,011 years!
And yet it started well for the visiting team. Rodgers’ welcome to Ireland was a loss of eight yards on a sack on the game’s opening play, as the Steelers went three and out and punted. Vikings kicker Will Reichard then had the honour of notching the first regular-season NFL points in Ireland with a 41-yard FG on their first drive.
Pittsburgh then took over. The first TD on Irish soil went to RB Kenneth Gainwell, from a yard out. He would add a second near the end of the third quarter, and he finished the day just one yard shy of a 100-yard game. Certainly, his QB had high praise for him afterwards. “If you’re a football fan, you know who he is, and you followed his career. It seemed like every time he went in the game, for me as a football fan with Philly, I was like, man, this guy is really good. He should get more touches. When I came here, I knew what kind of player he was. I tell him all the time he’s an absolute baller”.
The play that brought the stadium to its feet came early in the second quarter. Dropping back from his own 20, Rodgers found DK Metcalf on a deep crossing route at the 35. The receiver continued towards the sideline, past two Vikings defenders, before turning towards the endzone for the 80-yard score.
That gave the Steelers a 14-3 lead and set up a dramatic final two minutes of the half, which ultimately played a huge role in the final result. With 1:42 remaining, Pittsburgh missed the field goal attempt that would have given them a two-touchdown advantage. The Vikings marched down into Steelers territory, and with a minute to go, Wentz found Justin Jefferson wide open inside the 15. A touchdown and a ten-point swing in less than sixty seconds seemed certain.
However, the receiver lost his footing, was tackled at the 13 and Minnesota had to settle for a field goal. That slip, and those four points lost, would ultimately decide their fate. Small margins indeed.
When Chris Boswell’s 33-yard FG made it 24-6 Pittsburgh with 11:18 remaining in the fourth, the Vikings’ hopes seemed over. Wentz and co., however, disagreed. A 70-yard drive ended with a 16-yard TD pass to Zavier Scott at the back of the end zone, with a two-point conversion to narrow the margin to ten with just under eight minutes to play.
Rodgers then led the Steelers down to the Vikings’ 3-yard line and a crucial fourth-down decision. Tomlin eschewed the chance of a FG and a 13-point lead to instead try to end the game with a TD and a 17-point advantage. The choice of a run off left tackle perhaps surprised fans, but the Vikings defense was ready, and they took over on downs at their own 1 with 4:09 to play.
Three plays later, Wentz found Jordan Addison even more wide open than Jefferson was in the first half, and the Minnesota receiver was only just tackled a yard short of the end zone. That merely delayed the inevitable, however, and on fourth down, Wentz found Jalen Nailor for the two-yard score, just before the two-minute warning. That narrowed the gap to just three.
All hinged on the ensuing onside kick, which the Steelers recovered easily. But unable to secure the single first down needed to close out the game, they had to punt one last time, giving the visitors their final opportunity, with just over a minute of play left.
Wentz’s first pass attempt was picked off but subsequently ruled incomplete. However, fierce Steelers pressure forced him to throw the ball away, nowhere near a receiver, and the deadly trifecta of a 16-yard penalty, loss of down, and loss of ten seconds on the clock runoff all but extinguished the Vikings’ hopes.
When Wentz’s fourth down pass fell incomplete with eight seconds to go, the Terrible Towels could wave in triumph one last time, before their fans made the long – or perhaps not so long – trek home to Pittsburgh, Portlaoise or Portrush.
So, the victorious Steelers move to 3-1 and can now look forward to a bye week before taking on the Browns at home. Meanwhile, the 2-2 Vikings have to pack up and head across the Irish Sea ahead of next week’s clash at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where, coincidentally, the Browns are also the road team.
Fans in Britain have had at least one regular-season NFL game on their soil every year (bar 2020 and Covid) since 2007. What was once a dream for fans in Ireland finally became a reality, and after the huge success of this game, their hope is for more to come.
STIOFÁN MAC FHILIB
COLLEGE FOOTBALL ANALYST
A VERY LONG-DISTANCE SUBWAY ALUMNUS OF NOTRE DAME, COUNTY ANTRIM-BASED STIOFÁN HAS BEEN A FAN OF THE FIGHTING IRISH SINCE 2000. FOLLOW HIM ON TWITTER @SMACFHILIB.