December 15, 2024
The Steelers have not beaten the Eagles in Philadelphia since 1965. The defining Eagles-Steelers moment to me will always be Hines Ward taunting Terrell Owens in Pittsburgh back in 2004, but when the pseudo-rivalry shifts to Southeastern Pennsylvania, the Birds get the best of them.
Ahead of Sunday's late-afternoon kickoff in South Philly, here are five great Eagles-Steelers moments from over the last two-plus decades...
When thinking about the archetypal big, bruising NFL running back, Jerome Bettis might be the first player who comes to mind. The Hall of Fame back had one of the most hilarious stat lines in NFL history in 2004: five carries for one yard and three touchdowns. That says it all.
Back in 2000 at old Three Rivers Stadium, Brian Dawkins had a complete textbook, Bus-stopping hit on Bettis:
Brian Dawkins hit stick on Jerome Bettis 😨
— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) July 15, 2022
(🎥: FOX) pic.twitter.com/SSE01knWiY
Dawkins had just one Pro Bowl nod to his name at that point and was in his age-27 season. He would keep on rising from there and go on to a Hall of Fame career of his own.
From that same game in 2000, the Eagles found out just how valuable David Akers could be as a kicker.
The Eagles, sitting at 6-4 and hoping for their first playoff berth in five seasons and their first of the Andy Reid-Donovan McNabb era, were in a rough spot. They were trailing 23-13 with under four minutes remaining in the game.
After McNabb hit Brian Mitchell for a touchdown to cut it to a 23-20 game with 2:29 on the clock, Akers executed a clutch-as-anything onside kick that the Eagles recovered.
The Birds, with life and the ball, marched down the field as Akers hit a 42-yard field goal to send things to overtime. In OT, Akers made yet another 42-yard field goal to give the Birds the win, moving them to 7-4. The Eagles would finish the season 11-5 and make the postseason.
If you're really trying to kill time before 4:25 PM, you can watch this whole game on YouTube...
When the Steelers came to Lincoln Financial Field in 2008, Dawkins was still on the Birds, flying around as he always did, making huge plays. He did his best Wolverine impression with this strip sack on Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger:
#Steelers Week!
— All About The Birds (@AATBirds) December 11, 2024
2008: @BrianDawkins with the leaping strip sack and FR on Big Ben! #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/plw6TGu432
The Eagles would win the game 15-6 and move to 2-1 in a season in which they reached the NFC Championship Game.
"Wentzylvania" was going wild for Carson Wentz during his rookie season in 2016. Wentz looked like a true franchise quarterback early when the 2-0 Eagles hosted the Steelers. In the 34-3 beatdown in Week 3, Wentz threw for two touchdowns, including this one to veteran fan favorite running back Darren Sproles:
DARREN SPROLES APPRECIATION TWEET ❕❕
— Eagles Nation (@PHLEaglesNation) May 4, 2020
Ohhhh what a time! The Eagles in Carson Wentz and Doug Pederson’s rookie year, pull off the upset as the in-state rival Steelers came to town.
Sproles doing what he’s done for years catching the rock and hitting the moves. 🏃🏾♂️💨💨💨💨💨 pic.twitter.com/KZBRZMMHtk
That's a perfect touch pass on the run from Wentz. Sproles was so elite as a back in the passing game, nabbing the ball on a wheel route and then proceeding to make the Pittsburgh defense look silly on the 73-yard TD.
The Birds would falter down the stretch in 2016, but that early success would prove beneficial when rolling over the Eagles' Super Bowl-winning season the following year.
This one is still fresh in Eagles fans' memory. Two years ago, A.J. Brown had himself a day against Pittsburgh, totaling 156 yards and three touchdowns in the 35-13 blowout victory. The biggest highlight of the afternoon was Brown hauling in a TD between two Steelers defenders, who collided in their futility:
HIM#PITvsPHI | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/iPzJw3GsnF
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) October 30, 2022
The finger-pointing after at the DBs was the icing on the cake in an emphatic win.
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