The regulation football season ended today, and despite the Steeler’s best efforts, they will not be playing the postseason and will not get an attempt to defend their Super Bowl title.
Of course, our defense has had trouble closing out games all season, giving up fourth quarter leads to mediocre teams and the 5 game losing streak that included the Browns and Raiders was a large reason that we missed the playoffs.
And even on the other side of the country, there is a great sadness that emerged after today’s definitive end to the season for the Steelers. It’s an odd thing, to have – year after year – so much of your spirit and heart invested in something like a football team.
But somehow, as a byproduct of living in Pittsburgh for most of my life, I’ve attached myself to this team and this sport, more than any other team in any other sport. At some point (during high school or college? Or subconsciously before that?), I became a Steelers fan for life.
It’s tough to make sense of a season that showed such promise but somehow got sidetracked. It’s tough to admit the faults of something you believe in, to see the fallibility of those you put your faith in. It’s even tougher to put those feelings of anger and disappointment aside and realize that without the lows, the highs wouldn’t feel as good.
So, there’s always next year, eh? Six rings should keep us warm for a while.