Steelers Best Color Rush Moments

Story by Yinzer Crazy Steelers Contributor Jayson Erwin. Follow him on Twitter @JaysonErwin2002

It has been announced by the Steelers that they will be wearing their color rush jerseys against the Bengals in their Sunday night game. The Bengals will also be wearing their black and white jerseys. This game is about to look beautiful! Now I may be biased here but the Steelers have the best color rush jerseys in the league. The true black color makes them look intimidating and the pure yellow gives them a little extra pop. Many people across the league agree that the Steelers color rush is one of the best in the league. But does the jersey change how the Steelers play? As silly as it sounds, that may be the case. The Steelers are 7-1 when wearing the uniforms and often wear them for more than Thursday night games. Sometimes the color rush jerseys will be dawned in the biggest game of the year to give them an extra boost. From division winners, to sheer domination, let's take a look at the best and craziest moments from each game the Steelers donned the magnificent jersey from 2021 to previous years. 

2021: vs. Chicago Bears: "The Taunt"

The Steelers were 4-3 and up against the 3-5 Bears with rookie QB Justin Fields leading the Bears offense. The Steelers were playing well and were up 20-6 at one point. But the Bears would rally and be down 26-20 late in the 4th quarter. 3rd down and 8 at the Bears 47-yard line, and QB Ben Roethlisberger would get sacked by former Steeler Cassius Marsh. As punter Pressley Harvin marched on the field, a flag was thrown, and it was on the man who got the sack, Marsh. They called him for taunting -- and it granted the Steelers a first down in a crucial play that would've gotten the Bears the ball back. Now the Steelers are in field goal range and a 3-pointer would put the Steelers up by 2 scores. The footage for the taunt was played and it showed Marsh looking at Harvin and...yeah, that's it. That's all he did. People across the league were shocked and disgruntled at the call, especially the Bears. It was likely the call that won the Steelers the game 29-27. A controversial call in a controversial game. But hey, at least with the Steelers wearing the color rush jerseys, they put "fashion" in "winning in controversial fashion". 

2020: vs. Baltimore Ravens: "Snell Yeah!"

No, I can't put Trace McSorley's first career touchdown pass on this list. Believe me, I would love to because he threw it on a dime without even trying. But this list is about the Steelers. Now for anyone who knows Marcus Peters, you know he loves to talk trash. But what's better than a cocky rival player getting humbled? Exactly, nothing. Up 19-14 against the Ravens with less than 3 minutes to go, the Steelers did an excellent job chewing the clock down. With 2:16 to go, Roethlisberger handed the ball off to Benny Snell and he ran to the right side of the field with Marcus Peters on his tail. Peters would get pushed to the ground savagely by Snell and the Steelers sideline reacted with joy as the trash-talking Peters was humbled by the sophomore-year running back out of Kentucky. The Steelers would go on to win as time expired and this would be the final win on the Steelers 11-0 win streak. It was nice while it lasted. At least in the final game, we wore our best uni's.

2019: vs. Miami Dolphins: "Revenge Game"

Pittsburgh loves Minkah Fitzpatrick and it's because of moments like this. The guy was traded from Miami to Pittsburgh in a rare moment where the Steelers traded for a big name. Fitzpatrick was a good safety but never found his footing in Miami. Safe to say he found it in the black and gold. First game against his former team was a great one for him. Despite a slow start against the winless Dolphins being down 14-0, Steelers would rally and outscore Miami 27-0 after the first quarter and win 27-14. James Conner would have a great game, along with Juju Smith-Schuster and Mason Rudolph as well. But the game ball had to go to Fitzpatrick, who picked off Ryan Fitzpatrick twice, which fueled the rally in the 2nd and 3rd quarters as Pittsburgh would score after each turnover committed by the former Alabama star. But that wouldn't be the last color rush game of the year. 

2019: vs. Buffalo Bills: "The First L"

It's hard to pick the best moment from this game. Not because there were too many. Because there weren't enough. It was a sloppy game, to say the least. Four picks by 3rd-string QB Devlin "Duck" Hodges. It stung too because Hodges was a likable personality who sometimes seemed he was a good QB but it's games like this that made Steeler fans miss Ben Roethlisberger who was on the IR for the year for elbow surgery. I mean, cornerback Steven Nelson got his first pick since joining the Steelers which was cool, I guess. Steelers lost but hey, they lost in style at least.

2018: vs. Carolina Panthers: "Back-to-Back TDs"

Ah, that's much better. A game where many moments could be classified as the best. The Steelers would win the game 52-21 against a good Panthers team. Could you imagine the Steelers today scoring 52 points? But at this point, it was common for the Steelers to torch other defenses with the combined forces of Big Ben and Antonio Brown. But there were several other factors for the offense. Juju Smith-Schuster emerging as a steal in the draft, James Conner being a solid back with Le'Veon Bell's absence, the offensive line hanging tough, and if the defense is on the same page, it's a thing of beauty. This is an example. One of the common tropes at the time is that the Steelers can't succeed on both sides. If the offense is good, the defense isn't, or vice versa. But this was one of the rare times they both are on the same page. It looked like the game was gonna be a struggle with Carolina scoring on their first drive but the worry would evaporate on the first play. Big Ben would sling one to Smith-Schuster for a 75-yard touchdown. The next drive for Carolina would blow up in their faces. On the first play, Cam Newton would be pressured by TJ Watt and throw the ball into traffic, and be picked by Vince Williams for a touchdown. It was a thing of beauty that both sides would excel in back-to-back plays. Speaking of beauty, the jerseys would make the smackdown on Thursday night much more satisfying. But just like in 2019, it wouldn't be the last time in the season we wear the color rush jerseys.

2018: vs. New England: "Haters gonna Haden"

It's a must-win game for Pittsburgh with Baltimore riding right behind them for division supremacy. The bad news is it's against the team that often is the winner in our AFC matchups, the Patriots. The Tom Brady-led team had another good year looking to beat the Steelers once again. How important was the game and a must-win? Steelers wanted to try their luck on it and wear the color rush again. The game was surprisingly going well as the Steelers were up 14-10, but Brady has done this before. Give the Steelers hope just to knock them down. The Pats had the ball and were inside the Steelers 20-yard line. Tom Brady lobbed one to Julian Edelman but a miracle happened. Joe Haden picked off Brady near the goalline! An iconic Steelers moment for most fans. The Steelers would get a field goal and be up 17-10 and leave only 2 minutes for Brady to score, which is more than enough time for Brady. The offense would drive down to the Steelers 11-yard line. Steeler fans were ready to be beaten again. A holding call put the Pats at a 2nd and 15 disadvantage. However, 3 incomplete passes and a turnover on downs later would spell a loss for New England as the crowd lost their mind and the Steelers finally beat Brady and the Pats. The Steelers would disappointingly miss the playoffs, but this was peak happiness for a lot of Steeler fans that year. It was also here the legend of the Steelers color rush started.

2017: vs. Tennessee Titans: "The Helmet Catch"

Another game where the offense and defense both played well? Yes, please! The Steelers would win 40-17 vs. the Titans. Big Ben would throw 4 touchdowns and the defense picked off Marcus Mariota 4 times. Honorable mention -- when Roethlisberger during his snap cadence said "Dilly, dilly". But one of the passes Big Ben threw was simply a beauty. The good ol' days of Ben to Brown, I miss it. A 10-yard floater to Brown had a little pizzazz with it. Brown caught it one-handed and used his helmet with a little extra finesse. Just a shame it's his 2nd best helmet catch. Real Steeler fans know what I'm talking about. One of the best Steeler teams in recent memory would win the North and go 13-3.

2016: vs. Baltimore Ravens: "The Immaculate Extension"

The Week 16 game between the Steelers and the Ravens was huge. Christmas Day, the winner wins the North and makes the playoffs. The Steelers also debuted their color rush jerseys. A Sunday night game made the game just a little bigger. Once the first half ended, the score was 7-6 Steelers. It was a back-and-forth game once the second half started though. Only one drive in the second half ended in a punt. With 1:18 to go in the game, the Ravens had the lead of 27-24 and the Steelers had two timeouts. Time for Big Ben to give another game-winning drive. Leading down the field, the backup receivers were catching huge passes and contributing big-time in the biggest game of the year for the Steelers. With 14 seconds left after a spike, Big Ben threw a crosser to Antonio Brown at the goal line. Brown, despite having 3 defenders on him and being face masked, reached over the goalline to get the touchdown and the win! Steelers would win the North due to Brown's immaculate extension! 

With the Steelers wearing their color rush jerseys for the upcoming Bengals matchup and needing a win to stay in the AFC North race, can the domination of the color rush jerseys continue, or is it all just in our heads? We'll find out this Sunday!