Mendenhall’s Mistake Proved Costly

I'm not going to go so far as to call him a goat, but Pittsburgh's Rashard Mendenhall is probably sick to his stomach today.

The Steeler running back's fumble completely turned the tide in the game - and it pretty much ended all hopes of the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history.

Early in the 4th quarter, the Packers were hanging onto a 21-17 lead while the Steelers had the ball inside Green Bay territory with a chance to take their first lead of the Super Bowl.   Pittsburgh had a 2nd and 2 on the Packers 33 yard line and had all the momentum.

But Packers linebacker Clay Matthews and lineman Ryan Pickett sandwiched Mendenhall - knocking the ball loose.  Green Bay recovered the fumble and then went onto a score a TD which gave them a 28-17 lead.

Game over.

All of the momentum the Steelers had built up was now gone.  Green Bay looked like they were starting to crumble at that point - but that fumble gave them some new-found confidence.

So after nearly coming back from a 21-3 deficit and not quite getting over the hump, Pittsburgh essentially had to start their comeback bid all over again.