Cannon Firing Line
Did You Enjoy The Moment?
By Ellis G. Cannon
PSR Publisher

Enjoy today. On both personal and societal levels, it seems people are more likely than ever to live by such phrases.

Typically, of course, the greatest value of those words is in the larger context of life. That's not to say there's no value to that phrase in sports. The AFC Championship Game offered another opportunity to do just that - and we hope you did despite the Steelers' loss to the New England Patriots.

While few teams appear to have the Steelers' future, one rosier than most because of the balance struck by the organization between personnel, contracts and the salary cap, there are no guarantees the AFC Championship Game is coming to town next January or the January after that. Between parity, free agency, injuries and scheduling, fans are lucky to get those games. Indeed, the Steelers appear to be at the outset of that fleeting "window of opportunity", but in today's NFL it can be here today and gone tomorrow.

In the '70s, we came to believe the AFC Championship was just another game on the schedule. We learned better in the '80s and celebrated when the game reappeared in the '90s. But if the NFL is proud of anything today, it's the hope it gives fans in Cleveland and Washington that they'll be hosting championship games next year.

So, we hope you enjoyed the game and all it offered, just like I did when the circus passed through before.

Of course, those were the days when I could take it all in, rather than do this media thing, which by definition doesn't allow me to enjoy the day like I hope you do. There are a lot of tradeoffs making it worth it, but days like the Patriots' game are a real test.

For instance, there won't be that opportunity to pass around something dubbed The Terrible Hat with strangers at the 1978 game against Houston. Don't ask what made that Hat so popular; I just know it kept me warm. You may remember how Terry Bradshaw blew out the Oilers early. I remember leaving my dorm room, scalping a ticket and standing at the 50 with my new best friends.

The 1997 game against the Denver Broncos serves as a reminder that these games are no sure thing. You may remember it as the game where that pharmacist who disguises himself as a linebacker, Bill Romanowski, spent the entire day woofing at Kordell or John Elway throwing a bullet for a late third down when it looked like the Steelers had a chance for a miracle.

I remember it as the game where I scalped a single from a guy my age. He had a pair in the top row of the sixth deck; the other was for his dad, who couldn't make it. I felt bad they couldn't see the game together. I felt better about getting the ticket at face value.

Of course, there was the alpha and omega, San Diego in the '94 Championship and Indianapolis in the '95 game. The loss to the Chargers finishes a strong second on the disappointment scale to Francisco Cabrera. The Steelers appeared to have the better team, the line was 11 and the entire city had plans for the Super Bowl.

Sort of like what happened in the week leading up to the Patriots' game if you think about it.

There was wind and rain that afternoon against San Diego, but not enough cold to intimidate the Chargers as much as we hoped. You may remember it as the game that ended when Neil O'Donnell's fourth-down pass to Barry Foster fell to the turf.

I remember it differently. Before the game, my brother warned me that Tim McKyer was going to get toasted deep on in single coverage. As the Chargers broke from a late fourth-quarter huddle, he stood up and yelled, "Here it comes. They're going long ball on McKyer right now!"

He was right. An instant later, Stan Humphries isolated on the Steelers' cornerback for a long touchdown. The Steelers never recovered and the next thing I knew McKyer needed help getting off the field, looking like he spent too much time with that Terrible Hat.

Who can forget the emotion involved in that Colts game? You may remember it as the game that ended on a deflected Hail Mary, sending the Steelers to Super Bowl XXX. Or Bill Cowher in tears as he was handed the championship trophy.

I remember it as the one where I standing in the sixth deck (again) crying like a baby after the game, thinking back to how this was "our" championship as opposed to the ones that belonged to my uncle, father and cousins, all of whom took me to that building for "theirs" in the '70s, but who could not be with me that day.

The Steelers beating New England would have made for a happy Pittsburgh. But what happened on that crystal cleat afternoon was an opportunity for something more important. It' was a chance to create memories, stories you'll relive for years. It' was a chance for me to again hear the thrill in the voice of my friend, Western Beaver Jim, as he asked me at the top of his lungs in the parking lot before that San Diego game, "E, can you believe we're at the AFC CHAMPIONSHIP Game?"

Times change. There's the media deal and now parenthood. There's appreciation for things that weren't there before. While we'll all remember the Steelers' special teams woes from the loss, I'll also remember seeing the look in the eight year old eyes of a friend's son as they entered the game together. It reminded me of the past and hope that such a chance passes my way someday.

Like it or not, folks like us create memories through sports, for which there is no apology. Sure, there's disappointment. But for reasons even beyond the Steelers' future, we just hope you didn't let the outcome, or picture taking or anything else get in the way. We hope you enjoyed the moment.

Because you never know when it's coming your way again.

Ellis Cannon is publisher of The Pittsburgh Sports Report and an ESPN Radio 1250 talk show host.