Former Steelers Accuse Patriots Of Stealing Signs In 2004 Title Game

After a two-touchdown loss ended a record winning streak in 2004, the New England Patriots got their revenge against the Pittsburgh Steelers with a 41-27 win in that season’s AFC Championship game.

Going on 19 years later, a few notable stars from that Steelers squad are raising their eyebrows about the loss.

On a recent episode of the “Footbahlin” podcast, Ben Roethlisberger and Jerome Bettis accused the Patriots of stealing signs and cheating their way to another AFC title.

“To be fair, the Patriots cheated,” Roethlisberger said.

“For sure they did!” Bettis replied. “It’s not even a question in my mind.”

The Super Bowl champion running back referenced a fourth-down play where the Patriots called timeout before getting a stop on a counter running play. Bettis believes New England knew Pittsburgh’s signs and game planned accordingly.

“That’s a critical play in the game,” Bettis added. “They had our signs and they called a timeout to get ready for that play because they knew it was coming.”

In the game, Bettis had 17 carries for 64 yards and a touchdown with a fumble. Roethlisberger threw for touchdowns but also launched three interceptions and a fumble of his own.

On the cold night in Pittsburgh, the Patriots led a dominant effort to go back to the Super Bowl for the third time in four seasons where they eventually defeated another Pennsylvania squad in the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX.

All of these years later, Roethlisberger and Bettis have their explanation for the loss.

The Patriots and Steelers will meet in Pittsburgh again this season for a primetime battle on Thursday, Dec. 7 at 8:15 p.m. ET.