Steelers' Bryant McFadden Revealed How Dick LeBeau Absolutely Shut Down Peyton Manning In 2005

For the Pittsburgh Steelers, the 2005 season was historic on so many different levels. The underlying notion of it being Jerome Bettis’ final season drove the team to land the sixth playoff spot on their way to Super Bowl XL. A 23-year-old Ben Roethlisberger promised Bettis a championship in his hometown of Detroit, Michigan and the supporting cast on offense did what they needed to do to get him there.

On defense, the depth chart was peppered with top talent at every position. The defensive unit proved to be the foundation of what would be one of the greatest defensive squads for the following four years. With the defense featuring the likes of Troy Polamalu, Joey Porter, Casey Hampton, Ike Taylor and other marquee names, they were critical in the team’s playoff push on their way to the championship game.

However, the team’s journey to their fifth Super Bowl Championship was anything but easy. Their season consisted of matchups against historic quarterbacks and offenses. That list included Drew Brees, Brett Favre, Carson Palmer and Peyton Manning. The Manning-led Indianapolis Colts were poised and ready for a playoff push of their own and had high aspirations of winning their second championship in franchise history.

Similar to the Steelers' defense, the Colts' offense was littered with historic talent across the depth chart. In addition to Manning, the offensive attack included Edgerrin James, Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark. Leading the Colts’ offense was Offensive Coordinator, Tom Moore. 

Moore began his coaching career with the Steelers and was the wide receivers coach for the 1978 and 1979 championship teams. He coached the likes of Lynn Swann and John Stallworth, and he thought he had the Colts in a prime position for a similar dynasty in 2005. But the Steelers’ Dick LeBeau had other plans.

Dick LeBeau Turned A Steelers' Loss Into His Advantage

In week twelve of the season, the Steelers traveled to Indianapolis to take on the Colts on Monday Night Football. The Steelers carried a 7-3 record into the matchup while the Colts were a perfect 10-0. The Steelers had high hopes of being the first team to defeat the Colts, but those hopes didn’t last long. 

Just under two minutes into the game, Manning hit Harrison for an 80-yard touchdown. They would go on to post 366 yards of total offense on their way to a dominating 26-7 victory. Needless to say, LeBeau wouldn’t let that happen again.

If we fast forward to the divisional round of the playoffs seven weeks later, the two teams found themselves back in the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. The Steelers were the sixth seed, while the Colts were the top seed in the AFC. In what would be one of the most memorable and best games in NFL history, LeBeau devised an incredible game plan to avoid another defensive collapse.

On the All Things Covered podcast, former Steelers’ defensive back Bryant McFadden and current Steelers’ cornerback Patrick Peterson relived that game. McFadden was a rookie on that 2005 team and had first-hand insight as to what LeBeau did to Manning in that divisional game that gave him fits. That game plan may have been the blueprint for teams across the league mapping out how to defend Manning and the Colts' high-flying offense.

“When we played the Colts in the playoffs, the gameplan Dick LeBeau came up with, a masterful gameplan,” he began. “The first time, they kicked us in the mouth; Monday Night Football. They beat us bad. So Dick LeBeau came up with a gameplan. At that time, the Colts ran a no huddle. It was a tempo. But he told us, ‘It’s a fake tempo. It’s not a real tempo, guys.’ And we were like, ‘What do you mean, Coach?’. He said 'They’re not running tempo. What they’re doing is they’re trying to get you to show your hand. When you show your hand, all Peyton does is look at your defense. He calls a counter to what you are showing him and he’s going to execute it because he knows what you’re in.”'

Hindsight 20/20, that is exactly what Manning thrived off for his illustrious Hall of Fame career. With the supporting cast surrounding Manning with the Colts combined with Moore calling the plays, they could move the ball at will against any defense. By mimicking an up-tempo offense, they could catch opposing defenses staying in their scheme allowing Manning to simply call an audible to counter whatever he was being shown. Therefore, to help with his new game plan, LeBeau used a 12th contributor on defense to defend Manning.

“Dick LeBeau said, ‘What we’re gonna do guys, is we’re gonna watch the play clock. When the Colts come to the line of scrimmage, don’t even look at the formation. I already gave you the call, but I want you guys in the second and third level to show the same shell every time. And when the play clock hits eight, roll into whatever it is I call. He won’t have enough time to counter.’ So, in the week of prep, getting ready for that game, playoff game, it was so unfamiliar,” McFadden explained. 

As the Steelers cruised to a 21-3 lead into the fourth quarter, the game plan was working to perfection. However, Manning and the Colts were able to find their groove and began to claw their way back into a one-score game. It looked as if Manning caught onto what the Steelers were doing on offense and found a way to exploit that. However, McFadden found himself on an island as a rookie and was forced to grow up in one of the biggest stages of his career.

“I’m the only rookie on the field, everyone else is seasoned vets,” he began. “Before the fumble, they started to get some things going. Instead of us keeping the shell, we’re lining up in what we’re in. So I’m the only rookie on the field, I say ‘aye, what happened to the freaking shell!? What are y’all doing?’ They start rolling into coverage, this man knows I’m in man-to-man right now.”

McFadden knew right away where the ball was going. Manning was looking to expose the rookie in one of his biggest moments to gain momentum toward the finish. But although McFadden was apprehensive about being left on an island, the other ten players and LeBeau were perfectly comfortable in the situation.

“Peyton is a Hall of Famer, he got a Hall of Fame wide receiver on a rookie corner, we know where he’s going. So I see man-to-man, its one-on-one drills over here, so now, I’m standing on eggshells. I said, ‘hey, what are we doing? What happened to the disguise concept? This man knows I’m in man-to-man. Them boys looked at me and said, ‘man, you got it,’ and I said ‘huh!? I got it!? Ok, ok.’”

McFadden’s intuition was right, but he found himself in the same position in the waning moments of the game. After Bettis famously fumbled the ball, the Colts were driving into field goal range. In what could be one of the most underrated, forgotten, yet most critical series of plays in Steelers’ recent history, McFadden squared up against Wayne on the outside.

With the ball sitting at the 28-yard line, Manning threw twice to Wayne with under 31 seconds left in the game. Both times, McFadden made the play and knocked the ball away. Instead of the Colts taking the lead in the final seconds, fans know what followed with Mike Vanderjagt.

The game remains one of the most exciting upsets in NFL history. It was one of the greatest defensive performances the Steelers have put on the field and it all started with LeBeau. LeBeau had an incredible career in professional football and was rightfully inducted into the Hall of Fame as a part of the 2010 class. The game plan he formulated to defeat Manning and one of the best offenses in history is just another reason why he is one of the most celebrated coaches in all of football.

What do you remember most about that game? What do you think LeBeau’s best-coached game was?