Hines Ward Last Quotations

If this is going to be his last year, what better way than to finish his career off where it all started in Detroit? Last year, we were one game short. This year, we're back to that and that's all we ask for is another opportunity. We're in that position to put him back in the Super Bowl.

Last year when we had home-field advantage, it was kind of more of a distraction more than anything. We had more ticket requests. A lot of people wanted to come and watch. With us going on the road, we really don't have to worry about that too much. We just go out there and concentrate on football.

I can't even begin to tell you how do good this feels ... especially after how our season ended last year. Nobody believed in us except the guys in this locker room. All our hard work has paid off. We're going to the Super Bowl.

I hated to see that happen to Jerome. Not on the last play of his career.

He's been through some wars. He's earned that right. Last year, he was a part of the team. He was a reason why we had a lot of success. He brought the best out of me. I hope I brought the best out of him.

Last year, everything was new to Ben. Tonight, he was pretty crisp. The intangibles that he brings, I like a lot.

Last year, everything was new to him, so he was just winging it. Now he's prepared himself, he's having fun, he's becoming a leader out there. He's a very situational guy. Third-and-short, he's looking for the guy to pick up the first down. I don't know what he was, completion-wise, but he was pretty good.

Last year, going 15-1, everyone's patting you on the back telling you what a good job you did, it kind of got overwhelming. It can get overwhelming even for veteran guys.

I'm sure Cleveland is going to be looking to knock us out of the playoffs. It's a playoff run from here on out. We have to play on the road, and what better way to get that experience than to go out and approach each game like it is your last game?

We didn't really plan to go this way. It's been twice I had home-field advantage, and we came up short both times. We're one game away from the Super Bowl. We're right back where we were last year.

You just sit there and watch Ben and he has played night and day from last year's playoff time to this year's playoff time. He's just going out there and having fun playing the game of football.

You just sit there and watch Ben, he played night and day from last year's playoff time to this year's. Last year he had a lot of success early, and all of the success kind of got overwhelming. He's been more calm and collected this year.

We have to stay away from the negative plays. The third-and-longs, those are hard to overcome. We overcame a couple of them last year but last year we were a great team with second-and-short, third-and-short.

We didn't want to go through this by choice. That is how it went. Last year, we were a No. 1 seed. This year, we had to win our final four games just to get here. So we've been on a playoff mentality the last four weeks of the regular season. It's win or go home, so we've gotten used to playing with pressure.

We're the same team that went 15-1 last year and made it to the championship game.

A day ago, nobody wanted to give us a chance. We came out and we did what we had to do. We knew it would be tough to come into Indianapolis, and they beat us pretty good the last time. This is kind of redemption for us.

You really don't realize you're playing with a Hall of Fame running back until it comes to an end. If this will be his last year, what better way than to finish where it all started?

Nobody believed in us, but we believed in ourselves, and now we're in the Super Bowl. These last three games on the road show a lot about our team and this coaching staff.

It's night and day. Last year, it was overwhelming for him sometimes. I really think he got caught up a little bit with the notoriety and magnitude of the game. This year, he understands the offense and is starting to trust his guys. He's not really putting it on his shoulders.

It was just deflating. He rarely fumbles the ball and if this had been his last game, you would have hated to see him go out like that. ... I truly believe the man up above had something to do with that.

It was easier for Ben last year (as a rookie) because we had veterans, guys like myself, 'Plex' (Plaxico Burress) and Antwaan, ... This year, myself and Antwaan are really the only veteran guys. Cedrick is coming in from a new system, and Lee hasn't played much. But I'm not too concerned. It's just a matter of us getting on the same page.

It's a book waiting to be written. If this will be his last year, what better way than to finish his career off where it all started, in Detroit. . . . A lot of our guys just want to go out and not only play for themselves, but for a guy like Jerome Bettis.