Rod Woodson found a way to come back. The Pittsburgh Steelers couldn't.
Woodson, who tore up his right knee in the Steelers' opener, made one of the most exceptional comebacks in pro sports by playing in the Super Bowl. No NFL player had ever returned so quickly from so serious an injury.But the Steelers' own comeback faded with two Neil O'Donnell interceptions, and the Dallas Cowboys' 27-17 victory Sunday tended to obscure Woodson's remarkable return.
"I don't know how many plays I made, but I wanted to play more," said Woodson, the six-time Pro Bowl cornerback who played an estimated dozen plays. "My knee feels great. I honestly wanted to play more, but our secondary and our defense played well. We went out and played physical with them."
Woodson's injury - a torn anterior cruciate ligament - was one of the most serious an athlete can sustain. It has ended many careers, and the same injury once kept the Cowboys' Michael Irvin out for 18 months.
Woodson missed only four months, and actually wanted to play in the AFC championship game two weeks ago, but coach Bill Cowher wouldn't let him.
Cowher couldn't keep him off the field Sunday, not after Woodson began running with more confidence in a knee he still estimates is only 85 percent healed.
Some Steelers defensive backs expressed reservation about Woodson's comeback, even as late as several days ago, but nobody questioned his comeback Sunday. Not the Steelers, and not the Cowboys.
After knocking Irvin down late in the first half, the two talked briefly.
"I told him the knee wasn't as bad as everyone was saying," Woodson said.