Sean McHugh Goes from Winless Lions to Super Bowl

There is so much Super Bowl coverage that networks have to find some pretty obscure stories to fill out time. One of those stories is about a player from the Pittsburgh Steelers, Sean McHugh. The Steelers have far bigger names than Sean McHugh, and players that have more playing time than McHugh. But few players in the Super Bowl may feel more blessed to be there than Sean McHugh, considering the winless places he had been before.

Sean McHugh began the season feeling safe to make the cut for the Detroit Lions. But right before the first official practice of the regular season, McHugh was cut by the Lions. The infamy got a little worse when the Lions finished 0-16.

If McHugh wasn't good enough to play for an 0-16 team, who was he good enough for? The answer came later that week, when the Steelers signed him. Now, McHugh has the ultimate revenge, with a shot at a Super Bowl ring while the Lions recover from making history.

Sean McHugh, a tight end and fullback, was starting to try and make a home for himself in Detroit. McHugh had bought a home in the suburbs, while his wife had become pregnant with his second child. But McHugh had to reorganize when he was cut by the Lions.

McHugh was one of those anonymous, day-to-day players, with 20 career catches in two years for the Lions, and no touchdowns. Mostly used as a blocker, McHugh was on the bubble to make the team and continue his playing career. At 26 when he was cut, McHugh had to briefly reconsider where he was going, until the Steelers called him up.

McHugh was signed for the season in Pittsburgh, mostly as a blocker and a reserve fullback for Willie Parker. Since the Steelers are famous for hard hitting and pushing teams back into submission, McHugh fit right in with the Steeler culture.

While McHugh did his part to help the Steelers get this far, he had mixed emotions hearing about the Lions' historic struggles. He felt bad for their players, but not so bad for the organization itself.

McHugh got to blog about his journey for the Steelers' official website earlier this week, as Super Bowl preparations head into their final stages.

"My Super Bowl dream is to just to win it," McHugh wrote. "It's that simple. Whatever my role is to be part of it, if it's one play or every play, whatever it is, but to just win it would be the ultimate."

"Just to walk away on that Monday in two weeks and be Super Bowl Champions. I can't think of anything better."


Source: associatedcontent.com