For Steelers Nation, there is magic to the Terrible Towel.

So when other teams disrespect or mistreat the beloved towel, sometimes bad things happen. Those consequences are often referred to as “the curse of the Terrible Towel.”

“You can’t disgrace the Terrible Towel,” said U.S. Army Vietnam Veteran and four-time Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl champion running back Rocky Bleier. “It has power.”

Justin Mitchell, Steelers director of marketing, said there are several instances of teams disrespecting the towel and most likely regretted doing that.

“It has gotten to such a level that people have to respect it,” Mitchell said.

According to the Steelers, in 1994 before a playoff game, Cleveland Browns running back Earnest Byner stepped on a towel and yelled, “We don’t care about your towel. We’re going to beat you this time.” The Steelers won the game.

In 2005, T. J. Houshmandzadeh, a wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals, wiped his feet with the towel after he scored a touchdown. The Steelers lost that game but went on to defeat the Bengals in a playoff game and win the Super Bowl.

In 2008, Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Derrick Mason stomped on a towel. The Ravens lost all three games to the Steelers that season, including the AFC championship game.

Also that year, Tennessee Titans’ linebacker Keith Bulluck and running back LenDale White stepped on a towel after a victory. Following that game, the Titans lost eight consecutive games, including a divisional playoff game that season and the first game of their 2009 season against the Steelers.

In 2009, Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon gave a towel to the Arizona Cardinals mascot before the team left to face the Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII and the mascot wiped its armpits with the towel. The Mayor wiped his nose with the towel.

The Steelers won the Super Bowl.

Also in 2009, during a game with the Detroit Lions, its mascot stepped on, bit and ripped apart a Terrible Towel. The Lions suffered three consecutive sacks and lost the game.

In 2016, Redskins punter Tress Way posted a video on Twitter, now X, that his mother sent him of her burning a towel. The Steelers won the game.

In December of that year, Cincinnati Bengals running back Jeremy Hill tried ripping a towel after scoring a touchdown. The Bengals lost the game and were eliminated from the playoffs that season.

Some of the Jacksonville Jaguars players taunted with towels after a win over the Steelers in 2023 and later the Jaguars missed the playoffs.