Super Bowl XLIII Analysis

So, I'm going to go position by position and do some comparison.


We'll start with offense.
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-Quarterback-


Ben Roethlisberger vs. Kurt Warner
-Ok, yes, Warner has better numbers. Big Ben has at times been a little erratic and ended up making bad decisions. But, I give the edge to the Steelers on this one. Here is why. If you put Big Ben there with Warners line and with Boldin, Breaston, Urban, Pope and most importantly Fitzgerald lining up to catch passes, he would soar to all new heights. What I like about Ben is his ability to make plays and throw on the run. His size is his biggest strength.


-Runingback-


- While Edgerin James and Tim Hightower have been getting better, I will take Willie Parker, Mewelde Moore and Gary Russell any day. Parker has that ability to break the big one at any point and might be ready for a big game. Moore has the ability to catch the big pass on 3rd down and Gary Russell has been great on short yardage situations. James and Hightower are very good together, but facing the Steelers defense is going to be their biggest task ever. So the edge goes to the Steelers.


-Wide Receiver-
(Yeah, bite me.)

- Well, this is a no-brainer. The Cardinals biggest strength is at wide-out. Fitzgerald and Boldin are so dangerous, but former Woodland Hills star Steve Breaston can be a real threat as well. Santonio Holmes has been a real player throughout the playoffs and is my dark horse to win MVP in SB43. Hines Ward is Hines Ward, The knee will be fine. No excuses from Hines. Also, there is Nate Washington, who has become a big time contributor to the team and is a threat with the deep ball. However, you can't discount what the Cards have, edge: Cardinals.


-Tight End-


-This basically comes down to Heath Miller against Leonard Pope. I am going to say this clearly: Heath Miller is a top 5 Tight End and should be a X-Factor for this game. Big time edge: Steelers.


-Offensive Line-


-This is tougher than I originally thought. While the Steelers have allowed 21 more sacks than the Cardinals in the regular season. However, the Cardinals could not run the ball well this season, and the Steelers run game has been improving greatly. But, the difference in sacks just has to give the edge to the Cardinals.

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Now for the defense.

-Defensive Line-


-I'll be honest, I don't know much about the Cardinals defensively. But, what I do know is that up front, the Steelers are one of the best. It all starts with big ole Casey Hampton, who clears the lanes for the linebackers and safeties to come flying in. But, the line is more than Hampton, Aaron Smith is one the the most underrated players in the NFL. He is a tremendous talent. Darnell Dockett leads the way for the Cardinals and could be a big force in this game if the Steelers O-line isn't ready. But, edge: Steelers.

-Linebackers-


-Please, do I even need to write anything. Woodley, Harrison, Farrior, Foote, Timmons... Edge: Steelers.

-Cornerback-


- This is an interesting debate. I think the Steelers have great depth at corner and they have a unit that gave up the fewest passing yards in the regular season. Ike Taylor, Bryant McFadden, Deshea Townsend, andWilliam Gay are a group that can hang with the best of them. The Cards bring a good crew to the table as well. Antrel Rolle, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Ralph Brown all bring talent to this corps and can be very dangerous. But, I think that the Steelers are a little bit better and will have to be considering the receivers they are facing. Slight edge: Steelers.

-Safety-


- Adrian Wilson for the Cardinals is a play maker. But, the edge has to go to Ryan Clark and Troy Polamalu. Both guys are great players, especially Polamalu, as the Ravens found out. His skill is just a rare talent, one that can't be matched. Polamalu is my other choice for a potential SB43 MVP. Edge: Stillers.

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-Special Teams-


- Another very close one. Santonio Holmes has been very good at punt returns, but the Cardinals aren't slouches either. The coverage units are both good as well, with former Steeler leading the way for the Cardinals. Mitch Berger has been questionable at times this year and hopefully that won't be something that hinders the Steelers in this game. The edge goes to the Steelers because of Jeff Reed and his ability to make the big kick.

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-Coaching-


-This is a close one. In one hand, you have old Steeler coaches, who know player tendencies and weaknesses. In the ther hand, you have a legend and a brilliant mind with Dick LeBeau. The familiarity the old Steeler coaches have I think might give the Cardinals a slight advantage in this one. Edge: Cardinals.
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It seems as if the Steelers have the advantage, but who knows, anything can happen.

NFL Conference Championship Round Wrapup and Super Bowl Outlook

Well, the Steelers pulled it off.

Big time effort.

Troy Polamalu is a man.

The early game was the NFC Championship, and it was a game that Philadelphia was supposed to win. Unfortunately for them, the Cardinals showed up in a big way, jumping out to a huge early lead. The Eagles would battle back in the second half and take the lead on a bomb to Desean Jackson, 25-24. But, the Cardinals would answer by marching down the field and scoring a late touchdown to give them the lead, 32-25 after the 2-point conversion. The Cardinals defense did the rest, flustering Mcnabb and getting a turnover on downs to secure the win. The Cardinals advanced to their first ever Super Bowl.


But, it was the later came that I cared about. Steelers... Ravens. We knew it would be a slugfest, a heavyweight battle, and it did not disappoint. Both teams came out swinging, but it was the Steelers who would take the lead into half, despite some questionable officiating, a dropped touchdown and poor clock management. The Steelers would extend their lead to 16-7, but a pass interference call on Ike Taylor would lead to another Ravens touchdown, cutting the lead to 2. The Steelers would then lose the momentum, going 3-and out and having to punt the ball away. With just under 5 minutes to go, the play of the century was made, as Troy Polamalu intercepted Joe Flacco and returned it for a pick-6, making it 23-14. After Willis McGahee would get decapitated by Ryan Clark, the Steelers would take over. The Ravens had one more shot late but it was too much in a short amount of time, and a Tyrone Carter interception would end it, sending the Steelers to their 7th Super Bowl.

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Well, last week I was 1-1 with my picks. Obviously you know who I am picking this week. Maybe I have a bias, but I do think the Steelers are a better team, and I expect them to win. I'm not going to go into things completely because I plan on devoting a whole post to the Super Bowl, but an early prediction for the game is necessary.

-Steelers-26, Cardinals-17

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NFL Divisional Wrapup and Championship Round Outlook

The divisional round featured a ton of upsets, teams with birds as mascots winning, and the one lone gun, the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Steelers were the only home team and the only team that had the bye to win this weekend. The Giants, Titans and Panthers all fell to 6,6 and 4 seeds respectively.

Saturday was all about the upsets, as the day started with the AFC's #1 team fell. The Tennessee Titans couldn't withstand a bundle of costly turnovers and a missed Delay of Game Penalty to beat the Ravens, as Baltimore, with the help of a Matt Stover field goal with 0:53 on the clock, defeated the Titans 13-10 to advance to the AFC Championship.

Saturday night brought the unquestioned biggest upset of the playoffs, as the Arizona Cardinals went into Carolina and demolished the Panthers 33-13. The Cards attack was led by Larry Fitzgerald, who raked up a ridiculous 166 yards, as well as a touch. His playmaking is insane, I can't believe he went to Pitt. After the first drive, the Panthers could never really answer offensively, as Jake Delhomme threw 5 interceptions.


Sunday brought a new day, and a titanic clash of rival NFC East teams, The Giants and Eagles split their season series, with the Eagles winning most recently. Yet again, it was the Eagles who got the job done. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to watch this game because I was at the Steelers game, but from the replays it seemed like the Giants got nothing done offensively and Eli Manning looked like the Eli of old. The Eagles made some big stands on 4th down to hold their lead and move on as they became the second sixth seed to move on.

The Steelers went into the game facing the fact that they would have to be the only home team to win the whole weekend. Initially, things went poorly for Pittsburgh, as Philip Rivers hooked up with Vincent Jackson for a big touchdown in the games opening minutes. But, the Steelers weathered the storm, with a big punt return touchdown by Santonio Holmes to even things up. The Steelers would construct a great drive at the end of the half to go up 14-10. In the third quarter, the Chargers had the ball for one offensive play, an interception. The Steelers would extend their lead to 18 and then exchange scores to go back up by 18. The CHargers would score in garbage time but it wouldn't matter, as the Steelers won, meaning they get the AFC Championship at home next week.
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So, last week I was 1-3 with my picks. Ouch. I'm 3-5 overall right now for the whole playoffs. Yet, I am going to continue picking, for no reason at all.

The thought of picking a Pennsylvania championship is tempting... really tempting. So tempting, I'm going to do it.


NFC Championship

6. Eagles over 4. Cardinals
- I actually am VERY tempted to pick the Cards in this. They have been as hot as anyone and are playing very well. But, I feel like the Eagles are just a better team. They have already crushed Arizona this year. I don't expect a bowout again, not in the desert, with the toaster going crazy. But Mcnabb (ugh...) will make enough plays to move the Eagles past.
- Eagles-27, Cardinals-23

2. Steelers over 6. Ravens
- Again, I don't like doing this. There are so many intangibles in this game. There are so many reasons why this game could go either way. Picking this game like like like putting 2 baseballs in a bag, one with an "X" written on it and the other without, and you reach into that bag without looking and grab one, hoping that you get the X. I'm hoping that the Steelers are the X, and are picked. The spread is Steelers by 5.5. That is WAY too generous. The Steelers beat the Ravens by 3 points and 4 points this season. I see this thing being a classic. RIght down to the end. But, I can't pick against my Steelers. I won't be shocked if they lose or if they win. But, with the home crowd roaring, and if the team can keep up the solid play, they should win this game.
- Steelers-16, Ravens-13

So that's it. There it is. I picked the PA Superbowl, although I'm not sure it'll happen. I would love to see the Cardinals reach the Superbowl, but as long as the Steelers make it I don't care who we play. Here's to hopefully a great weekend of football!

NFL Wildcard Wrapup and Divisional Round Outlook

It was a big time football weekend. Saturday was crazy as both of my picks were proven false. But Sunday brought new life, as I finished .500 with a couple of correct picks.

On Saturday, the Arizona surprised a lot of people by beating a very talented Atlanta team. I wasn't too surprised by the outcome because I have seen Arizona play and know what they are capable of, however I did feel that Atlanta was the better overall team. Arizona played the better game though and played a great second half to pull off the win.

The night game brought the best game of the weekend, as the Colts fell to the Chargers in San Diego. It took overtime and a flawed NFL overtime system (in my opinion) for the CHargers to pull it out. The NFL's MVP wasn't even able to touch the field and give his team a chance in the OT session. It didn't help that the Chargers obtained 3 first downs on their overtime drive because of the officials.

Sunday brought a good early game, as the Ravens' defense manhandles the Dolphins offense and Chad Pennington in particular, who threw four interceptions. Ed Reed returned an interception for a touchdown and the 'Phins could never really recover, losing 27-9.

The late game Sunday featured a dominating Eagles defense, which overpowered Tavaris Jackson and the Minnesota Vikings. Asante Samuel's interception return, followed by Brian Westbrook's 71-yard screen pass score was all Philly needed to win. If not for a late David Akers field goal, my score prediction would have been dead on. Oh well...
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So, after going 0-2 on Saturday I was considering not making any picks for this week, since the Steelers are playing. But I guess I have a 50-50 chance on this week... Here goes.


NFC

2. Panthers over 4. Cardinals
- Arizona looked impressive against the Falcons, and I could see them pulling this one off. But it's not going to happen. The Panthers are well rested and ready to go. Steve Smith will have to play a big game, and you know the Panthers are going to run the ball. If Arizona can shut down the run, as they did against Atlanta, they could win. But I think Carolina makes enough to plays to win a surprisingly close one.
- Panthers-31, Cardinals-27


1. Giants over 6. Eagles
- This is another upset I could see happening. However, as I watch the Eagles-Vikings game, I felt as if it was more of a case of the VIkings being that bad, and not the Eagles being that good. These teams split their season series, winning both games in the opponents stadium. While I don't want to pick both top seeds, I don't think the Giants are going to lose this one after resting. Manning makes a couple big plays and the running game remains great. G-Men move on.
- Giants-27, Eagles-20



AFC

2. Steelers over 4. Chargers
- Ugh, I don't like doing this. This is going to be a great game no matter what. The Chargers are hot right now without question. But, with an injured LT things become questionable. Darren Sproles carried the work load and did a magnificent job of it against the Colts, but it will be another challenge entirely to do it against the Steelers and the leagues best defense. The weather looks to be in the high teens and snowing, playing into the Steelers favor. The Chargers will make it a game no doubt. But I think the Steelers are just the better team, and will (hopefully) play like such. B
- Steelers-17, Chargers-13

1. Titans over 6. Ravens
- While I am really tempted on picking the upset here, I can't do it. While I don't want to have to pick all the top seeds, I am. The Titans are the best team I've seen play all season, and I saw them in person. The Ravens are going to make this interesting, especially if they can slow down the Tennessee rushing attack. If they can, they will win the game. I don't think they will though, and Tennessee will win a close one to set up a much anticipated rematch in the AFC Championship.
- Titans-20, Ravens-10


While I think I have picked at least one game wrong here, I am sticking to my guns. I think the 4 teams I picked are the 4 best teams in the NFL, and will prove it. Let's see how it plays out... and of course, Go Steelers.

The State of the Penguins

What in the world is going on. 5 wins in December, now today they lose to Florida 6-1. Things are getting bad. Really bad. Something needs to change.

I'm not big with throwing coaches under the bus or players for that matter, but something must change.

With that said, I have to say it.

Unless things get better in the next couple weeks, Therrien needs to go. I feel like he's lost the team and they aren't responding to him. He called them out a couple weeks ago and since then they have been awful.

Either that, or we need to make a trade. Jordan Staal, while still a great defensive hockey player, is not contributing the way he did his rookie season. Marc Andre Fleury has been terrible as well. So has Sabourin. The defense is a joke. We need Gonchar back. But I'm worried that might even not help too much.

Everyone keeps talking about how the Penguins always have slow starts, and then pick it up.

Who's to say that's going to happen again though? Last year they started rattling off wins and put together a big time winning streak after the All-Star Break. Something like that may not happen again. The East is too good now for something like that to happen. With Boston and New York and Washington playing well the Penguins must keep up.

We'll see...