Cardinals are officially Super Bowl bound, Steelers win another AFC title crown; Thoughts, observations, and an early look at Super Bowl XLIII

SCOTT JACOBS I just want to say this: In the last two weeks of the playoffs, I’m 5-1, with the only loss coming courtesy of the Eagles when they beat the Giants.  No hard feelings though, their win gave Arizona a home playoff game, so I’ll let it slide this time.

Shaun King challenged me to a bet before this weekend.  The bet was as follows:

“aight time to raise the stakes if the cardinals win i do the article for juicedsports, but if philly wins for a week u have to go to 20 facebook sites a day and say Shaun King is the MAN”

Well, the Cardinals prevailed, and if King is a man of his word (which I know he is) we should have him on Juiced Sports for you in the next few weeks leading to Super Bowl XLIII.

*How night and day are the Cardinals and Steelers?  Well, the Steelers are such an AFC mainstay on a year in and year out basis that people actually worried if them getting the AFC title game this year at home was a good thing.  Why?  Because, in their last five title games at home, that’s right I said five, they were 1-4.  The Cardinals on the other hand, dipped their toe in the NFC title game for the first time ever today.  They must have liked the feel, because they came flying out of the gate.

*Kurt Warner: washed up?  Safe to say you won’t hear that again this year.  What a game Warner had in fully cementing his legacy as a now surefire NFL Hall of Famer in my humbled opinion.  What he did with this team is nothing short of mesmerizing.  Warner was a a sterling 21/28 with 279 yards passing and four touchdowns. Not in that line, zero interceptions.  Yup, Philly was able to get to Warner at times, but they didn’t force the ageless one to cough up the ball a single time.  A far cry from their Thanksgiving meeting.

*Did you hear how loud that University of Phoenix crowd was?  They were deafening.  It was an incredible atmosphere, that the Cards could only have dreamed of when they officially started construction of the palace.  But today it was real, and the Cardinals, who for years played in front of sparse crowds, usually made up of the road team’s fans, had a home field advantage that few could have foreseen just a decade ago, when they made their last post-season appearance.

*That wasn’t over-bloated running statistics with the game out of reach.  Arizona actually ran the ball effectively today, and consistently too.  Edgerrin James had 73 yards, Tim Hightower contributed 33, and the rallying cry of stop their passing game because they have NO running game is officially dead.  Dead I tell ya.  The new Cardinals can run.  No one will confuse them for the Steelers, their opponent in the Super Bowl, but their running game is officially respectable and good enough to keep opposing defenses on their toes.

*Donovan McNabb played a bizarre game.  At times he was brilliant, other times not even close to his targets.  He threw for 375 yards and three touchdowns, but let it be known that it took 47 throws to get that.  And after the Eagles fell behind early McNabb was forced to throw the ball.  So I’ll say this: McNabb had a terrible first half (not quite Jake Delhomme-esque), but not good.  He missed wide open receivers, threw the ball behind a lot of his guys, and was pestered like crazy.  But in the second half he came out, and really played pretty well.  Yeah, people will say that once again he failed when the lights were brightest, but I look at it this way: he helped lead the Eagles back from the brink of embarrassment to an improbable come from behind lead late.  The defense for Philly couldn’t hold it.  The blame will go on McNabb, and people will say that he needs to go, but how much can you ask from him?  He helped the Eagles come back from an 18 point deficit, and then they just sort of ran out of gas at midfield.

*I’m going to say it: how about that Arizona run defense.  Wow.  First they held Atlanta’s high octane running game in check.  Then they went to Carolina and took DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart out of it.  And here, in the NFC title game they shut down Brian Westbrook, who mustered just 45 yards on 12 carries.  Arizona forced the Eagles to beat them through the air, because they didn’t even allow 100 yards today on the ground.  And the Eagles fell short.

*Larry Fitzgerald: the best wide receiver in the NFL.  The numbers speak for themselves folks, but records aside, how can you even argue otherwise.  What Fitz has done this post-season is turn the playoffs into his own personal playground.  Put the ball in his vicinity and he’s going to get it.  He has incredible hands clearly, but what Fitzgerald also has, is incredible body control.  He managed to make a great downfield catch, and then kept his footing to score.  The guy is clutch with a capital C.  He made every play, got a boatload of yards after the catch, and even after it became clear that you had to blanket this guy, he still made defenses look silly.  And Carolina, and Philadelphia have pretty good defenses.

*Great comeback from the Eagles.  Down 24-6 Philly could have easily folded and gave up.  But even after a McNabb fumble gave Arizona great field position from midfield, the Eagles D tightened and held.  Then McNabb and Co. started building their 19 point rampage in less than 10 minutes, in what appeared to be an epic comeback.  But their defense couldn’t hold up their end of the bargain.  Unlike the game against the Giants, the Eagles were unable to get a crucial stop on 4th and 1, and they were unable to stop Timmy Hightower from finding his way into the end-zone on 3rd and goal late in the game.

*What happened to David Akers?  He missed a field goal, and an extra point today.  Usually one of the most sure-fire kickers in the game, Akers didn’t have the greatest game today.  And it cost his team some crucial points.

*On January 15th, 2007 the Arizona Cardinals hired Ken Whisenhunt to lead the Cardinals to respectability.  I’d say he’s done a lot more than that.  In two seasons with the perennial losers Arizona is 8-8, and 9-7 in Coach Whiz’s first two seasons.  And o yeah, he helped lead them to triple their number of playoff wins, from 1 to 3.  Add an NFC West title, and an NFC Championship to that list, and what more can you say: he’s a miracle worker.  And it just snowed in hell.

*So, who had the Steelers-Cardinals Super Bowl match-up pegged before Labor Day?  Anybody?  If you did, you just became a very rich man.

*Arizona goes to their first Super Bowl, while the Steelers win their 7th AFC title.  Could there be anymore night and day of a franchise stack-up?  No.  And lest us forget: the Steelers have won five out of their first six trips to the Big Game (O sorry, was I supposed to trademark that?)  Whoops.

*The Steelers were the better team today against Baltimore.  Nough said. Yeah the game was close towards the end, but when push came to shove, Joe Flacco finally reminded us that he is indeed still a rookie.  I called it too.  I said he’d have a few turnovers, including the one that gave the Steelers the win in overtime.  Well, the game never got that far, but Flacco’s forced pick six to Troy Polamalu with just 4:24 left in the game sealed the Ravens fate.  Yup, no encore trip to Tampa for the Ravens, who hoisted their only Lombardi Trophy (since moving to Baltimore) in Tampa eight years ago. Instead, the Steelers, who got to stay close to home in their last Super Bowl trip (Detroit) get a sunny stage for Super Bowl XLIII.

*Flacco’s forgettable day: 13/30, 141 yards, 0 TD’s, 3 INT’s.  I guess Baltimore’s offensive woes aren’t exactly cured yet.  And I guess it’s safe to say the Ravens are still a year or two away from becoming an offensive force.  Still, what Flacco did in this post-season was impressive.  He won two games as a rookie.  He’s all by himself there.  No shame in that.

*Our thoughts and prayers go out to Willis McGahee who was obliterated by Steelers safety Ryan Clark with just 3:29 left in the game, and down 23-14.  McGahee was down for several minutes before being carted off the field with apparent neck pains.  But word is that he’s talking and moving, so that’s good.  I couldn’t help but think that Willis has horrible championship luck.  In his last huge game, as a Miami Hurricane, McGahee suffered a brutal injury against Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl, and it almost ended his football career.  He was done for that game, just like he was for this one, and his team lost both times.  Just an unfortunate injury for a good player.  We wish him a full recovery.

*Nothing Big Ben does is pretty.  But I think it’s safe to say he’s one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL.  Some days it’s hard to say that, but Big Ben does just enough to help his team win.  Sure the Steelers have a great defense, but Roethlisberger is a perfect fit for what Pittsburgh does, and the man wins.  Two Super Bowls since 2005.  I’d say he’s pretty darn good.

*Third times a charm?  Not this time.  The Steelers beat the Ravens for the third time this year, becoming the first team since the 1999 Titans to victimize a team three times en route to the Super Bowl.  If you remember, the Jags had three losses that year, and 14 wins.  You do the math.

*Early line for the Super Bowl: Steelers by 6 1/2.  What do the Cardinals have to do to earn respect?

SCOTT JACOBS

You hear that sound?  That piercing sound crackling through the sports universe right now?  That is the sound of shock… and denial, and fear.  Fear that any of us could be so wrong on any one team in any one post-season. You see the Arizona Cardinals aren’t just a cute underdog story gone all Disney.  They’re the team so buried beneath media hatred that they can’t buy anyone’s respect right now.

After dismantling Carolina last night 33-13 on the road, as 9 1/2 point undedogs, you figured the Cards would have no more reason to play the ‘no one respects us’ card.  But you know what?  They’re hosting the NFC championship game next week, and wouldn’t you know it, they’re underdogs.

Got to love it.

Gene Wojciechowski says Arizona has no shot.  No shot?  How?  Was he watching the same few weeks as I was?

He points to the Thanksgiving game where Arizona was beaten soundly by the Eagles.  Um, lets see.  That game was in Philly.  This one is in Glendale.  That was the old Cards.  This is the new one.  That was in cold weather.  This is in a dome.  That was with the fading Cards.  This is versus the flying Cards.  Arizona couldn’t tackle.  Now they can’t miss.  Arizona couldn’t run the ball.  Now their running game has a pulse. Kurt Warner was too old.  Now he looks like he’s too young (and we mean that with a compliment).  Ken Whisenhunt couldn’t prepare his team.  Now he can’t screw up.  Arizona couldn’t beat a good team.  Now they’re dispatching them.

I’m sorry.  Would someone explain to me how Arizona has no shot?  At home.  Playing in front of a crowd that gobbled up tickets in six minutes.  Would someone explain to me how the Cardinals can’t do this?  Now that they’ve won double the amount of playoff games that they had since 1998.  Would someone explain how the Eagles are some kind of lock?  After Arizona dominated one of the NFL’s ‘top teams?’

Let me get this one correct: the Cardinals beat Atlanta, trounce Carolina, and they don’t have a chance?  The same way Tampa Bay didn’t have a chance to get to the World Series?  The same way the Marlins couldn’t beat the Yankees in 2003?  The same way that there was no chance three out of four road teams would prevail in the divisional round leaving us with two six seeds and a four?

What’s amatter?  Does the idea of Arizona making the Super Bowl sound too comical?  Is the concept of the NFL’s most down trodden franchise in the Big Game absurd?  Are you looking for a reason to laugh at the madness that has ensued over these past few weeks?

Arizona has scored 30 and 33 points their last two games.  Their defense is taking the ball away at an unprecedented rate.  Their running game, while not spectacular, now gains yards most of the time.  And uh, let’s not forget about Larry Fitzgerald.  I heard he’s kind of good.  And dare you count out Kurt Warner, who at 37 probably thought he had proved all the doubters wrong.  Nope, the skeptics keep growing.  Everyone is waiting for the wheels to fall off of this shocking Cards resurgence.  This can’t be real, the Cards can’t be good.  What in the world is going on here?

When you look for flaws you find them.  Arizona has them.  Philly does too.

But Arizona is easy to pick on.  They’re the little kid in the back, quietly waiting their turn, as the bullies push them around.  They plot their revenge.  They unite.  They come together at the right time, and then bam, you never know what hit you.

This is what happens when you underestimate and beat down a team that can’t prove itself out of a paper box if you listen to many a expert.  Their is no way they can win.

Their quarterback is too old.  Their offensive line is too inexperienced.  Their defensive line is too inconsistent.  Their corners are too new at this.  Their coach isn’t ready.  Their star wideout is too banged up.  Their running back is too past their prime.  Their backup parties too much.  Theirother star wide out can’t do it again.

O, they’ve heard what they can’t do.  They’ve been told they’re not good enough, not fast enough, not smart enough, not tough enough, not rough enough, and that they don’t have a huff or a puff.  But come next Sunday, the Cardinals won’t be listening.  No.  They’ll be too busy getting ready to claim a spot in the Super Bowl that no one still believes they can get.

So bash them, call them names, and tell them what they can and cannot do.  They’ll go out on the field and prove to everyone, that this run is no fluke.  This magic carpet ride is no mirage.  That NFC championship and berth in the Super Bowl is no pipe dream.

It’s happening.  Whether you like it or not. Next week, after Arizona beats the media darling Eagles to advance to the Super Bowl, I hope you’ve got some fresh insults for the new NFC Champions.  If you haven’t noticed, they really like your ignorance.