NFL (08/09) Super Bowl XLIII: Pittsburgh Steelers vs Arizona Cardinals

[fuey]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Oh n Fuey u forgot Ben Graham, who according to most media here is a shoe in for the MVP

Deliberately omitted Hleby!!

Speaking of self-indulgent, his piece in yesterday's Herald-Sun was almost enough to make me switch bandwagons. Made it sound like he was going to win the game off his own boot!!

I think he wrote it thinking that every Aussie knows nothing about the sport...

 

[Woodson]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

I think Tomlin possibly being the youngest ever head coach to win a superbowl is a very interesting story. Also speaking of interesting stories (don't know if anyone has seen this) but I will never forget this Sports Center piece on Hines Ward. Incredible story on the discrimination he faced growing up in korea being half korean and half black.
http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=T84rXduuzaU

Something the Australian media is totally oblivious to. Anyway, the more the Australian media gets to see BG in action, it's alright by me. And cats2rise also.. the
blow-in fan can't lose!!

 

[Woodson]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

I call it self-indulgent, because to me, KS comes across very ego-centric in the post, like the game is all about what he/she wants.

Very much self-indulgent, IMO. And obviously it is bull-shit, because the game is not about KissStephanie at all, unless something has changed which I haven't read about... all this heat!

Interception in the Redzone when game was clearly on the line. Don't forget to rub it in Fuey.

 

[Wizard]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Deliberately omitted Hleby!!

Speaking of self-indulgent, his piece in yesterday's Herald-Sun was almost enough to make me switch bandwagons. Made it sound like he was going to win the game off his own boot!!

I think he wrote it thinking that every Aussie knows nothing about the sport...

I agree, that pissed me off to.

Was terribly written and the must self indulgent garbage and horn toating crap i have read for a while.
I never liked Graham as a Cat and i still don't as a Cardinal, i hope he does his bit this Monday and helps us to success and then is cut and never returns to Arizona again.

I still dont think he realises he is pretty insignificant in the skeem of things in this sport. Benny your a little guy that knowone cares about!!!

 

[fuey]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

I still dont think he realises he is pretty insignificant in the skeem of things in this sport. Benny your a little guy that knowone cares about!!!

Yep...

He's gone from being a big fish in a small pond, to a small fish in a big pond, to now being a small fish in a small pond...

... and he just can't deal with it. Too much time being the big fish to realise he's just a sardine...

 

[Woodson]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

I agree, that pissed me off to.

Was terribly written and the must self indulgent garbage and horn toating crap i have read for a while.
I never liked Graham as a Cat and i still don't as a Cardinal, i hope he does his bit this Monday and helps us to success and then is cut and never returns to Arizona again.

I still dont think he realises he is pretty insignificant in the skeem of things in this sport. Benny your a little guy that knowone cares about!!!

Don't be like that Wizard. I think it's a great story regardless how ONE dimensional the Oz media spin it. I think he'll be good enough to be around for a little while yet. I'm dissappointed the Saints didn't persist. Then JD would have to deal with him.

I think had the Eagles won, the flood of blow-ins would of been TEN FOLD... b@stards on the North boards just too overwelming to handle.

Good that Geelong fans who don't follow NFL haven't invaded our forum. Good luck to Benny Graham.. only a muffed punt is all it takes to now STEAL the Oz media spotlight from the event. I can actually expect to see at least one punt on the footage highlights... that's a gimme.. moreso than the touchdown that shapes the momentum. Of course a poor drive by the Steelers will be credited to Ben Graham's leg, not the ARZ D (if they show up in numbers ).

 

[Woodson]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Yep...

He's gone from being a big fish in a small pond, to a small fish in a big pond, to now being a small fish in a small pond...

... and he just can't deal with it. Too much time being the big fish to realise he's just a sardine...

The Oz media will make that sardine taste like an oyster. SUPER BEN was the backpage headline when the Cards claimed the CC. Interesting headline..

 

[Ludacris]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Something the Australian media is totally oblivious to. Anyway, the more the Australian media gets to see BG in action, it's alright by me. And cats2rise also.. the
blow-in fan can't lose!!

Ben Graham is a great story too.

Also if I am not mistaken Warner could possibly the first QB to win 2 superbowls with 2 different teams. Is that right?

 

[Ludacris]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

I call it self-indulgent, because to me, KS comes across very ego-centric in the post, like the game is all about what he/she wants.

Very much self-indulgent, IMO. And obviously it is bull-shit, because the game is not about KissStephanie at all, unless something has changed which I haven't read about... all this heat!

KS only spoke about Arizona fans and the city itself. Nothing about the team so I get your point. ...hope you guys over there are surviving under extreme weather conditions. good luck.

 

[KissStephanie]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

What a load of self-indulgent bull-shit...

There is no need for that sort of language, so now you're on my ignore list. I understandably won't be reading any of your posts.

I can understand not having an interest in the game, but your post was really a waste of yours, and our time.

Of course it wasn't a waste of my time because this forum is for sharing opinions, and I strongly stand-by my opinion. I also don't believe that it was a waste of your time, otherwise you wouldn't have even bothered responding.

I don't know about you, but I watch the game because of the players involved, not because of the cities in which the teams come from.

If you like to watch individuals, then you should watch tennis instead. I prefer team sport, even if you don't.

Think of the interesting PEOPLE involved in this game.

Individuals do not mean as much to me in a team sport as they do you obviously.

Totally agree fuey, seems according to KissStephanie the only teams allowed in the superbowl should be the ones with the most fans or the most attractive cities

Where exactly did I say that? I have never said that certain teams should only be permitted to play if they fit a particular criteria at all. Why do some people have difficulty with reading clearly written posts? I simply stated the reasons that both teams are boring to me, and many others in this country as well, according to the reaction on the radio. Please don't mis-quote me again. I stand-by my opinion whether you like it or not.

I really dont understand people who say this will be a boring superbowl

Many people here in the US feel that way for the reasons that I gave. The only people that care about the Steelers are their own supporters, nobody else does, while the only people that care about the Cardinals are the fair-weather supporters who have dropped their real team to jump aboard the bandwagon. That is what makes it a boring Super Bowl to many.

Arizona are easily one of the most entertaining teams to watch in the whole NFL and everyone already knows about the Steelers defense and how great they are to watch.

Arizona won the NFC West which is the weakest division in the NFL, even though my team is also in that division. They won the weakest division with a very modest 9 wins and 7 losses, and they should have lost to Atlanta in the first week.

They were able to host that match though, even though the Falcons had a better season, and that made all the difference. That doesn't sound like an entertaining team to watch to me. As for the Steelers, strong defence in American football is not at all entertaining to watch.

a guy who said this would be the bost boring Superbowl ever and that if the Cardinals win then it basically makes the regular season null and void from now on ....fair to say i stopped listening to him after that.

Why did you stop listening? Many people here in the US agree with that opinion. The Cardinals have been rewarded for mediocrity by being able to host two home matches in Phoenix. By the way, the city of Phoenix is a shit-hole, and the only people that care about the Cardinals are those that have jumped on the bandwagon.

They certainly don't have any fair dinkum supporters because most people there already have a team because they come from elsewhere in the US, and the team has only been located there for twenty years. Many neutral supporters here in the US want both teams to lose for different reasons, and that is what makes it boring.

 

[camsmith]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Apologies if this has been posted already:

America's brutal, thinking man's sport

Jack Sexton | January 29, 2009
Article from: The Australian

IT has taken 41 years, but finally, on Monday morning our time, an Australian will play in the Super Bowl. How much do Australians know about this bizarre game which, along with Australians rules and Gaelic football, is one of the world's three truly national football codes?

The answer might be: more than Americans know about Aussie rules. When Ben Graham arrived to punt for the New York Jets in 2005, and Australian journalists asked fans where he had come from, most answered Europe.

Still, most Australians know nearly nothing about American football. The image - like most of our images of American life, picked up from cinema and television - is of a game that, despite being played mostly by huge meatheads, is also intricately dull.

As with most stereotypes, there is a great deal of truth: gridiron is complicated, and many of its players weigh nearly 140kg; they also, as suggested by the recent case of New York Giants player Plaxico Burress, who shot himself in the leg during a night out, often have meat in their heads.

But for people who know the game well, there can be little argument that American football, more than any other football code, deserves the title of the intellectual game.

Indeed, the complexity and rigidity of gridiron reflects an aspect of the American national character that is usually neglected: its intellectualism (which does not, necessarily, have anything to do with intelligence).

Americans have believed, from the Puritans to Dr Phil, that anything can be mastered by a method; that once you know the "code", the problems of the universe can be solved. This accounts for why American fans and commentators are loath to attribute to accident the result of any match; for them, structural factors are to be seen in every play and bounce of the ball.

Unlike in Aussie rules or even rugby league and union, the rigid, stop-start structure of gridiron gives coaches free scope for their imaginations. And so while in our codes coaches only think they control the game, in America's National Football League, they actually do. This allows for the construction of plays of dazzling complexity that, recorded in elaborate arrangements of noughts and crosses, resemble the indecipherable language of some lost and alien civilisation.

Thus the figure in the US of the genius coach, which, despite the occasional Sheedy, Gibson or Bennett, has no parallel in Australia. While the New England Patriots were winning everything, their coach, Bill Belichick, was the subject of countless profiles claiming he had the IQ of a nuclear physicist, and that his success could be traced to causes as diverse as his childhood or his study of economics.

Of course, this focus on coaches and their tactics is in part a way for normal-sized white Americans, who make up the majority of the sport's fans, to continue to claim as their own a game that is now played mostly by huge, black men. For while gridiron may be the intellectual game, a spectacle of science as well as (often barely controlled) violence, it is still, in the end, all about big hits. And when you weigh, as linebackers do, nearly 140kg and your sole job is to smash into an opposing player as hard as you can, then the hits are big indeed.

Australians, not used to seeing our own players in padding, tend to see the wearing of protection on a football field as a sign of weakness. But this is because they do not understand the nature of the contact in American football. Unlike in our games, where the contact is nearly always incidental - that is, is the result of someone going for the ball or being tackled in open play - in gridiron, contact is the whole point. You don't have to have the ball to be smashed, and, once the play has begun, you can be hit from a radius of 360 degrees (a feature shared only by Aussie rules among our own codes). Also, the use of padding and helmets has, ironically, made the game even more dangerous: players can now confidently throw themselves at each other, often head-first, with no sense of anyone's well-being.

American football is not for everyone. But for those who appreciate it, there is a poetry in the contrast between the delicacy of the game's structure - the elaborateness of the plays, and the fineness of the skills - and the brutality of the contact. There is carnage in gridiron, but it is choreographed; indeed, the players wear tights. If you don't know what's going on, it can look like dull chaos; if you do, it can be beautiful.

Gridiron has become a part of America's national mythology and bequeathed to the language many metaphors for life. It is arguable that in the past 20 years, it has replaced baseball as the nation's dominant sport, and its most accurate mirror.

Jack Sexton is a freelance writer.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24976805-7583,00.html

 

[camsmith]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

...strong defence in American football is not at all entertaining to watch.

I think Arena football is for you...

How can anyone possibly not enjoy watching strong defence?

 

[Exe Gesis]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Interesting pov, KissStephanie.
Some of what you say is on point....especially the notion that people can be understandbly upset that a 9-7 NFC West team could win the SB. That it could make a bit of mockery of the regular season.
And we've seen a lot recently of WC teams winning SBs...Steelers, Giants, and maybe now Cardinals. Could be something that causes a stir in light of Goodell's idea to reward WC with home game.
At the same time tho, isnt this what Goodell and everyone wants---parity in the league, any given sunday?

Just on "boring"....

The game match-up might be boring in a city sense or team-popularity sense, or traditional rivalry sense. But the game itself looms as a very exciting game of football. The football itself. High octane Cards O vs Steeler D. And as I mentioned before that you quoted....how there's a bunch of stories in this game---Warner maybe going out 2 time SB champ/mvp, Edgerrin James maybe retiring or at least earning a much deserved SB, the Whisenhunt-Grimm vs Tomlin thing.

The other angle here too is that due to Ben Graham's involvement, suddenly the game becomes more interesting in Australia, beyond just the Half-Time show as the Australian News usually reports on, with scant reference to the game itself. Could pique interest in the game in Australia a little more.

 

[Wizard]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Don't be like that Wizard. I think it's a great story regardless how ONE dimensional the Oz media spin it. I think he'll be good enough to be around for a little while yet. I'm dissappointed the Saints didn't persist. Then JD would have to deal with him.

I think had the Eagles won, the flood of blow-ins would of been TEN FOLD... b@stards on the North boards just too overwelming to handle.

Good that Geelong fans who don't follow NFL haven't invaded our forum. Good luck to Benny Graham.. only a muffed punt is all it takes to now STEAL the Oz media spotlight from the event. I can actually expect to see at least one punt on the footage highlights... that's a gimme.. moreso than the touchdown that shapes the momentum. Of course a poor drive by the Steelers will be credited to Ben Graham's leg, not the ARZ D (if they show up in numbers ).

Maybe its just me being a long-time Cardinals fan and annoyed that every prick is trying to join the party now things have turned around a little bit.

I really hope he isnt at the Cardinals next year, i think it has to be something we look at seriously in the off-season ST that is.
Rackers is one bad kick on Sunday away from being cut as is Graham. Breaston as a KR/PR adds absolutely nothing anymore which is strange as thats why he was drafted, but as a WR hes exceptional so all is forgiven.
JJ is ok with his KR but is not PR, so there is a need there for sure.
But lets not forget the best special teamer in football Sean Morey, would love to see him steal one off Bergers' boot and have it taken to the house like he did to Matt McBriar earlier in the season.

 

[Wizard]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Excuse my in-activity over the next few days as i am going away for the weekend.

Wont be online much at all!!!

Have a good one all!!!

 

[danielz_23]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Ok - I haven't been through the posts but it seems like a split decision, and think it is pretty obvious choice and the overall Playoff/Superbowl hype machine has created this isn't some kind of match-up.

Pittsburgh Steelers

• 14-4 vs the NFL toughest schedule
• NFL's best defense - they pass rush, cover, stop the run
• Superbowl experience - 30% of them won in 2006

Arizona Cardinals

• 12-7 record
• Perennially bad team on the east coast
• Offense HAS TO win it for them

Arizona have beaten a Rookie QB at home, jumped an inept offense that had no passing game to recover with, and held off Philadelphia at home who I suspect just ran out of steam. They are 4-5 on the road - wins over San Fran, St Louis, Seattle & Carolina. The last 3 road games.... two massive losses of 20-48 @ Phili, and 7-47 to New England... and the win in Carolina.

They say they have overcome the roads woes and it was a turning point... I say it was one game... they have played 3 of their last 4 games at home, and they are a 9-7 team who didn't make a run into the playoffs, they fell in and have just 'found a way' to the big dance through favorable circumstances. I think more importantly they have now had a week to let their heels cool off and reality catch up with them...

Pittsburgh aren't all that - they have a very ordinary offense but are backed by a suffocating defense. You can't run it, at least Arizona have no hope, you can't pass on them and they have a nasty rush - that WHEN they get to Warner will turn this into a blow-out. Generally you don't see them scoring much more than 20 pts though. They haven't seen the road since mid-December but are 6-2 for the season when they do.

Basically, this is the Superbowl boys - Pittsburgh are a mean machine. They will grind you and smack your offense in the mouth. Arizona are a hit or miss proposition and when it doesn't work for them it gets very ugly and Warner looks like he doesn't belong. You see the head down and it snowballs - this isn't the kind of team that will roll over to them.

A lot of the Steelers as a team have been here before, together, and are fundamentally sound in all areas of the game - Even offense, they know their limitations. I am most impressed by their coverage more than anything else, no name corners who are been great all year.

The only way you see Arizona winning is in an offensive explosion that the Steelers can't match - but can you really see that happening? to this defense? in this game?... remember years ago when that Patriots offense blew up everyone, 10x better than this Cardinal offense, what happened?... I think if they try the Steelers will reek havoc, generate turnovers and light them up... if they don't try I see the Steelers just pushing them over.

Pittsburgh 27 - Arizona 13

We shaaall see. and remember defense wins championships.

...and no Larry Fitzgerald is not the best WR in football (re: media coverage)

 

[Exe Gesis]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

A match-up people aren't factoring in is the Cards D vs Steelers O (especially O-line).

The Cards are a very good defensive unit, tho stats may not showcase it in neon lights, but they get pressure, can stop the run, can be relentless and create takeaways. While Steelers O is a spluttering thing that can get very ugly easily. Roethlisberger is a big playmaker and will be hard to bring down, always finds a way or occasions when he makes a big play. But, he can also be a liability at times and the Steeler running game could struggle here badly, adding pressure on the Steelers passing game especially if the Cards get out to an early lead----which they are most capable of doing.

Imo, the postscript of the game will be "how the Cards D beat the Steelers O".

 

[fuey]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

blah blah blah

Ok, you're not going to read this cos I'm on your ignore list BUT:

You're basing your opinon of the game on the make-up of the cities involved... Tell me how that isn't ridiculous? I'll call it as I see it, and yes, it is complete and utter bullshit...

Individuals do not mean as much to me in a team sport as they do you obviously.

See, in this game, I don't have an emotional attatchment to either team, so yes, in this game I'm looking at the individuals, and the stories behind them. What is wrong with that?

Some of my favourite players have been screwed by team, and some have tried to screw my team, but I have always backed my team. I'm sure the peeps of the forum could back this up, you probably couldn't varify this as you only come in once a year

 

[fuey]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Perennially bad team on the east coast

Just on this... playing on the east-coast will NOT be a factor in this game. It's a time zone thing, they've been there for a week, no issues...

Honestly, Danz, I expect more from you. Plenty of dressing in that post, but not much substance.

Too much time in the US, brought into the Steeler hype already?

I asked this earlier in the thread, but how does Pittsburgh match up with the Cards in a 3WR set? The Steeler CBs have never been top notch, and Fitzgerald is a BEAST. Un-playable by Taylor, Townsend and McFadden et al.

When was the last time the Steelers played a Pass O that was on song such as this Arizona one?? I would say Indy in early November. Very similar offenses, IMO, maybe even a simliar scoreline this coming Monday...

 

[danielz_23]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Well the hype here is all Arizona. Everyone is picking 'the upset' so much that it doesn't appear to be an upset chance anymore. Barely hear much about Pittsburgh as they are trying to talk up Arizona and they have a more interesting story to tell.

I would say San Diego is a good example of a passing offense that was in tune. Chambers, Jackson and Gates - I don't think they got enough appreciation.

Again an in tune Arizona pass O at home is a different thing to the Arizona pass O anywhere else with Warners girly hands exposed.

Its hard to draw comparison as they played a lot of weaks teams. There is the evident blowout @ Philadelphia, I'll ignore New England because of the snow - unfortunately I can't ignore it here in Toronto...

When was the last time Arizona played the best D in the NFL, well rested and at the top of its game? It rubs both ways...

I'm just re-enforcing that the favorite be respected - they are that for a reason... hence the money is going to them. Looking at the 21-21 poll and a TV show where 3/3 guys took Arizona I think the hype is blurring the difference in these teams.

You can't rely on offense and have an average defense in the big games... however a great defense always shows up. History tells us that

 

[Exe Gesis]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

You mean like how the Indy defense was shocking all year, then put it all together in the playoffs and even out-defensed the Chicago team?

I see parallels in that playoffs and SB-matchup as this Cards/Steelers one.

 

[cats2rise]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Yeah Fuey, the plan is to get a HD flatscreen in the coming weeks. Havnt been able to afford the upgrade as a uni student yet haha.

 

[Lehmo87]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Yeah Fuey, the plan is to get a HD flatscreen in the coming weeks. Havnt been able to afford the upgrade as a uni student yet haha.

Once you get a Widescreen TV with HD you will never go back to the old 4:3 format

I won't be watching the game live - unfortunately I have to work during the day - but I will be recording the game on ESPN HD as well as the next two programs after that in case it goes into overtime.

Go Steelers!

 

[damochandler]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

steelers to win for mine. their D will be the difference and willie parker will run riot on arizona

 

[WhyAlwaysMe]

Re: (08/09) Superbowl XLIII: Arizona vs Pittsburgh

Well I just played Madden as the Cards v the Steelers and went down 17-14. There's my prediction folks