Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl Sunday is finally here. What a long two weeks. We were so busy worrying about the two-week layoff that we did zero posts in two weeks. Well this is the day where champions are remembered and losers are forgotten. It's been a nice run for two teams, but today only one will come away victorious. So who's going to win this game. You guessed it...I'm going with the Steelers, and it's not just because I'm from Pittsburgh. Anything can happen on any given Sunday, but looking at this game there's a huge advantage for the Steelers. It's not by accident that the Steelers are seven point favorites by Vegas today in Tampa. They have more overall talent than the Cardinals. They also have a better defense and what wins championships? Defense.

Another thing I always like to look at when it comes to the Super Bowl is the teams overall competition throughout the season and who they played during the regular season and playoffs. The Cardinals played in arguably the worst division in the NFL this year and went 6-0 against that competition. Outside of their division, the Cards went 3-7. Ouch. That's bad enough, but then you have to look at how they played some of their games. When they played the Jets, Patriots, Vikings and Eagles in the regular season...the Cardinals didn't just lose, they got beat down. And I don't hear about them mailing it in after they clinched the division toward the end of the year...they had their starters in and if they didn't come to play, well then that says something about what kind of team they are. The Steelers, on the other hand, played one of the toughest schedules in the NFL...having to play the Ravens twice, Chargers, Giants, Eagles, Redskins, Colts, Cowboys, Patriots, Jaguars and Titans. Come on, that's a brutal regular season schedule. Would the Cardinals have won nine games with that schedule? I don't think so.

I'm going to close with something I said (in another blog) before Super Bowl XL and it holds true this year. Pittsburgh is the toughest team that the Cardinals will face this season, but the Cardinals are not the toughest team the Steelers will face all year. That was true with the Steelers and Seahawks in 2005-06 and look what happened then. I expect much of the same today as the Steelers are more battled tested than the Cards and their defense is superior than Arizona's. I think Kurt Warner will be smothered by the Steelers D and Ben and the offense does enough to hoist the trophy.
Prediction: Steelers 31, Cardinals 17