Thursday, January 29, 2009

Steelers Join Cardinals in Super Bowl 2009

The Pittsburgh Steelers joined the first-timer Arizona Cardinals in the 2009 Super Bowl, with a 23-14 victory over Baltimore.

For the Steelers, this is a chance to finally separate themselves from the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys; all three teams have won five Super Bowls, and Pittsburgh can be the first to win six.

Additionally, if the Steelers win, their 36-year-old coach, Mike Tomlin, would be the youngest coach to win a Super Bowl.

On the other hand, the Cardinals will be an underdog, and one that might have a great deal of support among underdog lovers. Their QB, Kurt Warner, has much playoff experience, and previously won the Super Bowl MVP award when he led the St. Louis Cardinals to the Super Bowl. So an upset is not out of the question.

At the same time, there's bad blood between the Cardinals' coach and Pittsburgh. The Cardinals’ Ken Whisenhun was the offensive coordinator when the Steelers won the Super Bowl three seasons ago. He went to Arizona only after being passed over for Pittsburgh’s job.

But to do upset Pittsburgh, Arizona will have to protect Warner better than the Ravens did rookie Joey Flacco. Pressured, and perhaps feeling the stress of being a rookie in an NFC title game, Flacco was rushed and flustered and finished 13-for-30 for 141 yards with three costly interceptions.

However, Kurt Warner has a ton of experience, and if the Cardinals can give him time, despite his age, can still be dangerous. Can he return to the Super Bowl after all these years and win again? We'll know, in 2 weeks, in Tampa.

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