1.This is the 1st time the Steelers and Cardinals have ever met in the postseason
2.This is the 3rd time two pre-merger teams(1920-1960) have met in the Super Bowl(Steelers beat Rams in XIV, Colts beat Bears in XLI)
3.In the 1944 NFL Season, due to financial difficulties the Steelers and Cardinals merged to become Card-Pitt. This team finished 0-10 and were seperated the next year. For more information go here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card-Pitt
4.Ken Whisenhunt served as Steelers offensive coordinator when Pittsburgh beat Seattle in Super Bowl XL
5.This is the first Super Bowl since Super Bowl XXXIV that a BCS College is not represented at the QB position(Warner went to Northern Iowa and Big Ben went to Miami(OH))
6.This is the very first appearence in the Super Bowl for the Cardinals.
7.If Pittsburgh wins they will be the first 6 Super Bowl team.
8.Pittsburgh is 5-1 in Super Bowls
9.Arizona has not won an NFL Championship since the 1947 game against Philadelphia.
10.At 9-7, Arizona tied the 1979 L.A. Rams for worse record for a team entering the Super Bowl(The Rams lost 31-19 to the Steelers)
Now its time to break it down:
Kurt Warner vs Ben Roethlisberger
Both have been here before, but like with Tom Brady last year, Warner has more big game experience.
Cardinals 1 Steelers 0
Tim Hightower and Edgerrin James vs Mulwelde Moore and Willie Parker
Pittsburgh's run game has been more consistant this season. Arizona's has been shaky at best.
Cardinals 1 Steelers 1
Larry Fitzgerald vs Hines Ward
The job Ward did in Super Bowl XL was amazing. He was the reason Pittsburgh won that game. However, Fitzgerald has been the reason Arizona has gotten this far.
Cardinals 2 Steelers 1
Santonio Holmes vs Anquain Boldin
Santonio is speed and is a big threat. However, Boldin is overall the better receiver. The question is...will Boldin show up or will he just not try? I give this advantage to the Steelers.
Cardinals 2 Steelers 2
Leonard Pope vs Heath Miller
Heath has been a great bail-out guy for Big Ben and Co. all season. Pope is decent but doesn't get much done.
Steelers 3 Cardinals 2
Steelers O-Line vs Cardinals O-Line
Pittsburgh's o-line has struggled as shown by Big Ben being sacked 192 times since 2004. However, Arizona's is still shaky and Pitt's has been playing better.
Steelers 4 Cardinals 2
Steelers D-Line vs Cardinals D-Line
Steelers front three always gets the job done
Steelers 5 Cardinals 2
Steelers Linebackers vs Cardinals Linebackers
The Steelers 4 man attack has been beating up backs such as Clinton Portis, LaDainian Tomlinson, Darren Sprioles, and Willis McGahee all year. They even shut down Chris Johnson and LenDale White.
Steelers 6 Cardinals 2
Steelers Secondary vs Cardinals Secondary
No contest
Steelers 7 Cardinals 2
Neil Rackers vs Jeff Reed
Rackers has been great...indoors. Reed is very good
Steelers 8 Cardinals 2
Glendale vs Pittsburgh
Arizona is boring...but Pitt is dirty
Steelers 8 Cardinals 3
Ken Whisenhunt vs Mike Tomlin
What Ken Whisenhunt has done in 2 years at Arizona is amazing. He turned one of the worst franchises of all-time into a winner.
Final Score:Steelers 8 Cardinals 4
The X-Factor:Arizona's defense needs to stop the Steelers. The Cardinals will not win on offense. Their is no way that Arizona's 4th ranked offense can beat Pittsburgh's 1st ranked defense. If Arizona's defense can stop Big Ben and Co. then they can win this. However, I don't think they can. If they do stop Pittsburgh, they can or at least make it close. If they can't we're looking at Raiders/Bucs all over again.
Final Score:Steelers 34 Cardinals 10
MVP:James Harrison
