Monday, January 26, 2009
It is the seventh time that the Steelers go to the Superbowl

 

Back in the seventies, Pittsburgh Steelers were the biggest thing in football, leaded by an outstanding defense, excellent receivers, a very good running game and a young, talented quarterback, Steelers became the first time in NFL history to win four Lombardi Trophies.

Though in the eighties and the nineties the team could only make it to the Super bowl one single time, the 2000’s saw a rebirth of the franchise, starting with their 2001 AFC championship and just losing to the Patriots before the big game.

So in 2004, Tommy Gun was overthrown by Big Ben, and on his first game, Ben Roethlisberger lost, which lowed his expectations from fans and the press, but that was the only regular season game Big Ben lost during regular season that year. He even led the Steelers to their best record in franchise’s history at 15-1.

Then the Steelers would go on to loose two straight AFC championships to the Patriots (which has the Steelers as one of the best teams of the decade because of always finishing behind the Patriots), then they finished 11-5 but failed to win their division.

Now the magic: The Broncos eliminates the Pats; the Steelers beat Denver, and got a ticket for Superbowl XL, which they won by 21-10 to the Seahawks, for the franchise’s fifth Super bowl title. They won being the only sixth seeded team in NFL history to do so.

Pittsburgh can make history if they beat the Cardinals on Superbowl XLII, as they will become the first team in NFL history to win 6 Super bowls.

I’m sure that Arizona Cardinals is coming to the big game with great expectations, but to beat history is a factor that is probably playing in Steelers player’s minds as I’m writing this article, so I would have to say that my favorites this time are the Steelers, whom I expect to play greatly on February 1st at Raymond James Stadium.

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Monday, January 19, 2009
So far in the road to the Superbowl

 

It almost time for the Superbowl! That’s right, we are just a few days from Super Bowl XLIII and here is what has happened so far in the playoffs:
Wildcard weekend took place on January 3 and January 4, on the third, the Cardinals beat the Falcons by 24-30, while the Chargers beat the Colts by 23-17. On the fourth, the Ravens beat the Dolphins by 27-9 and the Eagles beat the Vikings by 26-14.
Arizona, San Diego, Baltimore and Philadelphia all got tickets for the following round, the Divisional playoffs on the 10th and the 11th. On January 10, the inspired Ravens took down the almighty Titans by 13-10, while the Cardinals also came encouraged after their victory over Atlanta and beat the Panthers by 33-13, and on January eleven, The Eagles ended with the hopes of the Giants to acquire a second straight Superbowl title as they were eliminated by Philadelphia by 23-11 and finally, Big Ben and the Steelers beat the Chargers by 35-24.
The big surprises here are the respective eliminations of New York, Tennessee and San Diego, and now everything is set for the Conference Championship games on January 18, where the Eagles will meet the Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium, while the Ravens are visiting the Steelers to play at Heinz Field.
The winning teams will have a few days to practice and get ready for Super Bowl XLIII which is going to take place on February 1st in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.
Predictions? I have to say that I will enjoy seeing Philly beating the Cardinals and getting a chance to clean their image of Superbowl losers as they have lost in their two previous Superbowl appearances, first against the Raiders in 1980 and against the Patriots on 2004.

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