Super Bowl XLIII

[ham55]

They committed to him for the length of his contract by drafting him that high. They saw something and they're not a rash team to make sudden decisions like that. They'll give him a chance, but he should have had 3 catches, near 100 yards and 2 TD's this post season for Pittsburgh. Instead he has one for like 13 yards.

[deliverance]

I agree he should have statistics like that. I thought he had 2 catches for 20 yards last game? I could be wrong, but I am almost certain he had 2 catches. By the way, Hines Ward didn't exactly light the world on fire in his Rookie season and he's a future Hall of Famer. Not everyone can have a Rookie season like Randy Moss. It'll be nice to see Limas add a Super Bowl Ring to go along with his NCAA Championship. The same goes for Tony Hills. I am excited to see the matchup of Casey Hampton against Lyle Sendelein, too.

[Dfense wins games]

So in otherwords, Pittsburgh's offense isn't that bad. The Cards are at a 31.7 pts/game this post season. The Steelers are right behind them at 29 even. Defensively, tha Steelers are not that far ahead allowing 19/gm while the Cards are at 20.7. Keep in mind the Men of Steel have put 2 scores in the endzone while not on offense. Won't be surprise to see a close one in Tampa but if it comes down to a 2 min drill, who would you want? Big Ben has proven time and time again (vs the Ravens mind you) to be able to make plays when they count. Warner is a proven vet and the way he carved up Phili, Im not so sure Lebeau will get a wink of sleep till 2-1-08. He needs to find a nice mix of rush and cover and the Steelers need to keep their heads about them.

Its also funny to hear that Pittsburgh is a "running team". Just because they have "PIttsburgh Steelers" on their j's doesnt mean they are like other years. "Edge" is the leading rusher this postseason (granted he has 10 yards over Paker and one entire extra game). The Stillas need to take care of Fitz, Boldin and Co and hold them to 21. Im supremely confident that Pittsburgh can get atleast 24 on the Cards not counting any other on defense.

"Defense wins games, Offense wins championships, paybacks a b----" and the Steelers signed Tomlin for a reason....

[deliverance]

Don't look into playoff statistics too much. It's simple. The Steelers are a lot better defensively than the Cardinals. They aren't very far behind offensively either. The Steelers will dominate this game. The Cardinals lost to the Patriots by 40 not too long ago. Steelers by at least two touchdowns. You may be able to turn the game off at halftime.

[nLions1]

In a big game anything can happen. Im not looking past the Cards already. Im hoping for a Steeler blowout, but you never know. It may be a shootout with Fitzgerald and Warner, they've proved they are a deadly combination.

[froggyfan]

Arizona is going to play very tough and the Steelers know that. I think the 12th man is going to be a factor in this game. The Black and Gold will be very present in Tampa!!!

[vman]

I'm as pro Steelers as anyone but:

The Steelers will dominate this game.

Would not go that far. I was extremely frustrated w/ our offense vs Balt.....do you know that we ran on every first down play of the 2nd half and was 2nd and 8, 9 or 10 on all but one occasion....we ran on a number of 2nd and longs also and ended up in numerous 3rd & longs! Running WP between the tackles was not working all day yet we persisted?? THERE IS NO WAY BALT SHOULD HAVE HAD THE BALL LATE IN THE GAME WITH A CHANCE TO WIN!! Remember the Philly game earlier this yr...Arians has often times failed to make in-game adjustments to counter the constant blitz schemes that the Steelers have faced. As team after team followed the same script when playing the Steelers, Arians seemed to stubbornly refuse to implement the quick passes that are the obvious counter-attack to constant blitzing. In that game Arians didn’t implement this strategy even after the Eagles’ sacked Roethlisberger 700 times during that game, but I could be mistaken!

Even in the SD game I thought we relied too much on the run early (was okay us w/ pounding @ them after we had established lead) but in first half ran on 7 of 9 first down possessions.....Then threw the ball in the 2 minute drill producing the only offensive score of the half! Now to Arians credit In the passing game, as the game progressed and in that late 1st half drive,, he had Roethlisberger executing the quick slant pass as effectively as I’ve seen any quarterback execute it. It is that particular play that is the bread and butter play for Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. In fact, the Patriots use that play as a defacto running game. Rothlisberger repeatedly got rid of the ball quickly in the face of a Chargers’ blitz. Usually, the recipient of those quick passes were Santonio Holmes or Matt Spaeth. In fact, it was this strategy which was responsible for Spaeth catching 6 passes during the game. I believe that Arians under-utilizes the tight end, was pleasantly surprised to see Spaeth play such an active role in the offense.

Arizona has been shocking the Hades outa' people and if A. Boldin is close to 100% they can be really scary on Offense. Defensively, If they load the box on 1st down, which I suspect they will, you have to run some play action passes! Our D is all that and more but Warner is no slouch & i saw him make a # of throws vs the Eagles (remember their D) w/ people in his face! And Larry Fitz is a freak...no ifs, ands or buts - the best receiver in Football!

I'm hearing all this 'we're going to kill em'......Respect your opponent and prepare for battle!!

[Dfense wins games]

...Then threw the ball in the 2 minute drill producing the only offensive score of the half!

I have to agree. Pittsburgh needs to run the "Lightning" offense (atleast thats what I believe I heard them call it) more often. It gets Ben in a grove and keeps the opponents guessing. There is no coincidence that Ben has been so effective in the 2:00 drill this seaon. I also believe this will allow Fast Willie to find some lanes.

Stat I heard, Ike Taylor has only allowed 2 TD's this season and is an alternate for the Pro Bowl. Look for him to cover Fitzy.

[nLions1]

Steelers easily should have blown the Ravens out of that game. Take away the missed opportunities and the Ravens werent even in the ballpark late in the game. Same thing with the Cardinals. I think the Cards are going to be able to put more points up on the Steelers than the Ravens did with the Fitz-Warner connection. Its gonna be up to the defense to stop the deep ball, and rely on the offense to put well over 30 points on the board and pull away. NO MORE DROPPED BALLS MR. SWEED! Also that last second spike at the end of the first half would have put more points on the board as well, but time was a factor.

[deliverance]

I'm not a pro-Steeler fan, vman. They will dominate this game. I know that anything can happen, but you should put a lot of money down for the Steelers to cover the spread on this game. Arizona has played well in the playoffs and there's no questioning that. I just think the Steelers can bring the type of pressure that Arizona hasn't seen. Tomlin should be able to expose the same weaknesses that New England did. I just don't think the Cards have a chance. Maybe they'll prove me wrong.