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Henderson: History Says It's Too Soon To Crown Steelers

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By JOE HENDERSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 27, 2009

TAMPA - It's understood that Pittsburgh will beat Arizona come Sunday in the Super Bowl, probably badly. Forget about scoring points; the Steelers' defense may not let the Cardinals gain a single yard. Please tell me there is a fund somewhere to make sure Kurt Warner's life insurance premiums are paid. The man has a family.

I don't really believe any of that, by the way – not a single word.

But the Cardinals think we do, so we might as well play along. The Super Bowl, after all, is about tradition, and nothing is more time-honored at the citadel of roman numerals than the ol' "Nobody Believes in Us" gambit.

"I tell you what: It has been tough because every time you turn on the TV or read something, it wasn't very good," Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt said the other day.

Nicely played. And while unquestionably the early chatter favors the Steelers, it's not exactly a blowout.

Depending on which odds board you use, the Cardinals are basically seven-point underdogs. That barely registers on the "disrespect" meter.

Last year — when the New York Giants were 12-point dogs to New England — was bad. When the Patriots were 14-point underdogs (or should I say XIV?) to St. Louis in XXXVI, that was real bad. San Diego got a face full of disrespect, 18 points, in XXIX against San Francisco. The Chargers didn't cover, by the way.

This is the 43rd Super Bowl, and 16 teams have been larger underdogs than the Cardinals. Six of those teams, including the Giants, won the game outright.

So it might be prudent to hold off on Pittsburgh's coronation just yet.

Yeah. That's what'll happen for sure.

A Giant Upset

Sports history is replete with mice that roar, none louder than the Giants did last year in beating undefeated New England.

The Patriots were lopsided favorites in the Super Bowl, but everyone overlooked a rather important indicator of how things might go. New York had beaten three division champions – Tampa Bay, Dallas, and Green Bay – on the road in the playoffs. Even with that, trust me on this, New York was disrespected much more than the Cardinals are now. The Super Bowl was supposed to be basically a Patriots' victory lap.

We know how that one turned out.

That's kind of what's happening now. The Cardinals lose three of four games down the stretch by a combined 130-41. No one saw them as legitimate Super Bowl threats when the playoffs began.

But just as there were warning signs for N.C. State, so there are now.

"Arizona didn't have a chance against Atlanta," Cardinals receiver Anquan Boldin said. "Arizona didn't have a chance against Carolina. Arizona definitely didn't have a chance against Philly. To those people [who say the Cards have no chance now], I say, 'Tune in.'"

He makes a good point. Atlanta was one of the hottest teams in the NFL before Arizona beat the Falcons in the opening round of the playoffs. Carolina, playing at home, was a prohibitive favorite in the next round, but the Cardinals won easily. Even then, Philadelphia, playing on the road, was a popular pick to beat Arizona in the conference final.

Taking It Cool

Arizona wide receiver Sean Morey was asked Monday, "How did you guys get here?"

The question was delivered in a disbelieving tone.

"By plane," Morey deadpanned.

The Cards are clearly reveling in their role as underdogs while believing, no doubt, that they'll be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy come Sunday night.

There aren't a lot of people who agree with them right now, to which Boldin dryly replied, "That's why they play the game."

Oh, yeah, the game.

So many times, it just refuses to go like everyone says it should.

Like Anquan Boldin says, tune in.

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