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Tampa Bay, FL- Decades of losing and the jokes that come with them are fading into the eagerly forgotten past; predictions have been firmly etched by pundits; final walk-throughs are taking place at practice facilities seized by electric anticipation; and the shock that has befallen ecstatic Valley fans is just now wearing off. It is time for the Arizona Cardinals to play a football game; to prove themselves one last time before this magical season ends. The over-achieving Red Birds are set to do battle in Tampa Bay’s Raymond James Stadium on February 1st with the vaunted Pittsburgh Steelers, who bring a fierce reputation for leaving everything on the fieldincluding injured opponents- to Super Bowl XLIII. This season, the Steel Curtain legacy was in lively form as the black and gold laid waste to opposing offenses, averaging just over 80 yards allowed on the ground and less than 157 yards through the air. Conversely, the Cardinals averaged 365.8 total yards of offense per game, so obviously something will have to give come Sunday. The two teams are arriving in Tampa having realized contrasting internal transitions from the regular to post season: The Cardinals have been scoring prolifically all year, and when they won it was usually attributable to an offensive onslaught that the opponent could not overcome, while the defense played well enough to get the ‘W’. The Steelers have been defending ferociously all year, and when they won it was usually attributable to a brutal stomping that the opponent could not overcome, while the offense played well enough to get the ‘W’. In the post season, the story of the Cardinal’s ascension has been a ball-hawking, punishing defense, though their offense remained precise and efficient; while the Steelers have rediscovered the scoreboard in QB Ben Roethlisberger’s spontaneous ability to create, and the defense has stayed rock solid. For the Cardinals to expose the favored Steelers, D-Lineman Darnell Dockett, Bertrand Berry, Chike Okeafor, and Travis LaBoy will have to bring as much heat as they can on Roethlisberger while maintaining their gaps in order to disrupt what has been a steady, methodical Pittsburgh attack throughout the playoffs. Coach Ken Whisenhunt and his staff surely took note of how the Baltimore Ravens over-pursued in last week’s AFC Championship game, so they have to make sure that the front four maintains discipline, and that the secondary is ready for a dominant performance against a hobbled Pittsburgh receiving corps (WR Hines Ward is expected to play, but will be nursing a sprained knee). Pittsburgh also showed some vulnerability in the defensive backfield against a Raven team featuring Derrick Mason and Mark Clayton as featured pass-catchers, who may be quality receivers, but they do not inspire as much fear as Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston. In other words, there should be room to pass against this squad, but QB Kurt Warner has to make sure not to stretch his guys our or otherwise expose them to the bad intentions of a unit that loves to deliver the big hit. Though Vegas has posted the Cardinals as 7 point underdogs, the figure would be higher had the team not smashed each of the previous week’s prognostications with upset wins over Atlanta, Carolina, and Philadelphia. New England was heavily favored over New York in last year’s Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, and there was virtually no one in the studio or on the street who thought the Giants had a prayer in that contest. These Cardinals are certainly not the Cardinals of old, and though a victory over the more physical, more experienced Steelers would still be a miracle to some, know this: Super Bowl XLIII will be decided by less than a touchdown.
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