Superbowl XLIII Preview-Daniel Weberman

Superbowl XLIII showcases the Arizona Cardinals against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. Generally speaking this matchup is more of an event for everyone then a game. My overall feeling has always been that true fans watch the AFC and NFC Championship games as well as the Superbowl and partygoers just watch the Superbowl. Real football fans (I would count myself as one of them) want to see how each team got the opportunity to play in such a huge game, not just once they got there. Now that I talked about my opinion of the game lets discuss the facts and what each team has to do to win. The lower seeded Cardinals come into this game as a seven-point underdog betting wise and in most fans minds as well. As a team they are going to have to play a near flawless game if they have any chance of winning and I think they have the ability to do so. In football, especially in the National Football League experience means a lot but team chemistry and talent is worth even more. Any day I would take Kurt Warner over Ben Roethlisberger because of his football instinct. Kurt is just one of those guys that just knows how to play the game and in sports terms that is called “raw talent” and he posses it to the fullest. Don’t get me wrong, excellent wide receivers such as Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin help but I bet even if Eli Manning had those two receivers he would not be nearly as good. You can still play in the NFL with talent and hard work but instinct is what puts great players into Canton and gets them Lombardi Trophies. With that said the key to the Cardinals winning this game is going to be to break down the Steelers defense through the use of a good mix of running and passing at the correct times. The other side to this game is the Steelers who definitely have the experience advantage, rookie quarterback Ben Roethlisberger led them to a Superbowl in 2005 and they still have many of the same players. Pittsburgh has arguably fastest and most aggressive defense in the entire league led by Troy Polamalu but I have a feeling that all of their blitzing will backfire in this game and Kurt Warner will have a field day throwing deep passes. The way the Steelers will win this game if their defense can pressure Kurt Warner, create turnovers and stop the run. That is a lot of ask of a defense in one game but heck it’s the Superbowl and if you want the ring and trophy you have to play the best game of your life. My prediction for this game is that there will be a huge upset and the Cardinals will win this game 31-28. It will be high scoring and the high-powered Arizona offense will be too much for the Steelers defense to handle. Even though most people disagree with me on this pick including fellow writer Josh Jakers we will wait and see how this game we wait all year to watch will play out.

Daniel Weberman

NYchalktalk.com