Different styles should give fans attractive matchup
Super Bowl XLIII will be a classic confrontation of explosive offense vs. stifling defense.
The upstart and longshot Cardinals will bring the offense, and plenty of it. They've scored 30 points or more in four straight games, including Sunday's 32-25 victory over the Eagles for the NFC title.
The Steelers will supply defense with a side of attitude. They've held seven of their last nine opponents to 14 points or less, including Sunday's 23-14 victory over the Ravens for the AFC title. The Steelers and Cardinals are opposites in many ways, but that could make for an attractive matchup.
The Steelers are in the Big Game for the seventh time - only the Cowboys (8) have been there more often - while the Cardinals have never been. The Cardinals have only been to the postseason three times in the past 32 years, and in that time they had just 1 playoff win until this season.
But head coach Ken Whisenhunt has reversed the legacy of losing in just his second season. Coincidentally, Whisenhunt was a Steelers assistant coach for six years, the last three as offensive coordinator, before taking over in Arizona.
Mike Timlin assumed the post as the Steelers' head coach eight days after Whisenhunt, at the precocious age of 34, after just one season as a defensive coordinator with the Vikings.
Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner, offensive coordinator Todd Haley and the rest of the pass-happy Cardinals have discovered in the postseason that less is more when it comes to the air attack. They finished the regular season No. 2 in passing yards but dead last in rushing yards.
Sunday, Warner needed to throw just 28 passes, but he completed 21 of them for 279 yards and 4 touchdowns. Uncharacteristically, the Cardinals ran 29 times for 102 yards against the Eagles, maintaining their postseason trend. Their playoff rushing average of 111 yards per game is 50 percent more than the 73.6 rushing yards they averaged in the regular season.
But make no mistake, while the Cardinals' newfound ability to run the ball has made their offense more balanced, they still do most of their damage through the air. And Larry Fitzgerald is usually on the business end of most of Warner's most lethal passes. Fitzgerald's postseason performance has elevated him to the very top of the NFL's list of go-to wide receivers.
His playoff numbers have been stunning. The 6-foot-3, 226-pound Fitzgerald destroyed the Eagles with 9 catches for 152 yards and 3 touchdowns, giving him postseason totals of 23 receptions, 419 yards and 5 touchdowns. His biggest game came against the best defense he's faced all season.
But Fitzgerald will face an even better defense on Feb. 1 at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium, although it will be interesting to see if anyone on the Steelers can handle him 1-on-1 - or even 2-on-1.
Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau is considered the architect of and foremost authority on the zone blitz, and he will give Warner a variety of pass-rush looks. But Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson operates much the same way, and Warner seemed to be a step ahead of him all day.
The Steelers' NFL-best defense will get a much tougher test from Warner than it did from Ravens rookie Joe Flacco on Sunday.
That matchup will likely be the one that determines the winner.