Stepping out!!

It's never easy being the man who takes over from the man.  You've got someone who comes to a team, does his thing and becomes a legend during his time.  The front office loves him, the fans adore him.  Then comes the time when he has to leave the stage.  Soooo, the next person coming in has to match, if not exceed the performance of the guy before him?  C'mon man.

Denver is still waiting for the next John Elway.  Miami is still waiting for the next Dan Marino.  Danny White, despite posting good numbers and leading Dallas to the playoffs, earned the nickname "The quarterback after Roger" (Staubach).  Quick!!  A show of hands if anybody knows who Cliff Stoudt is.  For the record, he's the guy who took over from Terry Bradshaw.  Even Steve Young had live in the shadow of Joe Montana, before finally stepping out after Super Bowl XXIX.  Truth is, it's just not easy.

Aaron Rodgers was considered to be a possible 1st overall pick during the 2005 NFL Draft.  San Francisco held the pick, but opted for Alex Smith instead.  I kind of wonder how that's working out for them now.  Rodgers endured a painstaking 4½ hour wait in the green room, before Green Bay picked him up with the 24^th pick.  It was widely believed that he would be the man to succeed Brett Favre when he eventually decided to retire (I still don't think he will).

One can only wonder what Favre is thinking

Everyone including Rodgers seemed to be thrilled at the thought of being mentored by Brett Favre.  Think about it, in the post-Lombardi era, there was no bigger icon in Green Bay than Brett Favre (well, maybe Reggie White, but you know what I mean).  The opportunity to learn from one of the game's greats would be priceless.  Turns out Favre was anything but thrilled about this "opportunity", saying he wasn't being paid to mentor the kid.

Fast forward to a few years later.  Favre "finally" decides to "retire", then somewhere along the way, changes his minds and returns to training camp wanting to reclaim his job.  Mike McCarthy proved he had what it took to make the tough call by saying "no" to Favre, signalling that the Packers were ready to move on with Rodgers at the helm.  Favre ended up being traded to the New York Jets and would eventually wind up the rival Vikings.


Beating Favre was a huge step in Rodgers progress
toward becoming his own man.

If all it took was a Super Bowl win for Rodgers to completely step out of Brett Favre's shadow, then consider this "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!"  The weight of Favre's legacy has been lifted off his shoulders; there is a new sheriff in town.  Whatever debt Green Bay owed to Brett Favre has been "paid in full".  Rodgers was arguably the best quarterback in the postseason.

Bart Starr still remains the greatest quarterback in franchise history; thanks to a 9-1 record in the post-season, his only loss coming against the Eagles in Philly (a place where Rodgers has already succeeded, and Favre didn't).  Luckily for Rodgers, he's not being compared to Starr, which is a good thing, because should he keep playing the way he is, he will in all likelihood break EVERY post-season franchise record.

Not bad for a guy who wasn't even recruited out of high school, and almost slipped into the second round because teams passed on him.

Bringing back Lombardi.

For the first time in 14 years, the Lombardi Trophy will make it's way back to Green Bay, Wisconsin, after the Packers held on to beat Pittsburgh 31-25.

Green Bay started strong, kind of faded off, but finished strong.  The offensive line held up for the most part and gave Rodgers enough time to find his receivers.  They scored 21 points off 3 Pittsburgh turnovers, and this proved to be the key to their win.

Like I had said in an earlier post, Aaron Rodgers would have to play a near perfect game with zero turnovers, if the Packers were to have any chance of winning this game.  He did exactly that, throwing for three touchdowns and winning the MVP honors for his efforts.

I also said that Pittsburgh, despite any errors on offense, were still good enough to rally from behind and even possibly win the game.  Despite the three turnovers going for touchdowns, the Steelers trailed by 6 late in the game and were in a position to win the game.  So as it turns out, I was right on both accounts.

No doubt, McCarthy would have made Lombardi proud

Green Bay now take home their 4th Super Bowl and will no longer have to worry about being in Brett Favre's shadow.  Mike McCarthy, a Pittsburgh native, will be more than happy to take up his place next to Mike Holmgren, and the very man for whom the trophy was named; Vince Lombardi.  Take a bow, Mike; you're going to Disney World.

Before Vince Lombardi's arrival, Green Bay were going through some lean years.  He managed to turn the team around, and they experienced a decade of dominance; winning NFL Championships and the first 2 Super Bowls.  It was because of this success that Packers earned the nickname "Team of the 60's" and the city became known as "Title Town, USA".

Even though Pittsburgh ended up on the losing side, their first loss since Super Bowl 30, they still managed to make a game of it.  Any other team facing a 21-3 deficit might have not been able to make the kind of comeback that they did. The Steelers showed that they are a championship pedigree team, fighting till the very end.  Big Ben made plays whenever he could, Rashard Mendenhall ran hard and the Steel Curtain managed to get stops; it just wasn't their day.

Nick Collins made the most of this interception

Steeler fans can only wonder about what could have been, had there been no turnovers.  I know I've mentioned this enough times already, but what else was the difference between these teams?  The Packers offense, without the aid of any turnovers, only managed to score 10 points. 

While Pittsburgh seemed to have put their earlier mistakes behind them, it was the mistakes late in the game that did them in.  With momentum behind them, Mendenhall's late fumble gave Green Bay some cushion, but Pittsburgh again managed to close the margin.  After holding the Packers to a field goal, and the game very much within reach, Keyaron Fox's penalty for "unnecessary roughness" sunk the final nail in the coffin.  Having to go the length of the field with only one timeout, was a hurdle too big for Pittsburgh to jump over.

I guess that pretty much sums it up for the football season.  With a possible lockout looming, I really doubt that we'll be short of drama in the days to come.  Enjoy the offseason.

Super Bowl XLV: The Duel and Dance in Dallas!!

So what if the weather will be frigid come Super Bowl Sunday?  This is the kind of weather that Pittsburgh and Green Bay play in anyways; cold climate, y'know football weather.  So both these teams will be just fine.

The bigger storyline here of course is the showdown between two of the oldest franchises in the NFL.  In one corner, we've got Green Bay; the team that set the pace in 60's, winning the first two Super Bowls and earning the monicker "Title Town, USA".  Don't forget that the trophy is named after their legendary coach.  In the other corner, we've got Pittsburgh; a franchise that had only 3 winning seasons in their first 4 decades, until their fortunes turned for the better in the 70's (headlined by the famous "Steel Curtain" defense).

In 2009, Green Bay and Pittsburgh faced off in a classic showdown, highlighted by a 35 point 4th quarter.  And to think that these were supposed to be defensive teams.  With no time left as he took the snap, Big Ben threw a pass to the left corner of the endzone that was caught by Mike Wallace for a 19 yard touchdown; giving the Steelers a 37-36 win.  Pittsburgh, the defending Super Bowl champs, had lost five straight games and would have certainly been knocked out of playoff contention had they lost that game.

So if that game is any indication, then the Super Bowl might be anything but a defensive struggle.  It's like it happens all the time; when two defensive teams play each other, it tends to end in a high scoring affair.  When two high scoring teams play each other, it turns out to be a defensive affair.  Of course, they usually more often than not live up to the hype.

Pittsburgh is playing in a record-tying 8th Super Bowl (matching Dallas record of Super Bowl appearances, the irony).  Their all-time record stands at 6-1, the only loss coming to Dallas is Super Bowl 30 (more irony).  I can understand why most people are picking them to take home a record 7th trophy.  Judging by their record, they know what to do when they get on the big stage.

Green Bay are playing in their 5th Super Bowl, and their first since the Brett Favre era.  They have a 3-1 record, their only loss coming to Denver in Super Bowl XXXII.  Not a bad record really, but the Packers history since the 60's is broken down in two ways; The Lombardi Era and the Post Lombardi Era.  Green Bay need this win to "validate" any claims that they can't "move on" after Brett Favre's departure.

The way I see it, Aaron Rodgers will have to commit "zero to none" errors if Green Bay is to win the game.  I say this because Pittsburgh are slightly better suited to not only overcome Big Ben's errors (or any offensive errors for that matter), but they have come from behind to win on more than one occasion.  Case in point, during the Divisional round against Baltimore, Steelers overcame a 21-7 deficit at the half to win 31-24.  Also in Super Bowl XLIII against Arizona, Big Ben led the game winning drive that started from his own endzone.

While Polamalu, even though not at 100%, will still demand attention, you've still have to worry about LaMarr Woodley and James Harrison; guys who are just disruptive anytime the ball is snapped.  When Pittsburgh has the ball, you've got pay attention to Clay Matthews, B.J. Raji and Charles Woodson (who's very good in covering the run and blitzing the QB).

It's not easy to pick a winner, but Pittsburgh has the edge just because of their ability to clamp down on defense and also rally from behind.  Green Bay's best shot would be to keep Big Ben in the pocket and deny him any room to run/improvise, because he's proven to be very dangerous when allowed to do so.

In their last meeting, it came to the last play in the last second.  I wouldn't be expecting any different this time around.

Clay Matthews: The second coming of Ray Nitschke.

In just his second year, Clay Matthews has developed a reputation as one of the best linebackers in the NFL.  He's big, strong, fast and very athletic; simply put, the man is a BEAST!!  He is slowly but surely establishing himself as a Packer legend, following the footsteps of one the best players to ever wear the Green and Gold; Ray Nitschke.

I'm not a Green Bay Packer fan, cheesehead or whatever it is they call themselves.  I'm not steeped in the tradition, or even know much about the Lambeau mystic, the Frozen Tundra and all that stuff.  What I do know however is that Ray Nitschke is one of the best to have ever played the game.  If you're a Green Bay fan reading this, and there's something you think I ought to know, feel free to educate me.

The man could use a good dental plan.

The list of great linebackers goes deep.  You've got "Hollywood" Henderson, Mike Singletary, Lawrence Taylor.  Then it gets deeper with Chuck Bednarik, Dick Butkus, Jack Lambert and Ray Nitschke.  That's old school and it's as good it gets.

Drafted out of Illinois in 1957, Nitschke was a key player during the Packers dominance in the 1960's.  While he was known for his hard hits, he was a good all-around linebacker, intercepting 25 passes during his career.  Along with the NFL Championships, Super Bowls, All-Pro selections and Hall of Fame honors, Nitschke is one of only 5 players to have their numbers retired by Green Bay; not bad considering how many great players have come through.

Along with Penn State, USC takes a lot pride in the moniker "Linebacker U" due the number of great players at that position over the years.  Junior Seau, Willie McGinest, Chris Clairbone, Lofa Tatupu and Keith Rivers are just to name but a few.  It definitely wouldn't hurt to add Clay Matthews to that discussion.

The three amigos prior to the NFL draft.

Matthews teamed up with Rey Maualuga, Brian Cushing and Kaluka Maiava to form one of the best linebacking units in the country.  From 2006-2008, USC faced Michigan, Illinois (who should have never even been there in the first place) and Penn State in three straight Rose Bowls.  Not only did the Trojans win all three games decisively, but they were dominant in every sense of the word; thanks in part to the aforementioned gentlemen. 

In this era of parity, winning one championship is probably more than enough because it's not as easy for teams to dominate an entire decade like they used back then.  Should Green Bay win Super Bowl XLV, and Matthews goes on to a lengthy career, it wouldn't be a bad thing if he were to considered in the same breath as Nitschke.

6, is the loneliest number.

I decided to do a little remix to the Harry Nilsson classic "One", after the Conference title game concluded on Sunday.  I would have typed the entire song on here, but this is not a karaoke blog.

Jay Cutler couldn't have picked another day to have a bad game.  If the Bears were to advance to the Super Bowl, he was going to have to play above and beyond his best.  While Aaron Rodgers is just as important to his team, the Bears usually suffer more when Cutler plays poorly. 

Cutler who never even got off the blocks left in the 3rd quarter because he sprained his left knee.  Looking at his body language on the sideline, he seemed like he was more suited for a spot on the "Wanna Get Away!!" Southwest Airline promos.  Now you've got people questioning his toughness, and whether or not he bailed on his team.  I'm not going to even get into that because apparently, it's easier to kick a person when they're down.  If he wasn't able to continue, why would he want to set his team back any further than they already were?

Mark Sanchez looked like a "deer in the headlights" during the first half.  This was clearly not the same the guy who led the Jets to win over the Steelers last December.  He rebounded in the second half and had the Jets won, they would have overcome the largest deficit in a conference title game.  However, their second half effort while good, wasn't enough to get it done.  The Steelers now head off to their record-tying 8th Super Bowl.

While both Sanchez and Cutler failed to lead their teams to Jerry's World, to be fair, it really wasn't all on them.  Both Green Bay and Pittsburgh made big plays early in the game to get ahead, and late in the game to seal their wins.  I would have really loved to see a Jets-Bears rematch in the Super Bowl, after the Bears won 38-34 in what was a very entertaining game.

Hopefully, both Chicago and New York still have enough talent to make it back to the playoffs next year.  Until then, they'll be watching the Super Bowl like the rest of us; at home!!