Pittsburgh Steelers Win Super Bowl XLIII

Posted by Dennis Velasco Categories: Pittsburgh Steelers, Arizona Cardinals, Editorials,

The Pittsburgh Steelers won the NFL’s 43rd Super Bowl, edging out the Arizona Cardinals, 27-23 in what will be one of the better Super Bowls ever played.  Trailing 20-7 going into the fourth quarter, the Cardinals came back to score 16 unanswered points to take a 23-20 lead with over two minutes to go.  Then Ben Roethlisberger coolly led a 78-yard TD drive to win the game for the Steelers who are now the best NFL franchise in history, winning its sixth Super Bowl, leading all NFL teams in history.  Santonio Holmes was named Super Bowl MVP with nine receptions and 131 receiving yards and one TD.  Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin became the youngest coach to ever win the Super Bowl at the tender age of 36 and in only his second season as the Steelers head coach.  Congratulations to the Steelers!

2009 NFL Hall of Fame Inductees

Posted by Dennis Velasco Categories: Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs, Minnesota Vikings, Editorials,

Wow, am I feeling old.  On Saturday, the day before Super Bowl XLIII goes down between the Arizona Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers, the NFL introduced its latest paragons of the sport that will be headed to Canton, Ohio, home of the NFL Hall of Fame.  Bruce Smith, Rod Woodson, the late Derrick Thomas, Randall McDaniel, Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson, and Bob Hayes are the latest NFL Hall of Famers.  The feeling old comment is because I saw Smith, Woodson, Thomas, and McDaniel in their rookie years!  That said, let me speak on some of these players. 

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Read More | Yahoo! Sports

Super Bowl XLIII Preview - Arizona Cardinals Versus Pittsburgh Steelers

Posted by Dennis Velasco Categories: Pittsburgh Steelers, Arizona Cardinals, Saint Louis Rams, Editorials,

The Fig Caption: Number 43 wants another trophy in Super Bowl 43… is it destined in the numbers?

The NFL’s 43rd Super Bowl goes down this Sunday, February 1st at 6:28 PM ET in Tampa Bay, Florida on NBC.  The NFC champion Arizona Cardinals (9-7) hope to keep the postseason magic going as they face off against AFC champs, the Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4).  The Cardinals had a more burdensome postseason path than the Steelers as Arizona needed to defeat the Atlanta Falcons (30-24 @ Arizona) in the Wildcard Round, take on heavily favored Carolina Panthers and light them up on the road (33-13 @ Carolina) during the Divisional Round, and finally, beat the Philadelphia Eagles in a close game (32-25 @ Arizona) during the NFC Championship Round.  The Steelers on the other hand, had a first round bye, defeated the San Diego Chargers handily (35-24 @ Pittsburgh) in the Divisional Round, and beat the Baltimore Ravens in a closer match-up than the score indicates (23-14 @ Pittsburgh) in the AFC Championship Round thanks to a timely Troy Polamalu interception.

The road for both teams has been a long and taxing road, as only an NFL schedule could be, but on Sunday, one of them will reach the ultimate destination - a Super Bowl victory.

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Titans, Giants and Panthers Forget How to Play Football

Posted by Frank Nevarez Categories: Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, Tennessee Titans, San Diego Chargers, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Carolina Panthers, Arizona Cardinals, Editorials,

I figured when I went 1-for-4 with my Wild Card playoff picks that it couldn’t get any worse. Wrong. I go O-for-4 this weekend. What the heck is going on? One playoff preview (from the experts) this past week stated “pick the home team” in the second round of the NFL playoffs. The reasons given: A) the stronger teams have earned the first week bye, B) these teams will play at home in the second week, C) they’re rested, and D) they have an extra week to gameplan.
So what happens? Other than the Pittsburgh Steelers, all home teams lose.

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You Gotta Be Kidding Me Steelers, Bills, Giants!

Posted by Frank Nevarez Categories: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Carolina Panthers, Editorials,

Let’s just throw everything in the air and see what happens. That’s what seemingly happened this weekend in the NFL. Crazy endings and all sorts of things got mixed up. But this helter skelter nature has led to some interesting scenarios.

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O.J. Simpson To Serve Time In Prison

Posted by Dennis Velasco Categories: Editorials,

Former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL Hall of Famer, O.J. Simpson was sentenced to serve at least nine years in prison after being found guilty of armed robbery.  Simpson can spend as much as 21 years in prison if he is not paroled due to the number of counts against him.  Clarence Stewart, Simpson’s co-defendant in this case sentenced to at least 15 years.  For those that thought Simpson was guilty of the 1994 murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ronald Goldman, charges Simpson were acquitted of, this must bring some satisfaction to them as it did for Goldman’s family who were in court as Simpson was sentenced.

Read More | ESPN

NFC North Week 14 Predictions

Posted by Charles Mitri Categories: Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Editorials,

Let’s get the easy pick out of the way. The Minnesota Vikings travel to Ford Field to take on the Detroit “0-16 here we come” Lions. The Lions have more holes in their squad than the 7th Cavalry had at Little Big Horn. The Vikes, fresh off a huge win over the Chicago Bears will easily roll over the hapless Lions by a hefty margin. Look for Gus Frerotte and Company to strike early and often. Minnesota improves their record to 8-5 while the Lions drop to 0-13. Vikings by 17.

The Jacksonville Jaguars visit Soldier Field to take on the Chicago Bears. Still smarting from their 34-14 loss to the Vikings last week, the Bears will be out for blood. They also need a win to keep pace with the Vikings. Kyle Orton is due for a big game and Matt Forte will run roughshod through the Jags porous defense. Bears by 10.

The Green Bay Packers host the Houston Texans at home. Tough one to call. The Packers stayed close to the high flying Carolina Panthers for the entire game, but again came up on the short end of a 35-31 tally. Houston isn’t a playoff caliber team yet, but they’re headed in that direction. Their Monday night 30-17 win over the Jags was pretty much a one-sided affair. The Texans jumped out to an early 16-3 lead at the half and played dead even ball in the second half, as each team traded off touchdowns like kids playing two hand touch. Even though the Packers still have a mathematical chance at winning the NFC North, they need to peel off four wins in a row while the Bears and Vikings need to completely tank their last four. Long odds by any standard. The one plus in the Green Bay column is that they’re playing at home — they just can’t seem to buy a road win this season. The Texans are an up-and-coming team who improves every year. Texans by 10.