"TO BE MALE"

I have a hammer.

I can put things together.
I can knock things apart.
I can alter my environment
at will and make
an incredible din all the while.

Ah. It's great to be male!

-Bill Waterson

5 REASONS TO BET ARIZONA TONIGHT

5 REASONS WHY THE ARIZONA CARDINALS WILL UPSET THE STEELERS

1. The Pittsburgh offense stinks.
It really does. The can’t run the ball, they can’t pass protect and their receiving corps is average at best. Do not let their 29 ppg in the postseason fool you. They’re a homerun offense that relies on Big Ben extending plays with his size and strength. Their most reliable means of sustaining drives is the 3rd down reliability of Hines Ward. He won’t be 100% for the Super Bowl. That could spell trouble.

2. The Arizona defense is underrated.
Actually they were appropriately rated. They’ve only SEEMED to turn it on during the post-season. But the fact is they create a lot of pressure with their front 4. That will be a problem for a Steeler O-line that has that aforementioned problem with pass protection. Big Ben’s ability to “extend the play” comes with a cost. He holds the ball too long which results in sacks and turnovers. That means at least 2 or 3 extra possessions for the…

3.The Arizona offense (duh) is good.
Yes, they will be facing a formidable Steeler defense but no one is asking them to score on every possession. In fact, given the problems Pittsburgh will have on offense, Arizona might only need to score 4 times to win this thing. Arizona’s is so weak when it comes to running the ball that it almost negates Pittsburgh’s strength in stopping the run. The Cardinals will throw out a few token runs to keep the defense relatively honest, but since NO ONE runs on the Steelers, they’re pretty much free to just do what they do best: throw the ball.

4. As good as the Steeler defense is their biggest weakness is Arizona’s greatest strength.
Forget about double teaming Fitzgerald. If the ball is catchable, he’s catching it. If the ball is UN-catchable, he’s catching it. He’ll fight and win the battle for the ball through double and even triple teams. It’s almost pointless. But you still have to double him, otherwise it’s just TOO easy. Pittsburgh’s only chance is the pass rush. They have to, if not hit Warner, then disrupt his timing by bumping the receivers and getting in his throwing lanes with well disguised zone-blitzes. Unfortunately for the Steelers not only does Warner read defenses well and release the ball quickly, he has the benefit of…

5. The Arizona coaching staff.
2/3rds of the senior staff are former Steeler coaches. If there are any two coaches in the league that can devise an offensive game plan to combat Dick Lebeau’s schemes it’s the two guys that practiced against him every week for 5 years. This could possibly be the biggest factor in the game. Not only are Whisenhunt and Grimm knowledgeable when it comes to Lebeau’s philosophies and tendencies on defense (including in game adjustments) but Grimm is intimately familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of the Pittsburgh offensive line (Grimm was the offensive line coach).

Now there’s no question that The Pittsburgh Steelers are a very good football team. And they might easily win this game handily. But there is a reason they call this gambling. Some would call the Cardinal’s chances of winning their first Super Bowl tonight slim. All I’m saying is those chances aren’t as slim as one might think. I think their chances are strong enough to warrant the money-line bet. Take Arizona to cover if you wanna play it safe. My money’s gonna be on red to win it outright. Good luck to you either way.

Steelers vs. ARIZONA +6.5