Call me a bitter, stereotypical Philly fan but I thoroughly enjoyed watching the Cardinals and their bandwagon followers have their hearts ripped out in the Big Game last night. Might have had something to do with my experience at the NFC Championship Game, but that’s all water under the bridge now.
A few interesting post-Super Bowl links and observations I wanted to share:
- The folks over at Awful Announcing posted their grades from the broadcast. Nothing too surprising, although I have to completely back them up on the Andrea Kramer front. How she continues to be employed by NBC after her years of mediocre sideline reporting is beyond me. I was thankful for Michaels and Madden however, so I didn’t have to put up with the emotionless sack of crap that is Joe Buck.
- As for the “Greatest Game Ever?” talk…not even close in my mind. Last year’s Super Bowl featured an improbable upset, an impossible one-handed catch on the helmet by a 4th receiver to keep his team alive, and a team being minutes away from a perfect season. Last night’s game wasn’t bad, but aside from Harrison’s 100-yard pick six and the fourth quarter, the rest of the game was pretty forgettable.
- If you showed me the final stats from the game (minus the final score) I might have assumed the Cardinals won easily. They out gained Pittsburgh 407-292, and they held the Steelers to just 2.2 yards per carry (but did only average 2.8 themselves). The difference in the game was the Steeler’s defensive touchdown and the 11 penalties against the Cardinals (Yes I know…dynamite analysis! Hey NBC, I’m available to join your studio crew for next season if need be. I can’t be any worse than Peter King!)
- For what it’s worth, I haven’t really enjoyed a Super Bowl halftime show since…well…ever, and the Boss certainly didn’t change that. A dull all-around performance, except for this moment, of course.
- I’m sure I wasn’t the only Eagles fan watching the game wondering “What if…” We definitely would have had a shot at the Steelers, but if it came down to Donovan leading the offense downfield in a last minute drive ala Big Ben, I wouldn’t like our chances. I still love the guy, don’t get me wrong, but he still has yet to shake the label that he isn’t a big game player. Which leads me to a joke a family member shared with me last night:
“Why did Donovan quit doing the Campbell’s Chunky Soup commercials? Because he chokes whenever he gets near a big bowl.”
I’ll start working on my “State of the Eagles” column in the coming days. Until then, enjoy this Philly Sports-Free Monday everyone.
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