Super Bowl Forty is in less then a week. Congratulations Mike Holmgren, and of course Ben Roethlisberger and the Boys from Pitt. How could we leave them out, right? And what about Shaun Alexander in Seattle. Maybe that twenty seven straight days of rain helped a little bit, right? Maybe it just might give the Hawks the mentality to rain all over Pittsburgh for sixty straight minutes of gratifying football.
Here’s my super bowl preview.
Here we go!
The Coaches:
- Bill Cowher has done an amazing job this year with the Steelers. The fact that we saw them early in the year looking like they were going to fall apart and then come all the way back and do this is just an amazing thing to do in the NFL. Especially in football where it’s really the hardest thing to do. To come all the way back and make the Super Bowl after a season where everyone came together on this team and did every little thing possible to stick together and to win football games is just satisfying, to say the least. Cowher is not the journeyman type coach. He’s been in Pittsburgh since the early 90’s and has been waiting for this moment. Good luck.
- At the beginning of this year, people in the NFL were speculating that Mike Holmgren was on his way out. Many thought of the Seahawks as the worst team of this year. Well, whoever thought that was wrong. Holmgren is the man with experience winning one super bowl in Green Bay and reaching two. He is ready to go, he has an original game plan that has worked for him all year long. The fact that he has led the Seahawks to 10-0 regular season record at home is astounding. What a job done by Holmgren and his staff.
EDGE: Cowher, simply because of the willingness and the confidence he has had and he has stayed with this team for over a decade. He has not given up.
The Offenses:
- The Steelers have a feisty offensive unit that is not afraid to try something different. This year, they dealt with injuries to their star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and their all-pro running back Jerome Bettis in a good way that has led them to victories. Roethlisberger is lucky for the fact that he has some great receivers to throw to including Hines Ward and Antoine Randle El. He runs the ball sometimes and is very versatile in the pocket which can help him get down the field very quickly. Willie Parker will have to get the blocking he needs to get down field. It looks to me like they will be switching off between Bettis and Parker as they have done for most of this year. Their offensive line will have to step it up a bit and block Seattle’s defense up front to give Big Ben some room to throw.
- Matt Hasselbeck is in a way, very similar to Roethlisberger in the sense that he will let go of the ball on the run and can run the ball himself alot if he has to. He can let loose on the ball as well. He also hase some dense wide receivers that he can throw to including Darrell Jackson and Babby Engram. These guys should help. And how can we forget Seneca Wallis, the quarterback turned wide receiver who helped this team get to the super bowl last week. Shaun Alexander should be very pumped up as he continues to flow on the ground getting some great gains last week against Carolina. This Pittsburgh defense will be the real test for Alexander coming into this week.
EDGE: Seahawks, they just have more strong points and seemed to be more of a poised unit.
The Defenses:
- Pittsburgh has a skilled and intensified defensive unit that can stop really anything. They were third in rushing defense during the regular season which Shaun Alexander is going to have to watch out for on Sunday. Guys like James Farrior, Troy Polomalu, and Chris Hope are going to be the important guys to look out for on defense.
- It’s funny because the Seahawks are also a great team on the defensive rushing front, ranking fifth in the league during the regular season. Lofa Tatupa is the leader of this defense, and even though he is only a rookie out there, he will have a lot to offer. Remember last week when he knocked out Nick Goings? Hey, maybe the Pittsburgh running game won’t even be a factor in this one.
EDGE: Steelers, they just have more to offer.
Overall, both of these team are great. They show so many strong points that will help them to make their case to win the big game. They both have just as good of a chance as the other win this game. The Steelers have a feisty unit that they will be putting on the line against a number 1 seeded Seahawks team that is looking to capture their first Super Bowl in franchise history. Good luck to both.
Oh, yeah how could I possibly forget my pick?
It’s the Steelers.