Steelers looking toward next season
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin thinks words such as "repeat" and "defending" will not be a part of his vocabulary over the next year. But his players talked of doing both during the victory parade that celebrated the Steelers capturing an NFL-record sixth Super Bowl title.
Winning back-to-back world championships and a third one in five years will require the Steelers to overcome the distractions and malaise that can set in after winning the Super Bowl.
That is something the Steelers did not do in 2006 when they slipped to 8-8 and missed the playoffs a year after winning the Super Bowl.
The Steelers have a better idea of what to expect as Super Bowl champions this time. Even more promising for the Steelers: they are not expected to lose any core players from the team that successfully navigated arguably the toughest schedule in NFL history and capped the season with a dramatic 27-23 win over the Arizona Cardinals.
That is not to say there won't be change.
Starting left guard Chris Kemoeatu and offensive tackles Marvel Smith and Max Starks are among the Steelers that will become unrestricted free agents unless they re-sign with the team before Feb. 27.
"Obviously, this is a pretty good team and we're going to want to keep it together," Steelers director of football operations Kevin Colbert said. "What combination of that (will return) I can't say at this point."
The Steelers have been evaluating college and NFL players in advance of the free-agent signing period and the NFL draft. As Tomlin immerses himself in such work, it is clear that he is looking ahead - and not basking in the glow of a Super Bowl title.
"This group will always be special to me, but sometime soon that group will assume its place with others in history. It will be just that, history," Tomlin said. "If you are a legitimate competitor, at the appropriate time you will ready yourself for the challenges that lie ahead in '09 and '10. That's the perspective that I have, and I don't ask my guys to do anything that I don't."
pittsburghlive.com
One NFL season ends, another begins
Many people I know get all bummed out after the Super Bowl because it's the last time we'll see any real NFL on-field action until August.
Yeah, there's the Pro-Bowl but if you watch that game, you need to get out more.
But there's plenty going on during the NFL off-season to keep even the most casual fan interested.
First a few words on the Super Bowl.
Great game last night. It threatened to become another yawner when the Steelers went up 20-7, but the Cardinals fought back and treated us with yet another classic Super Bowl finish.
Even though I had no rooting interest in this one, I found myself pulling for the Cardinals in the 4th quarter because it would have been such a great comeback and great story overall.
If the Cardinals could have finished, they would have finally been able to pass the baton of NFL championship futility to another team in wait. I wonder if people in Detroit are smiling today, or if they even realize how close they came to holding that not so prestigious title?
But alas for the Cardinals franchise, the calendar mercilessly flips to 61 seasons and counting since they last won a championship. This post-season was "close but no cigar" by definition for the Cardinals.
Now that we can figuratively close the book on the '08 season, let's turn our attention back to off-season activities.
There's a ton of NFL action going on during the off-season, it's just not on the gridiron. Here are some key dates of upcoming events, taken from espn.com. [along with relevant editorial comments]
Feb. 5: First day for clubs to designate franchise and transition players [Dunta watch begins]
Feb. 18-24: NFL Scouting Combine, Indianapolis, Ind. [From this point forward, the draft rankings really begin to take shape]
Feb. 19: Deadline for clubs to designate franchise and transition players.
Feb. 26: Deadline for submission of qualifying offers by clubs to their restricted free agents whose contracts have expired and to whom they desire to retain a right of first refusal/compensation. [Owen Daniels, David Anderson, Earl Cochran, Rashad Butler, and Joel Dreessen will have received their qualifying offers by this date]
Feb. 26: Deadline for clubs to submit offer of minimum salary to retain exclusive negotiating rights to their players with fewer than three seasons of free agency credit whose contracts have expired. [this applies to Mike Brisiel. Feb 26 is also the final day of the NFL's business year]
Feb. 27: Veteran free agency signing period begins. [NFL contracts expire on Feb. 26 so if you're an unrestricted free agent, you are now free to explore your options]
Feb. 27: Trading period begins.
March 22-25: NFL Annual Meeting, Dana Point, Calif.
April 17: Signing period ends for restricted free agents.
April 24: Deadline for old club to exercise right of first refusal to restricted free agents.
April 25-26: NFL Draft, New York City. [one of my favorite NFL events]
So there's your schedule for the next three months, Texans fans. Stay tuned because we'll be covering it all right here.
examiner.com
NFL wanderers finally found the wonder
For years, thoughtful men had listed the same three ultimate examples of infinite patience. At the top of any list, of course, there was Job, who the Bible tells us made a career of it. Then there was the legendary tortoise that moved with the speed of a tree forming its annual ring but who conned the hare out of winning the Aesop Marathon. And sandwiched between these two with less publicity but a hell of a lot more testing, were the lonely, battered and bruised fans of the Chicago Cardinals -- followed by the fans of the St. Louis Cardinals, the Phoenix Cardinals and, ultimately, the Arizona Cardinals.
If the Chicago Cardinals had a battle flag, it would have featured twin teardrops rampant on a field of empty seats.
To root for this NFL franchise in any of its guises or incarnations was to know total agony without even minimal ecstasy, reaches without grasp and dreams without hope. Such a lonely cheering section inevitably morphed into the moth that found the flame. Truth, for them, was always just a fumble or a fourth-quarter interception away. It was seemingly ever thus.
But not this week
This week the Arizona-nee-St. Louis-nee-South Side of Chicago Cardinals are going to the Super Bowl ... not the Bears that chased them out of Chicago ... not the baseball Cardinals that chased them out of St. Louis ... not the transplanted St. Lousy Rams who inherited their dressing rooms hard by St. Louis' Gateway Arch.
Score one for the oft-maligned orphans of the 100-yard storm.
It's about time.
Who was playing football in 1898? Not the Giants, baby. Who was a charter member of the first national professional football league? Not the Bears or the Eagles or the Redskins. Who was the only survivor from that original league that included cultural way stops like Canton, Dayton, Akron and Rochester among others? Not the Packers, the Lions or the Cowboys.
This is a franchise that had more ports of call than Ulysses.
So who are these Cardinals who are about to go where no Cardinal football team has ever gone before? Where have they been?
You wouldn't believe it.
It all began innocently enough. In 1898, a bunch of young men of Irish-American extraction on the South Side of Chicago formed a football team called the Morgan Athletic Club. When they began to play their games at a field called Normal Park, they were known first as the Chicago Normals and then as the Racine Normals after the neighborhood's main street.
They changed their name as often as college basketball players change sweat socks. When Racine, Wis., came into the NFL in 1922, they became the Chicago Cardinals to avoid confusion. They played their games at Racine Park near Racine Avenue and they became the Racine Cardinals and, finally, the Chicago Cardinals.
The one constant was an enterprising contractor named Chris O'Brien, who owned the team. Long before George Halas and his Chicago Bears moved from Decatur, Ill., to Chicago there was another Chicago team called the Tigers.
Two teams in a city where all things football gravitated around the University of Chicago's Big Ten champions could not survive. Their customers seemed to appear at home games disguised as empty seats. Driven by the belief that he had seen the future and his team was not going to be in it, O'Brien challenged the Tigers to a single winner-take-all showdown with the loser to leave the city.
His confidence traced to the addition of a single marvelously gifted player named Paddy Driscoll, who had starred during World I at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center after a brilliant career at Northwestern. He was a local hero and O'Brien offered him the unheard of sum of $300 per game to join the Cards.
Naturally, it was Driscoll's 40-yard run that beat the Tigers and chased them out of town. Ironically it was the ticket-selling monster that was the University of Chicago that would baptize O'Brien's team by default. O'Brien, aware that a neighborhood sporting goods store had bought its old jerseys several years earlier, bought them thirdhand. Their time on the back-of-the-store shelves had faded their hallowed U of C maroon color to a kind of red. Chris immediately christened his team the Cardinals.
And so they would remain through their three-city journey. Today, they are still the oldest continually operated pro football team in all of North America.
The team was sold twice, ending up with a Chicagoan named Charles Bidwill, who owned horses and an indoor stadium and a printing business. Through all of this, there was another constant -- the Cardinals couldn't win. For years, Bidwill had tried and failed to win the Kentucky Derby. Now he was also a non-winner in the NFL. The man who desperately wanted a winner began to spend and spend and then spend some more.
He put together a spectacular backfield led by Marshall Goldberg (All-American at Pitt), Charley Trippi (All-American at Georgia), Paul Christman (All-American at Missouri) and Elmer Angsman (Notre Dame). He named them his dream backfield and it put him on the cusp of becoming a prophet in his own hometown. The Cards won the NFL title by beating Philadelphia in 1947. But remember these were the Cardinals and no script followed form with them.
Bidwill never saw them win the title. He died of pneumonia before the championship season had even begun.
It was the only title the Cards ever won in a playoff format.
The next year, they went to Philly for a rematch in the title game on Dec. 19, 1948.
It snowed that day. Snowed? Hell, it was a regular Nanook of the North blizzard. It obliterated all of the yard lines. It covered both sidelines. It moved along driven by a killer North Philadelphia wind that slammed it back in the faces of the players and officials, drove it across the Shibe Park grandstand and made any view of the action impossible for the customers.
It was as though the Ghosts of Leather Helmet Football had looked down and hollered at the Cardinals:
"Okay, you had your moment. That's it. Once is enough. Don't bother us any more."
Philly beat them, 7-0, and even the players weren't sure what was happening in their outdoor igloo.
So the Cardinals went back to being the "other team" in so many big games ... the franchise that had always been there but never again got off that treadmill to nowhere.
Until now.
Surely during this agonizing hiatus there was more at work against the Cardinals than the scoreboard.
(c)2008 New Jersey On-Line LLC
The Redskins player with the most rings
Arizona vs. Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl is hardly marquee matchup, but generally the Super Bowl is such an event that it has a power all its own, no matter who is playing. The Steelers are a national presence, and the Cardinals have Kurt Warner, who is a star with a good story. And who knows, given the past performances of so-called great matchups that turned out to be duds? This may be a great game, if the Cardinals can protect Warner.
Washington Redskins fans will likely be pulling for the Cardinals -- the NFC team, and a team that the Redskins defeated this season, so they can at least say their team beat the Super Bowl champions. That may be more frustrating than satisfying.
Another angle, though, is pulling for Cardinals offensive line coach Russ Grimm. The former Hog has four Super Bowl rings -- three as a Redskins player and one as a Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line coach. This one would give him five, which I believe is the most of any Redskin player or coach.
As far as who has four, the only one who comes to mind is comical -- former Lions director of football disaster Matt Millen. He got one when he was with the Redskins for the third Super Bowl championship, plus two with the Raiders and one with the San Francisco 49ers.
Copyright (c)2009 The Washington Times, LLC
Top 10 Bowl Performances
It was a wonderful season of bowl games with some eye-popping individual efforts. Here are my top 10 bowl performances from the past month:
1. Pat White, WVU, QB: This isn't just some lifetime achievement award. I love everything about what White did in the Meineke Car Care Bowl against a tough UNC team (32nd in the country) that is very good at forcing turnovers. The most prolific running quarterback in college football history had the best passing game of his career, hitting on 26 of 32 passes for 332 yards. White, who got WVU off with a blistering start hitting on 14 of his first 15 passes, also ran for 55 yards. Better still, White's performance in the post-game celebration was equally memorable. Asked what his performance might've proved, which most players might've taken as an invite to saying something about showing the skeptics and scouts that he is NFL ready, White without hesitation brought it back to the WVU program and the spirit of the Mountaineers, showing himself as the consummate team guy.
2. Brian Johnson, Utah, QB: You could also make a case for a few guys on the Utes defense for the way they swarmed the Alabama offense, but I'm going with the QB that lit up the nation's No. 3 defense in a hostile environment. Johnson, who threw for 336 yards and three touchdowns, seemed to have all the answers for Nick Saban and was able to hit key throws even after Bama tried to make a rally form 21-0.
3. Mark Sanchez, USC, QB: The son of an Orange County firefighter was smoking hot in the Rose Bowl, abusing the vaunted Penn State defense all day. Sanchez carved up the PSU zone's deep down field and made the Nittany Lions seem helpless as they never were able to adjust. The Trojans scored four touchdowns and a field goal on five consecutive first-half possessions to build a 24-point halftime lead against a team that allowed only 12 points per game during the regular season. His 413 passing yards against Penn State were the second-most in Rose Bowl history. He also completed 28 of 35 passes, setting the Rose Bowl record for completion percentage.
4. Gartrell Johnson, Colo. State, RB: Some scouts wonder if Johnson, who averaged 99 yards rushing per game in the regular season, has enough speed to be a feature back in the NFL. One-time NFL assistant Pat Hill might give the Miami native a pretty glowing recommendation after the way Johnson ran all over the suspect Fresno State defense for a career-high 285 yards in the New Mexico Bowl.
Johnson also proved to be quite a force as a receiver adding another 90 yards worth on receptions.
5. Quan Cosby, Texas, WR: Ohio State has some very touted players on their defense, but none of them could slow Cosby down as he slashed his way though the Buckeyes for 14 catches for 171 yards, including the game-winning TD catch-and-run with 16 seconds left to give UT the win. On the touchdown, Cosby caught a short pass, ran through a would-be tackle and dashed toward the goal line before diving into the end zone. "He made a play. I gave him a good ball," QB Colt McCoy said. "I can't explain the feeling that we have right now. To have the faith and confidence in each other that we do, man, that was awesome."
6. Zach Follett, Cal, LB: With all of the great players on the USC defense, it's easy for some standout players in the Pac-10 to get lost in the shadows. Follett is one of those big-time players who probably would've gotten a lot more hype if his team had been up in the rankings. From start-to-finish, he made big plays in the Emerald Bowl against Miami, including the game's most significant play, where he stripped UM freshman QB Jacory Harris of the ball with the game tied at 17-17 and forced a fumble deep in Canes territory, setting up the game-winning TD.
"We couldn't let them come across the country and beat us in our back yard," said Follett, the defensive player of the game with nine tackles -- four for losses -- and two sacks. "I came to this park when it was first built. All my heroes in baseball as I was growing up played on this field -- Barry Bonds, all of them. I can wear my [championship] ring with pride."
7. Jimmy Clausen, Notre Dame QB: What a way to go into the off-season as the 21-year-old soph burned Hawaii for 401 passing yards and five touchdowns in a 49-21 romp to give the Irish their first bowl win since 1994. Like Johnson, Clausen would be higher up on the list if his performance came against a tougher defense than 83rd ranked UH.
8. Stephen Paea, Oregon State, DT: I though of having DE Victor Butler on here. After all, the guy did have four of OSU's five sacks but let's give some credit to the 6-1, 295-pound former rugby star for being such a disruptive force in the Sun Bowl. His stats (4 tackles) don't reflect the impact he made in this game, and anyone who sat through the Sun Bowl knows how tough and explosive Paea is. With him causing all kinds of havoc in the middle of the line, the Beavers were able to completely dismantle the Pitt game plan and limit LeSean McCoy and Co to just 178 yards of total offense.
9. Jordan Jefferson, LSU, QB: The speedy true freshman QB came flying out of the gate against a terrific Ga. Tech D-line. Jefferson hit on his first nine passes as the Tigers blew Tech off the field. "He wasn't a freshman tonight," Tiger RB Charles Scott said. "He was poised. He was smooth. He grew up a lot tonight. When he called my number, I had no hesitation."
10. Graham Gano, FSU, punter: How does a punter make this list? By dominating the field position game allowing his team to build momentum and get its footing. Gano, the Lou Groza Award winner as the nation's best kicker, averaged 48.2 yards on five punts and had three downed inside the Badgers 4 and two at the Wisconsin 1 to earn game MVP.
Wisconsin did sustain two fairly long drives after a couple of those kicks, but had to travel so far they could only get field goals. "What if he didn't kick them out?" Bobby Bowden said. "Those would have been touchdowns. This guy (Gano) kept us in it."
(c)2009 ESPN Internet Ventures
Toldja the Cowboys Should've Hired Norv Turner
A week into the healing process, how are your wounds?
Mine are as raw and nasty as today's weather.
Had lots of Cowboys-related thoughts while examining Dallas' autopsy and consuming Wild Card Weekend. Like:
*Special teams coach Bruce Read was fired. Better late than never, I guess.
*Jason Garrett and Ray Sherman are attracting interest from other NFL teams. Any other 9-7 teams with 0 playoff wins in a dozen years spawn such affection? Seems the league also drinks Dallas' Kool-Aid.
*Remember T.O.'s cutesy shirts from training camp? iBlock. iCatch. iWhatever. Wonder when those iSuck versions will be hiting eBay?
*And I was starting to feel sorry for the Colts after Saturday's OT loss in San Diego. They had the league's hottest team and newly crowned MVP (Peyton Manning), only to lose in the first round to an 8-8 team. What a kick to the crotch. Then it dawned on me that the Chargers seem to play pretty good football late in the season. How good?
The last two years San Diego is 12-1 in December-January, including 3-1 in the playoffs. The Cowboys are 3-6, 0-1 in the post-season. Hmm. I remember a certain someone touting Norv Turner over Wade Phillips. Toldja.
(c)2008 Village Voice Media
Bengals top lowly Chiefs, end year with three straight wins
Cincinnati, OH (Sports Network) - Cedric Benson rushed for 111 yards on 25 carries and scored a touchdown while Shayne Graham booted three field goals as Cincinnati beat Kansas City, 16-6, at Paul Brown Stadium.
Ryan Fitzpatrick completed 18-of-30 passes for 129 yards for the Bengals (4-11-1), who completed the regular season with three wins in succession and emerged victorious despite playing without their two top receivers, Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh, due to injury.
Andre Caldwell led the Cincinnati receiving corps, catching five balls for 34 yards.
"A good way to finish the season," said Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis. "The defense of the football team did a good job and offensively we were able to do some things."
Tyler Thigpen threw for 191 yards and a score on 19-of-36 completions for the Chiefs (2-14), who finished the year by losing their final four contests and posted their least amount of wins since going 2-12 in 1977.
Dwayne Bowe recorded a game-best 10 catches for 103 yards and Tony Gonzalez had a late TD reception for Kansas City, which has dropped 23 of 25 games dating back to last season.
Cincinnati picked up the only points in the first quarter on a Graham 38-yard field goal, then forged ahead 10-0 early in the second as Benson completed an 87-yard drive with a two-yard plunge.
Graham provided a 13-0 lead for the Bengals just after the two-minute warning with a 30-yard make.
The Chiefs continued to stagnate on offense in the second half and Graham added a 43-yarder with 6:21 remaining in the fourth quarter for a 16-0 contest.
Bowe narrowly missed a touchdown reception with four minutes to play after a replay determined he did not get a foot and the ball over the goal line before falling out of bounds.
Later in the series, after another score by Bowe was nullified by a penalty, Thigpen found Gonzalez for a five-yard TD but a conversion pass failed.
Benson picked up a pair of first downs, the last one on a 13-yard gain to the Chiefs 15-yard-line after the two-minute warning. Fitzpatrick took a knee on the final two plays to ice the game.
"I thought early in the game we didn't have a lot of energy," admitted Chiefs head coach Herman Edwards. "This has been one of our worst offensive outings in a while."
Game Notes
Chiefs running back Larry Johnson was limited to 18 yards on 10 carries...Cincinnati held Kansas City to 31 rushing yards and outgained it overall by a 329-220 margin.
(c)2008 The Sports Network
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