Steelers travel to "Pittsburgh-West" for rematch of "Greatest Super Bowl Ever"

The 4-2 Steelers travel to "Pittsburgh West" this week to take on the 1-4 Arizona Cardinals in a rematch of Super Bowl XLIII.  However, a lot has changed since that game, especially for Arizona.  Gone are Kurt Warner, Anquan Boldin and Edgerrin James, and in are Kevin Kolb and Beanie Wells.

For the Steelers, gone are Super Bowl MVP Santonio Holmes (thanks to a bad habit of tweeting while stoned), Willie Parker, and Gary Russell (who actually scored a Super Bowl touchdown).  Bryant McFadden left Pittsburgh for Arizona and came back to Pittsburgh just a year later.  Mike Wallace has replaced Holmes as Pittsburgh's top pass catcher (and I still wonder what it would be like if Big Ben had both of these targets today), Rashard Mendenhall has taken over for Parker, and Isaac Redman is the new obscure back who scores occasionally.

Arizona was thrashed by 34-10 by the Vikings in its last contest, and is coming off its bye week (as NFL teams this season are 1-4 after their bye week).  What does that mean?  Pittsburgh will probably struggle against a team it's capable of beating easily.  Look for Wells, who is nursing a sore hamstring to average 500 yards per carry and Kevin Kolb to look like the second-coming of Peyton Manning.

The Steelers can hardly afford to squirrel this game away though, as the 5-1 Patriots, 4-1 Ravens and the surprising 4-2 Bengals await next on the schedule.  That's a hellish three week stretch for Steeler players and Steeler National alike.  At the risk of over emphasizing the importance of this week's contest in Arizona -- this is a must win for Pittsburgh.  In honor of Super Bowl XLIII, I'll take the Steelers winning 27-23 (although this is a team Pittsburgh should beat 43-10).  The Steeler Face is 2-3 forecasting games this season.

Greatest Super Bowl, or greatest Super Bowl ever?!

This truly was the greatest Super Bowl ever, as Holmes' amazing tip-toe catch in the corner of the endzone brought an NFL record 6th Super Bowl championship to Pittsburgh in a game that featured so many twists and turns.

The Steelers jumped out to a 10-0 lead before Arizona cut the gap to 10-7 and appeared to be going in for a go-ahead score before halftime.  Then James Harrison picked off Warner and ran 100 yards for a Steeler touchdown as time expired, for the longest play ever in Super Bowl history and 17-7 halftime lead for Pittsburgh.

The Steelers grew the lead to 20-7 going into the fourth quarter.  After an Arizona touchdown cut the lead to 20-14, the Steelers were backed up near their own goal line with around 4 mnutes to go in the game.  On third down Big Ben threw to Holmes who made an amazing grab for a first down and the game -- but NO -- Steeler center Justin Hartwig was called for holding in the endzone, a safety, a 20-16 score, and Arizona ball. Warner then connected with Fitzgerald for a 64-yard touchdown pass and Arizona suddenly had its first lead of the game, 23-20 with only 2:37 remaining.

On the Steelers next possession, another holding call moved Pittsburgh back to their own 12 yard line for First and 20.  Facing a potential soul-crushing loss, Big Ben led the Steelers on a signature drive that was highlighted by Holmes' spectacular catch in the corner of the endzone with just 35 seconds remaining.

Steelers/Cardinals merger

The Pittsburgh Steelers and then, Chicago Cardinals, merged during World War II for the 1944 season.  Since then, the Chicago-St. Louis-Arizona Cardinals have been more than fond of ex-Steelers.  Presented here are some notable (and not-so-notable examples):


Joey Porter (current Cardinal who played for Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XL):

Nick Eason (played for the Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII)

Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt and Assistant Coach Russ Grimm (each coached for Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XL, and Arizona in Super Bowl XLIII)

Sean Morey and Jerame Tuman (each played for the Steelers in Super Bowl XL and the 

Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII)

Clark Haggans (on injured reserve for Arizona during Super Bowl XLIII)

Bryant McFadden (played for Pittsburgh against the Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, moved to Arizona the following season, and then came back to the Steelers just a year later)

And of course, let us not forget Cliff Stoudt . . .