Super Bowl XL Preview

The Super Bowl is finally one day away as the media has gone out of its way again during Super Bowl week to dissect every little nook and cranny of each team and the potential outcome. At the center of all this was big-mouthed jerk-off Joey Porter from the Steelers who keeps talking crap, but nobody has been able to shut him up yet. The media just loves idiots like that because of his ability to give them something to write about. It’s a shame though because low-lifes like that shouldn’t be getting all the attention. BUT, while the sports’ media continues to operate as a 24 hour news source, there will always be a need for people like this to fill in the blanks where the sports action isn’t present.

I really don’t like the two week layoff between the Conference Championships and the Super Bowl. There’s too much time for media hype and too much talk about the same crap over and over again. It is part of why I don’t even enjoy the Super Bowl that much (The other reason is that my team never goes to it) when I see it live. It’s such an entertainment event with all the ‘clever’ commercials, and the horrible 18 hour half time shows, and pre-game shows that last for eternity, that the game itself gets swallowed up in it a bit. I get so tired of friends and non-friends talking about: “Oh I just can’t wait to see the commercials.” Screw the commercials! I don’t find half of them funny anyways. I tune in to watch a decent football game…if possible.

Yes…the football game. Beneath all the Hollywood bullshit, there’s a game to be played and this year’s match-up looks decent on paper. However, I find that the most important thing to have going into this game is momentum…even with the two week layoff. That advantage lies with the Pittsburgh Steelers. In the tougher Conference, the Steelers steamrolled their way into the Super Bowl, beating the 3 top seeds in the AFC all on the road. As much as I hate these guys, credit is due.

They are clicking on all cylinders. The teams they faced focused on shutting down their running game, and Ben Roethlisberger has scorched each team in the process. Their defense has been wicked. I saw it first hand during the embarrassing Christmas Eve game between my Browns and the hated Steelers. Every time Charlie Frye dropped back, there was an unblocked Steeler blitzing him. The same stood true for Peyton Manning. He even slipped up during a press conference and started doing the unthinkable: blaming his offensive line. It’s all attributable to a defense that is just scheming better than the opposing offenses. A lot of credit needs to go to old fart Dick LeBeau.

The Seattle Seahawks on the other hand had a fine year. They got over a big hump this year and started winning the games they needed to win unlike in previous years where they seemed to underachieve in the bigger games. This year, it all worked out for them and they played to their true potential. Despite all that, and winning their two playoff games at home, they don’t have the momentum. They play in a weaker Conference and their two playoff wins weren’t as much of a challenge due to their home field advantage. They’ll be playing out of their element now in a neutral site after enjoying home field in the playoffs.

Right now, the Seahawk have two major challenges at the moment. How do they stop the Steelers’ offense, and how do they even attempt to put points on the board. Their greatest strength lies in NFL MVP Shaun Alexander and the left side of their Offensive Line, but can they really get it going against a Steelers’ defense that has been devastating opponents that have had similar success offensively as the Seahawks?

The outcome will be determined tomorrow, but for now all we can do is speculate. I’ll throw my hat into the prediction game and say that my worst fear will be realized as the Steelers win big and my experience as a Browns’ fan in Youngstown will be more miserable. I think the Steelers will mix it up well on offense and keep the Seahawks off balance and put a lot of points on the board. I think the Seahawks will have trouble figuring out Pittsburgh’s defense until it’s too late. I think the NFL will hand the MVP award to Ben Roethlisberger. Everyone will be feeling all happy for Jerome Bettis and he will retire following the game. The final score will be: Pittsburgh 31 Seattle 17. I hope I’m wrong.

(Check out the Sports Guy at ESPN.com for his Super Bowl preview: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/060203)