On Sunday, the happiest moment of the American sporting year occurred: the Super Bowl. Although the two teams were among the top three defenses in the National Football League, the game still turned out to be relatively exciting.
Aaron Rodgers completed the transformation of the Green Bay Packers into his team. The days of Brett Favre are completely over with this victory, and it probably couldn't have come at a better time for the Packers. As Favre played out his (hopefully last) season in Minnesota, there were practically daily signs of Farve burning out as opposed to fading away. Forget the off-field drama, just look at the production of Favre versus the young gun who used to back him up.
The Packers piled on the Steelers in the first half, capitalizing on every opportunity they could. They went up 14-0 in the first quarter alone. At that point, it looked like it would be another boring Super Bowl. The second quarter didn't bode well either when the Steelers were stymied in their drive for a touchdown and had to settle for a field goal.
But the Pittsburgh Steelers haven't gone to three Super Bowls in six years for no reason. After the third quarter ended, the Packers were up only 21-17 and the tide seemed to be turning. Mike Tomlin had done his job by firing up his troops and Ben Roethlisberger was poised to seal his legacy at the young age of 28.
The Cheeseheads grabbed up the momentum with an eight-play, 55-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown. Rodgers was in full command of the game with a 111.5 passer rating, compared to Roethlisberger's 77.4. Roethlisberger has been in (and won) two Super Bowls already. He was supposed to bring the savvy and the all-important Super Bowl experience. Instead, he was eclipsed by Rodgers who's ready to shine his championship acumen for a few more years.
When the Steelers scored with 7:34 minutes left in the fourth and commanded their defensive unit on the field to make a stand, things seemed headed for a Hollywood-comeback-ending. But the first word in the game is defense, and the Packers dug in. With 2:07 minutes left in the game and only one timeout, Roethlisberger completed two passes and then threw three incompletes in a row. The Steelers turned over the ball, Rodgers knelt on it and the transformation of backup quarterback to new big man in Green Bay was complete.
This Superbowl was a study in contrasts. The season was the year of redemption, on the field anyway, for two Quarterbacks, Rothlesberger and Michael Vick. Roth wasn't charged but he had sex with a college girl in a bar's restroom against her wishes. She filed charges. It was he-she and she got screwed twice. Witnesses supported her claims but he had a posse and a lenient Sheriff to cover-up his rape.
Vick committed among the most egregious crimes that mankind is capable of. He took the good nature of dogs who are committed to pleasing their owners and used that against them to force them to fight other dogs, at the owners pleasure. Words can't describe....
People are evil. People are good. People are in-between. My opinion of these two is decided and I'm not sayin'.
Regards
Mike
