After two pretty good games yesterday, the Super Bowl now has its combatants. 

In the first game of the day, Arizona and Philly had a pretty exciting second half, but Arizona ended up victorious in the end.  The flea-flicker to Larry Fitzgerald and the tipped, flipped, and grabbed catch by DeSean Jackson were my two favorite plays on the day.  I even enjoyed DJ's version of the "Dirty Bird".  My brother kept telling me that the Eagles were going to win after they scored a TD to make it 24-13 and I figured he was right after the Jackson grab and the score was 25-24 Philly.  But, it was a pleasant surprise to see Kurt Warner march his team and his old bones up the field for a game winning drive.

The AFC Championship was a little less exciting with the Steelers and Ravens paired up.  I was looking for a grind-it-out type of game, but was surprised to see Pittsburg going to the air early and often when they couldn't get their run game going.  Baltimore's defense was tough again, but Pittsburgh's defense was the crew that put their stamp on the game by picking Joe Flacco off three times, including a 40+ yard return by Troy Polamalu and the game sealing pick by Tyrone Carter.  That hit on Willis McGahee was nasty looking when they showed it in the super-slow-mo replay.  Of course, I'm sure most of the hits look like that in super-slow-mo.  It looked like a clean hit to me though.  What do you think?

I really can't believe that the ARIZONA CARDINALS are going to the Super Bowl, but when you stop and think about it, Kurt Warner did lead the Rams to the Super Bowl two times, with one win. 

Also, one other thing to think about, Arizona is led by Ken Whisenhunt and Russ Grimm (assistant head coach), who were both coaches for the Steelers two seasons ago!  Mike Tomlin was picked over those two coaches for the head job in Pittsburgh and he has proved to be a very good selection. 

Here is how I have the edge right now:

• Quarterback:  Goes to Warner.  He is a tough veteran and has been here twice before.
• Runningback:  Goes to Cards.  Edge James, Tim Hightower, and JJ Arrington all had big roles in the post season so far.
• Wide Receivers and Tight Ends:  Steelers.  Fitzgerald, Boldin, and Breaston were all 1,000 producers.  Ward, Washington, and Holmes are just as solid.  Heath Miller puts Pittsburgh's corps on top though.
• O-Line:  Cards.  Kurt Warner has had all kinds of time to throw this season, while Big Ben has been banged up, bruised, and injured most of the season while trying to stay on his feet to deliver the big plays. 
• D-Line:  Steelers.  Very good, very effective group along the front. 
• Linebackers:  Steelers.  Again, a very good group led by the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year, James Harrison.
• Secondary:  Even.  Adrian Wilson and Antrel Rolle are two of the most underrated defensive players in the NFL.  Troy Polamalu is a ball hawk supreme.
• Special Teams:  Even.  I don't see this game coming down to field goals, but the punting game and return game could be huge factors in this one.

I'm going to take Arizona in the end, because I want to see something different this year.  I want to see Kurt Warner win another Super Bowl and then go off into the sunset.  I want to see Edge James get a real ring this time.  I want to see the ball zipping all over the field as Warner tests that tough secondary of Pittsburgh.  I want to see Fitzgerald on streaks, Boldin on posts and Breaston on slants across the middle.  I want to see Whisenhunt and Grimm exact some sort of "revenge" on their former employer. 

I don't imagine the game could be more exciting than last year's thriller between the Giants and Patriots, but I'd love to see the two teams give it their best shot.