Don’t even bother turning on the Super Bowl this year. The people who make football worth watching won’t be at Cowboys Stadium next Sunday.
No, Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger aren’t injured. Clay Matthews and Troy Polamalu, in all their long-haired splendor, will be in uniform.
The Black Eyed Peas haven’t pulled out of the halftime show, and as far as I know, Christina Aguilera is still going to sing the national anthem before the game.
Brace yourselves, fans, because this is a tough one to swallow. There will be no cheerleaders shouting like idiots or dancing around like strippers at Super Bowl XLV.
If you were looking for another reason to like this old-school matchup between the Packers and Steelers, look no further. Neither team employs cheerleaders, so neither will bring a squad of bouncing nitwits to the game.
The Bears, Lions, Browns and Giants are the only other teams that don’t have cheerleaders. So even if the Bears hadn’t choked in the NFC championship game, we’d still have a cheerleader-free Super Bowl.
Cheerleaders really bring nothing to sporting events, but they become increasingly extraneous the higher the level of play of the athletes on the field or court. It gives high school girls an extracurricular activity. One could argue that, like marching bands, they’re part of what makes college sports so innocent and fun.
At the pro level, they’re completely useless, especially in the NFL. Other than the obligatory cheerleader-smiling-at-the-camera shot when Fox comes back from commercial, when have you ever noticed them at a pro football game? Thankfully, you can’t hear them, whether you’re in the stands or on your couch. And it’s not like the network is going to leave $2.5 million (the cost of a 30-second ad during the Super Bowl) on the table to show cheerleaders doing some routine during a timeout or between quarters.
So what is their purpose? They have none.
To be fair, there are cheerleaders at Packers home games, but they’re volunteers from nearby St. Norbert College and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. And honestly, I’d consider doing it if it meant I got to watch games from the sideline.
But their services are no longer needed, and they won’t be in Texas. And that’s something to cheer about.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Big Ben is no Brady
Should the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Green Bay Packers, and Ben Roethlisberger claims his third Super Bowl ring, the comparisons to Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will be swift.
Well, I’m here to nip that in the bud.
Don’t get me wrong, Ben has had some signature moments in his career, including the game-winning drive against the Cardinals a few years ago in the Super Bowl, but my contention is that Big Ben is merely a game manager who makes the occasional great play.
He’s had two breakout seasons since he came into the league as a first-round draft choice in 2004. In ’07, he threw 32 touchdowns to just 11 interceptions, and he had 26 TDs and 12 picks last year. In his other years, Roethlisberger averaged 17.2 touchdowns and 12.6 interceptions.
The bottom line is that Big Ben’s success is a product of a stout running game and an unflappable defense. Need more proof? In Sunday’s AFC championship game, Roethlisberger went 10-for-19 passing for 133 yards and two interceptions. That breaks down to a 35.5 passer rating.
Not coincidentally, in the first half, when the Steelers did all of their scoring, Rashard Mendenhall ran for nearly 100 of his 121 yards. When it became apparent that the Jets weren’t about to let Mendenhall beat them in the second half, Roethlisberger was shut out.
So let’s be very clear about what Big Ben is during this fortnight before the big game: an above-average quarterback that occasionally makes some big plays at big times and has his teammates to thank for his heavy hand.
Well, I’m here to nip that in the bud.
Don’t get me wrong, Ben has had some signature moments in his career, including the game-winning drive against the Cardinals a few years ago in the Super Bowl, but my contention is that Big Ben is merely a game manager who makes the occasional great play.
He’s had two breakout seasons since he came into the league as a first-round draft choice in 2004. In ’07, he threw 32 touchdowns to just 11 interceptions, and he had 26 TDs and 12 picks last year. In his other years, Roethlisberger averaged 17.2 touchdowns and 12.6 interceptions.
The bottom line is that Big Ben’s success is a product of a stout running game and an unflappable defense. Need more proof? In Sunday’s AFC championship game, Roethlisberger went 10-for-19 passing for 133 yards and two interceptions. That breaks down to a 35.5 passer rating.
Not coincidentally, in the first half, when the Steelers did all of their scoring, Rashard Mendenhall ran for nearly 100 of his 121 yards. When it became apparent that the Jets weren’t about to let Mendenhall beat them in the second half, Roethlisberger was shut out.
So let’s be very clear about what Big Ben is during this fortnight before the big game: an above-average quarterback that occasionally makes some big plays at big times and has his teammates to thank for his heavy hand.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Pack is back
It had finally started to sink in. The Green Bay Packers are back in the Super Bowl for the first time since 1997.
When I woke up this morning, I was looking forward to turning on ESPN, as I do every morning, and hearing all the reaction from the team I’ve supported my entire football-watching life. Instead, I’ve heard only about the team the Packers beat, the Chicago Bears.
The biggest news from the NFC championship game seemingly isn’t the victor, it’s that the losing quarterback didn’t finish the game. I can only hope that the Jay Cutler story dies a quick death, but knowing how ESPN likes to kick a dead horse whenever there’s a so-called controversy, I doubt this one will go away anytime soon.
But rather than lambaste Cutler, like everyone else has done, I’d prefer to focus on the winning team. Strange, I know.
It wasn’t the prettiest effort of Green Bay’s playoff run, but it’s obviously worth a whole lot more than the more impressive wins over the Eagles and Falcons. Just like those previous two games, I was literally on the edge of my seat (or on my feet) for all 60 minutes. Super Bowls maybe old hat for Patriots fans, but it’s been a while for Packers fans, and I didn’t feel legitimately confident until Aaron Rodgers took a knee on the final play.
The Packers are the NFC’s No. 6 seed. They needed to win in the final week of the regular season just to make the playoffs. And now they’re the early 2½-point favorite to win Super Bowl XLV. It’s been quite a journey, and with Green Bay’s scary-good defense and Rodgers, a young QB coming into his own, my preseason Super Bowl pick looks pretty good.
Of course, I picked the Packers to lose the Super Bowl to Baltimore. I already was wrong on the opponent, so hopefully I’ll be wrong about the result, too.
Oh, right, there was another game on Sunday. Check the blog tomorrow, because I know Scott has some choice words about Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (one of the more overrated players in recent NFL history).
Personally, I was still trying to wrap my head around the Packers’ win, and with the euphoria of watching your team earn a spot in the Super Bowl, I really didn’t care who won the AFC game. I rooted for the Jets, only because a New York win would have allowed me to tie Rick McGowan for the season in our Daily News football picks. But finishing dead last in “The Showdown” means little to me now that, for the first time in 13 years, the Packers will play for the NFL title.
When I woke up this morning, I was looking forward to turning on ESPN, as I do every morning, and hearing all the reaction from the team I’ve supported my entire football-watching life. Instead, I’ve heard only about the team the Packers beat, the Chicago Bears.
The biggest news from the NFC championship game seemingly isn’t the victor, it’s that the losing quarterback didn’t finish the game. I can only hope that the Jay Cutler story dies a quick death, but knowing how ESPN likes to kick a dead horse whenever there’s a so-called controversy, I doubt this one will go away anytime soon.
But rather than lambaste Cutler, like everyone else has done, I’d prefer to focus on the winning team. Strange, I know.
It wasn’t the prettiest effort of Green Bay’s playoff run, but it’s obviously worth a whole lot more than the more impressive wins over the Eagles and Falcons. Just like those previous two games, I was literally on the edge of my seat (or on my feet) for all 60 minutes. Super Bowls maybe old hat for Patriots fans, but it’s been a while for Packers fans, and I didn’t feel legitimately confident until Aaron Rodgers took a knee on the final play.
The Packers are the NFC’s No. 6 seed. They needed to win in the final week of the regular season just to make the playoffs. And now they’re the early 2½-point favorite to win Super Bowl XLV. It’s been quite a journey, and with Green Bay’s scary-good defense and Rodgers, a young QB coming into his own, my preseason Super Bowl pick looks pretty good.
Of course, I picked the Packers to lose the Super Bowl to Baltimore. I already was wrong on the opponent, so hopefully I’ll be wrong about the result, too.
Oh, right, there was another game on Sunday. Check the blog tomorrow, because I know Scott has some choice words about Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (one of the more overrated players in recent NFL history).
Personally, I was still trying to wrap my head around the Packers’ win, and with the euphoria of watching your team earn a spot in the Super Bowl, I really didn’t care who won the AFC game. I rooted for the Jets, only because a New York win would have allowed me to tie Rick McGowan for the season in our Daily News football picks. But finishing dead last in “The Showdown” means little to me now that, for the first time in 13 years, the Packers will play for the NFL title.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)