Updated throughout the day with quick takes from staff.
The Opening Pitch: This was a Super Bowl for the fan's fan.
Last year's "Best Super Bowl Ever" had three things going for it: (1) "19-0"; (2) New York vs. Boston (with New York as an underdog); and (3) Manning-to-Tyree, the single-greatest play in NFL history. Casually, fans were left with this: How can things possibly get any better?
If you love football, Super Bowl 43 was better.
It didn't have the marquee markets, the stakes of perfection or that One Signature Play. But it was more of a satisfying game-long thrill ride:
— The Greatest Momentum-Shifter in Sports History: James Harrison's rumbling 100-yard pick-six to end the first half, which instantly became one of the Top 5 most memorable plays in Super Bowl history (no easy feat for a play in the first half).
— The Cardinals with the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history (10+ points), and doing it with defense, first. (Arizona's hurry-up offense was impressive, but far more jaw-dropping was the ferocious way the Cards’ D kept the team in the game.)
— Larry Fitzgerald going from contained to "Ohh!!! Did he just do that?!?!"
— And, finally, just when you thought the Cards had pulled it off, their gutsy defense failed them and the Steelers pulled off a 2-minute drill for the history books — complete with that Santonio Holmes TD catch that was every bit as impressive as David Tyree's a year ago: But not fluky, just incredible.
"Not fluky, just incredible": Just like how Super Bowl 43 separates itself from last year's "Best Super Bowl Ever."
What is the lingering memory from Super Bowl 43? On its face, it would be Harrison's 100-yard INT for a TD, which completely changed the game. But for me, the lasting image is of would-be hero Larry Fitzgerald caught on camera mouthing "No! No! No!" as Holmes made that utterly sick game-winning TD catch.
Legacy-building for the Steelers: Should Pittsburgh be considered the greatest franchise in NFL history? (As if their fans needed anything more to be arrogant about.) How about this: Mike Tomlin is your new gold standard for NFL coaches — the youngest to win a Super Bowl title.
What about the Cardinals? Wow, they were so close to the Greatest Super Bowl Comeback Ever — so close to that championship. When Fitzgerald scored to put them ahead, I actually thought they had it won — if only because their defense was playing so amazingly.
They deserved to win more than any other Super Bowl runner-up in history. At a minimum, the Cardinals have wiped out the franchise's legacy of being the NFL's biggest losers. They earned something almost as good as a Super Bowl title tonight; they earned the respect of fans everywhere.
Super Bowl Ads: The overall "blah" quality of the ads made the game that much more special — the commercials simply didn't distinguish themselves, letting fans focus more on the amazing game unfolding in front of them on the field.
— Best In Show: Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head (though I couldn't recall it was for Bridgestone without looking it up). Runner-up: Hulu, because Alec Baldwin is the best comedic actor on TV right now.
— Biggest Whiff: Coke Zero with Troy Polamalu. The all-time-great "Mean Joe Greene" ad should never have been remade, even if they were making fun of it. It would be like Apple making a parody of the "1984" ad.
— Totally Underrated: Denny's, which shouldn't have bothered spending 25 seconds setting up a vague joke and simply hammered over and over, "Free Breakfast This Tuesday! Free Breakfast This Tuesday!" No other advertiser did more to touch consumers where it counts — in their wallets.
— Animals Watch: Budweiser went heavy on the Clydesdales, didn't they? (Who knew the Clydes were Scottish, let alone still carrying around a Scottish accent — hated that ad, BTW; the enduring myth of the Clydesdales in the Super Bowl ads was driven partly by their stoic silence.)
I enjoyed the Clydesdales ad with the two romantically linked horses, although the ending was sort of too "When Animals Attack!" for me. (Meanwhile, how can you deny the amazingness of monkeys in Super Bowl ads? Thank you, Castrol.)
USA Today AdMeter Winner: Doritos crystal ball. Appreciate why it won — you can rarely go wrong with the classic "groin shot" — but it felt like I had seen this ad before: Sprint's "throw-the-phone" ad in '08 or even, more recently, the Southwest ad with the guy throwing the video-game remote.
Super Bowl Entertainment: Bruuuce! Springsteen had me with "I want you to put the chicken fingers down!" literally as I held a chicken finger to my lips. (Yes, I put the finger down, then went on to love his high-energy show.) Runner-up: Jennifer Hudson, with a belt-it-out National Anthem; the US Airways crew, led by Sully(!!!).
Very quickly, around the rest of the sports world ...
Pro Football H.O.F.: Bruce Smith was a no-brainer, but I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by Derrick Thomas' induction. If you're in your 20s, you may not remember him, but if you're in your mid-30s, Thomas' legend has only become more pronounced since he died.
— NBA: All eyes on Andrew Bynum's knee. Like last year, the difference between the Lakers winning the West and the Lakers winning the NBA title is in the future of their young center's knee and how quickly — and effectively — he can return.
(Fuel for 2010 conspiracy theorists: Dwyane Wade AND LeBron in New York playing for the Knicks? I'm not even sure they could co-exist on the same team.)
— CBB: Um, what happened to Wake? I would rather have them all admit that, yes, it was a total let-down game after beating Duke. How else to explain losing to the worst team in the ACC?
— Stud of the Weekend: K-State's Denis Clemente, who rang up an "Obama" (44 pts, tying a Big 12 record) in leading the Wildcats to a shocking win over Texas in Austin. Clemente's performance was the best single-game performance by any player this season so far.
— What To Watch Tonight: UConn at Louisville. Yet another Big East Game of the Year, in a battle of two teams that should both be ranked in the Top 5.)
— Coaching Carousel: Bob Knight to ... Georgia?
— Tennis: Nadal beats Federer in Aussie Final. Don't discount how huge this is. It was Nadal's first major title on hard courts — and his first major final victory over Federer on hard courts. When Nadal becomes the master of all surfaces, can he be even better than Roger?
— CFB: Signing Day Mania! Don't forget that NSD — which has become as big in college football as any day of the year — is Wednesday. (There are rankings all over the place; here is SN's Top 100.)
The Last Word: Michael Phelps smoking from a water bong. For a worldwide idol, it was a terrible image.
Here's the thing: When you're the greatest athlete in the world — in a sport that is only relevant every fourth year — you earn enough credibility that this will be laughed off across most of the world as a god finally showing some human frailty.
It's not like he was smoking HGH or caught on film sticking himself in the butt with a syringe full of steroids. Who do you think he is: Marion Jones? There is no question: This was a bone-headed mistake by Phelps. But he will publicly repent and be fine.
Dan Shanoff writes The Wake-Up Call every weekday morning for SportingNews.com and blogs daily at DanShanoff.com. Got any comments, questions or feedback? Email Dan at shanofftsn-[at]-gmail-[dot]-com.
This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.
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The answer is ‘no’ because last year’s didn’t end on a final play with half the world going, why aren’t they reviewing that clear non-fumble? I’m sure Pittsburgh would have still won, and there were heroics all around, but WE ALL DESERVED to see a Super Bowl ending 44-yard heave into the endzone. That’s drama, and the refs never explained themselves, and no one — Al Michaels, ESPN, newspapers — seem willing to admit it: that was a very very weird call.
by oklahomazeppelin on Feb 2, 2009 9:19 AM EST reply actions
oklahoma…they DID review the play. It was a quick review upstairs by the instant replay official, because it was clearly a fumble. That Warner pushed the ball forward is irrelevant. The rule is he must have full possession, and he did not. Woodley’s hand was on the ball at the time, and the ball was in the process of being knocked out as Warner essentially shot-putted it forward. By all interpretations of the rule, that is a fumble. There’s an article on NBC online about the issue. The fact that the play was reviewed upstairs is mentioned, it just didn’t take long to review.
by dklemm on Feb 2, 2009 9:37 AM EST reply actions
Oh please. One good game and you’re dripping in your pants? Last year’s game was world’s apart from this game. Sure, this was exciting, but the Steelers were favored and nobody was 18-0 going in. Give me a freaking break.
by Bluestone9 on Feb 2, 2009 9:58 AM EST reply actions
Best Super Bowl ever? Please. Everyone is talking about the nine second review of the Warner fumble and ignoring the bulls**t roughing the passer call (on Dansby?) in the first half, after he shoved Ben a second after he threw the ball. Even more appaling is that they called this after Warner was hit and driven to the ground after he threw the ball. I guess the real Rooney Rule consists of handing the Steelers the trophy. And I have never seen a running over the holder call. Ever. Either a holder has never been run over in a single game I have watched in my life, or they have never actually called it before. AND Woodley threw a textbook block in the back on the Harrison return. The NFL is the WWE now. We’ve seen terrible calls all year, right? Has there ever been a worse year for officiating?
by ChiAdam on Feb 2, 2009 10:21 AM EST reply actions
ChiAdam…The review was only 9 seconds because it was that clear and obvious. It could have been less than that. As for the roughing the passer call, I agree, it should not have been called. But stupid, over-protective calls for the QB have become the norm in the NFL. They make the same call all the time, though they shouldn’t…and no, Warner was NOT hit late. The whining about the reffing by the Steeler haters is pathetic. There were MANY missed holding calls by the Cards. Woodley and Harrison were held repeatedly and that’s what kept Warner from being sacked many more times than he was, but fewer than half of them were called. Gandy was caught 3 times for holding Harrison by grabbing him around the neck or head and twisting him down, but he did the same thing at least 7-8 times that were clearly visible but not called. One of those that was called a hold should have been a personal foul, not just a hold, as Gandy had his arm wrapped around Harrison’s head and his hand grasping the underside edge of his helmet as he wrenched him down. As for the roughing the holder, it doesn’t get called often because players are usually not that stupid to do it. It’s the first time I’ve seen it called, but the first time I’ve seen it done. He hit him out of frustration. The holding in the end zone that gave ‘Zona the safety was marginal as well. I’m fine with them calling it because technically it was a hold, but the offensive lineman was falling down and instinctively grasped on. It was a fair call, but one that is frequently let go without a call. Funny how they make such a call in a game that was supposedly rigged for the Steelers, on a play that resulted in points and posssession for the Cards. Now despite being a Steeler’s fan, I’m glad Harrison got the penalty on his cheap shot, and he should be given a $25K fine as well. As for ejection, if they did eject him, I wouldn’t complain, but that they didn’t is not a big deal either, as many worse infractions happen without ejections. There were missed calls all around, as happens often in a fast moving game with 22 large, fast-moving bodies flying around the field, but those missed calls came on both sides. To say it was rigged or that the Steelers were given favoratism is childish and shows you care more about whining and cherry-picking the things that don’t go your way than the integrity of the game.
by dklemm on Feb 2, 2009 10:42 AM EST reply actions
way too much input from the refs to be considered for the best game ever, tho it was fun to watch.
by scurds on Feb 2, 2009 11:25 AM EST reply actions
Good game, first half kept it from being the best game and the blown call on last play, should not have been a fumble and would have added to the drama. But all in all and good Superbowl, in the top third. 1. Giants-Bills during the 1st Persian Gulf War and 2 Last year with the Giants-Patriots…
Then go back a ways to some of the Steelers, Raiders, Redskin, Cowboy Match Ups as well as the Jets Colts and throw a blanket over them before you bring this one up. But enjoyable non-the less.
by North Buffalo on Feb 2, 2009 1:01 PM EST reply actions
Somebody must still be drunk from the festivities. This game wasn’t even close to last years.
Let me reiterate what has already been said:
Patriots perfect record on the line in the biggest game ever
Only teams believed able to stop them were the Packs and the Boys’ and the Giants surprisingly beat both of them
New York vs. Boston gains a whole new meaning
Suddenly everyone is watching, fan or not of the teams
Late drives, the catch, the sacks the final minutes which were heart stopping for both sides, the drama, not to mention some of the highest ratings in Superbowl history
Yeah…..no. This game wasn’t even fun to watch because there was a flag every 10 seconds. So what if some random "records" are broken, it didn’t make the game more entertaining than last year. I have friends who are die hard Steeler fans and even they know how good the game was last year over this year. Your definitely part of a small group if you think this was the best one.
by NovaSky on Feb 2, 2009 1:08 PM EST reply actions
Yeah, I think the Harrison interception and the last two amazing 4th quarter scoring drives are giving everyone selective memory…those penalties were awful, awful, awful. The three personal fouls on that Steelers drive became the story of the game until the last 5 minutes saved it…it’s kind of hard to call a game the greatest ever when it was just a hair from having the officiating once again being the main thing people were gonna be talking about. But I ain’t gonna lie, those drives did make it one of the most exciting 4th quarters I’ver ever seen in a Super Bowl for sure…
by chinese_star on Feb 2, 2009 1:47 PM EST reply actions
The game had some of the greatest moments in SB history. Greatest game – in my opinion no.
The offiacting was annoying to say the least. I don’t have strong feelings for either of these teams but the apparent random need of the refs to hear their own voice (there were bad calls/noncalls on both sides) is what I will remember as much as the 100 int yd return, great Zona comeback and Holmes catch.
Congrats to the Steelers (and Zona – they had one great ride).
by easports_1 on Feb 2, 2009 2:14 PM EST reply actions
would not have even been a contest at all if Gandy was called half the time he HELD James Harrison….re-watch the game and watch gandy/harrison on evry play…..Gandy held Harrison EVERY play and it was called only 2 times !
had James not been held……warner would have been sacked, hurried, knocked down….and so on…the game would have been a blow out….so the steelers got rooked from the ref’s NON calls
by bonzo on Feb 2, 2009 3:56 PM EST reply actions
Pittsburgh fans aren’t arrogant! We’re dedicated, supportive and we love our football above all else. Winning a superbowl with the hardest schedule of the year is something to be proud of. So if we say that out loud, please excuse our arrogance!
by susiegro on Feb 2, 2009 5:12 PM EST reply actions
Greatest Super Bowl? No. Top 10? Yes. The endless flags slowed any kind of rhythm that would make it the best of all.
10. XXII Washington 42-Denver 10. Yeah, it’s a blowout, but it’s how it happened that make this one fun. The Broncos dominated the first quarter and bolted out to a 10-0 lead, then the second quarter started and the Redskins just absolutely destroyed them by scoring 35 before the half. Elway and Dan Reeves had this shell shocked, "What the hell just happened?" look on their faces that had to be seen to be believed.
9. XII Pittsburgh 35-Dallas 31. Bradshaw and Staubach went back and forth all day, but Jackie Smith’s drop of an easy, wide open, catch in the end zone was the difference, and I doubt, even three decades later, that he’s gotten over it.
8. XXX Dallas 27-Pittsburgh 17. Bill Cowher managed to keep this one closer than it should have been by blowing Barry Switzer’s doors off in completely outcoaching him. Neil O’Donnell blew it for the Steelers with a horrible pick late that sealed the game for the Cowboys.
7. XXXII Denver 31-Green Bay 24. This is the first of the really good Super Bowls we’ve been blessed with over the last decade or so. Elway finally wins the big one, and the other thing that will make this one memorable was Mike Holmgren letting the Broncos score the game winning TD to "save time on the clock".
6. XLIII Pittsburgh 27-Arizona 23. Excess use of the flag lead to this being so low on my list. Last minute TD on a 2 minute drive at the end plus great defensive play from both the favorite and a plucky underdog. If this sounds familiar, it is to longtime football fans who should remember….
5. XXIII San Francisco 21-Cincinnati 16. All of the above, minus the penalties, and the Bengals were a lot bigger dog than the Cards were.
4. III NY Jets 16-Baltimore 7. One of the two biggest upsets in SB history as Namath guaranteed the Jets, 18-point underdogs, would win. This one guaranteed that the AFL would enter the merger with the NFL on equal terms.
3. XXXVI New England 20-St. Louis 17. Another huge upset that launched the Patriots mini-dynasty and showed that Mike Martz’ "Greatest Show On Turf" could be beaten.
2. XLVI NY Giants 17-New England 14. Manning to Tyree is the most improbable catch I think any of us will ever see. Throw in the Pats being 18-0, and this was one to remember.
1. St. Louis 23-Tennessee 16. Every one of the great games has a last minute drive, but no Super Bowl ever ended with the tying score on the 1 yard line as the clock ran out.
by Colonel Klink on Feb 2, 2009 6:58 PM EST reply actions
6 titles 1…2…3…4….5*…..6*
by scurds on Feb 2, 2009 7:59 PM EST reply actions
Scurds obviously intended the asterisks to signal where he had to use a calculator as he cannot count past 4 without assistance. What a whinny little loser.
by fryguy34 on Feb 2, 2009 9:21 PM EST reply actions
I actually tried to pitch an Andy Capp wife-beating Super Bowl commercial to Borden Foods for their Hot Chili Cheese Steak Fries product, but I guess you can only get so much oomph out of 99 cent corn starch product. I may pitch it as an Afterschool special, if they still make those.
by L'etat, c'est moi on Feb 2, 2009 10:24 PM EST reply actions
cmon fry guy, that is funny
by scurds on Feb 3, 2009 9:52 AM EST reply actions
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