Super Bowl XLIII: Steelers outlast Cardinals in one of the greatest Super Bowls ever

February 1, 10:40 PMNew England Patriots ExaminerSean Crowe

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MVP Holmes made one of the great catches in NFL history
(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

The New England Patriots now have some competition for the “Team of the Decade” title. The Pittsburgh Steelers won their sixth Super Bowl, their second in the last four years, when they defeated the Cardinals 27-23.

And what a Super Bowl it was.

The Arizona Cardinals may not have deserved to make the playoffs, but once they got there they were a force to be reckoned with.

It took the greatest drive in Super Bowl history to finally knock off the extremely scrappy Arizona Cardinals.

Ben Roethlisberger has cemented himself as one of the greatest big-game quarterbacks in the history of the NFL.

In one drive, he vaulted himself into the Peyton Manning vs. Tom Brady conversation.

Santonio Holmes, the game’s MVP, did his best Deion Branch impersonation in the fourth quarter, right up until the touchdown play.

On the touchdown play, he channeled Randy Moss and Larry Fitzgerald in making one of the greatest touchdown catches in NFL history.

I have to tell you, I had no expectations coming into this game. I thought this game would be terrible. An absolute destruction of a team that had no business being on the same field as the AFC Champion Steelers.

What we got was a Cardinals team who was sick of listening to people like me say they didn’t deserve to be there and a Steelers team who, on this night, just wasn’t going to be beaten.

Kurt Warner has been a part of three great Super Bowls. Say what you want about his Hall of Fame qualifications, the guy has played in some Hall of Fame Super Bowls.

Larry Fitzgerald didn’t disappoint either. What a tremendous wide receiver.

This game was an instant classic. It may have been the best Super Bowl ever.

The Patriots have played in some great Super Bowls. In 2002, they played in what was at the time the greatest upset in Super Bowl history. Last year, as far as upsets go, that was topped by their game against the Giants.

In 2004 they played in one of the greatest Super Bowls in history against the Panthers.

But none of those games matched this one.

What a fantastic game.

Congratulations to the Cardinals for what was an unexpected and impressive playoff run. You may have stolen a ticket into the big dance, but once you got there you out-danced all but one.

Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Sean Crowe is the New England Patriots Examiner and a Senior Writer / NFL Community Leader at Bleacher Report. You can email him at scrowe@gmail.com.You can check out his Bleacher Report archives here.

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