Cardinals can't pull off Super Bowl victory

As the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrated their 27-23 victory over the Cardinals in Sunday night’s Super Bowl XLIII, Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner stepped to the podium in the Raymond James Stadium interview room.

“We gave ourselves a chance to win a world championship,” Warner said to the assembled media, “but that other team went out and won it.”

Indeed, the Cardinals fought valiantly throughout the balmy evening in Tampa, almost pulling out a Super Bowl upset for the ages in what would have gone down as the Super Bowl comeback for the ages.

They persevered through an early 10-0 deficit. They overcame their own penalties. They rebounded from a devastating play at the end of the first half that saw them not only squander a prime scoring opportunity but also simultaneously gift-wrap a pick-six touchdown to the Steelers.

The Cardinals found a way in the second half to get the football to their dynamic playmaker, Larry Fitzgerald, and the All-Pro wide receiver made it pay off with two touchdown receptions, the second coming on a 64-yard flash of lightning that gave the Cardinals a 23-20 lead with 2:37 remaining.

Of course, it ultimately wasn’t quite enough, as the Steelers re-stole the thunder by scoring the winning touchdown with 35 seconds left on a 6-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger to Santonio Holmes.

“I have to give credit to the Steelers and their tremendous drive at the end,” Warner said. “That is what championship teams are all about. We made the plays to put ourselves ahead, and they turned around and came back and did the same to win the game. That is what a championship game should be about. That is what championship teams are all about. I tip my hat to them for playing the way they did.”

Despite the disappointing final outcome, the dramatic and suspenseful fourth quarter provided a scintillating conclusion to this most thrilling of Cardinals seasons.

Throughout the playoffs, we’ve provided a review through this column of the 12 biggest plays from each of the Cardinals’ postseason games. This time, because it’s the Super Bowl and because there were so many memorable moments provided by both teams, we’ll expand our chronological list to 20 and present the following Remarkable Rewind from Feb. 1, 2009.

1. The situation: After receiving the opening kickoff, the Steelers faced a second-and-8 from their own 30. The play: Roethlisberger found receiver Hines Ward open at midfield. Ward made the catch and scampered to the Arizona 32 for a 38-yard gain.

2. The situation: On the same drive, the Steelers advanced to the Arizona 1 on a 21-yard pass from Roethlisberger to tight end Heath Miller. The play: On third-and-goal from the 1, Roethlisberger rolled out to his right and attempted to run for the touchdown. The Pittsburgh quarterback lowered his shoulder and tried to plow through a tackle by Cardinals defensive lineman Darnell Dockett. The officials originally signaled that Roethlisberger crossed the goal line for the score, but the Cardinals challenged the ruling and the call was reversed. Now faced with fourth-and-goal at the 1, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin opted for the field goal. Jeff Reed kicked the ball through the uprights to give the Steelers a 3-0 lead, but the reversal of the touchdown call resulted in a four-point swing in the Cardinals’ favor.

3. The situation: After forcing the Cardinals to punt on their opening possession, the Steelers took over at the Pittsburgh 31. The play: Roethlisberger tossed a screen pass to Holmes, who ran down the left sideline for 25 yards to the Arizona 44. It was the first of nine catches on the night for Holmes, who finished with 131 yards receiving and was named the game’s MVP.

4. The situation: Two plays and an offensive penalty later, the Steelers faced a third-and-10 from the Arizona 44. The play: Under heavy pressure, Roethlisberger dodged and weaved from the pass rush and found Miller for an 11-yard gain and a first down.

5. The situation: After converting two more first downs on the drive, the Steelers faced a third-and-goal at the 1. The play: Running back Gary Russell scored the game’s first touchdown on a 1-yard plunge to give the Steelers a 10-0 lead with 14:01 left in the second quarter.

6. The situation: On their ensuing possession, the Cardinals faced a second-and-10 from their 17. The play: Warner completed a screen pass to running back Edgerrin James for 10 yards and a first down. Warner, who threw for 377 yards on the night, utilized the screen pass effectively throughout the game.

> Buy Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl apparel & jerseys online through Pro Football Fans and check out the 2008 NFL scores!

7. The situation: Later in the same drive, the Cardinals faced a second-and-7 from the Pittsburgh 46. The play: With plenty of time to stand in the pocket and survey the field, Warner located receiver Anquan Boldin, who made the catch at the 30 and took it all the way to the 1 for a 45-yard gain.

8. The situation: On the next play, Warner stumbled and nearly fell after taking the snap. The play: The Arizona quarterback regained his balance and lofted a pass toward the center of the end zone for tight end Ben Patrick, who made a leaping catch over Pittsburgh linebacker Larry Foote for a 1-yard touchdown to draw the Cardinals to within 10-7 with 8:34 left before halftime.

9. The situation: On the last play before the two-minute warning of the first half, the Steelers were looking at a second-and-4 from their 22. The play: Roethlisberger’s pass was deflected at the line by Bryan Robinson, and Arizona linebacker Karlos Dansby caught the carom for an interception.

10. The situation: Taking possession at the Pittsburgh 34 after Dansby’s interception, the Cardinals converted a first down and faced a second-and-10 from the 24. The play: Warner completed a 12-yard pass over the middle to Fitzgerald for the star receiver’s first catch of the game. Fitzgerald would finish with seven receptions for 127 yards and two touchdowns.

11. The situation: After two passes to Boldin netted 11 yards, the Cardinals had a first-and-goal from the 1 with 18 seconds left in the half. The play: In a stunning turn of events for the Cardinals which resulted in a 10- or 14-point swing, Warner threw a pass intended for Boldin at the goal line in the center of the field, but Steelers linebacker James Harrison stepped in front of the receiver and intercepted the ball. Harrison then followed a foursome of Pittsburgh blockers toward the right sideline, where he eluded tackle attempts at the Steelers 45 and the Cardinals 30. By the time Steve Breaston and Fitzgerald caught up with Harrison inside the 5, it was too late to stop him. Harrison tumbled into the end zone for a 100-yard touchdown return to give the Steelers a 17-7 lead on the final play of the first half.

12. The situation: After forcing an Arizona punt on the opening possession of the second half, the Steelers advanced to midfield. The play: On first down, Roethlisberger avoided the pass rush and threw the ball away. An official tossed out a yellow flag, but it wasn’t for intentional grounding. Rather, the penalty was against Dansby for roughing the passer. The call was the second of three personal-foul penalties on the Cardinals during the drive, which resulted in a 21-yard field goal by Reed to increase the Steelers’ advantage to 20-7 with 2:11 left in the third quarter.

13. The situation: After the teams exchanged punts, the Cardinals took possession at their own 13 with 11:30 remaining in the fourth period. The play: On first down, Warner fired a 13-yard strike over the middle to Breaston to ignite the Arizona comeback.

14. The situation: Three plays later, the Cardinals faced a second-and-4 from the 50. The play: Warner threw a middle screen to J.J. Arrington, who gained 22 yards to move the chains.

15. The situation: After two passes to Fitzgerald netted 24 yards and a screen to Tim Hightower picked up 3, the Cardinals were looking at a third-and-goal from the 1. The play: Warner lobbed the ball to the right corner of the end zone for Fitzgerald, who made a leaping catch over Pittsburgh cornerback Ike Taylor for a touchdown to reduce the Cardinals’ deficit to 20-14 with 7:33 left.

16. The situation: After forcing a three-and-out by the Steelers, the Cardinals received a punt and promptly advanced from their own 25 to the Pittsburgh 26. A holding penalty on the Cardinals moved the ball back 10 yards, and after thee incomplete passes, Arizona was faced with a fourth-and-20 from the 36. The play: Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt opted to punt, and Ben Graham made the decision pay off by placing his kick inside the 3, where it was downed by Michael Adams. A personal foul penalty on the Steelers’ Harrison moved the ball half the remaining distance toward the goal line, and Pittsburgh took possession at the 1 with 3:26 remaining.

17. The situation: After an incomplete pass by Roethlisberger and a rush for no gain by Willie Parker, the Steelers faced a third-and-10 from their own 1. The play: Holmes caught a 19-yard pass from Roethlisberger, but Pittsburgh center Justin Hartwig was flagged for holding in the end zone. The result was a safety which drew the Cardinals to within 20-16 with 2:58 left.

18. The situation: After receiving the ensuing free kick, the Cardinals took possession at their own 36. The play: On second-and-10, Fitzgerald ran a slant pattern from his right-side split-end position toward the middle of the field. He caught Warner’s pass in stride at the Arizona 43 and left the Pittsburgh defenders in the dust as he sprinted untouched for a 64-yard touchdown to give the Cardinals a 23-20 lead with 2:37 remaining. Harrison tried to catch Fitzgerald from behind while Ryan Clark pursued from the left and Troy Polamalu gave chase from the right, but they all lost ground rather than gained ground as Fitzgerald dashed to the end zone.

19. The situation: On the game-deciding drive, the Steelers advanced from their own 22 to the Arizona 46 and faced a second-and-6 with 1:02 left. The play: Roethlisberger threw to Holmes at the 35, and the third-year receiver from Ohio State ran down the right side to the Cardinals 6 for a 40-yard gain.

20. The situation: After a first-down pass intended for Holmes in the left corner of the end zone fell incomplete, the Steelers lined up on second-and-goal from the 6. The play: The Steelers tried the same play to the right corner of the end zone, and this time Holmes made a leaping catch against three defenders to score the winning touchdown. Holmes’ catch, which was reviewed and upheld by the replay official, gave the Steelers a 27-23 lead with 35 seconds remaining.

Arizona would get the ball back for one last shot. But after advancing to the Pittsburgh 44 on a 20-yard pass to Fitzgerald and a 13-yard completion to Arrington, the Cardinals turned the football over when Warner was sacked by LaMarr Woodley and fumbled. Brett Keisel recovered the ball for the Steelers with five seconds left, clinching the Pittsburgh franchise’s sixth Super Bowl championship.

“It just hurts to be able to get so close and fall short of your ultimate goal,” the Cardinals’ Fitzgerald said afterward. “You’ve got to tip your hats to those guys over there at the Steelers. They’re a courageous group of guys. They fought to the end and made the plays when it counted.”

Warner tried to put it all in perspective -- the Cardinals’ last-minute loss, their fourth-quarter rally, their memorable run through the playoffs which culminated with a trip to the Super Bowl.

“We made it to a place that no one thought we would be,” Warner said. “No one expected us to be here. It doesn’t get any better than this. I mean, obviously you want to win, but we took the best in the league down to the wire. They had to make some great plays to win. I am proud of this team. I would have liked to win, but I am proud of where we got. I am proud of the way we fought and battled back. I am proud of the fact that we gave ourselves a chance to win.”

By Tom Kessler
ProFootball-fans.com Staff Writer