Less messy team wins a title; did Bills notice?

By Anthony Bialy  |   Sunday, February 01, 2009  |  Comments( 37 )

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Anything is possible, whether it be the Pittsburgh Steelers winning a sixth Super Bowl or the Arizona Cardinals getting to one. This season’s championship eventually conformed to history after the franchises split much of it see-sawing in the mud, as Pittsburgh stopped making mistakes long enough to win. The Steelers have now appeared in over 16 percent of all the Roman numeral-designated games while winning about 14 percent of them, emerging on top this time by misbehaving and screwing up less. It’s a lesson the Buffalo Bills should have known before the championship and definitely should be aware of now.

As coach Dick Jauron often emphasizes even if his guys don’t always listen, turnovers made the difference in Ex El Eye Eye Eye. The Steelers only won the battle by one including Kurt Warner’s questionable game-ending fumble, but one of the two they managed happened to be the best takeaway ever: James Harrison’s field-covering interception return will be replayed starting today and continuing for as long as football is televised. Buffalo must strike frequently and occasionally devastatingly during the next campaign, as teams that specialize in big interception quantities and/or moments tend to win big games.

Ben Roethlisberger’s sole interception on the previous series eventually caused no damage, possibly because it was returned for minus-1 yard, or exactly 101 fewer than Harrison gained on his pick return. More importantly, he succeeded when needed: Roethlisberger only threw one touchdown compared to Warner’s three, but who cares when they’re the last points scored in an impossibly tight contest?

His calm efficiency during an excessively stressful time serves as an indispensable lesson for Trent Edwards, who should know that he can make occasional, rare, and limited mistakes as long as he atones for them later. A seemingly devastating setback, such as, say, Larry Fitzgerald scoring with under three minutes left, doesn’t mean the end of the world or game. Instead of pouting and quitting as the Bills may have done this past season, the Steelers used 122 of the seconds left to take back the title.

On the other hand, the Bills should note that the naughtier team lost. The Cardinals lost over three times as much ground to penalties than they gained on the ground, as they were set back 106 yards by fouls compared to the meager 33 for which they rushed. Particularly, left tackle and former Bill Mike Gandy, who had three flags thrown at him for holding, proved unworthy of wearing a Super Bowl patch, something Buffalo could have told anyone by mid-2005.

Particularly, Arizona’s three penalties on Pittsburgh’s third-quarter drive were unacceptable for the same reason the Bills couldn’t get away with it: Their defense is good enough to win provided they don’t trip on their own laces. While the Steelers didn’t get to the end zone on that drive, they still got three points while eating 8:39 of clock, thanks in large part getting a first down with each penalty. That includes the junky roughing the passer call, but Pittsburgh exploited its chances, even those the officials handed it.

More generally, Pittsburgh demonstrated why timing peaking is vital after beginning the year as a supposed business class franchise among some alleged first-class teams. While the Steelers weren’t an excessively trendy pick before Week 1, it didn’t matter who thought was going to win the Super Bowl in August or on this past New Year’s Day, as the Steelers won rumbles at crucial moments. Just as Pepsi and Bud Light eternally duel for the title of most embarrassingly lame commercial, Pittsburgh’s ability to rise when it counts during both the regular season and playoffs is a regular event.

Buffalo better have been paying attention: The Bills should have used the season’s final game as study time, part of the extra month they’ve unfortunately had to prepare for 2009’s season. Throw in the extra 15 minutes they got for planning if they skipped Bruce Springsteen’s portentously dull excuse for rock music, and they’re way ahead of the curve. If they’ve taken the occasion to focus on how valuable it is to rise to the occasion and overcome mid-game setbacks, they’re on a decent track to rise next season. If the Steelers teach them anything, it’s that winning ugly is still winning.
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CommentsComments: 37  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
PimpDaddy		07:57 AM
02/02/2009
A pick six made the difference last night. Maybe we can trade Peters for Mike Gandy and a draft pick or two! NOT!!!!! I'm not ...
No.2
Alan		08:14 AM
02/02/2009
I just skimmed through this article, but is this another article about the super bowl champion team showing the rest of the NFL a ...
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No.3
ddd		09:03 AM
02/02/2009
Nate, no need to reset your stance on Ralph Wilson being in the HOF. I agree, he basically has put a lousy product on the field ...
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