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SharePittsburgh Steelers Will Win, But 5 Ways To Beat Them
Posted by Bob Evans on Jan 24, 2009 04:53 PM
Although this is "Global" CIO, I'm going strictly local for the Super Bowl and picking my hometown Pittsburgh Steelers to beat the Arizona Cardinals, 24-16. Arizona fans, feel free to write back and explain how the Cards will win -- and to get you started, here are five areas where the Steelers could be vulnerable.
1. Blitz a lot. Then blitz some more. When the Eagles thrashed the Steelers earlier this year, they blitzed Ben Roethlisberger on almost every play, sacking him 8 times and knocking him down another 10. The Steelers never got untracked and the Eagles dominated.
2. Don't let Santonio Holmes beat you. Hines Ward's sprained knee is troubling him and while he swears he'll play in the Super Bowl, he's still undergoing intensive therapy and might not be 100%. Holmes is in perfect health, and always plays best in big games.
3. Exploit the Steelers' shaky punt-return team. Cardinal receiver Steve Breaston (a Pittsburgh native) ran one back for a touchdown against the Steelers last season, and that was when we had a good punter. That's certainly not the case this season: Mitch Berger is probably the least effective punter in the league -- he doesn't punt 'em far, he doesn't punt 'em high, and he doesn't punt 'em out of bounds. When Berger's on the field, it's high-clench time for Steeler fans.
4. Use an unbalanced offensive line to try to neutralize James Harrison. No one in the NFL can block Harrison one-on-one and regardless of how smart Curt Warner is and how quickly he can get rid of the ball, Harrison unchecked will be Warner's worst nightmare.
5. Throw the ball to Larry Fitzgerald 20 times (at least). He's the best and most-explosive receiver in the league and not even the Steelers can stop him if he gets his hand on the ball enough times.
What say you, Cardinal fans? And Steeler fans, feel free to toss in your predictions as well.
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