Stinging end to amazing season
February 2
Arizona Republic columnist Dan Bickley
"In the NFL, they say that nobody remembers who loses the Super Bowl.
That might be the case in 49 other states. It's not true in Arizona, where our mood has changed from red to blue. The depression will linger like a heavy fog.
The Cardinals lost their first Super Bowl on Sunday, falling 27-23 to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Raymond James Stadium. It was nauseating. It was exhilarating. It was stupefying. It featured one of the best fourth quarters anyone has ever seen.
It ended with the biggest sucker punch the Valley has ever felt.
"It was like getting a chair pulled out from under you," Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said.
When Fitzgerald galloped through the Steelers defense like a thoroughbred, scoring a touchdown that capped the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history, the Cardinals were 157 seconds from immortality. They were 157 seconds from ending the second-longest drought in professional sports.
Then the magic disappeared. Destiny, like most everyone else in the building, was wearing black and gold.
"Some say we could not top last year's Super Bowl," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said. "But the Steelers and Cardinals did that tonight."
In time, you will feel proud of the Cardinals for what they accomplished, for not giving up. Their stout performance in the final 15 minutes will earn them much-needed respect and credibility around the league. But deep down, you also know they played a sloppy, mistake-prone game and still almost left with the trophy.
What a shame. After a rocky first half, their furious rally against the vaunted Steelers defense would've been sweeter than the Diamondbacks' comeback against the New York Yankees and star pitcher Mariano Rivera in the 2001 World Series. It would've been the stuff of legends.
Instead, the Steelers responded with their own game-winning touchdown. It was eerily similar to last year's Super Bowl in Glendale when the Patriots received a late touchdown from their star receiver (Randy Moss), only to watch the Giants counter with something even better.
To Arizona's horror, Fitzgerald's heroics were trumped by a sensational touchdown catch by the Steelers' Santonio Holmes. And for the second time in the past 12 years, a football championship was simply stolen from our grasp. Or maybe you've blotted out the memory of Ohio State rallying to snuff out Arizona State in the Rose Bowl.
"We've got a team that doesn't blink in the face of adversity," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said.
As a result, Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner will not get his storybook ending, and his family will not be getting a victory puppy. As part of a mayors wager, a tree from Pennsylvania now must be planted outside University of Phoenix Stadium. Given our climate, the tree likely will be dead by summer. That's about the time the sting of this defeat will vanish.
"I don't think you ever get over this," Cardinals defensive end Antonio S
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