To the very few diehard Arizona Cardinals fans out there: I’m sorry.
You see, in my perfect world view, the Arizona Cardinals would be the NFL’s symbol of futility, rather than a team just 60 minutes from a Super Bowl victory. Before this year, the team’s last home playoff game took place 61 years ago, the best definition of football futility this side of Detroit. I have a great dislike for Bill Bidwill, the Cardinals’ owner and a notorious penny-pincher who was rumored to charge his players money for extra practice gear. To me, Bidwill and owners like him (Mike Brown, Cincinnati Bengals; Michael Heisley, Memphis Grizzlies; faceless Nintendo executives, Seattle Mariners) are a part of what’s wrong with professional sports. They don’t care about fielding competitive teams, and they deserve the lack of success they accrue.
Did I see them taking the NFC West division title with a 9-7 record? No, but I also didn’t expect the Seattle Seahawks to utterly forsake defense, which resulted in handing the division to the most talented team left. (I won’t waste ink on the pretending San Francisco 49ers.) Taking the division as handily as they did, quality of opposition notwithstanding, requires a cohesion that I did not believe existed.
Did I see them extinguishing the flame of the upstart Atlanta Falcons? No, although I was stricken by the sentiment of a Falcons franchise left for dead by the national media after Michael Vick’s conviction on dog fighting charges. Many experts foretold a 3- to 4-win season; the Falcons went 11-5 and caught a wild card berth. That’s a true underdog story.
Did I see them chew through the Carolina Panthers like the wood chipper did Steve Buscemi in “Fargo”? No, but I also didn’t foresee Jake Delhomme having the worst game of his life (six interceptions and a lost fumble) when it mattered most. Nor did I expect to see such passive play from the Panthers’ offensive and defensive lines.
Did I see them holding on against the soaring Philadelphia Eagles? No, and my surprise was increased tenfold when DeSean Jackson bobbled and eventually caught a 62-yard touchdown pass to put the Eagles up 25-24 with 10:45 remaining. It seemed like an omen that the joyride was finally over. The final minutes of that game are a direct testament to Eagles’ fans constant complaining about head coach Andy Reid’s abysmal clock management.
I once joked to a friend at the start of the playoffs that if the Cardinals won the Super Bowl, I would offer myself to be tackled from behind by Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson, he of the 66-inch vertical leap display made famous on YouTube. I felt it was a safe bet, especially given Wilson’s tendency to overpursue. Adrian, if you’re reading this, it’s still on – but I demand a helmet.
It’s not as though the Cardinals are getting by on pure luck, though. Kurt Warner, the 37-year-old starting quarterback, made those few fans forget about Matt Leinart in conducting the Cardinals’ passing offense – the second-best in football. The Cardinals have not one, not two, but three (Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, Steve Breaston) wide receivers with 1,000 yards on the year. And I can say what I want about the defense (19th in total defense in the NFL this year), but they have stepped up in every game, especially the members of the secondary.
So maybe I’ve miscast the Cardinals. Maybe they’re more forlorn than futile. After all, the most famous player in franchise history (Pat Tillman) died in Afghanistan of friendly fire, which led to a federal investigation that turned out to be embarrassing for all sides. The most famous Cardinals fan is former Deadspin editor Will Leitch; he’s not exactly the most popular guy. And their home field, the University of Phoenix Stadium (yes, the online one), almost bore the name of the Pink Taco Mexican restaurant franchise.
A nation of football fans appear to have flocked to the Cardinals’ bandwagon as they prepare for the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII. And why not? The economy is in the tank right now. The new president is African-American. Facebook is a multibillion-dollar enterprise. These are strange times, indeed. Times when it’s acceptable to root for a team like the Cardinals.
My early pick for Super Bowl XLIII: Steelers, 41-28. The Steelers had the best defense in football this year and they should be able to run on the Cardinals with Willie Parker and the slightly underrated Mewelde Moore. But if the Cardinals win, I won’t feign surprise. It’s just a sign of the times.
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