Super Bowl XLIII...

[charlie]

We could probably analyze this to death, but the bottom line is, it was a great football game. The average fan really got what they wanted, a close exciting football game.
The refs did make a bunch of calls that is for sure, but in the end, they did not decide the game, at least in my opinion.

[zhenya]

The refs did make a bunch of calls that is for sure, but in the end, they did not decide the game, at least in my opinion.

Charlie,

You are being too nice. They didn't even review the most important call of the game with 3 seconds left... I'm not saying it decided the game but it left a bad taste in my mouth.
I agree with you that the game was exciting to watch because it gone to the wire. I hate games that end with 20 points spread...

[charlie]

I thought they did review that play????

Well, anyways, it is pretty much history right now. The fact that the Cardinals defense couldn't stop them when it counted was rather disturbing, considering they pretty much shut them down the whole second half!!!!

[Ninong]

I thought they did review that play????

Yes, they reviewed it and agreed with the ruling on the field: fumble. It didn't take them very long to review it so maybe that's why Gene thinks it wasn't reviewed.

[Ninong]

I agree with you that the game was exciting to watch because it gone to the wire. I hate games that end with 20 points spread...

Why? If you're a true fan of the team that's on the winning side, those games are the most fun. You can enjoy yourself and even go to the bathroom whenever you need to without worrying about missing something important.

Of the five San Francisco Superbowl wins, the two over Cincinnati were the closest and they were exciting but they were not my favorites. My favorite by far was the win over Miami and Dan Marino, because all we heard the week before the game was how great Marino was and how he would destroy the 49ers. In spite of their almost perfect season -- 15-1 with the only loss by a field goal -- the 49ers were underdogs to the Miami Dolphins in the betting line.

All we heard from the national media all week was how Marino was the greatest quarterback ever and how he was having the best season ever in history and how he was so much better than Joe Montana. Well, Joe Montana has four Superbowl rings and three Superbowl MVP trophies. He would have had four MVP trophies but the MVP shelf in his trophy case was full, so that gave one to Jerry Rice. How many rings does Marino have?

We were spoiled in the 1980's. I guess that's what happens when your team wins four Superbowls in nine years. Then we had to wait five more years for win number 5 because Steve Young couldn't get past the playoffs. All of that is ancient history now. The San Francisco 49ers franchise, the best in the NFL under Eddie DeBartolo, went to hell in a hand basket under his sister, Denise, and her totally incompetent husband. Now they have their kid running the team.

Top 10 Best Superbowl Teams


No. 2 - Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 49ers

For all the genius of legendary 49ers head coach Bill Walsh, it's somewhat bizarre that San Francisco's most dominant Super Bowl team came the year after Walsh retired following his third Super Bowl title in 1988. Replacement head coach George Seifert was the beneficiary of an incredible postseason run as the 49ers blew out their three playoff opponents by a combined 126-26. Wow. That's what we all said after witnessing the best offensive show in Super Sunday history, with Jerry Rice and Joe Montana (both pictured) leading a 55-10 win over the Broncos.


No. 4 - Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 49ers

For a 15-1 team (only loss by a field goal) that obliterated nearly every team in their path in 1984, these Niners seem to get overshadowed at times when looking back through Super Bowl history. All the hype entering Super Bowl XIX centered around the QB matchup of Joe Montana and Miami's young gun Dan Marino, who had shattered passing records throughout the '84 season. But the Niners had the league's 2nd-ranked offense in the league, and the No. 1-ranked scoring defense in football. Great defense (and Montana) beat great offense, as the 49ers won easily, 38-16.


No. 6 - Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49ers

First, Steve Young (pictured) had to overcome the USFL. Then it was being drafted by the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers, back when they were horrible in bright orange uniforms. He also had to sit for years behind arguably the greatest QB ever to play, San Francisco's Joe Montana. Finally Young won the starting QB gig by the Bay for good in 1992, but his team couldn't surpass the Dallas Cowboys ... until 1994, when Young's 49ers rocked the NFL's best offense, culminating in a 49-26 Super Bowl rout over the Chargers with Young FINALLY relieved to win his own championship.


All three of those wins were blowouts but I enjoyed them more than the two wins over Cincinnati. The TV sponsors were furious over the 55-10 blowout of Denver because people started switching the channel. People stayed tuned for the 38-16 blowout of Dan Marino's Dolphins because they couldn't believe how easily Montana was destroying Miami, a team hyped as being far superior to the 49ers in spite of the 49ers' better record.

It wasn't until after the 49ers won four Superbowls in nine years in the 1980's that other teams began adopting what is now known as the West Coast Offense. Bill Walsh invented that offense to match Joe Montana's unique set of skills. He didn't have an arm like Marino or Elway but he was a better quarterback when it came to reading defenses. Montana already had two Superbowl wins and two MVP trophies before Jerry Rice entered the league but once the 49ers acquired Rice (Mississippi Valley State), it was almost sinful that any team should have to face that combo. Trivia: Rice's first year contract with the 49ers was for only $186,000.

That 38-16 blowout of Miami was before Jerry Rice entered the league. Rice's rookie year was 1985. Rice has three rings, two with Montana at QB and the third with Steve Young at QB. And Rice has one MVP trophy. The first win over Cincinnati and the blowout of Miami came before Rice entered the league.

More trivia: Joe Montana was selected by the 49ers in the third round, 82nd overall pick, in the 1979 draft. Talk about a steal!

Jerry Rice was selected by the 49ers in the first round, 16th overall pick, in the 1985 draft. As 1984 season Superbowl Champions, the Niners had the last pick in the first round of the 1985 draft but they did some furious last minute trading to get the 16th pick after learning that the Dallas Cowboys planned to pick Rice. The Cowboys had the 17th pick. Another steal but not quite as big a steal as getting Montana on the 82nd pick in 1979.

[Ninong]

What's an even bigger steal than San Francisco getting Joe Montana with the 82nd pick? How about New England getting Tom Brady with the 199th pick? We couldn't believe that back in the Bay Area. Brady was six months old when I moved to San Francisco. He went to Junipero Serra High School in San Mateo. He was definitely a star in high school. At Michigan he was initially 7th in the depth chart but he worked his way up to starting QB his last two years. And they were both very good years. How the hell did he drop to 199th in the draft? Talk about a steal!!!

And Tony Romo going undrafted is another mystery.

On the other hand, just look at the disastrous No. 1 overall pick the 49ers wasted in 2005 on Alex Smith. How can Alex Smith be No. 1 and Tom Brady be No. 199 and Tony Romo go undrafted? And let's not forget Jim Druckenmiller, another wasted first round draft pick by the 49ers. At least he was late in the first round. They took him over other QBs who turned out to be much better only because of his size. He was built like Ben Roethlisberger but without the talent.

The 49ers under Denise have been a disaster. Under Eddie, they won five Superbowls. Eddie had a reputation for being the most generous owner in NFL history. His players loved him. He chartered jets and flew the entire team and their entire families to Hawaii for team vacations. Denise and her proctologist husband have a reputation as one of the cheapest owners in NFL history. They have absolutely no people skills whatsoever. What they did to the 49ers is criminal. It's a miracle the Niners are still in San Francisco. After Eddie lost control of the team in 2000, the first thing Denise did was to put the new stadium deal on indefinite hold.

The City of San Francisco is desperately trying to hold onto the 49ers. It's a shame that one of the many multi-billionaires in the Bay Area hasn't stepped forward to relieve the Yorks of the 49ers franchise. Somebody needs to get Sergei Brin or Larry Page interested in football. Or maybe even Larry Ellison?

P.S. -- I just realized that there is something I actually like about George Bush, believe it or not. He did NOT pardon Louisiana's scumbag former governor, Edwin Edwards, who is still in prison serving his 10-year sentence for being a scumbag. Eddie DeBartolo was forced to give up the 49ers as part of his plea agreement after being caught on tape agreeing to Edwin Edwards' demand for a $400,000 bribe to get a riverboat casino license. Eddie was hit with a $1 million fine (pocket change for him) and forced to turn over the Niners to his sister Denise. He was caught only because the feds had wiretaps on Edwards' phones.

Edwards is 81 now. He's scheduled to be released in 2011. Everybody down here said he would be pardoned, or, at the very least have his sentence commuted to time served. Even former President George H. W. Bush wrote a letter urging commutation of his sentence. Former Louisiana governors, both Republicans and Democrats, and a former Democratic senator who is a close friend of George W. Bush, wrote letters asking Bush to pardon him. It was widely reported to be a done deal. Not! So that's one thing I like about George W. Bush. Maybe I'll think of another thing next year, but don't count on it.

[zhenya]

Yes, they reviewed it and agreed with the ruling on the field: fumble. It didn't take them very long to review it so maybe that's why Gene thinks it wasn't reviewed.

No they didn't review it. What they did do is to say it day after that they reviewed it and it was confirmed. Hogwash!
They'll say anything to cover that ref's and NFL's arses.

PS. 49's were very impressive in the 80's. No one questions that. They run into a better defense in 87(?) when Jim Burt knocked Joe Montana down and he didn;t play again in that game. It was a scary moment, I was Giants fan but I was even bigger Montana fan. Go figure...

[Ninong]

No they didn't review it. What they did do is to say it day after that they reviewed it and it was confirmed. Hogwash!

Did you read that somewhere? Because I remember them announcing during the game about 30-45 seconds after the play that it had been reviewed and confirmed that it was a fumble because his arm was not yet in a forward motion. When they were saying that, they replayed it a couple of times. Maybe it was a very quick review? It's an automatic review upstairs and maybe they just looked at the replay and then called down to the field that they agreed that it was a fumble.

Anyway, I remember somebody saying before the end of the game that the play had been reviewed and confirmed as a fumble. That's because they were talking about whether the game was actually over or not and somebody said, "It has been reviewed and confirmed as a fumble."

[Ninong]

PS. 49's were very impressive in the 80's. No one questions that. They run into a better defense in 87(?) when Jim Burt knocked Joe Montana down and he didn;t play again in that game. It was a scary moment, I was Giants fan but I was even bigger Montana fan. Go figure...

That playoff loss to the Giants was a disastrous loss. The 49ers lost a lot of playoff games and NFC championship games, some of them by very, very close margins right at the end of the game. They did make it to the Superbowl five times and they won all five times but they should have made it a couple more times. I remember one NFC championship game where the 49ers had the game in the bag, all they had to do was run out the clock with only about a minute left in the game, and Roger Craig fumbled the ball, resulting in a turnover. The other team kicked a field goal and won the game with only a few seconds left. There was no need for Craig to gain any yardage. It was a horrible, horrible decision to let him risk running the ball, especially since he was prone to fumbling.

Steve Young always lost playoff games until he finally made it all the way and won the Superbowl with an outstanding performance. The fans hated him all the way up until that Superbowl win. For one thing, they hated the fact that the team dumped Joe Montana after his two years off for injury because nobody considered Steve Young to be better than Montana. And every time Young choked in a playoff game, all of the fans complained that Young was a disaster compared to Montana. Montana's first year with Kansas City he almost took them to the Superbowl.

Oh, well... That's all in the past now. The 49ers will never go anywhere under their present ownership.

[zhenya]

Did you read that somewhere?

I didn't have to read it anywhere, although I did, they made a mock up announcement in the booth that it was reviewed and confirmed. What?
It was reviewed while everybody went crazy on the field running around?
Give me a break, George. I don't mind that Steelers won, and don't think that that review would make any difference in the outcome of the game, but it did leave bad taste in my mouth. Like oficiating was poor and whistle was blown something like 18 times in the first half... I wouldn't mind if the calls were good, but some of them was real bad. Like the roughing the passer call. The only personal foul was called on the Steelers when their star linebacker made a fool of himself punching and pushing another player. How about tossing his sorry butt out of the game?

[Ninong]

I didn't have to read it anywhere, although I did, they made a mock up announcement in the booth that it was reviewed and confirmed. What?

Gene, yes that's when it was reviewed. It was ruled a fumble on the field with five seconds left in the game. Pittsburgh went nuts immediately after the call on the field. It was reviewed in the booth with replay and the decision was announced in less than a minute. It was a very hasty review.

If it had been overturned, then Pittsburg could have been called for excessive celebration, putting Kurt Warner that much closer and in range for a Hail Mary pass attempt.

I was pulling for Arizona to win because I wanted to see Warner win a Superbowl at the end of his career. And I didn't want to see the Steelers win a sixth Superbowl. If there had been testing for steroids back in the '70's, then Pittsburg would not have won all those Superbowls.

I think Kurt Warner outplayed Ben Roethlisberger in this particular game. I think that everybody knows that Pittsburg is the better team but I was hoping Arizona would upset them. And they almost did.

I think the officiating was especially bad. I was disappointed that Arizona's defense couldn't stop Pittsburg in that last drive but I wasn't surprised. I think Big Ben redeemed his performance only thanks to that final drive. Had he failed in that drive, everybody would have said he sucked and that Warner was the better QB on that particular day.

I have not found a single sportswriter who claims that that final play was not reviewed in the booth. Jason Whitlock says that it "should have been thoroughly reviewed." They definitely announced that it had been reviewed and confirmed as a fumble but it was a very quick review. Maybe they just looked at one replay and agreed with the call on the field. Personally, I think it could have gone either way. The problem is that it has to be clearly not a fumble in order to overturn the call. If the call had been an incomplete pass attempt, then I don't think they could have overturned that either because I think it was too close to say for sure that it was clearly one or the other.

Anyway, somebody in the booth did claim that the play had been reviewed and confirmed and that was before the game officially ended, in spite of the celebration on the field, which doesn't count one way or the other. Remember when the stupid Stanford Band started marching down the field from the end zone before the game was officially called as being over and Cal got off one more snap and managed to make it through the Stanford band for a touchdown, winning the game? I know you remember, I'm just using this as an example.

If you really want to throw up, read Jason Whitlock's column. Boy is he in the tank for Big Ben and the Steelers. Usually I agree with him but not this time. He called this Superbowl the "greatest Superbowl in history." What?!! And he called the Steelers "America's team." OMG! I absolutely hate that term, mainly because the dumbass Cowboys gave that title to themselves. All except Romo. He's the only one who is okay, the rest, including the owner, are a bunch of clowns. And then there's the dumbass Atlanta Braves who like to call themselves America's team. What's up with that?

Anyway, Jason Whitlock is in love with the Steelers and Big Ben, so much so that I had to look up his profile to see if he had been born in Pittsburgh or something but it looks like he's from Indianapolis. Here's his column, but put a towel over your keyboard first so that you don't ruin it.

Superbowl XLIII was NOT the "greatest Superbowl ever" by a longshot. Whitlock is obviously in love with Roethlisberger and the Steelers. His praise of Roethlisberger is over the top. He called Big Ben's final drive the best in history. What?!! What's Whitlock smoking?

I thought Superbowl XLIII sucked. The last three minutes did have the lead switch and then switch back again but so did last year's Superbowl, which I thought was a better game. I think Jason is just a rabid Steelers fan.

[zhenya]

Superbowl XLIII was NOT the "greatest Superbowl ever" by a longshot. Whitlock is obviously in love with Roethlisberger and the Steelers. His praise of Roethlisberger is over the top. He called Big Ben's final drive the best in history. What?!! What's Whitlock smoking?

I don't know what he is smoking, something real strong I gather.
It is definitely not the greatest ever, not even by a long shot like you said. It was sort of competitive and at times exciting but so were some of the other games. Last season is just one of them but there were much more. Cowboys and Steelers, Raiders and Green Bay all can argue this point.

And then there's the dumbass Atlanta Braves who like to call themselves America's team. What's up with that?

Well, I am sure you remember that Turner had a stroke of genious and broadcasted their games all over the Country, especially where local stations wouldn't brooadcast any games. He has to be congradulated for this because this is why Braves claimed so many fans that don't even live in Atanta, or even Georgia for that matter. They won one "world" (I can;t get over that world crap) series in 95, as you know, and that is it. However their fan base can rival even Yanks. Nothing to sneeze at if you ask me.

Oh, and I agree with you and everyone else who said that Warner had a better game than Roethlisbereger. However Ben had the last word, so...

Anyway, did you hear his interview on that orange headed freak's show?(CBS)
He said that Holmes was his third read in that play. Oh, boy...He should have listened to Holmes's interview after the game 'cause he said that they practice this type of plays and he was glad that it was called after he missed first attempt at the catch in the corner of the end zone.
Should we call Holmes a liar? I don't think so.

:eek3:

PS> I have no issues with Ben winning his second ring. He played his heart out and should be called "greatest escape artist ever" that played football. If it wasn't for this ability we would be discussing Warner's second ring right now. He definitely deserves this win despite the close call. I think he could've been even better if their offense was geared up for Ben. It isn't. He's just scripted in to not make mistakes and not to force anything. He didn;t but he saved their coordinator's butt on so many occasions in this game.

[Ninong]

Jason Whitlock's problem is that he's only 41 years old. He wasn't even born yet when the first Superbowl (AFL-NFL World Championship Game) was played. Green Bay ran away with the first and second championship games but the third game was a douzy, thanks to Joe Willie Namath. Whitlock probably doesn't remember that game because he was only two years old at the time.

Johnny Unitas and the Baltimore Colts were favored by 21 points. The spread closed to 19 points by game time. The national media rediculed the idea that the Jets had any shot at all. No one picked the Jets except Joe Namath, who told a heckling Colts fan, "We will win the game. I guarantee it." That made headlines all over the country and it made all the so-called experts crack up laughing.

I remember that game very well. It was only 40 years ago, so I was 31 at the time. It was almost a shutout. The score was 16-0 until the Colts finally scored a TD with three minutes left in the game. The only reason the Colts were able to finally score was because of three penalties called against the Jets during that last drive. And by that time the Jets knew they had the game won anyway. So the Colts only score of the game was a meaningless TD very, very late in the game. If you're old enough, you might remember that Don Shula started Earl Morrall even though Johnny Unitas was healthy enough by then to start the game. Shula didn't put Unitas in until the fourth quarter. Unitas had been out all season due to injury but he was well enough to play before game time. Shula didn't want to make changes because the Colts had won the previous ten games straight and 28 of the previous 30, which is why they were called the "Greatest Team in History" prior to the game.

So the greatest team in history was almost shut out by an AFL team that all of the sportswriters said had no business being on the field in the first place. Joe Namath single-handedly saved the AFL.

Namath has never been one of my favorite quarterbacks but he was certainly entertaining at the peak of his career. And he certainly knew how to draw media attention. They didn't call him Broadway Joe for nothing.

[zhenya]

So the greatest team in history was almost shut out by an AFL team that all of the sportswriters said had no business being on the field in the first place. Joe Namath single-handedly saved the AFL.

Yep! I watched this game like 10 times on the NFL greatest moments over the years. That and the "greatest game ever played" (Colts-Giants).
I know I wasn't here at the time, so watching this films brought me a bit closer to understanding some of the history and some of the rivalries at the time.
I love this stuff!

[reidcor]

Monty Stickles was only six months younger than me. He died of a heart attack a few years ago. I don't think anybody was on steroids back then when he played. I met him in '68 when he played for the Saints during his last year in the game and their second season. I had season tickets back then but I met him because the company that I worked for provided him with free use of a car. You would be amazed at how little those guys were paid back then. We had deals with Stickles and Dave Parks. I think I already told you about some of those experiences with Stickles in a PM years ago. The guy was not really all that attractive, but boy was he a chick-magnet.

Hey Ninong -- you might know the answer to a question I've had for a long time. Did Monty Stickles really karate-chop a referee during a game at Tulane Stadium.? -- I know he was one of only four players in NFL history to be disciplined for "assaulting" an official, for whatever he did that day. Can you shed any light?
Thx,
Reidcor

[Ninong]

Hi reidcor,



I'm afraid I can't answer your question. I believe I remember him getting into trouble for shoving a referee or something but that was 42 years ago. I only had personal contact with Monty three times and only went out 'bar-hopping' in the French Quarter with him twice and both of those occasions were following paid promotional appearances that he and Dave Parks did for my employer.