NFL Playoffs 2008: Arizona Cardinals Recap

Written By: Andrew Mindzak

After making their first appearance in an NFC Championship game and defeating the Philadelphia Eagles, the Arizona Cardinals are on their way to their very first Super Bowl. Facing a very experienced Pittsburgh Steelers team, the Cardinals have their own experienced personnel, most notably head coach Ken Whisenhunt and quarterback Kurt Warner.

Whisenhunt was the Steelers offensive coordinator for three years under previous coach Bill Cowher, and helped lead them to victory in Super Bowl XL. A notable play call during that game was a touchdown pass from Steelers’ wide receiver Antwaan Randle El to Hines Ward, which is the only touchdown pass thrown by a wide receiver in Super Bowl history. Whisenhunt then took the Cardinals’ head coaching job in 2007, leading the Cards to an 8-8 record (a nice improvement from the previous year’s 5-11 record). At the start of the 2008 season, Whisenhunt made another smart decision, naming Kurt Warner the starting quarterback over Matt Leinart, which provided huge dividends.

Even though Warner ended the 2007 season strongly while filling in for an injured Matt Leinart, he still entered training camp this off season as the backup. After a strong showing in the preseason, he earned the starting nod over Leinart and led the Cardinals to the NFC West Title with a 9-7 record. Warner, who is widely recognized as an even greater man than football player, had a monster season in Arizona, finishing second in the NFL in passing yards with 4,583 and touchdown passes, with 30. He also completed 67.1 % of his passes during the regular season which was also good for second in the NFL. Putting stats aside, Warner’s leadership always gives the Cardinals a chance to win any game. Back in 2000, Kurt led the St. Louis Rams to a Super Bowl win over the Tennessee Titans. Two years later he led them back to the Super Bowl, losing a nail biter to the New England Patriots on a last second field goal by Patriots’ kicker Adam Vinatieri. So far this post season, Warner has done everything he can to get the Cardinals going in the right direction after their late season swoon. In their three playoff games, Warner has thrown for 770 yards and eight touchdown passes to only two interceptions.

The main beneficiary of Warner’s precision passes is Cardinal wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald. In three post season games this year, Fitzgerald has caught 23 passes for 419 yards, which is a single post season record, along with five touchdowns. Fitzgerald has been getting the job done without teammate Anquan Boldin, who has missed significant time during the playoffs with a hamstring injury. The former Pitt Panther tore apart the Eagles’ secondary during the NFC Championship game, snaring nine Warner passes for 152 yards and three touchdowns (which tied a playoff record).

The Cardinals will be relying heavily upon their defense to win the Super Bowl. The Cards’ defense has tightened up quite considerably in the post season. During the regular season, they gave up an average of just over 26 points per game. In the playoffs, they have been almost a whole touchdown better, allowing only 20.6 points per game. Their rushing attack has also improved greatly. During the regular season, the Cards averaged 73.6 rushing yards per game, but during the playoffs, they have gained an average of 111 yards per contest. The resurgence of Edgerrin James has sparked their ground attack, and along with rookie Tim Hightower, the Cardinals have found their ground game to help take some pressure off former league and Super Bowl MVP Kurt Warner.

There will be many questions that will be answered in Tampa. One exciting question is can the Cardinals continue their high scoring ways against the number one defense in the NFL? Can their defense stop Ben Roethlisberger and the potent Steeler running attack? Can Larry Fitzgerald continue his record setting pace? Will Kurt Warner lead yet another team to their first Super Bowl win? These answers remain to be seen, but one thing is sure…it will be fun to watch and find out!