By Alex

In the end, defense prevailed over offense in Super Bowl XLIII.

Sort of. They did allow 407 total yards.

The Arizona Cardinals offense got in high gear in the second half and put a scare into the Pittsburgh Steelers but it wasn’t enough.

It was quite the valiant effort put up by the under rated Cardinals in a heartbreaking and exciting 27-23 loss to the Steelers.

With the victory tightly in its possession, Pittsburgh rode into football history as they earned a sixth Super Bowl title. No team has ever reached that number. As the drama-Queens known as the Dallas Cowboys tenuously hold on to the “America’s Team” moniker, the Steelers have methodically maintained an aura of football magnificence. America’s Team? The ‘Boys can pretend all they want.

The Steelers contained the prolific Arizona offensive triumvirate of Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald and Aquan Boldin for most of the game as Arizona almost overcame the greatest deficit in Super Bowl history.

Almost.

In the end, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threaded a perfect pass to Santonio Holmes in the dying minutes of the game. With a last chance for Arizona to weave and wrestle their way into glory, the Steel Curtain was pulled over the Cardinals for the last time. Game OVER.

Life is cruel. You know the script.

And boy was there a “Winning Warner” script waiting to be disseminated to the world. But. It was not to be.

Destiny is nothing but a flirt sometimes. A hussy with nothing better to do than tease.

Once the sour taste and foul scent of defeat softens, a sense of sweetness will take place for what was a massively successful season for Arizona. No one thought them to be serious or even worthy challengers for the Vince Lombardi trophy. Yet, there they were, almost grabbing it for a much traveled franchise.

And so another football season and chapter closes. Another one will be written next year.

What will that script be like?