Saturday Night Live and the Super Bowl

I watch SNL fairly faithfully. Such has largely been the case since I saw it for the first time in the early 90s when childhood idol Charles Barkley hosted. It waxes and wanes with the strength of the cast, but I'm always there.

Recently I feel its been good. Saturday's episode with Steve Martin was hit and miss, but good on the whole. Certain bits have stayed with me. I've always admired Steve's skill with the banjo, and was delighted to hear him perform with it. I also loved one of the later sketches, which featured Steve as an old-time football star who wielded a handgun on the field. Funny stuff.

I feel better about the Super Bowl now, so maybe I can better articulate some of my thoughts. As angry as I remain towards exuberant Steelers fans (particularly those who have no apparent connection to the city or the team other than enjoying a winner), I can acknowledge that they were the best team in the league, and played a great game. James Harrison's interception and touchdown return was amazing, and definitely could have silenced Arizona's fighting spirit.

What did Arizona's loss come down to? Penalties were very damaging. Mike Gandy was accumulating holding penalties like he has a collection of them at home. The defense faltered there at the end, but they were great for most of the game, and any defense is going to fail at some point. It was just bad luck that Fitzgerald's touchdown came with so much time left on the clock. You can't decide exactly when you're going to get your scores.

In spite of losing, they surely proved themselves. In a sense, the Cardinals are very much like Rocky Balboa at the end of the first film. The tagline from that film comes to mind: "His whole life was a million-to-one shot". He starts the film as small-time muscle for organized crime, and as a scrub boxer. He rises to a bout with the champion, and no one gives him any chance of success. Seemingly, he doesn't even belong in the ring with Apollo Creed. He should be crushed, and is defeated, but he does manage to go the distance against the best in the world.

That sort of feels like the Cardinals' season. God willing, next season will resemble Rocky 2.