MMBSD: Super Bowl XL

Well it was promoted as being an extra large Super Bowl and by in large an enjoyable game. I tuned in at around 5:45 by which point Chris Berman had been doing live Super Bowl coverage for about 72 hrs and on the verge of passing out. Meanwhile in the Casa de Cohen, I looked around at the cornucopia of unhealthy foods. Doritos, check. Pizza, check. Double Chocolate Chip Ice Cream, Check. I was good to go.
I knew the NFL had gone all out when a night time image of Detroit was flashed on TV. Somehow through the magic of graphic design the NFL had made it seem like Detroit wasn't on fire. In fact it looked like some sort of futuristic city. Possibly the one from Blade Runner but that’s still a step up from the usual.
I checked my watch and after a pretty cool Motown show its getting close to kickoff. Time for some High Life because when you’re drinking the High Life your living the High Life. Also it was free High Life. The only catch is that I really can't leave the tv viewing area for fear I'll miss a good commercial. All in all higher quality commercials compared to last year. In no particular order I enjoyed the hidden Bud Light, office of Jackasses and Mcgyver. Of course the Sharpie commercial was the coolest if only because it had pirates and I knew the guy that helped make it.
Anyway back to game. I'll say this – the rotating fresh football really pisses me off. Each play the NFL trots a brand spanking new football. Of course new footballs are harder to throw than worn in ones which might have led to a few balls sailing. I guess it just sort of symbolizes that the NFL would rather serve its corporate masters than improve the level of play on the field.
The game itself was close. Seattle played better than Pittsburgh except for a few key plays. They were big plays though. Seattle's offensive line was the best I had seen since the Dallas Cowboys had won the Super Bowl. Their linebackers were just as fast as Pittsburgh vaunted quartet (hence Pittsburgh anemic first quarter showing). However Seattle just couldn't capitalize on their opportunities. They would march the ball up to Pittsburgh's 40 before stalling out. It was raining dropped balls. Couple that with a few missed field goals and the fact that their hurry up offense looked like it was hastily constructed on a bar napkin and the end result was Seattle left a ton points on the board.
Roethlisberger looked like a second year quarterback or a mountain man that had only recently been reintroduced into civilization after a four years of panning for gold. Pittsburgh converted the big plays. Parker dashed through Seattle for 76 yards and a score. In a play everyone in the stadium knew was coming Randl El heaved a perfect spiral into Ward's open arm for a 65 yard touchdown. Those plays were the difference. It’s hard to say Seattle deserved to win when they gave up those kinds of plays.

A few bones to pick:
Refing - Upon watching the game I flipped over to ESPN for some expert analysis. Instead I get Sean Salisbury bashing the refs and praising Hasselbeck as the true MVP. Did the refs make a mistake? Yes. The holding call in which Seattle converted a pass down to the 2 yard wasn't the right call. Can anyone tell me of another player/coach/field attendant/reporter that did not make one mistake the entire game? Refs are human. They will make a mistake. The other calls I thought were all close but reasonable. Yes they went the way of Pittsburgh. However what killed Seattle was Hasselbeck sailing a pass straight into the arms of a Pittsburgh Steeler. Maybe Salisbury you should focus on that.

Missing MVPs - By my count there were three missing Super Bowl MVPs last night: Montana, Bradshaw and someone else (if you can figure it out let me know). According to the San Francisco Chronicle Montana did not show because the NFL refused to pay him an appearance fee. I'm never one to jump all over something without having that person comment first but if true that's pretty low. How much money could Montana need?

Politics- For the record it’s my next prediction that Lynn Swann, due to his walking the MVP walk coupled with the Super Bowl win for Pittsburgh, will win the Pennsylvania governor's race.