From staff reports
Ben Roethlisberger thew a 6-yard touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes with 35 seconds left to rally the Pittsburgh Steelers past the Arizona Cardinals to win Super Bowl XLIII 27-23.
Arizona trailed 20-7 entering the final quarter before quarterback Kurt Warner led them from behind. Warner found Larry Fitzgerald for a 1-yard touchdown pass to cap an 87-yard drive early in the period. Later, the Cardinals got a safety when the Steelers were holding in the end zone to cut their deficit to 20-16.
On the ensuing possesion, Warner found Fitzgerald for a 64-yard touchdown, and Arizona led 23-20 with 2:37 remaining.
That set the stage for Roethlisberger to take the Steelers 78 yards on their drive to the championship.
Steelers rally to defeat the Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII....
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) -- The Arizona Cardinals rallied to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles 32-25 in the NFC championship Sunday afternoon, earning the first Super Bowl trip in their long and not-so-glorious history.
After the Cardinals jumped out to a 24-6 halftime lead behind a record-tying three touchdown catches by All-Pro wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, the Eagles rallied for a 25-24 lead in the fourth quarter. But Arizona won it on an 8-yard touchdown pass to Tim Hightower from Kurt Warner with 2:53 to play - Warner's fourth touchdown throw.
"That drive where we scored a touchdown at the end of the game and took seven minutes was really the difference," Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt said.
Donovan McNabb was superb in leading Philadelphia's second-half rally, but he misfired from midfield four times in the final moments.
Arizona (12-7) will face the AFC champion in two weeks in Tampa for the NFL title. Baltimore played at Pittsburgh later in the day for the AFC crown.
If the Cardinals, the first No. 4 seed to host a conference championship game, were supposed to be thunderstruck by their surroundings, they instead responded like playoff veterans.
Warner throws for 4 TDs, Cards stun Eagles 32-25....
By BOB BAUM
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Anquan Boldin has a fractured sinus as a result of what he acknowledges was the worst hit he's received in his football career.
The Arizona Cardinals standout wide receiver doesn't know how long he will be sidelined, but when he returns, he says, there will be no change in his trademark tough, aggressive style.
"For me it was just a part of football," Boldin said after watching his teammates practice on Wednesday. "It's an unfortunate incident that happened but, you know, you take your bumps and bruises."
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell suspended New York Jets safety Eric Smith for one game and fined him $50,000 for the vicious, helmet-to-helmet hit on Boldin in the end zone during the waning seconds of the Jets' 56-35 victory over the Cardinals at the Meadowlands on Sunday.
"You never know somebody's intentions," Boldin said, "but I didn't think it was intentional."
Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt said it wasn't for him to say whether the punishment was warranted.
Cardinals WR Anquan Boldin has fractured sinus....
By ANDREW BAGNATO
PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt expects the NFL to review a helmet-to-helmet hit by New York Jets safety Eric Smith on Cardinals receiver Anquan Boldin.
Boldin was resting at home on Monday, one day after being carted off the field in the Cardinals' 56-35 loss to the Jets in New Jersey.
Whisenhunt said he believed the hit violated a safety edict issued by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, but he stopped short of calling for Smith to be suspended.
"I think it's one of the hits that falls into the category of being dangerous to players," Whisenhunt said Monday. "Certainly, I'm sure that the league is going to look at this and will address it."
Whisenhunt: NFL should review hit on Boldin....
