Spring Break
Cinderella Cardinals
Terry Horstman
Issue date: 1/13/09 Section: Sports
Whether you love them or hate them, believe in them or don't believe in them, or never saw this coming, the Arizona Cardinals have earned their place as a contender in the NFL and the best story of the year in pro football.
The Cardinals have been known as a lame duck franchise in professional sports for years. Their last home playoff game before this season was played in 1947 when they were playing in Chicago. It has been a very long and painful road to the 2008 NFC Championship game for the Arizona Cardinals but, when you look at the team's blue-collar roster, it's hard to imagine them getting it done in any other way.
The main reason for the success of the high-flying Cardinals has been their potent passing attack behind former MVP quarterback Kurt Warner. Warner, who has won two MVP awards and one Superbowl when playing for the St. Louis Rams, was supposedly washed up headed into 2008. Guess again. Warner was one of NFL's best passers and a strong MVP candidate for most of the season. He finished with 30 touchdowns against just 14 interceptions for an astounding quarterback rating of 96.9; amazingly, all of this happened with the serious lack of a consistent running game.
The unexpected success doesn't end with Warner. Although Pro-Bowl wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald has been thought of as one of the league's best for the past couple of seasons, he definitely took the road less traveled on his way to fame.
When you're watching the conference championships this weekend, take a minute to look at the ball boys on the sideline. While they might not look like very much right now, they could very well be the next Larry Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald was a ball boy 10 years ago for the Minnesota Vikings as a junior high and high school student; he got to watch NFL greats Cris Carter and Randy Moss tear the league apart. Fast-forward 10 years to 2008, and you'll see Fitzgerald right where his heroes once were as one of the best receivers in the NFL.
The Cardinals have been known as a lame duck franchise in professional sports for years. Their last home playoff game before this season was played in 1947 when they were playing in Chicago. It has been a very long and painful road to the 2008 NFC Championship game for the Arizona Cardinals but, when you look at the team's blue-collar roster, it's hard to imagine them getting it done in any other way.
The main reason for the success of the high-flying Cardinals has been their potent passing attack behind former MVP quarterback Kurt Warner. Warner, who has won two MVP awards and one Superbowl when playing for the St. Louis Rams, was supposedly washed up headed into 2008. Guess again. Warner was one of NFL's best passers and a strong MVP candidate for most of the season. He finished with 30 touchdowns against just 14 interceptions for an astounding quarterback rating of 96.9; amazingly, all of this happened with the serious lack of a consistent running game.
The unexpected success doesn't end with Warner. Although Pro-Bowl wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald has been thought of as one of the league's best for the past couple of seasons, he definitely took the road less traveled on his way to fame.
When you're watching the conference championships this weekend, take a minute to look at the ball boys on the sideline. While they might not look like very much right now, they could very well be the next Larry Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald was a ball boy 10 years ago for the Minnesota Vikings as a junior high and high school student; he got to watch NFL greats Cris Carter and Randy Moss tear the league apart. Fast-forward 10 years to 2008, and you'll see Fitzgerald right where his heroes once were as one of the best receivers in the NFL.
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