In 1967, the first Super Bowl was officially held, which also meant that the NFL entered the Super Bowl era and made rapid progress in business and marketing; however, until this year, the Super Bowl has only been held forty-four times. Compared with those ancient football leagues, history seems not enough at all.
In fact, the history of rugby union can be traced back to 1920. It has gone through a full ninety-one years since then. In the long history, it has witnessed countless ups and downs, honors and disgrace, and also accumulated countless grievances and resentments. . When people think of the league's oldest franchise, the Green Bay Packers always come to mind.
The Green Bay Packers, founded in 1919, are not only one of the original founding members of the existing league, but the team's legendary coach Vince Lombardi has also written countless history——
In the history of the Packers, they have won a total of 13 championship trophies, nine of which were before the Super Bowl era and four after the Super Bowl era. Among them, Lombardi led the team to win five of them. Trophy.
After Lombardi passed away in 1970, in order to commemorate the legendary coach, the merged league decided to name the Super Bowl trophy after him.
Super Bowl trophy, full name: Vince Lombardi Trophy.
There is no doubt that the Green Bay Packers are one of the oldest teams in the league, but only truly experienced fans know that the Packers are only the third-oldest team in the league, and Chicago ranks second. Bear.
It is no exaggeration to say that the grudges between the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers, who are in the same division, have lasted for almost a whole century. This has also made the two teams the most historical rivals in the league. one.
So, what about the oldest team?
The answer is the Arizona Cardinals, a team founded in 1898. They are not only the oldest team in the league, but also one of the representative teams in the league that has suffered a lot of misfortune.
It has witnessed almost every turning point in the football league, and has been constantly tossed around the league, changing hands and moving several times. Historically, it has been the Chicago Cardinals, St. Louis Cardinals, Phoenix Cardinals, and finally in 1994 Settled in Glendale, Arizona, and became the current team.
Among the city-based fan groups, repeated relocations have also caused die-hard Cardinals fans to gradually disappear in the torrent of time. When it comes to the fan base, let alone the Packers and Bears. Compared with other teams, there is not much advantage even compared with the new generation of teams such as the Carolina Panthers.
What is even more embarrassing is that the Arizona Cardinals have never had real glory in history. The greatest achievement in the team's history was winning the league championship twice before the Super Bowl era, in 1925 and 1947; But entering the Super Bowl era, they have never won the championship.
The Arizona Cardinals reached the Super Bowl for the only time in 2008, but lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers, who swept the league with a defensive iron curtain. This witnessed the growing Ben Roethlisberger reach the top stage for the second time. . That year, it was "Cinderella" Kurt Warner who led the Cardinals to the Super Bowl.
In the past twelve years, the Arizona Cardinals have been ups and downs. The peak years were in 2008 and 2009, but they fell quickly after the peak. They ended with five wins and 11 losses last year, even in a poor competitive situation. They were also the bottom team in the National League West and ended up with the fifth overall pick in the draft.
If the ups and downs of the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers have witnessed the rugby league's step-by-step rise to glory; then the ups and downs of the Arizona Cardinals have witnessed the stumbles of the professional league in its growth.
It's a bit ridiculous and a bit regretful. As the oldest team in the league, the Arizona Cardinals can't even find a decent rival.
Because in the ever-changing history of the team, their division opponents are also constantly changing. All the battle histories, battle records, and past glories are gradually forgotten in the long river of time, and then they are forced to start over.
It wasn't until 2002, when the Arizona Cardinals came to the National League West, that they stopped wandering and gradually established a firm foothold.
However, in the past eight years of competition in the same division, the focus has always been the Seattle Seahawks. This reconstructed team won the division championship for four consecutive years from 2004 to 2007. In 2003, it was the St. Louis Rams. , it was the Cardinals in 2008 and 2009, and the top spot in the division in 2010 returned to the Seahawks.
Among the divisional duels, the St. Louis Rams and the San Francisco 49ers are the real mortal enemies; while other internal divisional duels, the grievances and grudges accumulated and settled in just eight years are really too dull because of the overall competition in the division. The strength is too bad, and the showdown between the ups and downs of the weak makes people unable to arouse any more interest.
Even if he wants to attract hatred, he seems to be powerless.
After ending with a dismal record of five wins and 11 losses last year, the Arizona Cardinals still seemed to be struggling in the new season. They defeated the Carolina Panthers in the regular season opener and got off to a smooth start; but then encountered a wave of six-game setbacks. With a losing streak and no hope for a long time, the current situation can be said to be terrible.
However, over the past two weeks, the Cardinals have shown some signs of resurgence. In the ninth week, they defeated the St. Louis Rams in overtime; in the tenth week, they narrowly defeated the Philadelphia Eagles at the last moment and gained two consecutive victories, bringing the season record to three wins and six losses. However, in this situation, facing this week's opponent San Francisco 49 People are still in trouble.
At the beginning of the season, the Cardinals' main quarterback was a fifth-year player, Kevin Kolb. He entered the league with the 36th overall pick in the second round of 2007 and spent his time with the Philadelphia Eagles. Four years later, he joined the Cardinals during this offseason and became the starting quarterback.
In the first game against the Panthers, Kolb performed well, scoring two touchdowns without interceptions, and had a quarterback rating of 130.0, successfully defeating Cam Newton, who set the rookie passing record; but after that, Cole Bu's performance was a complete disaster, not only suffering from his own mistakes, but also suffering from injuries. Finally, in the ninth week of the regular season, he was forced to hand over his starting position due to injuries.
Taking over as the starter was second-year quarterback John-Skelton. This quarterback, the 155th pick in the fifth round last year, scored touchdowns and interceptions, stumbled and led the way. The team has won two consecutive games. Although the quarterback rating has not exceeded 80, at least the team's defensive team has finally found its feeling, and the offensive team has finally regained some vitality.
The two consecutive victories may have been bumpy and bumpy, but no matter what, victory is always a good thing, and the decline has finally been stopped.
Overall, the Arizona Cardinals are still in the doldrums. Compared with last year, their state this year has improved slightly, but there are no obvious signs of recovery. In comparison, the performance of the San Francisco 49ers can be described as majestic and unstoppable. A record of eight wins and one loss is the best proof.
More importantly, after analyzing each game in detail, the San Francisco 49ers show no mercy when facing weak teams and are tough when facing strong teams. The San Francisco 49ers are showing the style of a truly strong team.
There is no doubt that in this confrontation, the San Francisco 49ers have the upper hand.
The only uncertainty lies in the team's starting quarterback Lu Ke. In the last game against the New York Giants, his right arm while passing the ball had some muscle spasms, which affected his performance in the third quarter. Indirectly led to the shock of the last quarter of the game.
However, such concerns dissipated after Wednesday's official media day.
In an interview, Jim Hubble said that there was no problem with Lu Ke's arm, it was just some minor problems caused by improper exertion of force. After the game, there would be no problems after receiving a massage; at the same time, the team also further conducted comprehensive Check to make sure their starting quarterback is healthy.
Team doctor Walter Hudson gave double confirmation in an interview. The team conducted a detailed comprehensive examination for Lu Ke. The results were undoubtedly gratifying. In the next game, the undrafted rookie will still lead the team forward. .
In the subsequent public training sessions, Lu Ke's excellent passing performance also gave all fans reassurance that not only was he free of injuries, but he was also in good condition. After winning five consecutive games, the entire team is on the right track and is relaxed and relaxed for the next game.
In this way, the balance of victory tilts steadily towards the San Francisco 49ers, which is the unanimous opinion of almost all experts.
During the recording of the "Inside the League" program, nine analysts and commentators all believed that the San Francisco 49ers would win the game. The only exception was Charles Davis, who chose the Arizona Cardinals on the grounds that "two consecutive games" The momentum of victory gives the Cardinals the strength to compete.”
However, no one blamed Charles, and no one believed him.
In the "Across the Pacific" farce that just ended, everyone knows that Charles and Lu Ke are not at odds with each other. Now Charles chooses the Arizona Cardinals - the enemy of his enemy is his friend, which is natural.
The opinion of commentators headed by Spencer Larson is the mainstream view of the entire league: The San Francisco 49ers have shown sufficient strength and potential, and defeating the Arizona Cardinals is a high probability event.
The gambling game in Las Vegas is the most direct proof. The San Francisco 49ers' odds of winning are only 1.1, but the Arizona Cardinals' odds of winning are 4.6. It can be seen that they also believe that this is a certain victory. .
Unknowingly, this young and energetic team is changing everyone's views bit by bit and growing into a better team. However, whether it is a dark horse or a strong team, the game must be completed in a down-to-earth manner. Victory is not a calculation of data on paper.
In the eleventh week of the regular season, the San Francisco 49ers faced the visiting Arizona Cardinals at home!
