Seahawks win Super Bowl XL

[WabUfvot5]

The first half was almost a complete snoozer. Pretty poor final game of the season.

[wolf]

BigV, you should hurry up and get that crystal ball of yours in for service before the warranty expires.

(I was at work for the game, watched most of it and will rewatch it, probably later tonight, for the commercials. I posted to another site, a wee bit after the start of the game, "The only thing the Seahawks will win tonight is the coin toss.")

[Griff]

At least it was a tight game even if neither team played well. I'm waiting for the announcement that Ben is going in for surgery on his throwing hand. He had no idea where the ball was going last night. Randal El on the other hand looked pretty sharp.

[FallenFairy]

AMEN Bruce - the game was a good one - noone walking away at half-time cause the outcome was apparent. I lived in the Seattle area for years - but was born in Pittsbugh in the shadow of III Rivers Stadium... for me and mine XL would have been a no lose situation- but Seattle had the best season they've had in AGES.

[Pie]

I was disappointed. The commercials sucked.

[wolf]

A couple of the commercials didn't ... yeah, the Pepsi ones were lame, and I don't think "Magic Fridge" lived up to the hype ... but Leonard Nimoy for Aleve and McGyver MasterCard were priceless, to coin a phrase. The Budweiser Colt commercial was a goodie also.

Fedex Caveman made me laugh out loud, but the one with the monkeys? Doesn't really distinguish the product well enough that I bother to remember what they were advertising (but I did like the turnaround, "Well, I work with a bunch of jackasses") but the concept is too tired.

Another concept that's worn out it's welcome is the GoDaddy girl. It wasn't funny last year, it's worse this year. Paying to place the same ad twice is what we call STUPID.

Ameriquests Fly commercial was one of the better ones for me.

The worst? That Burger King Busby Berkley production number ad that seemed to last forever. Not even the Camp and the Kitsch saved it. The "Full Throttle" ads for the new Coke product need help. Serious help. And as much as Bud scored with "colt" and "streaker" they lost with "hiding on the roof."

The upcoming movie releases don't look too promising ... I just watched an unnecessary remake of The Poseidon Adventure on TV, why should I pay $8 plus snacks to see one in the theater? Even if they leave out the pointless terrorist subplot, it can't be any better than Ernest Borgnine, Shelley Winters, and Gene Hackman. What's next, remakes of the Towering Inferno and Earthquake? The Shaggy Dog isn't going to get better with the addition of Tim Allen, either.

[capnhowdy]

well who won the puppy bowl?

[Griff]

Originally Posted by wolf

The upcoming movie releases don't look too promising ...

V for Vendetta looks like something I'd watch. Johnny Depps pirate flick is on my list.

McGyver was sweet. I'd go with the magic fridge commercial. Kicking the dino was funny as well. Yoinking the beer from betwix man and bear was good slapstick. No awesome commercial that needed to be talked about the next day though.

[Happy Monkey]

V is an excellent book. Though you might be less disappointed if you watch the movie first. They're gonna have to sacrifice something to bring it to screen.

[Rock Steady]

I have ReplayTV, so I skipped the commercials. When I caught up to Live, I took a break to get a beer or whatever.

Bouleware played better pass defense that I thought he would. But, he was completely out of position on the longest run in Super Bowl history. He ran in on the play from SS but overcommitted and went toofar in. He didn't get blocked or anything; just was out of position. After that, Fast Willie just beat the FS to the sideline, and the rest is history.

[Elspode]

The Steelers sucked less, got better calls (although I don't remember any particular call that went against the Seachickens as being demonstrably *bad*), and managed to use their superior gumption to put it together and capitalize on Seattle mistakes when it really hurt.

I thought it was an entertaining game, and the commercials did largely suck.

[Pie]

Originally Posted by wolf

Leonard Nimoy...McGyver...Budweiser Colt...Fedex Caveman...streaker...GoDaddy...movies

Well Wolf, I have to say I agree with your entire analysis, pros and cons. I'm still disappointed with the sum total though.
Kitty halftime show was great. Luna the Tuna loved it. We went to bed before the puppy bowl ended -- sorry, capn.

[BigV]

Originally Posted by Elspode

The Steelers sucked less, got better calls (although I don't remember any particular call that went against the Seachickens as being demonstrably *bad*), and managed to use their superior gumption to put it together and capitalize on Seattle mistakes when it really hurt.

I thought it was an entertaining game, and the commercials did largely suck.

Well, Els, you and I agree. I only really laughed at three commercials, Ameriquest Fly and Airplane spots were really funny, and the Budweiser Streaker was hilarious!

On your other point, however, we don't see eye to eye. I've held my peace for a day and now I'm done.

You may call me, and my friend, Ken Schram, a sore loser. You'd be right. He says it better than I do, though, so here he is.

Originally Posted by Ken Schram

Ken Schram Commentary: Steelers Get Ring, We Get The Finger

February 6, 2006

By Ken Schram


SEATTLE - A few of my colleagues here in the KOMO 4 newsroom have proclaimed that I'm a sore loser.

Not withstanding the fact that they're 'Stealer' fans, they're right.

The way I figure it, Sunday's Super Bowl score should have been 21-14, Seahawks.

That's what it would have been except for the 'Stealers' ' secret weapon: The officials.

I sure hope someone is checking referee Bill Leavy's bank account today.

The way he called the game Sunday, I'm surprised that when it was all over, he didn't run up to the camera to exclaim: "I'M GOING TO DISNEYWORLD, 'CAUSE NOW I OWN IT!"

The Seahawks would have been better off if Stevie Wonder had been given a striped shirt and whistle so that he could call the game, leaving Bill Leavy to sing "My Cherie Amore."

Sour grapes?

You know it.

Sure, mistakes made by the Seahawks kept them from scoring more, but the unbelievably bad calls from Bill Leavy and crew stole away all the points that were needed to win.

The 'Stealers' say they wanted one more win"...for the thumb."

In the process, the Seahawks just got the finger.

So, when those folks I work with call me a sore loser, the only retort I have for them is: Damn Right!

By the way, if you want to make your thoughts known to the NFL, you can write to them at:

National Football League
280 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10017

Want to share your thoughts with Ken Schram? You can e-mail him at kenschram@komo4news.com

Lest you think I'm some *lone* soy-latte-drinking-tree-hugging-yuppie-scum voice in the wilderness, crying about how unfair it all is, consider this eyewitness account:

Originally Posted by Ben Roethlisberger

Roethlisberger told Letterman that he didn't think he scored on a controversial play in the second quarter that put the Steelers ahead for good 7-3. Roethlisberger dove toward the end zone but didn't appear to get the ball to touch the goal line. But officials on the field signaled touchdown.

"I told Coach, 'I don't think I got in,'" Roethlisberger told Letterman. "But we were getting ready to go for it on fourth down anyway, and I would have run it again. So we would have found a way to get in."

A few more...

Super time to foul up, fellas

DETROIT - The officials in Super Bowl XL didn't have as bad a game as the Seahawks did. The officials didn't have as bad a game as Ben Roethlisberger, because no winning quarterback ever had as bad a game as Roethlisberger did, just when everybody had him on a fast track to Canton. You can't say for sure that the zebras won it for Roethlisberger's team or lost it for Seattle.

What you can say is this: The officials still had a bad game. And when they do, and the game is the Super Bowl, everybody lose

Take the Super out of this Super Bowl

...And after further review, we need an explanation for how Hasselbeck was called for a low block when he was making the tackle on Ike Taylor after he threw the destructive interception that ended Seattle's comeback attempt in the fourth quarter. He wasn't blocking Taylor. He was tackling Taylor. That cost the Seahawks 15 precious yards.

Seahawks, NFL weigh in on flurry of Super Bowl flags

DETROIT -- The official assessment from the NFL: "Overall it was a well-officiated game. There's no question about it."

That was the word from Greg Aiello, league spokesman. That doesn't mean it was perfectly officiated. Doesn't mean there weren't mistakes. But the league's official word on the officials the day after the Super Bowl was officially positive.

Now what others were saying Monday was something else entirely. Playing Pittsburgh was going to be tough enough, Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren told the crowd that gathered at Qwest Field.

Refs made it an 'Extra Lame' bowl

...Here's the rub: No intelligent person, and that includes Pittsburgh fans, watched the Steelers 21-10 "victory" and believed it was well-officiated. Period.

And every -- EVERY -- call went against the Seahawks.

Blown calls take away from game

The NFL ought to be embarrassed about some of the mistakes in Super Bowl XL. They weren't just mistakes made in the flow of the game. They were huge, game-changing mistakes.

"We knew it was going to be tough playing against the Steelers," Seattle coach Mike Holmgren told the Associated Press on Monday. "But I didn't know we were going to have to take on the guys in the striped shirts, too."

He won't get fined. The NFL doesn't have the guts to fine him. Bad calls probably cost the Seahawks two touchdowns. Another gave the Steelers one.

These Calls Weren't for the Birds

Controversial officiating in Super Bowl negated many of Seattle's big plays, leaving the Seahawks frustrated and the referees in spotlight. ...
The play came early in the fourth quarter, when the Seahawks were trailing, 14-10. And it came immediately after what quarterback Matt Hasselbeck thought was another missed call on the same snap.

"I thought it was a free play," Hasselbeck said. "I thought they were offsides. That wasn't the case. It was disappointing, very disappointing. It was a four-point game at that point; we really had a chance."
Hasselbeck said that penalty was "absolutely the turning point in the game."

My favorite so far:
Read post #69.

...
Get used to seeing this:

Super Bowl XL: *Pittsburgh Steelers

Not just bad calls against the Seahawks. There were "no-calls" in favor of the Steelers.

What about the play clock at zero and then a time out is granted? Are you kidding me? The reason it stayed at zero is because it doesn't count into negative numbers. Check your TiVo!!!

I thought they were enforcing the no-horse-collar tackle rule this year. But not against the Steelers.

The Seahawks made plenty of their own mistakes. God knows we didn't need any help from the officials.

[BigV]

And I signed this too.

[Rock Steady]

Hey BigV, I like you a lot, buddy, but do you want some cheese with that whine?

"I thought it was a free play" is not a veteran decision. The refs didn't throw it directly to Ike Taylor, "Ain't no Hasselback Girl threw it."

It's great that Ben was honest about what he thought, but he wasn't watching himself. As for replays, an ex-NFL official told me how view angles were so critical, and cameras are usually not aligned with the goal line thus distort the view.

If the WR didn't push off in the end zone, he wouldn't have been able to get to the football to catch it.

The longest run in Super Bowl history is completey the fault of Bouleware, not the refs.

Maybe you're right. The Steelers beat the Colts in spite of the refs favorable treatment of the Colts. Maybe, that's what a cinderella team has to do.