Steelers Had Success Against Big-Play WRs, but There's Only One Fitzgerald

I feel confident in writing that if the Cardinals are going to win Super Bowl XLIII it'll be because of Larry Fitzgerald. Nobody is expecting much from Arizona's running game, including, I'd imagine, Edgerrin James.

Arizona's best chance comes in the form of No. 11 who, in three postseason games, has racked up 23 receptions for 419 yards and five touchdowns. But during the Super Bowl edition of ESPN's NFL Matchup show, Sal Paolantonio brought up a point that -- at least to hear Sal explain it -- nobody all week has talked about:

"... The Steelers defense against three big-play wide receivers this year -- T.O., Randy Moss and Plaxico Burress. Combined they had 10 catches for 92 yards. One touchdown by T.O. in Week 14, a 12-yarder. ... If you're going against Larry Fitzgerald and you know those numbers, they've done very well against big-play wide receivers."

Nice factoid, Sal. And that's certainly something I hadn't heard until this morning. It's also worth mentioning that the Steelers were 2-1 against T.O., Burress and Moss. But Tony Romo, Matt Cassel, and even Eli Manning, never came close to playing at Kurt Warner's current level.

Ron Jaworski did add this: "Oh, by the way, the Steelers played Arizona a year ago ... and Larry Fitzgerald caught 10 balls for a 120 yards. ... I'm just saying ... be careful. Larry Fitzgerald is a special receiver."

Merril Hoge followed by saying that he thinks the Steelers will challenge Fitzgerald "at the line of scrimmage, early in the route, during the route, and at the end of the route." Which echoes the sentiments of NFL Films' Greg Cosell.

Ultimately, it'll come down to execution. Or, as Paolantonio so eloquently put it: "There's no defense for the moment of truth." What's that, you say? Hoge translates: "That means when the ball's at its highest point, Larry Fitzgerald's going to win that one."