Steelers celebrate with 350,000

Mike Tomlin walked the parade route and safety Troy Polamalu did some body-surfing.

Two days after winning Super Bowl XLIII, the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrated with 350,000 of their hometown fans.

"Steeler Nation, you leave us all speechless, man. We just appreciate the love," said Tomlin, who walked much of the route waving a Terrible Towel. "How about the Steelers? How about the greatest fans in the world? How about number six? Thank you; we love you guys."

The Steelers have now won 2 of the past 4 Super Bowls and 6 all-time, which is the most by any franchise.

"You guys are the best fans in all of sports -- bar none," said quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. "You know what? We got six, so no NFL team can touch us."

Steelers Win Super Bowl XLIII

The Pittsburgh Steelers won Super Bowl XLIII 27-23 and are now the only franchise in NFL history with 6 Super Bowl championships.

The Steelers also won the following Super Bowls:

IX: Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6
X: Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17
XIII: Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31
XIV: Pittsburgh 31, L.A. Rams 19
XL: Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10

Larry Fitzgerald, who had a great game for the Cards, scored on a 64-yard TD to give the Cardinals the lead with less than 3 minutes to go.

But Santonio Holmes, Super Bowl XLIII MVP, one-upped Fitzgerald scoring on a 10-yard TD in the corner of the endzone. Holmes finished the game with 9 receptions, 131 yards and 1 TD.

Super Bowl XLIII Prediction

The Pittsburgh Steelers play the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII tomorrow night. With a win, the Steelers will become the only team in the league to have won 6 Super Bowls.

The Arizona Cardinals have surprised a lot of people including me this post-season. The Cardinals have the best group of pass-catchers in the NFL and Larry Fitzgerald has been unstoppable this post-season.

In fact, Fitzgerald has 100+ yards and a score in all 3 playoff games this year. He's racked 419 yards on 23 receptions and hit paydirt 5 times.

Can the one-dimensional Cards continue their hot streak?

Here are the 3 keys to the game for the Steelers according to the Sporting News:

1. Put the fritz on Fitz. That will be the defense's No. 1 priority -- stopping Larry Fitzgerald --- something they have been able to do with many of the league's top receivers this season. The Steelers have used cornerback Ike Taylor to shadow top receivers because Taylor is tall, fast and athletic. But they also rotate their coverages to use a safety to prevent deep passes.

2. Confuse Warner. It's unlikely the Steelers will use heavy blitz pressure on Warner -- at least, not early -- because of his quick drops and releases. Instead, they will give him a variety of looks, especially with strong safety Troy Polamalu, to get him to force throws into coverage.

3. Put Ben at work. The Steelers success will depend on Roethlisberger, especially if the team has problems running the ball against the Cardinals. He has been making all the big plays and all the big throws in the postseason and has been very comfortable on the big stage.

Despite the Cardinals looking like a completely different team in January than they did in December, I'd put my faith in a top-notch defense over offense any day. The Cardinals' offense was definitely in a groove, but having a bye disrupts an offense more than a defense.

The Steelers are favored by a TD, but I think the game will be close in the first half. And then the Steelers take control in the second.

Final score prediction: Steelers 31, Cardinals 17

Steelers at Titans, 12/21

For all intents and purposes, the Steelers play for the top seed in the playoffs and home-field advantage when they meet the Titans today. The Steeelers are favored on the road against the Titans, who will be without Albert Haynesworth and Kyle Vanden Bosch.

Here are the keys to the game for the Steelers according to the Sporting News:

1. Crash on Smash and Dash. The Steelers' No. 2 rush defense has allowed just two teams to rush for more than 100 yards this season, though Baltimore's Le'Ron McClain had the most yards by an opposing back — 87 on 23 carries — last week. Their goal is to take away Chris Johnson and LenDale White and force Kerry Collins to beat them.

2. Harry Kerry. OLBs James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley did not have a sack against Baltimore, only the third time this season both players were shut out in the same game. One of the reasons is because the Steelers are dropping them more often in coverage, particularly in the first half. Not against Collins, who is not real mobile.

3. Set up the pass. Even though they didn't run for a lot of yards against the Ravens — 91 on 27 carries — the offensive line did a decent job creating seams for Willie Parker against a tough front seven. They will need to do that again to allow Ben Roethlisberger to make plays in the passing game, something he didn't do when necessary against the Ravens.

Prediction: Steelers 14, Titans 12

Steelers at Ravens, 12/14

Today, the Steelers will be in Baltimore to take on the Ravens. The Steelers are 10-3 and the Ravens are 9-4.

Here are the keys to the game for the Steelers according to the Sporting News:

1. Stop the run. The Ravens are one of two teams to rush for more than 100 yards against the Steelers' No. 1 rush defense (the Patriots are the other), and they did it by pounding the ball with Le'Ron McClain. That allowed them to keep pressure off quarterback Joe Flacco, who was playing in his third game at the time.

2. Match the intensity. The first meeting between the teams was the most physical of the season for the Steelers, and it forced coach Mike Tomlin to curtail his practice schedule the following week. The Ravens will try to overwhelm the Steelers, something they always do at home, one reason the Steelers lost their past five games in Baltimore.

3. Confuse Flacco. Defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau tried to do that in the first meeting, but Flacco played. He is much further along now, and will not hesitate to attack downfield, something he didn't do much in September.

Game Prediction: Steelers 14, Ravens 10

Steelers vs Cowboys, 12/7

Today the Steelers host the Dallas Cowboys in a huge matchup with playoff implications. The Steelers have a one-game lead over the Ravens for the division lead and have a one-game lead over the Jets for #2 seed and a first-round bye. The Cowboys, on the other hand, lose the tie-breaker against the Falcons and would currently just miss the playoffs.

Here are the keys to the game for the Steelers according to the Sporting News:

1. Put Romo on alert: The Cowboys will have to pick their poison, deciding if they want to control Harrison from the right side or Woodley from the left. They will need to use an extra back or tight end on Harrison, who uses his speed, strength and low center of gravity to get around every top tackle in the league. He is also very disruptive, forcing two more fumbles on sacks against the Patriots.

2. T.O. stands for Take Out: And that's what the Steelers will try to do with Owens, the Cownboys big-play receiver. The Steelers are the only team in the league to allow just one pass longer than 40 yards, and even that came on a deflected pass. In the past six games, they have done a good job of having CB Ike Taylor shadow the other team's top receiver and rotate their coverages to take away the big play. Owens is just another receiver without the big play.

3. Beware of Ware: QB Ben Roethlisberger has been sacked just twice in the past 10 quarters and has done a good job stepping away from pressure when it has come. Also, the backs did a good job in blitz pickup against the Patriots, something at which they will have to be even better against the Cowboys. It will be up to RT Willie Colon and TE Matt Spaeth to keep Ware away from the pocket. [note: Ware will be a game-time decision.]

Game Prediction: Steelers 28, Cowboys 17

Steelers at Patriots, 11/30

Today, the Steelers, who are 8-3 and a game ahead of the Ravens, take on the Patriots, who are 7-4 and a game behind the Jets. The game has huge importance for both teams.

The Ravens play the Bengals today so they should improve to 8-4. A Steelers loss would put them in a tie. On other hand, a win helps the Steelers keep pace with the Jets for the #2 seed and a potential first-round bye in the playoffs.

Here are the keys to the game for the Steelers according to the Sporting News:

1. Roll Cassel. As he has developed, so has his team's reliance on him to make the offense look as productive as it was last season. Cassel has attempted 94 passes the past two games and thrown for over 400 yards in each, looking a lot like Tom Brady in the process. Shut him down, and the rest of the offense is tame.

2. Boss Moss. The Steelers have done a wonderful job of shutting down just about every top receiver in the league, everyone from Plaxico Burress to Santana Moss to T.J. Houshmandzadeh. And they just don't allow big pass plays. The longest pass against them this season is 65 yards, and that came on a deflection that should have been an interception.

3. Attack deep. The Patriots have had problems applying pressure on the quarterback, although most teams -- aside from the Bengals -- do not seem to have that problem against the Steelers. Roethlisberger should be able to make big plays against a weak Patriots secondary, if he gets the time.

Prediction: Steelers 14, Patriots 13