Super Bowl Preview Part I

You see what I did there? I used the whole Roman Numeral thing, just like the Super Bowl does. How awesome is that? I know what you're thinking. "This guy hasn't posted a blog in AGES! Now that one of his favorite teams is in the Super Bowl, NOW he decides to write a blog?" Well, yeah, that and I've had the writing bug for a while now with no time to give in to it. So, here it goes, back and better than ever, Part I of my Super Bowl Preview. Today, I will look at the offenses and Thursday I will tackle the two MONSTER Defenses that are playing in Big Game XLV.

Aaron Rodgers vs. Ben Roethlisberger

As much as it pains me to say it, Ben Roethlisberger is not a bad quarterback. But, he is also not of the same caliber, passing-wise, as Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers had 28 TD's to Ben's 17. Rodgers out threw Ben by over 700 yards. Rodgers completion percentage was slightly better, but still better. Rodgers did throw 11 interceptions to Ben's 5 but he also threw almost 100 more passes and played in four more games. Rodgers also had a higher QB rating than Ben and did not find his name in the Police Blotter as many times as Roethlisberger. In my opinion, Green Bay has a huge advantage in this department, especially since this game is being played in a dome. Look at what Rodgers did to the Falcons in the playoffs. Those numbers are ridiculous. Both of these guys are the faces of their franchise. Rodgers face is much, much better.

The Running Game

Pittsburgh clearly holds the advantage on the ground. Rashard Mendenhall is a freak of nature and picked up right where Jerome Bettis left off in the "running people over" department. He picked up almost four yards per carry in the regular season, scored 13 touchdowns and racked up over 1,200 yards. On the other side are the Packers and their "Runningback by Committee." Because of injuries and under performances, Green Bay's leading rusher, Brandon Jackson, finished the season with just three rushing touchdowns and just over 700 yards. Your Quarterback should never be your team's second leading rusher (unless said QB is named Michael Vick, then he could be #1) but that is exactly what happened in Green Bay. Pittsburgh will attempt to pound the ball down Green Bay's throat and Green Bay will have to find a way to stop them.

Receivers and Tight Ends

Let's look at the top threats for each team: Greg Jennings of Green Bay and Mike Wallace. These guys are frighteningly similar. They each went over 1,200 yards but Wallace did it in 16 less catches, averaging almost 20 yards per catch. Jennings was slightly lower at just under 17. Jennings had two more touchdowns and is great at going after the deep ball. Wallace likes to catch the short passes and break big runs after the catch. They both have the ability for YAC's but Wallace is slightly better. Overall, I think the Packers hold a slight edge in the Receivers game with Donald Driver, Jordy Nelson and James Jones all contributing in big ways.

When Jermichael Finley went down, it was a big blow to the Packers passing game but the other receivers were able to pick up the slack. Pittsburgh doesn't have to worry about that as Heath Miller was one of Ben's go-to-guys, but mostly outside of the red zone. Miller had just two touchdowns this year, down from six last year. Teams really keyed on him and focused on shutting him down. That combined with Mendenhall's ability to run over people on his way to the end zone made Miller a little less important in the Steelers game plan.

These two offenses are both very talented. In the playoffs, Green Bay has been the Number One offense while Pittsburgh is fifth on the list, behind even the Seahawks in total yards. That's right, a Super Bowl team is lower on the total yards list than a team that lost in the 2nd round. Green Bay has put up 90 points in this playoffs to just 55 by Pittsburgh. The Packers have gained almost 100 yards more per game in this playoffs and I don't see them slowing down any time soon. The offensive edge definitely goes to the Packers.

Check back on Thursday for my look at the two Defenses that will be battling in Super Bowl XLV!