After giving up 19 unanswered points in the second half of the NFC Championship, turning a 24-6 lead into a 25-24 deficit, the Cardinals stamped their ticket to the Super Bowl with an impressive 14-play drive that consumed 7:52 off the clock and culminated in an eight-yard TD pass from Kurt Warner to Tim Hightower with 2:53 remaining. Warner hit TE Ben Patrick for the two-point conversion, giving the Cardinals a 32-25 lead.

On the drive, the Cardinals rushed nine times and Warner connected on five-of-five passes for 56 yards, including the eight-yard TD pass to Hightower on third down. The Cardinals successfully converted two third down attempts and one fourth down attempt on the drive. After losing the lead, the Cardinals held the ball for 11:34 in the fourth quarter to seal the win.

In leading the Cardinals past the Eagles, Warner becomes only the second quarterback in NFL history to start a Super Bowl game with two separate teams.

Craig Morton is the only other quarteback in NFL history to accomplish the feat, who started for the Cowboys in Super Bowl V and for the Broncos in Super Bowl XII.

Warner led the Saint Louis Rams to the Super Bowl following both the 1999 and 2001 seasons. The Rams defeated the Tennessee Titans 23-16 in Super Bowl XXXIV and lost to the New England Patriots 20-17 in Super Bowl XXXVI.

The Cardinals run to Super Bowl XLIII may have been a surprise and perhaps a shock. But, if you look at Kurt Warner's play and his statistics, you'd know it wasn't a fluke.

In all, Warner has started in 10 career playoff games and has an 8-2 record as a starter.

Warner has passed for at least 365 yards in four postseason games, the most in NFL history.

Warner’s 97.3 career passer rating in the playoffs is now the second-highest rating in history among QBs with at least 150 attempts after his 145.7 QB rating vs. Philadelphia.

The last time Kurt Warner led his team to a Super Bowl victory was following the 1999 season when he threw for an NFL postseason record 1,063 yards in leading the St. Louis Rams through the playoffs and past the Tennessee Titans in Super Bowl XXIV.

Warner has led the Cardinals to their first-ever Super Bowl appearance and when Arizona faces Pittsburgh in Tampa, Warner will make a run at his postseason passing yardage record.

Warner has thrown for 770 yards through the first three playoff games after piling up 271 yards against the Falcons, 220 yards in Carolina and 279 yards against the Eagles. Warner needs 294 yards against the Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII to surpass the NFL record he established during the Rams 1999 playoff run.

With the start against the Eagles, Warner became just the seventh quarterback in NFL history to start a conference championship game for two teams in their career. Warner’s last conference championship game was in 2001 with the Rams.

QBs That Took Two Teams to Conference Title Games

Kurt Warner St. Louis (’99, ’01) Arizona (’08)

Kerry Collins Carolina (’96) NY Giants (’00)

Joe Montana San Francisco (’81, ’83, ’84, ’88, ’89, ’90) Kansas City (’93)

Jay Schroeder Washington (’86) L.A. Raiders (’90)

Doug Williams Tampa Bay (’79) Washington (’87)

Craig Morton Dallas (’70) Denver (’77)

Earl Morrall Baltimore (’68) Miami (’72)

&nsbp;

With the win against the Eagles, Warner returns to the Super Bowl for the first time since Super Bowl XXXVI, a 20-17 loss to New England after the 2001 season. Warner becomes only the third quarterback to start a Super Bowl seven or more years apart.

&nsbp;

John Elway Denver 1989, 1997 8

Kurt Warner St. Louis/Arizona 2001, 2008 7

Craig Morton Dallas/Denver 1970, 1977 7

&nsbp;

When you are a receiver and Kurt Warner is your quarterback, chances are you are going to put up good numbers. Even if you are the second or third target, he has a knack for spreading the ball around. More so than any other quarterback in NFL history in fact. Larry Fitzgerald finished the season with 96 receptions, Anquan Boldin finished with 89 and Steve Breaston had 77. It marked just the fifth time in NFL history that three players on the same team hauled in 75+ receptions in a season and just the second wide receiver trio. Although it has happened just five times in league history, even more impressive is that Warner has now been the quarterback for three of the five teams that had three players with 75+ receptions in a season.

Three Players with 75+ Receptions in a Season

2008* Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald (96), WR Anquan Boldin (89), WR Steve Breaston (77)

2002 Raiders WR Jerry Rice (92), RB Charlie Garner (91), WR Tim Brown (81)

2002* Rams WR Torry Holt (91), RB Marshall Faulk (80), WR Isaac Bruce (79)

2000* Rams WR Isaac Bruce (87), WR Torry Holt (82), RB Marshall Faulk (81)

1989 Redskins WR Art Monk (86), WR Ricky Sanders (80), WR Gary Clark (79)

*Kurt Warner was the QB

Kurt Warner in the Record Books

Career Completion Percentage (min. 1,500 attempts)

66.0 Chad Pennington, 2000-current (2,395-1,580)

65.4 Kurt Warner, 1999-current (3,557-2,327)

64.4 Peyton Manning, 1998- current (5,960-3,839)

64.3 Steve Young, 1985-99 (4,149-2,667)

63.9 Drew Brees, 2001-current (3,650-2,334)

Highest Career Passer Rating

96.8 Steve Young, 1985-99

94.7 Peyton Manning, 1998-current

93.8 Kurt Warner, 1998-current

92.9 Tom Brady, 2000-current

92.3 Joe Montana, 1979-94

Most Passing Yards in a Season

5,084 Dan Marino, Miami, 1984

5,069 Drew Brees, New Orleans, 2008

4,830 Kurt Warner, St. Louis, 2001

Most Completions in a Single Season

2007 Drew Brees 440

2002 Rich Gannon 418

2008 Drew Brees 413

1991 Warren Moon 404

2008 Kurt Warner 401

Most 300-Yard Passing Games in a Season

10 Rich Gannon, Oakland 2002 Drew Brees, New Orleans 2008

9 Dan Marino, Miami 1984 Warren Moon, Houston 1990 Kurt Warner, St. Louis 1999 Kurt Warner, St. Louis 2001

8 Dan Fouts, San Diego 1980 Kurt Warner, St. Louis 2000 Trent Green, Kansas City 2004 Tom Brady, New England 2007

Most 300-Yard Passing Games in a Career

63 Dan Marino, 1983-1999

55 Bret Favre, 1991-current

51 Dan Fouts, 1973-87

49 Warren Moon, 1984-2000

48 Kurt Warner, 1998-current

48 Peyton Manning, 1998-current

Kurt Warner on the satisfaction of accomplishing his goal of going to another Super Bowl

"It’s pretty satisfying. It feels pretty good. I just still was listening to people say we were in the Super Bowl this morning and I was still shaking my head a little bit like ‘man, it really happened’.

To believe that we are at this point and we are making these kinds of strides and this kind of progress is special. It’s very satisfying to be a part of that. That’s the reason I came here. I wanted to get back on the field and play but I wanted to help this organization change the perception that people had of it. I wanted to help change the community and it is a gratifying thing to be a part of that."

Kurt Warner On the importance of being a balanced offense:

"I think that is always a key to keep defenses off balance by changing it up and doing different things is always a key to your success. There’s always games where you can say you are going to run the ball 50 times, you run the ball 50 times and you win or you say you are going throw the ball 50 times, you throw the ball 50 times and you win. But I think the more you can keep the defense off balance, especially great defenses like the one we faced yesterday, like the one we are going to play in a couple of weeks, that is going to be a huge factor, is us being able to keep them off balance. But more importantly being able to be successful at what we do. I think that’s been the key not just calling this number of run plays and this number of pass plays. It’s when we call them we have been successful on both sides, we’ve moved the chains, we’ve put ourselves in favorable positions by doing it and I think that’s going to be the key in the Super Bowl. To be able to do that up against this defense is going to be a huge key to our success."

NFL Playoffs: Kurt Warner Passing Statistics

SUPER BOWL XLIII RELATED

Super Bowl XLIII: Better Than Super
Super Bowl XLIII: Steelers 27 Cardinals 23

The Super Bowl keeps topping itself. Last year, it was Eli Manning escaping a horde of rushers to connect with David Tyree on that unreal "helmet catch." Last Sunday in Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa Bay, it was Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger flinging a pass "I thought was going to be picked," as he described it, to Santonio Holmes, who, straining on his tiptoes, made only the latest "greatest Super Bowl catch ever" to give Pittsburgh a 27-23 victory over Arizona.

Steelers Defeat Cardinals 27-23, Holmes MVP
Super Bowl XLIII: Steelers 27 Cardinals 23

Santonio Holmes extended his arms, kept his feet on the ground and held on to Ben Roethlisberger's perfectly placed pass deep in the right corner of the end zone.

The amazing touchdown catch -- against three Cardinal defenders -- capped an 8-play 78 yard drive with 35 seconds remaining.

Thus, giving the Pittsburgh Steelers a 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII.

Steelers Set for Super Bowl Showdown
Super Bowl XLIII: Steelers Practice Report - January 31, 2009

Summing up the week, Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin said: "It's been good. Ultimately, though, it will be judged by how we perform tomorrow. We understand that."

Loose & Relaxed Steelers Ready to Play
Super Bowl XLIII: Steelers Practice Report - January 30. 2009

The Pittsburgh Steelers, appearing loose and relaxed for the third straight day, hustled through their final major practice prior to Super Bowl XLIII Friday, and coach Mike Tomlin said his team was completely healthy heading into Super Bowl XLIII against the Arizona Cardinals.

Cards QB Kurt Warner Looks Sharp in Final Major Practice
Super Bowl XLIII: Cardinals Practice Report - January 30. 2009

Starting quarterback Kurt Warner may have had his best throwing day of the week on Friday, misfiring on only three passes during the two hour and 20-minute practice. "Kurt looked like he's been looking," Whisenhunt said. "He was consistent and made some good throws. He looked sharp."

Cardinals Anquan Boldin Looking Good

Wide receiver Anquan Boldin participated fully and showed no effects of a hamstring injury that caused him to miss the Divisional Playoff game against Carolina. "He looked good today and he also looked good late last week," Whisenhunt said of Boldin. "We took a little easier on him early last week just to be safe."

Steelers Hines Ward Not 100% But Ready to Go

Other than Ward, the 32-year old inspirational lead of the Pittsburgh offense, the Steelers have no health issues on either side of the ball, Tomlin said. But the coach was dismissive when asked if he was concerned about Ward's status for Sunday's game. "Hines is playing," Tomlin said. "I'm not worried about him."

Cards Focus on Steelers' Big 3-D

For the two major practices in Tampa, the Cardinals have had scout defensive players wear the jersey numbers for Pittsburgh's Big 3-D, linebackers James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley and safety Troy Polamalu. "It helps our receivers and Kurt (Warner) in order to identify defenses," Whisenhunt said of the common practice method.

Big Ben's Health Often Subject of Inaccurate Reports

Big Ben's Health Often Subject of Inaccurate Reports Steelers Coach Mike Tomlin denied a Profootballtalk.com report that Roethlisberger has undergone X-rays on his back this week. "Not that I heard," said Tomlin, who then asked Steelers spokesman Dave Lockett if he knew of any X-rays on Roethlisberger. Lockett said no. Then Tomlin said: "Ben's health is often the subject of inaccurate reports. He's fine."

Larry Fitzgerald, Simply Amazing
Super Bowl XLIII: Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald

Albeit lofty regular season numbers, the Cardinals have proved during the playoffs that their receivers are more than legit. In particular, Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald who has been simply amazing as his 419 receiving yards set a new record and an inspiring performance against the Eagles in the NFC Championship.

Steelers Game-By-Game Playoff Statistics

Cardinals Game-By-Game Playoff Statistics

Steelers Defeat Ravens 23-14, Advance to Super Bowl XLIII

The Pittsburgh Steelers advanced to their 7th Super Bowl appearance overall and second in four seasons by defeating the Baltimore Ravens 23-14 in the AFC Championship Game at Heinz Field.

NFL 2008 Playoffs: NFL Has 'Mad' Final Four of Its Own

The NFL is down to its final four as the Eagles take on the Cardinals for the NFC Championship and the Ravens take on the Steelers for the AFC Championship.

Before the NFL Playoffs started, many may have predicted the Steelers as an AFC Championship participant, some may have specifically picked one of three other teams, but few, if any, would have chosen this ensemble of teams to be one step away from Super Bowl XLIII.

Eagles at Cardinals Statistics & Game Notes

NFC Divisional: Cardinals 33 Panthers 13

2008 NFL Playoffs "Rematch" Weekend
NFL Playoffs Divisional Weekend: Round 2 In More Ways Than One

All four games this weekend -- Ravens vs Titans, Cards vs Panthers, Eagles vs Giants, Chargers vs. Steelers -- are rematches from the regular season. Add up the point differential in the 2008 regular-season meetings of the teams playing in this weekend's four NFL Divisional Playoffs, and you get the grand total of -- 19 points.

And that's not in four games, but five, because one of this week's matchups is a division rematch.

Think the games in "Rematch Weekend" this Saturday and Sunday could be close? Could be!

Arizona Cardinals (10-7) at Carolina Panthers (12-4)
Saturday, FOX, 8:15 PM ET

Given the choice, the Cardinals would rather throw the ball. However, in last week's 30-24 Wild Card win over the Falcons it was their defense and running attack which advanced the Cardinals to the next round. The Panthers love running the ball, but Panthers QB Jake Delhomme was 20-of-28 for 248 yards, 2 TDs with 0 INTs for a 122.3 QB rating against the Cards in the regular season. How will it all play out, especially in Carolina where the Panthers are undefeated this season?

Pass-Happy Cards Win with Defense & Running Game
Arizona Cardinals 30, Atlanta Falcons 24

The Cardinals defense was sensational, limiting Michael Turner to 42 rushing yards, harassing Matt Ryan and scoring points on its own with a TD and safety. The offense was also strong as Edgerrin James led a revitalized Cardinals ground game while Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald made big plays in the passing game.