What most fans don’t realize is there is always a Super Bowl logo. Ever since Super Bowl XXXII they have been displayed on the jerseys. However there has always been logos for each team. Each one had a flair befitting each city and what artistic interpretation the committee has selected. What has happened to that originality?? Just the Super Bowl trophy and roman numerals since XLV between Green Bay and Pittsburgh. How boring is that??
Here are some of the previous logos: 
Super Bowl XLVIII
Super Sunday is going to be a little warmer than we thought. It’s projected to be in the 40s at kickoff and we should have full dimensional football. Has there been a Super Bowl in the last 10 years that had this much anticipation before the game??One way or the other we will have history made tomorrow night. If Denver wins, Peyton Manning will the first quarterback in 54 years to win championships with two teams. If Seattle wins, his defense will go down as one of the all time great units and the first to do so because of their back 7.
Along with Percy Harvin, Moreno is an X factor. Even more so, he is the key to a Denver win.
The key to the marquee match-up between Denver’s offense and Seattle’s defense is Knowshon Moreno. If he can get yardage from the outset, it will allow Manning to throw when he wants to. Not when he has to. The Broncos let it get out they may not sign him as a free agent. He may use this game as a showcase of his skill and give the Seahawks fits. Remember he is from New Jersey so watch how emotional he’ll start this game.
Marshawn Lynch is the key to Seattle winning this game.
Marshawn Lynch needs to keep his string of 100 yard games going in this one. Or at least he has to keep his number of rushing attempts up. The Seahawks have to have balance to keep their offense going. Their receiving corps can get open when Champ Bailey and Dominique Rogers Cromartie have to worry about the run. These guys sneak open and Percy Harvin gets to return kicks and get open. In big games your weaknesses are exposed and no Von Miller will show up today. A mush rush will not get to Russell Wilson. His quickness will get him outside where he can run and throw. Denver needs to blitz Wilson and force him to stay in the pocket and throw against their pedestrian secondary. They have to take that risk.
Now here comes the #1 defense and if they win tonight, one that goes down in history. Not because they’re Super Bowl champions. Because they are one of the fastest and intimidating defenses dating back to the 1985 Chicago Bears & 2000 Baltimore Ravens. They aren’t ranked #1 overall because they are good in certain aspects of the game. Seattle is #1 in four defensive categories. Tops in total yards, opponents passing yards, total points given up, and total turnovers at 39. No team has done that since the 1985 Bears.
Now lets add in the fact they led the NFL in interceptions as well at 28 and what are the factors?? For one, take a look at the size of this secondary. Taylor Blitz Times Defensive Player of the Year Richard Sherman stands 6’3, Cam Chancellor is 6’3 232 lbs, and the best FS in Earl Thomas, and Byron Maxwell is 6’3 and 200 lbs at the corner makes them more physical than other secondaries. Head Coach Pete Carroll is a former defensive backfield coach and these guys are just that….well coached and fundamentally sound.
The Legion of Boom will go down in history as the best defense of the new millenium.
They muscle receivers at the line of scrimmage. Keep this in mind because of Manning’s 55 touchdowns 41 were from 10 yards or less. They key is to disrupt the short timing of Denver’s offense because they can’t and don’t get deep. Keep in mind the top side of this defense is the 3 Defensive End alignment they throw at opponents.
On the left side of the formation they put free agent signees Michael Bennett #72 and Cliff Avril #56 to rush the face of the passer. They use this to make the quarterback pull the ball down as the corners are pressuring receivers. Why can’t the opponent slide the line from an offensive standpoint?? End Chris Clemons, who missed last year’s playoff loss to Atlanta, is on the other side. These three combined for 22 sacks and 11 forced fumbles. Then throw in spy and delayed blitzer Bruce Irvin #51, and the Broncos haven’t seen a defense this solid, physical, and fast all year.
Peyton Manning has to best the #1 defense to get his second championship with a second team.
Peyton Manning is on the verge of history and needs one more game to solidify his legacy. Last night he was named MVP after his record setting season. So what gives when it’s time to pick the winner of Super Bowl XLVIII.
Defense wins championships doesn’t it?? When was the last time a #1 defense has lost a Super Bowl?? None we can remember. In the six times Super Bowl opponents met in the pre-season, the winner of that game is 5-1 in the big game. Of the five times the #1 ranked defense in points allowed played the #1 scoring offense, the defense has won 4 of 5 times.
For the last three years The Chancellor of Football has asked when are we going to have the marquee defensive performance that will leap up and beat the hell out of these passing teams. I think back to the ’91 Eagles beating Houston. https://taylorblitztimes.com/2011/06/10/death-becomes-of-the-run-shoot-on-a-monday-night/ We saw this in Super Bowl XXV and XXVI against our CEO’s Buffalo Bills, and the 2007 Patriots. Defenses normally aren’t out of sync but offenses can be. History has shown us this. Remember the highest scoring teams in NFL history are 0-7 in bringing home a championship. Watch for Nickel Back Walter Thurmond III #28 to make a name for himself shadowing Wes Welker. The Seahawks win tonight 34-23
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One of the pet peeves of our CEO is a rush to sensationalize things by traditional media. One of the reasons to pull for the Seattle Seahawks is Fullback Derrick Coleman who is legally deaf. He is the subject of a touching Duracell commercial focusing on what he’s had to overcome to be an NFL player. Yet erroneously, it was reported on several outlets he is the first deaf player in NFL history.
Not so fast… Do you know who Kenny Walker is?
Kenny Walker played two years for the Denver Broncos.
Well a little research you would have come across this defensive tackle that played for the Denver Broncos in 1991 and 1992. He was an 8th round draft pick and former All American for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. He actually needed to have his instructions on the sideline signed to him. The coach would talk and next to him was the interpreter signing away his in game adjustments.
Walker didn’t play in a Super Bowl but he did help the Broncos to the 1991 AFC Championship Game. In his rookie year as a reserve lineman, he recorded 3 sacks and was part of the defensive rotation.
Derrick Coleman
Make no mistake about it, we’re cheering for Derrick Coleman in life and Super Bowl XLVIII. Hopefully somewhere Kenny Walker is smiling and even though he played for Denver, a part of him has to be pulling privately for Coleman to do well.
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Think back to 1986 when Bo Jackson decided to play baseball instead of report to the Tampa Bay Buccaneer organization. What could he have accomplished had he donned that uniform?? Would he have become one of the all time rushers and turned around a moribund franchise?? Or would he spend the bulk of his career playing in relative obscurity as Corey Dillon did in his?? It’s still interesting to think about when we think of the career of Jackson.
Most observers hold on to the what if scenarios over what other players actually performed on the field. The Chancellor doesn’t but what can’t be underscored was the impact he had when the Raiders decided to pick up his rights in the 1987 NFL draft. Yet they had to wait until he finished off his MLB season first.
The 1987 LA Raiders were an aging fading team in need of a spark. They were light years away from the ’83 group that won Super Bowl XVIII and were in the midst of a 7 game losing streak when they traveled to Seattle on a Monday night. Although it wasn’t a scintillating match-up, this was the first chance for a nation to catch the former Heisman winner playing his “hobby”.
The problem was we were left without knowing the best Bo could have been. He could have broken records or he could have just been a good pro. The player that he reminds me of most is Herschel Walker. Another former Heisman winner with a super man type body. Most straight line power runners wear down against modern defenses. There are some exceptions and Bo could have been one of them. Make no mistake about it he had the potential to be one of the biggest stars in NFL history. Yet we didn’t get the chance to see it and that’s the problem. We’re stuck in a gray twilight of what he could have been.
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Someone somewhere coined the axiom “Big time players make big plays in big games.” No defensive play this year was bigger than the pass defensed by Richard Sherman that turned into the game ending interception to win the NFC Championship. It would have been easy to catch Sherman flat footed having played a majority of the game being avoided.
TBT Defensive Player of the Year: Richard Sherman
If you make the biggest play in the history of your team to send them to the Super Bowl, you have done something. How many times do we see a player dominate in the regular season only to disappear in the playoffs?? Yet Sherman was front and center as one of the lead players on the #1 defense in football.
One pass defense could have altered the legacies of both teams.
In the most pivotal game of the season, Sherman provided the key play. Not the NFC Championship, but week 4 when the consensus was Seattle couldn’t win on the road. It was the 4th quarter when the Seahawks were losing in Houston 20-13. At the time the Texans were thought of as a Super Bowl team and on their way to a win. With just 2:51 left Sherman jumped a Matt Schaub pass and returned it 58 yards for the tying touchdown. Seattle eventually won 23-20 in overtime. The resultant confidence led the Seahawks to a 6-2 road record and NFC best 13-3 record. While the Texans didn’t win another game the rest of the season. Talk about a turning point.
The big interception against Houston.
In 2013, Sherman talked the talk while leading the NFL with 8 interceptions, returning them for 158 yards and that significant touchdown. He also was 7th on the team in tackles with 48, defensed 17 passes and recovered 2 fumbles. The Seahawks assign him to their opponents best receiver and he answered the bell every week.
In the pivotal moment of the NFC Championship we saw a transcendent play. For an instant Colin Kaepernick thought he had Crabtree breaking free and let fly. From a fundamental standpoint he stayed inside Michael Crabtree, using the sideline as his friend, then reacted to make the play of the season.
Honorable Mention:
Navorro Bowman pictured in last year’s Super Bowl.
Navorro Bowman ILB – San Francisco 49ers: We were just a couple plays away from back to back Taylor Blitz Times Defensive Player Awards for Navorro Bowman. If Richard Sherman doesn’t turn in that play to win the NFC Championhip how does he not win it again?? As we made it to the second half of the season, many pundits were pitching the case for Luke Kuechly. However truth be told he didn’t turn anywhere near the season Bowman did out in San Francisco.
On top of that, was there a bigger defensive play than the interception return for a touchdown to put San Francisco into the playoffs?? Monday night against the Falcons his 89 yard pick six takes place with 1:31 to go when the 49ers needed a play. This play and his final play are the essence of the man. He stops Kearse in the 4th quarter of the NFC Championship at the two yard line. The tackle wasn’t enough, he forces and recovers a fumble although he injures himself in the process. It’s that spirit that makes him the best linebacker in the NFL. One we wish a speedy recovery from the knee injury suffered against Seattle.
Burfict has been the playmaker on Cincinnati’s top ranked defense.
Vontaze Burfict ILB – Cincinnati Bengals: Another blood thirsty linebacker who turned in one stellar season was this former Arizona St. Sun Devil. He recorded an astounding 50 more tackles than his breakout rookie season with 177 total tackles. Add to that his 3 sacks, 8 passes defensed, an interception, 1 forced fumble to accompany 2 fumble recoveries with one returned for a touchdown.
He was the trigger man on the NFL’s third best defense and has a great future ahead of him. We just need to see if he’ll be featured in the new defensive coodinator’s scheme now that Mike Zimmer is the head man in Minnesota.
These were the defenders that made the season for Taylor Blitz Times.
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Well here we are again for the third time during the 2013 season, this time with a trip to Super Bowl XLVIII at stake. We named the first battle Ali v. Frazier I in week 2 of the regular season and now it’s time to get ready for The Rumble in The Jungle or Ali v Frazier III
The game NFL fans have anticipated since last year’s NFC Divisional Round of the playoffs.
A gem of a defensive battle looms in the Pacific Northwest between two teams whose coaches hate one another from back in their college days a few years back. This game will boil down to the defense that forces the first turnover.
The George Halas Trophy.
Although the Seahawks aren’t asking much from Russell Wilson, he has to play better than he did against New Orleans. He will have to make a few plays on the go while they establish the running game. The exact same thing holds true with Colin Kaepernick.
The one wild card is Anquan Boldin. He is the one player the 49ers have that can change the game. He looks to make plays when the team needs him most. Yet he has to make the most of his opportunities. There won’t be many against Seattle’s secondary.
Seattle has been our pick to win the Super Bowl since last January and nothing has changed. This is one of the finest defenses in modern football history which will take them to the Super Bowl if the offense doesn’t turn the football over. For the 49ers to win they have to force turnovers early and take the crowd out of it. However the Seahawks will run the football and play a tight game and allow the defense to play on a long field.
In the end….we have to stay the course with Seattle in a 26-16 win tonight.
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