Coward and the Terrible

The final pivotal moment of last week's NFL Conference Championships occurred in the fourth quarter of the New England-Pittsburgh game. Pittsburgh was down 14 points with 13 minutes remaining, facing a fourth-and-goal at the Patriot three-yard line. Most everyone was expecting the Steelers to go for the touchdown in that situation, especially in the closing period with the chance of cutting their deficit to only seven points.

But to the relief of all New England bettors and fans, Pittsburgh head coach Bill Coward instead decided to kick a field goal, leaving his team still down two scores. Although some might argue that his was the correct decision, he certainly ruined the Steelers' momentum and sapped some life out of the home crowd.

Had Pittsburgh not scored, he could have relied on his No. 1 defense and rabid crowd to help keep the Pats pinned deep in their own territory. After Pitt's field goal, New England returned the ensuing kickoff all the way to the 48-yard line, putting his decision further into question. Three Ben Roethlisberger interceptions, a first quarter fourth down failure and an unimaginative offense also contributed to the 41-27 loss.

So now it will be New England taking on Philadelphia in Super Bowl XXXIX in Jacksonville on Feb. 6. This match-up is surely very interesting when one considers the teams' sharp contrast in styles. New England is humble, workmanlike and professional on the field, while Philadelphia players celebrate and strike a pose after almost every play.

Plenty of Super Bowl proposition bets will be available, but currently the big question is whether or not obnoxious Philly receiver Terrible Owens will play in the title game. Although the doctor who performed Owens' ankle surgery will not clear him to play, Owens insists he will be on the field, stating that "God is healing me."

Owens should note that the God who is healing him is the same God who has already punished and crippled him. It is the same god who could cause further damage to his injury, or possibly break his other leg. Owens should be careful what he wishes for and should stay out of that game.

The only interesting event between now and Feb. 6 is media day. One can really get a feel for the mindsets of the teams by listening to the ways they respond to questions. Everyone already knows New England will be well-schooled and careful not to give Philly any bulletin board material. It will be important to see if the brash and inexperienced Eagles blurt out predictions, or sound just happy to be in the Super Bowl.

There are no proposition bets attached to media day, but there certainly could be some. For instance, there could be an over/under as to how many times Philly's Donovan McNabb will be asked about star radio personality Rush Limbaugh, who questioned the quarterback's talents on an ill-fated experiment of ESPN's TV show NFL Countdown. Or people could bet on something like what happened to Washington's Doug Williams years ago, such as whether or not someone will ask McNabb, "How long have you been a black quarterback?" The strong guess here is that no one in the media will repeat that stupid question. One thing for sure is that most everyone is happy that Jeff Thomason, instead of motormouth Shannon Sharpe, has been asked to replace injured Eagle tight end Chad Lewis, because otherwise we would never hear the end of it.

As far as a prediction for the Super Bowl is concerned, that will have to wait until next week, but anyone who follows this column already knows what it will be.

Joe Ellison is the Nevada Appeal Betting Columnist. Contact him at editor@nevadaappeal.com.