Green: I’ll take the division title
Dec 22, 2009, 5:08 AM | Updated: Jan 14, 2011, 4:24 pm
I wanted to be upset after the Cardinals barely beat the Lions Sunday.
I wanted to bemoan the fact that the defending NFC Champions needed some late game magic to beat a team led by Drew Stanton. I wanted to sit around and worry about a team whose offense is struggling and defense has been vulnerable against the run. But I couldn’t.
No, all I could do is enjoy the fact that the Cardinals won the NFC West – again – and will be hosting a playoff game – again.
Don’t get me wrong, I do wish the Cardinals would have won the division a week ago in San Francisco and, if not, dominated the Lions like a playoff team should. But I just don’t have it in me to be upset after the team won the division in back-to-back years for the first time since 1974-75.
Cardinals fans, sit back and think about it. After all you have been through over the years, isn’t it nice to have a team that you expect to see do well? Too many times we saw them snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, a trademark of past Cardinals teams. As a former season ticket holder who had the “pleasure” of watching “NFL” football in Sun Devil Stadium for many seasons, I can’t even begin to explain how nice it is to talk about the playoff-bound Arizona Cardinals.
Remember how, in the past, December was a month usually reserved for discussing draft positioning, college prospects and wondering if the Cardinals would have a new coach next year, all while playing out the string?
Sure we had one season where the team went to the playoffs and even upset the rival Cowboys, but the offseason saw the team part ways with Larry Centers, Jamier Miller, Lomas Brown and credibility.
This year, instead, we spend our time discussing playoff scenarios, league MVPs and about how the team’s coach deserves a contract extension.
Cardinals fans, we can finally laugh at the memories of “You’ve got a winner in town” and “One heartbeat” because we finally do have a winner in town, and we’re slowly learning what that means and how to handle it.
Because, what we will figure out in time is that winners don’t always win pretty, but they do win. And that’s what matters.
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