The 2011 Super Bowl features the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers. This NFL classic, Super Bowl XLV, will be played in Cowboys Stadium, Arlington Texas on Sunday, February 6, 2011. Kickoff is set for 6:25 pm est.  Here are some interesting facts about the 2011 Super Bowl XLV matchup.

Fox Sports will televise the 2011 Super Bowl with a broadcast team that includes Joe Buck (play-by-play), Troy Aikman (color analyst), Mike Pereira (instant replay review), Pam Oliver (sideline reporter) and Chris Myers (sideline reporter).

The Green Bay Packers are 2 ½ point favorite over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Over/Under is currently 45 ½.

This will be the 8th Super Bowl appearance for the AFC Champion Steelers. They hold the NFL record of Super Bowl wins with 6. The game also marks the 5th Super Bowl appearance for the NFC champion Packers. Green Bay holds 12 NFL titles, 3 Super Bowl wins and 9 NFL league titles prior to the Super Bow-era.

The Steelers and Packers did not play each other during the regular season. The last matchup between the two teams was on 12/20/09 in Pittsburgh’s Heinz field. The Steelers won 37-36. The game was decided on a Ben Roethlisberger touchdown pass to receiver Mike Wallace as time expired.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS FACTS
The Steelers finished the regular season with a 12-4 record.
They got to the Super Bowl with a first round bye in the AFC playoffs, defeated the Baltimore Ravens 31-24 in the AFC Division championship and then beat the New York Jets 24-19 in the AFC Championship game.
This is their 3rd Super Bowl appearance with Roethlisberger as the team’s starting QB.

The Steelers offense is lead by QB Ben Roethlisberger (3200 yards, 17 TDs, 5 INTs, 176 yards rushing, 2 rushing TDs, 97 passing rating).

The Steelers top receiver is Mike Wallace (60 receptions, 1257 yards, 10 TDs, 21 yards per reception average). Other receivers include Hines Ward (59 receptions, 755 yards, 5 tds) and Heath Miller (42 receptions, 512 yards).

Rashard Mendenhall is their leading rusher (1273 yards, 13 tds, 23 receptions).

The Steelers defense lead the NFL in sacks (48), fewest points (14.5) and rushing yards (62.8) allowed per game, while ranking second in fewest total yards (276.8).

Defensive standouts include tackle Brett Keisel, safety Troy Polamalu (7 ints, returning one for a TD) and linebackers LaMarr Woodley (10 sacks, 3 forced fumbles), James Harrison (10 sacks, 6 forced fumbles) and James Farrior (6 sacks, 109 tackles).

Coach Mike Tomlin, already the youngest coach to ever win a Super Bowl, became the youngest coach ever to make it to the Super Bowl twice (age 38).

GREEN BAY PACKERS FACTS
The Green Bay Packers finished the season with a 10–6 record. To get the Super Bowl they beat the Philadelphia Eagles 21-16 in the first round of the NFC playoffs, next they beat the Atlanta Falcons 48-21 and then beat the Chicago Bears in the NFC Championship game 21-14. They are the first 6th seed to reach the Super Bowl and only the second team (2005 Steelers) to defeat the top 3 seeds on the road in the playoffs.

The Packers offense is led by QB Aaron Rodgers (3912 yards, 28 TDs, 10 INTs, 356 yards rushing, 4 rushing TDs, 101.2 passing rating).

Top receivers include Greg Jennings (76 receptions, 1265 yards, 12 TDs, 16.6 yards per catch average). Other targets included receivers James Jones (50 receptions, 676 yards, 5 TDs), Donald Driver (51 receptions, 565 yards, 4 TDs), and Jordy Nelson (45 receptions, 582 yards, 496 kick return yards).

The Packers ground game suffered because of injuries, especially to Ryan Grant, who had rushed for over 1,200 yards in each of the last two years. The team relied on prominently on Brandon Jackson (703 yards rushing, 43 pass receptions for 342 yards), and fan favorite, fullback John Kuhn (281 yards on the ground).

The Packers defensive ranked second in the league in fewest points allowed per game (15). Defensive stalwarts include Cullen Jenkins (7 sacks), tackle B.J. Raji (6.5 sacks), and linebackers Clay Matthews (13.5 sacks) and A.J. Hawk (111 tackles, 3 INTs).

The Packer secondary was led by Tramon Williams (6 INTs and 326 punt return yards), Nick Collins (4 INTs, 70 tackles) and Charles Woodson (2 INTs, 92 tackles, 5 forced fumbles).

THE NFL THIS WEEK Super Bowl XLV prediction

PACKERS 24 STEELERS 21

The Super Bowl is less than a week away and I bet you just can’t wait. Super Bowl Sunday has got to be the biggest gambling day in America. It’s the one day where even the super religious might take a chance in a Super Bowl pool.

Super Bowl gambling has become so big that you can bet on almost anything related to the Super Bowl. Besides betting who the winner will be, you can bet on an assortment of team or individual performances. You can bet who will be the MVP, who will be the first to score and even bet the over/under on the offensive production of both team’s stars.

Then the bets get weirder. Did you know that you can bet on what color will the Gatorade dumped on the winning head coach be?

• Yellow is the favorite at even money
• Green +250
• Orange +500
• Red +1500
• Blue +1200

Maybe you want to bet an over/under on how many times:

• Archie Manning will be shown on TV. The over/under is 4.5
• Kim Kardasian will be shown on TV: over/under = 2.5
• Hurricane Katrina will be mentioned: over/under = 3

How about some other Law and Order related bets, like:

• How many current NFL players will be arrested during Super Bowl week?
• None = minus 170 (meaning the odds of at least one is 37%) OR

Will a player give the crowd the “middle finger”?

• Yes = 8 to 1 against

But what if you’re not a football fan, or even a sports fan. Let’s say you’re a music fan. Well don’t worry, there’s something here for you too!

You can bet whether:

• The Who will smash a guitar on stage during the halftime show? No = -180 (meaning the chance is 35%) OR
• how many times will Pete Townshend do his famous windmill move? Over/Under = 6

So is Super Bowl Sunday for everyone? You better, you better, you bet!

The complete list of Super Bowls bets

sources: usatoday.com, pregame.com

The Pro Bowl has become NFL biggest joke. And the 2010 Pro Bowl was perhaps the biggest Pro Bowl joke of all. It was obvious that nobody cared - not the players, not the fans and not even the television networks.

There were some changes to this year’s edition of the Pro Bowl. The venue was changed from Hawaii to Florida and the date was moved to one week before the Super Bowl. But that shouldn’t have an effect on the integrity of this supposed NFL Player Showcase.

Another reason it has become such a joke is that many NFL players don’t take the game seriously. More than a dozen Pro Bowlers opted out of the 2010 Pro Bowl contest. Player interest was so bad that one NFC Pro Bowl selectee was actually dismissed from the team for excessive absenteeism.

There was a time when it was considered an honor just to be nominated for a Pro Bowl spot. Once upon a time, players considered making the Pro Bowl an accomplishment, a medal of honor. It meant they had come of age in one of the most popular sports - but not anymore!

Yes it is true that the NFL shares the same All Star selection concerns with Baseball and Football. The fans make the All Star selections but it has become more of a popularity contest than anything else? But that shouldn’t matter one bit!

There is no denying that with the loss of the players from the two best teams (Colts and Saints) and the addition of Pro Bowl alternates, the talent level is watered down. Maybe the NFL made a mistake in moving the venue and date of the game because it has certainly had its affect.

But the biggest joke of all is the level of intensity in the game itself. The Pro Bowl has become more like an NBA All Star Game, where the defense stands around watching the offense score. It has become a travesty and disrespectful to everyone who loves football. It has gone from a competition to an exhibition.

Is it time to end this joke of a game? Should the game go back to Hawaii and be played after the Super Bowl? This may be one issue that even NFL commissioner Roger Goodell can’t solve.