Cinderella Stories

Everyone loves Cinderella stories. Each one is miraculous, phenomenal, and wondrous. The Arizona Cardinals are the latest Cinderella story. However, recent Cinderella stories have not ended on a positive note.

The Tampa Bay Rays, last place in 2007, went to the World Series in 2008. An astonishing occurrence that no one saw coming. But the Rays could not finish it off; they lost the World Series to the Philadelphia Phillies in 5 games.

The Davidson Wildcats, led by Stephen Curry, reached the Elite 8 in the 2008 NCAA Basketball tournament. 10th seeded Davidson emerged past Gonzaga, Georgetown, and Wisconsin to advance, but they could not move on to the Final 4. The Kansas Jayhawks defeated the Cinderella team by 2 points and moved on to win the National Title.

The Colorado Rockies won 14 of their final 15 regular season games in 2007, including a tiebreaker to advance to the playoffs. The Rockies swept the Phillies and Diamondbacks, stretching their streak to 21 out of 22. The Rockies could not complete the dream as they were swept in the World Series by the Boston Red Sox.

The George Mason Patriots, an 11th seed, made it to the Final 4 in the 2006 NCAA tournament. George Mason beat Michigan State, North Carolina, Wichita State, and Connecticut to advance, only to lose to the Florida Gators in the semifinals.

Those 4 examples do not help any Cinderella team. But, those 4 stories happened in baseball and college basketball only. There is a sport that is “immune” to Cinderella failure. That sport…is football.

The 1968 Jets, the 1999 Rams, the 2001 Patriots, and the 2007 Giants were all Cinderella teams. They all overcame adversity to win the Super Bowl.

No one gave the Jets much of a chance as they were 19-point underdogs entering Super Bowl III. But Joe Namath’s guarantee created much buzz about the game. Jim Turner’s 3 field goals and Matt Snell’s touchdown run ended the Cinderella story with the Jets emerging victorious, 16-7.

The St. Louis Rams came into the regular season with lost hope; they lost starting quarterback Trent Green in a preseason game. Kurt Warner took his job and performed remarkably. He and the Rams went 13-3 in the regular season and made it to the Super Bowl. The Rams won Super Bowl XXXIV over the Titans 23-16 and surprised the world.

After Mo Lewis knocked out Drew Bledsoe in a week 2 game, Tom Brady stepped in for the New England Patriots. Brady shocked the globe and led the Patriots to an 11-5 record and an appearance at Super Bowl XXXVI. Adam Vinatieri’s game-winning field goal put the Pats on top 20-17.

The New York Giants, a #5 seed in the playoffs, struggled at the end of the regular season, but still made the playoffs. After being underdogs to the Buccaneers, Cowboys, and Packers, the Giants stunned everyone and made it to the Super Bowl. When they faced the undefeated Patriots, the media thought the Giants stood no shot. But, Eli Manning and the Giants left Bill Belichick’s Patriots dumbfounded as they upset the previously 18-0 Pats 17-14.

Nowadays, Cinderella stories in sports are not uncommon. For the Arizona Cardinals, their Cinderella story may work in their favor.