Meet Fredy Gutierrez, an Arizona Cardinals fan who is poor of pocketbook but really wanted to see his beloved Cardinals play the Eagles. So in steps radio station 620 KTAR of Phoenix to help him out. The station provides tickets for Gutierrez and his nine-year-old son, Marcus, and all is well. Oh, there's one condition: He has to get the station's call letters tattooed on his ass.

"The only thing I can say is that I hope that my son enjoys it," Gutierrez said about the game.

You remember KTAR, home of the "Gambo & Ash" show. These are the guys who got into it with Charles Barkley in June of last year, with somewhat amusing results. Barkley's quote:

"The thing you have to understand about Phoenix is it's like a Jim Jones cult. They have a lot of jackass reporters there."

And fans as well. Gutierrez must live the remainder of his life with advertising on his ass; the poor sap doesn't even get a Cardinal or a power tool implement to remind him of his team's victory. Sad, really.

Guess That Ass Tattoo Was Worth It [Larry Brown Sports]
He Did What? [KTAR.com]

From Mike Silver's blog at Yahoo Sports:

What was going through the mind of the misguided juveniles who used gasoline to desecrate the front lawn of the house in Chandler, Ariz., where McNabb and his wife, Roxie, live with their children over the offseason. According to a friend of Mrs. McNabb’s, “Go Cards” and other similar messages were burned into the front lawn one night last week. This had to be especially scary to the couple’s four-year-old daughter, Alexis, who was staying in the house with Roxie and the couple’s six-week-old twins. Apparently one of the culprits was identified after leaving a box at the scene with a mailing label affixed bearing his name and address, so we’re obviously not talking about criminal masterminds here. But it’s tough to imagine that anyone over the age of eight doesn’t understand that burning something on the lawn of a house occupied by African-Americans carries deeper social overtones that are highly disturbing. I’m told Donovan took a photo of the damaged lawn and used it as a motivating force for Sunday’s game. I hope it’s the last time he or any other professional athlete ever has that opportunity.

Two Things I Can't Comprehend [Yahoo Sports]

Boldin was off the field before anyone following the Cardinals victory over the Eagles that put them in the Super Bowl, and was also tje first one out the back door. But not before he talked to the San Francisco Chronicle:

Wearing a lime-green shirt, Boldin tried to bolt for the stadium exit before a small group of media caught him. Someone asked if reaching the Super Bowl eases what has happened between him and the franchise. "That's not an issue," Boldin said. "Like I told you guys at the beginning of the season, my main goal was to do this. I've come through with all of my promises. I fought. I gave my heart to this organization. It's paying off." Does he want to stay in Arizona? "Next question."

A sight even stranger than Arizona threatening to win an NFC Championship game was Boldin sulking during the final four minutes, when the Cardinals were making their do-or-die drive. Arizona was using only one receiver on the possession, and Boldin wasn't in the game. He was not amused.

At one point he began arguing with offensive coordinator Todd Haley, and a teammate had to step between them. Boldin hasn't been happy this year with the Cardinals, and reportedly asked to be traded in August< he claims that he and head coach Ken Whisenhunt aren't on speaking terms. And it didn't take long for the Giants to notice the situation and begin drooling over Boldin, naturally. I see no way Boldin's attitude would hurt their team chemistry.

Boldin has three years left on the four-year, $22.75 million extension he signed after the 2005 season. He's making an average of $4 million a year.

Boldin Bolis; Hear That, Giants? [New York Post]
Angry Boldin Doesn't Celebrate With Cardinals [NBCSports]
Anquan Boldin Is A Jackass [CBSSports]
Boldin Bolts While Cardinals Celebrate [San Francisco Chronicle]

There's something very disquieting about brandishing Denny Green quotage as Arizona is about to go to the Super Bowl. No doubt on the flip side of the sign this guy has a witty Dave McGinnis quote.

Congratulations to the Cardinals; nobody thought you could pull this off. Despite what Kurt Warner said after the game, even Jesus had a hundred bucks on the Eagles. I know because I'm subscribed to his Twitter feed.

• Fast Times At Mt. Carmel High. Now on sale, copies of Donovan McNabb's senior high school yearbook. Featuring Philadelphia Eagles quarterback in class picture, varsity football, varsity basketball, varsity volleyball and in candids. [First Cuts]

• Did You Catch This Comparison? So the Cardinals have a bit of an edge when it comes to receivers, it would seem. [Philadelphia Eagles Examiner]

• You Have Not Wasted Your Life I See. Meet Tim Rich, the Baltimore Ravens fan whose entire front yard is decorated in lights as a shrine to the Ravens, including a lighted football field. [Fan IQ]

• Keystone Logic. Top 10 reasons why America should root for an all-Pennsylvania Super Bowl. 7. Finally, the historic saga of the Phil-Pitt Steagles will be widely known. [Five Tool Tool]

• The Arizona Cardinals Bandwagon Placement Test. Score your Arizona Cardinals knowledge. (Not responsible for injuries suffered from being thrown off the Arizona Cardinals bandwagon). [Fanster]

• Gotta Support The Team. Father-son Philadelphia Eagles man-breast tattoos. Take that, Communism! [NBCPhiladelphia]

• Conan O'Brien Vs. Fox Robot, Round II. Late night host really hates that robot. [Sox & Dawgs]

The key question this week, or with any conference championship game, or NLCS, or Elite Eight, or Conference Finals, or whatever, is: What would this win mean? It's difficult to argue that the game means more for the Cardinals than the Eagles. If the Buzzsaw loses, we will be sad, but we fans will remember the season with fondness and considerable bewilderment. No one will be angry. It was an incredible run. We'll never forget it. If the Eagles lose, Andy Reid and Donovan McNabb must die. It's all a matter of perspective.

That doesn't mean a win wouldn't mean more for us, though. Not only have the Arizona Cardinals never been to a Super Bowl, the notions of "Arizona Cardinals" and "Super Bowl" are so incongruous that putting them in the same sentence sounds unnatural, like when your aunt asks you how excited you felt when the Boston Celtics won the World Series.

That's what this would mean to us. It would be physical proof that the Arizona Cardinals are a part of the NFL, of the NFL's history, a spot finally reserved on sports' biggest stage, at last, awareness of our existence that can never be taken away. That might not mean much to you if you are a Bears fan, or a Giants fan, or an Eagles fan, or god forbid a Cowboys fan. But it means something to us. We would be a real, live team. For the first time. That means a lot. That means a ton.

That's what Sunday's game means for us, for The Buzzsaw That Is The Arizona Cardinals. It's a chance, at last, to be alive in the eyes of the world.

Am I confident? I am, actually. I truly believe Arizona is going to win. I'm not cocky about it, dismissive of the opponent, like some people. I just feel like this could really happen. The stars seem aligned. The team is stronger than it has been since I can remember. And it feels like a sea change could be eminent. It feels like if we can matter now, we might continue to matter, from now on.

So: We enter the mayor's bet. A.J. Daulerio will put something extreme on the line, so, alas, I must as well. He'll be naming his stakes tomorrow, but for now, it's my turn. Let's get this down, officially.

If The Buzzsaw That Is The Arizona Cardinals lose to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, I, Will Leitch, shall:

1. Take A.J. Daulerio out for a dinner that involves eating as many tacos as he can handle. This is the dumb food version of the bet. I think the Baltimore mayor is giving out crabs, or something. Same thing here.

2. Take a cookie sheet to the face. Mr. Daulerio will be allowed to swing a cookie sheet as hard as he wants directly at my face. This will be filmed.

3. Shave my head. That's right. If the Cardinals lose, a licensed hairstylist in New York City will cut off all of my hair. This will also be filmed; I expect it to look exactly like Full Metal Jacket. No more emo bangs, no more lucious locks, no more hiding of the scalp birthmark that's the shape of Nova Scotia. I will shave my head.

So. There are the stakes. Daulerio will give his side of the bet tomorrow.

Uh: Go Cardinals. Please.

A Racine pastor had four tickets to the NFC Championship game, until a friend of his got a hold of them. Then he had three.

When Duncan got to four Packers tickets, bundled together with a rubber band, he took off the band, put one in the shredder and then stopped short. "Something rang a bell and he said 'Are you sure you want to shred these?' " Hermanns said.

Too late. One ticket was in shreds. Realizing what happened, they emptied the shredder, collected pieces of the ticket and put them in a plastic bag.

Because the Packers are the Packers, a call to the office remedied the situation. Good thing, too: Currently on StubHub, tickets are going as high as $1,765. That's like the average yearly salary in Green Bay, isn't it?

Fans Mistakenly Shred Ticket To Sunday's Packers Game [Examiner.com]

"We heard that Eli Manning, one of his favorite shows is Seinfeld, and we know that laughter is good medicine, and we decided that we're not going to give that to him."

Little does Zollar know that Manning has several favorite TV shows. In order to really bother the Giants' quarterback, he's also going to have to cancel other Saturday programming:

&#8226; 11 a.m.: Yu-Gi-Oh! G/X

&#8226; Noon: The Nanny

&#8226; 8:30 p.m.: Movie, Bridge to Terabithia

&#8226; 11 p.m.: Mad TV

You can also vote on which show should replace Seinfeld on Saturday. An Emmitt Smith infomercial is one of the choices. Really.

Fox 11 To Manning: No Seinfeld For You [MyFox NE Wisconsin]
Green Bay Has A Sense Of Humor [Awful Announcing]