We picked the Eagles to win the Super Bowl back in August, so clearly our rooting interest in our own superiority had us pulling for the Eagles against the Cardinals Sunday in the NFC championship game.

 

But we certainly sensed a change of fortunes in Arizona this year, as evidenced by the inordinate amount of coverage we gave to an organization that had won little in its 89-year history and nothing since 1947.

 

We'll have much more on the NFC title game later tonight and tomorrow. And, of course, we'll have much more on the Cardinals between known and Super Bowl Sunday. But here's a quick look back at the evolution of (and we still can't believe we're saying this) the NFC champion Cardinals.

 

Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt made the single most important decision of the 2008 NFL season when he handed the starting QB job to old veteran Kurt Warner ahead of former No. 1 pick Matt Leinart. We couldn't figure out why there was even a debate in the first place.

 

It was the year of the Cardinals in the NFC West – though we certainly didn't expect them to reach the Super Bowl.

 

We compiled a list of the most underrated quarterbacks in history over the summer. Kurt Warner finished No. 2 on the all-time underrated list. With his appearance in his third Super Bowl, he all but assures that he'll enter the Hall of Fame some day.

 

For one of the few times in history, the Cardinals made a series of smart moves in the off-season. In fact, as we wrote back in August: "It was an off-season filled with signs of progress by an organization that has ignored that defensive side of the ball in recent years in a crazed, Millen-esque quest to wildly gobble up wide receivers in the draft."

 

As you consider the improbability of Arizona's first-ever NFC championship, consider the lowly position the organization held in our all-time franchise rankings that we published in the off-season.  

 

After a hot start to the 2008 season, we compared Arizona's quarterback to another old desert fox.

 

In the middle of the season, Warner held a sizable lead in the race for MVP honors. We'll still not sure how it ended up in the hands of Peyton "One-and-Done" Manning.