5. This may sound silly, but it's true: Roethlisberger faces some first-quarter difficulties because of the Super Bowl footballs. The league controls the footballs and they are slicker than those in the regular season and three playoff games because they aren't rubbed down and are taken out of the box just before kickoff. Regular-season balls have a chance to be rubbed down by the home team. Friends have told Hasselbeck to throw new footballs as often as he can in practice, and he said it's given him a slightly sore arm. Roethlisberger is playing with a slight crack in his right thumb that requires him to wear a protector and a glove. The painted Super Bowl XL logo on the football is right around the thumb area. This will affect him only in the first quarter, as he gets used to the new balls. In the first quarter of the Denver Broncos game in the AFC championship, Roethlisberger threw a little wilder and almost was intercepted by Champ Bailey. Unlike the Broncos, the Seahawks will defend Roethlisberger early with safer two-deep zone schemes instead of the Broncos' aggressive blitzing efforts. An erratic throw from a slick ball early could kill a possession.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs05/columns/story?columnist=clayton_john&id=2317573
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs05/columns/story?columnist=clayton_john&id=2317573
