SB Nation At The 2011 Super Bowl: Covering The Action From North Texas

The Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2011 is in. Here’s the full list: Richard Dent, Marshall Faulk, Ed Sabol, Deion Sanders and Shannon Sharpe. And there are two senior inductees: Chris Hanburger and Les Richter.

These are all of course incredibly deserving players. Notable players missing out include three receivers Cris Carter, Tim Brown and Andre Reed.

The photo above comes from my seat at the live NFL Network broadcast of the Hall of Fame announcement at the Sheraton Hotel in Dallas, Texas.

We started the day with 15 modern era finalists for the 2011 Pro Football Hall of Fame and on the live NFL Network broadcast they announced the first round of cuts.

The 2011 Pro Football Hall of Fame announcement is coming on Saturday evening so it’s fitting that the week leading up to the announcement we’ve already seen a few Hall of Fame quarterbacks. Making their way to Dallas for Super Bowl week was Joe Montana and Jim Kelly.

Though they’re both Hall of Famers, Montana and Kelly have obviously had opposite careers when it comes to the big game.

By now you’ve probably heard the story that’s circulating regarding New York Jets QB Mark Sanchez and his alleged flirtation with a 17-year old girl. Sanchez, 24, has or had some sort of relationship with a 17-year old girl, according to a report from Deadspin.

About an hour before I read that report, I saw this guy making the rounds at 2011 Super Bowl week:

The weather in Dallas has been a big topic of conversation throughout 2011 Super Bowl week because of the many problems it’s caused. I barely got into Dallas on Monday because of that weather and awoke on Tuesday mornin to find the streets coated in ice. The ice stayed there for a couple of days and, on Thursday, it started to melt away....only to see it return the following day with a couple more inches of snow.

This was the sight on Friday morning right outside the media center:

St. Louis Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo made an appearance at the Dallas media center for the 2011 Super Bowl. He talked a little bit about the two quarterbacks in this game -- Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger and Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers -- as well as the Rams return to relevance.

In 2009, the Rams were 1-15 which gave them the No. 1 pick in the 2010 NFL draft. That pick of course went to QB Sam Bradford, who picked up the AP rookie of the year award. Bradford also made the rounds at Super Bowl week on Radio Row.

2011 Super Bowl week has been highlighted by the weather conditions surrounding Dallas. My arrival on Monday was delayed significant because of the snowstorms hitting Dallas but things started to brighten up over the next couple of days as the snow began to melt.

On Friday, we were greeted with this in the morning:

The 2010 Super Bowl was the arrival of OCNN -- Ochocinco News Network. That’s of course a nod at Chad Ochocinco of the Cincinnati Bengals. He had a crew of NFL players with him, wearing OCNN shirts, and acting like reporters at the various press events.

Last year the questions were always goofy. This year, though, I’ve noticed OCNN is a little more serious. They’re asking legitimate questions instead of just trying to be funny.

The Super Bowl halftime show this year will feature the Black Eyed Peas and the group met with the media on Wednesday in Dallas talking about...wardrobe malfunctions. Indeed, anytime you mention a Super Bowl halftime show you have to mention Janet Jackson’s, um, slip-up.

Fergie said on Wednesday that there won’t be another wardrobe malfunction coming. “We’re very particular about our wardrobe so there won’t be any wardrobe malfunctions,” she said.

It’s Super Bowl week which means more postseason awards.

The New England Patriots have the coach of the year in Bill Belichick and the offensive player of the year in QB Tom Brady. You can add another award to the list -- offensive line. Presented by Prilosec OTC, the Patriots were awarded the Madden Most Valuable Protectors award, which honors the top offensive line of the year, per Hall of Famer John Madden.

We’re down here in Dallas for the 2011 Super Bowl between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers but there’s still plenty of Dallas Cowboys talk considering the game is taking place at the Jerry Dome. There are a lot of local reporters around here so at some point you know you’re going to hear a question regarding the Steelers or Packers that relates to the Cowboys.

One strange one on Wednesday was Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin being asked about the Cowboys as ‘America’s Team’ vs. the Steelers as ‘Steeler Nation’.

The schedule surrounding the 2011 Super Bowl can be a little wacky at times. Sometimes you’re leaving at 6:30 a.m. to hear some of the players talk and other times you’re up until 1:00 a.m. at a Super Bowl party. In other words, don’t expect to get a lot of sleep with the amount of stuff going on during the week.

Here’s what Thursday’s schedule is looking like:

The Green Bay Packers will be looking for their sixth consecutive victory on Sunday when they meet the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2011 Super Bowl. That hot streak is bringing a bit of hope to the rest of the NFL. Courtesy of Subway, we had a few minutes with Ndamukong Suh on Wednesday and he noted the Packers late season winning streak brings a little hope to everyone.

The Packers winning streak was preceded by a two-game losing streak -- including a loss to Suh’s Lions -- so they nearly found themselves out of the playoffs. The Packers faced a must-win in the final game of the season and yet a month later they find themselves in the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl week brings plenty of press conferences announcing end of the season awards. On Wednesday, FedEx awarded their Ground Player of the Year to Kansas City Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles. They also handed out their Air Player of the Year award, which went to Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers obviously has some more important business going on right now so he accepted the award via video conference saying he was honored to receive the award.

One of the cool things about Super Bowl week is all the various awards they’re handing out throughout the week. Wednesday’s award session was the FedEx Ground Player of the Year. Your winner: Jamaal Charles.

The Kansas City Chiefs RB was announced on Wednesday as the FedEx Ground Player of the Year ahead of other nominees Houston Texans RB Arian Foster and Atlanta Falcons RB Michael Turner.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers are in Dallas for the 2011 Super Bowl and the topic of conversation has been, for the most part, about the game. The Ben Roethlisberger redemption story isn’t much of a story since he’s not saying much on the topic and there aren’t any other significant story lines developing.

Except Brett Favre. Of course his name has to be involved anytime a major media contingent is involved. Packers GM Ted Thompson spoke to reporters during Tuesday’s Media Day and was asked about none other than Brett Favre.

Early on Wednesday morning, I dragged myself out of bed near my Dallas hotel and made my way up to Ft. Worth where ESPN has taken over Sundance Square. I spent part of my day up there milling around the ESPN Radio compound they have set up and meeting a few athletes.

The green room at ESPN Radio is a pretty cool place to be. A pair of the Gronkwoski brothers were hanging out. Larry Fitzgerald passed through as did Maurice Jones-Drew and Ndamukong Suh.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers will meet in the 2011 Super Bowl which means it’s another opportunity for LB James Harrison to express his displeasure with the way the league is handling big hits in the NFL. Harrison has been fined over $100,000 for illegal hits this year.

Harrison sat at a podium with a microphone and a Steelers hat on the table answering questions for an hour. If you’ve ever seen him speak in person, then you know how intimidating he can be. Sometimes he’s short with his answers and his stare made me, frankly, a little scared.

The Green Bay Packers made a very smart move in the 2009 NFL draft taking LB Clay Matthews, who turned into one of the best defensive players in the NFL. If they hadn’t selected him with the 26th pick, the Pittsburgh Steelers may have.

He was speaking to reporters at the 2011 Super Bowl Media Day and said the Steelers expressed some interest. Pittsburgh held the 32nd overall pick in that draft and selected DT Evander Hood.

Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers was a popular man at the 2011 Super Bowl Media Day because one of the keys to the game is how his defense does against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Capers also has ties to Dick LeBeau and the Steelers -- he worked in Pittsburgh from 1992-94 -- so he’s got an interesting story this week.

Capers discussed a number of things but one popped out at me -- he would consider head coaching opportunities if it was the right place at the right time. Capers has been a head coach on two previous occasions in Carolina and Houston.

Welcome to Super Bowl 2011 Media Day. We’re inside the shiny Jerry Dome in Dallas, TX writing this as hundreds of media members are walking around the field talking to players on the Green Bay Packers. As we noted, Media Day is known just as much for the odd, unusual or even wacky personalities that come through there.

This year was no different as we saw a few costumes (and Ines Sainz’s outfit apparently isn’t a costume) as well as our friend, stick guy, from last year.

Greetings from the 2011 Super Bowl in Dallas, Texas. When I say I’m happy to be in Dallas, you should believe me. That’s because getting from Kansas City (where I came from) to Dallas isn’t the easiest thing in the world.

I was scheduled to leave Kansas City around 5:00 p.m. on Monday evening before an incoming snowstorm delayed travelers. The Kansas City airport started to cancel flights as I sat there wondering if I would be able to make it to Dallas.

Making the trip south will be myself, who will be covering Super Bowl week from a national angle on SBNation.com, Brandon from Acme Packing Company, who will be on all things Packers, and Michael from Behind The Steel Curtain, who will be your go-to Steelers source. If our experience last year tells us anything, it’s that you’ll want to check out those sites. You can’t go to the Super Bowl and not have entertaining coverage.

Other big events during the week include the NFLPA annual press conference, which means a little more with the (possible) lockout coming, and the 2011 Hall of Fame announcements on Saturday.