Beisel Staying Focused

From Tampa, Florida

Sunday will not be the first time Monty Beisel plays a Super Bowl.

It will be the first time he plays in the NFL’s official version of the championship game. But as a kid growing up on the flat playing fields of Kansas, Beisel played Super Bowl football every year.

“If the weather wasn’t too bad we’d be out there playing before the game,” Beisel said Thursday, during the Arizona Cardinals media period at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. “In my house, with football being such an important part of my family, Super Bowl Sunday was a holiday

“When the ball was kicked off, we were all in front of the television.”

They won’t be on Sunday. His parents and brothers will be sitting in Raymond James Stadium watching the Cardinals play the Pittsburgh Steelers for the Vince Lombardi Trophy. And No. 52 will be running down the field in his red jersey trying to create mayhem in the kicking game.

“I really haven’t thought about where I am right now,” Beisel said. “In the end, it’s another football game and that’s how we’ve tried to approach things this week. We are just getting ready for another game.”

That’s easy to say, but reality speaks otherwise. Beisel was saying this in a giant tent that was erected on a parking lot at the Grand Hyatt. It was filled with media folks running from table to table, chasing the latest Super Bowl scoop among the players and coaches.

“You’re right, this is not a normal Thursday morning during the season,” said Beisel. “But once this is over, we start our day and it’s going to be just like any other Thursday.”

Beisel has been around the NFL long enough to be able to separate the football truths from the bs. The Cardinals are his third team and he’s one of those veteran guys in the league that understands his career could be over in the next minute.

“I know the hard work that went into this team getting to this point,” Beisel said. “But I also know that some things have to go your way to get a chance to win a Super Bowl. We ended up playing two games in the playoffs at home. That was big. Then we went to Carolina and it could have been a cold, cold game, and it turned out it was a nice night weather wise.

“That kind of stuff has to happen and then you have to take advantage of those opportunities.”

It’s a long way from Kansas State and his status as a fourth-round selection of the Chiefs back in the 2001 NFL Draft. Things never quite worked out for him at Arrowhead and he moved on to New England for a cup of coffee and then he landed in Phoenix where he’s played in 40 games over the last three seasons with the Cardinals.

“I don’t really spend any time thinking about what happened with the Chiefs,” Beisel said. “It just didn’t work out for me there. I didn’t fit what they were looking for and that’s how it goes sometimes.”

While the Chiefs struggled with linebacker play during the ’08 season, there are bunch of linebackers who didn’t “fit” with the Chiefs who are contributing to other teams. There’s Kawika Mitchell in Buffalo, Scott Fujita in New Orleans and then on Sunday in the Super Bowl, it will be Beisel for the Cardinals and Keyaron Fox for the Steelers.

So what has Beisel noticed in his four seasons away from the Chiefs that might be missing in Kansas City?

“What I saw in New England and what I’ve seen here in Arizona was veteran leadership,” said Beisel. “That’s how the Patriots get things done and that has been huge for us in getting to this point with the Cardinals. ”

Beisel finished the regular season with 19 special teams tackles, giving him 111 for his career.  He also recovered a blocked  punt for a touchdown in overtime that beat the Dallas Cowboys.  He’s contributed three special teams tackles in three post-season games.