Wednesday's question of the day: Which two teams will play in this season's Super Bowl?

Which two teams will play in this season's Super Bowl? Reporters from around the Tribune family tackle today's question of the day, then you get a chance to leave a comment and tell them why they are wrong.

Dave Hyde, South Florida Sun Sentinel

New England vs. Chicago. The Genius vs. Da Bears. Retro is in, and this takes everyone back to the ‘80s when the Super Bowl Shuffle was the song of the season, Jim McMahon mooned a helicopter and the Bears trounced the Pats.
All New England has lost from last year is offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, back-up quarterback Matt Cassel, and a wealth of defensive experience in Richard Seymour, Tedy Bruschi and Rodney Harrison. They’ve lost more other years. Tom Brady is back, Bill Belichick is still smart and the Patriots get the 32nd-ranked schedule, according to FootballOutsiders.com. Thirty-second! Is that legal? Chicago benefits from the Denver bailout in getting quarterback Jay Cutler. Throw him with a Top 5 defense and get ready for a re-mix of the Super Bowl Shuffle.

Santonio Holmes game-winning gloves brings in $70,200 for charity

The gloves worn by Pittsburgh Steelers Santonio Holmes when he caught the game-winning touchdown pass in Super Bowl XLIII were solf for $70,200 in a charity auction.

Holmes was named the game's most valuable player after the Steelers captured an unprecedented sixth Super Bowl title by defeating Arizona thanks to Holmes' catch.

The Sickle Cell Disease Assn. of America is the beneficiary -- Holmes' 6-year-old son, Santonio III, has the blood disease.

Bidding for the black-and-gold Reebok gloves doubled in the last hour of the auction, which wrapped up on Sunday. A total of 163 bids were placed.

"I’m so happy that I was able to help the Sickle Cell Disease Assn. of America, going on television and radio to talk about the devastating effects of the disease and raising such a fantastic sum of money to help other families," Holmes said in a statement released today. "It is difficult for me to see my son struggle with the disease and I hope that the money from this auction can help other families."

-- Debbie Goffa

Photo: The gloved hands of Santonio Holmes holds on to the Vince Lombardi trophy after the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Arizona Cardinals in the Super Bowl. Credit: Timothy A. Clary / AFP / Getty Images

Super Bowl battle of the brands continues

Market research experts are now parsing data to determine who won the Super Bowl XLIII battle of the brands.

The contest runs the gamut from the 30-second commercials that cost an average of $3 million to stadium signage and product placement during the game broadcast on NBC.

Only time will tell whether commercials -- such as Denny's well-received promise to serve up free Grand Slam breakfasts -- spur consumers to spend during what's shaping up to be a rough recession. (Denny's said it spent about $5 million on Super Bowl advertising and the cost of 2 million free breakfasts.)

The super-sized sales job isn't over, either.

BayTSP reports that, as of 10 a.m. today, commercials that initially aired during NBC's Super Bowl XLIII broadcast subsequently had been watched online more than 28 million times.

The Los Gatos-based market research firm tracks consumer access to videos on such websites as YouTube, Daily Motion and NBC.com. The “Transformers 2” movie trailer that appeared during the NBC game broadcast has been viewed more than 3.6 million times on various sites. The "G.I. Joe" movie trailer was in second place with more than 1.6 million views.

In a twist, BayTSP reports that "Veggie Love," a People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals commercial that NBC declined to show has been viewed more than 564,000 times -- making it the

Media notes: NBC claims Super Bowl record; Costas to MLB Network

NBC is calling Sunday's Super Bowl XLIII broadcast "the most-viewed television program in U.S. history with a total audience of 151.6 million viewers."

The super-sized claim comes with a footnote: Nielsen Media Research's definitition of "total audience" includes anyone who caught as little as six minutes of a broadcast.

When measured by "average audience" over an entire broadcast, the 1983 MASH finale remains still the leader, with 106 million average viewers.

The "average audience" for Sunday's game broadcast on NBC was 98.7 million, which edged out the Super Bowl XLII (Giants/Patriots) broadcast on Fox that drew 97.5 million average viewers.

When measured by "total audience," Sunday's NBC broadcast drew 151.6 million viewers, while last year's Fox broadcast drew 148.3 million.

The MASH finale drew an estimated 122 total viewers. That's still an impressive number given the dramatic population growth in the U.S. since 1983.

Keep reading if you can't get enough of Bob Costas.

The sports broadcaster has signed with the new MLB Network, where he'll host original baseball-centric programming and work in the broadcast booth during game telecasts.

MLB said it will be the "exclusive cable home for Costas." But Costas, who most recently hosted NBC’s Super Bowl XLIII coverage, will continue to host Olympic and NFL coverage for NBC.

Costas conducted an interview with Don Larsen and Yogi Berra (about Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series) that aired when MLB Network, baseball's new cable network went live on Jan. 1.

His new MLB Network show, "MLB Network Studio 42 with Bob Costas" will make its debut at 5 p.m. (PT) on Thursday. Costas will interview Dodgers manager Joe Torre, who's been making his own news of late with a new book.

-- Greg Johnson

Editor's note: One reference to the MASH finale said that the show ran in 1984. It ran in 1983.

Photo (top): NBC broadcaster John Madden. Credit: Jerry Lai -US PRESSWIRE

Photo: Bob Costas. Credit: Steve Freeman / NBC

Did Doritos' rookies win the Super Bowl commercial derby?

Who won Super Bowl XLIII?

No, not the game on the field. The really important game that is about winning consumers' hearts, minds and pocketbooks. The one that prompted advertisers to shell out $3 million (on average) for a 30-second spot during Sunday's Super Bowl broadcast on NBC.

According to USAToday's 21st annual Ad Meter exercise, two unemployed brothers from Batesville, Ind., upended such traditional Super Bowl advertising favorites as Anheuser Busch, which had won the past 10 Ad Meter Super Bowl contests.

The commercial's creators not only won boasting rights to having bested Madison Avenue's best and brightest, they also earned $1 million in the Doritos "Crash the Super Bowl" contest.

Here's how USAToday's Bruce Horovitz summed up the rookie upset:

And it could be a game-changer. For the first time, it wasn't an ad agency that created the best-liked Super Bowl commercial. It was two unemployed brothers from Batesville, Ind., whose ad for Doritos — created for an online contest for amateurs — won them $1 million from Doritos maker Frito-Lay, and leaves ad pros with a lot of 'splaining to do.

Doritos also was the first-half winner in the Tivo "StopWatch" contest, which tracks how many Tivo customers used their digital video recorders to go back in time to watch commercials and plays. The spot finished well behind the full-game StopWatch winner, GoDaddy.com's "enhanced" commercial, which ran in the second half -- but earned more Tivo flashbacks than Steelers linebacker James Harrison's 100-yard dash for the end zone.

Doritos finished in a tie for second behind the Monster.com "need a new job?" spot in Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management Super Bowl survey. The survey had Doritos tied with other "A grade" commercials from CareerBuilder.com, E-Trade and Denny's.

Sunday's commercial breaks "featured hard-hitting advertising," said Tim Calkins, a Kellogg marketing professor. "We had spots with value messages and competitive claims, both of which are unusual in the Super Bowl."

"Super Bowl advertisers were clearly trying to drive sales in a soft economy," Calkins said. "The game continues to be the single biggest marketing event in the United States, but this year we saw the impact of the weak economy."

If you missed the spots -- or want to watch them again -- NBC.com has them online.

-- Greg Johnson

Photo: Doritos Super Bowl commercial. Credit: Doritos

Best and worst Super Bowl ads

Note: Click on the ad title to watch a video of that ad.

The best and the worst of Sunday’s Super Bowl ads, which are usually better than the game itself, but the game actually lived up to the hype this year.

The best ads

Careerbuilder.com — “Tips”: Easily the best commercial of the night. The way it kept building (“Hey dummy,” punching the Koala bear in the face), kept you watching until the end.

Cars.com — “Confidence”: Touched on something everyone can relate to. We all have something in our lives that fill us with dread. Even a guy like David Abernathy.

Hulu.com — “Alec and Huluwood”: Actually, it really isn’t all that surprising to learn that Alec Baldwin is an alien.

NBC — “LMAO”: WTG. LOL. GTG. B9.

Heroes — “Football”: Great commercial, especially John Elway’s appearance, but is the new season of “Heroes” going to be so bad that instead of teasing you with clips, they did this instead?

Doritos — “Crystal Ball”: The first real laugh out loud moment of the night. Nothing says comedy like a crystal ball to the groin.

Pedigree — “Crazy Pets”: Combines a great message (adopt a dog) with great images: What if we were forced to use other animals as our pets instead.

Pepsi — “Refresh Anthem”: From Bob Dylan to Will.i.am, Pepsi has been there for it all.

The worst ads

Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes — “Plant a seed”: So, the message is basically “Hey parents, load your kids up on sugary cereal, then send them to the park unsupervised!”

Firestone — “Taters”: I enjoyed the jokes in this ad featuring Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head much more when they were in a little movie called “Toy Story.”

GE — “Scarecrow”: And the pimping out of our classic movies continues.

GoDaddy.com — “Enhancement”: Despite all these years of Super Bowl ads, I still have no clue what godaddy.com sells. After each one I do, however, always have a feeling that my tires are overinflated.

Cash4Gold.com — “Heeere’s Money”: Instead of taking financial advice from Ed McMahon and Hammer, you ought to go ahead and just burn your money. It’s quicker.

Castrol Oil — “Monkeys”: Buy this product and you too can make out with a chimpanzee.

Bud Light — “Meeting”: Instead of layoffs, a guy suggests not buying Bud Light for every meeting. He gets laid off and thrown out of a window. Too unbelievable. Next, you’ll be saying they will lay off guys who sit around and review commercials. Don’t be ridic.... (Editor’s note: This review has been ended due to cutbacks. We wish the writer success in his future endeavors.)

-- Houston Mitchell

Photo: Do you want to punch this cute Koala bear in the face? Credit: careerbuilder.com

Joe Biden goes partisan for Super Bowl

President Obama went the bi-bipartisan route for his Super Bowl party -- both Democrats and Republicans and fans of the Arizona Cardinals and the other team.

However, Obama's vice president, Joe Biden, opted for the strictly partisan route for his elected guests -- Dems only invited to the vice presidential residence at the Naval Observatory Sunday afternoon.

Here's the list as released today by the White House and edited by The Ticket:

Sens. Tom "Look, I'm the Senior Senator Now" Carper of Delaware, Kent "I'm Not That Funny" Conrad of North Dakota, John "Daschle's Tax Mistakes Were Also Accidental" Kerry of Massachusetts, Bill "Sunshine" Nelson of Florida and Chuck "Where's the Microphone?" Schumer of New York.

Plus Biden's also having over some little people -- Reps. Robert "I'm Not Ed Rendell" Brady of Pennsylvania, Jim "Clinton's Still Not Talking to Me" Clyburn of South Carolina, Steny "I'm With Nancy" Hoyer of Maryland and John "How'd I Get in Here?" Larson of Connecticut. Oh, also Montana's Sen. Max "Gimme the Credit" Baucus.

Seems like a snackin'-good crowd of real funmeisters.

--Andrew Malcolm, Top of the Ticket blog

Bruce Springsteen is looking for a Super Bowl assist

Kurt Warner isn't the only old guy who could use Sunday's Super Bowl to get a nice bounce.

Aging rockers also have had success using network broadcasts of past Super Bowl halftime shows to jumpstart album sales and digital downloads of their hit songs.

Which brings us to Bruce Springsteen, who, along with the E Street Band, is using the Super Bowl XLIII halftime show to kick off a world tour that will take him to L.A. on April 15 and then on to such European destinations as Stockholm and Vienna.

The tour is designed to promote sales of "Working on a Dream," his latest album. And, based on some early, lukewarm reviews, Springsteen and the E Street band might need the kind of help that the Super Bowl has to offer.

Nielsen Media Research reports that last year's Super Bowl halftime attraction, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, saw sales of their "Greatest Hits" album soar by 33,000 units during the week after the big game. That was a 196% jump over the preceeding week.

Nielsen also reports that digital downloads -- by paying customers, not digital scofflaws -- of such Petty hits as "Free Fallin" and "American Girl" rose by 150%.

Other aging rockers havey enjoyed similar Super Bowl bounces.

In 2007, Prince saw a doubling in sales of his catalog, according to Nielsen. A year earlier, the Rolling Stones enjoyed a 34% increase in sales of their "A Bigger Bang" album. And, in 2005, Paul McCartney's live album, which had been released in 2002, enjoyed a 542% sales increase in the week following the big broadcast.

-- Greg Johnson

Photo: From left, Bruce Springsteen, Steven Van Zandt and Patti Scialfa appear at a Super Bowl XLIII news conference on Thursday at the Tampa Convention Center. Credit: Kirby Lee / Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

Arizona Cardinals finish strong in last pre-Super Bowl practice

In their last pre-Super Bowl XLIII practice, the Arizona Cardinals were impressive, according to pool reporter John Czarnecki, who said that Kurt Warner misfired on just three passes in more than two hours of work.

"Kurt looked like he's been looking," said Coach Ken Whisenhunt, whose team used the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' outdoor training facility. "He was consistent and made some good throws. He looked sharp."

One of the highlights of the session was when kicker Neil Rackers bounced three consecutive 20-yard field goals off the second-floor window of the Bucs' facility -- booming kicks.

"It seemed to fire up a lot of the guys," Whisenhunt said. "I think some of them wanted to see" a window shatter."

-- Sam Farmer

Photo: The Cardinals' Neil Rackers during Arizona's Friday morning practice at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers training facility. Credit: Ross D. Franklin / Associated Press

Steelers look sharp in final pre-game practice

In their final true practice before the Super Bowl -- they have a walk-through Saturday -- the Steelers looked sharp, according to pool reporter Peter King.

Receiver Hines Ward, coming off a knee strain, practiced without restriction, and Ben Roethlisberger looked crisp in red-zone situations, throwing a pair of touchdown passes to tight end Heath Miller.

"I feel great about our preparation," Steelers Coach Mike Tomlin said. "Of course, you evaluate your preparation by your performance in the game. But I think the guys understand everything they have to do entering the game."

Pittsburgh has had its game plan in place for two weeks, this week replicating what it did at home in practices last week.

"This week was a re-do," Tomlin said. "We didn't have the sense of urgency we might normally have in a practice week, but that's because the guys have seen it all once."

As for Ward, Tomlin said his availability was "never a question."

-- Sam Farmer

Photo: Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger follows center Justin Hartwig at the team's Friday practice at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Credit: Gene J. Puskar / Associated Press