Item: The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Arizona Cardinals in a great finish to Super Bowl XLIII.

I think: The Steelers' win overshadowed a terrific fourth-quarter performance by Minnesota native Larry Fitzgerald Jr., who looks to be a Cardinal for life. As for Anquan Boldin, the Cardinals' other starting wide receiver, he has been saying he wants out of Arizona because of a contract dispute. Fitzgerald is a superstar, and Boldin is just a notch below him. The Vikings should see what it would take to acquire Boldin. Of course, it also would help to acquire a quarterback.

Item: Former Vikings guard Randall McDaniel is elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

I think: Cris Carter and John Randle were finalists, and both belong in the Hall of Fame, as do a couple of Vikings from the Purple People Eater days -- Mick Tingelhoff and Jim Marshall.

Item: The University of Minnesota men's basketball team plays at Michigan State on Wednesday night.

I think: Ralph Sampson III has a bigger and more defined role, and the Gophers are a better team than the last time they played the Spartans, who dominated the boards. This will be a good indicator of just how much better the Gophers are since that loss on Dec. 31.

Item: After a British newspaper publishes a photo of him taking a hit of marijuana from a bong, Olympic star Michael Phelps calls his behavior "regrettable" and says he "demonstrated bad judgment."

I think: Phelps was brilliant in the pool, less than brilliant out of it.