Other articles by Scott Bordow:

McMillan OK to play against Temple Sweep of UCLA earns Sun Devils our attention No rest for weary Cards if they hope to build on success Announcer has Super Bowl wish: double-OT Pass defense on Fitzgerald gives Steelers fits already Michael Bidwill, like him or not, gave Arizona a winner Apology would go a long way for Boldin Cardinals' migration took time to succeed He's paid his dues; Bill's due a winner Rookie RB shows how it's done

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TEMPE — Only two teams in Phoenix-area sports history have gone from nobodies to somebodies in a single season. No, the 1999 Diamondbacks team that won 100 games and finished first in the National League West doesn't qualify.

That club was transformed in the off-season, when Randy Johnson and Steve Finley were signed as free agents, and general manager Joe Garagiola Jr. stole Luis Gonzalez from the Detroit Tigers.

The 1992-93 Phoenix Suns team that advanced to the NBA Finals also doesn't count. If you remember, a certain power forward with a big mouth and even bigger game came from Philadelphia in a 3-for-1 trade.

Even the 1975-76 Suns — The Little Team That Could — can't be considered, even though it came within a whisker of knocking off the Boston Celtics for the NBA title. Center Alvan Adams was a rookie, Paul Westphal was an off-season acquisition from Boston, and forward Garfield Heard was landed in a midseason deal.

No, only two teams have transformed themselves overnight without an influx of new blood and fresh legs:

In 1995, the Arizona State football team finished 6-5. The following year, with linebacker Derrick Rodgers being the only notable addition, the Sun Devils went 11-1 and came within 100 seconds of winning the national championship.

Which brings us to this season's Arizona Cardinals. Their playoff victories the last two weeks have been bathed in a historical light. The first time for this, the first time for that.

It's understandable. The Cardinals have been so bad for so long that you can't help but frame their successes by their failures.

But narrow the focus a bit. Think about where Arizona was just a year ago, an 8-8 football team that was improving but wasn't anybody's darling.

Better yet, remember how poorly the Cardinals were playing just three weeks ago, when they traveled to New England and were thrashed 47-7. No one could have envisioned where they are now, just one win from the Super Bowl.

The question we still can't answer is how exactly did this happen. The Cardinals didn't make a trade or get a key starter back or change their schemes so drastically that they caught the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers off guard.

No, they just started winning.

The Cardinals will tell you, over and over again, that they're feeding off the criticism they've received. You couldn't walk past a player late Saturday without hearing some version of, "Nobody believed in us."

But just how far can that kind of motivation carry a team? The Cardinals certainly weren't thinking of their critics once they took the field Saturday. Nor can their success be attributed to the rebirth of their running game. Yes, Edgerrin James looks like his old self, but the Cardinals still rise and fall with their passing game.

It's difficult to put a finger on why Arizona suddenly is a terror. Maybe this is just one of those special occasions when a talented team and a tough-minded but innovative coach suddenly discover themselves.

"When you get to this level, you have to win as a team," quarterback Kurt Warner said. "And I think that was the beautiful thing about these two weeks. We have won as a team.… It's amazing that we are here. We still have some work to do to get to our ultimate goal, but we are going to celebrate this (beating Carolina) for a minute."

Maybe that's what we should do, too.

No one knows how long this will last. There are no guarantees in sports. So enjoy the moment. Enjoy this team.

They deserve it.

So do you.