By JIM LITKE

AP Sports Columnist

TAMPA (AP) — All is right with the NFL.

A Pittsburgh franchise still owned and operated by the sons of a man who used his winnings at the racetrack to buy into the fledgling league 76 years ago became the first to win its sixth Super Bowl and somehow, it seemed just right.

In the world of pro football, the Rooneys are old money and as close to royalty as it gets.

But a Steelers team whose calling card has always been smashmouth defense won this one on offense instead, with a 78-yard drive in the final two minutes chock-full of plays that could have been drawn up in the dirt of a sandlot.

It proved that some old dogs are capable of learning new tricks.

“I just said to the guys, ’It’s now or never. You’ll be remembered forever if you do this,”’ quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said just before marching Pittsburgh to a 27-23 win Sunday night over Arizona. “’All the film study, all the hard work, all the stuff that people talked bad about us, it will be for nothing.

“We have to go out,” he added, “and do this.”’

The Cardinals have old-school ownership and a long tradition, too, except theirs is mostly about losing. They were 61 years removed from their last championship game and before this season, their best-known player might have been Rod Tidwell, the fictional wide receiver portrayed by Cuba Gooding Jr. in the movie “Jerry Maguire.”

But they landed a real-life version in the draft five years ago, a fearless pass-catcher named Larry Fitzgerald. And with rejuvenated 37-year quarterback Kurt Warner calling the shots, they went on a smash-and-grab spree through the postseason and turned all those predictions of a runaway into one of the tightest and most dramatic Super Bowls ever.

“We made the plays to put ourselves ahead and they turned around and came back and did the same to win the game,” Warner said. “That is what a championship game should be about. That is what championship teams are all about.

“I tip my hat to them,” he added, “for playing the way they did.”

Warner was far from the only one. As commissioner Roger Goodell headed out into a cool Tampa night after the trophy presentation, he paused to field a question about why Steelers chairman Dan Rooney was so widely admired around the NFL.

“His passion,” Goodell said. “He always does what he thinks is right — for the league, for the Steelers, for the community. He always makes time to help out, no matter the issue, or who does the asking. I’ve learned a lot from the man.”