By RICHARD OBERT
Inside the AFL

The Rattlers don't want to hear it. They don't want to make Arena Football League history this way. They don't want to be known as the Buffalo Bills of the AFL.

"A lot of people are saying we're the Buffalo Bills," receiver/defensive back Orshwante Bryant said.

The Bills lost four straight Super Bowls from 1991-94.

The Rattlers are trying to avoid losing a third straight ArenaBowl Sunday when they play host to the second-seeded San Jose SaberCats.

Home field in the AreanBowl usually is good for at least a touchdown. The Rattlers don't have the excuse of not being able to hear what there were supposed to run on foreign fields in San Jose and Tampa the past two years.

"We don't think of it that way," Byrant said of the Bills comparison. "We just know we haven't played well in the biggest game."

Are the Rattlers, who won their first two ArenaBowl appearances (1994 and 1997) cursed?

"There's no jinx, no hoax, no anything," Bryant said.

Receiver/linebacker Hunkie Cooper isn't worried about the mindset of his team against second-seeded San Jose.

He knows mentally the team just has to slow everything down, not get caught up in the noise, the hype, the importance of being champions.

"The team that hits the hardest is going to win this football game," said Cooper, who was shut out of the end zone in the past two ArenaBowls. "There are no surprises. We know each other. There are no wrinkles to add. It's going to be emotions.

"I know we have to overcome emotions. You're going to be wired after the national anthem. When the kickoff comes down, you're going to probably lose every ounce of oxygen in your body. You have to play controlled. You have to go play, make plays."

These are two teams trying to make the third time the charm. San Jose lost two late-season games this year to the Rattlers, who can break through in the ArenaBowl with a third win over the SaberCats.

"I like our chances at home," Cooper said. "I think it's where it needs to be - right here in Arizona. When we come out of that tunnel, it's going to be four quarters, I think, for the first time this year."

Coach Danny White isn't talking much about the past two championship game failures.

He knows the veterans are aware of the situation.

"It's a long time ago," White said. "I think the veterans will draw from that and turn it into a positive.

"Basically, in both games we beat ourselves. We just have to know we have to go out and execute and not beat ourselves."

Turnovers, dropped catches, penalties, missed assignments, rushed passes plagued the Rattlers in ArenaBowl losses at San Jose in 2002 and Tampa in 2003. Those are signs of a team gagging at the wrong moment, especially after playing so flawlessly in the playoffs.

White doesn't want to dwell on that.

He just feels this team has earned the right to be here. Now it's up to them to play the way it did to get there.

"If anything, we earned it," White said. "That's the great feeling going into a game like this, that you deserve to win the game, because you paid the price during the season."

But he knows the pressure is on to finally win the big game.

"It's born of consistency of excellence," White said of his teams' ability to reach the championship game three straight years. "It puts more pressure on you. I felt that way with the Cowboys. It's not good enough to get to the championship game every year. You've got to win it all. That's the bed we made for ourselves. Now we have to lay in it. I felt it immediately after the (semifinal) game. There was a brief moment of celebration. Guys were right back down to Earth. By the time I got back to the locker room, there was a sense of, 'Hey, we're not done yet.'"

Quarterback Sherdrick Bonner and his receivers realize they can't speed the game up just because it is for the title.

He gives credit to a strong pass rush and tighter pass coverage for the turnaround to this season. That has to pick up even greater for San Jose and quarterback Mark Grieb, the most efficient passer in the game.

"We just have to make the smart plays and the right plays to put us in good position," said Bonner, who has thrown a combined three touchdown passes and two interceptions in the past two ArenaBowls. "I'm blessed to be here.

"I'm not going to put any extra pressure on myself. The Lord gave me the ability to play the game. I'm just going to have fun and enjoy it.

"Last year we put pressure on ourselves just because of how badly we got blown out the year before (52-14) to San Jose. But there is no pressure. This is a great opportunity for us, a great situation for us to be in."

Cooper isn't worried about what people are saying now about the Rattlers, how some are expecting another meltdown.

"It doesn't matter what people are saying," Cooper said. "We've won the big one. We've won it twice. We lost it twice. And we'll win it again. That says we've got a good football team to bounce back from what we went through to make this appearance. But anything less than a victory would be a failure. If we don't win it, this whole season is a failure."