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GLENDALE, Ariz. - Through 48 Super Bowls, no team has played the game at home.The Arizona Cardinals, for so long the laughingstock of the NFL, have their sights set on being the first.Halfway through the season, the idea is no joke. Arizona, at 7-1, has the best record in the NFL. If this keeps up, the Cardinals could conceivably move through the playoffs and onto the games biggest stage without ever leaving Arizona.Its a heady thought for a franchise that from 1985 through 2007 had one winning season.That changed when Kurt Warner directed a 9-7 Arizona team on a stunning run to the 2009 Super Bowl, where the Cardinals came within a whisker of beating Pittsburgh. The offensive co-ordinator for the Steelers that day was Bruce Arians, the man who this season has Arizona off to its best start through eight games in 40 years.Back at the start of off-season workouts, when everyone figured the Cardinals would be looking up at Seattle and San Francisco in the NFC West, Arians offered his players a simple goal.Put a ring on your finger, he said, and dont let anybody dress in your locker in February.Arians said making it to the Super Bowl and winning it is always the goal.That wouldnt change just because its at home and no one has done it, he said.Oddsmakers didnt think much of the Cardinals chances in the preseason. They were a 40-to-1 longshot to win the Super Bowl before the season began. This week, after Arizonas 28-17 win at Dallas on Sunday, those odds are down to 12-to-1. Only Denver (13-to-4), Seattle (15-to-2), New England (6-to-1) and Green Bay (9-to-1) are considered better bets.Walking into your home stadium for a Super Bowl, its something that everybody definitely has thought about, Arizona cornerback Jerraud Powers said. If were blessed enough to continue to play like were playing and winning games and get there, it would be something magical.Only the Miami Dolphins have had much of a chance of playing the Super Bowl at home. They made the playoffs four times in seasons that the game was played in their stadium, but never made it past the divisional round. Their most recent chance came in 1998.Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones made no secret of his fervent desire to have his team play in the 2011 Super Bowl in his gigantic, opulent new AT&T Stadium. They finished 6-10.The big game will be played for the third time in the state of Arizona, the second since the construction of University of Phoenix Stadium, which sits like some giant silver space ship in suburban west Phoenix, its natural grass field kept outdoors in the sunshine until its rolled inside on game day.It was the site of the New York Giants memorable upset of then-unbeaten New England in 2008 — a year before the Cardinals made their unexpected Super Bowl run.Arizona went on to make the playoffs again in the 2009 season, then Warner retired and the team fell on hard times again, leading to the firing of coach Ken Whisenhunt after consecutive 5-11 seasons in 2011 and 2012. Enter Arians, hired at age 60 after a long career as a top NFL assistant and a portion of one season as interim coach at Indianapolis.Although Arians has his team believing it can beat anyone, veteran inside linebacker Larry Foote doesnt want to get carried away with the Super Bowl-at-home talk with so much football still to be played.Im not giving the Super Bowl too much thought to be honest with you, Foote said. Ive been there three times. In December if were 12-and-whatever or something like that I might start thinking about it, but were just trying to win the West. Thats all we can control right now.Defensive end Calais Campbell said he just wants to play in the Super Bowl period.For it to be in your home just gives you a little bit of extra motivation because you want to do it for your fans, he said. But thats so far away. We just want to try and win the division and get in the playoffs first. From there, anythings possible.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL OAKLAND, Calif. -- Bartolo Colon never expected to be pitching at age 40, not in the playoffs, and especially not as the Game 1 starter. And not this well a year after being suspended 50 games for a positive testosterone test. The veteran right-hander will get the ball for the Oakland Athletics in the opener of their AL division series against Detroit on Friday night, his first post-season appearance in eight years. "It means so much to me. Im 40 years old and never thought Id be here," Colon said in Spanish. "It is more special, a lot. The first reason is because of the Oakland organization, and I thank them for bringing me here to pitch another time." A year after Colon missed the playoffs for the As while serving the suspension, he won 18 games and is getting another chance on baseballs big stage -- in his first playoff appearance since 2005 with the Angels. "The things hes done this year, we want him to have another four, five starts this year," catcher Derek Norris said. "Everything he gets, he has deserved. A lot of us may have been a little upset about the suspension, but he came in to spring training and he worked hard. It was noted that it was done with, we wanted to move on. He came in, worked his butt off, had one of his best years since his Cy Young year with L.A. and I dont even think any one of us in here even thinks about that stuff anymore. Hes proven to us that he made a mistake, he was sorry and he apologized, and he came back and he earned back his respect throughout baseball and through all of us." Manager Bob Melvin made the announcement before a workout Tuesday at the Coliseum, where the grounds crew worked to prepare the field two days after the NFLs Oakland Raiders played a home game. "Ah, its an easy one, hes been our ace all season," Melvin said of Colon. "We have that veteran presence thats going to lead us off we didnt have last year." It sure has been $3 million well spent by general manager Billy Beane, who gave Colon another chance in 2013. Eight months ago, Colon apologized to his teammates at the start of spring training, put his head down and went back to work. "He felt like he needed to do that, and he got it out of the way early and has been an integral part since," Melvin said. "It really has felt like since hes been here that he hasnt missed a beat and hes been here the whole time. Very disappointing for him to miss the end of last year for the reasons that have been documented, but hes done everything that he can to be the teammate that he is again.dddddddddddd It feels like he was never gone." Colon went 18-6 with a 2.65 ERA in 30 starts and 190 1-3 innings. He became an All-Star in his best season since his 21-8 Cy Young Award season of 05. He might have a couple more wins had he not spent a stint on the disabled list with a strained groin. "You could tell how it affected him last year and how he missed out on a chance to be a part of what we did down the stretch," reliever Sean Doolittle said. "To have a veteran presence like that in your rotation, a rotation full of young guys, taking the ball every fifth day and you know hes going to go into the sixth or seventh inning, whenever he pitches, under whatever circumstances, its almost like you know what youre going to get out of him. Hes been a really good stabilizer for us all year long." The Game 2 starter for the AL West champions is rookie Sonny Gray, who will pitch in a ballpark he knows well with the home crowd behind him Saturday night. A.J. Griffin, a 14-game winner, is out with elbow tendinitis that has become worse as he has tried to pitch with the problem. He could be added to the roster for the next round if the As advance. Jarrod Parker will pitch Game 3 in Detroit and Dan Straily goes in a potential Game 4. "They made the decision," Griffin said. "Its a bummer. Hopefully I can bounce back from this in the next week or so and be ready for the next round." Left fielder Yoenis Cespedes said his troublesome right shoulder has improved "not a lot but some," and he joked he will play the outfield "even if I have to throw left-handed." Cespedes didnt play the final two games of the season at Seattle, and could be used as designated hitter if the shoulder isnt ready. "We just want to make sure hes healthy," Melvin said. "At the very least, hell be DH-ing." For Colon, this year will be far from his last as long as he can keep pitching. Then, he will return to New Jersey full-time with his wife and four children. "As long as I can and my body lets me," he said. "One year at a time." Colon notes he has "no idea what Id be doing" if he werent on a pitching mound. And, he doesnt have to be. All of that will come later. "Right now Im not thinking about it," Colon said. "This is my job." 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