Super Bowl Edition

And The Elephant in the Room 


Tomorrow is the greatest day in sports and what makes this Super Bowl even more interesting is what's at stake for the main participants. I love the Super Bowl more than any other sporting event and now that my team is in the game it is reaching a whole 'nother level of excitement. The casual fan will gather for a Super Bowl party and enjoy some adult beverages while trying to watch all the commercials. However, as a rabid football fan, this game intrigues me more than any Super Bowl in recent memory. But the reasons for my peaked interest lay not in the individual matchups that will play out on the field, but rather a topic that no player or coach will address....Legacy.

The reason that Tom Brady or Eli Manning or Bill Belichick or Tom Coughlin won't address anything related to their legacy is because as a player this thought doesn't cross their minds come Sunday. Once all the excitement and circumstance ends the players will settle into the game and it becomes just another football game for them. But one of the things that makes sports great is the ability for fans to look back and assess what we have seen. It's why ESPN exists and it's why there is a Hall of Fame, so we can put into perspective an athlete's career and achievements.

In my opinion this is the most interesting Super Bowl, perhaps all time, and here's why. First of all, on the lowest of reasons, it matches Boston against New York, two cities that have arguably the greatest sports rivalry in the United States. I understand that the Patriots and Giants aren't true rivals, but it still allows the people of each city a chance to taunt one another. But then there's the most obvious element that makes this the most interesting game and that is revenge.

Just four years ago the New England Patriots were 18-0 and all that stood between them and immortality was a wildcard New York Giants team. We all know what happened and the Giants pulled off the greatest upset in football history, and perhaps in the history of sports. There's no way that Patriots fans can forget that moment and whenever a Pats fan starts talking shit to me all I need to say is "18-1". Imagine getting so close to perfection only to have David Tyree catch a Hail Mary against his helmet and in an instant you go from eternal legends to just another team that lost the Super Bowl.

Allow me a second to put this loss into perspective.

If the Patriots had won Super Bowl 42 and became the first team to go 19-0 then without question the Patriots would go down as the greatest dynasty in NFL history, as well as the being annointed the greatest team in NFL history. With his 4th Super Bowl win in 4 tries, Tom Brady would be unanimously known as the greatest QB of all time and Bill Belichick could be considered the greatest coach. But they came up just short, and now they "proudly" hang a banner from their stadium that says "16-0 2007 Patriots Perfect Regular Season" which is kind of like "playing just the tip", we all know you didn't finish.

Last night I decided to get the perspective from a Patriots fan, who may or may not have blocked Super Bowl 42 from his memory. I wanted to get his take on the game, and see if the game had the same meaning to a Pats fan as it did for myself. So I got my old college roommate on the line, Wild Bill Hews, and here's what he had to say...

ETC: What I find most interesting is the legacies at stake. Even though no one involved is talking about it, what's your take on what's at stake?
Hews: I don't feel like they would be thinking about it in the moment. But I agree, a lot is at stake for all parties.

ETC: I feel this is the most interesting Super Bowl, maybe ever, at least since Favre/Elway because Pats fan can deny it all they want, but this is all about revenge for them right? Tom and Bill, but especially for Pats fans who had to deal with 18-1 chants for 4 years.
Hews: I think the Pats would have rolled the 49ers if they had made it and I felt that way going into the NFC Championship. But I wanted the Giants. I want revenge. But in all honesty, I really like our chances.

ETC: Bias aside, are you concerned about stopping the Giants passing attack? Because Julian Edelman covering Victor Cruz makes me feel funny in my special parts.
Hews: I think we play to give up the short stuff. If you can score TDs in the red zone you win. That won't be the matchup. Arrington will on Cruz. I think you will be able to run a little, but if Pats pressure Eli you are in trouble.

ETC: What did you make of Eli's performance against San Fran? He got pressured and came out on top.
Hews: I don't think the pats will blitz much. Lots of max coverage, velco coverage. (sounds like he is trying to avoid that question)

ETC: What's the matchup that scares you the most and what's the matchup you're most excited about?
Hews: Scared most about the Nicks matchup. We usually get killed by the bigger WRs/ Brandon Marshall for example. Most excited about Welker vs whomever. Think he has a big day, could be MVP. Front runners for MVP are Manning, Brady, Nicks, Welker. Sleepers are Cruz, Hernandez, Bradshaw and Woodhead.

ETC: The Giants seem to have the Pats number. They ended the perfect season in Super Bowl 42 and this year they ended the Patriots 20 game home win streak. Do you think the Giants have a mental advantage?
Hews: No. I think they match up well with the Pats. Athletic defense and solid QB who is a gamer. Both wins came with under 1 min in 4th quarter. And let's not forget when the Pats beat the Giants in New York on the last game of the '07 season with nothing to play for but perfection.

ETC: Where does Super Bowl 42 rank in terms of worst loss as a fan?
Hews: Aaron Boone, Super Bowl 42, game 7 Celts vs Lakers no Perkins and blow double digit 4th quarter lead. And Michigan losing to Ohio State might have been worse our senior year when they were #1 and #2.

ETC: Do you think the banner that says 16-0 deserves to hang in Gillette or is it a constant reminder that you lost the Super Bowl?
*editors note: this is response is why the term Masshole exists. And it may make you hate Boston fans*
Hews: Not to sound like a dick but in 2007 the sox had just won it and the celts were on their way to their first championship. I was living in Boston. It was the season after spygate. We proved what we needed to and played our worst game of the season in the Super Bowl. It hurt more after Brady got hurt week one of the next year. No I think 16-0 is significant, but I'm also saying that the pats had won three, the sox that  fall closed out their second. Pats roll after spygate to 16-0. The Celts have the big three and are rolling. It was a blip that hurts real bad, but hurt worse after Tommy got hurt the next year. Because I honestly thought we could go 19-0 the next year.

ETC: If the Patriots lose on Sunday, how much does it hurt Tom and Bill's mystique/legacy?
Hews: Caz, you have to understand since 2001 sox win 2, pats win 3 lose 1, Celts win 1 lose 1 and Bruins win 1. I think it makes people question the success against the top competition. I don't think it hurts because they have three Super Bowl wins. If they lose and never go back, it hurts more. Just like 2007 hurts less if they win Sunday. It doesn't change the past but it does prove that it was a blip on the radar of a decade plus of dynastic domination. Sunday's Mission : Prove it was a blip.

ETC: You think '07 was just a blip on the radar?
Hews: With a win Sunday it was a blip.

ETC: And with a loss?
Hews: It hurts that much more. And people will question the Pats vs Top Competition.

So there's the New England take on the game. It's amazing how much he discredits the Giants and that Super Bowl performance. He kept saying "top competition" when in reality, with a Giants win, people will always say that Eli and Coughlin just had the Patriot's number.

Here's my take, as a Giants fan. It's very strange to me that almost every media member and prognosticator is picking the Giants to win. After all they are still a 2.5 point underdog and the Patriots are the #1 seed in the AFC with 13 wins, including 10 in a row. I've taken a lot of shit from my friends because I wrote this Giants team off after week 11 when they were embarrassed by Philadelphia. I honestly thought they were done, and still fresh off being in the stadium for the DeSean Jackson meltdown, I was convinced the Giants were dead.

But something amazing happened to them when their season was on the line in week 16 against the New York Jets. Their playoffs began in week 16 and it seemed like they finally realized it was time to play at an elite level or their season was over. And as the past few Super Bowl champions have proved, its the team that gets on a roll heading into the playoffs that usually wins it all.

Sure the Patriots have won 10 games in a row to this point, but I am more impressed with the Giants 5 game winning streak and here's why. It's not just because I'm a Giants fan, but its the quality of the wins. They beat the Jets, the Cowboys and the Falcons all in the Meadowlands, each win more impressive than the previous. Then they went on the road to beat the 15-1 Green Bay Packers, a team everyone had penciled in to represent the NFC at the Super Bowl. But the Giants defense finally showed up, and a team destroyed by injuries all of a sudden had most of their players back. We all know what happened next as the Giants went to San Francisco and knocked off the 49ers.

What I can't get over is how eerily similar this run is to that of Super Bowl 42 and the 2007 Giants. Its almost to the point where it seems like a hoax. The Giants lost 38-35 at home to an unbeaten team late in the season in 2007. In 2011, they lost 38-35 at home to an unbeaten team late in the season. In 2007 they beat the Packers in Green Bay despite being a heavy underdog. In 2011, they beat the Packers in Green Bay despite being a heavy underdog. In 2007, they advanced to the Super Bowl by winning the NFC Championship game on the road with an overtime, game winning field goal by Lawrence Tynes. In 2011, they advanced to the Super Bowl by winning the NFC Championship game on the road with an overtime, game winning field goal by Lawrence Tynes.

Before I get to my prediction, I'd like to discuss the legacies at stake, because the players and coaching can avoid it all they want, but come this time on Monday it's all anyone is going to be talking about. First let's set the table for Tom Brady and Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots. A win would give Brady and Bill their 4th ring together, tying them both for the NFL record both for a QB and coach. And given the current status of the NFL with parity abound, most would agree that this run of 4 championships is far more impressive than that of Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana. Certainly Belichick's accomplishment would be viewed as far more challenging that that of Chuck Knoll's. At stake for these two is the chance to be considered the greatest at their respective positions. Bill could be mentioned in the same breath as Lombardi. And Brady, although technically being tied for the lead, could be called the greatest of all time. And they both have at least 4-5 years of elite play left in them.

As for the Giants the conversation isn't about the greatest of all time, but it would certainly cement some places among the all time greats. With a win Eli and Coughlin would both have 2 championships and would all but guarantee their spots in the Hall of Fame. For Eli it's even more personal. This is a guy who not so long ago was questioned as to whether or not he would ever win the big game. And now he is 60 minutes away from eclipsing his brother and raising the legitimate question of who you would rather have leading your team Peyton or Eli. A lot of mediocre quarterbacks have won a Super Bowl, but only the truly exceptional quarterbacks have won multiple.

It's finally time for my prediction. I know that I am incredibly biased, but I will try to look at this game as evenly as possible. I think the Giants are finally healthy and that they have a much better defense than the Patriots. The Giants have the ability to get to Brady without blitzing, something they did in Super Bowl 42 then they have a huge advantage. The toughest thing for the Patriots will be trying to stop the passing attack for the Giants. The toughest thing the Giants will have to do is limit Tom Brady, which is much easier to type than it is to actually do. Look back at the last 3 games these teams have played I think it will come down to the last possession and whichever quarterback has the ball last is going to win the game.

New York Giants 27- New England Patriots 21


That's my prediction and I'm sticking to it. So enjoy the Super Bowl, consume lots of delicious food and some adult beverages and let's hope the commercials are good. If you don't hear from me, it's because the Giants have lost and I can't bear to hear the abuse from Will Hews. Later this week, we will finally have the reader request piece published so keep your eyes out for it.

Until next time, as always...STAY CLASSY!