Sports 'N Stuff: Destiny Interrupted
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Well not dead wrong I guess. It was all about the Patriots before last night and, in some sense, still is. In the more important sense, it's about the G-Men baby! Big Blue is in the house and definitively so. In a much different respect it is still about the Patriots but not in the sense we all thought we would be discussing today.
While last night's Super Bowl was not the greatest upset in NFL Super Bowl history, it was the greatest win and pretty close to the greatest game ever. It probably has to fall in behind Joe Namath's prediction in Super Bowl III that the Jets would beat the Colts. They did beat the Colts, thereby legitimizing the AFL and playing a key role in its merger with NFL. Other than that this, is THE biggest game of all time.
When you think of who was playing and what was involved and how it ended, you cannot argue the point that this game will go down in infamy. Think about it.
The Most Prolific Offense In NFL History
The Pats scored 589 points in the regular season, easily surpassing the Vikings 556 in 1998. With Brady throwing 50 TD passes (NFL record) and Randy Moss catching 23 TDs (NFL record) and the "birth" of previously unknown Wes Welker, who scored eight touchdowns in the regular season and set a Super Bowl record last night with 11 receptions, this offense was poised to cruise to a victory in the big game. What happened? The Giants defensive line made that offense look like your standard, run-of-the-mill offense that could not get anything going. They pummeled Tom Brady all night long. With five sacks total, only one came from someone other than a defensive lineman. Not only did they sack Brady, but they knocked him around all night long and disrupted his downfield game. He had to keep going short to Welker and could not connect with his "guy," Randy Moss, on any big plays which has been a staple for them all year. That offense was set back on their heels from the get go and it continued the entire game.
Eli Manning
You will recall from my last column that Eli grew up the last few weeks of the regular season. Well last night he moved from growing up to becoming the MVP of the Super Bowl. The Giants defense should have gotten that award if a collective one existed. Since it doesn't then Eli certainly deserves to be the one to get it. While the defense kept them in the game, Manning managed to stay error free with the exception of one pass that tipped off a receiver's hands and was picked.
All game he showed poise, stayed calm and made decisions equivalent to the "other Manning." When the fourth quarter came around Manning did exactly what he had to do to end up with the bling. He drove his team down the field twice and threw touchdowns from the red zone and took the air out of that Pats defense who had previously been impenetrable in the red zone.
Manning threw his final TD pass with 35 seconds left to give the Giants the lead back and ultimately was the final score propelling them to the championship. He IS the man for New York and has now cemented himself as Eli Manning - and NOT Peyton's brother anymore.
Destiny ...
These Pats were 18–0. They were being talked about in the same breath as the Steelers teams of the '70s, the Cowboys of the '80s and the 49ers of the '90s as being a dynasty. They were supposed to be a team that won four Super Bowls in seven years and own this new decade. They had within their grasp the perfect season: 19-0. They were supposed to be the ones to keep the '72 Dolphins from popping the champagne bottles this year and finish the job. They were supposed to pass the 1985 Bears (18-1) as the greatest single season team ever. Supposed to ... .
... Interrupted
Not. Thanks to the New York Football Giants the Patriots will now be remembered as A team who went 18-1. They are now the team who couldn't get it done when it mattered and have no fallen into mere obscurity in the mention of NFL teams. They lost their perfect season to a fifth-seeded wild card team who is only one year removed from being one of the most troubled franchises in the league. They had two big-mouth players who constantly berated their own coach and teammates. They had a coach who lost his players confidence and was very close to being on his way out. They started the season 0-2 and it wasn't looking good. Now, 19 weeks later, they will be riding in a parade in NYC celebrating their Super Bowl victory.
This was in fact the greatest Super Bowl of my lifetime. Not because the Pats lost ... I picked them all season long. It was the greatest because of all it meant and all it delivered. If you are a football fan (and, yes, Pats fans, after your headache wears off, you too will realize it) this game was the one you wait for.
