Big Blue Notes

In about fifty-one hours, Super Bowl XLII will start.  The Patriots will look to make history as the NFL's second perfect team and the Giants will try to make history by upsetting them.

The odds are certainly against the Giants for a few reasons.

First, the Patriots are 18-0, the Giants are 13-6.  The Patriots are a better team than they Giants this year.  They beat the Giants once already.

The Patriots have been here before.  No one on this team is going to be overwhelmed by the Super Bowl experience.  The media nonsense is something they've dealt with before.

Every time the Patriots have been here before, they've won.  I'm talking about this group of Patriots not the 1985 team that didn't belong on the same field as the Bears or the 1996 team that got beat by a kick returner.  I mean the Brady-Bellicheck Patriots.  They know how to prepare for and win this game.

The Giants were on a hot streak going into the Super Bowl.  They have beaten the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers in consecutive weeks on the road.  The extra week off is no favor for them.  The momentum is stopped.  If they are going to win on Sunday, they won't do it because they are hot.

My other concern about the Super Bowl is the magnificent effort the Giants made against the AFC Champions in the season's final game.  They Giants played they "A" game and lost a close game.  Bill Bellicheck has two weeks to dismantle that "A" game.  That's what he does best.

The Giants are twelve point underdogs with good cause.

But they can win.  Here's why:

First, they are not in awe of New England.  They've played them already and played well against them.  They got lit up for thirty-eight points, but they played the best team in football tough and even had a lead going into the fourth quarter.

The Giants are playing with house money.  New England is the team that has to win this game.  The pressure is on the Patriots.  If the Giants lose, they lose to the best team in football.  If the Patriots lose, they will have come so close only to waste an 18-0 record.

The Giants have a balanced offense with a strong running game.  Success is not on any one player's shoulders.  Eli Manning must play well, but he does not need to carry the Giants to victory.

The Giants have the best pass rush in the NFL.  They have Strahan and Umenyiora on the ends and Tuck and Robbins in the middle who are all capable of getting to the quarterback.  The play of their defensive backfield, a weakness for many seasons, has improved greatly in the playoffs.  Corey Webster has stepped up significantly and R.W. McQuarters has made some key picks.

The Giants have beaten the Cowboys in Dallas and the Packers in Green Bay.  They are no fluke.  They are the champions of the NFC.  Underdogs to be sure, but they are not a weak sister. 

For the Giants to win it is imperative that they do not become a one dimensional offense.  They must never give up on the running game.  If Brandon Jacobs is averaging three yards per carry, that's fine.  Keep Jacobs and Bradshaw involved in the game plan.  The worst thing you can be against New England is predictable.

Predictability is also a sin against the Patriots when they have the ball.  Keep giving Tom Brady the same look and he'll put fifty points on the board.  I don't think it's possible to truly confuse Tom Brady, but it is important that the Giants make his life as difficult as possible on Sunday, even one late hit would be okay.  Occasionally, they might want to use the defense Bellicheck used as Giants Defensive Coordinator in Super Bowl XXV.  Rush two men and flood the passing lanes.  Not a lot, but enough to mix things up a bit.

At this point, all I can hope for is a well played game.  I cannot demand victory from the Giants.  They can win, but that would be quite the upset and I would be ecstatic if it were to happen.  They may lose and I would have to live with that.  And I could as long as they don't embarrass themselves.  They are playing the best team the NFL has seen since the great Cowboy teams of the early 1990's.  It's a tall order.

But then again, so was winning in Dallas and Green Bay.

GO BIG BLUE!

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• #1 Comment from trickage2 
  2/4/08 9:06 AM | Permalink

  HELL YES! Thank u Big Blue. The arrogance STOPS here! Bellechick is a cheatin' baby. They saw all the Giants plays and still couldn't win. So Bellechick walks off with a second left like a little kid having a little pouty lipped tantrum. Priceless. Manning can slay the naysayers now. Plaxico, is that a pharmaceutical company. He lasted more than four hours, should he call for medical help? Your defense was STEEL! Congrats, you give all Charger fans hope.