Shelved Patriots Commercial: "Perfectville"

Looks like Reebok jumped the gun in making this commercial!

A Giant Victory

I couldn't have been more wrong about my Super Bowl prediction, and I couldn't be more happy about it! The Giants, led by Little Eli, knocked off the supposedly unbeatable Patriots 17-14. It will probably go down as the biggest upset in Super Bowl history, or at least a close second to Joe Namath's victory in Super Bowl 3. There were so many surprises in the game, including the incredibly low score, the suddenly clutch Eli Manning, and the way the Giants made Tom Brady look almost human. The highlight of the game for me came on the game winning drive by the Giants, when Eli Manning evaded the rush, danced around the pocket and threw up a prayer to David Tyree, who subsequently caught the ball with one hand and his helmet. I knew from that point on that the Giants would find a way.

Looking back at my Super Bowl prediction, I listed 7 things that had to happen for the Giants to win. Let me re-visit those now:

1. Brady throws three picks Brady did not throw any, and in fact the Patriots only had one turnover the whole game, which didn't lead to any Giants points. Brady did not have a great game though, as the pressure from the Giants got to him and forced him to make a lot of bad throws.

2. Brady is sacked at least 5 times The Giants got to Brady exactly five times, and more importantly hit him on at least 6-8 other plays. The constant blitzing from all angles caused Brady to be out of rhythm and force a lot of poor passes. We can thank former Eagles assistant coach Steve Spagnuolo, the current Giants Defensive Coordinator, for his great game plan. It looked a lot like Jim Johnson's blitz packages that the Eagles employ.

3. Eli Manning throws zero interceptions Eli did throw one interception, but it was hardly his fault, as it went in and out of his receiver's hands. Manning played the game of his life, and this really was his first step towards greatness. This is one of those games we'll look back on in ten years and say it defined his career. Plus, now he and Peyton can race around Mississippi in their Super Bowl MVP Cadillac's.

4. The Giants rush for a combined 150 yards with Jacobs and Bradshaw I was way off on this one, as the Giants only ran for 91 total yards, with Eli getting 4 of them. The Giants only averaged 3.5 yards per carry. The point I was trying to make with this one was that the Giants needed to control the ball for much of the game. They ended up winning the time of possession battle, but only barely (30:27-29:33).

5. The Giants hold the Patriots to under 30 points Isn't it funny how Plaxico predicted the Patriots would only get 17 points, and then Tom Brady laughed at that idea, and the Patriots only end up with 14?!? Looking back at all the predictions that people made, Plaxico's might be the closest of all.

6. Randy Moss continues to sleep walk through the playoffs Moss played better, but still didn't have a big game, with only 5 catches for 62 yards and a score. He was invisible in the first half of the game, and never got any really big plays. The Giants did an excellent job of taking away any of the big plays that the Patriots love to make. Again, it was all of the pressure put on Brady.

7. Wes Welker breaks his leg Welker came up big, with 11 catches. That little guy was open on nearly every play, and has a knack for getting like 10 yards after the catch every time. The Giants couldn't stop him, but they stopped everyone else.

So of those 7 things, only 2 of them actually happened, although I was close on a few others. The Giants defense really won the game for them. This was a Patriots team that routinely put up 40 points back in October, and the Giants limited them to only two touchdowns. They really dominated the play, and although no one would say that the Giants were the best team this year, they certainly were the better team on Sunday, when it mattered. As an Eagles fan, I can't stand the Giants, but it was great to see them put an end to the Patriots perfect season. Now I hope Eli goes back to his normal self and the Eagles beat them twice next year.

My Super Bowl Prediction

It's finally time for me to step up and make my own prediction. I had a post yesterday that had a list of a bunch of "experts" and their predictions for the big game, and now I will chime in with my own thoughts.

First of all, is there any chance the Giants win? I say no, unless the following things happen:
1. Brady throws three picks (just like the AFC Championship game)
2. Brady is sacked at least 5 times (He was only sacked once when they played back in Week 17)
3. Eli Manning throws zero interceptions (good luck with that one)
4. The Giants rush for a combined 150 yards with Jacobs and Bradshaw
5. The Giants hold the Patriots to under 30 points
6. Randy Moss continues to sleep walk through the playoffs (He has only 2 catches)
7. Wes Welker breaks his leg (He had 11 catches last time they played)

If all of those things happen, it would be a close game. The Patriots played one of their worst games of the season back in Week 17 when these two teams met, and they still pulled out the victory. The Giants played their best game, and lost. The week off also probably killed most of the momentum the Giants had following all of those road victories. Finally, can you really trust Eli Manning? 2 months ago, his career was about to go into the tank. He was one of the 10 worst starting quarterbacks in the league. He has miraculously turned things around, and even hasn't thrown an interception yet in the playoffs. That probably means he is due.

My prediction: Patriots 34, Giants 20. The Giants score a late touchdown to make the score seem closer than it really is. Tom Brady is the MVP with three touchdown passes, two of them to Wes Welker. Most of America turns off the game right before Tom Petty performs, as the game is 27-10 at the half.

Belichick Could be Suspended for One Year!?

A report has surfaced from Sal Paolantonio of ESPN that if the latest allegations against the Patriots taping the Rams walk-through at Super Bowl XXXVI turn out to be true, he will be suspended for a full year. Turns out that after what happened with the Jets earlier in the year, Commissioner Roger Goodell warned Belichick that the next time something like this happens, he will be suspended. That could make today's game his last with the Patriots. For more, read the article over at ProFootballtalk.com.

This is huge news, and a suspension of a full year would be unprecedented. If the Patriots are found to have cheated again, they deserve whatever they get. I have a hunch that Belichick will just retire after the game today, rather than take any more penalties from the NFL. I would not expect this to affect his coaching ability, if anything it might make him more hungry to go out a winner.

A Smattering of Super Bowl Predictions

Here are a bunch of predictions for the Super Bowl from experts and analysts from various sources:

Peter King, Sports Illustrated: Patriots 34-27
Dr Z, Sports Illustrated: Giants 24-20
John Clayton, ESPN: Patriots 38-24
Len Pasquarelli, ESPN: Patriots 31-20
Tom Jackson, ESPN: Patriots 31-21
Ron Jaworski, ESPN: Patriots 41-21
Bill Simmons, ESPN Sports Guy: Patriots 42-17
Jeremy Green, Scouts Inc: Patriots 27-23
Keith Kidd, Scouts Inc: Patriots 27-20
Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News: Patriots 34-24
Mike Greenberg, ESPN Radio: Giants 24-23
Mike Golic, ESPN Radio: Patriots 31-24
Plaxico Burress, New York Giant: Giants 23-17
Princess the Camel: Giants Win

As you can see, you need to either be a fossil (just how old is Dr Z now anyway?), know little to nothing about sports (I can't remember a prediction Greeny got right), looking to pump your team up (and subsequently giving the Patriots even more of a reason to be fired up....way to go Plaxico) or be a camel to pick the Giants to win the Super Bowl.

Will I go the way of the camel?? My prediction coming soon!

Super Bowl 42: Giants vs. Patriots

The Giants edged the Packers 23-20 to win the right to be the Patriots fodder in the Super Bowl. Giants Kicker Lawrence Tynes missed two field goals in the fourth quarter and then redeemed himself in overtime with a 47 yarder. It was the longest field goal ever in Lambeau Field playoff history. Brett Favre returned to his gunslinger ways and threw into coverage numerous times at the end of the game, getting picked off in overtime by Corey Webster to set up the Giants winning score. As a Philly fan, I can't stand the Giants, but I hate the Patriots even more, so I will be forced to root for Little Eli and the rest of the G-men.

Patriots. UGH

This is not directly related to Philly sports, but the f'n Patriots are going to be in the Super Bowl. Again. The Chargers actually kept it closer than most people thought, but their inability to actually put the ball in the end zone did them in. Mr. Perfect Tom Brady threw three interceptions, so that gives hope to the Packers/Giants in two weeks. If I have to see another image like the one on the right, it's gonna "make me want to puke", a la Mike Gundy.