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Super Bowl rematch the biggest game in awhile
Three years and two days after one of the biggest upsets in sports history, the New England Patriots will once again try to defeat the New York Giants in the Super Bowl. This time, however, will be different.
The 2007-08 Patriots campaign was a special one, going a perfect 16-0 throughout the season. It was a season where QB Tom Brady set the single season passing touchdown record with 50. Randy Moss set the single season receiving touchdown record with 23. As a team, New England put up 589 points, more than any team had ever scored in NFL history. This was also a season where winning anything but the Super Bowl would be unacceptable. Led by Eli Manning, the New York Giants did what no other team had done all season, defeat the New England Patriots.
Now this has been a completely different season. Both the Patriots and Giants have played well throughout the entire season. The Patriots, having the best record in the AFC, had a first-round bye. The Giants, on the other hand, were the last team into the playoffs, earning a wild card spot in the final week of the season.
The Giants won a commanding wild card round game against the Atlanta Falcons 24-2. They would next have to face another very talented team in the Green Bay Packers, who held the best record in the NFL the entire season. Eli Manning played one of the best games of his career, throwing for 330 and 3 touchdowns, defeating the Packers 37-20.
The Patriots had to fight off the “legendary” Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos during the divisional round. Tom Brady led New England to a 45-10 win over Denver with 363 yards and 6 touchdowns. Rob Gronkowski had 145 yards and 3 touchdowns in the victory that sent the Patriots to the AFC Championship.
Both the AFC and NFC championships were nail biters, as both came down to field goals. Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff missed a potential game tying 32-yard field to clinch the 23-20 victory for New England. On the other hand, Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes successfully kicked a 31-yard field goal in overtime to send New York to the Super Bowl.
The storylines for this game are bigger than any other that we’ve seen in a while. The Patriots will look to make up for their loss in Super Bowl XLII. Eli Manning will look to overtake the legacy of Peyton, his older brother. Will Rob Gronkowski’s ankle be good enough to play? Who will be the David Tyree of this year’s game? Will it be a guy like Danny Woodhead or maybe even a guy like Victor Cruz?
Although this game means a lot to the players, it may mean even more to the fans. Fans across all of New England as well as New York and their surrounding areas will be on the edge of their seats come Sunday.
The haunting memory of Super Bowl XLII still lives in the minds of Patriots fans worldwide. I will never forget when David Tyree pinned the ball to his head as the Giants drove down the field. Watching Eli loft that pass to Plaxico Burress in the back of the end zone to clinch the win will forever break my heart. This will be the one and only opportunity for the Patriots to somewhat make that pain go away. If the Giants win, Patriots fans will never be able to accept the fact that a Boston team lost to a New York team. If the Patriots win, there will be at least some closure from Super Bowl XLII and have something to be happy about.
The Giants-Patriots rivalry has become one of the best rivalries throughout the Northeast, as well as the country. Of course there is still Yankees-Red Sox, Jets-Patriots, and Knicks-Celtics and Ranger-Bruins to a lesser extent, but it is still evident that Boston and New York teams will never get along.
Boston teams have dominated the rivalry of late, with the Boston Bruins winning the Stanley Cup most recently. The Patriots along with the Red Sox and Celtics have also all won championships over the last decade. The only championships that New York has won “recently” are the 2000 World Series when the Yankees defeated the New York Mets, the 2009 World Series when the Yankees defeated the Philadelphia Phillies and of course, in Super Bowl XLII when the Giants defeated the Patriots.
We don’t know who will win yet but there is no doubt that both teams will be giving it their all on Sunday. Brady will need to come up big against the Giants strong defense and the same goes for Eli, having a tall task against the weaker Patriots defense. My prediction: Patriots 42, Giants 24.
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Hey buddy it was four years ago, not three. 2012-2008 does not equal three. Go Giants!