Whether it be Ronde Barber, Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson, Terrell Owens' ankle, or Brett Favre's "magical" season, there always seems to be something more interesting for people to focus on than the New York Giants. As has been the case throughout the entire postseason, the Giants will most likely be nothing more than a side-story as we approach Super Bowl XLII. I suppose that's not unfair treatment when your opponent is the 18-0 New England Patriots, and you certainly won't hear any complaints from the Giants themselves. Not only is this team supremely confident in what they're doing, but they also seem to relish the role of the underdog. As Eli Manning said in his press conference after the Dallas win "No one's given us much credit and probably still won't. But that's OK. We like it that way."
It's very difficult for me to sort my thoughts out about last night's game. It will most likely take a few days for me to straighten everything out in my head.
Frankly, I'm finding it difficult to write about the game in a coherent manner. So, instead, let me just give you a numbered list of random thoughts as they keep rushing through my head, and over the next two weeks I'll make an effort to organize my thoughts more clearly:1) The consensus was that the Giants would need to play a near-perfect game in order to have a shot at knocking off Green Bay. Clearly, this was not true. In fact, if the Giants had been able to cut out a few mistakes throughout the game, this could have been a blowout.
2) There were several dropped passes throughout the game that would have extended drives. This problem has emerged several times this season (most recently against Washington). For some reason, the one that kills me is Amani Toomer's drop on our second drive. Going down the field on that drive would have been big for building momentum.
3) I wanted Plaxico Burress to hold on to that ball inside the five at the end of the first half in the worst way. This would have been the second straight playoff game in which the Giants offense marched down the field to score and take huge momentum into the half.
4) While we're on the subject of Plax, we need to talk about his performance, which was epic. This is a guy that has been playing injured all season. He has been playing this postseason with an ankle that has been sprained for five months and has torn ligaments inside of it. There was not one person on the field last night with more of a reason to get lost in the cold conditions. This would have been no surprise to the experts, who spent all week talking about what a great matchup the Packers had at cornerback. Burress dominated Al Harris all game long. I have one question for the people who thought that Green Bay had the best chance to beat New England: Can you imagine what Randy Moss would have done to that press coverage from Harris?
speaking of epic performances (feel free to fast forward through the first 2 minutes)...........
5) I was on the phone with Jarrett (a roomofzen follower and Giants fan) last night after the RW McQuarters interception and fumble. After we both yelled a slew of profanities, I said "that's alright, I'm confident." He said "I'm totally confident that Eli can lead us back." I echoed this sentiment. Neither of us were reaching or trying to convince ourselves. We were both genuinely confident that Eli Manning was perfectly in control of the situation and was ready to lead the Giants on a scoring drive (which he did). I have felt this way throughout the entire postseason. People can say whatever they want about Eli not looking like a leader and not having the demeanor of a leader, but the single most important quality of a leader is that he has the confidence of those that he leads.
6) In discussing who has been the unsung hero for the Giants thus far, there are many people that need to be brought up. As he always does, Fred Robbins has been a rock in the middle of the defensive line. Corey Webster has stepped up his game in a big way and has made huge plays in every game (including last night's overtime INT to set up the winning field goal). Justin Tuck has had a career year, and just signed a long term extension with the G-Men last week. Steve Smith has made several of the biggest catches of this run, and will hopefully be ready to be a regular contributor next year. Certainly, Kevin Boss has stepped in and played well in Jeremy Shockey's absence. However, all of these players have received at least some degree of recognition over the past few weeks. If you go to the Giants roster, and click on kick returner Domenik Hixon, there is not even a headshot. I would imagine that you could even talk to some Giants fans who wouldn't know who he was. Yet, this guy has been HUGE for us in the playoffs (not to mention the fact that he ran one back against New England in week 17). The field position game has been key to the Giants success during these playoffs, and Hixon has given us a short field many times. On top of all of this, he came up with a HUGE recovery of RW McQuarters' fumble.
7) Apparently Joe Buck and Troy Aikman haven't spent a great deal of time watching the Giants this season, as evidenced by this quote last night: "Tom Coughlin might really want to consider putting something warm over his face. It looks really red."
8) Obviously the Giants made a lot of plays on both sides of the ball last night, but none stick out in my head as much as Antonio Pierce sniffing out a well designed screen, going through two blockers on his own, and giving an outstanding individual effort to help save a touchdown.
9) Obviously a lot was made before the game about how wonderful it would be to see Brett Favre back in the Super Bowl. I love Favre, and seeing him on the Super Bowl stage would have helped to soften the blow of a Giants loss. However, Favre has won a Super Bowl. Michael Strahan has not. I understand that Favre is a quarterback, and has been the face of the league for a long time. But, Michael Strahan is a future hall of famer and one of the greatest ever to play his position. He is an outstanding pass rusher and run stopper, and he has played at a consistently high level throughout his career. Let's put my Giants allegiances aside for a second. There are many of you out there, like me, who in their days of playing football were reduced to the less glorious positions (offensive and defensive linemen). As one of those people, I am happier that I'll have the chance to see Michael Strahan win his Super Bowl than I would have been to see Favre have a shot for his second. As a Giants fan, obviously, nothing would make me happier than to see Strahan finally hoisting the Lombardi trophy.
I could go on with this stuff all day, but I won't. The experts all picked Tampa Bay. They all picked Dallas. They all picked Green Bay. I'm sure that all of the experts will pick New England in this game. I have to admit that I'm less confident about this game than I was about the last three. However, it is by no means a foregone conclusion. The Giants have built their confidence and hardened their resolve considerably since the last time these two teams met. The neutral site in Glendale will be the least hostile environment they have played in since before the playoffs began. They have no pressure on them in this game. Their season has been a success. They just need to go out and play as hard and as well as they can. The Patriots, on the other hand, have all the weight of a fanbase that is thirsting for a perfect season. It's like week 17 all over again, but with higher stakes. Hopefully this time the Giants can author a different ending.
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