
I'm going to be expecting a whole lot of mea culpas from the chattering class this morning. On to the day after spin and observations.
Don Banks in si.com with Snap Judgments:
"Trust me when I tell you that folks close to Brady were very, very worried about his ankle on the Sunday night after New England had beaten San Diego in the AFC title game earlier that day. Brady basically couldn't even walk on his sore ankle that night at home, which tells you how fortunate the Patriots were that there's a two-week gap between the conference title game and the Super Bowl. Still, Brady appeared to have trouble with his deep passing touch against the Giants, which could be attributable, at least in part, to his inability to plant that foot and follow-through on his throws."
What? I like your stuff, generally, Don Banks, but, what? I don't recall you saying something similar before the game. Were you just holding this nugget in case the Pats lost? That's Peter King-esque. Here's a thought on Brady's troubles that has nothing to do with his ankle. He spent the game being pile-driven into the field by large Giants defenders. Start there and skip the ankle stuff.
A Super Bowl Judgements from Clark Judge at sportsline.com:
"Worst call
It's Belichick again, this time on a fourth-and-13 at the Giants' 31, with just under seven minutes left in the third quarter. Logic says you call for the field goal. Only Belichick didn't. Instead he keeps his offense on the field, and Tom Brady threw the ball out of bounds. Wait a minute, didn't Belichick remember that it was a call just like that -- fourth-and-11 from the 30, to be exact -- that cost Marty Schottenheimer in last year's playoff loss to ... New England? Are you going to tell me that Stephen Gostkowski can't kick a 48-yard field goal indoors? Please. If that's the case, the Patriots should find themselves another kicker.
Great point. I don't recall Buck and Aikman hammering on that call, but it was odd. Apparently Belichick had NO faith in Gostkowski. Or his defense for that matter (what is it, about a ten yard difference in field position if he misses?). But at that point, the way the game had played out, I thought there was a far better chance for Gostkowski to make that kick then convert the first down. And, yeah, New England probably could have used the possible three points later on. Bad move. Bad call.
And, if you were looking forward to the Bill Simmons morning after column, it's here:
"This time around, we were the Rams. We were rooting for the unlikable double-digit favorites with an unstoppable offense. We were the arrogant fans who dismissed the chances of the other team. We had the Super Bowl postgame party looming that had been a hot ticket all week. Then the game started, and everything went right to hell. We looked flat from the first minute. Our underdog opponent gained confidence, punched us in the mouth a few times, kept punching and punching, caught a few breaks, threw a few more punches, ran out of gas near the end, looked to be done ... and out of nowhere, rallied for a miracle drive to steal the championship. We stood there slack-jawed while the other fans celebrated, unable to breathe, wondering what the heck just happened. And then, we hustled out of the stadium like we were fleeing a crime scene."
Mmmmm, your pain, it nourishes me.
A few more random thoughts from me (NTYC):
1. Simmons blathered about the ankle later on in that piece, Banks had his stuff on it, and, well, sorry. I'm not buying it as an excuse for Brady's pedestrian performance. Again, it sure looked to me like New York's relentless pass rush had a lot to do with it.
2. I don't recall freaking out when Randy Moss left the field in Washington early a few years back for the Vikings. So I see no reason for me to freak out over Belichick leaving in the confusion before one second was put back on the clock last night. I better go check to see if I was critical then, in order to be consistent in the criticism today. Assuming I was not critical, there is no reason to be so now. That game was over. Although a little teeny tiny part of me thought it might be funny if Manning had somehow fumbled, the ball had somehow gotten loose, and New England had somehow run the ball back. The stories of Belichick being told about that sequence in the locker-room would have made my millenium.
3. Seriously, how has no one found Tiki Barber to get his reaction to this? Where's Peter King?
4. Great game plan from the Giants in general. Stayed committed to trying to control the clock with a steady running game, and it kept the Patriots off balance all game. As much deserved praise as the Giants defense is getting, it would not have worked had the Giants' offense not done such a good job controlling clock and field position as well.
A lot of fun to watch in general. Just a great game.