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Mediocre Bowl
This isn’t sour grapes. I’ve watched some or all of every Super Bowl. Unless you are a fervent Giants fan, you probably agree with me that last night’s game was mediocre. Aside from the 96-yard drive to a TD by Brady and friends and that fantastic sideline catch made by Mario Manningham on a perfect bomb thrown by Eli, the rest of the contest was no better than you see on any given Sunday. This often happens, of course, because it is a game we’ve seen before. The Giants, in this case, have beaten the Pats before. Under the higher intensity lights the weaknesses of the New England defensive crew stood out. They couldn’t stop the short pass; they blew tackles; they lost the fight in the trenches on the line of scrimmage. New York wasn’t perfect, but they kept it together, just enough to edge out a win. One point or 30 points, doesn’t matter. I was rooting for Danny Woodhead to be the MVP. Why did Brady heave that long throw that got intercepted? And the safety to start the game? I’ve never seen that penalty called, ever. You had to know they were in trouble when a missed field goal was their ticket to the Super Bowl, despite winning ten games in a row. They have been a win machine in the Brady era. They have found a way to win amid injuries and changes in personnel. They give the fans a reason to show up or tune in. No question about it. But that game last night was forgettable.
The ads were mediocre, too. Except for the monkeys. The monkeys were funny.
Madonna was smart to go big with the drummers and choir at the half. And she’s for “world peace,” which is a good thing.
PS: I had missed the Clint ad for the carmakers of Detroit. After seeing the ad on Facebook, I give that one an A+. And I will refrain from any political commentary at this moment.
It was like watching the NJ Devils winning the Stanley Cup, by using the Neutral Zone Trap.
Did the Giants manage to slow down the Patriots no-huddle offense with “injuries”, wherein the players returned after one play out of action? And did they manage to trade 5 yds for 8 seconds off the clock on that final Patriots drive?
But in the end it came down to the Giants made a superb play, where the Patriots were unable to do so a minute earlier.
It’s said that the team that makes fewer mistakes usually wins and that was true Sunday night. Brady getting the safety and then the interception gave up the ball twice not to mention the 2 points and in a relatively low scoring ball control game, that was the difference. After the long-bomb interception by Baltimore, I didn’t think he’d throw it up for grabs like that again. When it mattered most, Manningham made the catch while Welker did not. The game made clear Gronkowski’s value to the team. If they could get one or two decent wide receivers (replacing Ochocinco and perhaps Branch) they’d be better. Brandon Spikes is really good which I never realized since he was out so much. The running back Ridley was good this year but for his fumbles. They are reviving the team with younger players even though Brady is aging. The Patriots should continue to be contenders for a while.
The commercials and half-time show made me realize what a popular culture black hole I live in. Other than Madonna, I didn’t know any of the other “name” performers on stage (even the one who flipped the middle finger to all of us viewers). None of the commercials stood out