And so, it’s come to this. Some thought it was possible, but
most doubted. There were missteps, close calls, even a lack of confidence.
However, the possibility of perfection has now become clear.
Yes, it’s true. After a long, tough battle, the time has finally
come for the final Super Bowl prediction article from the Cup O’ Joe, and
indeed, perfection is in sight.
It began innocently, picking a team I despised (New England
Patriots) over a team that had just lost way more big games than they had won
(Philadelphia Eagles). The Seahawks-Steelers match-up the next year was a
little tougher to predict, forcing me to go back and forth between the teams,
but I ultimately made the right call. Last year, it would have been nice to
pick an upset, but everyone outside of
knew better, or should have, and so the Colts were an easy pick.
Of course, more attention this year is obviously being paid
to the New England Patriots’ 18-0 record than my own 3-0 Super Bowl prediction
record. Both are remarkable in their own right, but unfortunately only one was
deemed important enough to be covered by ESPN and have Roman numerals placed
after it.
There’s really no reason to dissect the Patriots as a team.
They are strong in every area. Even where they should be weak — as was assumed
they’d be at cornerback after Ty Law left three years ago — they’re able to
plug and play middle-round picks and still be better than everyone else.
Individually, much of their defensive and offensive lines are nothing special.
Together, they are all extremely annoying. I’m not sure if Bill Belichick made
Tom Brady or if Brady made Belichick. The only thing I know is that had they
not found each other, I wouldn’t know who Gisele Bundchen is or have this
desire to burn all my hooded sweatshirts.
The New York Giants, while obviously the B-story of the
Super Bowl, deserve attention and credit for their 10-straight road wins.
They’re not dominant in any sense of the word, but they have a punishing
defensive front that is able to get to the quarterback. If Michael Strahan is
your second-best defensive lineman after Osi Umenyiora, obviously you’re in
good shape. That front line, along with linebacker Antonio Pierce, helps negate
problems in the secondary and force bad throws that even an old guy like Sam
Madison can get to sometimes. However, anyone who thinks Eli Manning went from
troubled starter to future legend in two months is truly fooling themselves.
It would be surprising for me to see all these upset
predictions heading into the game if not for the fact that much of the country
has grown to hate the Patriots, and maybe the
area in general. Still, drawing a comparison between the underdog Giants and
favored Patriots this year and the underdog Patriots vs. favored St. Louis Rams
four years ago doesn’t really work.
First of all, Mike Martz isn’t coaching the Patriots, so
they obviously can’t fall that quickly. Plus, with all of the mind games
Belichick has played, don’t you think he’d take the time to remind his team
about that game? Don’t you think he’ll be smart enough to downplay their
accomplishments and play up the fact that this “dynasty” has won three titles
by a combined nine points?
Manning has had a great playoff run and might put on a good
showing at the Super Bowl, but Jake Delhomme did that in Super Bowl XXXVIII and
the Patriots still came out on top, with a little help from John Kasay’s crappy
kickoff. So, it is with great confidence that I predict a Patriots victory,
without even requiring any sort of spy equipment to do so. And if, in fact, I’m
wrong, I’ll never have been happier to see my perfection come to an end.
Joe’s Pick: Patriots 34, Giants 27
