The NFL season began with an offensive extravaganza in Green Bay-- and ends with a showdown for the ages in Indianapolis. Can the New York Giants continue their incredible run from 7-7 to title game? Can New England avenge its midseason loss to the G-Men... and would a win even make a dent in their loss four years ago? Plus, what will one eat during the big game?
Friendly Fans-- the Boston-New York dynamic takes another turn as the Big Apple battles Beantown for the title. It's not Yankees-Red Sox... Celtics-Knicks or even Pats-Jets... but there are enough fans to make the hatred year-round. I feel for the Jets fan... who has to choose between the team that's dominated his division or the old school bluebloods who've looked down their noses at the AFL upstarts for a half century. Jets fans are pulling for a measles outbreak in the stadium.
Havin' a Good Time-- I've been going to the same SB party the last few years... usually hosted by the guy who asks you every fifteen minutes if you're having a good time. As the evening progresses he has more beverages and you're being asked every five minutes if you're having a good time. This year it's not at his house-- but he'll still be asking me if I'm having a good time.
Neutral Site? Technically Indianapolis is a neutral city-- but the city of the Colts justifiably hates Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots for knocking them out of the playoffs repeatedly. The city that embraced Peyton Manning naturally would love to see little brother Eli hand the hated Pats another Super Bowl defeat.
Buffalo Wing Dip-- my friend Doug's wife makes this incredible dip with chicken puree... Tabasco and cream cheese. Topped with cheddar, this intestinal monstrosity looks ridiculously nasty-- but is ridiculously delicious. If it were socially acceptable to eat the dip with a spoon, I would.
Halftime a step back?-- I thought the NFL was finally moving into the 21st century by having the Black Eyed Peas performing last year... and now we're given Madonna-- perhaps 15 years too late. I'm not saying Beyonce or Franz Ferdinand... but maybe someone born after the first Super Bowl was played? I thought that John Mellencamp would be a good compromise in Indianapolis... just like I thought the Eagles would have been a decent halftime act in North Dallas.
Butter Bars-- Once one recovers from the Buffalo Wing Dip... Doug's wife also makes these butter bars that consist of 47% butter... 36% shortening and 20% sugar. I know the math doesn't work out-- but after about five of them you'd understand.
Rematches and Rematches-- this isn't the first time there's been a rematch of a regular season game in the Super Bowl... it actually happened four years ago when the Giants reversed the regular season result between the two teams. With the divisional rotation now (crossover games now once every four years) the chance of interconference matchups is a little less than it was from 1978-2001. All three New York Giant Super Bowl wins had them defeating the team they met in the regular season. The Patriots are 1-2 in Super Bowl rematches... falling to the '85 Bears and '07 Giants while topping St. Louis after the 2001 season. This is also a rematch of Super Bowl XLII... if you haven't heard the 100 or so times it's been mentioned.
The Actual Game-- at first glance it appears the New York Giants have the edge... their strengths (high flying wide receivers) able to take better advantage of the Patriots' weaknesses (31st ranked defense) than vice versa (Brady against a bigtime pass rush). But it's tough to get up for a team that resembles the kid with the 1400 SAT's who didn't study all semester. And it's tough to go against a team with Bill Belichick and Tom Brady both on a mission. And it's tough to discount the Pats winning this one for the late Myra Kraft. New England 26, NY Giants 21.
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