WIDE LEFT

For patriot fans, the title says it all…Wide Left…Those words have never sounded better than when they left the mouth of Gil Santos.

The New England Patriots are going to the Super Bowl for the 5^th time in the last eleven years, which is the most for any head coach/quarterback tandem in NFL history. For a defense that has been buried all year by anyone with a microphone or keypad, the word of the day is vindicated. Sure, they don’t have Bruschi, Vrabel, Law, Harrison, Samuel, or Seymour, but they sure played like they did.  People will say “your crazy…they let up 400yds!!” and my response to that is…”SCOREBOARD!!” (Not the most sophisticated answer, but you get my point) Patriot fans understand that their defense may let up 500yds a game, and you know what, that’s ok with us. As long as our defense can keep Tom Brady in the game, they can let up a thousand yards if their hearts desire. 

Now that I got that off my chest, lets get into the game. The Baltimore Ravens gave the New England Patriots everything they had, but whether it was luck or divine intervention, it wasn’t enough and Tom Brady and company held on for a 23-20 victory.  Brady was not the “Tom-Terrific” that we were used to as he threw two interceptions and did NOT throw for a touchdown…yes that’s correct he did NOT throw a touchdown. Brady however did have a rushing touchdown, which saw him do his best Reggie bush impersonation, leaping over the pile and being spearheaded by the murderous Ray Lewis. On the other side of the ball Joe Flacco did his best to quiet his critics and solidify himself as an elite quarterback, but it just wasn’t in the cards. Flacco went 22/36 for 306 with 2 TD’s and one interception (it should be noted that the INT didn’t really hurt him as Brady threw one right after) and played one hell of a game. Mr. Fu Manchu drove down the field with little time left and threw what many thought was the game winning touchdown pass to Lee Evans. Before we go any further, it should be noted that Lee Evans had fewer catches than Chad Ochocinco in the regular season, and they put their Super Bowl aspirations on HIS SHOULDERS?!?!Honestly I forgot Lee was even on the freaking team!!  Maybe the Ravens would have made the big game if they made the right calls, but neither of those things happened and the Patriots advance to Super Bowl XLVI.

Over in the NFC we had the #1 seed San Francisco 49ers taking on the incredibly hot New York Giants. New England fans were cheering for San Fran’ and if you hear otherwise, it’s a load of crap. We did NOT want to play the G-Men simply because they have Lord Bellichick’s number. We don’t need to bring up what happened in the toaster four years ago, but it should be noted that we have not beat the Giants since 2007. Patriot-nation needs to be worried because the Giants ousted the 49ers 20-17 in OT, and they did it on the shoulders on Eli Manning. 

People will say that the Giants won because of the inept kick returner Kyle Williams, but I don’t buy that. Nobody is denying that on that day Mr. Williams’s football IQ was flat lining, but Eli Manning spent more time on his back than Kim Kardashian in her only successful movie (not scary movie), and STILL WON. Eli has the confidence in his ability to make throws he would not have even thought of four years ago and his receivers are better. Alex Smith was no match for the best defensive line in football, period, and end of story.

I know it may seem like I did not spend as much time talking about the NFC game, but that is because it was real cut and dry to me. No matter what the 49ers could throw at them, at the end of the day Eli is the superior QB and the Giants d-line is the best in the game right now. For anyone that says, “the patriots have a better offense than 2007” you can say “Eli is 10x better than he was in 2007”. Super Bowl XLVI has the making to be the best game ever, and we are still days away.

I will hold off on my prediction for a later time and after the “big game” I will post about all Boston/national sports.

…Until next time.

Mike Marcangelo

Sports Tap