Super Bowl Stuff

Congratulations New York Giants!

Eli Manning is an elite quarterback.

Looks like Mario Manningham is this year's David Tyree. His catch on the sideline to help drive his team to the winning touchdown was fantastic. The throw was great too.

I didn't like the safety call to open the Super Bowl scoring.  Intentional grounding on a pass that Tom Brady threw about 40 yards downfield is a difficult call to make. Difficult to make in a regular season game let alone the Super Bowl. Technically it's the correct call as Brady was getting rid of the ball to avoid a safety. Passes heaved downfield and out of bounds are basically the same. In fact, Eli Manning did just that later in the first half. Nothing is called on those throws but the purpose is the same as Brady's throw.

I hate it when teams allow a touchdown at the end of the game to get the ball back with some time left. I know it's good strategy but I absolutely hate the idea of giving a team anything. It's just not supposed to be done.

Maybe Tom Coughlin's job is safe for a little while.

Not to take anything away from the current Tom Brady. He's an outstanding quarterback. I just find it interesting that he won three Super Bowls in his first four years as a starting quarterback. He's zero for two as one of the best of all time. This is more about the Giants doing what they need to do than Brady not doing what it takes. It's just something that I find interesting.

The Patriots are doing terrific things with their tight ends but they could still use a receiver or two to go with Wes Welker.

I really enjoy seeing competitive, exciting, fun Super Bowls. You could probably count on one hand the decent championship games from the mid-70s through the 90s. We've had a bunch since the turn of the century.

Just a little more Hall of Fame stuff:

The Minnesota Vikings now have 11 players, coaches, and administrators in the Pro Football Hall of Fame:
Bud Grant
Fran Tarkenton
Alan Page
Paul Krause
Ron Yary
Carl Eller
Jim Finks
Gary Zimmerman
Randall McDaniel
John Randle
Chris Doleman
That's a pretty nice total for a team that's been around since 1961 and has failed to win a Super Bowl. Cris Carter should make it 12, soon! Vikings fans complain regularly about a voter bias against the team. The Dallas Cowboys have been around a year longer and have 5 Super Bowl wins. They have 13 Hall of Famers.

With another year shunned, Cris Carter looks to the 2013 class. It'll be a tough one. Offensive linemen Jonathan Ogden and Larry Allen and defensive linemen Michael Strahan and Warren Sapp will be eligible.
I consider all four automatic. The voters are idiots so who knows? One thought occurred to me. The voters are ridiculously committed to agendas and quotas. Four grunts from the trenches might allow for a playmaker like Carter to finally enter. We can only hope.

Thanks for this year's memories NFL.