Count 29 of the 30 ESPN experts and just about every casual football fan wrong. The first 18 wins mean nothing. The dynasty is perhaps now a superpower at best.
The New York Giants are Super Bowl champions, and every American who roots for the underdog has reason to be happy. The Giants were more than giant underdogs entering this game. Super Bowl 42 is an instant classic.
As I mentioned in an earlier, this is why you can't underestimate the importance of just MAKING the playoffs. The Giants have now won 11 games in a row away from home and yet probably can't wait to get back.
Two of the last three Super Bowls have been won by a 5 seed or lower.
In a game filled with little to no highlights in the first three quarters, the fourth quarter raised the heart rate at an increasingly rapid pace. Three lead changes in the final few minutes, capped off by two touchdowns, including clutch drive by Eli Manning in the final minute.
The perfect season is still to be had, and this game proved just how hard it is to pull off. As much momentum and respect as the Giants brought into this game, given the (literal) road they had to travel to get to Arizona, it was still almost impossible to see them winning this game.
Fact is, the Patriots seemed quite conservative in this game, and even if they had won, this was not one of their best performances. The offense never got into a sustained rhythm and the Giants defense should get the collective MVP, perhaps shared with Manning based on that last drive.
Super Bowl 42 will go down as one of the most unexpected and suspenseful endings in professional sports history. No one went to bed early during this one. The magnitude of the Super Bowl has grown three-fold since the last time Arizona hosted the game, and thanks to games like this, it's no wonder that this monster created by the NFL only continues to be more of a force.
Giants fans may have been Runnin' Down a Dream, but no more. Party on underdogs.
