If you are unfamiliar with the radioactive enmity between Big Apple and Beantown sports fans, the Super Bowl will be a great primer. If you are tired of it thanks to the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, too bad.
The great thing about the game is that the roles the two baseball teams occupy have been largely reversed in football.
Tom Brady has Babe Ruth's aura and Derek Jeter's girlfriends. When his receivers fan out along the line of scrimmage, Brady is a poker player triumphantly spreading his royal flush across the table. The Patriots have enough rings to form a diamond brass knuckle. They are slick, experienced, and studded with talent at almost every position. How can they possibly lose?
While Plaxico Burress is his favorite target, Eli Manning's favorite expression must be "Aw, shucks." He can't get the goofy Ole Miss frat-boy grin off his face except when he steps onto the field. New York pulls rabbits out of hats in spite of bookies and hostile crowds, recalling the Red Sox in 2004. At the start of their season, they had lost their best player to the couch on "The Today Show." How can they pull this one off?
Hatred for a New York sports team is a dangerous thing. I once sat in the bleachers at Yankee Stadium in a sea of pinstriped caps and jerseys and blood-freezing taunts and literally danced in my seat as the Red Sox pounded New York's pitchers into submission. (Since I am a Mets fan, my hatred for the Yankees burns with the fire of 10,000 suns.) Somehow I escaped with my skull intact.
Hatred for a Boston sports team is a dangerous thing. My college roommate, the epitome of a Red Sox fan, was once "accused" of being a stealth Yankees fan by someone in the bar where the game was on. He got the better of the guy in a vicious brawl and left, only to be followed out into the street by his accuser, who was still shouting insults. My roommate had to fend off his assailant multiple times before staggering onto the subway. It was like being pursued by the undead.
Aside from incidents like these, the two fan bases treat each other with great respect and cordiality.
It's easy to mythologize the eye-gouging and nose-tweaking that goes on between the two cities. But some of the air in the inflated hype needs to be let out a little bit.
Despite the current buzz, New York City is pretty much a New York Jets town. The Giants evolved into more of a New Jersey squad. Perhaps this is because the Jets have inspired so much apoplexy and disappointment over the years. New Yorkers enjoy nothing so much as self-righteous loathing.
Until the Patriots began their run on Super Bowl trophies, their fan base was weak. Except for 1996, New England was consistently bad for years. They were the butt of Boston sports jokes. Belichick was a poor coach in Cleveland and a questionable hire by Pats owner Robert Kraft. Many Patriots fans are, to put it politely, relatively recent ones.
But never mind these minor quibbles. There is a regional rivalry to be rekindled.
With their two-headed ground game of Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw, the Giants have exactly the kind of offense that is required to keep Brady and his fireworks off the field. Neither back goes down easily - Jacobs will dislocate your jaw, while Bradshaw will sprain your ankles. The latter should break off at least one 30-yard run.
If the Giants can slip Bradshaw out into the flat for some short throws and Manning can complete underneath and mid-range crossing routes, New England's crafty but aging linebackers might have trouble in coverage. Running Burress deep to take a cornerback and a safety out of the middle of the field whenever possible can only help. Manning must pick on Pats cornerback Ellis Hobbs.
Despite running back Laurence Maroney's success last week, the Patriots have to rely on Brady's arm as their first option. Expect the Giants defensive backs, who are tough but don't have great quickness or recovery speed, to jam Randy Moss and Donte Stallworth at the line. The tactic worked well against the Packers last week with the exception of Brett Favre's 90-yard strike to Donald Driver. But New York does not have anyone who can check Wes Welker.
Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce has the smarts and strength to stop Maroney. But Brady will turn to Kevin Faulk often whenever the Giants call in their frequent blitz packages and a quick pass is required. Brady could feed a lot of balls to his tight end Ben Watson, who is underrated as a receiver and can get down the field quickly.
And here's a salute to Madison Central graduate and Pats kicker Stephen Gostkowski. The local boy who made good will attempt at least one crunch-time field goal.
Reader Comments
Posted: Saturday, February 02, 2008
Article comment by:
drew
Sweet Uj. Did that really happen to Devin? Hyperbole?
