Sunday’s Super Bowl, which is a rematch of the Giants’ 2008 upset victory over the then-18-0 Patriots, raises one question: can Tom Brady exact his revenge and bring home a fourth championship?
The answer, undeniably, is yes. Not only has Brady played with a chip on his shoulder his entire career due to being drafted in the sixth round, but he also has a superb clutch gene, as he’s led his team to 24 fourth-quarter comebacks.
Oh yeah, and there’s this little thing about him being the greatest quarterback to ever play the game of football.
That’s right, capping off this season with 5,200 yards, 39 touchdowns and a QB rating of over 105.0, Brady has etched his name as the greatest quarterback of all time, surpassing all-time greats, such as John Elway, Brett Favre, Joe Montana and Peyton Manning.
Alongside his three rings, Brady’s career is decorated with records and impressive statistics: He’s never had a season with more than 14 interceptions; he holds the records for most touchdown passes in a single season (50); he’s the only player to ever have two years with at least a 110.0 passer rating; he’s tied for first in most touchdowns thrown in a postseason game (six); and though overshadowed by Drew Brees, he, too, broke Dan Marino’s record for most yards thrown in a single season.
Sunday’s game will only solidify Brady’s greatness.
The Giants, who hobbled into the playoffs with an 9-7 record by beating the Cowboys in a win-or-go-home game, did well to contain Aaron Rodgers and the No. 1-ranked Green Bay Packers offense, but had to rely on the San Francisco 49ers’ Kyle Williams to fumble the ball in overtime to pull through to the Super Bowl.
Though the Patriots had some luck of their own against Baltimore when Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff shanked a 32-yard game-tying field goal, this postseason has shown one thing: New England’s bottom-ranked regular season defense has really stepped up, even when Brady isn’t on his game.
The Pats defense is only allowing 15 points per game this postseason, they’ve sacked the opposing quarterbacks eight times and forced four turnovers (two interceptions and two fumbles). This, combined with Brady’s precision and chemistry with record-setting tight end Rob Gronkowski, will undeniably wreak havoc among the Giants’ secondary.
Sure, the Ravens defense made Brady look like a fool by holding him to a passer rating of less than 60. (Though, he did run a touchdown in.) But hoping the Giants can do anything remotely near that is a stretch as New York’s defense is coming off a game in which they gave up two touchdowns and 200 yards to Alex Smith, who finished the game with a passer rating of nearly 100.
In the end, Brady’s aerial assault will go largely unchecked by the Giants’ 29th-ranked pass defense, and the Patriots will walk away with their fourth championship in 11 years.
Oh … and I really, really hate the Patriots.
