The last two years, the “super” has been put back into the Super Bowl.
In fact, in the decade of the 2000s, the games were much more competitive than the 1990s, which saw a string of dogs.
It’s hard to top the excitement of the last two Super Bowls. Pittsburgh’s mesmerizing 2009 victory over Arizona in the closing moments had to rank among the top 10 all time in excitement and, of course, the 2008 game was an epic that still is talked about when the New York Giants dashed New England’s hopes for a perfect season with a 17-14 victory, which was best remembered for David Tyree’s improbable catch, regarded as the best in Super Bowl history.
As one who has watched every Super Bowl since its inception in 1967, we have to admit we don’t get as jazzed about the game like we used to. One reason is the two weeks between the conference championship games and the big game. We still believe the Super Bowl should be played the very next week, striking while the iron is hot. The extra week is wasted on needless hype and bantering, and way too many media types like us writing or talking about it ad nauseum.
We have a potentially nice matchup this year. It would have been a greater story if Minnesota had won, since it would have matched Bret Favre against Peyton Manning. But a Manning vs. Drew Brees matchup ‘tisn’t bad, either.
New Orleans probably is the sentimental favorite, as no team in the NFL is tied to its city like the Saints dating back to Hurricane Katrina. The Saints have given New Orleans fans a rallying point and has eased the heart-break a bit.
Manning, too, is at the epicenter of the game. A lot of quarterbacks have won a Super Bowl, but few are multiple winners. Manning’s place in the pantheon of quarterbacks will be solidified with a victory.
It’s also a game where the teams’ coaches aren’t easily recognizeable. How many of you know who the Colts’ coach is (and he’s not Tony Dungy)? The answer is Jim Caldwell and it’s nice to see that little has been made of him being an African American coach. Thankfully we’ve gotten past that stigma as he’s simply a great coach, not a great black coach. And New Orleans’ Sean Payton is getting his due, as he’s always been an outstanding offensive strategist, but now he’s taken his team coming off a so-so season one game from the promised land.
We have no rooting interest in this game. We happen to like both teams, maybe the Saints a little more than the Colts because we think they’ll make for a better human interest story. But if we were a betting man, we wouldn’t go against Peyton Manning.
Colts 31, Saints 24
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The last two years, the “super” has been put back into the Super Bowl.
In fact, in the decade of the 2000s, the games were much more competitive than the 1990s, which saw a string of dogs.
It’s hard to top the excitement of the last two Super Bowls. Pittsburgh’s mesmerizing 2009 victory over Arizona in the closing moments had to rank among the top 10 all time in excitement and, of course, the 2008 game was an epic that still is talked about when the New York Giants dashed New England’s hopes for a perfect season with a 17-14 victory, which was best remembered for David Tyree’s improbable catch, regarded as the best in Super Bowl history.
As one who has watched every Super Bowl since its inception in 1967, we have to admit we don’t get as jazzed about the game like we used to. One reason is the two weeks between the conference championship games and the big game. We still believe the Super Bowl should be played the very next week, striking while the iron is hot. The extra week is wasted on needless hype and bantering, and way too many media types like us writing or talking about it ad nauseum.
We have a potentially nice matchup this year. It would have been a greater story if Minnesota had won, since it would have matched Bret Favre against Peyton Manning. But a Manning vs. Drew Brees matchup ‘tisn’t bad, either.
New Orleans probably is the sentimental favorite, as no team in the NFL is tied to its city like the Saints dating back to Hurricane Katrina. The Saints have given New Orleans fans a rallying point and has eased the heart-break a bit.
Manning, too, is at the epicenter of the game. A lot of quarterbacks have won a Super Bowl, but few are multiple winners. Manning’s place in the pantheon of quarterbacks will be solidified with a victory.
It’s also a game where the teams’ coaches aren’t easily recognizeable. How many of you know who the Colts’ coach is (and he’s not Tony Dungy)? The answer is Jim Caldwell and it’s nice to see that little has been made of him being an African American coach. Thankfully we’ve gotten past that stigma as he’s simply a great coach, not a great black coach. And New Orleans’ Sean Payton is getting his due, as he’s always been an outstanding offensive strategist, but now he’s taken his team coming off a so-so season one game from the promised land.
We have no rooting interest in this game. We happen to like both teams, maybe the Saints a little more than the Colts because we think they’ll make for a better human interest story. But if we were a betting man, we wouldn’t go against Peyton Manning.
Colts 31, Saints 24
