Game Face

Sorry New York. I don't think this is your year.

The Giants have given hope to an region that has been crapped on time and again over the past year by their sports teams. The Mets tied up the NL East in a beautiful red bow and personally handed it to the Phillies last September. The ongoing soap opera in the Bronx, between First Lady of the Diamond A-Rod and Roger Clemens and the controversy over whether he actually let Brian McNamee stick needles in his hiney. The Jets are just terrible. The Knicks are the most despicable franchise in sports, and Isiah Thomas is a clown who has committed at least 6 or 8 fireable offenses just this season with the Knicks. Even the Islanders got in on the action with Chris Simon's cheapshot the sequel. Being proud of one of the sports teams in your city is a wonderful thing, but as Cinderella had a lovely evening in her sparkling gown and glass slippers, Eli Manning will soon turn back into a pumpkin.

The Giants scored 35 points on the Patriots defense during that last scare of the season. However, the Patriots held Philip Rivers and the Chargers to four field goals during the AFC Championship. It is noted that Rivers was missing vital parts of his knee, and LT decided to take a knee for the majority of the game. But the Patriots red zone defense was perfect last Saturday, and I think that Eli and company are going to have their hands full dealing with the notorious Belichick Blitz and the physical play that comes with it. It's worth saying too, that, well, the Giants didn't exactly beat Green Bay in Green Bay, but Brett Farve single-handely killed the Pack with his 55 percent completion rate and two picks. If he'd had the same kind of game as Eli, the Green Bay would have won.

Belichick's army is back to just finding ways to beat you. Who would you rather in a big game? Coughlin or Belichick? Brady or Eli? It's been a fun ride Big Blue, but you can't change destiny.

--Lizzy

For all of you out there who need a break from the 336 hours of pre-Super Bowl coverage, here's what's been happening in the rest of the sports world. If you're hesitant to peel your eyes from that TV, because it always happens when you walk away for two minutes, I'm pretty sure that hour 113 will be shockingly similar to hour 114... and there's always TiVo.

- The Yankees are on the verge of signing second baseman Robinson Cano to a long-term extension. The deal on the table is reportedly a four-year guaranteed contract for about $30 million.

- The Knicks are apparently so bad that the prospect of joining the team can bring a grown man to tears.

- The Rangers, on the other hand, perhaps inspired by Brian Leetch's number retirement ceremony, head into the All-Star break on their first two-game winning streak since December 29th and 30th. Perhaps not coincidentally, this will not be the last Rangers jersey hung from the rafters this year.

- Roger Federer's streak of ten straight Grand Slam finals was ended when he went down in straight sets to #3 seed Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of the Australian Open.

- Tiger Woods finally started golfing again. After dealing with a firestorm of controversy the past few weeks, Woods teed off Thursday at the Buick Open.

- And, of course, the endless fallout from the Mitchell Report continues. Even as Roger Clemens, Brian McNamee and Kirk Radomski prepare themselves for testimony in front of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, one player has strangely not RSVP'd. Chuck Knoblauch did not only decline the Committee's initial invitation, he continues to dodge a subpoeana that would force him to appear. This isn't the first time Knoblauch's given us something out of right field. Or was it second base? It's tough to gauge the trajectory of a ball while sitting in the stands when the baseball's flying directly at your face at 80 mph.

Anyways, I guess I've taken about all the time I can, seeing as there's probably another picture of Tom Brady in a walking cast on crutches or something that's about to pop up.

Have a good weekend.

- Tim Fiorvanti

Here is my Top 15:
1. Miami — Glenn Dorsey, DT, LSU
Talented and productive DTs are worth their weight in gold in the NFL and Dorsey is the kind of big, strong player Bill Parcells likes.
2. St. Louis — Jake Long, OT, Michigan
St. Louis has to find a long-term replacement at left tackle for Orlando Pace, whose health can't be counted on anymore.
3. Atlanta — Chris Long, DE, Virginia
Their new coach, Mike Coach, was a defensive coordinator. Plus, after the Vick and Petrino sagas, the Falcons need some good p.r. moves and Long has the intangibles to be a great face for the franchise.
4. Oakland — Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas
Dallas is a realistic trade partner, but Oakland needs a RB to take pressure off of JaMarcus. Fargas is an unrestricted free agent, Rhodes is not a feature back, Jordan won’t be around, and Michael Bush's knee is too risky to count on.
5. Kansas City — Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College
Do I need to explain how bad their QBs are? Even Herm Edwards isn’t naive enough to think Croyle can be the guy. At least I hope not for that city’s sake. Plus they didn’t get Brady Quinn last year, so this is them fixing that mistake.
6. Jets — Vernon Gholston, DE, Ohio State
He can be switched to an outside linebacker in the 3-4 and occasionally line up as a DE in pass rushing situations.
7. New England — Aqib Talib, CB, Kansas
I really think they'll try to trade down and pick a LB, since none of them are worth the seventh pick’s money. But if they don’t, like every other NFL team, they could use some secondary depth.
8. Baltimore — Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
I wouldn’t be surprised if they go for a DE or OT, but McNabb is worthless, Boller has lost his biggest supporter in Billick, and QB impresario Cam Cameron was just hired as the OC. (Enough initials for you?)
9. Cincinnati — Sedrick Ellis, DT, USC
Ellis is the best value with the pick and Cincy’s defense needs an infusion of talent.
10. New Orleans — Mike Jenkins, CB, Ohio State
The Saints defense was terrible and the worse part of the unit was at cornerback.
11. Buffalo — DeSean Jackson, WR, Cal
Cal pals Jackson and Marshawn Lynch can befriend each other in lonely western New York and Buffalo needs another dynamic piece to fit around QB Trent Edwards.
12. Denver — Ryan Claddy, OT, Boise State
Denver's offensive line has been crippled the past couple years and Claddy is a known, local product.
13. Carolina — James Stewart, RB, Oregon
Coach John Fox says Carolina will go back to becoming a menacing and powerful running team. Neither of their current RBs, Foster and Williams, can provide that. Stewart is 230 pounds, fast, and has that NBA syndrome (a high ceiling).
14. Chicago — Kentwan Balmer, DT, North Carolina
He's being projected to New Orleans at No. 10 right now, so Chicago, with a need for DT depth, would feel good about the value of this pick.
15. Detroit — Sam Baker, OT, USC
Detroit needs to better protect their QB next year. The coaching staff has said it also wants to run the ball more, so the Lions could replace Jeff Backus with Baker at LT or shift Baker over to RT.

— Kyle Stack

In talking to several football fans who live outside New York City, most aren’t giving the Giants much of a chance in Super Bowl XLII, many forecasting a New England blowout. (The fact that the Giants lost by 3 points to the Patriots last month is inconsequential to them.)

Big Blue currently sits as a 12-point underdog. To understand why no one should count out the Giants, look no farther than the last time a team was a double-digit underdog in the big game.

If anyone should understand the position the Giants find themselves in, it should be the Patriots.

In February 2002, New England earned a trip to Super Bowl XXXVI against the mighty St. Louis Rams. The Rams were easily the most feared team in football from 1999-02, similar to how we think of the Patriots today.

New England, on the other hand, was widely considered to be nothing more than a speed bump for the Rams, propelled by their “The Greatest Show on Turf” offense, on their way to an inevitable world title. By kickoff, St. Louis was 14-point favorites.

Fast-forward to the final score: New England 20, St. Louis 17.

Prior to Adam Vinatieri's 48-yard game-winning field goal, the Rams were regarded almost as highly as the 49ers of the '80s or the Cowboys of the '90s, despite winning just one title. Little did we know at the time, it was a Patriots dynasty that was instead hatched that night in New Orleans, while St. Louis fizzled into merely a one-hit wonder.

And when you think about it, there are several similarities between the 2001 Patriots and the 2007 Giants:

- Both had young quarterbacks amid breakout seasons.
- Both had hard-nosed coaches leading their second NFL teams.
- Both lost their first two games of the regular season.
- Both lost to their Super Bowl opponents (who had the NFL's best records) during the regular season.

So if you encounter someone who is already dismissing this Super Bowl as a laugher, just ask this question: Who was your pick before Super Bowl XXXVI?

Photo by Getty Images

I have a secret to confess. Very few of my Bostonian friends know. It's something that you generally keep to yourself when you are growing up in Foxboro, Mass. It's all Sox and Patriots all the time, and words like "Mets," "Giants," and especially "Jets and Yankees" are kept out of your mouth. Well, unless you are attaching it to some kind of four letter word.

So here's my secret. The Giants are my favorite NFC team.

My father grew up in Westchester county, and was raised by my grandfather as a rabid Giants fan from back when they still played at Yankee Stadium. Although he moved to Massachusetts in 1977, my Dad remained a Giants fan of sorts ever since. I remember his yelling WIDE RIGHT WIDE RIGHT while throwing pillows around our living room during the 1991 Super Bowl. He justified it like this: Different conferences, and the only way they'll ever play each other is in a Super Bowl. Although I was raised with the Pats as my first passion, my Dad's love for the Giants was sweetly contagious. But I ratioinalized it the same way. A Patriots-Giants Super Bowl will never happen.

Hello, 2008.

I'm rooting for history. I want Brady and Belichick to shut the '72 Dolphins up once and for all. But at the same time, there has been no better sports story to come out of New York in a long time than the emergence of Eli Manning. It's impossible to not root for the underdog, and that's what the Giants have been since their Wild Card victory over Tampa Bay.

The Patriots have a great deal more at stake in the Super Bowl, while the Giants are playing with nothing to lose. It's not the matchup that the networks wanted, but how about giving those Giants, and especially Eli Manning a little ink for the incredible football they've been playing over the last three weeks.

So on Feb. 3rd, when I'm home in Foxboro cracking a beer with my Dad during the Super Bowl, I'll have my old Phil Simms t-shirt on under my Tom Brady jersey. What an incredible game it will be.

Received this hilarious e-mail last night from Eric Basu in Manhattan:

The Giants victory over the Packers was predicted in Coming to America (1988). Akeem (Eddie Murphy) stated "The Giants of New York took on the Packers of Green Bay, and in the end the Giants triumphed by kicking an oblong ball made of pig skin through a big 'H.' It was a most ripping victory!"

Their story is one of luck and effort — Cinderella and Paul Bunyan, if you will. Fortunate and forthright, the Giants go on, and, at this point, why should we be surprised?
Their victory was the most absorbing one yet in this run. It was a slog through the Green Bay tundra and endless penalties that in every way took the measure of the Giants’ desire, and deservedness, to reach Super Bowl XLII.
Now, in two weeks, comes the ultimate test: the New England Patriots, who edged the Giants by three points in their thrilling final regular-season game.
Even as the NFL’s first 18-0 team, the Patriots cannot claim the kind of spellbound momentum that courses through the heart of Big Blue. The odds will be against the Giants more than ever, but yet again, they’ll be too committed and resilient to bother with others’ expectations for them.

— Max

Minutes after the Giants beat the Green Bay Packers in a 23-20 overtime thriller to make the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots, out came word that one prominent oddsmaker pegs the Giants as 14-point underdogs.

Ouch!

If I'm Tom Coughlin, at some point on the plane ride back to NYC I'd quiet the guys and tell them the 'experts' are tripping over themselves to disrespect this team.

(Check out photos and highlights of the Green Bay game here).

It really is going to be the Giants against the world, and the history books.

Maybe the only other people on their side are Don Shula and the '72 Dolphins....

Getty Images photo by Jed Jacobsohn

The early-season New England team, which crunched foes by 50 points just because they could, little resembles this late-season Patriots edition, a gutsy group who wins with a relentless resolve and an aura of inevitability, not because of overwhelming performances. In fact, the once-high-flying Pats sealed their trip to Super Bowl XLII with a dull, 15-play drive that lasted 9:13 and, crucially, kept the Charger offense off the field.

—Max

Cheeseheads? Red Sox Nation? Golden State Warriors fans? Which sports team has the most insane and devoted fanbase. On the flip side, which team has the most obnoxious and fickle fans. There's certain criteria that test a fan base: How they respond to extended periods of losing, whether or not they continue to make noise when it seems that all is lost in a particular game. Here's one blogger's opinion on the fans that bring the most to the table in professional sports, and the ones that bring the least.

THE BEST:

5. Chicago Cubs Fans: 100 without a championship as of 2008. Yet, the Cubbies still manage to sell out Wrigley for every single game. Despite winning a World Series in 2005, the Chicago White Sox have always played second fiddle to the losers across town. As a fan who saw 24 years of an 86 year championship drought, I kind of hope that 2008 is the year for the Cubs.

4. Detroit Red Wings Fans: As I was writing this, I wondered aloud who has the craziest fans in the NHL. I was informed by my esteemed colleague and fellow GameFace Blogger, Jamshid, about the the Legend of the Octopus. During the season, it is considered good luck by Red Wings Fans to toss an octopus out onto the ice either right after the national anthem, or right after a goal is scored. There's an etiquette to the octopus tossing as well. Opposing players are never targeted. The octopus is smuggled into the arena under the shirt of a fan, and often other fans sitting around the octopus tosser will stand up in block the identity of the thrower. This may be the coolest tradition in sports, but that's an entirely different blog entry.

3. New York Yankee Fans: It pains me to do this, but they're devoted, although they haven't been tested with any extended period of losing in awhile. That could change though an extremely bloated payroll that's led to nothing but an eight year championship drought. The bleacher creatures are funny, they follow their team on the road. Yankee fans are a devoted bunch, but let's see if that continues if they go ahead and repeat the 1980s all over again.

2. Boston Red Sox Fans: Despite 86 years without a World Series, the Red Sox have sold out just about every single game in their history. Parks like Camden Yards and Tropicana Field have become more or less home fields for the Sox, as die hards often make the trip down to Baltimore or Tampa to see the team play. Fans live and die by the team. They're an insitution, and if you want season tickets, you better hope that someone in your family dies and leaves them to you, as there is no other possible way to obtain them. Not in Boston but want to watch a game in a friendly enviorment? No problem. There are Red Sox bars in every city in the United States, such as the Riviera right here in Manhattan. Want season tickets? Better hope somebody leaves them to you in their will, otherwise there's no amout of money that can buy them.

1. Green Bay Packer Cheese Heads: They're insane. Just plain crazy. Playing outdoors in Green Bay in January. It's -7 degrees. The snow is falling at a blinding clip. Will you ever see an empty seat at Lambeau despite this? No effing way. The infamous Lambeau Leap. The traditions in Green Bay are endless, and the fans are the most passionate in football. And when I say passionate, I don't mean obnoxious. They're not much a trashtalking bunch (unless they're talking about the Vikings) but if you can fill 72,928 seats when it is below zero out (before the wind chill factor, of course), that's some serious devotion.

And then there's the worst....

New England Patriot Fans: I feel comfortable saying this, as growing up in Foxboro, Massachusetts in the 90s, Foxboro Stadium barely ever got half full. I remember the eras of Dick MacPherson and Steve Grogan, the generation of Patriots prior to Parcells and Bledsoe. Fans didn't give a crap about the band of losers in Foxboro. But oops, they start winning, Gillette (THE RAZAH!!!!) goes up, three Super Bowls are won and boom, you have all these "die hard Patriot fans." As a fan who had her 3rd grade school picture in her Andre Tippett jersey, this makes me ill.

Indianapolis Colts: They booed a 12 year old in a Patriots jersey Sunday during a recognition of kids who play football well. You say classy, Indianapolis fans.

LA Laker Fans: The team goes down 10 points in the third quarter, and the arena just empties.

NJ Devil Fans: Devils have had an solid team for 5+ years now, and they still can never sell out a game.

Any other ideas? Leave a comment!!

--Lizzy

Here are some notes from amNewYork intern Erick Blasco about the FOX telecast of the Giants’ 21-17 win in Dallas on Sunday. (Joe Buck did play-by-play, and ex-Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman handled the color.)
• As early as the third quarter, Buck was pointing out that Dallas center Andre Gurode’s snaps were often late or inaccurate. That angle was key, as the Cowboys’ offense was out of rhythm with Gurode’s shotgun snaps. One of the most important plays of the game was Marc Colombo’s last minute false-start on first down, which stemmed from a late Gurode snap.
• Buck didn’t let himself become the center of attention, and, as he often does, he cut down on shtick for the playoffs.
• There was no analysis, thankfully, of how the Giants were winning because coach Tom Coughlin morphed into Mr. Softee.
• Aikman criticizes quarterbacks well. Not only did he criticize Dallas quarterback Tony Romo for taking sacks instead of throwing it away, but he also noted how flustered Romo looked in the second half as the Giants took away his options.
• Aikman made a good point when he said the Giants were “doing Dallas a favor by being conservative.” The Giants won despite giving the Cowboys a chance at a game-winning drive.
• Before the game, all four Fox studio analysts predicted that Dallas would win, with Jimmy Johnson saying that the Cowboys would be more “energized” because of their time off. Maybe that energy explained all the Cowboy penalties.

— Max

The 2007 Giants were a sluggish, underpowered old train on an uphill climb when their season began in September with defenseless losses to Dallas and Green Bay.
That Giants train crested a peak with the team’s commendable showing against the Patriots last month, gathered speed with playoff wins against Tampa Bay last week, and, after a 21-17 win at Dallas yesterday, is now screaming downhill toward Green Bay.
With another expectation-surmounting win, this edition of Big Blue will clinch a rather unlikely Super Bowl berth.
The increasingly praiseworthy Giants are on a roll, and it is a testament to the luck, passion and effort that is bundled up in the mystery of sport.
“That’s a gut check right there,” Eli Manning said after a win that drastically redefined the tilt of the mild-mannered quarterback’s career. “No one’s given us much credit. They probably still won’t. And we like it that way.”

— Max

Thought the taped conversation between Roger Clemens and his former trainer was confusing? Try this. (Think Abbott and Costello as you listen to it.)

The chairman of the NCAA’s executive committee says he will propose an eight-team college playoff.

Halleluiah! Halleluiah!

But I know what you’re thinking: “Haven’t we heard this before?” and “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

Call me delusional, but I sense things are different this time.

For starters, the man behind the plan, University of Georgia president Michael Adams (pictured) had opposed a playoff system for 20 years. “But this year’s experience with the BCS forces me to the conclusion that the current system has lost public confidence and simply does not work,” he said.

Even NCAA president Myles Brand seems open to the idea.

“The BCS has produced some exciting games since it came into existence, but there may be a feeling among some presidents, though not all, that there is need for structural changes,” he said in a news release. “This is an issue that will be decided through presidential leadership.”

Adams’ plan would have the four current BCS bowls serve as first-round games. A week later, the semifinals would be played, followed by a national championship game the following week.

I do have one beef about Adams’ proposal, however: the timing of the announcement. He unveiled his plan Tuesday, one day after LSU won the national championship. Georgia was among the handful of schools that felt it should have been playing in the BCS title game. The timing gives the perception that Adams is crying sour grapes and takes away from LSU’s achievements a bit.

Regardless, if a playoff system comes out of this, who cares?

AP Photo/Athens Banner Herald, John Curry

On his show on ESPN 1050-AM, Max Kellerman has been airing a hilarious spoof of Roger Clemens' B-12 defense.

You can listen to it here:
http://espn-edge.andohs.net/0000A6/mp3/stations/1367/080103_max_b12.mp3

AP Photo/CBS News, HO

What has gotten into Eli?

We knew he was a fairly good quarterback in the months of September and October. But in November and beyond? Fuhgedaboutit!

There were times during the second half of this season when Eli’s accuracy was so poor that Chuck Knoblauch could have gave him some pointers.

But over the past two weeks, Eli has broken through a wall.

Did you know?: After Sunday’s playoff win over Tampa Bay, Manning has back-to-back games with a QB rating higher than 100. That’s only the second time in his career he has accomplished that feat, and the first time since weeks 3 and 4 of the 2005.

Maybe, just maybe, if this Eli sticks around for at least another week, Giants fans will be celebrating an upset of the Cowboys next week.

AP Photo/Chris O'Meara

I realize what your first instinct to this is.

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAH!!!!!!! AHHH!H!!!! *cough* *choke*

But seriously, think about it for a second. Dallas went 1-3 in the last three weeks of the season, losing to the Eagles, barely beating Carolina, and losing to the Redskins. Tony Romo closed out the season leading his team to a total of 25 points in three games. Eli Manning closed out the season with the best game in his career against what might be the best NFL team ever in the New England Patriots.

The Giants are just starting to get hot, and it would appear that Dallas spent the end of the year cooling off. To add insult to injury (no pun intended) Romo's go-to guy, none other than Mr. TO himself, went down with a foot injury during the December 22nd and hasn't practiced since. Granted, the G-men lost Jeremy Shockey, but Eli Manning has relied heavily on Amani "it's not a" Toomer and Plaxico Burress. It's been said before that the team that wins the World Series in baseball isn't necessarily the best team in the league, but the team that gets hot when the playoffs get rolling. Could this be the 2007 New York Giants?

Another point worth noting is that this will be the third time the Giants and the Cowboys have met this season. Never in history has Dallas beat a team three times in the same season, and the last time they had the opportunity, it was against the lowly Arizona Cardinals.

Neither team is particularlly proven in big games, as I'm sure the "snap heard round the world" is still very fresh in the minds of most Cowboy fans. However, the Giants put up a much more convincing fight against the Patriots, than the Cowboys did in Week 6.

A Patriots/Giants Super Bowl? I think my father's head might explode.

Which Eli will show up? Will the four pick, five fumble guy who would rather be playing squash suit up on Sunday? Or will the dude who is looking more every single week like his brother. Likewise, which Tony Romo will show up?

I guess it depends on whether Jessica Simpson shows her face at the game.

RUIN ROMO, G-MEN!!!!!!!!

--Lizzy

Isiah Thomas believes the Knicks will win a championship under his leadership. Here’s what else our top-secret fictional sources tell us he believes:

8. Blonde twenty-something pop stars actually sing live.

7. There will be a sequel to “Titanic.”

6. The calculator watch will make a comeback.

5. Broadway also showed reruns during its strike.

4. I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter is indeed butter.

3. Stephon Marbury is a point guard.

2. Barry Bonds just drank a lot of milk.

1. He feels pretty, oh so pretty.

AP Photo by Nell Redmond

It looks like Bob Sutton will soon be out as Jets defensive coordinator, and Rob Ryan, the Raiders defensive coordinator and son of former Eagles coach Buddy Ryan, will replace him.

According to several reports, Eric Mangini is just waiting for his close pal, dating back to their days coaching the Patriots, to get canned by Raiders coach Lane Kiffin, who is reportedly looking to hire his dad, Monte Kiffin, who built those great Tampa Bay defenses over the past decade and whose contract is set to expire after this season. (How's that for a run-on sentence?!)

The dominoes could start falling any minute now (some reports say Ryan could be fired today).

AP Photo by Paul Sakuma

In case you somehow missed the NHL's second-ever outdoor hockey game (bowl games? we don't need no bowl games!), some kid named Crosby apparently led the Penguins past the Sabres in a shootout.

Check out all the cool photos here.

Hockey under the snow--now that's faaaaan-tastic!

Maybe the Rangers can block off 8th Ave and get some street hockey action going?

Getty Images photo