10 Things You Should Know About The Super Bowl

It’s not too late to impress the guys this Sunday with knowledge of the Giants/Patriots showdown! Here are a few things you need to know to get in the game:
 
1. This matchup between the Patriots and the Giants is a rematch of the Super Bowl in 2008 (XLII). The Giants defeated the Patriots 17-14 and crushed their chances of being the first 19-0 team in history.
 
2. The two teams played THIS season on November 6^th, and the Giants got the best of the Patriots led by a 4^th quarter Eli Manning TD Drive.  That loss was in New England on their home field, which ended a 20 game regular season win streak by the Patriots. The Giants have a history of ending Patriot winning streaks.
 
3. Tom Brady is going for his 4^thSuper Bowl victory and possibly 3^rdSuper Bowl MVP, which would tie him with his boyhood idol, Joe Montana.  Brady just surpassed Montana for career playoff victories last week; so this Super Bowl victory would be icing on the cake.
 
4. Eli Manning is going for his 2^ndSuper Bowl title which would be one more than his big brother, Peyton.  Before the season, Eli was heavily criticized and ridiculed for telling a reporter he was an “elite” quarterback.  However, after beating the number one and two seeds in the NFC Playoffs on the road he seemed to have backed up his claim.
 
5. Rob Gronkowski is the Patriots STAR tight end (pass catcher) who hauled in 90 receptions for 1327 yards and 17 TDS.  He set the ALL TIME record for receiving touchdowns by a tight end this year.  He suffered a high ankle sprain in the victory over the Ravens and practiced for the first time since this last Thursday.  How effective Gronkowski can be will have a huge impact on the game.
 
6. The Patriots are getting their starting right tackle back who has missed over half of the season.  This addition will give the Patriots offensive line more depth and the ability to run more POWER football sets.
 
7. The Patriots are expected to win by 3 points according to Las Vegas gambling experts.  However, the public is expecting the Giants to win by 65%-35%.
 
8. The NASCAR Package is a set run by the Giants on defense, where they put 4 defensive ends on the field (typically 2 defensive ends are on the field at a time).  This package helps the Giants pressure the quarterback in a hurry.
 
9. Victor Cruz, Hakeem Nix, and Mario Manningham have been a tough trio to stop as Giants wide receivers.  When teams have doubled team one of them, another one steps up and catches touchdowns.  The patriots are going to have a tough night ahead of them if they cant stop these guys.
 
10. The Super Bowl is in the city that Peyton Manning built, so there will be a lot of surrounding the legend.  It seems like he will not be playing with the Indianapolis Colts next year, the team he has played with his whole career.  There has been a lot of speculation on where he ends up- lets hope he ends up with our Washington Redskins! Go SKINS!