Travis Marmon
Sports Editor
This Sunday, the New England Patriots and the New York Giants will compete in Super Bowl XLVI at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. The primary storyline in this game will be the element of revenge for the Patriots, four years after the wildcard Giants spoiled their undefeated season in Super Bowl XLII in Arizona.
Another popular topic will be Giants’ quarterback Eli Manning, whose second Super Bowl ring would surely stir up debate about his legacy compared to that of his older brother, Peyton.
Peyton Manning, who plays for the Indianapolis Colts and is arguably responsible for the building of Lucas Oil Stadium itself, has been discussed as one of the best quarterbacks of his generation, along with the Patriots’ Tom Brady.
However, Peyton only has one ring, earned in Super Bowl XLI against the Chicago Bears, and is in the twilight of his career. If Eli wins his second championship against Peyton’s biggest rival — in his own team’s stadium — and Peyton fails to win another before his retirement, itwill hang over his head until his Hall of Fame induction.
The Patriots entered the playoffs as the top seed in the AFC, finishing atop the East division with a 13-3 record. Although the team has many shortcomings on the defensive side of the ball, New England’s second-ranked passing offense has dominated, with Brady distributing the ball to a variety of downfield threats.
His targets include young tight ends Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski (who set single-season records for a tight end with 17 receiving touchdowns and 1,327 yards through the air) and older wide receivers Wes Welker and Deion Branch. Brady and coach Bill B
elichick are no strangers to the Super Bowl, winning three over a four-year period in the last decade. The Patriots beat the Denver Broncos 45-10 and had a 23-20 escape from the Baltimore Ravens to get to Indianapolis.
The Giants had an up-and-down season, winning the NFC East with a 9-7 record after defeating the Dallas Cowboys in the last game of the regular season, earning them the fourth seed in the conference. New York has the league’s fifth-ranked passing attack, as Manning had a Pro Bowl season throwing to targets like Hakeem Nicks, Mario Manningham and undrafted rookie Victor Cruz, who had 1,536 yards on the season.
Their defensive line features dominant pass-rushers Jason Pierre-Paul and Justin Tuck. The Giants’ playoff run began with a 24-2 defeat of the Atlanta Falcons before they went on the road to take down the top two seeds in then NFC. New York beat the defending champion Green Bay Packers 37-20 and earned a 20-17 overtime victory against the San Francisco 49ers.
The Giants beat the Patriots 17-14 in Super Bowl XLII after David Tyree made a miraculous circus catch over Rodney Harrison, which set up a game-winning touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress. The game ruined what would have been the first undefeated season since the NFL expanded to a 16-game regular season in 1978.