Super Sunday Stumper

How on earth does a perfect season go by the waste side? When does a team of destiny show it's true colors in the spirit of battle? At what point does anyone believe a twelve point underdog can manage to not only hang around with the Patriots but then overcome the gargantuan team from Foxborough, Massachusetts and come out on the winning end of the biggest spectacle in North American Sports.

Yes, 100 million people were tuning into the Super Bowl as people were searching for the a perfect team to continue it's pursuit of playoff prominence and be the first team to finish 19-0. It was almost a miracle the team completed a 16-0 season. But was that the miracle almost larger than life the way the holiday of Chanukah is celebrated with one candle lasting eight days when everyone was full of despair? A glimmer of light, length, and victory at Lambeau proved the experts wrong in this sense: the G-men were counted out, bashed, and scolded for ineffective efforts from their "star" players.

But who is a real "star for this team offensively? No one made the Pro Bowl for the Giants on the offensive side of the ball. How about defensively? Osi Umienyora is a backup and that's it! From a team that won it's third super Bowl in team history there is (for lack of a better word) a lack of superstars on a squad that closely resembles the personality head coach Tom Coughlin.

The Giants may not sport the statistical leader in yards by a Wide Receiver (Reggie Wayne- Ind), Touchdown passes (Tom Brady- NE), Rushing Yards (Ladainian Tomlinson)...and may not be there by a long-shot...but somehow the team concept strengthened the Giants to whip up on the Buccaneers. The G-men followed that up with a decimating win against the Cowboys...followed by a 47-yarder by Lawrence Tynes (some were saying he should be cut) in Overtime to win the contests versus the Packers.

This is not your prototypical star-studded team with egos and locker room trouble. Tiki Barber is wishing he hadn't made those egregious comments when Eli manning was "soft" and that the New York wasn't very good. Jeremy Shockey had been nursing a broken ankle ending his season in week 15.

Get rid of two of the most emotional (and sometimes reckless) players on the field and suddenly you have a hungrier and deeper appreciation for playing the game rather than talking up a storm and not backing it up the way Barber disappeared in the Super Bowl against Baltimore and the way the former Miami Hurricane (Shockey) has done so often as a Giant in the post-season. Kevin Boss is not a ghost and if you think Shockey will retain his position next year as a starting tight end...it'll be a more difficult task than originally anticipated.

How does 10-6 become 14-6 and 16-0 grow to 18-1 where the team with a lower winning percentage had a more successful season? The 14-6 club wins the Super Bowl in the biggest upset in the history of the NFL.

By the way, Syracuse University receiver, David Tyree, emerged like Jabar Gaffney did last season in the Pats victory over the Jets in theWild-card round last year...with one difference; Tyree made the play of the year on the game winning drive...and an early fourth quarter TD reception to give the Giants their first lead since the beginning of the second quarter.

The Parade is on Tuesday and most fans are exhilirated not only for the success of the Giants but also for the failure of the Patriots to establish the teams' ultimate goal; Spygate could be another reason why the fans despise New England...but it may be more of a dislike for coach Bill Belichick or perhaps the fact that the Pats are the salary cap version of the Yankees; the team wins all the time.

Super Bowl XLII will be remembered on this precedent; the team that shouldn't have won did...and the one that should've...now has to address it's issues during the offseason to toughen up the squad.

The Patriots were smacked in the mouth and Tom Brady looked ordinary for the first time since his college days at the University of Michigan.

Finally, I feel the Giants still need another receiver, depth at linebacker, and possibly a pass rusher to replace long-time G-men representative...Michael Strahan...who might seize the day to retire after winning the first Super Bowl of his illustrious career.