Kontradiction
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A lot of people on this forum and some in the media have been comparing the 2007 New York Giants to the 2001 New England Patriots. Giants fans and other fans of NFL teams consider it a fair comparison. Some Pats fans do as well. However, some do not. Media analysts will argue that the Giants upset of the Pats far outweighs the Pats' upset of the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXVI because the Patriots carried an 18-0 record into the Super Bowl and hung 38 points on the Giants defense four weeks earlier. Here, I will argue for both sides and provide my on analysis. In the end, I will give my opinion then open it up for discussion.
'07 Giants/'01 Patriots - The Stories
The 2001 Patriots opened up the season by losing two straight games to the Bengals and the hated Jets. Many Pats fans remember this game for being a turning point in the history of the franchise. During the game, then quarterback Drew Bledsoe (who was having yet another forgetful performance) was the recipient of a devestating hit on the part of then-Jets linebacker Mo Lewis. Bledsoe fell injured and in stepped Tom Brady who could not overcome the Jets in the first action of his NFL career. After Brady came in, however, the offense starting to pick up some steam and the defense, under the supervision of assistant coach Romeo Crennel and defensive guru head coach Bill Belichick, was starting to click in the system. The Patriots began to win after that eventually closing out the season at 11-5 under the sudden leadership of Brady, and entered the playoffs as the number two seed in the AFC. In the divisional playoffs, the Raiders traveled to Foxboro for the infamous "Snow Bowl". This match-up was considered the coup de grace for Foxboro Stadium, and there was no better way to say goodbye. With thousands of rabid fans shouting their loudest, The Patriots captured the victory out of the hands of the Raiders via the infamous tuck rule. The Patriots then traveled to Heinz Field to take on the number one seed Pittsburgh Steelers. Brady fell in the first half with an ankle injury, but Drew Bledsoe stepped right in and guided the Patriots to victory and a chance to play in the Super Bowl. During media week, the Patriots were subject to a decision of whether to start Bledsoe or Brady in the Super Bowl. Brady ultimately won the shot to guide his team against the heavily favored offensive powerhouse Rams and, in the final minutes, guided the team down the field and put Adam Vinatieri in a postion for a game-winning field goal. We all know how that turned out.
The 2007 Giants, like the Patriots came out of the gates 0-2. But, behind an aggressive defense stormed back winning six straight games and improving to 6-2. The Giants only real suspect presense was at quarterback and it showed in the second half of the season. In Week 12, Eli Manning threw four interceptions (including one that was returned for a touchdown) against the underdog Minnesota Vikings. The Giants record after the bye week was 4-4 to close out the season. However, on Week 16, the heavily favored 15-0 New England Patriots came to the Meadowlands to complete their undefeated season record as well as attempt to set records for passing and receiving touchdowns for Tom Brady and Randy Moss. The whole week, the Giants were mum about whether or not they would be playing their starters. In the end, the Giants did play their starters and gave the undefeated Patriots the game of their lives. The final score was 38-35 and quarterback Eli Manning had finally come out of his shell throwing for four touchdowns and one interception. Using the confidence they gained from the Patriots, the Giants stormed into the playoffs knocking off Tampa Bay in the wild card game, then stunning the number one seed Dallas Cowboys in a thriller at Texas Stadium. After that, the Giants entered Green Bay to play the Packers for the NFC Championship. Green Bay was frigid, providing the NFC it's own "Snow Bowl". In an overtime thiller, the Giants ended the game by picking off Brett Favre on his last NFL throw and returning it for a touchdown. The Giants then entered Super Bowl XLII to once again take on the undefeated New England Patriots. This game was nowhere near as high scoring as the last game of the regular season. In a defensive struggle, quarterback Eli Manning led the Giants to a late game-winning drive capped by a touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the back of the end zone. The Giants had stunned the heavy favorite Patriots to take the Super Bowl trophy.
Analysis
For it: When you look at their stories, both of them are similar in many ways. Both teams stumbled out of the gate, then regained their feet in route to a playoff berth. Both teams managed upsets in one way or another in the playoffs. The Giants over the Cowboys and the Patriots over the Steelers. Both teams were heavy underdogs in the Super Bowl. Both teams stunned the favorites using smother defenses. And, finally, both teams won the Super Bowl by three points. Both teams featured defenses at the top of their game and mistake free quarterbacks that thrived on picking teams apart over the middle of the field. The similarities and statistics are almost mind-boggling when you look at it that way.
Against it: Both teams paths to the Super Bowl were similar, but were not the same. The 2001 Patriots saw their starting quarterback get hurt and a second year, unproven, quarterback taken in the sixth round take the reigns. The Giants have had Eli Manning at the position for years, but he finally clicked in the playoffs and decided to take what was given to him instead of trying to force the big play. The Giants finished the season at 10-6 as a wild card team while the Patriots finished at 11-5 as the second seed in the playoffs which includes a first round bye and one home game. The Giants played all of their playoff games on the road while the Patriots played one at home and one on the road. The similarties stick out when you read the story, but when you look closer, the roads aren't exactly the same.
My Opinion
In my opinion, I think that both teams had the same mindset through both of their seasons. Both teams were underdogs, neither was picked to go the Super Bowl, both won the Super Bowl. I'm not going to use the statistics to make my decision. Instead, I'm going by what I remembered of the Patriots in 2001 and what I saw of the Giants in 2007. Both teams were underdogs that capped the huge upset. I think the similarities in how both teams won are too much to argue against. In my opinion, the comparison is a fair one.
'07 Giants/'01 Patriots - The Stories
The 2001 Patriots opened up the season by losing two straight games to the Bengals and the hated Jets. Many Pats fans remember this game for being a turning point in the history of the franchise. During the game, then quarterback Drew Bledsoe (who was having yet another forgetful performance) was the recipient of a devestating hit on the part of then-Jets linebacker Mo Lewis. Bledsoe fell injured and in stepped Tom Brady who could not overcome the Jets in the first action of his NFL career. After Brady came in, however, the offense starting to pick up some steam and the defense, under the supervision of assistant coach Romeo Crennel and defensive guru head coach Bill Belichick, was starting to click in the system. The Patriots began to win after that eventually closing out the season at 11-5 under the sudden leadership of Brady, and entered the playoffs as the number two seed in the AFC. In the divisional playoffs, the Raiders traveled to Foxboro for the infamous "Snow Bowl". This match-up was considered the coup de grace for Foxboro Stadium, and there was no better way to say goodbye. With thousands of rabid fans shouting their loudest, The Patriots captured the victory out of the hands of the Raiders via the infamous tuck rule. The Patriots then traveled to Heinz Field to take on the number one seed Pittsburgh Steelers. Brady fell in the first half with an ankle injury, but Drew Bledsoe stepped right in and guided the Patriots to victory and a chance to play in the Super Bowl. During media week, the Patriots were subject to a decision of whether to start Bledsoe or Brady in the Super Bowl. Brady ultimately won the shot to guide his team against the heavily favored offensive powerhouse Rams and, in the final minutes, guided the team down the field and put Adam Vinatieri in a postion for a game-winning field goal. We all know how that turned out.
The 2007 Giants, like the Patriots came out of the gates 0-2. But, behind an aggressive defense stormed back winning six straight games and improving to 6-2. The Giants only real suspect presense was at quarterback and it showed in the second half of the season. In Week 12, Eli Manning threw four interceptions (including one that was returned for a touchdown) against the underdog Minnesota Vikings. The Giants record after the bye week was 4-4 to close out the season. However, on Week 16, the heavily favored 15-0 New England Patriots came to the Meadowlands to complete their undefeated season record as well as attempt to set records for passing and receiving touchdowns for Tom Brady and Randy Moss. The whole week, the Giants were mum about whether or not they would be playing their starters. In the end, the Giants did play their starters and gave the undefeated Patriots the game of their lives. The final score was 38-35 and quarterback Eli Manning had finally come out of his shell throwing for four touchdowns and one interception. Using the confidence they gained from the Patriots, the Giants stormed into the playoffs knocking off Tampa Bay in the wild card game, then stunning the number one seed Dallas Cowboys in a thriller at Texas Stadium. After that, the Giants entered Green Bay to play the Packers for the NFC Championship. Green Bay was frigid, providing the NFC it's own "Snow Bowl". In an overtime thiller, the Giants ended the game by picking off Brett Favre on his last NFL throw and returning it for a touchdown. The Giants then entered Super Bowl XLII to once again take on the undefeated New England Patriots. This game was nowhere near as high scoring as the last game of the regular season. In a defensive struggle, quarterback Eli Manning led the Giants to a late game-winning drive capped by a touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the back of the end zone. The Giants had stunned the heavy favorite Patriots to take the Super Bowl trophy.
Analysis
For it: When you look at their stories, both of them are similar in many ways. Both teams stumbled out of the gate, then regained their feet in route to a playoff berth. Both teams managed upsets in one way or another in the playoffs. The Giants over the Cowboys and the Patriots over the Steelers. Both teams were heavy underdogs in the Super Bowl. Both teams stunned the favorites using smother defenses. And, finally, both teams won the Super Bowl by three points. Both teams featured defenses at the top of their game and mistake free quarterbacks that thrived on picking teams apart over the middle of the field. The similarities and statistics are almost mind-boggling when you look at it that way.
Against it: Both teams paths to the Super Bowl were similar, but were not the same. The 2001 Patriots saw their starting quarterback get hurt and a second year, unproven, quarterback taken in the sixth round take the reigns. The Giants have had Eli Manning at the position for years, but he finally clicked in the playoffs and decided to take what was given to him instead of trying to force the big play. The Giants finished the season at 10-6 as a wild card team while the Patriots finished at 11-5 as the second seed in the playoffs which includes a first round bye and one home game. The Giants played all of their playoff games on the road while the Patriots played one at home and one on the road. The similarties stick out when you read the story, but when you look closer, the roads aren't exactly the same.
My Opinion
In my opinion, I think that both teams had the same mindset through both of their seasons. Both teams were underdogs, neither was picked to go the Super Bowl, both won the Super Bowl. I'm not going to use the statistics to make my decision. Instead, I'm going by what I remembered of the Patriots in 2001 and what I saw of the Giants in 2007. Both teams were underdogs that capped the huge upset. I think the similarities in how both teams won are too much to argue against. In my opinion, the comparison is a fair one.