As we approach Super Bowl 46 in Indianapolis, people are being reminded of the unbelievable defeat of the New England Patriots by the New York Giants in Super Bowl 42, 17-14.
In Super Bowl 42, the two quarterbacks, Tom Brady and Eli Manning, fought against each other for their spot in the history books. The Patriots were poised for a perfect record 19-0 when, out of nowhere, the Giants from New York beat them and left a historic play with the “catch” by David Tyree.
During the game, Eli Manning was the Super Bowl MVP with 19 completions and 32 attempts for 255 yards with two touchdowns. On the other hand, Tom Brady had 29 completions and 48 attempts for 266 yards with one touchdown. But, their last rematch during the regular season produced different stats. Eli Manning made a last minute drive to win the game 24-20. During that game, he had 20 completions and 39 attempts for 250 yards with two touchdowns while Brady had 28 completions and 49 attempts for 342 yards with two touchdowns. These statistics may be an indicator as to who may win the big game.
On February 5, the Super Bowl will be a rematch between these two teams. Although they are facing each other again, the Patriots aren’t the 30-point favorite that they were in 2008. The Giants are not to be seen as underdogs, because they are a better team than they were in 2008 both physically and mentally.
Seeing a rematch may be seen as exciting to some people but to others it is seen as weird.
“Yes, I find it weird,” junior Adrian Sanabria said. “Because it is the same quarterbacks and the same teams from 42.”
This year, the Giants beat the Patriots in the regular season. Some people may see this as an excuse for the Patriots to seek revenge. Not only are they looking for revenge from this season but they are also feeling a need for vengeance to make up for the Super Bowl four years ago.
“They [the Patriots] are definitely looking for revenge because they got beat and their perfect season ruined by the Giants, and they lost earlier to them and they carried the coach off the field in the regular season,” math teacher Mr. Leverett said.
Despite the people who believe that the Giants will win the game, this will still be one for the highlight reel and for the history books.
“It should be a good game,” sophomore Ivan Figueroa said. “Both teams have great offenses and defenses and it should be one of the greatest Super Bowls that I have ever seen.”
