The Next Giant Leap: Forget What I Said Before...
So last time I spoke here about the Giants, they were at 7-7, had just gotten swept by the Washington Redskins, of all teams, and had lost 5 out of their last 6 games. The situation was bleak, the defense was listless, the offense was sputtering and the media was once again calling for the coaches' heads. Plus, living here in St. Louis, I was on Spags Watch, keeping an eye on Steve Spagnuola and wondering when he would be let go from the Rams. I was so confident that the right way to go was for Perry Fewell to be let go so Spagnuola could come back as our defensive coordinator. That way, he could spend a few years under Tom Coughlin's tutelage and be groomed to take over as Head Coach once Tom finished his reign. 7-7 seems a long time ago. Ever since that article, the Giants beat the crap out of the Jets and Cowboys (Happy New Year indeed!) to win the NFC East title. After that, when "experts" were so confident the Giants would make a quick exit from the playoffs like they did in '05, '06 and '08, the team stood tall and smothered the Atlanta Falcons 24-2. After that, when once again the "experts" predicted a blowout loss, the Giants went to Lambeau Field - home of the defending Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers - and kicked their asses so hard the officials had to spot the Packers 2 touchdowns to make the game look closer than it was. And then, on a rainy Sunday night in San Francisco, the Giants silenced the Candlestick Park crowd by beating the 49ers in overtime to punch their ticket to Super Bowl XLVI! So... remember what I said last month? Forget it. As low as I and every other Giants fan felt after losing 23-10 to the lowly Redskins, we are all now excited, standing tall and proud and ready for the rematch of all rematches. Waiting for us in Indianapolis (where a Manning WILL play this year, after all) are the New England Patriots. You may remember them, the team that went 18-0 and were just one game away from completing the first 19-game perfect season. Instead, the team became the first team to finish 18-1 without winning a Super Bowl ring, thanks to the 2007 Giants. In 2007, the Giants shocked the whole world by getting past Tampa Bay, Dallas and Green Bay (with Favre playing his last game as a Packer) before ending the Patriots' perfect season with a last-minute drive that featured the most famous catch in recent Super Bowl history. Ever since, the Giants have been labeled a fluke and Eli Manning has not been given his due credit for being one of the top quarterbacks in the league. But now, everything the "experts" say mean precisely... squat. Whether they jump on the bandwagon or still refuse to accept the fact that Eli has become truly elite, they don't matter. They never did. Because this team has come together and they played their hearts out for five straight games to make it to the Super Bowl. I am so proud of everyone in this organization, from the front office to the practice squad. Perry Fewell has proven himself to be a perfect fit for this team, Tom Coughlin continues to be one of the best coaches in Giants history, the players have fully committed themselves to finishing strong, and Eli has become a mature, dependable leader of this franchise. I can't wait to see what else this guy has in store for us in the coming years. Of course, the best possible ending would be the fourth Lombardi trophy, but I'm not going to announce any predictions. It's going to be a true battle and it will live up to the hype that it already has. Regardless of what happens in Indianapolis, the Giants have proven me wrong, as well as every other doubter. And I've never been happier to be so wrong.
