The NFL playoffs haven't even started yet - some berths are still up for grabs, with a weekend left on the schedule - but tonight's "big game" managed to live up to the hype.
For those who don't know, the New England Patriots were playing the New York Giants in a game that shouldn't have meant anything - both teams had already secured playoff spots in previous weeks - except that the visiting Pats were attempting to go undefeated for the season. They came in with a record of 15-0 and had no real choice but to play their first-stringers with a chance at history on the line. The Giants, similarly, would've preferred to rest many of their starters tonight, especially with the post-season looming for them, but couldn't really roll over and let history wash over them like that.
I've been looking forward to this game all week, because you don't get that many chances to see something as amazing as a perfect season in the NFL (the last one was 35 years ago, when Miami went 14-0). But just how big was this game, really? Well, in Canada, both TSN and CTV were showing it, and in the U.S., it was on the NFL Network, CBS and NBC! That's right, five networks across two countries were airing this supposedly meaningless match between two playoff-bound teams! So apparently I wasn't alone in my high level of anticipation.
Happily, the two teams put on a Hell of a show! The Giants held several leads, and actually put the Patriots behind by 12 in the second half. But Tom Brady and his teammates were just too much for a very game New York squad, despite a final push by the Giants. Final score: NE 38, NYG 35.
One of the many incredible stats posted by Brady and the Pats this season involves the touchdown-to-turnover ratio. If I read it correctly, Brady finished with a ratio of better than 6-to-1 for TDs-to-interceptions (48 TDs, 8 Ints). As a point of comparison, the opposing quarterback tonight, Eli Manning, came into the game with more interceptions than touchdowns on the season! And Brady was over the 6:1 mark!! Incredible!
There are a few key NFL games tomorrow, after which the playoffs begin. A lot of people are assuming that the Conference Championships will feature Dallas vs Green Bay and New England vs Indianapolis, because of the records of those four teams this season. I'd love to see those matchups, but history of late has rarely given us those sorts of results. We'll just have to wait and see, I guess.
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Another interesting side note now: the NYG played their hearts out in a "meaning-less game" and now they'll face my Buccaneers in the first round of the playoffs. Tampa has rested their starters for the past 3 weeks since learning of their playoff berth, and the Giants have been battling to the end of the regular season (even though they clinched early as well) Personally it'll be interesting to see if Tampa's game plan to rest their starters will cause them to lose a bit of that competitive edge. All in all it looks like it'll be a great game and we'll see who's coaching tactics payoff.
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