In the build up to this weekend’s Super Bowl between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots we have been talking to several Giants and Pats writers about the game.
Today we talk with Frank Gray from Big Giants Boom:
1) Super Bowl 46 is obviously a rematch of Super Bowl 42. What memories do you have from that game?
My personal memory begins before that game. It starts when the Giants traded for Eli Manning on draft day a few years before. My friends were furious that they gave up three picks in the draft for Eli Manning. I spent the next few years trying to convince them he was worth it. When Manning threw that last minute TD to Plaxico Burress to take the 17-14 lead, I thought of them. One friend called me right after the victory and I asked him simply “do you think he’s worth it now?”. He ecstatically replied, “YES!”
2) This season, as in 2007, the Giants and Patriots played each other during the regular season. What can the Giants take from the game earlier into the Super Bowl?
Truthfully, not as much as everyone may speculate. Bill Belichick and Tom Brady will not be showing the Giants defense the same formations in similar situations as they did the first time. I expect tendencies and packages to change in the offense. I also expect the Patriots to stress the hurry up offense and a faster release from Brady in the pocket. With all this said, however, the one thing they can take is confidence. They defeated this team while they, themselves, were undermanned and injured. Now, they are healthy and motivated. If they defeated them short-handed before, they must be confident they can do even better this time around.
3) If the Giants win on Sunday, does that second ring move Eli Manning onto the elite category of quarterbacks in the NFL?
The answer to this depends on who you ask. Personally, I place him in that status right now. With two rings, however, he has more than brother Peyton, more than Drew Brees, more than Aaron Rodgers. He would have done more than most NFL QB’s in history. Not many have two or more rings. That is a small class and, therefore, would put him in a higher status. While it may never make him better than Peyton Manning or Tom Brady, it still puts him in elite historical status.
4) Who is a Giant player that is a little under the radar but you expect to have a big game on Sunday?
While all the hype is on Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz, and rightfully so, the one Giants player I see making a distinct impact on the game is Mario Manningham. The Patriots secondary is suspect and not deep enough to cover the many weapons the Giants have stride for stride. While they will be double covering Nicks on deep routes and paying close attention to Cruz on 3rd downs, Manningham will be able to take advantage of single coverage and sneak in a few first downs to extend drives. With a spread offense that has this many weapons, the Patriots defense will struggle to keep them out of the end zone as consistently as they have done throughout the playoffs against other opposition.
5) What Patriot player do you think gives the Giants the toughest match up problems and why?
While everyone is talking about Rob Gronkowski’s ankle, I believe Wes Welker will be the dominant weapon in this game for the Patriots. He has 122 catches and 1,569 yards receiving. He knows how to use his body to get in position for extra yards. That makes him dangerous. He is small (5’9″) and so he can manuever through tackle attempts and around blockers to get open or extend drives. He is a very dangerous receiver in that fashion. The Giants will not shut him down. They will only hope to make sure he is the only receiver that has any success.
6) What do you think the score will be Sunday?
While I usually only give my predictions on the Big Giants Boom site, I will do so here for the sake of this interview. I can see the match up between the Giants defense and the Patriots offense being even with New England scoring about half of their drives. Perhaps around 23 points. The Giants offense has a distinct advantage in their match up over the Patriots defense. They are capable of scoring around 75% of their drives. Perhaps around 30 points. So I am picking the Giants to win it 30-23 with the Giants defense being the difference.
