Krause: Giants douse Patriots’ perfect hopes

GLENDALE, Ariz. – Well, so much for the greatest team in the history of the National Football League.Actually, even if the Patriots had won last night’s Super Bowl, it would have been tough to crown them as such. The game was so close and so tough, and the New York Giants defense so dominated the Patriots, that you’d have had to really make a case.The Patriots will say they left a lot of plays on the field ? and they did. But make no mistake. The Giants’ defense did not let Tom Brady throw the football all over the field.”They showed a lot of heart,” said defensive lineman Richard Seymour. “They hung in there. That’s what we’re used to doing.”So true. This was the absolute mirror image of the Patriots’ 2002 Super Bowl victory over the St. Louis Rams (ironic that the pre-game chatter involved the possibility that the Patriots filmed the Rams’ walk-through the day before that game. Perhaps Giants coach Tom Coughlin returned the favor?).In 2002, it was quarterback Tom Brady marching the Patriots down the field with time running out, just in time for Adam Vinatieri to kick the game-winning field goal.In 2008, it was a more seasoned – but still raw as far as the postseason goes – Eli Manning doing the honors, leading the Giants downfield after Brady hit Randy Moss with a go-ahead touchdown pass with 2:45 to go.Upsets happen because the underdogs do a good job hanging around, and the Giants – who were supposed to lose by 12 points at least – would not go away.Upsets also happen because the underdog – buoyed by the fact that they’re still in the game – gets a bit of a rhythm going and establishes some momentum.And then, there are those outrageous plays that leave you scratching your heads. There’s Adam Vinatieri kicking an improbable field goal in a driving blizzard. There’s Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes knocking one through the uprights in overtime – after missing a gimme as time ran out in regulation – in the NFC championship game.And there was last night’s amazing play, with 1:15 to go, and the Giants losing 14-10. Manning, the MVP, had rolled out and was in the clutches of New England’s Jarvis Green. It looked certain he’d be sacked, which would have set up a fourth and forever.Instead, Manning wiggled free, ran back the other way, and spotted receiver David Tyree, with Rodney Harrison draped all over him.Manning threw the ball, and somehow, as Harrison and Tyree both jumped, Tyree gathered it in – using his helmet to secure it, he fell down, rolled, and managed to maintain possession.”I thought he dropped it,” Harrison said. “Hey, he made a great play.”But that’s what happens,” he said. “Things were going their way. They played great, they made more plays than we did, and they got a break on that one.”That gave the Giants a first down at the Patriots 24.After a sack and an incompletion, Manning found Steve Smith at the Patriots 13 for a first down, and then Manning hit Plaxico Burress (who predicted the Giants would win) with the winning TD pass.”It’s not that we were unprepared, or that we didn’t give it everything we had,” Brady said. “They played a great game, and they deserve everything they got.”Perhaps Giants’ defensive lineman Michael Strahan put it best.”I’ve never seen a quarterback yet who likes to be on his back every time he throws the ball,” he said.Officially, Brady was sacked five times (and rushed, hurried or leveled as soon as he released the ball way more than that). He still managed 29 completions and 266 yards, but it was clear the Giants harassed him into making some poor throws.So now, the 1972 Dolphins can drink their champagne (the NFL passed around quotes from the ’72 team after the game). The Patriots-haters around the country (and there are enough of them) have something to cheer about.And the City of Boston doesn’t have to worry about a parade conflicting with Super Tuesday. Because thanks to Super Sunday, the parade’s going to be on Broadway.Steve Krause is sports editor of The Item.