#NerdsUnite: Play on playa! (Breaking down the world of sports so you don't have to!)
<editorsnote> Nerds, meet my buddy Derek - I met him when I was professor for a day at CSF. Really rad dude, and he wants to come on board to help explain to us nerdy folk the wild world of sports. Smart dude, and knows his shizzy shiznat. I only have one more thing left to say ... HIT IT DEREK!!! </editorsnote>
#TalkNerdyToMeLover's @DerekJ_AllDay
Hello again everyone and Happy Super Bowl week! Hope you're all getting your BBQ's and burgers ready for this Sunday and I am actually really curious to hear all of your picks to win. I hope all of you tweet me your pics and some trash talk on mine to @DerekJ_AllDay; all correct picks will get a shout-out in next weeks post. No lame shit talking allowed. This week is my Super Bowl post and I can't wait to break down both of the teams playing for the NFL Championship. Once again, same as 2008 the New York Giants and the New England Patriots will play each other in the Super Bowl. Both teams had extremely dissimilar paths through the playoffs, yet both are equally interesting. If you are all dreading those lame Super Bowl parties with your family, then at least you can drop some of the knowledge you learn from me on them.Lets begin with my pick to win the 2012 NFL Super Bowl, the New York Giants! Established in 1925 and in their 87th season (42 seasons in the Super Bowl era, began in 1970) as a franchise the Giants will be contending for their 4th Super Bowl victory. That statistic truly shows how rare and important playing in one of these games is. When the Giants began their season they naturally had Super Bowl intentions on their minds. The Giants knew they were an extremely strong and balanced team with effective supporting casts on both sides of the football. The anchors of the offense were QB Eli Manning and a very good and young WR core including Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz and Mario Manningham. Combining that offense with a very stout run defense with Defensive Ends Justin Tuck, Usi Umenyiora and Jason Pierre-Paul made for what we see today, a Super Bowl team.
Throughout the regular season the Giants showed flashes of brilliance, but at times looked like one of the teams floating on the outside of the “elite” circle. After finishing the season with a less than spectacular 9-7 record, the Giants won the NFC East by beating the Dallas Cowboys in the last game of the season. Considering they crawled into the playoffs, nobody really expected the Giants to excel. They were underdogs in their first playoff game against the Atlanta Falcons, and won big 24-2. Then, when they were even bigger underdogs facing the defending Super Bowl Champions the Green Bay Packers, they prevailed 37-20. The team that proved to be their biggest test was the San Francisco 49ers. In a slug-fest of a defensive battle the Giants barely won by a late field goal 20-17. After taking an unlikely path, the Giants now find themselves in the Super Bowl once again with a great shot at repeating 2008 and defeating the Patriots.
The New England Patriots are once again in the Super Bowl and the evil mastermind Bill Belichick will accept nothing short of victory. With his pretty boy side kick Tom Brady at his side they once again set their sites on taking over the football world. The “Pats” have been in existence since 1959, obviously making them much younger than their Super Bowl counterparts. With an equal amount of years in the Super Bowl era, the Patriots have 1 less Championship than the Giants. All 3 of New England's Super Bowl victories have come under the Belichick/Tom Brady era. In 2008, the Patriots went undefeated (16-0) during the regular season and remained perfect all the way up to the Super Bowl. This is where they met the New York Giants, and were painfully defeated 17-14. There is no doubt that the Pats would love nothing more than to avenge their 2008 loss and match the Giants with their fourth Super Bowl Championship.
The Patriots found themselves with a championship contending team once again going into the 2011 season, and with the emergence of superstar TE (Tight End) Rob Gronkowski they easily marched into the playoffs once again with a 13-3 record and a first place AFC East finish. They had a much easier path than the Giants with a bye week round one, and then a second bye week round 2 by facing the Denver Tebows. After Brady stomped Tebow 45-10, they found their first real opponent in the Baltimore Ravens (my Super Bowl pick). The game was as close as it gets and with great performances from both teams the game came down to a FG attempt to tie the score at 23-20. Unfortunately, Belichick's best friend, Billy Cundiff, missed a relatively easy FG and the Ravens were sent home. We now find ourselves with a rematch of the 2008 Super Bowl, and what is guaranteed to be a game for ages.
Whose side will you be on when it comes down to Super Bowl Sunday? Will you support little brother Eli? Or will you choose the dark side and cheer for the Pats? Tweet me @DerekJ_AllDay and give me your opinions! See ya next week.