COLTS 30 – JETS 17
This one all has to go to Peyton Manning. Sure he is a shill who will throw anyone under the bus because he has been so babied his whole life that he believes nothing is ever his fault, but he is one amazing signal caller.
The Jets went into halftime with a false sense of security. Manning had seen how New York was going to attack his 3 receiver set with their 46 defense, and made the proper adjustments. The rest is AFC title history.
New York had a heck of a ride, and this should be a team that can compete for years to come, if they keep their defensive backfield intact. But in the end, it was big fat Rex Ryan’s overconfidence in himself and his defense that was his undoing. After being able to cork up the Colt’s passing game for 30 minutes, he figured more of the same would work. By not making the proper half time adjustments, showing Manning the same looks, he sealed his team’s fate.
So now we will see if Manning can perform well in the biggest game of the year. Despite winning the MVP 4 years ago, he was fairly pedestrian in the game, and the ass-kissing media gave him the best player mantle probably to get on his good side.
One odd note – how come the Jets got further this year with a rookie QB, then last year with Brett Favre under center?
SAINTS 31 – VIKINGS 28
“Hang around long enough, and you’ll finally get what’s coming to you,”
Former middle champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler.
In the end people will remember the interception that ended the Vikes winning drive, but it was more than that. Hubris. Favre had to throw the ball instead of limping down the field for a few extra yards. For the past three seasons he has demanded that all three of his teams look at him and do everything he says because he is who he thinks he is. But he isn’t who he thinks he is. He is a wild QB who has tons of records because he played so many more years than the really great QBs. He is a QB that has lost three title games, and cost his team at least two of them in the clutch.
We can say this though he is incredibly tough. But so is everyone in the NFL.
The Saints had no business winning this game. They were outplayed, and in some ways out-schemed most of the time. But RB Adrian Peterson’s greatest flaw showed up at the worst possible time: fumbling. Peterson dropped the rock three times, once inside the five, and was really the major difference in this game. Truly great backs, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders, Jim Brown, don’t drop the ball – especially when the game is on the line.
The Saints though didn’t make too many mistakes. They also brought their entire wrath down on Favre, until he really didn’t have anything left to give. It was a master defensive game plan that proved again the NFL is a young man’s game.
In the end it was two players, Favre and Peterson, who are not as great as their billing, costing their team the game.
Even worse for the Vikes is that if Favre retires, again, (and don’t believe anything he says), then they take a huge step down at the most vital position, and the window or opportunity slams shut for many years. The last time Minny lost a game like this was January of 1999 in the 1998 title game, where they should have beaten Atlanta easily. Instead, the loss with no time on the clock psychologically destroyed that team for over a decade. It could well be happening again.
Worse for NFL fans though, we have to have another offseason of Favre once again demanding everyone in the country to look at him. Go back to the farm Brett and remember names like Young, Aikman, and Elway – your contemporaries in your prime years who were always better than you – they just didn’t have to tell everyone.
