Causeway Street Patriots Nation turns its lonely eyes to you

Quick question Red Sox and Patriots Nation what building houses the last two Boston sports champions simultaneously? Ding ding ding! Time’s up! Sorry Gillette but it’s not you with the Revolution and Patriots nor is it you Fenway Park with the Red Sox and the Liverpool whatevers but it’s you TD Garden!

The TD Garden suffered for years through a myriad of names ranging from the Fleet Center and multiple other random names including at one point when you could by the rights to name the stadium whatever you wanted for a day – fun fact. Finally (mercifully a better word?) though it’s two inhabitants, the Bruins and Celts, finally turned the corner from habitual first round exit and perpetual suckfest, respectively, and rewarded the Boston faithful with a Stanley Cup and an NBA championship. In the past 5 years the Bruins and Celtics are the only champions that the great region of New England has to boast about to those arrogant New York pricks. The Red Sox have come close in that 5 year window losing in game 7 of the ALCS to those loveable Tampa Bay Rays, I know I should hate them because they’re in the AL East but boy are they fun to watch and they just seem to do everything the right way, and the Patriots have made it to the biggest game on Earth twice as favorites only to be turned away by the fuckin’ Giants, sorry still a little bitter about Super Bowl XLII and XLVI, yet it’s only the Bruins and Celtics who have delivered the crowns upon which titletown USA was built: the Stanley Cup and NBA title. After watching the Red Sox win the 2010 offseason and subsequently drink there way to infamy during the 2011 baseball season and then turning their eyes and watching the Patriots go from a solid team who should win a playoff game or two to Super Bowl favorites only to be bested by Eli Manning it’s now time that Boston turns its sad eyes back to the Bruins and Celtics in hopes that they’ll quell that championship thirst.

The Red Sox turned out to be the ultimate paper champions when the shit hit the fan and the Patriots gave it a valiant effort but if you honestly thought that Vince Wilfork, Jerod Mayo and their band of misfits we’re going to stop Eli on that last drive after the Welker-Brady miscue then you’re a better fan than I can ever be. It was becoming more and more clear throughout that game that the defense was playing masterfully but the ball just wasn’t fumbling the Patriots way and midnight was bound to strike soon on the Cinderella defensive scheme, yet I digress. Back to the topic at hand which is the Celtics and mostly the Bruins carry on their shoulders the Boston fan bases hopes and dreams for being the sports elite and lately they’ve done a fine job of it. Time to take a glimpse at each team’s chances of restoring the peace in Beantown.

First up we have the Celtics who about a month ago didn’t appear anywhere near sniffing the second round of the playoffs let alone a shot at the title but recently they’ve started to gain some steam with no coincidence that they’re resurgence coincides with Paul Pierce getting healthy again and KG looking the best he has since the devastating knee injury of three years ago. Before KG blew out his knee against Utah 3 odd years ago the Celtics appeared poised to make it two rings in three years but since then they’ve still managed to make it to game 7 of the NBA finals against the vaunted Lakers before blowing a late lead in L.A. but last year they were bounced unceremoniously by the new Big Three in Miami.

The Celtics started the abbreviated 2011-12 year 0-3 and then 4-8 before ripping off 9 out of 10 with a 5 win streak currently in their midst. The shortened season tends to favor a team like the Celtics as long as they can get into the playoffs in the top 4 seeds. A shortened season favors older teams who are good enough to allow their old dogs a few games off here and there and still track down one of those top seeds. Home court has always been crucial for this latest version of the Celtics. The swap of big baby Glen Davis for Brandon Bass has looked like a stroke of genius on the part of GM Danny Ainge and another mind numbing mistake by Orlando GM Otis Smith. Bass has been a better offensive player and a better defender and rebounder than baby while playing alongside Garnett he’s done a great job of bringing out the firey defender in Garnett once again. When Garnett is defending like he has been lately while also pouring in between 15-20 points and grabbing roughly 10 rebounds the Celtics are on the right track. Ray Allen has been phenomenal all year and he’s the kind of guy who takes pride in staying in shape over the long haul. Pierce took the beginning of the year to get healthy and as long as he can stay in shape he’s a great offensive piece to center it all around. Rajon Rondo makes this offense tick and his health will be one of the keys to the Celtics making a run deep into the playoffs, just if he could shoot but oh well.

The true key in my mind will be whether or not Ainge is able to swing a deal for a body to defend the paint and chip in some offense because as good a player as he was in his hay day Jermaine O’Neal just can’t stay healthy enough to be a solid contributor over the long haul. Mikael Pietrus is a great wing defender and once he settles in he’ll be a huge piece coming off the bench down the stretch and the Celtics are all set backing up the guard spots with veteran Keyon Dooling and youngster Avery Bradley. Bradley has settled in nicely and is playing very good perimeter defense and taking care of the ball not much more you can ask for in a backup PG. The Celtics are a big body and possibly a wing scorer off the bench from giving the Heat, Bulls, Mavs, Lakers and anyone else one last run for their money. There is hope but don’t hang your hat on it rather I’d hitch my wagon to the latest Boston champion: the Boston Bruins.

As an abashed Bruins fan who watched and had my heart broken by the Spoked B my entire life watching them blow top seeds and get bumped out by the dreaded Canadiens habitually last years run to the Stanley Cup was absolutely orgasmic. For once the Bruins were the team who got ridiculously hot at exactly the right team and ran train on the rest of the league. The Bruins were the ones with the top goaltender, Timmy Thomas, who could stop mass quantities of rubber on command and lead his team to numerous 1-0 and 2-0 victories. The Bruins were also the ones with the annoying as shit guy in Brad Marchand and the gifted offensive talent who caught fire at just right the time in David Krejci. It was beautiful to watch the Bruins exile their past demons by coming back from a 2-0 hole against the Canadiens in round 1 and then sweeping the Flyers, who just the year before had sent the Bruins into the history books by rebounding from a 3-0 series deficit to advance, with beat down after beat down. They then leaned on 2-time, in 3 years might I add, Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas to carry them past the very gifted but goaltenderless Tampa Bay Lightning in 7 games. Finally in the Stanley Cup Finals the Bruins squared off their polar opposite in the savvy but weak President Trophy winning Vancouver Canucks and after losing the first two games in Vancouver rebounded to humiliate the Canucks and Roberto Luongo throughout the last 5 games by winning 4 and the Cup.

After a deep run in the playoffs and the retirement of the Bruins heart and soul Mark Recchi the Bruins understandably got off to a super slow start this year before rebounding in a big way. After the season’s first month and first ten games the Bruins were an abysmal 3-7 and looked brutal after losing a home and home to the Canadiens. I don’t know what Claude Julien did but he found a way to light a fire under his teams ass and watched them rip off 10 straight wins and points in 15 straight with their only non win point coming in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Western Conference leader Detroit Red Wings. That’s 29 out of a possible 30 points. Led by young sniper whiz kid Tyler Seguin and the league’s best goaltending tandem the Bruins found their stride and after dropping two in a row then won 7 more in a row. The Bruins have hit a little bit of a snag lately with some poor losses against some below par teams but have still been able to keep up the pace with the top team in the Eastern Conference: the New York Blueshirts.

Peter Chiarelli found a way to wrestle power and money away from the Jacobs family like no one has been able to before and he has rewarded the Hub of Hockey with one championship and a very real possibility of another one. The Bruins are loaded with young talent and depth up to wazoo not to mention the top goaltending tandem in hockey: Tuuka Rask and Tim Thomas. The Bruins already have a 20-goal scorer in Tyler Seguin and 4 other guys over 15 goals: Patrice Bergeron (15) Nathan Horton (17) Milan Lucic (19) Brad Marchand (19). With a reinvented power play (11^th in the league at 18.5%, thanks to Tyler Seguin channeling his inner Marc Savard and being able to control the halfwall), the usual amazing penalty killing (7^th in the NHL), a GAA of 2.2 (4^th), and a GFA of 3.4 (1^st) the Bruins are the envy of the NHL currently. On any given night Julien can move his ‘first line’ center David Krejci who has become more and more of a magician with the puck to the third line and bring defensive minded Chris Kelly up to the first line and still pull off a 4-1 win over the Southeast Conference leading Washington Capitals.

Defensively Julien’s system is better than ever and you can thank Big Z, Zdeno Chara, coupled with the emergence of Dennis Seidenberg, Johnny Boychuck, Andrew Ference and Adam McQuaid teamed up with his amazing backstops for keeping the Bruins near the top of the league in GAA. The Bruins have depth for days and 3 very solid lines that can score at will and a 4^th line that is amazing at beating and battering the other teams top lines. All of this goes without mentioning the best reason why the Bruins have a very good chance of piecing back together New England’s broken hearts by making a run deep in the playoffs: the play of the Seguin-Bergeron-Marchand line. The Bruins second line has become one of the top 3 or 4 lines in the league and has been producing points at an unreal rate. In 51 games Bergeron has 46 points to lead the Bruins Seguin is a close second with 44 points and Marchand is pulling up the rear with 38 points. This line can shut down another teams top line while also putting a few goals up on the board what more can you ask for? The Bruins have a shot to repeat and win a title that New England feels it deserves after having the Super Bowl pulled from the grasp for the 2^nd time in 5 years.

There you have it folks a few reasons why there is a legitimate shot that either the Bruins or Celtics will be able to deliver a championship in June 2012. If I was a betting man I wouldn’t hesitate to throw a few bones the way of the Bruins and maybe even grab the Celtics if the odds were right because if things break their way you never know what a few old dogs might be able to pull off. Until we cross paths again.

Geoff Jablonski

Super Bowl XLVI Primer: Patriots vs. Giants

Hey you! It's been a while!

For those of you that follow professional tackle football, and more so for those of you that don't, there is a pretty big game going down on Sunday. The New England Patriots square off against the New York football Giants in Super Bowl XLVI in a clash of two great offenses and two mediocre defenses. The Patriots are looking to avenge their loss in the 2007 Super Bowl in which they fell to the Giants ending their bid at a perfect season. You can bet that loss is still fresh in the great minds of Brady and Belichick and they have been game planning to make sure history does not repeat itself. The Giants are looking to do the same thing they did in 2007 and upset the favored Patriots and win their 2nd title in 4 years. Although these teams did meet just 4 seasons ago, they are in no way the same teams. The Giants return 15 players from that game while the Pats return just seven. The Giants defense is much weaker as is the Patriots. Patriots offense is just as dynamic, but is executed with a much more intermediate passing game and throws between the numbers rather than the high octane historic offense of '07. Giants offense is much improved since '07 as well. Eli Manning is coming off of his best season yet and is making his best case for you to consider his name when you mention the best QBs in the NFL. If you are a NFL die-hard, you may know much of what I am telling you and going to tell you. If not, then I hope I inform you the best way I can about what could possibly be the biggest Super Bowl in NFL history.

Offensive outlook and predictions:

Patriots:

Tom Brady is coming off the second best season of his illustrious career in the NFL and is poised to earn his 4th championship ring. Brady threw for 5,235 yards this season, breaking 'Thunder' Dan Marino's NFL record 5,084, he also threw for 39 touchdowns and had a 105.6 passer rating. In simple terms, he wasn't exactly bad. He slings it around to a great group of receivers headlined by Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski. Welker historically torches the Giants in his career so look for him to have a big game on Sunday. Gronk is a serious question mark on the other hand and has many Patriots fans biting their nails wondering if he will be recovered from a high ankle sprain that he suffered in last weeks win over the Baltimore Ravens. Aaron Hernandez is another key part to this offense and has taken on multiple roles as of late for the Pats. Hernandez is superb in the open field so Belichick looks to get him the ball in a multitude of ways, screen passes, handoffs, short throws and deep throws, Hernandez does it all. With Gronk ailing look for Aaron to have a big game across the middle.

I expect the Patriots to give the Giants a steady dose of the run to set up the pass, look for 'The Law Firm', sure handed Benjarvus Green-Ellis to hammer the ball up the middle and cut back runner Stevan Ridley to have an impact in this one. I have a sneaky suspicion that some plays are being drawn up for oft-maligned wideout Chad Ochocinco for this game. Although its been his a tumultuous season for the receiver, I feel like this game can't be played without Ocho getting on the field, Bill Belichick likes him too much. He's been through too much in his career and been too much of a team player to not get on the field in his first and possibly only Super Bowl, and you can bet that he'll be targeted AT LEAST 2-3 times because of the Giants game planning for the other big names. The Patriots offensive line is going to determine the outcome of this game, I fully believe that. If they can give Brady time in the pocket the Patriots will easily win this game. If not, well, all bets are off.

Notable Stat Predictions:

Tom Brady: 23-35 345 yards 3 TD 1 INT

Wes Welker: 13 catches 145 yards 1 TD

Aaron Hernandez: 8 catches 112 yards

Rob Gronkowski: 6 catches 56 yards 1 TD

Chad Ochocinco: 2 catches 37 yards 1 TD

Benjarvus Green-Ellis: 17 carries 83 yards 1 TD

Giants:

Can't lie here. As much as it hurts to say it, Eli Manning has been great this season. He was one of the constants on an up and down Giants team this season, he kept them pushing forward when things were looking bleak. He also may have officially taken the "Comeback Kid" moniker away from Tom Brady. Manning has been elite in the fourth quarter this season leading the NFL in fourth quarter touchdowns. Eli has his fantastic receiving core to thank for his season. Strong bodied Hakeem Nicks, paired with elusive, sure-handed Victor Cruz is definitely a troubling match up for the Pats defense which was ranked last in passing yardage this season. Add in Mario Manningham and the Pats will surely have their hands full while defending the pass.

The Giants tout a running game consisting of Ahmad Bradshaw and 6'4 bruising back Brandon Jacobs. The Giants are primarily known as a run first team and are usually pretty successful at doing so, but I can't see that happening on Super Bowl sunday. The Patriots haven't been ran over this season at all except for one game where Fred Jackson had over 100 yards. Bradshaw isn't very fast or shifty and Jacobs is slower now than ever and isn't what he used to be. Like the Patriots, the Giants will run to set up the play action pass and open up the offense. The Giants do tend to go deeper down the field than the Patriots do though, so look for some deep balls to Nicks and Manningham.

Notable stat predictions:

Eli Manning: 27-43 321 yards 2 TD 2 INT

Victor Cruz: 10 catches 119 yards

Hakeem Nicks: 6 catches 88 yards 1 TD

Mario Mannnigham: 4 catches 45 yards

Jake Ballard: 2 catches 21 yards 1 TD

Ahmad Bradshaw: 19 carries 68 yards 1 TD

Defensive outlook:

Patriots:

The Pats D has been referred to as many things this season. None of them are good. The thing they have been called the most though is 'the worst defense of all time'. That's a little harsh though and kind of unfair to this team in my opinion. The Patriots gave up the second most yards per game in the NFL this season, but that stat got padded so much by them going into a prevent defense at the end of games because they were up by so much. That's when guys like Dan Orlovsky and Matt Moore racked up a good chunk of yardage. It's not like the Patriots were getting tossed on for all 4 quarters, their record would have been nowhere near as good if that were the case. Another underrated stat is that the Pats only give up 21.4 points per game this year which is good for 15th in the league. Not the greatest, but nowhere near the worst of all time.

The Patriots D is headlined by Vince Wilfork, Jerod Mayo, Patrick Chung and Brandon Spikes. Vince Wilfork will almost undoubtedly be a force in this game. He was a beast in the AFC championship game against the Ravens and hopes to get the same kind of pressure up the middle on Eli that he did on Flacco. He has such a high motor for a man his size and plays all three downs most of the time. Look for him to have a MAJOR impact on this game. On each side of Wilfork, you have Mark Anderson who has filled in very well for the injured Andre Carter, and Rob Ninkovich. Both players have been huge parts in this late season defensive surge the Patriots have been on of late. It seems as though Mayo and Spikes are going to have to step up and stop the run too, which I think they will do effectively. That's Spikes area of expertise and Mayo is no slouch in the run game either. The main focus here is going to be the secondary. The secondary has to play well in this game if the Patriots are going to have a shot at winning this thing. Sterling Moore and Kyle Arrington will need help from Chung and McCourty over the top in this game as the Giants will be looking to take advantage of the Pats weak secondary early and often. Hopefully Moore can continue the great play he has been showing as of late and McCourty can continue to provide the help that the Patriots needed at safety. They will look to stop the run first and force Eli to throw into tight windows. If they can get pressure on Eli it would go a long way toward them winning this game. I can't see him keeping up the current pace he is on, I know that old Eli Manning is in there somewhere.

Giants:

This is where my problem is. The Giants defense is being severely overrated going into this game. The way the media is talking about it, it's like its the second coming of the '85 Bears, or the 'Steel Curtain'. Guess what sports fans? Statistically, the Giants defense was worse than the Patriots this season. They were 25th in points given up per game (10 slots worse than the Pats), and 2 slots worse against the run, giving up 121.2 yards per game on the ground. Oh and the Patriots also had more sacks than the Giants this season, just thought I would throw that out there and see how it settles with you. The Giants know where their bread is buttered, and that's on the defensive line. They have three men who can all get to the quarterback at any given time, Jason Pierre-Paul, Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora. They are all strong, fast and long, which can lead to immediate pressure to Brady, and strip sacks. Throughout the season JPP has terrorized QBs totaling 16.5 sacks and he will more than likely provide a tough matchup for rookie tackle Nate Solder. Chris Canty is another name on the line you can't sleep on and may step up big when the other linemen are being blocked. The rest of the Giants defense is where it starts to get ugly. Michael Boley and BC alum Mathias Kiwanuka are standout names in the linebacking core. Kiwanuka has proven he can get to the quarterback at times and could present problems for the Pats, like Kawika Mitchell was in 2007.

The Giants secondary is weak, Aaron Ross and Corey Webster are coming off less than stellar seasons. Antrel Rolle and Kenny Phillips will provide the help in the middle of the field and over the top at safety. Rolle is a playmaker for them. He is the person I see getting an interception when Brady tries to force one to Gronk or Welker. As scary as the Giants pass rush is, they only had 4 sacks this season against two tight end sets, and that's what the Patriots run 70% of the time. If you are expecting a rush and sack fest like you saw in 2007, think again. Brady will have time. What he does with that time remains to be seen.

Overall outlook:

The Patriots will run the ball early to set up mid range catch and run plays early. They will look to keep Eli and the intimidating passing attack off the field as much as possible. The Giants will follow suit when they get the ball and take deeper shots down field. They'll keep the clock running with Bradshaw and Jacobs in an attempt to keep Tom off the field. The Pats will most likely report Nate Solder in as a tight end in a lot of situations to provide extra blocking on JPP to keep him neutralized. Don't expect a big game out of him. Hernandez will set up alongside Matt Light to provide help on Osi. The tight end help will keep the big name pass rushers out of the backfield for the most part. Justin Tuck scares me the most coming up the middle on Dan Conolly who is filling in for the injured Dan Koppen. I see the Brady having much more time than he had in 2007 and being able to connect with his receivers at will. The Giants don't have any linebackers that can run with Hernandez, and nobody that can match up with Gronk if he is healthy enough to participate in the passing game. Welker will rack up the yardage as usual against the Giants and have the biggest game for the Pats. Green-Ellis will set up the pass perfectly with his between the tackles running, I expect a good game out of him. I see Eli being able to get his yardage and probably complete a few deep balls but its the turnover battle where this game will be won and I see Eli screwing up before Brady does. Wilfork will pressure Eli up the middle forcing him to roll out into the arms of Anderson and Ninkovich.

Brady and Belichick won't let the Patriots lose this game. There is too much riding on it. It would be their 4th title together. It would send Brady into almost unarguable 'greatest of all time' status. A win would also mean so much to this organization and the Kraft family who lost a key contributor and member of their family in Bob Kraft's wife, Myra. She meant so much to him and this team as you can see by the patch they wear in her honor on the left breast. They have to win this game for Myra.

Final Score: Patriots 34 Giants 24

Superbowl MVP: Tom Brady

We can only hope. Win it for MHK boys.

-Zakary 'ZHawk' Hawkins

Did You Hear The Pats Are Playing The Giants This Weekend?

After a brief hiatus from the blogosphere in honor of the Super Bowl week off, ok so maybe I just wasn’t feeling very inspirational at the moment but either way, I’m back and ready to bandy about how I think Super Bowl XLVI between YOUR New England Patriots and the New York Giants will unfold.

If you’re reading this post currently there’s a good chance that you are aware of the fact that the Patriots and Giants squeaked by the Ravens and 49ers, respectively, a week and a half ago in the AFC and NFC Conference championship games. The Pats and Giants wins resulted in a rematch of the infamous Super Bowl XLII tilt. Again as most of you probably know the undefeated, 18-0, Patriots came into that game seeking to become only the second team ever to run the table, along with the ’72 Dolphins right Mercury Morris?, and the first ever team to go 19-0. The Giants came into that Super Bowl led by an enigma at QB who symbolized the entire vibe of that team all year long, a solid ground game, a stellar front four defensively, a coach who defined the word disciplinarian, and an upset of the Green Bay Packers and Brett Favre at Lambeau Field in -23 degree wind chill. Not to reopen old wounds for Patriots fans but we all know how that game turned out: David Tyree made the only catch of his career on his helmet and the Giants ended the Patriots season with a defeat 17-14.

Most of the media figureheads in the past week and a half have been attempting to link the outcome from Super Bowl XLII to a prediction for Super Bowl XLVI and let me tell you right now don’t waste your time. The only bearing that that game from 4 years ago is going to have on this game is that Brady is realizing he might not get many opportunities to be back on the big stage. I don’t think he could care less whether the Pats were going to be play the 49ers or the Giants all he seems focused on is tying Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw at 4 rings apiece. That would move him permanently into the pantheon of winners with the ability to possible reach the summit and be crowned as the winnest QB ever. On the line for Eli Manning is the possibility to grab his 2^nd ring, one more than his much more lauded older brother Peyton has, and pour a little more concrete mix on his candidacy for Canton and football immortality. I think if he can take down the Patriots for the 2^nd time on football’s biggest stage he’ll stand a pretty damn good chance of getting elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But enough about the QBs and their legacies lets take a look at what I think are the major keys to this game (in no particular order I’m just working stream of conciousness over here):

How effective will the Giants vaunted front 4 be against the Patriots solid offensive line and subsequently how well will the Giants Swiss cheese offensive line be able to slow down Vince Wilfork? To me personally the biggest wildcard in this game is Jason Pierre-Paul. JPP had a year for the ages racking up 80 tackles from the DE position to go along with 16.5 sacks. When he came out of college he was labeled as a very raw talent who didn’t start playing football until he was 16 and in just two years he’s morphed into possibly the premier defensive lineman in football behind maybe only Jared Allen out in Minnesota. His athleticism is unreal and makes Jevon Kearse (the original freak) look like a slouch. He is the key to whether or not Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck are matched up one-on-one with an opportunity to disrupt the Patriots horizontal passing attack. If the Patriots are forced to constantly double team JPP or run plays away from his side because he’s wreaking mass quantities of havoc then the Giants stand a good chance of holding the Patriots offense to a score far south of 30.

On the other side of the coin though is the beast Vince Wilfork. He singlehandedly won that game for the Patriots against the Ravens by making 8 or 9 plays that made your jaw hit the floor with his ability to occupy two sometimes three blockers and STILL get to the ballcarrier in the backfield or grab a hold of QB Joe Flacco. When Wilfork gets playing like that it’s easy to see why he’s considered one of the elite defensive lineman in football. He’s an absolute load and I don’t see David Baas who got injured against the 49ers and will not be 100% being able to slow him down for very long. The rest of the Patriots defensive line is also quite underrated from Brandon Deaderick to Kyle Love. The matchup in the trenches will, like it usually does, play a major role in the outcome of this game. I’d give an edge to the Patriots slightly due to the Giants porous offensive line.

The next key is will Rob Gronkowski be ‘The Gronk’ or will he be more of a decoy? Don’t read into the fact that he hasn’t practice yet since the AFC Championship game. Belichick knows that his sprained ankle needs maximum time to heal and it’s not like Gronkowski doesn’t know the offense or hasn’t gotten enough reps throughout the year. He’ll be fine mentally, well as fine as Gronk can be mentally, on Sunday the real question is what form of Gronk are we going to see? The beast who set a single season record for TDs and receiving yards by a TE or an injured decoy who has to leave all the production to the TE position to come from Aaron Hernandez? Hernandez getting all the production isn’t a bad alternative since he’s a matchup nightmare but he’s made that much more effective by Gronk’s ability to run the seam route to perfection. Gronkowski opens up the underneath for Welker and Hernandez to do what they do best and that’s get yards after the catch. Gronk is also Tom Brady’s binky. When things get tough he knows he can just lob it up to the physical phenom at TE and he’ll reel it in 95% of the time and if not it’ll fall incomplete. Gronkowski is on pair with Pierre-Paul physically in that he has revolutionized how people look at the TE position. He can stay in as a mauler on the offensive line due to his size being equivalent to that of a tackle but he can also run good routes and has the hands of wide receiver. The Patriots need at least 85% of the Gronkowski they had during the regular season if they want to be able to put up big numbers against the Giants. The Patriots passing attack is predicated on Gronkowski stretching the field somewhat vertically to allow the little guys to work underneath. I also believe that it’ll be imperative for Deion Branch to look like the Deion Branch of old and help pick up some of the slack that’s bound to occur with Gronkowski’s ankle injury. Branch is more than capable of snagging 5 or 6 balls for 80 to 90 yards and helping keep the Giants defense honest.

The last key to the matchup that I’m going to discuss before throwing out a final score prediction is whether or not Belichick truly plans to use the same philosophy on the Giants offense as he did against the Rams ‘Greatest Show on Turf’ offense back in February 2002. In that game Belichick basically instructed his defensive backs to mug the Rams receivers at the line and for his LBs and Ss to punish Marshall Faulk every time he touched the ball. The Giants are built somewhat similar to that 2002 version of the Rams with Eli Manning having a career year throwing the ball to his All-Pro and breakout of the year #1 WR Victor Cruz and #1a Hakeem Nicks. The Giants don’t run the ball extremely well but Brandon Jacobs is a bruiser who can wear the defense and Ahmad Bradshaw is a good slasher out of the backfield who is dangerous as a receiver.

Belichick stated in an interview over the weekend that he intended to use the likes of Julian Edelman to attempt to disrupt the Giants wide receivers at the line with his CBs actually playing the safety position per se picking up the wide out after they’ve been bumped at the line. It’s an interesting strategy to put the physical safeties, or in Edelman’s case Jack of all trades, up at the line to disrupt the receivers and then allow the corners who can’t beat either wideout in a foot race to pick up the slack and cover them the rest of the way downfield. If Cruz and Nicks are allowed to run free off the line of scrimmage and head downfield then I think the Patriots defense is in for a tough battle. The Giants receiving corps is a much more potent unit then the one the Patriots faced in 2008 and if they are given the chance Eli and Company will prove it on Super Sunday. I am a fan of the idea of the Patriots attempting to rough up the Giants slippery wide receivers because I think it’s a better strategy then allowing Kyle Arrington and Devin McCourty to attempt to lockdown Cruz and Nicks when we all know they won’t be getting much help from the safety position. Patrick Chung is a run stopper not a coverage guy and the other safety position is a revolving door of guys who can’t cover. In my book physical is the way to go against this Giants attack.

Final Prediction for the game: Patriots 31, Giants 24

I think they Patriots are going to be able to exact some revenge, more for the fans than for themselves considering almost the entire team from the 18-1 season is gone, and put up over 30 on the Giants shaky at times brilliant at others defense. In my mind 30 is the key if the Patriots score over 30 I think they’ve got it in the bag if they are held south of that number then you may just see the Giants upset the Pats, though most people in New York seem to think a Patriots win would be an upset, for the 2^nd time in 4 years. Expect offense folks and for the Patriots not to allow the Giants front four to pressure Tom Brady nearly as much in the ‘rematch’ allowing him to have a big day and claim that 4^th Super Bowl ring. Until we cross paths again.

Geoff Jablonski