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Almost as soon as it came, it’s gone again.
The NFL went from “might not happen” to over within a series of months and once again it is time to play the waiting game. We have the MLB, NBA and NHL to hold us over until then, but let’s be real: football is something people talk about year-round whether we like it or not.
The New York Giants are world champions, for the second time coming out of nowhere, which I would suggest means they can no longer ‘come out of nowhere’, but it’s not over there! Here are a few talking points for the coming months that I’m sure we’ll see on various sports shows.
Is Eli better than Peyton?
Harumph. Part of why I was rooting for New England is that I figured this would be a talking point right away.
Peyton Manning and Eli Manning are both among the league’s best quarterbacks, with each capturing Super Bowl titles, but being brothers it’s only natural to compare them.
I mean if the Patriots had won, people would be asking if Brady is better than Montana, so I guess it was a lose-lose situation.
I hate these sort of conversations. While Eli is a fantastic postseason quarterback, his body of work has been nowhere near as complete as Peyton Manning.
It also perpetuates the idea that one person can win a game. There is some sort of romantic fantasy out there that one person can win a game single-handedly. That’s why often you will see quarterback match-up comparisons because often times these QBs will be the face of the team. After all, they have their hands on the football, so why wouldn’t they be?
The thing is, football is a team sport. Eli may have two rings, but he was hardly alone in this accomplishment. The Giants defense, which before the postseason was hardly as efficient as some would like you believe, played a huge part in granting New York its second Bowl victory over New England.
On top of that, Peyton’s body of work since 1998 — as opposed to Eli’s since 2004 — is much more complete. It’s hard to argue against a guy who has won four MVP awards.
While Eli may go on to a fantastic career, there are still games to be played. Arguing about who is the better Manning right now seems pointless.
Almost as soon as it came, it’s gone again.
The NFL went from “might not happen” to over within a series of months and once again it is time to play the waiting game. We have the MLB, NBA and NHL to hold us over until then, but let’s be real: football is something people talk about year-round whether we like it or not.
The New York Giants are world champions, for the second time coming out of nowhere, which I would suggest means they can no longer ‘come out of nowhere’, but it’s not over there! Here are a few talking points for the coming months that I’m sure we’ll see on various sports shows.
Is Eli better than Peyton?
Harumph. Part of why I was rooting for New England is that I figured this would be a talking point right away.
Peyton Manning and Eli Manning are both among the league’s best quarterbacks, with each capturing Super Bowl titles, but being brothers it’s only natural to compare them.
I mean if the Patriots had won, people would be asking if Brady is better than Montana, so I guess it was a lose-lose situation.
I hate these sort of conversations. While Eli is a fantastic postseason quarterback, his body of work has been nowhere near as complete as Peyton Manning.
It also perpetuates the idea that one person can win a game. There is some sort of romantic fantasy out there that one person can win a game single-handedly. That’s why often you will see quarterback match-up comparisons because often times these QBs will be the face of the team. After all, they have their hands on the football, so why wouldn’t they be?
The thing is, football is a team sport. Eli may have two rings, but he was hardly alone in this accomplishment. The Giants defense, which before the postseason was hardly as efficient as some would like you believe, played a huge part in granting New York its second Bowl victory over New England.
On top of that, Peyton’s body of work since 1998 — as opposed to Eli’s since 2004 — is much more complete. It’s hard to argue against a guy who has won four MVP awards.
While Eli may go on to a fantastic career, there are still games to be played. Arguing about who is the better Manning right now seems pointless.
Though, I dunno, did you see the Colts this year without Peyton?
Who is number one?
The NFL draft is always hotly debated. The Colts have the No. 1 pick this year and there happens to be a very talented quarterback available.
Before this season, Andrew Luck was supposed to be the number one pick. Teams such as San Francisco, Cincinnati, or Cleveland were supposed to be the suitors for Luck.
Funny thing about the Niners and Bengals ... they, you know, were not too shabby this season. So, thanks to a variety of factors, including the injury of Peyton Manning, the Colts were granted this pick.
The problem with Indy is that they have a quarterback that many people consider to be one of the best of all time. Manning has been a bit banged up, but he is Peyton Manning!
There is discussion on whether Indianapolis will be willing to take on Luck because of this.
I figure they really should. While Manning is legendary, they could create themselves a Brett Favre/Aaron Rodgers sort of situation. Rodgers did not get to start until the 2008 season.
This is significant because he was drafted in 2005, the same year as Alex Smith. Rodgers seems like he is a relatively fresh face because he was riding the pine
behind Favre.
Luck sitting on the bench for a couple of seasons could do him a world of good behind Manning. Will they be willing to work together? We’ll see.
Until then, Indy has won the Luck Bowl, let’s see what they do with it.
Next year’s winner!
It feels like the day after the Super Bowl, there is always a news story showing the odds for next year’s big game.
The problem I have with things like this is that the parity in the NFL is seemingly random. Some years a team can be pitiful and for whatever reason the next year they are one of the best teams in the league.
Really, did anyone see San Francisco going as far as it did with a roster that was barely altered? Did Jim Harbaugh really make that much of a difference?
Just because Cinci or New York were successful teams this year doesn’t mean they will be next year. So, these odds mean little in my mind, but people still talk about it.
Try not to get too heated about it. Even until the season starts, rarely will a team’s fate be obvious. So if somebody suggests the 2012 Rams are going to be the worst team in the history of everything, even worse than the hapless Lions were in 2008, take a second to relax.
I would say unless your team resides in New England, Pittsburgh and maybe Green Bay and Baltimore, the fate of the next season is pretty much up in the air at this point.
