It is a little before 11pm Eastern Time, and the NFL Network has just finished interviewing Plaxico Burress, Eli Manning, and they're talking to Osi Umenyiora right now.  Three of my guys... our guys... we overwhelmed and overjoyed fans of the New York Football Giants.  17-14.  Jints.  G-Men.  Real Giants. 

Super Bowl Champions.

No 19-0 for the New England Patriots.

Randy Moss, Tom Brady, and their teammates have class.  Bill Belichick does not (more on that later).

Only about 90 percent plus of the so-called experts had this one about as wrong as wrong can be.  Most folks figured the Patriots would win easily, what with their 36+ points per game, their great set of wideouts (Wes Welker was brilliant tonight, by the way, would have undoubtedly been the MVP if New England had won), a recently strong running game, a terrific defense, great offensive line, and, of course, Tom Brady.  Plus, New England never loses when it has the lead going into the fourth quarter.

But right from the get-go, the Giants were on to something.  Their opening drive took off a lot of first quarter time, something close to 10 minutes.  A statement, there, and they managed a Lawrence Tynes field goal.  OK, but we knew that field goals wouldn't be enough.  Their defensive strategy became clear: get to Brady.  They hit him nine times, sacked him five times, hurried him at other times.  Everyone did agree that the only chance the Giants had to maybe win the game was to rough him up.  That they did, all game long.  They made the New England "O" line look ragged and beat them most of the night.  What a great job by their defensive line and linebackers. What a great plan by defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, former Eagles coach and Jim Johnson disciple who surely now must be at the top of the Washington Redskins' list as they search for a successor to Joe Gibbs.

It was 7-3 at the quarter after a fine kick-off return gave New England good field position and ultimately their first touchdown of the game, a short run by Lawrence Moroney off a pass interference call.  Still 7-3 at the half.  7-3 at the end of three quarters.  One note here: did genius Belichick outfox himself when he eschewed a 50-yard field goal attempt on a 4th and 13?  FOURTH AND 13 and you go for it??  With a kicker, Stephen Gostkowski, who has been reliable all season?  Who hit for a 52-yarder earlier this year?  And they were playing in a stadium with its retractable roof CLOSED??  Was he not watching what Lawrence Tynes did from 47 yards against Green Bay, at Lambeau, in that cold two weeks ago? And he still went for it??  What hubris.  What utter hubris.  What stupidity.   

Manning then led New York to a go-ahead score off a nice drive in the fourth, making a razor-sharp pass to David Tyree shortly after tight end Kevin Boss hauled in a huge 45-yard pass that kept the drive alive.  10-7 Giants. 

Then Brady showed his cool and greatness.  7:53 left.  The Patriots marched down the field from their 11, Brady completing seven of his first ten passes, and ultimately hitting the non-pareil Moss in the end zone for the go-ahead score.  14-10 Patriots.  The commentators said New England had found their rhythm on offense.  They showed linebackers Junior Seau and Tedy Bruschi hugging each other on the sideline.  The game would be in their hands now.  New England kicked off and made a great play on the return. 

Less than three minutes to go, and it was crucible time for Eli Manning.  It was a drive for the ages.  Clutch passing.  A fourth down conversation by running back Brandon Jacobs across the New York 40 after two completions to the ultra-reliable Amani Toomer.  Then: 3rd and 5 from the Giants' 44.  A buck-fifteen left on the clock. The incredible play, surely one of the greatest in the history of this game... Manning back, looked for all the world that he'd be sacked, they had two hands on his jersey, but he somehow escaped, stepped up, and hauled a high arcing pass to David Tyree.  The unknown wideout leaped in the air, stretched his arms up high, grabbed it, somehow balanced the ball on his helmet with one hand as he started going down.  He got the other hand up to stabilize the ball.  First down at the 24.  A 32-yard play.  The drive continued.  On third and 11 Manning found rookie Steve Smith for the first, the last of his several clutch catches.  Remember him, for greatness is upon this former USC Trojan.  Finally, 35 seconds left, Manning to Plaxico Burress. A perfect fade pass as the former Steeler made a gorgeous, quick move to get himself open.  TOUCHDOWN!!  17-14.

New England got the ball, Brady missed four times, although on one of them he went long to Moss and almost pulled off a miracle.  But the Patriots were not the miracle workers tonight.  That belonged to Manning and the Giants.

There was confusion after New England gave up the ball on downs.  Still one or two ticks of the clock left.  The officials had to clear the field in order for Manning to take the championship kneel down.  Belichick had apparently run out and shaken Tom Coughlin's hand prior to that last play.  Except then he was  off to the locker room before the final snap.  I'm sorry.  The guy may be a great coach, but he has no class.  At his press conference he just said the Giants made more plays than New England and that they played good defense.  He could have been a little more gracious, a lot more sportsmanlike.  But I guess he just doesn't know how to be that way, at least in this facet of his life.  Too bad.  I am so glad he lost.

And so happy for my fellow fans.  For the Maras and Tisches, Coach Coughlin.  The players.  They called themselves the "All-Joes" playing against all-pros.  This is my 51st year rooting for this team.  It never gets old, the ups and the downs, the lows and, when something like this happens, a high that is not to be believed, cherished in a way that is difficult to articulate right now.  Its too soon.  I'm still in a state of amazement and wondrous disbelief.  We beat New England.  We won the Super Bowl.  Dreams do come true.  Hope springs eternal.  Anything... A-NY-THING... is possible!  They'll be sending the "ticker tape" down the Canyon of Heroes in lower Manhattan Tuesday. 

Initially I was going to title this blog "A Dish Best Served Cold" as in "Revenge is...."  If you read my previous blog, you know that I waited 45 years for payback, and last night it finally came to pass.  'Tis better... and far more professional... to take the high road.

What a game!  The Giants held Green Bay to less than 30 yards on the ground, a monumental accomplishment given Ryan Grant's 201 the week before in the Divisional playoff against Seattle.  That forced Brett Favre to pass more than he probably wanted (although the great Gunslinger never met a pass he didn't like), and since he wasn't really able to establish play action with any consistency, the Giants linebackers and secondary were able to key far better on the Pack's fine set of receivers.  You hardly heard Greg Jennings' name called at all, and although Donald Driver was on the receiving end of that nifty 90-yard TD pass, he otherwise did little damage.  Overall, the Giants managed almost 400 yards of total offense to Green Bay's 264. 

There was something about the way the Giants played this game, right from the get go, that had me quietly confident.  They were making plays; even after the Pack hit two quick passes to open the game, the Giants' defense settled down and took care of business.  When Favre found a wide-open Driver in the second quarter for that big scoring play, I was just angry at the blown coverage.  The good news was there was no perceptible pattern of defensive confusion and/or poor play that I witnessed in more than a few games this season.  It felt like a blip, and fortunately I was right.  At the half we were down 10-6, but there were enough good things happening that kept me optimistic.  The Giants were running the ball OK, not great, but making a dent.  Eli Manning was looking as cool as he had played in the prior three games, including that four TD pass performance against the Patriots in week 17. 

By the end of the third quarter New York led 20-17.  That had been my predicted score, but I had a strong feeling we were not in for a scoreless fourth.  Penalties were starting to hurt both teams.  The Giants benefited from four Green Bay flags on their  first touchdown drive of the third period, were victimized by a really stupid personal foul penalty taken by defensive back Sam Madison that gave the Pack a first down, and then lost a brilliant touchdown run by Ahmad Bradshaw on a questionable hold by lineman Chris Snee (whose father-in-law is none other than Giants head coach Tom Coughlin). 

Green Bay's terrific rookie kicker Mason Crosby made it 20-20 with a 37-yard field goal with a little under 12 minutes to go. The rest of the quarter was intensity personified.  Damn the cold and bitter weather, these two teams kept on each other with a desperation borne of fierce competitiveness and, perhaps, the notion that winning a game like this could be a once-in-a-career opportunity for many, perhaps most, of the men on the field.

Then there was Lawrence Tynes.  How amazing: he was already 2 for 3 in the field goal attempt department, and had drawn Coach Coughlin's ire for missing the one kick earlier.  Now, after a a series of incredible events including R.W. McQuarter's fumble on a punt return, the two chances Green Bay muffed in grabbing the ball, the great recovery by the Giants' Domenik Hixon, and then a measured drive down a short field, here was Tynes readying for his first game-winning FG of the season.  Four seconds and 36 yards to go and only the NFC title on the line!  My insides were screaming.  The snap was high and inside but holder Jeff Feagles made a great catch, got the ball down and spun the laces away.  But Tynes didn't get good foot on the ball, pushed it left, the Cheeseheads roared, and then Green Bay won the toss to start OT.  Here is what my gut told me: if we can stop them here, right now, we'l win the game.  My biggest fear was that the Packers would move the ball just far enough into field goal range, and then Crosby would break my heart. 

But it didn't happen.  All of a sudden, everything good that had happened in the game: Plaxico Burress's monster 11 receptions for 154 yards; the great catch by Amani Toomer that kept the second touchdown drive going in the third quarter; Eli Manning's heady, measured play; the strong work by the back seven defenders given the relative lack of pressure on Favre by the Giants front four; the steady running game; the solid blocking of fullback Madison Hedgecock; Hixon's play on special teams, all of it suddenly seemed to confluence as Favre let go a pass that need to be "out" more than it was.  Corey Webster managed to jump the pattern, ran a little then just fell on the ball to secure possession.  The Giants drove a little, but another setback due to penalty, then finally got the ball down to the 30.  And for a second time the game, the championship, the Super Bowl, the season, and for some perhaps their ultimate career moment, were all on the line.  No opponent had EVER kicked a post-season field goal of more than 40 yards at Lambeau Field.  The snap was good, the hold perfect, and when the kick started to sail it briefly looked as if it might stay right.  But all of a sudden you could see the ball start slightly hooking to the left, working its way inside the upright, with no question as to whether or not it had the distance.  23-20.  As Bob Pappa, the Giants' radio voice likes to say after extra points: "True Blue!" 

I leaped from my couch and screamed, the angst of all those years finally hoisted from my innards.  It was as cathartic as it was joyful, and I didn't know for whom I was more happy: was it the beleagured Coach Coughlin, who was fired so many times in the newspapers and the radio talk shows the past few years (and early this season) that you had to wonder how he could just do his job every day; maybe the Mara and Tisch families who co-own the team, and whose classy management of it for decades (first just the Maras, more recently with the Tisches) has always been a benchmark for ownership in professional sports; the players of course, especially Michael Strahan and Amani Toomer, the only two left from the 2001 Super Bowl team that lost 34-7 to the Ravens; and, too, all of us Giants fans who live and die with this team every bit as much as fans of the Eagles, Packers, Cowboys, you name it. 

I've been rooting for this team since 1958, suffered through the era of
"15 years of lousy football," revelled in the Super Bowl wins back in
'86 and '90 with the Tuna, LT, Harry Carson, Phil Simms, Joe Morris, et al, and now look with relish for the chance to stop Bill Belichick in his tracks.  We almost made Ted Efaw the happiest man in the Mid-Atlantic region when we took New England to the mat, 38-35, on December 29th.  Don't get me wrong, I think Tom Brady is a once-in-a-generation quarterback, a winner in every sense.  I am impressed with Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Donte Stallworth, and Jabbar Gaffney, a great set of wideouts.  Tedy Bruschi is nothing less than inspiring.   But for the next two weeks, my focus is going to be on beating Belichick, his hoodie, his dour disposition, his selective sportsmanship (see Mangini, Eric and Dungy, Tony), and his obvious displeasure (or is it inability?) when interacting with the media.  And yes, I haven't forgotten who was the Giants' defensive coordinator during the aforementioned great run under Parcells.  But that was then, this is now.  I give 18-0 their props, for it is well-deserved.  And now my guys get the last shot.  What a fortnight it'll be.  Stay tuned!