Watching the Colts lose is almost as satisfying as watching the Patriots win. Needless to say I was ecstatic with the Saints 31-17 victory in the Super Bowl last night. Going into the game everyone was talking about Manning being the greatest QB ever, and maybe at the end of his career he will be. However, he definitely isn't the most clutch and his playoff record is pedestrian at best. Manning has a career playoff record of 9-9 and has repeatedly lost games where the Colts were the favorite. His only Super Bowl win was against a team led by Rex Grossman. Even that year they had to come back from 18 points down to beat a Patriots team whose best receiver was David Givens.
The Colts are turning into the Atlanta Braves of the NFL. Year after year they win their division and come into the playoffs as favorites. But at the end of the day they can't finish. This is America where we value championships above all else. Hell, we consider Joe Namath one of the greats and his numbers were average at best. By the way, he could be the most overrated player of all time. Anyway, when Manning threw that interception to basically seal the game last night, I was the happiest guy in the room. I thought to to myself how thankful I was not to have to listen to two weeks of Manning coverage. The fact that he refused to shake hands at the end makes it even better. See, the Patriots aren't the only ones who are bad sports!
Enough talk about Peyton Manning though. Let's talk about one of the best stories in the history of sports; The New Orleans Saints. Remember this team was as good as gone after Katrina. But Paul Tagliabue insisted the Saints stay in New Orleans. The Saints had been the Clippers of the NFL for so long and were more or less a joke. Then Drew Brees gets signed as a free agent and the rest is history. By the way, that has to be the greatest free agent signing in sports history. Not only has he put up huge numbers and won a Super Bowl, but also been instrumental in getting the city of New Orleans back on its feet. I don't know anyone who doesn't like Drew Brees. The guy just seems like a genuinely nice person and he's also an incredibly gifted quarterback. I hope the Saints continue to do well in the coming years.
Sean Payton has to be given a lot of credit as well. The onside kick call to begin the second half was the play that changed the whole complexion of the game. What other coach makes that call in the NFL? Certainly not Jim Caldwell, who I'm still convinced is some kind of robot. That call reminded me of how Belichick used to be back when he was at the top of his game(sigh). If the play doesn't work out the Colts probably win the Super Bowl. But you know what, if they just kicked it off regularly the Colts probably would've won as well. Never underestimate the importance of momentum in sports.
Well, football is over now and it's bittersweet. The Saints beating the Colts was pretty much the best thing that could happen with the Patriots being elimintated. The fact that it happened in that fashion makes me down right giddy. On the other hand, football is over and my Sunday's wont be the same. Thankfully I'm a huge NBA fan, but there's something about football season that puts an extra hop in my step. Congrats to the Saints and to the city of New Orleans!.
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