I really have mixed emotions about this picture now…

Wait, did I miss the game? I thought it was tomorrow…

This isn’t what any of us want to hear but I don’t think anyone breaks down film better than Greg Cosell so I feel obligated to post.

When you evaluate tape, there are so many factors and variables that can be analyzed, too many to discuss at length. After careful consideration, I believe the Giants more explosive passing game will be the difference in a close, tense game that will be competitive through the fourth quarter. I picked the Giants to upset New England in Super Bowl 42, and I see the same result this Sunday. Only this time, it would not be an upset.

Great 2011 Patriots Pump Up Video with audio from Any Given Sunday. We’ve seen Pats videos with this audio before but it still gets us every single time. It’s a little misty here in the Ministry of PatsPropaganda.

Game of Inches (by brdmaverick)

As always Jerry nails it. I have nothing to add.

Facts, as they say, are stubborn things. And for this game coming up, the facts are these:

The Giants have been the hottest team in football over the last month. They’ve won five straight games. The Patriots have only won 10 straight.

The Patriots were lucky to get here. Lee Evans dropped that pass that Sterling Moore ferociously ripped out of his hands, which was pure luck. Kyle Williams letting a punt he had no intention of returning graze off his knee? Typical great clutch play by the G-Men.

Eli Manning is more than just Brady’s equal. You can’t spell “elite” without him. He’s the winningest winner that’s ever won. He LOVES taking sacks. Can’t be intimidated. He never forces a bad throw and laughs in the face of a pass rush. His legend grows like William Wallace’s. He’s 7 feet tall. Kills men by the hundreds. He’ll consume New England with fireballs from his eyes and bolts of lightning from his arse.

Brady? You can pressure him. Put him on the ground. He doesn’t like to get hit. He gets rattled. Don’t let the fact that that’s been everyone’s game plan for the last 11 years, three Super Bowl wins, two MVP seasons and last two weeks of playoff wins make you think it doesn’t work.

Brady’s played gawdawful in the playoffs, if you take away that unworldly, record-breaking job against Denver. And you must take it away. It doesn’t count.

The Patriots looked terrible in some of their games, including that one they barely won in Washington. Sure, the Redskins beat the Giants by two touchdowns twice, but that’s erroneous.

The Giants defensive front four are an irresistible force, as unblockable as a tsunami. There is no hope of stopping them with the Pats’ measly three Pro Bowlers and best blocking tight end in the league.

The Giants can pound the ball with Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs. Don’t get sidetracked by that whole “last in the NFL in rushing” thing.

Rob Gronkowski is missing practices and that’s going to cost New England in a big way. Hakeem Nicks (336 yards, 4 TDs in the playoffs) is missing practices, but he’ll be fine.

The Giants completely shut down the Patriots offense in Week 9. Besides those 17 points the Pats scored in the fourth quarter once they quit worrying about max-protecting Brady, spread New York out and played their own game.

Devin McCourty might have had a great rookie year but this year he’s been a disaster so they had to move him to safety. Antrel Rolle was great as a rookie then was a disaster and had to be moved to safety. But that doesn’t count, either.

Eli will shred New England’s secondary, which was 31st in the league. Brady has no chance against New York’s secondary, which was a whopping 29th.

Coughlin’s superhuman brain operates on a plane of existence the human mind cannot comprehend. Don’t let all those annual demands he be fired that fill the New York tabloids distract you from the truth that he’s the greatest football intellect since the first coach ever crawled out of the primordial ooze and learned to walk on land. Besides, what does Bill Belichick know about winning big games?

Might as well keep these high-larious articles coming from the NY media. They’re certainly getting me fired up.

This is the most ridiculous article I’ve ever read in my entire life. It’s so bad that it’s as if BB commissioned this reporter to create the perfect bulletin board material prior to the game. Clearly this guy didn’t see Super Bowl 36, nor did he take note of the Patriots defensive backs in Super Bowl 39. What kind of mediot writes with this kind of over-confidence. Does anyone want to tell him that the Patriots aren’t in the Super Bowl by accident? Or remind him that it took a last minute drive for the Giants to pull off the win last time in Foxboro? We’ve been far bigger underdogs in the big game before, so don’t expect us to be exactly quaking in our cleats pal.

I hesitated even posting this but it’s just so insane I had to share. Thoughts?

Eli Manning will pick up his second Super Bowl trophy on Sunday night against the defensively challenged Patriots. While he’s at it, he could make a place for himself in the Super Bowl record book for most passing yards. The Giants’ strength is throwing the ball. The Patriots’ weakness comes anytime the ball is put in the air. Manning is going to torch the Patriots secondary. New England gave up the second-most passing yards in NFL history this season, and Manning threw for nearly 5,000 yards. The Patriots’ pass defense is made for the Giants’ pass offense.

Thanks @MikeET86 for sending to me, I think…

From the disrespect being laid on the Patriots at every turn this week you’d never know that this team was the number one seed in the AFC, with one of the best offenses in football, and one of the greatest coaches of all time.

Let’s plot out all the talking points this week that the media are hitting on:

• Without Gronkowski the Patriots are dead meat
• Julian Edelman cannot cover Victor Cruz.
• The Giants front four are unstoppable.
• Eli Manning is better than Tom Brady, at least over the last couple months.
• Tom Brady does not have the ability to bounce back from getting hit like Eli does.
• The Patriots secondary is laughable.  (Cris Carter)
• The Patriots will lose. (Madden Simulation)

These are just the big ones, but seriously, I have yet to hear one single mediot think the Patriots even have a chance in this one. So I don’t know how Vegas still has the Pats as 3 point favorites (down from 3.5 earlier this week).

This doesn’t feel like 2001 where it was truly David vs. Goliath going in, but it’s not that far off. But to be honest I really kind of like it this way. The media can disrespect the Pats, take their words out of context, and generally paint them as a team that is lucky to be there.

But the reality is that the Giants better be ready for a fight that goes down to the end. This Patriots team has not lost a game by more than a possession this year. And the more pressure and negativity that is piled on Brady, the more likely I think it is that he turns in a performance for the ages.

We’ll see how it plays out on Sunday, but this familiar feeling of being an underdog suits New England, and puts them in a position they’ve frequently won from. I guess Vegas knows that too…