Super Bowl {Second Half} Thread
[Guest post by DRJ]
Final Score: 17-14 Giants over the Patriots.
1 second left — Giants hold on. Bill Belichick is leaving the field. What’s with that?
If the Giants can hang on … The happiest people will be the Giants’ players and fans and the ’72 Miami Dolphins.
30 seconds left — Now we’ll see the Patriots hurry-up offense.
35 seconds left — Manning completes a slant-and-go to Plaxico Burress in the end zone for a Giants’ TOUCHDOWN. Extra point good. 17-14 Giants.
45 seconds left — Manning to Steve Smith for a first down on 3rd-and-11.
50 seconds left — How many players touched that incomplete pass?
51 seconds left — Giants have to use their last time-out after Manning is flushed out the pocket for no gain.
1 minute left — I’m back. Manning escapes a sure sack (I’m amazed they didn’t call him “in the grasp”) and heaves it downfield where Tyree makes a spectacular catch at the 25. Giants’ fans must be going crazy.
2:30 left — We’ll see what kind of 2-minute game the Giants have. I’m going to watch, too, so I won’t be posting these last 2 minutes.
2:42 left — Brady completed a wide-open touchdown pass in the end zone. The Giants’ defender fell down. 13-10 Patriots. Extra point good. 14-10.
2:49 left — High drama. The Giants defense is tiring and a Giant is going out with an injury on almost every play.
2:49 left — Brady to Moss in the end zone, but it was high & a little outside.
3:12 left — Patriots have a 1st-and-goal inside the 7.
4 minutes left — Patriots rolling. Brady to Faulk at the 13 for a first down.
5 minutes left — Welker again … and again. Patriots have a first down inside the 30 and Texas Tech Red Raider fans everywhere are going Guns Up.
Under 7 minutes left — Patriots run outside (left) and pick up 9. That’s the first good outside run I can recall.
8 minutes left — Brady throws complete to Welker on first down to the 35. Welker has been the one bright spot in the Patriots’ offense tonight.
Still 8:30 minutes left — Bud Light and Will Ferrell. He’s a riot.
8:30 minutes left — Missed a first down by that much. Fourth down.
9 minutes left — Manning scrambles out of a sack on second down and overthrows a wide-open Plaxico Burress. Can you say adrenalin?
10 minutes left — The Giants’ Madison (I think) broke up a Brady pass and the Pats had to punt. It’s really physical out there. The Giants’ return man put a good move on the blocker at the sideline and made 9 extra yards on the return to the 29.
11 minutes left — Brady to Randy Moss for 17 yards to the 28. The coverage was good but Moss has the height and reach that often makes the difference.
What does it say about the Super Bowl commercials when the movie promos are the best part?
11 minutes left — Giants kick off to the Patriots … and there’s a flag on the play.
12 minutes left — TOUCHDOWN New York, Manning to David Tyree. 9-7. Extra point good, 10-7. Manning used at least 4 receivers on that drive and each one had a big play.
13 minutes left — Giants’ ball at the 35. Manning “slings it” over the middle to Steve Smith for a first down at the 15. Two excellent passes in a row. The announcers are right. Manning isn’t playing like a Super Bowl rookie.
15 minutes to go — Manning to Boss for a long pass to the 35. It followed a shot of Peyton Manning in a skybox.
(Near the) End of the 3rd Quarter — Per ESPN, the Giants have 167 total yards and the Patriots have 202 184.
1 minute left in the Quarter — I missed several plays but I did see a good run up the middle and then Wes Welker catching another pass over the middle. It seems like I’ve seen Welker do that a thousand times.
**I have to take a slight food-related intermission.**
3 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — Giants have to kick but pin the Patriots at their 10. Did I mention it’s still 7-3?
4:30 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — Toomer caught another 1st down pass at the 45. He’s made 2 tough catches. Then Manning went for it all in the end zone to Plaxico, who got his fingers on it but couldn’t hold because the Patriots had him triple-teamed.
6 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — Manning threw to Toomer for a quick first down around the 50.
7:20 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — The Giants’ Strahan coming around the right side sacked Brady on a 3rd-and-7. It seems like Strahan has been in the Patriots’ backfield all night.
9:30 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — Patriots have the ball 3rd-and-long at the Giants 35/40 and complete a pass over the right side for a first down.
More commercials: Bud Light still rules (“Wheel suck”) and Bridgestone is, well, I’m not sure. I’ll have to think about it. (Was that a deer, Gene Simmons, and Richard Simmons?)
Commercial break: You have to see it to believe it: Shaquille O’Neal as a jockey. Who would have imagined that the commercials with NBA stars are among the best good?
Wes Welker (Go Tech!) catches a pass over the middle on 2nd down and pays for it, but the Giants hold on 3rd down.
Barely in the second half and the Patriots make a hard-fought first-down on 3 plays. The Giants are only rushing 3.
Second-half kickoff — Giants kick off to the Pats who move it back to the 20. Nothing there. (Welcome, Marv!)
The Daytona 500 commercial makes me want a muscle car and I’m not even a muscle car fan. That’s effective advertising.
Halftime — Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. I like them but is this the trend in Super Bowl entertainment, to bring back aging rock stars? My family’s theory is that today’s rappers and other stars are too prone to profanity and wardrobe malfunctions to risk putting on.
End of first half — This is fun even if I am the only one here. (Update: And Scott Jacobs! Thanks, Scott.) In the second half I’m going to add to the main post with the oldest entries on the bottom and the newest ones on top.
— DRJ