(Photo: Getty Images via ShutdownCorner)

• Eli Manning has silenced his critics by winning his second Super Bowl MVP, but Shutdown Corner makes the case that Justin Tuck deserved the award too, based on the pressure he applied on Tom Brady all day, including the 1st quarter safety
• Wes Welker’s dropped pass with just 3:46 left in the game is being singled out as the reason the Patriots lost the game, and based on their reaction yesterday, it’s safe to say some of his teammates probably agree

(via Gifninja.com)

• Gisele Bundchen was also not happy with the Patriots receivers after the game, pointing out that “My husband cannot (bleeping) throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time!”
• Steelers James Harrison and Ryan Clark took a couple shots at the Patriots via Twitter after their loss, with Harrison going so far as to say “Cheaters never win!!!”
• It was quick, so you might have missed it, but M.I.A. apparently flipped America the bird during the halftime show (VIDEO HERE)
• Somebody bet $1,000 that the first score of the game would be a safety.  That person is now $50k richer
• In case it was too noisy at your SB party to watch all the much-hyped commercials, here are all the Super Bowl Ads for your viewing pleasure
• And unless you live in North Platte, Nebraska, you probably didn’t know that Will Ferrell appeared in a SB commercial for Old Milwaukee
• Giants rookie LB Greg Jones proposed to his long-time girlfriend on the field immediately following the game, with confetti still falling around them

Eli = Elite (Photo: NY Giants Facebook)

The New York Giants are Super Bowl Champions once again, and Eli Manning has won his second Super Bowl MVP award after defeating the New England Patriots 21-17 in Indianapolis tonight. With the win, Eli officially steps out of the shadow of his brother Peyton, and cements himself in the annals of NFL history as one of the game’s greatest quarterbacks.

The biggest play of the game came in the fourth quarter, as the Giants attempted to drive the field for the game-winning score. Manning hit Mario Manningham for this incredible 38-yard sideline catch:

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

As remarkable as Manningham’s catch was, Manning’s throw was equally as brilliant, delivering the ball on a rope in a very tight space where only Manningham could snare it. And the play will undoubtedly go down in Giants history as one of the greatest plays of all time.

Ahmad Bradshaw finished off the drive with a bizarre game-winning 6-yard touchdown run with just over a minute to go. New York was trying to run out some more clock before scoring the go-ahead points and giving the ball back to Tom Brady, but the Patriots called the patented “Red Sea” defense and left Bradshaw untouched … leading to perhaps the most awkward touchdown in Super Bowl history:

(via Reddit/r/nygiants)

The Giants defense was able to hold off a last-minute drive by Brady, which ended with a failed hail mary as the clock struck zero. And suddenly – after winning his second championship and defeating Bill Belichick head-to-head for the second consecutive time on the game’s biggest stage - Tom Coughlin has to be in the conversation as one of the greatest coaches in NFL history.

This week 14 block effectively saved the Giants season (Photo: NYPost.com)

There are thousands of fan-made highlights packages to be found on YouTube, but this one of the New York Football Giants 2011-12 regular season stands out from the pack for its incredible editing, high quality footage, and of course, the tasteful use of  ”Run This Town” by Jay-Z (feat. Rihanna) as the backing music.

And even though the Giants barely squeaked into the playoffs as a Wild Card after finishing 9-7, with guys like Eli, Cruuuuuuz, and JPP having breakout seasons, there were still plenty of explosive and memorable plays from this year’s campaign … even before they were able to put it all together just in time for a stunning playoff run.

So if you’re a Giants fan looking for something to keep you fired up during the off-week before Super Bowl XLVI, you’ve come to the right place.

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

Manning took the belt from Rodgers on Sunday! (Photo via tinypic.com)

In Sunday’s big matchup, the New York Giants soundly defeated the defending champion Packers 37-20 in Green Bay yesterday, and will head to San Francisco on Sunday for a re-match of their week 10 loss … not to mention the fabled 2002 wild card comeback and 1990 NFC Championship game.

With the win, Eli Manning may have finally cemented himself as an “elite” quarterback (whatever that means), improving to 6-3 all-time in the post-season after throwing for 330 yards and 3 TDs and outperforming his more-heralded counterpart, Aaron Rodgers (264 yards, 2 TDs). Giants WR Hakeem Nicks was once again the best receiver on the field, pulling in 7 catches for 165 yards and two TDs. The Giants defense once again came to play, harassing Rodgers for four sacks and causing three turnovers and ending the Packers 15-1 season unceremoniously.

And now, here’s your game recap in photos and GIFs (CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE):

Win or lose, this guy's Lambeau field hat is amazing (Photo via Reddit.com/r/nfl)

Nicks struck the first big blow for NY with a 66-yard score in the 1st quarter (photo: Andrew Mills/The Star-Ledger)

In the second quarter, it looked as though the Giants got hosed by the refs, who somehow ruled Greg Jennings down on a fumble when video evidence clearly showed otherwise :

Hell, even Mike Pereira thought it was a fumble (Image via Sportsgrid.com)

Just before halftime, the Giants went for it all with a 37-yard hail mary to Hakeem Nicks

Nicks did his best David Tyree in using his helmet to reel in the pass (Photo: Getty Images)

Osi Umenyiora was called for an inexplicable roughing the passer on this one (Image via tinypic.com)

Rodgers was not helped out by his receivers, who dropped EIGHT passes on the day (Photo: JSonline.com)

Jermichael Finley can't reel in a 4th quarter pass (Via sbnation.com)

Michael Boley does Rodgers' Discount Double-Check belt celebration following a sack (Image via LarryBrownSports.com)

Donald Driver realizes the season - and possibly his career in Green Bay - is over (Photo: Sportsgrid.com)

JPP taunts Rodgers late in the game (Photo via Reddit.com/r/nfl)

(Photo: Nick Laham/Getty Images via Yahoo.com)

With second-year sensation Victor Cruz (and his salsa dance) getting all the press for the New York WRs dring the build up to this week’s Giants-Falcons Wild Card match-up, it was Hakeem Nicks who turned in the play of the day in leading the Giants to an impressive 24-2 playoff win.

After a defensive struggle in the first half, New York led 10-2 late in the third quarter when Nicks broke the game wide open with this 72-yard catch and run. Watch as Nicks splits no less than FIVE Falcons defenders at midfield and leaves them in the dust for his second touchdown of the game:

Nicks, who would finish with 115 yards receiving to go with his 2 TDs, added insult to injury for the Falcons by doing “The Dirty Bird” as his endzone celebration:

DIRTY BIRD GIF AFTER THE JUMP

(Via SBNation.com)

New York added another passing score to Mario Manningham, giving Eli Manning three TDs (277 yards, 0 INTs) on the day, and Perry Fewell’s defense played stout all afternoon, with Atlanta’s only points coming on an early safety. Now the Giants will head to Green Bay to face the mighty Packers, where they’ll attempt to avenge their 38-35 Week 13 loss and advance to the NFC championship game.

Nicks’ Dirty Bird celebration prompted this Twitter response from the dance’s originator, Jamal Anderson, who remained good-natured about the whole thing:

NO HE DIDN’T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Btw, I’m not mad at Nicks. I Broke out the Dirty Bird in 98, its trending on Twitter in 2012.

This was for all the marbles in the NFC East, with the winner taking the division and the loser going home to face a long off-season, watching the playoffs from the outside looking in. A play-in game, if you will, between bitter division rivals. As regular season match-ups go, it doesn’t get much bigger than this. So we battled our hangovers and made the trip to East Rutherford, where we took a lot of pictures along the way to share with you, our loyal readers.

Despite our sterling reputation as an emerging force in new sports media, we didn’t have any press passes or fancy cameras for this one, so these photos are all from the fan’s perpective … and all of them were taken on an iPhone 4s. We hope you enjoy!

(CLICK ANY PHOTO TO EMBIGGEN):

The new MetLife stadium is quite impressive from the outside (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

(Photo: ArtieFufkin)

The rain couldn't dampen the spirits of Giants fans, who were fired up for this one (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Romo and Co. are greeted warmly by the New York fans (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Oooh ... fireworks! (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

CONTINUE AFTER THE JUMP FOR MORE PHOTOS FROM THE GIANTS/COWBOYS GAME

And the Giants take the field! (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Minutes later, Victor Cruz (left) would sprint toward us down this sideline into the endzone for a 74-yard 1st quarter score (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Cruz, Rolle and Bradshaw would all have big nights for NY (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

The Giants' front four came to play tonight (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Led by JPP and Tuck, who got the crowd involved early (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Romo would get taken down 6 times by the Giants D (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Eli leads the Giants on a scoring drive toward the end of the 1st quarter (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

The Giants offense came out firing on all cylinders (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Eli rolls to his right in the 2nd quarter (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Aaaaand halftime (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Romo finds himself backed up against his own endzone (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Eli surveys the Dallas coverage (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

In the 4th, Eli looks left to Hakeem Nicks ... (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

... who can't reel in the low pass (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Unfortunately for Jerry Jones and Romo, Dallas' rally attempt fell short (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

And the Giants are NFC East Champions! (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

And here's the towel the fans received, and waved tirelessly throughout the game (Photo: ArtieFufkin)

Cromartie searches for his jock on the MetLife Stadium turf (Image via Sportsgrid.com)

We’ve got another late contender for play of the year already today.

With the Giants trailing the Jets 7-3 and looking relatively lifeless heading into the half, facing 3rd and 10 from their own 1 yard line, Eli Manning hit Victor Cruz right around the first down marker … at which point Cruz makes an unbelievable sidestep move to elude two Jets defenders and break free for the 99-yard score.

Watch as Cruz makes Antonio Cromartie look silly after the catch, then uses his speed to do the rest:

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

Cruz – one of he breakout offensive stars in the NFL this season – continues to come up with big plays when his team needs him most. The undrafted free agent has already set the new Giants franchise record for receiving yards in a season (1,322), and the play came at a critical point in the game for New York, who desperately need to win today to stay alive in the hunt for the division title.

And now, he’s made NFL history with a record that can never be broken. Merry Christmas, Victor.

Bowe is an early contender for catch of the year (AP Photo/AJ Mast via google.com)

Here are a couple of the most impressive plays from today’s early games, if not the early part of the season, with the Chiefs’ Dwayne Bowe and Giants’ Victor Cruz making a pair of impressive juggling grabs for touchdowns.

Watch this amazing 5-yard snag by Bowe with a defender draped all over him. Bowe had 128 yards and 2 TDs in the Chiefs 28-24 win over the Colts:

WATCH CRUZ’ CIRCUS CATCH AFTER THE JUMP

And just when you thought we had seen the best catch of the day, here comes Cruz’ 68-yard leaping, juggling, one-handed circus grab from Eli Manning in the Giants 36-25 loss to the Seahawks.  

Cruz, who has already been at the center of quite a few big plays in his young career, finished the day with 161 yards and 1 TD receiving, but also had a fumble and a costly tipped ball on the game-winning interception for Seattle.

Clearly nobody touched Cruz while he was on the ground (Photo: Getty Images via WashingtonPost.com)

This is undoubtedly the most controversial play of Week 4 in the NFL.

From yesterday’s Giants-Cardinals game, with New York trailing by 3 points and driving with 2:46 remaining, Eli Manning hit WR Victor Cruz for a 19-yard completion. At the end of the play, Cruz fell to the ground, put the ball on the grass and stood up to return to the huddle. One problem: Cruz wasn’t touched by a Cardinals defender while he was down, so theoretically, the ball should still be alive. Or that’s at least what most everyone watching the play assumed, and Arizona jumped on the ball, thinking they had secured a crucial turnover.

But not so fast. Referee Jerome Booger had blown the play dead, ruling that Cruz had “given himself up” on the play. Because of that ruling, and despite a challenge flag thrown by Cards coach Ken Whisenhunt, the play was not reviewable.

Watch the play for yourself, and decide if Cruz should have been ruled down:

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

On the very next play, Manning hit Hakeem Nicks for the go-ahead score, ultimately winning the game 31-27.

So did the Cardinals get screwed? The NFL issued a statement today, highlighting the applicable rule, Rule 7, Section 2, Article 1(e), states:

“An official shall declare the ball dead and the down ended when a runner is out of bounds, or declares himself down by falling to the ground, or kneeling, and making no effort to advance.”

Based on the wording of the rules, one could argue that the refs got the call right, since Cruz seemingly fell to the ground on his own volition, and gave up the ball in an effort to hurry back to the huddle. In fact, the NFLs VP of Officiating Carl Johnson has chimed in to say that the refs got it right.  

But it’s a pretty fine line for a judgement call like that, and Cardinals fans certainly have a right to feel like they got hosed on a play that ultimately cost their team the game. Especially considering the fact that Cruz himself said he thought he got touched by a defender, so he wasn’t necessarily giving himself up:

“I saw the guy coming and I wanted to get down,” he said. “I thought I was tagged down and I got up and was going to the next play. I thought I was touched so the ref called it down. I felt like I was touched, I thought somebody touched me. I guess in the heat of the moment you probably don’t feel it or you think someone touched you, but I definitely thought I was touched.”

Manning himself thought the Giants got lucky on the call:

“We got a break on that one I think,” he said. “I thought it was going to get ruled a fumble and I saw it pretty clear. I don’t know what the call was or why.”

That seems to be the general consensus, despite the fact that the league is seemingly supporting the call for now. And since former NFL VP of officiating Mike Pereira also thought it should have been ruled a fumble, this is probably one of those situations where the rule will be changed during the next off-season to help clarify (or at least allow such plays to be reviewed).

Vick got roughed up again today in Philly (Photo 30fps.com)

2nd UPDATE: According to Eagles HC Andy Reid, Vick’s hand is NOT broken, it’s just a bruise, and Vick could possibly play in Week 4

____________________________

Remember when everyone was prematurely handing the Eagles the NFC East crown – and some the Super Bowl – during the off-season??? Well that’s why they play the games, folks.

Eagles QB Michael Vick left the game during the 4th quarter with a broken right hand and the New York Giants beat Philadelphia 29-16 today at Lincoln Financial Field. Eli Manning threw 4 touchdowns as the Giants improved to 2-1, while Philadelphia falls to 1-2 after back-to-back losses.  It is unknown how long Vick  - who came into the game dealing with the effects of a concussion – will be out. UPDATE: According to reports, Vick could miss 3-4 weeks.

The Giants jumped out to an early 14-0 lead on the strength of 2 big plays – a 40-yard passing score to Brandon Jacobs and a 74-yard touchdown reception by Victor Cruz (video after the jump). Cruz, who was starting in place of the injured Mario Manningham and Domenik Hixon, had a breakout performance today, finishing with 2 TDs and 110 yards receiving. Vick and the Eagles were able to regain the momentum, battling back to take a 16-14 lead midway through the third quarter, but from there the Giants defense tightened up, and their front four continued to reign down blows on Vick, with Chris Canty seemingly delivering the knockout shot:

[Video via CosbySweaters]

Vick went to the locker room for X-rays shortly after this hit, but returned to the game without missing a play, only to exit for good a few minutes later. Most speculated it was Vick’s head (or possibly mouth/tongue) after the hit from Canty, but we later learned he had broken his right – non-throwing – hand.  It’s difficult to tell whether that injury came on the same play or not, possibly when Vick put his right hand down to break his fall.

Without Vick in the game, the Giants were able to put things away with 4th quarter scores from Cruz and Ahmad Bradshaw, with the vaunted Philadelphia defense putting on a shoddy display of tackling in the process. Watch the first TD by Cruz, where the Eagles secondary looks more like the keystone cops than a bunch of highly paid all-stars.

(Image via Gifulmination.com)

WATCH VICTOR CRUZ’S 74-YARD TD AFTER THE JUMP