7
Feb
2010
Saints defeat Colts 31-17 in Super Bowl XLIV; Tracy Porter intercepts Manning to seal victory (video)
A picture says 1000 words (Photo: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images via ESPN.com)
The New Orleans Saints shocked the world and defeated the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 to win Super Bowl XLIV, and bring the Lombardi Trophy home to the city of New Orleans.
Trailing 10-0 at the end of the 1st quarter, head coach Sean Payton made a series of gutsy calls – including a failed 4th and goal attempt in the 2nd quarter and successful onside kick to start the 2nd half – that helped the Saints chip away at the lead and put themselves in a position to win.
Drew Brees went 32-39 for 288 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions to collect the MVP award, and the Saints defense came up big when it mattered to preserve the lead. The game winning-play came when Tracy Porter picked off Peyton Manning and brought it 74 yards to the house with 3:12 remaining.
WATCH VIDEO OF PORTER’S INTERCEPTION AFTER THE JUMP
6
Feb
2010
Peyton Manning: Backyard Football Crybaby (video)
This insightful video provides a small glimpse of the NFL’s favorite family during some of their now-legendary backyard football games at the Manning family home in New Orleans. Here we see young Peyton turn into a whiny little bitch whenever older brother Cooper puts the smack down on him, while Archie just watches in silence from behind the camera.
Classic footage right here, folks. Unfortunately, Eli was apparently still too young to don the full pads for such hard-hitting action.
[via StacheMouthFootball]
15
Nov
2009
NFL WEEK TEN LIVE GAME BLOG: THE BRADY VS. MANNING EDITION
Love 'em or hate 'em, this is still the best quarterback duel in the National Football League. (Sources: Al Tielemans/SI)
For the past half-decade, it’s been the NFL’s best, if not only, great quarterback showdown. Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning. For two teams that don’t play in the same division, these guys have an uncanny knack for meeting annually at a critical juncture. Brady, of course, is the quintessential NFL quarterback, exuding confidence under pressure, a “team-first” attitude, and a will of steel. He’s got the looks, the super-model wife, and a handful of Super Bowl rings. He’s been lavished with riches beyond belief, and yet he remains likable.
Manning, meanwhile, has always been a perfect fit for Indianapolis, a throwback signal caller who’s been an absolute rock for a franchise that drifted for decades before his arrival. With a richer bloodline than any quarterback in our lifetime (even his little brother’s beaten Brady), he’s answered some of his sharpest critics (who wondered if he’d ever win a Super Bowl) and is currently enjoying one of his finest seasons to date. While he’s over-exposed and marketed idiotically — he and Eli come across a little dim in their countless ad campaigns — there’s no denying his achievements on the field.
The most-heated NFL rivalries almost always involve the game’s best quarterbacks. The Cowboys-Niners matchups featured the likes of Joe Montana, Troy Aikman, and Steve Young in the prime of their careers. The Niners and Giants pitted Montana vs. Phil Simms. When the Browns and Broncos met in three AFC Championships, it only happened because Bernie Kosar and John Elway led those teams.
Remember those great Giants-Redskins matchups between Dave Brown and Heath Shuler? Me neither.
This is a quarterback’s league. Always has been, always will be. Even if the Brady-Manning pregame hype is a bit tedious, it has produced some fascinating games. In a league where there are fewer and fewer powerhouse teams amid increased parody, we long for a true clash of the titans, and this may be as good as it gets in 2009.
We’ll be commenting on the games all day, and look forward to chatting with you. Click the comments section to join us for Week 10 in the National Football League.
4
Sep
2009
Clown Car: Cease
He just rolled on in.
Guy starts a mere 16 games at USC, then lands as the 5th pick in the NFL draft.
He’s savvy with the media. He’s chummy with his teammates.
That’s all very nice–but can he play? Apparently, he can.
His much-awaited first pass as a New York Jet brought the fanbase out of their seats (note: you think the guy in the Boomer Esiason jersey was relieved to see this?):
In four preseason games, Mark Sanchez has totaled some impressive numbers: 21 of 33 passing, 259 yards, 3 TDs and a pick. He’s improved with each outing. Last night, in a 38-27 beating of the Eagles, he went 5-for-5, for 67 yards and a score–before being pulled. LOOK… we refuse to get excited (or tricked) by quarterback performances in the preseason (see: Eric Zeier), but the Jets–who are long-suffering, and always toil in the shadow of the Giants (and play home games in a stadium named AFTER the Giants–not even IN New York)–appear to have found a gem in Mr. Sanchez.
That said, the NFL preseason tells lies: as of right now, another highly touted USC quarterback, Matt Leinert, leads the NFL in passing with 507 yards.
However, let’s not forget Emmitt Smith’s overtly condescending 1993 Reebok ad campaign, which instructed us ad nauseum (while Emmitt held out for more money) that “PLAYERS ARE MADE IN THE PRESEASON.” Setting aside the depressing mix-messaging and post-modern irony of that slogan’s attempt to sell shoes to brain-muted children, Sanchez has played, and played well during these trial runs–and kept his ego in check. Now he enters the crucible of the regular season–where players who rush for 124 yards and 2 scores in practice frays are snuffed out by the big boys, held to 8 yards on 11 carries, and jettisoned to the practice squad–a beguiling TRANSACTION item in USA TODAY. A spaghetti dinner and a Greyhound ticket back to East Earnie, Kansas. A memory.
Jets fans remember this: a clown car of low-impact, leaf-colored, momma’s boys under center. They are fed up, and there is no better time than now for someone with a pulse to emerge from the steaming trash heap under center. The Jet fanbase is prepared to make him the toast of the town. Giants fans have tried with Eli Manning, but something–on a deeper, subconscious level–doesn’t fit, despite Eli’s success. Something about him screams “Certified Public Accountant with seven years experience testing Sarbannes-Oxley regulations for emerging companies in Indiana!”
The worst move Eli ever made was getting tugged into these ultra-corny, IQ-reducing ads with Peyton. Enough already with the Manning Brothers attempting to act. Their work on screen is in a dead heat with High School Musical 3 for “reasons man should cease to exist.”
Two out of five television commercials involve one--or both--of these button-down-shirt-wearing, "awe-shucks" hobby horses--and I want to burn the hair off my head just thinking about it.
Bottom line: The city of New York (and the state of New Jersey, the true home of the Jets and the Giants) is simply better off when both teams thrive. There’s no question which of the two teams has captured the city’s imagination–the Jets struggle to simply be noticed, at times.
If you’re Sanchez, you can’t ask for more than the opportunity to start for this team–in this city–with this rabid fanbase ready to hoist you up (or feed you to the dead). Rise or fall, baby. Rise or fall.
