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February 09, 2004
one beautiful game..
i realize its been a whole week since the big game and much has happened in the world, much less in the sports world, much less in the nfl. but i want--and need--to spill out my thoughts on the game; otherwise, i will be one, very repressed asian dork whose whose wife will file for a divorce on grounds of endless football chatter. i actually finished this entry on fri, but was too lazy to get around to postin it til now..
so for those who dont follow or care for the nfl, you can forget readin this entry cuz thats all im writin about. since the game ended, ive been gushin over in my mind how great it was and how spectacularly both teams played..
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| for the game MVP, handin off the ball was as important as passin it.. |
carolinas game plan didnt surprise me. i thought they would go into the superbowl tryin to pass a little more than they normally would, knowin how strong new englands run defense was. but i think even they were surprised by how much they relied--effectively, i might add--on the pass since they were often placed in obvious-pass situations because of the ineffectiveness of their limited runnin game..
on the other hand, i found new englands game plan very interestin--on both sides of the ball. defensively, i was surprised the pats mostly stayed in the base formations they came out in; not really shiftin or movin around to confuse carolina. offensively--and i think this was the key to the game--they took a page out of the panthers book and R-A-N the ball. although the yardage they piled up was impressive (127 yds vs carolinas 92), i think wut new england really accomplished by runnin the ball was control of the clock. they had 17+ min advantage in time-of-possession over the panthers!!
new england ran 35 times on 83 plays--42% of their offense!! carolina, on the other hand, ran 33% of the time (16 of 49 plays). granted, several times in the second half the cats were effectively forced to throw in order to play catch up. but isnt that because new england dominated the clock?? they were tryin to make carolina into the one-dimensional team they werent: pass on every down..
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| most agree the game was won in the trenches.. |
but as excitin and momentum-shiftin as those big plays were, it may have been to carolinas detriment; cuz wut it did was give new england the ball right back and allow em to continue controllin the clock. and hence, the game--esp at the end. a minute and change left startin at their own 40-yd line? way too easy for brady and his bunch. haha, as if a 17-yd pass to set up the go-ahead FG can be called "easy" on 3rd-and-long..
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| my favorite superbowl ad.. |
on the pats first goal-line possession, they play-faked cuz the defense is obviously thinkin run more than pass (by the way, why is it called a "play-fake"? shouldnt it be called a "run-fake"? doesnt a "play-fake" mean one is not executin a play in actuality? anyways..). result? TD pass to deion branch..
on the pats next goal-line possession, wut is the defense thinkin since they play-faked on first-and-goal? pass. so wut do the pats do? run. result? antowain smith for a 5-yd gain settin up a short-yardage TD run on a subsequent play..
and on the pats sole 2-pt conversion attempt (of the entire season!), was that play not a gem? when most 2-pt conversions call for a pass, not only did the pats call for a run but a DIRECT SNAP to the halfback!! thus shortenin the length of the play and catchin the defenders off-guard, unready to make the tackle..
as phil simms said, its not just which plays you call but WHEN you call em. and it seems that was new englands philosophy throughout the game and season, on both offense and defense: get the upper-hand by throwin the opponent off-balance and takin advantage..
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| janet apologizes for not playin cover 2.. |
first, the missed field goal by mr clutch followed by a blocked field goal. then, big play after big play after big play when new england had almost not allowed any. and then, the interception. it appeared the stars were aligned for carolina. was it to be their destiny?
apparently not..
in the end, new england won because someone had to win. both teams were playin incredibly and whichever team had the last chance to score would come out on top. im sure no one doubts that if the panthers had one more shot to win or tie the game, they would have. but time ran out on em and new england notched the victory. time ran out because the patriots controlled the clock by dominatin the number of possessions; thereby, dicatin the game. yeah, their defense gave up big points, but carolina gave up the clock. and the game..
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so it was a great game--where does it rank in the best super bowls of all time?
who cares. yeah, a lot of writers and fans are askin that very question, which is a difficult and subjective one. but wut i wanna ask is where does this game rank in the followin..
TOP FIVE GAMES OF THE YEAR
5) minnesota at arizona (week 17) - alright, simple objective for minnesota: beat the lowly cardinals and youre in the playoffs. so wut do they do? after leadin 17 to 5, the vikes give up a TD on 4th-and-2 to make it a 5-pt game w/ less than 2 mins left in the game. arizona then recovers the onside and, as time expires, scores a TD (and extra pt) on 4th-and-26 (!!) to win the game 18-17 to knock the lowly minnesota vikings out of the playoffs!! wow, the talk of the league for the entire week; the talk of minnesota for the entire offseason..
4) tampa bay at carolina (week 2) - lemme set up the context of this game. tampa bay was the reignin champion and havin just come off a 17-0 trouncin of philly the week before, a superbowl repeat seemed all but inevitable. their defense appeared impenatrable and brad johnson was flourishin under jon grudens offensive system. nearly all agreed, the bucs were the team to beat--a team everyone was afraid to face...except for the carolina panthers who ran the ball down their throats and blocked two FGs and wut would have been the game-winnin extra-pt!! the panthers outmuscled and outplayed the bucs in a defensive battle, 12-9 and proved tampa bay was no team to fear..
3) seattle at baltimore (week 12) - now, this was a weird one. matt hasselbeck throws for FIVE TDs, ZERO INTs and loses the game?? and anthony "who-da-hell-is-he" wright leads his team in overcomin a 17-pt deficit in the 4th qtr to win the game in OT?? the ravens did nothin in the first half cept allow seattle to put up 17 pts. then, wright found marcus robinson FOUR times for TDs and the eventual victory, 44-41..
2) indy at tampa bay (week 5) - okay, this was a pretty lousy game too cuz for most of it the bucs had shut down peyton manning and his entourage of receivers. but w/ less than four mins left and down by TWENTY-ONE PTS, the colts scored THREE TDs on the "vaulted" tampa bay defense to send the game into OT and won on a FG, 38-35. indy made history by bein the first to win a game when trailin by 21 or more pts left w/ less than 4 mins to go. and tampa bay made everyone realize their defense stunk. (and monday nite football made me realize they need to start the frickin game earlier cuz havin the game at 1:30am is just wrong)..
1) superbowl - the reason i think this game was the best of em all was cuz it truly felt like a showcase of the two best teams in football. and the way the game went can only be compared to a boxin title match--like in rocky IV. the two heavyweights traded blow after blow and for the entire match, no one let up and no one went down. the only difference in endings was rocky actually knocked out drago in round 13 while carolina had to concede to new england as time ran out in the 4th. it was one beautiful game..
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one thing ive learned from scrutinizin this season of football is a seemingly important, yet lost intangible that appears to correlate to success: teams must play to win the game. teams that go out, tryin not to lose the game end up failin because they play in fear of makin a mistake. the victory has to be seized. and it requires confidence, belief, and an intelligent agressiveness in the game plan in which it is clearly imposed on the opponent that they will lose..
it looks so ridiculous writin it out cuz it comes across as a blatantly obvious statement. but weve seen examples throughout the year provin the case, most noticeably in the divisional rounds of the playoffs. the rams playin for the tie in regulation against carolina only to lose in double OT. and green bay choosin to punt on 4th-and-1 to philly w/ less than 2 mins left; basically kneelin over and sayin we have no confidence in our offense..
of course, this all falls under game management, which seems to be a lost skill in the league these days. but a winners mentality is where it starts--it has to be the drivin force behind a team and ball club..
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wut a great season. wut a great way to END the season. and now as football lays down in this barren wasteland, i will bide my time w/ duke and the nba--and fantasy sports..
..until sept..
Posted by chars at February 9, 2004 09:12 AM