What Giants win DOESN'T mean for Birds
Philly.com, Inquirer, and Daily News coverage of the Eagles
What Giants win DOESN'T mean for Birds
Les Bowen
I'm guessing you aren't up today for any long-winded, chin-stroking analysis of what the Giants' Super Bowl victory last night means for the Eagles.
That's good, because I'm not up for writing one.
All through the buildup for what to me became an inevitable Giants victory, I kept thinking about last year's big Super Bowl "lesson," and the bogus concept that every Super Bowl winner produces some sort of blueprint that ensures a Lombardi Trophy next season, if only another organization can copy it.
Last year the Packers won, despite an impressive log of injuries. Backups stepped in at key spots and Green Bay kept going. So the big revelation was that depth is super-important; Eagles management talked about this as part of its offseason planning. This is the "trend" that brought you Ronnie Brown, Steve Smith, Donald Lee, Jarrad Page and others who contributed next to nothing to an 8-8 season.
I dunno what the Eagles will take out of the Giants winning the Super Bowl, despite having lost to Vince Young in November. If the lesson is that drafting guys who are really physically dominant, like Jason Pierre-Paul and Hakeem Nicks, is maybe more important than drafting guys who are captains and good citizens, that might be an OK thing. If the lesson is that "hey, that could have been us, the Giants were 7-7 at one point," well, that would not be a good thing.
I think the Giants won the Super Bowl for two reasons: What should have been a dominant defense all year long woke up, got healthy, or whatever, in December. And Eli Manning was the best quarterback in the postseason.
That last part was the most important; it was what separated the Giants from, say, the 49ers. Eli was sacked 11 times in the playoffs - more than any other quarterback. He still completed 65 percent of his passes, threw for nine touchdowns and was intercepted exactly once. His QB rating was 103.3. He averaged 304.8 passing yards per game.
Good luck copying that "blueprint," NFL GMs. And Eagles fans, do you really see Michael Vick throwing for nine touchdowns and one interception?
In asking the question, don't think I'm mindlessly bashing Vick. I'm not -- Tom Brady didn't do what Manning did, quite, which is why the Patriots aren't the team providing the "lesson" for everyone today. Brady made exactly two Super Bowl mistakes -- the first-play safety and then the interception, when his team was rolling. Otherwise he was spectacular. It wasn't enough.
Manning, for all his foibles, is the reason the Giants have two Super Bowl rings the past five years, an era in which they have never really been a dominant regular-season team. He is lethal, a stone killer, on the biggest stage. The Eagles just don't have that guy. Most other teams don't, either. Including the Patriots.
Also, teams that want to copy the Giants' blueprint should practice having their fumbles bounce straight into the arms of teammates. That helps, too.
Comment removed.
Sounds like all the people who were praising Vick and predicting the Eagles to dominate the next few years are back on the board again. Hypocrites.— OurCity2000- Vick is a lethal, stone cold killer like Eli. Unfortunately he exercises that ability on dogs rather than opposing defenses. All in Dream Team!— Scope33
- over past qtr century, Giants, Cowboys and Patriots continue to win SBs; Yankeees, RedSox and Cards continue to win WS; RedWings, Canadiens and Devils continue to win Stanley Cups; Celtics, Lakers and Bulls continue to win championships -- and loser Philly fans act grateful that after inheriting a WS-winning team, Phlllies mgmt manages to field a team that can win its division...
— warbiscuit - Happy Birthday to the late great director Francois Truffant. Just noticed be bears a resembalance to our not late, not great, capologist, Joe Bannah.— Rabe56
- 12 super bowls won by NFC east teams - Cowboys 5, Giants 4, Redskins 3,
EAGLES-ZERO.— marckahn - Vick is a worthless turd as far as performing against playoff quality opposition is concerned. Reid has proven to be only slightly less worthless than Vick. The F.O.'s drafting performance has shown to be the worst of the lot. I can't even understand how the team is competitive year after year. No championships for this batch of pigs.— HorshamGuy
- There's a lesson to be learned and it applies to every team and can be adopted by all. Team play will always win over individual talent. It's about consistantly excuting plays in every phase of the game. The Giants were the best team. They did not have the most talented team. When you get to the playoffs and are eliminated if you lose, consistancy gives you the best odds of winning the Super Bowl. The Eagles, and Vick in particular, are incredibly inconsistant. Yeah, a team can go on a hot streak at the right time and come out on top occassionally. But it's impossible to create and time a hot streak. It's pure chance. Vick hass yet to prove that he is willing to put in the work, or translate that work, into consistant play. Yes, he has great skills and can win a game here or there on that alone. The chances of him winning a series of games against top teams in the league are low. Same issue with DeSean Jackson. He doesn't know the plays and makes mistakes. He can rack up stats for himself but you can't win it all that way. This is Vick's and Jackson's last chance to get it right. Potential and talent is not enough. They've had more than enough time to get it. If they aren't willing to do whatever it takes to perform at THEIR OPTIMUM, I can't support the Eagles and watch the games. Being better than most people doesn't cut it. They have to be the best they are capable of being and willing to do whatever it takes to acheive that. Being entertaining and competative is not enough. The 76ers have it right. Look what the players on that team did during the offseason. Look what happened to the one guy who didn't put in the work, Maureese Speights. Gone. Some talent and some potential but unwilling to put in the work. That should have been the message Reid gave all the players. Do the work or you are gone.— MikeP
- The years of bad drafts, reaches for guys like Jarrett and Daniel Teo'Nesheim. They have to hope Brandon Graham can turn out to be a good player. In 2009, they hit on Maclin and McCoy but then had nothing left. They had all of these 5th, 6th and 7th rounders that all turned out be useless, unless you count Foiku as someone of value. They wasted a 2nd round pick on Trevor Laws and a 3rd round pick on Bryan Smith in 2008. They have a lot of 2nd and 3rd round picks who are not even in the league at this point. I am sure you can go across the league and find some similar instances, but this team has MISSED too often.— Back up the Bus for Gload and Bowker
- if any of kool-aid drinkers think andy reid or michael vick have the IQ to win playoff games next year please report to your closest psychiatric ward.— 420Phillie
- As a Giants fan living in Philly it is so entertaining to see all the salty fans talking about bounces off the knee and luck. All championship runs are speckled with fortunate things. The Champs take advantage of those things and win. Brady had several calls go his way when the Giants were driving that likely took 14 points off the boards for the Giants. Brady missed throws when it counted. Manning put a perfect pass in the biggest spot in the game into a 2 foot window. This team and organization are so far ahead of the crappy Eagles it is not even in the same Universe.
Philly won the Super Bowl in August with flashy moves. The Giants won the Super Bowl in February. So sweet. Dream Team Giants— NYgiants11 - Giants were the better team, but Brady was still the better QB in that game.
And I don't think Eli is bad, but the big difference in the teams is that the Giants have 3 outstanding receivers who are big, fast, and have great hands.
That's the difference in that game.
— fmMD - Eli Manning is absolute money when the pressure is on- MONEY!
Teams make their own luck.
I give the Giants all the credit they deserve despite the fact I hate them.
Andy Reid's teams just cannot get it done- which is quite obvious for 13 years....Jeff Lurie has to watch the Giants and realize Andy Reid is not going to win a Super Bowl- Reid does not have enough discipline to stop himself from over eating- how do you have him as a leader?— Keep The Change - When you speak of the despicable Eagles, please don't compliment them with "We" the Eagles are the ultimate "They" team. We the fans are the outsiders, we are only good for the money we spend. Our opinions mean nothing to Lurie and the Eagles. We the fans are just a distraction in the eyes of Lurie and Reid.— Lets Eat
- The G-Men are men not wimpy punks like the E-Gals. I have been and Eagles fan since 1958 and this years team is by far the worst bunch of losers that I have seen. Big pay players who fail to deliver in big games. They were very lucky to be 8-8. The difference is that they play their division well and like a bunch of fairies against the rest of the league.— jpelle36
