The New York Giants are now one game away from winning their second Super Bowl in four years. This team seems to be a team of destiny, a team that thrives when the world underestimates them. The odds makers in Las Vegas have again pitted the Giants as the underdog against the mighty Patriots, similar to their role in the 2007 Super Bowl against New England.
Any sports fan who watched that game four years ago remembers what happened. The Giants defensive line harassed Tom Brady all night and scored with under a minute to go to defeat the previously-unbeaten Patriots. The win ended New England’s bid to become just the second team in NFL history to finish a season with an unblemished record and was regarded as one of the best games in NFL history.
Several analysts have compared the Giants run to the Super Bowl this year to the magical run they had in 2007. The similarities between the two seasons are eerie. The Giants are playing the same team they played in the big game four years ago, and they had to play three games on their way to the championship (though this year they only had to play two games on the road while in 2007 they played all three on the road).
Most importantly, the Giants caught fire at the end of the regular season and were able to carry that momentum into the postseason. New York had been left for dead by the media and Giants’ fans alike during their mid-season five game losing streak, which included a disheartening loss to the Michael Vick-less Eagles at Giants’ stadium.
But, as always, the Giants rebounded and were able to win their last two regular season games over the New York Jets and the Dallas Cowboys. The latter game was vitally important as it decided the NFC East champion and the fourth seed in the playoffs. The Giants then cruised through the playoffs, pounding the Falcons, beating the powerhouse Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field and defeating the San Francisco 49ers in San Fran to advance to the super bowl.
One trademark of the 2007 Giants was the team’s ability to use their underdog label as motivation to propel them through the playoffs and beat the previously unbeaten Patriots to win the superbowl.
According to New York defensive lineman Justin Tuck, the Giants are once again embracing the underdog role in their run to the super bowl and their matchup with the Patriots.
“A lot of people haven’t given us a shot,” Tuck said. “We kind of like it that way. So all you odds makers, keep rooting against us.”
While the Giants are viewed as legitimate contenders this time around against the Patriots, New England is motivated by revenge. As much as the Giants want to consider themselves the underdog in this matchup, they won’t have the luxury of sneaking up on the Patriots as they did in 2007. In fact, the Patriots are heaping praise upon this Giants’ team in the wake of their super bowl matchup, while a majority of the media considers the game a toss-up.
The difference in the rematch will be one important factor the Giants have revived from their run in 2007. The team has their swagger back, which was important in both their run this year and four years ago. The players were confident that they could beat anyone anywhere, which made winning road games at Green Bay and San Francisco in this year’s playoffs much easier.
The Giants used that swagger and self confidence to overcome the undefeated Patriots to win the Super Bowl in 2007. If the Giants can recall that feeling of fearlessness and swagger heading into this year’s game, there’s nothing stopping them from being Super Bowl champions once again.
They got a good example of it from Ann Mara, the widow of former Giants owner Wellington Mara. Mrs. Mara charged up to FOX’s Terry Bradshaw during the NFC championship trophy presentation and demanded an explanation as to why he picked against the Giants in the NFC championship game on the channel’s pre-game show. Mrs. Mara’s move was extremely popular among Giants’ players, who thought it was a perfect example of the tough-minded attitude attributed to the New York Giants organization.
“You have to laugh,” Giants quarterback Eli Manning. “Mrs. Mara, you see her and you think, ‘Sweet Mrs. Mara,’ but she is obviously very passionate about Giants’ football and passionate about this team and involved and knows players. I like her attitude. I like the way she spoke her mind about something she cares dearly about.”
The game is the culmination of a superb year by a New York Giants team that looked dead following their four-game losing streak during the regular season. However, the Giants caught fire at the right time and now faces Tom Brady and the Patriots for a chance to hoist the Lombardi trophy for a second time. Manning, having arguably his best year as a professional, is faced with a career-defining game. If the Giants do win, he must be considered one of the best quarterbacks to play the game, a borderline Hall-of-Famer.
However the game plays out, the Giants have given their fans a thrilling playoff run all the way to the Super Bowl in a season where not much was expected of them. We saw this play out very similarly four years ago. The Giants are just hoping history repeats itself.