MVP Texas | Eli Manning Gives Tom Brady a Case of Déjà vu

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Eli Manning Gives Tom Brady a Case of Déjà vu

Written by Travis Pulver

Sunday, 05 February 2012 18:02

Peyton might have eclipsed younger brother Eli all week in the media, but in the end he did what counts—he won the Super Bowl.

The odds were against Eli Manning and the New York Giants going into Super Bowl XLVI Sunday night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis—just like they were in 2008 when the two teams met in Arizona. When all was said and done, late game heroics saved the day for the Giants again as they beat the New England Patriots 21-17.

Brady and the Patriots appeared ready to eat up the clock when they got the ball back with just over nine minutes left to play and up by two. Eleven plays later the ball is with Manning and the Giants on the 12-yard line; 88-yards from pay-dirt and with 3:46 on the clock.

Difficult? Yes. Eli worried? Absolutely not.

An incredible 38-yard catch by Mario Manningham set the Giants up at midfield with 3:39 left on the clock, plenty of time to score, but if done too quickly Brady could have enough time to bring the Patriots back. With 57 seconds left after Ahmad Bradshaw’s 6-yard run touchdown run he almost did.

“It’s been a wild game, a wild season,” Manning said. “This isn’t about one person. It’s about one team, a team coming together.”

Manning was named the MVP for the game after throwing 30 completions on 40 attempts for 296 yards and one touchdown, but the award could have easily gone to several other players like:

• Running back Ahmad Bradshaw whose running in the first half helped keep Brady and the Patriots offense off the field and whose touchdown (all be it one the team did not want him to score) won the game.

• Hakeem Nicks who caught 10 passes for 109 yards while the porous Patriots secondary tried to take Victor Cruz out of the game.

• The defensive line duo of Justin Tuck and Jason Pierre-Paul who harassed Brady all game long, and especially at the end of the game when it mattered most.

• Punter Steve Weatherford who pinned the Patriots deep on their first drive of the game indirectly leading to the safety that set the tone for the rest of the game.

Weatherford would be a stretch, but unlike many past Super Bowls, this one was not overly dominated by any one player. Just like Manning said in his comments afterwards, the game was all about one team coming together, being tough, and lots of guys making plays.

When his brother popped up in just the second question he was asked following the win, Eli showed took it in stride and answered it the best, most honest way possible.

“It just feels good to win a Super Bowl, it doesn’t matter where you are,” Manning said.

Which he has now done not once (like his big brother), but twice.

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