It does feel good when you are right. Especially when you pick the underdog to win the Super Bowl and it happens. Denver took care of the Panthers like I had predicted behind the stellar defense. That defense was the only reason I had picked them. I did not intend any disrespect for the Panthers nor any respect for Peyton Manning. I was really impressed with that defense against the Pats in the AFC championship game. It's not that the Pats never lost this season. In fact, they lost quite a few games late in the season and traditionally, Peyton Manning led teams have had great success against these Pats in the AFC championship games. But it was the way Denver beat the Pats that was impressive. They throttled Brady and the offense and won with very little help from their offense. That has not happened all season especially when Brady had both Edelman and Gronk at his disposal. I knew Cam Newton was in trouble. He is good, but he is no Tom Brady.
It's hard to believe that a Peyton Manning led team won with him throwing just 23 times for a mere 141 yards on a paltry 13 completions. Thats a game manager if you ever need one. Peyton Manning is a completely different QB than he was 10 years back, or even 3 years back. It' is tough to see his wobbly passes. Most of his passes looked like a pick-6 the moment it left his hand. Von Miller and the Denver defense literally carried their legendary QB to his second Super Bowl win cementing his legacy. Nobody has won 2 Super Bowls with 2 different teams. Speaking of legacy, how about his boss John Elway? Not that he needed any more validation after his 2 rings as a player to be considered Denver's most important civic treasure, but this championship absolutely elevates him to an entirely different planet. It's not that easy to win the Super Bowl both as a player and an executive. On top of that, he didn't just happen to be at the wheel driving this thing, he made some tough and hard turns.
Elway's decision to break the bank and get Peyton to Denver despite his health concerns was a brilliant move. He let go of Tim Tebow at the height of his popularity and also let go of coach John Fox before this season. Poor John Fox. He has coached both these Super Bowl teams at different times and doesn't get any credit for either. Elway's decisions have been money and he got 4 playoffs, 2 Super Bowls, and one championship out of Peyton Manning. Thats the best he could have hoped for when he brought him to Denver. Now, nobody can touch Elway for another 15 years. Winning a Super Bowl is a life changer and a big deal. It usually gets 5 years of job security in this rough NFL for a head coach and 8 to 10 years for an executive. But given Elway's special place in Denver, he doesn't have to worry for another 15 years. Sun Devil's own Brock Osweiler doesn't look half bad and he might lead the Denver to several more playoffs as a QB. Drafting him was not a bad call either by Elway.
On the flip side, losing a Super Bowl should be a big disappointment. Making it to the game is a big achievement indeed, but it doesn't come with the same perks and job security as winning does. Losing coaches don't get a whole lot of job security because the expectation is that they have to get back and win the big one soon. Just look at the job security Mike McCarthy or John Harbaugh have as opposed to Jim Caldwell in Indy. As for the QB, Cam Newton won a well-deserved MVP, but had no shot against this Denver defense. There is also a lot of criticism of his behavior and attitude towards the media in the post-game presser. It was not ideal, but doesn't bother me a whole lot. But he did surprise me with how tired and stressed he looked during the game. I have never been a professional athlete and I can't imagine how these guys feel when they play in the Super Bowl. They all talk about how anxious and excited they are through the week and can't really sleep the night before or for many nights leading up to the big game. That can't be the best way to go into the biggest game of your life.
Cam definitely looked gassed at times and resembled a 39 year old QB in the game, not Peyton. It looked like a combination of stress, anxiety, and possibly nerves. May be he didn't sleep well either. But I was most surprised by the fumble late in the game when he didn't jump on that ball and held back instead. I definitely don't know what happened there. He is one of the toughest running QBs in the league and I can't believe he was afraid of the contact. There is no explanation I can think of. At the end of the day, it was not Cam's Super Bowl. It was Von's. Lot of folks also say this was a boring game due to the lack of offensive brilliance and exciting offensive plays that have dominated the last few Super Bowls. I disagree. The game was close until very late and the Panthers were not really totally out of it. I was thoroughly entertained and found the drama gripping. Good job by the host city too managing a great Super Bowl. Now, it's time to put a bow on the NFL season. Bring on the off-season -- the only time all 32 teams have a shot and hope.
It's hard to believe that a Peyton Manning led team won with him throwing just 23 times for a mere 141 yards on a paltry 13 completions. Thats a game manager if you ever need one. Peyton Manning is a completely different QB than he was 10 years back, or even 3 years back. It' is tough to see his wobbly passes. Most of his passes looked like a pick-6 the moment it left his hand. Von Miller and the Denver defense literally carried their legendary QB to his second Super Bowl win cementing his legacy. Nobody has won 2 Super Bowls with 2 different teams. Speaking of legacy, how about his boss John Elway? Not that he needed any more validation after his 2 rings as a player to be considered Denver's most important civic treasure, but this championship absolutely elevates him to an entirely different planet. It's not that easy to win the Super Bowl both as a player and an executive. On top of that, he didn't just happen to be at the wheel driving this thing, he made some tough and hard turns.
Elway's decision to break the bank and get Peyton to Denver despite his health concerns was a brilliant move. He let go of Tim Tebow at the height of his popularity and also let go of coach John Fox before this season. Poor John Fox. He has coached both these Super Bowl teams at different times and doesn't get any credit for either. Elway's decisions have been money and he got 4 playoffs, 2 Super Bowls, and one championship out of Peyton Manning. Thats the best he could have hoped for when he brought him to Denver. Now, nobody can touch Elway for another 15 years. Winning a Super Bowl is a life changer and a big deal. It usually gets 5 years of job security in this rough NFL for a head coach and 8 to 10 years for an executive. But given Elway's special place in Denver, he doesn't have to worry for another 15 years. Sun Devil's own Brock Osweiler doesn't look half bad and he might lead the Denver to several more playoffs as a QB. Drafting him was not a bad call either by Elway.
On the flip side, losing a Super Bowl should be a big disappointment. Making it to the game is a big achievement indeed, but it doesn't come with the same perks and job security as winning does. Losing coaches don't get a whole lot of job security because the expectation is that they have to get back and win the big one soon. Just look at the job security Mike McCarthy or John Harbaugh have as opposed to Jim Caldwell in Indy. As for the QB, Cam Newton won a well-deserved MVP, but had no shot against this Denver defense. There is also a lot of criticism of his behavior and attitude towards the media in the post-game presser. It was not ideal, but doesn't bother me a whole lot. But he did surprise me with how tired and stressed he looked during the game. I have never been a professional athlete and I can't imagine how these guys feel when they play in the Super Bowl. They all talk about how anxious and excited they are through the week and can't really sleep the night before or for many nights leading up to the big game. That can't be the best way to go into the biggest game of your life.
Cam definitely looked gassed at times and resembled a 39 year old QB in the game, not Peyton. It looked like a combination of stress, anxiety, and possibly nerves. May be he didn't sleep well either. But I was most surprised by the fumble late in the game when he didn't jump on that ball and held back instead. I definitely don't know what happened there. He is one of the toughest running QBs in the league and I can't believe he was afraid of the contact. There is no explanation I can think of. At the end of the day, it was not Cam's Super Bowl. It was Von's. Lot of folks also say this was a boring game due to the lack of offensive brilliance and exciting offensive plays that have dominated the last few Super Bowls. I disagree. The game was close until very late and the Panthers were not really totally out of it. I was thoroughly entertained and found the drama gripping. Good job by the host city too managing a great Super Bowl. Now, it's time to put a bow on the NFL season. Bring on the off-season -- the only time all 32 teams have a shot and hope.
2 comments:
Great recap! Of the coaches who had a short leash after losing the Super Bowl, Lovie Smith and our very own Jim Harbaugh come to mind. Although, as a Michigan fan I'm not complaining. ;-)
Besides Elway (who you mentioned) Peyton winning the Super Bowl also reminded me of Sachin Tendulkar (winning the cricket world cup) and Abby Wambach (winning the soccer world cup) -- all were elite athletes with hall of fame careers who got a lot of help at the end of their careers to win the big one (even though Petyon already won one in Indy).
I think a lot of people who didn't enjoy the game (myself included) were probably fans who were rooting for Carolina. It's hard to enjoy great defense when it's hurting the team you're rooting for. Carolina played some good defense too but their offense just couldn't take advantage of it which made it less enjoyable.
I don't know if you saw it too but after the Blue Angels flew by Levi's Stadium (just before kickoff), my friends and I were able to step into their backyard and watch the fighter jets fly by the house. Boy, were those planes loud! It was quite a sight to behold and their timing at these sort of events has always impressed me (considering how fast they go).
Oh well, football's over. Time to move on to basketball (and hockey) season!
Yes, those jets are always amazing with their timing given the speed with which they move. But it's interesting you mentioned it with this SB because for the first time, I felt like they were just a second or so late. I think Gaga stretched her anthem because of that and she ended it twice. I thought she did that for the timing. But regardless of why she did it, her anthem resulted in an interesting side-story. Apparently the over/under prop bet on the length of her anthem was set at it 2 mins 20 secs. She ends the anthem at 2:09 and stretches it past 2:20 causing all kinds of confusion with the sports books and the bettors :-)
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