I watched the game at a Super Bowl party hosted by some of our senior majors, because Kate didn't want to see it. Of course, the guys who hosted the party didn't have cable, so we were watching the game through a haze of static and swirly lines that made the weather look even worse than it was.
Game comments are below the fold, for the sake of marital harmony in Chateau Steelypips:
What a dog of a game. Seven turnovers in the first half-- three fumbles by each team, and a Manning interception. Then Rex Grossman lobbed up two more interceptions down the stretch, sealing the win for the Colts. Bleagh.
Really, if you take away the game-opening kickoff return, this was pretty much a beat-down by Indianapolis. Yeah, they kicked a lot of field goals instead of scoring touchdowns, but they completely controlled the game after that kick-off. Chicago did nothing on offense, and didn't do all that much to stop the Colts from marching their way down the field.
Prince seemed to be pretty good as a halftime show, though his appearance was roundly derided by the students. Between the static, swirly lines, and catcalls, it's a little tough to say whether he was actually good, or just less awful than the last few. Lacking cable, the Puppy Bowl was not an option.
Peyton Manning wins the MVP, basically by default. Absent a really brilliant performance by somebody else, the Super Bowl MVP is pretty much the "quarterback on the winning team" award.
Tony Dungy talked about Jesus, but mercifully kept it short. Someday, I really do want to hear the coach of the losing team blame the loss on Jesus-- "We would've won, but they had God on their side..."
I really, really dislike Jim Nantz of CBS. Only the existence of Dick Vitale keeps him from being half of the worst announcing team in college basketball (he and Billy Packer are third behind Vitale/Musberger and Vitale/Patrick), but the weaker competition in the NFL allows him to claim the top spot. Congratulations, Jim. Go back to golf.
Other thoughts?
- Log in to post comments
An impressively awful performance on Grossman's part. The MVP really needed to go to someone on Indy's OL; all Manning did was take the underneath dumps that Chicago was letting them have all game. Of course, being able to tackle is generally considered a vital part of the letting them have the short stuff strategy.
The game was remarkably similar to the "national championship" game between Florida and Ohio State in many ways.
I really enjoyed the first half, fumbles and all. Having seen all the Bears games this year, nothing about their performance surprised me. I don't quite understand the enthusiasm about Grossman in some parts; yesterday's game was pretty typical. Those two interceptions, yuk. The Bears defense has been vulnerable to the run all year, so Indy's performance there didn't surprise me. I'm also not impressed with Ron Turner's play calling; he tends to go pass-wacky at strange times. In some ways I think the turning point in the game was when the Bears had second and one near midfield after a good Jones run on first down, and Turner called a straight drop-back pass on which Grossman was sacked. You just ran up the middle for nine yards! Do it again!
Prince was very good.
The Bears? Not so much. I don't even follow football, and I could tell they were sucking up the stadium.
If the Bears don't try and find something else at QB they must be smoking crack, but it wasn't all Rex's fault either.
Now the MVP should have been the Colts offensive line. Run for 200 yards almost, pass for a mess, well that line dominated. Ta hell with the "skill" positions, geez that phrase hacks me off. I've yet to see a QB complete a pass while knocked on his behind. Props to Saturday, Glenn, and the others!
Interesting thing about Prince, the reports I've read so far today seem about equally divided on whether he was good or he sucked. I have no opinion as I was doing other things during half time. I'm not sure the interceptions were entirely the QB's fault: wonky things happen when you play in that much rain. (Says the woman old enough to remember watching games being played in goddam snowstorms.)
MKK
I've played football in weather like that (in high school) and it was just as much of a oops-fest. Pouring down rain is not good for anyone's grip on even a worn-in football (ESPN says each time had to have 54 footballs prepared for the game. 54! The normal amount is 12). Personally, I'm surprised there were that few turnovers. If you want some perspective on Peyton's performance, I suggest you check out Football Outsiders (www.footballoutsiders.com), who are basically Baseball Prospectus for football. They also write for Fox Sports online if you want to check it out there. According to them, Peyton Manning had an average game... for him. For anyone else, it would have been far above average. He kept drives moving with the passes he made, and the fact that he calls plays at the line also means that he's responsible for part of the success of the running game. The running game wouldn't have gained them that ridiculous amount of yards had not the best defense in the NFL been playing so far off the line out of fear of Manning and his receivers' abilities. Add in the weather factor (he completed almost 60% of his passes in a driving rain and made it look easy), and you have what amounts to an excellent quarterback performance. Peyton deserved the MVP, period. And this comes from an Eagles fan with no rooting interest... (Chad, don't hold it against me!)