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Was Eli Manning Truly the MVP?
Eli Manning won the MVP for the Super Bowl. He was 19/34, throwing for 255 yards. He had 2 touchdowns and 1 interception that really wasn’t his fault.
A lot of people are making hoopla over the final drive to win the game. It was a great drive, but luck was certainly on his side. One pass was nearly picked off by Asante Samuel. In fact, he should have caught it, as you can see below. The pass was nowhere near David Tyree.
Then we have the immaculate reception II. A nearly sacked Manning throws a Hail Mary lob to Tyree who makes an improbable catch. The pass was not a very good one and it easily could have been incomplete or intercepted. Luck was on his side.
I am not trying to take away from Eli Manning’s win or his award. But I think the true MVP of the game was the entire New York Giants defense. Jason Tuck had two of the five sacks and Michael Strahan had one. Antonio Pierce had 11 tackles, eight of which were solo. Jason Tuck and Antonio Pierce should have gotten a duo MVP award. The Giants defense held the best scoring offense ever in the NFL to 14 points. That is unbelievable and no one expected it.
The Landry Hat overrules the NFL’s decision and gives the MVP award to Tuck and Pierce. Congratulations.
Tuck and Pierce deserve it, but since you can’t give it to both, my choice is … David Tyree.
Sure, he didn’t have the best stats, but he came up with a few big catches that game, and I’ll go as far as to say the Giants wouldn’t have won that game were it not for him coming up with some clutch plays. He’s already been granted football immortality for The Catch II, but he deserved that honor as well.
Eli isn’t a bad choice, though, as much as I hate him. He did enough to not lose all game, he orchestrated that final drive, and yes … that pick wasn’t his fault at all.
February 5th, 2008 at 1:58 amIt’s a good question. There were a few throws that scared me. He did orchestra a good drive. That said, the front line did shut down Brady. In 1978, they split the MVP between Randy White and Harvey Martin. Perhaps they should have split it between Tuck and Strahan. But Eli’s played superbly throughout the playoffs, and did his job well. Plus the media loves quarterbacks and running backs, and Jacbos or Bradshaw weren’t getting the trophy with sub 50 yard games.
February 5th, 2008 at 11:00 amOf course Eli was not the MVP. Super Bowl MVP is like the Heisman, it only goes to flashy positions. My vote was for Justin Tuck.
February 5th, 2008 at 12:19 pmOf course,Eli Manning was….not deserving of the title Superbowl MVP.Justin Tuck wreaked havoc on the Patriots O-line,unstoppable really.I know he had 2 sacks but not sure if he also had a forced fumble.The G-Men’s D-line won the battle in the trenches & helped New York win the war for ownership of Superbowl 42 Champions.
February 6th, 2008 at 10:18 pmThat’s BS. The voters had it right. As much as I hate the Giants, they made the right call giving Manning the MVP. The Most Valuable Unit was the defensive line, but Manning was the Most Valuable Player. Talk all you want about the defense being the key, but the truth remains that that final Randy Moss-Tom Brady connection should never even have been made had the defense really been 100% effective. Manning chokes on his drive, then it’s all for shit. You’ve got to finish. It would be like, well, getting 18 wins and then falling flat on your face. I still don’t like that kid and his team, but I give him his props.
February 21st, 2008 at 7:19 pmNo Kyle, it is not BS. Eli Manning was the Most Valuable Lucky Player. That simple. The most valuable players were on the defensive side of the ball. Manning did choke, Kyle. Asante Samuel and Rodney Harrison just choked more.
February 21st, 2008 at 9:21 pmThat defense won that super bowl. And that, to me, is most valuable.