Saturday, February 05, 2005
Stu-per Bowl Preview
My first thought when Marmar asked me to write a Super Bowl preview was "Why?" He had already written one, and there isn't much to say. The Patriots are big favorites going in, the Eagles don't really have much to counter with, and after their last two performances I'm not about to pick against the Pats for the third game in a row.
I will, however, be rooting for the Eagles. My reasons are simple: The Pats have won two out of three, and I really like Donovan McNabb. And he's going to be the key for the Eagles to have any chance at all.
The last two Patriot losses have occurred mainly because Tom Brady played out of character (fumble and int against the Steelers, two awful, awful, awful, ints against the Dolphins). The Eagles can't be counting on that- their defense is not that good. But several of the close games the Patriots have played in, like the first game against the Colts, and the Titans playoff game last year, have come when the opposing QB was chewing up clock and forcing constant adjustments by the defense. Donovan is not like the other QBs the Patriots have faced this year. I compare him this year to McNair last year during his MVP season. He excels at converting broken plays and doing unpredictable things. You could make a good case for Peyton and Roethlisberger simply being too predictable to be victorious over the Patriots.
Let's not forget that the Titans, with a worse team at almost every aspect of the game, came within a Hail Mary of beating (or was it tying? I don't remember) the Patriots last year. The Eagles obviously need to keep it close, and Donovan needs to play out of his mind. Then we'll talk about having a game. As for T.O., I don't think it'll make much difference with him or without him. As an aside, as long as we're Skip Bayless bashing, have you read his T.O. article? Hey Skip, did it ever occur to you that T.O. wants to play because he'd be a loser either way if he sat out? Wouldn't it suck if your team won the Super Bowl without you ever taking the field in the playoffs? And wouldn't it suck if your team lost, and you thought you could help them? I commend Owens on playing. And the doctor who wouldn't clear him, I commend him too. Everyone involved is doing what is best for them. Except Skip Bayless.
Anyhow, I just can't pick the Eagles to win. Although the Pats can't seem to dominate an opponent in the Super Bowl, maybe the third time's the charm. Seeing as every odd year super bowl has sucked for the last decade, we're probably in for a laugher.
Patriots 31, Eagles 13
I will, however, be rooting for the Eagles. My reasons are simple: The Pats have won two out of three, and I really like Donovan McNabb. And he's going to be the key for the Eagles to have any chance at all.
The last two Patriot losses have occurred mainly because Tom Brady played out of character (fumble and int against the Steelers, two awful, awful, awful, ints against the Dolphins). The Eagles can't be counting on that- their defense is not that good. But several of the close games the Patriots have played in, like the first game against the Colts, and the Titans playoff game last year, have come when the opposing QB was chewing up clock and forcing constant adjustments by the defense. Donovan is not like the other QBs the Patriots have faced this year. I compare him this year to McNair last year during his MVP season. He excels at converting broken plays and doing unpredictable things. You could make a good case for Peyton and Roethlisberger simply being too predictable to be victorious over the Patriots.
Let's not forget that the Titans, with a worse team at almost every aspect of the game, came within a Hail Mary of beating (or was it tying? I don't remember) the Patriots last year. The Eagles obviously need to keep it close, and Donovan needs to play out of his mind. Then we'll talk about having a game. As for T.O., I don't think it'll make much difference with him or without him. As an aside, as long as we're Skip Bayless bashing, have you read his T.O. article? Hey Skip, did it ever occur to you that T.O. wants to play because he'd be a loser either way if he sat out? Wouldn't it suck if your team won the Super Bowl without you ever taking the field in the playoffs? And wouldn't it suck if your team lost, and you thought you could help them? I commend Owens on playing. And the doctor who wouldn't clear him, I commend him too. Everyone involved is doing what is best for them. Except Skip Bayless.
Anyhow, I just can't pick the Eagles to win. Although the Pats can't seem to dominate an opponent in the Super Bowl, maybe the third time's the charm. Seeing as every odd year super bowl has sucked for the last decade, we're probably in for a laugher.
Patriots 31, Eagles 13
# posted by Stuart @ 4:32 PM 
