Poll time: Whom do you hate less, Giants or Patriots?
Tom Brady (3 Super Bowl rings). Eli Manning (one Super Bowl ring, better guy).
The fact the New York Giants and New England Patriots will meet in the Super Bowl has one obvious bright side for the rest of the sports world: In two weeks, either New York or Boston sports fans are going to be miserable.
Giants vs. Patriots. Really? We have to pick?
Is there a sentimental favorite here?
OK, here’s my list of factors. And there’s a poll to the left and space below for you to weigh in on your choice.
Loading ...• Fans: New York is tied for having the most obnoxious pro sports fans in the nation. It is tied with Boston. But for some reason when Boston teams go down, it’s just funnier. I mean, not that the Red Sox going down in flames last season made up for the Braves doing the same. But it was close. Likeability edge: Giants.
• Falcons’ postseason nightmares: Last season, the Falcons and Patriots each were No. 1 seeds and got bounced in their first playoff game. Arthur Blank and Robert Kraft commiserated over a bowl of soup. This year, the Falcons were pounded by New York in the first round. The Patriots figured out their problems and won. More soup for Arthur — this time alone. Likability edge: Patriots.
• Celebrity element: Actresses Kate and Rooney Mara are in the family tree of the Mara family, longtime owners of the New York Giants. Patriots owner Bob Kraft has four sons. Big time likability edge: Giants.
• Coaches: Tom Coughlin isn’t Mr. Cuddles. But the guy has t0 meet with the New York media every day, which would drive anybody crazy, and I think he has been fired like 57 times in the tabloids. Bill Belichick never has been on the verge of being fired. The dark side of The Force is more powerful than you can imagine, Luke. Likeability edge: Giants.
• Cinematography: Belichick’s camera angles are superior to any other coaches. Finding the camera is the problem. Likability edge: Giants.
• Quarterbacks: Eli Manning isn’t supposed to be as good as his older brother, Peyton. but he may be on the verge of passing him in Super Bowl wins. Eli also just seems like a good guy. Tom Brady has won more Super Bowls (three) than both Manning brothers together. But he also left his pregnant girlfriend (Bridget Moynahan) for a super model (Gisele Bundchen). You lose serious good-guy points for that, no matter what Gisele looks like. Likeability edge: Giants.
• History: The Giants are 3-1 in Super Bowls. They seem to know how to win these things. The Patriots are 3-3 in Super Bowls, having lost to the Giants four years ago after going 18-0 (regular season and playoffs). That was kind of funny. Worth seeing again? Likeability edge: Giants.
By my criteria, it’s overwhelming. Do you have a pick? Or do you hate both?
The cyber floor is yours.
By Jeff Schultz
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152 comments Add your comment
VinnyD
January 23rd, 2012
2:01 pm
Rootin for the Pats. I have a serious man crush on Gronkowski and Wes Welker. I openly admit it. I think the world of those 2 guys. I also like when the Pats play “where will we line them up next” with Edelman playing corner, Hernandez at RB, Wilfork at FB, Bruschi (back in the day) at TE. Plus, if i wasn’t me, I would probably wanna be Tom Brady. Al the guy does is win games and supermodels.
Bobby Walden
January 23rd, 2012
2:05 pm
The bright side: both obnoxious harbaws lost.
Heisenberg
January 23rd, 2012
2:08 pm
Arthur Blank can have soup with Green Bay & Pittsburgh contingent.
Gorilla Biscuit
January 23rd, 2012
2:12 pm
Doesn’t the Soup Nazi live in New York?
bucket
January 23rd, 2012
2:12 pm
I respect both teams and I think it will be a great game, but I can’t pull for a team with Brandon Spikes on the roster.
Silly Bloggers
January 23rd, 2012
2:15 pm
For whatever reason, I am pulling for the Pats. I don’t like Eli…don’t have any good reason, I just don’t care for him, the Giants, or anything New York. New York and Philadelphia are simply two cities I love to see lose. Unfortunately, those two cities tend to own us in pretty much all sports so that may play a role in it as well.
Buford T. Justice
January 23rd, 2012
2:17 pm
I HATE THE GIANTS…. ALL NY TEAMS FOR THAT MATTER… I can stomach New England though…
Ned
January 23rd, 2012
2:17 pm
Sorry, but I think a 9-7 team scraping to the end of the season (or a 90-win team in baseball) just doesn’t deserve to get in the playoffs. To me it’s not right that getting hot in the last few weeks of a season while stinking up the joint for the first 75% of the season puts you on equal footing with teams that were consistently good.
If the old format of best all year put you in the World Series, or just the league championship, the Braves would have been in the WS 10 or more times in the 90s, but they lost out to the hot–and lucky–teams. The same can be said for football–or any major sport–the regular season doesn’t much matter, except for selling tickets.
Spider29
January 23rd, 2012
2:20 pm
I don’t care for either team, but I do like Eli. In just this instance, “go Giants!”
UGA Insider
January 23rd, 2012
2:23 pm
How would you have liked to go back to the locker room and have to answer to Ray Lewis about missing that field goal? That would have really stunk.
Jon
January 23rd, 2012
2:23 pm
Eli looks like pouty boy… don’t care for him…
Hillbilly D
January 23rd, 2012
2:24 pm
Just because of Eli, I’ll be pulling for the Giants. Seems like just the other day that people were saying Eli didn’t have what it takes and would never be a winning NFL QB.
Robert
January 23rd, 2012
2:24 pm
Bobby Cox has been a busy man this winter. The Giants were so impressed with the way he directed the Falcons offense during their playoff game that they hired him to be a special teams coach for the 49ers. When Ted Ginn was declared out for Sunday’s NFC Championship Game, the Giants had Cox work with 49ers backup return man Kyle Williams on the fundamentals of fielding punts. In between, Cox found time to give Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff some pointers about kicking short field goals.
Robert
January 23rd, 2012
2:28 pm
“If the old format of best all year put you in the World Series, or just the league championship, the Braves would have been in the WS 10 or more times in the 90s”
As cynical as I can be at times, I wouldve been impressed had the Braves made it to the World Series more than 10 times in the 90’s. 11 times in 9 years (remember, no Series in 1994) wouldve been awesome.
However, even if they had made the World Series three times every year, they had Cox managing, so they wouldve still ebded up screwed
Leftwing
January 23rd, 2012
2:33 pm
Don’t care who gets the GOP nomination as long as he beats that lefty in the White House.
Bobo for Attorney General
January 23rd, 2012
2:34 pm
Go Pats, I hope to see Manning sacked so hard he’s looking out of his earhole.
DP
January 23rd, 2012
2:35 pm
I hate ugly columns like this one more than I hate either of these teams. They’ve both shown toughness, resilience and clutch play that I’ve rarely seen out of the Falcons in the entire history of the franchise.
bradybunch
January 23rd, 2012
2:38 pm
GO PATS
briley parkway
January 23rd, 2012
2:39 pm
I think I’d rather see the Pats win, but just happy it’s not Packers, Saints or Ravens
Jon
January 23rd, 2012
2:40 pm
Don’t care for any of the righty social-hyper religious nuts… who love to talk about government being too involved in your life… yet these knee-jerkers are dying to get into your house to tell you what you can and can’t do… IDIOTS
briley parkway
January 23rd, 2012
2:43 pm
Yeah UGA Insider, I half expected to see a story this morning that said Billy Cundiff had been stabbed
DP
January 23rd, 2012
2:44 pm
Hey look, it’s Robert, the Bobby Cox obsessed moron who guaranteed the Braves would win a World Series as soon as Cox moved on. How did that work out Robert? Let me guess, Cox was somehow responsible for the Braves’ late season collapse in 2011? And in the deranged world you live in Bobby Cox is probably also responsible for the financial crisis.
Jo Mama
January 23rd, 2012
2:44 pm
I agree… I love people who say they want less government intrusion… yet they’re the same folks who rant about what people do in their own homes and want to tell you what’s right and wrong. They even want to change the constitution to make sure their “morals” (yyyeah… and the KKK said they did what they did on “moral grounds”) are pushed on the rest. The ironic thing is that these same zealots are the ones who scream when others want to change the constitution, calling themselves “strickt constitutionalists” LOL
Big Crimson 75
January 23rd, 2012
2:48 pm
I wonder what Arthur thought watching the MOST UN-ATHLETIC QB in the NFL go over the top on fourth & 1 yesterday????
just proves you can’t coach DESIRE.
Phil McCrackin
January 23rd, 2012
2:49 pm
I thought it was time for COx to go too… but eh, Robert really needs to get a clue!
Vic
January 23rd, 2012
2:54 pm
GO GIANTS!!!! LET’S DO IT TO ‘EM AGAIN!!!!!
zgoldatl
January 23rd, 2012
2:55 pm
The northeast is the armpit of America. Couldn’t care less about two yankee teams playing. Won’t be watching until the falcons pre season opener
Missy Bumpkin, UGA Scholar
January 23rd, 2012
2:58 pm
Can’t there be some way where both teams could lose in the Super Bowl? I mean, I hate ‘em both equally.
zgoldatl
January 23rd, 2012
3:01 pm
Jo mamma & others- Let’s keep this on sports. Nobody on here wants to hear your overtly leftwing opinions. They are not only out of place, but are also blatantly incorrect.
Andrew
January 23rd, 2012
3:02 pm
I hate JEFF SCHULTZ more
Walker, Texas Ranger
January 23rd, 2012
3:03 pm
Don’t care as long as Ray Lewis isnt’t in the game. Now Indy better step up security around town since he will be there as a spectator.
Ted M
January 23rd, 2012
3:05 pm
I’ve got 20 bucks on the Pats minus 3.
Walker, Texas Ranger
January 23rd, 2012
3:07 pm
Im pulling for a power outage at halftime. Otherwise, send the kids out of the room, there is going to be some perversion on the 50 yard line.
atlswag
January 23rd, 2012
3:09 pm
just got back from lifetime fitness in duluth and was playing basketball with matt ryan and old man finneran..ryan is slow for a athlete but shouldnt he not be playing basketball what if her gets hurt? violation of contract?
Ned
January 23rd, 2012
3:20 pm
oops, meant “10 times in the 90s” not “10 or more” and forgot about ‘94
but I still think FULL regular season records should be the measure of getting in the playoffs
JOHN PEAVY
January 23rd, 2012
3:25 pm
HOW COULD YOU NOT LIKE THE PASSION OF THESE TEAMS
IF YOUR A FALCONS FAN GET A LIFE ENJOY REAL GOOD FOOTBALL.
ViningDawg
January 23rd, 2012
3:26 pm
Manning…U of M (Mississippi)
Brady… U of M (Meeeeechigan)
Grove vs. Big House/Hail to the Victors?
Slight edge to Eli (SEC)
Walker, Texas Ranger
January 23rd, 2012
3:30 pm
Grove rules
SilentCC
January 23rd, 2012
3:37 pm
Pulling for Giants — BUT — didn’t want EITHER ONE in the game. Do you think anyone on the East Coast (sorry, the Northeast) would have even been interested to see Denver-San Fran? ‘Course not — unless it was to see Tebow implode on a grand scale.
Very few outside of a small northern stretch of I-95 is liking this Super Bowl.
PMC
January 23rd, 2012
3:45 pm
We can hem and haw about the rest of the rosters all we want, the two QB’s are two of the best in Football without whom neither squad would be in the game.
todd - Lawrenceville
January 23rd, 2012
3:46 pm
Neither… dislike both of the teams and a few plays about the same, which is a lot. Bill Belichick, Tom Coughlin, Tom Brady and Eli Manning are at teh top of my dislike list. But I am a fair fan. I an a hugh Flacons Fan and Mike Smith, Matt Ryan and ‘Tip Toes Turner the Turtle’ are not that far behind them…
gc1986
January 23rd, 2012
3:46 pm
Yeah SilentCC, a small stretch of I-95, where about 45 million people live.
just sayin'
January 23rd, 2012
3:46 pm
pulling for Eli…like some of the others, glad neither of the harbaugh’s are in the game…both of them spoiled a.$$’s….
Michael
January 23rd, 2012
3:52 pm
Y’know what? I don’t really hate either of these teams. I reserve hate for college football. I hate Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, Boise State, most of the ACC, etc. The list is endless.
KCRWreck
January 23rd, 2012
3:55 pm
I disagree with your quarterback assessment. I’ve considered Eli unlikable since the bs that he and his father pulled in his draft.
supahj
January 23rd, 2012
4:01 pm
we just hate YOU jeff…
Robert
January 23rd, 2012
4:18 pm
“Cox was somehow responsible for the Braves’ late season collapse in 2011? ”
Indeed he was. For it was Cox who let Chipper Jones get by with the work ethic that had him taking personal days off in the midts of a playoff race. It was Cox who never made them take infield practice. And it was Cox who got inot Jason Heyward’s head and totally messed him up. So yes, Cox had a role in that collapse
Of course, if Cox had been managing, they wouldve finished eleven games out instead of one game out
Robert
January 23rd, 2012
4:24 pm
Anyway, cant hate either of these two teams. Would rather the Giants win, but I think the Patriots are going to give them some payback for ruining their run at perfection in 2007-08.
Patriots 27- Giants 24
crusher
January 23rd, 2012
4:54 pm
It’s time for some new blood in the super bowl. This game doesn’t create any excitement. We definitely won’t watch.
bamaguy
January 23rd, 2012
4:55 pm
This is a no brainer for me. Eli was a SEC quarterback from a prominent SEC family who married his college girlfriend. Brady is a Michigan quarterback who dumped one pregnant model girlfriend for a new one. No contest.