New York Giants Notes: Thud is Coming Edition

The end of the NFL season is officially upon us after Sunday night's Super Bowl. And with that comes a lot of talk about the league's labor dispute. I'm not usually pessimistic about things, but I think there are sticking points on both sides that are going to be difficult to negotiate, and that the owners and players are just stupid enough to have this impact next season. I hope I'm wrong, but they haven't given much indication that they want to all play nice in the sandbox together. But hey, we have a game on Sunday, right? Let's try to enjoy it, and not think about what could have been, as hard as that is for Giants' fans this season.....

Donald Driver is still haunted by the missed opportunity against the New York Giants in the 2007 NFC title game - ESPN New York
Three years later, Donald Driver still is haunted by the pass he never had the chance to catch. It was the second play of overtime in the 2007 NFC Championship Game, an errant throw by Brett Favre that ended up in the hands of New York Giants cornerback Corey Webster. The interception set up Lawrence Tynes' game-winning field goal, 23-20, and the Giants were off to the Super Bowl.

Just like the Super Bowl win against the Patriots, we often forget about the other side of our euphoria. But here is a question for you Giants fans....since we are 4-0 in NFC title games, would you rather lose one of them, or lose the way we did to the Eagles in December? Think about it, because it's not that easy to answer.

Super Bowl: Lions' injury-prone Stafford compared to Giants' QB Simms | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
With two injury-riddled seasons to start his career, Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford has drawn inevitable and unfortunate comparisons to another snake-bitten high draft pick, former New York Giants quarterback Phil Simms. Simms suffered three major injuries in his first five seasons, but stayed relatively healthy in the latter half of his career. At age 32, he rewarded the Giants’ patience with a Super Bowl championship.

I can see it now...Stafford leads the Lions to the Super Bowl, and Jeff Hostetler's kid leads them back there a few years later (note: I don't even know if Hostetler has kids, but you get my point).

Gatorade showers are the baths of champions - KansasCity.com
The tradition began with Bill Parcells in 1985, according to Darren Rovell in his First in Thirst: How Gatorade Turned The Science of Sweat Into A Cultural Phenomenon. As coach of the Giants, Parcells apparently had been especially demanding and hard on nose guard Jim Burt in the week leading up to their game with the Redskins. With the Giants leading 17-3, as the final seconds evaporated, Burt overturned the cooler full of Gatorade and dumped it on his coach.

Now those are warming February memories. Well, maybe not for Parcells.

On Multiple Levels, a Giant Collapse | The Minaret
The NFC was terrible this year. The number one seed got embarrassed, the most explosive offense lost in the wild card round and for the first time ever, a team under .500 made the playoffs; and then beat the defending Super Bowl Champions in the first round.

I realize this is quoted from a Giants' fan writing for a college newspaper, but he makes a very valid argument about the NFC. In fact, I said this a few days ago--the Giants could have beaten any of the NFC opponents, save for maybe the Packers, who are in the Super Bowl as a No. 6 seed. Interesting stuff either way.

And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for....Mikey's Super Bowl spread. Try to enjoy the game, everyone.