***Official Super Bowl XLIV Game Night Thread - Saints Vs. Colts***

[Roman529]

I am happy for Who Dat....they made the plays when it counted....the Colts put it in cruise control when they went up 10-0. Peyton Manning is going to to see that INT he threw late in the game in his sleep for a long time. Remember when we were beating the Saints 24-3 in 2nd quarter earlier this year......we coulda beaten them. It just shows you sometimes need a little luck as well as having a good team to win it.

 

[Awsi Dooger]

I thought the Colts would win but I rooted for the Saints and I'm thrilled for them.

For one thing, it removes the nonsense labels on guys like Shockey and Bush. It's been laughable for years that those two guys have been ripped in the media and on message boards. Shockey plays hurt and with great intensity. Great guy. For years at Giants camp in Albany I watched him stay more than a half hour after every practice, including two a days, and make a game out of signing autographs for kids, while other players marched smack to the locker room. It's the reason 75% of the fan jerseys at that training camp were #80, and that's barely an exaggeration, if at all. I still can't believe the Giants were dense enough to part with him, but it worked out great for Shockey.

Bush could have been stuck in obscurity at Houston, along with Andre Johnson. I hope they're thrilled with the DE and no playoff appearances ever. Meanwhile, Bush has got a ring, on top of the NFC Championship game as a rookie. His role will only increase, and the claims that he's a bust look even more idiotic. I remember two years ago when this board asserted he was equivalent to Lorenzo Booker.

Great outcome for Jonathan Vilma also.

Basic football was the winner. The Saints were 7th in the league in rushing attempts per game at more than 29. The Colts were next to last at fewer than 23. No team has ever won the Super Bowl running the ball that seldom, in fact no champion has been remotely close to that number. I used to have a statistical blueprint method that would have rejected the Colts for betting purposes and pointed to the Saints, but now it's not as reliable and I didn't bet the game because the league has been slanted toward passing via rule changes. The Colts' strengths of passing well and defending the pass well are enough in this mush era. Luckily they were dismissed tonight, similar to the pass happy Patriots of 2007 and Cardinals of 2008. It feels apropos that those imbalanced teams get close enough to taste it, then the title is snatched away. :up:

 

[RealityBites]

I am happy for Who Dat....they made the plays when it counted....the Colts put it in cruise control when they went up 10-0. Peyton Manning is going to to see that INT he threw late in the game in his sleep for a long time. Remember when we were beating the Saints 24-3 in 2nd quarter earlier this year......we coulda beaten them. It just shows you sometimes need a little luck as well as having a good team to win it.

Yep, Manning will carry that int for awhile for sure....but you'd think that Reggie Wayne would have nightmares on why he dragged on that route too...no excuse for it. He could have at least tackle the defender or make an attempt to do so.

 

[DisturbedShifty]

I was cheering for the Saints the whole time. I love cheering for the underdogs.

But more to the point what this game really came down to is who wanted it more. And once the Saints got the "Oh my God! I am playing in the Super Bowl" feeling to settle, they played with heart and soul. As Roman5209 put it, once the Colts got out ahead they put it in "crusie" control". They didn't think the Saints would be able to over come a 10 point defecit. Which is dumb on their part, because just about any team in the NFL can come back from being 10 points down.

So congrats to the Saints! It's about time. And who knows, maybe Super Bowl 45 will be the Dolphins vs the Saints.

 

[CedarPhin]

I thought the Colts would win but I rooted for the Saints and I'm thrilled for them.

For one thing, it removes the nonsense labels on guys like Shockey and Bush. It's been laughable for years that those two guys have been ripped in the media and on message boards. Shockey plays hurt and with great intensity. Great guy. For years at Giants camp in Albany I watched him stay more than a half hour after every practice, including two a days, and make a game out of signing autographs for kids, while other players marched smack to the locker room. It's the reason 75% of the fan jerseys at that training camp were #80, and that's barely an exaggeration, if at all. I still can't believe the Giants were dense enough to part with him, but it worked out great for Shockey.

Bush could have been stuck in obscurity at Houston, along with Andre Johnson. I hope they're thrilled with the DE and no playoff appearances ever. Meanwhile, Bush has got a ring, on top of the NFC Championship game as a rookie. His role will only increase, and the claims that he's a bust look even more idiotic. I remember two years ago when this board asserted he was equivalent to Lorenzo Booker.

Great outcome for Jonathan Vilma also.

Basic football was the winner. The Saints were 7th in the league in rushing attempts per game at more than 29. The Colts were next to last at fewer than 23. No team has ever won the Super Bowl running the ball that seldom, in fact no champion has been remotely close to that number. I used to have a statistical blueprint method that would have rejected the Colts for betting purposes and pointed to the Saints, but now it's not as reliable and I didn't bet the game because the league has been slanted toward passing via rule changes. The Colts' strengths of passing well and defending the pass well are enough in this mush era. Luckily they were dismissed tonight, similar to the pass happy Patriots of 2007 and Cardinals of 2008. It feels apropos that those imbalanced teams get close enough to taste it, then the title is snatched away. :up:

Glenn Sharpe won a ring tonight too. He's on NO's practice squad I believe.