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It was a big day, you wake up, dream about this moment, Super Bowl Sunday, the excitement, the party’s. Even when your favorite team isn’t even in the big game, you still love the excitement. The intensity is crazy.

Being the underdogs in this game, is just worse, its like You verus the world. Patriots came into this big game, weighing in at 18-0. It was crazy, never before done. It was sure the Giants couldn’t do it. Media was crazy, but to the Giants, it probably was like another day in New York. The media in New York is never easy on anyone. Ask Eli Manning going into this game, he had nothing to prove, but for the media, they said he had everything to prove.

The day of, I knew the giants could do it, I constantly listened to the song Rise to Glory, imagining Eli Manning, hoisting the Lombardi Trophy, it seemed unreal to me, but I knew it was possible. The game started, Giants won the coin toss, elected to receive. Then the announcers boast about the winners of the coin toss never win, I roll my eyes and continue watching. Giants rallied in that drive, but fell short, came up with 3 points, Announcers boast, you need 7 points not 3 to beat the Patriots. Patriots turn to put a go in it, Patriots fall to a 3rd down play, down towards the end zone, Pierce breaks it up, but gets a penalty. I didn’t think he hit him until he started to turn towards the ball, but I can’t scream at the referee’s threw the television, thats Coughlin’s job. Maroney capped off the drive with a Touchdown, the game remained 7-3 for quite awhile, the cocky Bill Belicheck had a chance to change the game to 10-3 with a field goal, but his team is perfect, they have to go for it and continue a rally, he wasn’t satisfied by 3, he tries for a touchdown, falls short, Giants got the ball back. Later on, the 4th quarter comes, Giants get to start this one up, the most notable play in this drive is the long play from Eli to Boss. Giants continued that drive, capped off with a touchdown pass to Tyree. Not the best play he had though.

The 4th quarter, probably the biggest quarter of this game, Patriots got the Giants defense tired, and scored a touchdown to Randy Moss, Webster tripped up, and lost the coverage. After that, the Patriots left the Giants 2:32 left in the game, I was saying to myself thats way too much time, I think the giants can still do this. and the Giants kept my thoughts correct. Giants got into a 4th and 1 quickly in the game, but Jacobs gets the first down. Then Eli Manning, separated himself in my mind from the good quarterbacks to become a great quarterback. It was 3rd and 5. Eli backs up to throw, about 5 Patriots grab Eli’s jersey, didn’t effect Eli though, Eli used his determination to pull away somehow, he got away and threw the most memorable play in that Super Bowl, Tyree caught it on top of his helmet somehow, and held on. Eli then got into another 3rd down play, passes to Steve Smith, and he got away with a first down, and got out of bounds. 40 seconds left on the clock, Giants score to a quick slant pass to Plaxico, 35 seconds left for the Patriots with full 3 timeouts. Brady, the golden boy, can still get his team the lead. Patriots first play, didn’t do much, just a missed connection. The next play Brady to another pass, but then Jay Alford spears Brady, to set up 3rd down, 2 dropped plays later Giants get the ball back with one second remaining. Belicheck did the most unclassy thing ever, didn’t even shake Coughlin’s hand and just left the field after the Giants ran a quick knee play. Eli Manning became the MVP of the Super Bowl. It was a game to remember. Giants defense held the Golden Boy to 14 points, but he thought 17 was crazy. Eli Manning ended his Post Season with just 1 interception, but it really wasn’t his fault, Steve Smith bobbled a pass early on in the 2nd quarter, and tossed it up, Ellis Hobbs grabbed it, I have always believed in Eli but it was great to see the way he played.

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“What counts in sports is not the victory, but the magnificence of the struggle.”
- Joe Paterno

That just about sums up the experience between Giants fans and Eli Manning in the past 3 or 4 years. Some light, but mostly misery. In 2005, Eli’s first full season as a starter for the Giants, he had his best statistical year, throwing for 3,700 yards, with 24 touchdowns and only 17 interceptions. He had good moments, he had bad moments. The Giants finished that year 11-5, only to be shut out by the Carolina Panthers in their first post season game, 23-0. In 2006, Giants fans began to be impatient of Manning. It had been 3 years since his rookie season, and still, he played like a rookie, with no experience, and breaking down in the pressure. In 2006, Eli threw 301-522, with 24 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions. The Giants, who melted down at the end of the season, finished at 8-8, good enough to earn the last seed of the Wild Card. Hoping to finally win a postseason game, Tom Coughlin, Eli Manning, and the New York Giants took on the Philadelphia Eagles, in a game so close until the end, when David Akers knocked in the game winning field goal. In the beginning of the 2007 NFL Season, things were looking very gloomy for Eli Manning. The Giants began the year at 0-2, and nothing was going their way. People were calling in WFAN saying the Giants should have held on to Rivers, drafted Big Ben, and all the common New Yorker complaints. I stuck with him, still saying he was an ok QB, just that he needed some time to adapt to the NFL. When the Giants went on their 6-0 surge, after the 0-2 start, things started getting bright. However, fans were still complaining about Eli Manning (who really was not doing much – most, if not all games were won by the exceptional play by the Giants defense and the many rushing yards that Brandon Jacobs and soon to be hurt Derrick Ward were racking up) and were booing him off the field at times. Towards the season, somebody must have walked up to Eli and knocked him in the head, because at some point near the end of the season, everything changed. Eli Manning was playing the way he was supposed to be. He was making smart passes, stepping up in the clutch (which was really one of the best parts), and most of all, winning games.

In the last 3 playoff games from the Giants, Eli Manning has been as good as anyone could have expected. According to Yahoo.com, Eli Manning has 4 touchdowns and no interceptions after the three playoff games. He has looked as sharp as can be in all games (especially the first two games- the Green Bay game he didn’t have any touchdowns), and was throwing the big passes when they needed it.

I really believe that finally, the wait is over. Eli Manning is here, and he is going to be a superstar for a long time. Us Giants fans just have to give him a break here.

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