Super Bowl

So if you didn't watch the Super Bowl then you probably do not read sports blogs, so there is little reason for me to give you the summary. Well if you are that one reader who missed the Super Bowl and read sports blogs, the Saints won!

After watching the game the one thing that stood out to me the whole game is the attitude of the teams. Saints played to win and the Colts played not to lose. On paper the Colts are probably a stronger team with a superior quarterback that should have won this game. The only problem was, the Colts actually believed that mattered. It seemed as if the Colts' play calling was as predictable as the ending of the movie "Titanic". Whenever it was third and short and general wisdom told them to run... the Colts would run. The Saints quickly picked up on this conservative play calling and stacked the line. On second and third in short, the Saints lined up in a formation where they had one linebacker behind the line and the rest on the line of scrimmage. The Colts rarely converted on these downs and their repetition in play calling made the Saints defense look better than it was.

While the Colts sat back and thought the game was theirs, the Saints grabbed it away. Starting in the first half the Saints were aggressive in their play calling. Early in the game when Sean Payton went for it on forth down, he sent a message. He wanted his team to know they were there to win and not stay close. Although they did not score it ended up with a similar result by getting the field goal right before half. The Saints started the second half with a surprise onside kick that turned the momentum upside down. Special shout out to UW Badger alum Jonathan Castillas for the recovery. Before this Super Bowl recovery, Casillas was most known for his MUI (mopeding under the influence) around Madison. The Saints passed it down field and took chances throughout the game and it ended up paying off.

The other thing I noticed throughout the game was the under rated running backs of both teams. Especially in the first half, the running backs Joseph Addai and Pierre Thomas ran incredibly hard. While looking at the stat sheet their numbers do not jump out at you these two backs were very crucial to their team's game plan. Brees and Manning continued to dump off short passes to their backs and they turned this screens into great runs. Breaking tackles and fighting for extra yards these two backs were keys to their offenses today. Now normally bringing up the play of starting running backs would be irrelevant. However, because today's game was hyped so heavily on the two quarterbacks, I think it worth noting how talented of backs these two guys are. Especially Pierre Thomas who many times gets overlooked by a lesser but flashier running back, Reggie Bush.

To be honest I was overall a little disappointed with the Colts. Manning "favred" it up at the end and never seemed comfortable the entire game. Reggie Wayne was just an average receiver today, did not step up to the occasion. Overall I thought it was clear who came into the game with the right mind set. I think we overlook experience and under-appreciate the attitude that a team brings in. WHO DAT? This Super Bowl celebration parade is going to make Mardi Gras look like West Allis Hale's homecoming parade.

BUT THAT'S JUST MY TWO CENTS FROM THE NOSE BLEEDS!!!