10 reasons for Super Upset

The Giants will win this weekend. How can I make such a bold prediction? Here are 10 reasons the Giants will stop the Patriots streak.

10. Away game. Need I say more? I can't explain it. I don't know why, but the Giants are better on the road. They're on the road again. Both literally in Arizona and technically as the road team. Sorry Pats, bad news for you.

9. The Giants almost did it in the biggest game of the year for the Pats (before this week) when they had nothing to play for. The team managed to play even with them when it was just a preparation game. Better yet, the team has grown considerably since then.

8. The return\emergence of numerous players for the Giants. The Giants have their whole O-line back (O'Hara went out early in the game against the Pats). Bradshaw was out hurt in the last week of the season and is back now. Boss and Steve Smith have stepped up considerably over the last few weeks and will pose even more threats for the Pats than they failed to contain in week 17 to the tune of 35 points. Things will only be worse this weekend. Better yet for the Giants they get back starting CB Kevin Dockery. They nearly beat the Pats without all of these guys in week 17, they will this week.

7. Momentum. The Giants have a ton of momentum. They have been playing incredibly and walking into game after game and dominating. They are riding a wave of momentum so large I think it will carry them straight through the Super Bowl. The Pats keep winning, but they look increasingly like a team desperately holding on to a perfect season and not like the the team that cruised to victory early in the year. They no longer appear to be a strong confident team but instead like one weighed down and being crushed by the gravity of the situation. This is just the game to add a little more weight than they can handle.

6. Growth. The Giants keep growing and growing. After the Packers game I think they have matured into a Championship caliber team. Their improvement isn't just momentum. Its also maturity of many younger and middle aged players. As the team coalesces they are just getting better and better. If not this year, look out next season.

5. Randy Moss has been figured out. Teams have found a game plan that shuts down Moss. Do I know for a fact he will be shut down again? Of course not, but my guess is the Giants will keep him from being the deciding factor. Thats bad news for the Pats.

4. The Giants D is well positioned to stop the Pats from doing what they do. Not only have other teams figured out Moss, but the Giants have Aaron Ross to prevent Welker from being the check down option that the Pats are used to. Ross has been a true shutdown corner this year. Welker will not fill in for the Pats as he has recently. Worse yet for the Pats the Giants have an incredible run defense and don't even get me started on their league leading sack total. Brady will be on the run, and Maroney won't be. The Pats will score, but not enough to win.

3. Burress has not been figured out. Moss has struggled but Burress has dominated. Injured knee, ankle and anything else, it doesn't matter. Burress has practiced more this week than most of this year, and played better and better as the playoffs has worn on. Ask the Packers about stopping him, or rather not stopping him.

2. Brady. Thats right, Tom Brady. He's good, real good. However, he looked like crap against the Chargers. Brady has been somewhat inconsistent towards the end of the season, for instance a lot of the Giants game. Perhaps his ankle injury hobbled him against SD. Maybe he's distracted by his supermodel girlfriend. I don't know, but he isn't taking control the way he did early in the year or in playoffs past. Simply put I don't think Brady is going to step up and win this game.

1. Eli Manning. Was there any doubt? Manning will step up and take this game away from the Pats. Maybe it will happen early, maybe late, but at some point Eli Manning will win this game. He has arrived. Manning is too cool, too good, too awesome. All year I've been saying I'd take Manning over any other QB for a 4th quarter comeback. He's been incredible for years at it. Even in his 2nd year he would win games from behind late and make it look all too easy. Now he's starting at the beginning of the game. If you think the pressure of the Super Bowl will get to him, your crazy. It will only make him better. The Giants will NOT be blown out in this game. If this game is close the Giants will win it. Manning will step up and take this game. Its that simple.

Everyone is so enamored with the Pats it seems many are failing to see all of the cracks that have been exploited over the last month. Worse yet analysts have refused to accept the Giants have become a championship caliber team. They kill the Bucs, but could never beat the Cowboys. Don't worry about the fact that they almost beat them 2xs during the year, including once in Dallas. They simply outplay the Cowboys in Dallas, but could never go into GB and beat the Packers. They outplay the Packers to the tune of only having to make the last of 3 winning FGs. Yet they cannot possibly beat the Pats whom they almost beat a month ago. Despite getting back 2 key injured players and greatly improving as a team while the Pats have been having major weaknesses exposed. Unfortunately for sports fans sports analysts have a job to do, but its easier to look at stats and go with the overwhelming favorite and "perfect" team than it is to actually look at the situation and go out on a limb. If you pick the Pats and they lose its understandable. If you pick the Giants and they win you just got lucky, but if they lose you are the moron who picked against the Pats. Its lose-lose, so why bother to do work and why not just pick the Pats to win. There's 10 reasons why not listed right above.