Football Fever, Super Bowl is Almost Here

One of the greatest man days of the year is steadily approaching. I, of course, am speaking of the greatest sports creation of all time...SUPER BOWL SUNDAY. This year's match up between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots has the potential to be either one of the worst or best games in the history of the game. The last time the two played, just a few weeks ago, the Giants pushed the Pats, and threatened to end their pursuit of perfection. With this in mind, can Eli and the Giants put together another game that keeps them close enough at the end to try and pull of the monumental upset? I actually hope they can. I neither root for or against either team, I am one of the unfortunate souls who roots for the hopelessly pathetic Cincinnati Bengals, but that is another story all together.

I think that, unless you are a devoted Pats' fan, most are rooting for the Giants just because of the sheer underdog mentality. It would be great to see New York, at team that almost nobody thought would be in this position, pull of such a tremendous upset. It is certainly a distinct possibility. One errant pass in their previous match up is seemingly all that kept the Pats' hope for a perfect season alive. If Eli can actually make good decisions, and get rid of the ball when he doesn't have a good option, it certainly can be done. Anyone who has watched Eli play over the past several seasons knows that this has been a problem of his. You can attribute it to him trying to do too much for his team, or a lack of maturity in a difficult situation. Either way, I really think that both issues can be overcome.

Obviously, there is more to this game than whether or not Eli shows up to play, but if he doesn't
the Giants don't have a chance. I'll be rooting for the Giants, but my money would be on the Pats'.

I just want it to be a good game. I look forward to it all year, and the thought of a blowout is not appealing to me. PLEASE LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My next thought is of the previously mentioned, pathetic excuse for a team, THE CINCINNATI BENGALS. I have been a fan since I was old enough to appreciate the game. I saw them play in their last appearance in the big game when Joe Montana led the 49ers back with one of the best game winning drives of all time. The only problem with this is the fact that it was twenty years ago...since then we have had one winning season.

Maybe the average football fan isn't too familiar with the Bengals, unless from the Cincinnati area, but on the offensive side of the ball, they are so full of talent its almost disgusting how poorly they performed this past year. Carson Palmer is easy a top 3 choice as best in the league, but as talented as his receivers are, they show such a lack of character it makes me and many other fans sick. In the last game they played that was shown on a national stage, the network kept showing Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmanzadeh essentially pouting on the sidelines over and over again. This type of behavior carries over to the field. Johnson had more drops this year, than any other of his career. Both are running routes short of the marker on third down, making poor blocks down field, and bitch constantly about not getting the ball. I have a suggestion: LEAD YOUR TEAM BY EXAMPLE... act like you want to be there. Chad Johnson has still been sulking. "Nobody has my back, nobody supports me". Sure he had a lot of negative criticism this year, but he deserved it. His antics have to be a distraction in the locker room, no matter what his teammates say. He is selfish, arrogant, and the most talented receiver in the game. That is a horrible combination because his talent is being wasted.
Can you imagine if he had the work ethic and demeanor of a Jerry Rice or Marvin Harrison...the guy would be unfreaking stoppable.

Locally, the media reports that this starts with the coaching staff. I tend to agree, partially. Marvin Lewis and his staff seem to have lost the team. Its hard to say for sure, we're not in the locker room, or in the huddle. Its all speculation, and the best educated guess we can come up with. The problem is, coaches that are successful don't let their players do stupid things a get away with it. A perfect example to this was when Chad finally got back into the end zone after 7 or 8 weeks without a score. The guy gets a celebration penalty in a close game, and all Marvin did was flash his usual ridiculous smile and pat him on the back. Maybe I'm wrong, but until the Bengals get a proven winner as head coach, this team is destine for many more disappointing seasons...sure, an occasional appearance in first playoff game is a potential with the talent they have is a possibility, but talent can take you only so far. You also need leadership and discipline, neither of which the Bengals have been able to find. I suppose that until the fans stop buying tickets, or until Mike Brown retires...it will be the same old Bengals.

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