An amazing game all around. Exciting from start to finish, an all time great performance (Brees), gutsy coaching as well as some very questionable coaching. In the end, this game created or sealed a lot of history for many involved.
1. Drew Brees enters the discussion of All Time Great QB's. His regular season statistics have always been superb (including his 65% all time completion percentage) and he now has a Super Bowl MVP and a career 103.7 QB rating with 13 TD's and 2 INT's in 6 career playoff games. He has now solidified his spot in the current Top 3, along with Manning and Brady and being the youngest of the 3, he has the most upside. He's obviously still behind the Montana, Brady and Unitas class, but he should now feel very comfortable in any argument to be in the top 20.
2. Peyton Manning, for all his regular season greatness- and he is the greatest NFL QB of All Time IN THE REGULAR SEASON, has once again showed his chink of armor in the Postseason. Consider Brees' numbers above, here is Manning's all time Postseason marks: 9-9 87.6 QB rating (as opposed to 96 for the regular season) 28TD's and 19 INT's. His QB ratings in AFC Championships and Super Bowls are in order:
35.5, 79.1, 81.8, 123.6, and last nights 88.5. Hardly the stuff of legends. With all that said, with a Colt loss last night, provided Manning was able to get them in the end zone and tie the game at 24, the arguments could still be made. However, notwithstanding Wayne's huge drop, Manning threw the game breaking INT, that Montana or Brady would have never thrown. You know how we know that? Because given the same situation with both QB's in numerous occasions, they always came through. Always. Manning doesn't. And for that reason alone, he stays in the class (albeit a great class) with Favre, Marino, etc.
3. I dont remember two huge consecutive coaching blunders than what we saw at the end of the first half last night. First, the Saints trying to claw back into a game in which they were totally outplayed early on, on 3rd and 4th down, try to run the ball when you have Drew Brees and all those weapons along side him. You see it so many times where coaches get too cute and try to do something different than what got them to that point. this was a classic case in point. The Saints are a pass first offense with an incredible Field General in Brees. let him win the game for you (which they finally did). So, of course the Colts stop them, and now with Manning who to that point was flawless, had the ball with 2 minutes left in the half, a 10-3 lead, and a chance to bury the Saints- especially considering they were getting the ball back to start the second half. So what does Caldwell do? He freakin runs it 3 times and gives the Saints back the ball. Brees drives them down the field, they get the field goal, erase the memory of the failed goal line attempts and gives Payton a reason to go for the onside kick. You have to let Manning bury the Saints there. You have to. Forgetting what happened at the end of the game, you have to assume Manning will at worst case, move the ball a little and get you better field position. Instead, they went 3 and out and gave the Saints back the ball at midfield.
4. Great job by the Saints kicker, Hartley. We all saw in the playoffs how costly missing field goals are, both in terms of not getting the 3 points and giving the other team great field position. All Hartley did was knock down 3 over 40+ yard jobs which has never been done before in the Super Bowl. On the contrary, up 17-16 the Colts try a 51 yarder, which missed and gave the Saints the ball back at the 41. Brees led them down the field for the score and the rest is history.
5. Back to Brees. Here is a guy who was one of the top QB's in the AFC for a few years, was getting run out of San Diego by their QB of the future in Rivers, on the last day before he becomes a Free Agent tears apart his throwing shoulder, possibly ending his career. Two teams show interest. The Dolphins and Saints. Miami passes, the Saints take him. Katrina happens. Brees gets down and dirty helping both physically and emotionally in the rebuilding of the city, the city embraces him, and now he delivers what may have been the best game ever played by an NFL QB (only Simms SB win could compare, but Simms had a much better running game to lean on). Great stuff for a truly good guy.
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