Hardball Heaven

First things first: whoever dreamt up the NFL Network was an absolute genius. The channel has been going all-out on Patriots vs. Giants over the past week, even going so far as to replay every single Pats game this year. I came across the scintillating finish to the Ravens Monday night game the other day and again found myself sitting on the edge of my seat. Every time a Raven defender did a little jig after a tackle, I muttered under my breath, 'yeah, but... you LOSE.'

There's 12 hours to go before the biggest regular-season finale in our lifetime, and this must be sort of what it was like for the Beatles, with Tom Brady playing John Lennon. The attention has been ratcheted up over the last couple of days, and if any coach can help his team stay focused it's our Bill. It would be a fascinating read if someone could get enough access to write a book about how Belichick has kept the Pats in line over these last few weeks. I know all about the 'one game at a time' mantra, but there has to be so much more to it than that. This is when a coach becomes part psychologist, and something tells me BB is pretty skilled wearing both hats.

As for the game itself, I'm looking at something like a 27-13 score in favor of the Patriots. It won't be easy - the Giants will come to play - but in the end, the Pats are simply the better team. Brady will get the TD passing mark, but Moss will fall short of his record by 1. There's been a lot of talk this week about the imposing Giants' D-line, which has sacked the QB a league-leading 52 times. Add to that the fact that we're missing two offensive line starters in Neal and Kaczur, and it's a little scary. But it seems like whoever we put on the O-line always comes through, and I'm thinking that our own D-line (Seymour, Wilfork, Warren, Green) may be feeling a little unloved. That can only be a good thing. Watch out, Eli.

Enjoy the big game, and let's hope we're all celebrating history tonight at around 11 p.m. One more prediction: as soon as the game is over, BB and the boys will be saying that it means nothing if we don't win the Super Bowl to cap it all off. He's right, of course, but let's enjoy the momentous moment if we're lucky enough to see it.

In the meantime, you know what channel I'll be watching.