SOME SUPER THOUGHTS ON A SUPER GAME (OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT)

Wow. That was one helluva show. Amazing catches, amazing comebacks, lead changes galore, drama out the ass.

Oh, and the Pats lost. Heh, heh. Suck it, Belichick.

Meanwhile, I'd be lying if I didn't say it was a bit bittersweet. As in '86 and '90 (and, err, in '00 too) I rooted -- hard -- for Big Blue, feeling the fan's ups-and-downs as the game progressed. Hell, my heart was racing in the 4th quarter. And I was truly happy when they won.

But, as usual, my football team wins ungatz, while the other NY team takes home the hardware for the 3rd time in 22 seasons. At 40 years old, after following sports for wasting ~35 years, I've enjoyed exactly two championships. That's right, two. The Mets in '86, and The Rangers in '94. But enough whining, let's talk about what happened:

1. Let's get it right out, so no one thinks I'm crazy, or that I didn't really watch the game or something: that fucking play on the game-winning drive was unbelievable. I don't know how Eli avoided the sack. I have no idea how Tyree caught the ball on his head and managed to hang on as Rodney Harrison attempted to snap his spine over his knee. That's the sort of play you could repeat 100 times and there's no way it leads to anything but a sack, an INT, or an incompletion. No way.

(But that's why they play the game, or some other cliche.)

2. I'm not a huge Tom Petty fan, but I like plenty of his songs. Including "American Girl." Nevertheless, I think next time he plays the Super Bowl, someone needs to tell him it's the Super Bowl. Not game 3 of the exhibition season.

Hell, I've seen more excitement and overt passion from Eli Manning during a Super Bowl-winning drive.

3. Which reminds me -- Suck it Belichick.

4. Mrs. Mike -- who knows as much about football as I know about sleeping with supermodels -- took about 0.7 seconds last night to inform me that Tom Brady is "really good looking."

Gee, thanks, hon. Feel like informing me that even though Wes Welker is also short & doesn't look like a football player, he's got a more impressive bulge in his football pants than I do?

Of course, when they showed Dreamboat Tommy at the post-game press conference, she said he looked better with his helmet on.

I didn't have the heart to explain that (a) he'd just lost a game that'll live in his nightmares every day until he dies, or that (b) he'd just had the shit beaten out of him for 3 hours straight.

5. Which reminds me -- Suck it Belichick.

6. With a couple exceptions (FedEx & the pigeons; Jobs.com, or one of those, with the heart that quits its job; the surprising, "no joke" Hyundai spot), the ads last night were awful. This is like . . . 7 years running that the commercials have been exceptionally poor.

I don't even know what else to say about it.

7. Justin Tuck was a beast yesterday.

8. I thought it was really cool seeing Peyton cheering his ass off for his little bro, especially on the game-winning TD. I still think he's a bit overrated as a QB, but everything about him as a person makes me like him.

Although I'd swear that during the post-game celebration, he had a small, tailed primate on his back. Funny, huh?

9. Speaking of Mannings, I think it's safe to say a star was born last night. The kid's always had a bit of a knack for cool, 4th quarter comebacks. And now he did it on the biggest stage imaginable, just after the master of the trade did his own version with about 2 1/2 minutes left.

A torch-passing moment perhaps? But a torch I don't think Handsome Tom was looking to pass. Especially with the way he heaved those last couple passes. Heh heh.

10. Oh, that reminds me: Suck it Belichick.