Brady and Manning have the opportunity to build upon their legacies

Ever since that Super Bowl in 2008 ended, I had this funny feeling that there had to be more to the story.  There’s no way it can just end like this, I thought.  The camera would pan to Tom Brady like some slasher from a horror movie that everyone thought was dead, and his eyes would open.  I just knew that it couldn’t end like that – there had to be a sequel to tie up the loose ends.  I can’t even count how many times I have heard fans talk about the unlikely Giants win in ’08 and dismiss it as “just a fluke.”  There was no way that the Belichick-Brady combo was through.  I expected some sort of rematch down the line but the way this story has played out, it feels less like a cheesy Halloween movie, and more like a much anticipated followup to a masterpiece ala The Godfather II.

Think about all of the storylines there are to play with, and how much of an impact this game will have on Manning and Brady’s legacies.  If New England exacts their revenge and comes out on top, it becomes very difficult to argue against Brady – and Belichick, for that matter – being the best ever. Of course he has earned a place among the all-time greats, and that won’t change, but don’t pretend that losing two Super Bowls against Eli Manning will be left out of the Brady biography when it is all said and done.
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