The Sports Monitor

The comparisons between the Giants' Super Bowl championship four years ago and the one won Sunday in Indianapolis are eerily similar. I grew tired of it after the Giants beat the Packers. And it grew and grew and grew. And it became reality late Sunday when Tom Brady's Hail Mary fell to the turf. The Giants not only beat the Patriots again, they rallied for a late score to win it, just like in Super Bowl XLII. Strange stuff. It's also amazing how the Giants have owned the Patriots. There once was an old saying about how you couldn't beat Bill Belichick twice in a season. The Giants just did it. Personally, I think Belichick is overrated. I think Spygate tainted is other Super Bowl wins and his failure to win since those revelations confirms it to the doubters. Belichick needed this win. He didn't get it. The Giants -- and Tom Coughlin -- own the Patriots.

Bill Belichick gambled against the Colts on Sunday night. Peyton Manning made him pay. Leading 34-28 with about 2 minutes left in the game, the Patriots faced a fourth-and-2 from their own 28. Common sense dictates punting from that spot and turning the game over to the defense. Belichick is anything but common. The Patriots gained 1 yard, the Colts got the ball and scored. Then the debate began. Was it a good call? There shouldn't be a debate. Such a call shouldn't be made. Only someone so full of himself would even consider going for it. Only someone with a warped sense of the sport would attempt to pull of such a stunt. "We tried to win the game on that play," Belichick said after the loss. Yeah, right. No. He tried to show his superiority. Now we have a better idea what kind of "genius" he really is. It's not very often when a coach truly is responsible for losing a game. Usually, it's the players' fault. Not this ti...

If you're a Steelers fan, naturally you have a strong dislike for the Browns. The dislike has waned since the Browns' return, mainly because the Browns haven't been able to beat the Steelers. How can your dislike for a team grow if you continually beat up on them? Well, until the Browns beat the Steelers, I found one reason to dislike them: Eric Mangini. The guy thinks he's mini Belichick, which is reason enough. But now that he's the man in Cleveland, it firmly plants the dislike label on his forehead. But look how he handled his quarterback situation. Mangini said earlier this week that he would not announce his starting quarterback for the season, leaving Week 1 opponent the Minnesota Vikings to guess as to who it would be. Mangini also said he wouldn't tell his team who his hand-picked guy would be. So much for having faith in your team. Tight-lipped Mangini didn't quit. Did he tell his QBs? Let's ask Brady Quinn. "He talked to us about it, but ...