The New York Giants face the New England Patriots, Sunday Feb 5th, for the 2012 Super Bowl and a rematch of Super Bowl XLII. The Giants beat the Patriots 24-20, in New England, in Week 9 of this season. NFL oddsmakers have the Patriots as -3 point favorites to win the 2012 Super Bowl over the Giants with the over/under set at 55 points. Be sure to make your New York Giants vs New England Patriots 2012 Super Bowl Picks early.
New York (12-7, 7-3 V) beat Pats QB Tom Brady four years ago in Super Bowl XLII, when Brady and his Patriots were 18-0 and hadn’t looked beatable all year. They beat him in Week 9 of this season, up in Foxborough, where no other team has beaten him in the regular season since 2006. Brady and the Patriots have won 10 games in a row since that one, which makes you wonder if the Giants have some sort of secret formula.
There are certain basic elements of what the Giants do that have caused Brady problems in their two most recent meetings. In Super Bowl XLII, the Giants sacked Brady five times. Only once in his career has he been sacked more. In this year’s Week 9 game, they got just two sacks, but the pressure they put on him led to two interceptions and a fumble. The Giants rely on their four down linemen to generate their pass rush, and Brady was a little bit less effective this year against defenses that dropped at least seven men into coverage. He averaged 8.1 yards per attempt in such situations as opposed to 9.9 when defenses rushed at least five. In the end, though, the Giants know it’s not. And as they prepare to face Brady and the Patriots in the Super Bowl, that’s one of their psychological advantages. They know he’s great, and they know what he can do to a defense when he’s on his game. But they also know that they have the ability to get him off of his game.
New England (15-3, 9-1 H) TE Rob Gronkowski isn’t worried about his ankle and is expected to play. But, the ankle injury should minimize his ability to get downfield and possibly allow the Giants to single him. Gronkowski is so big and so tough to cover that he often is bracketed with a person dedicated to covering him underneath and another trying to prevent him from going deep. If Gronk can’t be Gronk, Wes Welker knows more will fall upon him.
Tom Brady and the Patriots have been leaning heavily on Welker for five years. He has caught 554 passes for 6,105 yards in those five seasons and has allowed the Patriots’ offense to reach the extremes of success. The combination of Welker’s inside game from the slot to match up with Randy Moss’ deep speed gave Brady the edge in a perfect 2007 season until the Patriots lost to the Giants in the Super Bowl. With Welker their offense has become more complicated for defenses, and there’s a lot more learning for him.
For the Patriots to win Super Bowl XLVI, Brady is going to need Welker to be all of his old self if Gronkowski isn’t 100 percent.
Recent Trends to Consider:
Under is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings in New England.
Giants are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 meetings.
Under is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings.
Underdog is 5-1 ATS in their last 6 meetings.
Giants are 7-0 ATS vs. a team with a winning record.
Giants are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games as an underdog.
Giants are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games overall.
Giants are 8-0 ATS in their last 8 playoff games as an underdog.
Giants are 8-1 ATS in their last 9 playoff games.
Patriots are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 playoff games as a favorite.
Patriots are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 playoff games.
New York Giants vs New England Patriots
When: Sunday, Feb 5th, 2011 6:30 PM EST
Pick: Giants +3
Point-Spreads recommends you check the New York Giants vs New England Patriots 2012 Super Bowl Line before the 2012 Super Bowl game kicks-off.
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