Monday, February 05, 2007

Super Bowl XLI review

I think that...

...it may have been the ugliest Super Bowl I've ever watched...

...the highlight of the evening was Prince, who gave a great show, probably surpassed in Super Bowl halftime history only by U2 in 2002...

...I got the distinct impression that these weren't necessarily the best two teams in the NFL; they were simply the teams that survived, which doesn't take anything away from their accomplishments (I felt the same way last year), but it doesn't make for the most exciting, meaningful game...

...while he's not getting rave reviews today, I really liked Billy Joel's simple rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner"...he's always been more of a songwriter than a vocalist anyway, and I thought his sparse performance, which was a bit "pitchy" in spots, was honest and heartfelt...

...Peyton Manning finally got the monkey off his back and can now stand undisputed among the greatest QBs of all-time, including Aikman, Bradshaw, Brady, Elway, Favre, Montana, Staubach, Unitas, and Young; Manning is among the ten best ever to play the game, and may be among the top five, and his Hall of Fame election is a lock...

...the Chicago Bears looked like a mess, unable to get anything going offensively or defensively; take away the special teams touchdown which started the night, and the game looks even more one-sided...

...Tony Dungy may be the classiest guy in professional sports, and the fact that his commitment to the Lord surpasses his commitment to football is a powerful witness to the world...

...Prince, a great vocalist, writer, and performer, is also one of the top five guitarists who ever lived...

...Rex Grossman should not automatically be the Bears' starting QB next season; while there is enough blame to go around in Chicago, Grossman was a disaster, and coach Lovie Smith, another real class act, should bring in someone to challenge Grossman for the job (perhaps the underrated Charlie Batch)...

...the commercials weren't great, for the most part...

...the weekend announcement that Michael Irvin and Thurman Thomas were heading into the Hall of Fame was a long overdue announcement for both great players, but was a little marred for me since L.C. Greenwood and Russ Grimm both failed to make the cut...and what about Art Monk and Richard Dent? I figured they were locks...and why make Paul Tagliabue wait?...

...four-time Super Bowl champion Adam Vinatieri should be given serious consideration someday for induction in Canton, as the best clutch kicker in NFL history...

...now that Peyton Manning has earned his ring, who is left among the good or great QBs currently playing who need this great achievement to secure their legacy? The already intense pressure on Eli Manning will likely increase, but Steve McNair and (especially) Donovan McNabb are going to feel a lot of urgency in the next few years...

...I'm really looking forward to Coach Mike Tomlin leading the Steelers to their sixth Super Bowl victory next season.

5 comments:

Brenda said...

My highlight of the super bowl was Tony Dungy's comments at the end of the game. What a wittness for our Lord.

Jan said...

There was a Superbowl? I was totally engrossed in a sewing project with my mom in the other room. We are making the sweetest dust ruffle for the baby's crib. It was a blast! (Not to be totally girly... Chris and my Dad were keeping us up to speed on the score and I did run in to hear Tony Dungy's witness at the end.)

Keith H. McIlwain said...

We can't wait for your baby to arrive!

Anonymous said...

The last time the Colts were in the
Super Bowl the game was filled with
fumbles. I thought about that while watching the game the other
night. They won that one too.

You are right about Manning. I'm
happy for him and Dungy. Now the
rumors are that Dungy will retire
and do some ministry. We'll see.

Anonymous said...

As a University of Florida graduate, I wanted to see Rex do well. Unfortunately, as a University of Florida graduate, I know that Rex has great days and horrible days. You can never tell which one you are going to get. If he could find consistency, he would be an incredible quarterback.

I am extremely happy for Dungy. He was let go from Tampa for being too soft with his players. I'm glad he proved that yelling and cursing is not necessary to get the job done.