It took me a few days to realize the similarities between Super Bowl XLVI and Super Bowl XXV.
- Team A goes up by a bit in the first half, including a safety.
- Team B end the half with a 85+ yard touchdown drive.
- Team B starts the second half with a 75+ yard touchdown drive, completing a 14 point swing where Team B runs over 20 plays for more than 160 yards without Team A having a meaningful possession.
- Team A makes it closer*, but is behind at the 2 minute warning.
- Team A can go ahead with a field goal, and win the game if it can run out the clock.
The difference? This time Team A scored the touchdown but left time on the board and had to defend against a drive with a low probability of success. Twenty-one years ago Team A ran the clock down (like the Giants wanted to do this time), but missed the field goal to win the game.†
Here’s the irony: the Giants won the first game as Team B and the second as Team A.
Curious for details: The New York Times article entitled “Giants Beat Patriots In Final Rally” has an interactive graphic of the drive charts from Super Bowl XLVI, and here are the drive charts for Super Bowl XXV.
* This time the Giants put up two field goals but didn’t retake the lead until the end. In Super Bowl XXV the Bills put up a touchdown to retake the lead, but the Giants answered with a field goal.
† Mercy smiled on Bills fans this time around. I never heard mention once that the Giants professed strategy of running out the clock and kicking the field goal to win had been tried and found wanting in another super bowl game.
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