Super Bowl Breakdown, Position by Position

It's finally here. Super Bowl XLVI is upon us with a colossal rematch in store as the New York Giants face off against the New England Patriots. Let's dig deep into each position and see who has the advantage going into Sunday. Following that (drum roll please), I will give my much anticipated Super Bowl prediction.

QBs: Eli Manning vs. Tom Brady

This matchup is the hardest one of them all to put a finger on. In one corner, you have possibly the greatest QB to ever play the position in Tom Brady. In the other corner, you have a QB with a championship pedigree who's proven he is one of the elite QBs in the entire NFL. Both QBs have won Super Bowls (Brady 3, Manning 1) but Manning's victory came against Brady's Patriots back in 2008. But at the end of the day, I have to lean towards Brady in this one. It is well documented that I believe he is the best to ever play the position, and with three championships under his belt and the motivation to get back at the Giants' for withholding his fourth, the nod goes to Brady.

Advantage: Patriots

RBs: BenJarvus Green-Ellis vs. Ahmad Bradshaw/Brandon Jacobs


Andrew Mills/The Star-Ledger via US PRESSWIRE

For some reason, the Patriots have neglected to address the running back position with a real game changer. I think it may be because they were burned when they selected Laurence Mauroney in the first round and he never truly panned out. Meanwhile, the Giants have a great tandem in Bradshaw and Jacobs. Bradshaw is the burner and can stretch the field at any moment with a big run, while Jacobs is the opposite; a bruiser who can get the tough yardage when needed. This one is a no-brainer for me with the one-two punch that the Giants' have.

Advantage: Giants

WRs: Wes Welker/Deion Branch vs. Hakeem Nicks/Victor Cruz

Once again, this is almost as tough as the QB comparisons. Welker is one of the best receivers in the league and seems to be wide open every single play. He has that incredible knack of mastering route running and finding that open spot in the defense and sitting. Branch was a mainstay back in the day with the Patriots, so he has that Super Bowl experience, but he isn't much of a factor in my opinion. On the other hand, Nicks and Cruz are both huge playmakers in this offense. Nicks is the type of receiver that can go up and get any ball thrown to him, while Cruz reminds me of Welker in many ways. He has that same knack of getting open and having the ability to make a huge play on any given down. When you have two receivers like that on the same team, it's hard not go with them. Throw Mario Manningham's name in the mix as well for the Giants, and this one becomes pretty clear.

Advantage: Giants

TEs: Rob Gronkowski/Aaron Hernandez vs. Jake Ballard/Travis Beckum

Ummm. That was easy.

Advantage: Patriots

OL: Nate Solder/Brian Waters/Dan Connolly/Logan Mankins/Matt Light vs. Kareem McKenzie/Chris Snee/David Baas/Mitch Petrus/David Diehl


Fernando Medina-US PRESSWIRE

The real wild card in this matchup is the concern over Nate Solder, the Patriots rookie tackle. The Giants' strong point is the play of their defensive line, so this has to concern Bill Belichick heading into this one. On the other hand, the Giants need to be concerned with center David Baas needing to hold up against one of the best DTs in the league in Vince Wilfork. If Wilfork has another performance like he did against Baltimore, then look out. At the end of the day, I got to go with the more experienced Patriots' offensive line. Waters was a huge pickup, while the other three have plenty of playoff and championship experience, so I gotta roll with them.

Advantage: Patriots

DL: Jason Pierre-Paul/Liva Joseph/Chris Canty/Justin Tuck/Osi Umenyiora vs. Shaun Ellis/Kyle Love/Vince Wilfork/Mark Anderson

The season ending injury to Patriots' DE Andre Carter has really hurt the defensive line’s production, even though Mark Anderson has played well in his place. But when you look at both of these lines, names like Pierre-Paul, Canty, and Tuck jump out at you. Add Umenyiora into that mix as a pass rush specialist and you got yourself a Pro Bowl defensive line. The Patriots can't even come close to match their production, and this advantage right here could be the most important aspect of this Super Bowl.

Advantage: Giants

LBs: Brandon Spikes/Rob Ninkovich/Jerod Mayo vs. Michael Boley/Greg Jones/Mathias Kiwanuka

The Giants have been criticized all season for not addressing their need at linebacker. Draft experts are always expecting them to take the top linebackers available once the draft rolls around, and they always go in a different direction. This trio of linebackers for the Giants is a good one, but not great. The Patriots' corps is better in my opinion with Mayo and Spikes on the roster. Ninkovich has been a pleasant surprise as well, with 70+ tackles and 6.5 sacks on the year for a guy who wasn't expected to do much. With that being said, the Patriots get the nod here.

Advantage: Patriots

Secndaries: Devin McCourty/Kyle Arrington/Patrick Chung/Sergio Brown vs. Corey Webster/Aaron Ross/Kenny Phillips/Antrel Rolle


Jason O. Watson-US PRESSWIRE

The Giants' duo of Webster and Ross racked up 10 interceptions during the regular season, while Arrington did most of the damage for the Patriots with 7 while McCourty snagged 2. So strictly looking at their interception production, the Giants would get the slight nod. But looking past the numbers, I have to go with who I trust the most on game day. Webster and Ross have a wealth of experience and match up quite well with the WRs on the other side of the line. I just don't trust McCourty this early in his career, but I don't have many reservations with Arrington, even though they are the same age.

As for the safeties, like the TE comparison from above, this one favors one team heavily, and that’s the Giants. Rolle and Phillips trump both Chung and Brown in terms of production and experience at the position. Tom Brady has been known to pick apart defenses no matter how talented they are, but if you had to choose one team over the other in this category, the Giants would take it in a landslide. That, plus two corners that I trust seal the deal for me in this one.

Advantage: Giants

Special Teams: K Steven Gostkowski/P Zoltan Mesko/ST Julian Edelman vs. K Lawrence Tynes/ P Steve Weatherford/ ST Will Blackmon

When it comes to the kickers, it's a draw. Both have Super Bowl experience and both have made clutch kicks, so I can't give the edge to either one. As for the punters, one of my game balls was actually given to Giants' punter Steve Weatherford, which in turn trumps everything. His performances this post-season have earned him the nod. When it comes to returners, I really like what Edelman brings to the table for the Patriots. The guy plays WR, CB, and returner, and the Patriots will be relying on him to play all three positions well come Sunday. That may be a lot to ask for a guy to handle three responsibilities like that and excel in all three, which is why I will give the Giants the nod in this category.

Advantage: Giants

So when we tally up the score, the Giants have the advantage at five positions to the Patriots’ 4. Since this method is so fool proof, that means I have to go with the Giants right?

Well, to be honest, I will have to go against that logic. I have seen Tom Brady and Bill Belichick win ever since they put their Patriots' gear on, and after what happened in 2008, I just can't see it happening again. How on Earth can the Patriots' let the Giants do it to them again? Belichick and Brady will not allow that to happen.

New England 28
NY Giants 24

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