Once again, it hinged on a catch. In Super Bowl XLII, David Tyree snatched an Eli Manning pass out of the air and pressed it to his helmet as he went down, extending a drive that would ultimately prove the game-winner for the Giants. And last night, Super Bowl XLVI, a rematch of that game, stuck to much the same script, with Mario Manningham hauling in an impeccably thrown Manning ball and establishing possession for a brief moment before being pushed out of bounds by Patriots defenders Sterling Moore and Patrick Chung. Thirty-eight yards farther upfield, the Giants had no difficulty finishing the drive with only their second touchdown of the game, and a four-point lead with 57 seconds left proved too much for the Patriots to overcome.  The story of Super Bowl XLVI starts with the quarterbacks. Game MVP Eli Manning was nearly flawless, completing 30 of 40 passes for 296 yards and a touchdown. As is often the case in professional sports, one players narrative can become weirdly attached to a certain buzzword, and for Manning that word is elite. Maybeokay, definitelyits because of his name. But the debate over whether Eli is or is not, in fact, an elite quarterback seems to have finally been put to rest with his second Super Bowl ring, an achievement only 10 other quarterbacks share. Statistically and empirically, it might still be difficult to argue that Elis a better quarterback than his older brother Peyton. Certainly, few expected the younger Manning, so maligned early in his career, to be the one who won two Super Bowls. And both with fourth-quarter comebacks, no less, a trend consistent with his regular season playthis year alone, Eli won seven games in the final 15 minutes, and hes done so 21 times in his career.  For all of Mannings efficiency, and the Giants ultimate success, New York almost gave it away. Despite possessing the ball for 37:05 to the Patriots 22:55, the Giants only managed a safety, a touchdown and two field goals through the first 59 minutes of the game. At one point Tom Brady, looking every bit the three-time Super Bowl champion, completed 16 passes in a row. But the Patriots were uncharacteristically mistake-prone. There was the intentional grounding in the end zone on the first play of the game; the 12-men-on-the-field penalty that negated what would have been the Giants first and only turnover; and a crucial dropped pass by Wes Welker in the open field. Sport is duality, winners complemented by their losers, and except for that one other time at the hand of the Giants, New England post-Y2K isnt really used to losing.  In an excellent column for Yahoo Sports, Dan Wetzel provides a haunting account of Bradys postgame hour. Brady forces himself through the interviews. He reunites with his wife. And he thinks about all the things that just transpired. Hes supposedly too cool, or thats what rival fans say. Hes supposedly too much of a pretty boy, or thats what they mock. Not here. The guy with everything looked empty. This was a football player, a true football player, in among the worst moments the game can provide, Wetzel writes. These last eight seasons, the first loss to the Giants, the knee injury in 2008, the various playoff disappointments and now this, have changed everything. Who knows when the opportunity comes again? Brady is 34. Windows always close faster than anyone anticipates.  As much as the Patriots are Tom Brady, though, they also are so much else. Welker, commonly regarded as one of the most sure-handed receivers in the NFL, botched a difficult but very catchable ball that forced the Patriots to punt it away to the Giants for their game-winning drive. The Patriots defense let the Giants drive nearly the length of the field in the last few minutes of the game. The Giants fumbled twice but managed to recover both. Rob Gronkowski, who had the most productive offensive season of any tight end in NFL history, struggled with a high ankle sprain and saw an underthrown pass intended for him picked off by Giants linebacker Chase Blackburn.  And Bill Belichick, one of the most successful coaches of all time, was bested by Tom Coughlin once again. Just as there are only 11 quarterbacks with multiple Super Bowl rings, there are only 13 coaches, and now Coughlin joins Belichick as one of them. Through eight seasons in Jacksonville and now eight in New York, this might be Coughlin’s best coaching job ever, Ashley Fox writes for ESPN. These New York Giants are world champions. It seemed so ridiculous just a few weeks ago, and now it is reality. Not Green Bay, or New Orleans, or New England. The New York Giants and their clutch quarterback Eli Manning and their red-faced coach who did not stop smiling in the aftermath of the game are Super Bowl champions.  This is worth pointing out, how unlikely of a conclusion weve reached. The Giants were only 9-7 in the regular season, and were outscored by their opponents over those 16 gamesthe first time a Super Bowl winner can claim that unflattering distinction. (New Yorks also the only eventual champion to have lost four games in a row.) They got hot when it mattered. But for most of 2011, they were not hot  just ask Redskins and Seahawks fans  and it seemed like Green Bay or New Orleans only needed to settle their two-horse race for the NFC Championship. If this were college football, the Giants wouldve been eliminated from title contention with leaves still on the trees. In the end, though, these obstacles merely added to the narrative, which also includes the tremendous play of the impressively face-masked defensive end Justin Tuck, the late-game adjustments of New Yorks secondary and Ahmad Bradshaws score with less than a minute remainingthe riskiest game-winning touchdown of all time. Whats left to be said? Oh, thats right: The parades on Tuesday.  Found a good column from the world of sports? Don’t keep it to yourself  write to us at dailyfixlinks@gmail.com and we’ll consider your find for inclusion in the Daily Fix. You can email Kevin at kevin.t.lincoln@gmail.com.
The best writing from the Giants' upset of the Patriots. Plus: What a second ring does for the legacies of Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin; a very human Brady in defeat; and more.