Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram
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Here are 10 things that will be beaten into our brains before kickoff is close to arriving next week.
By MIKE LOWE, Staff Writer January 27, 2008
The Associated Press
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The Associated Press
Tom Brady has a bad right foot. Or maybe not. But what about that boot? And what about not having the boot? And … and … and …
The Associated Press
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The Associated Press
Randy Moss had such a great regular season, but where’s he been in the playoffs? Has he been guarded closely? Will he show up in Glendale?
SUPER BOWL

WHO: New York Giants vs. New England Patriots
WHEN: 6 p.m. Feb. 3
WHERE: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.

So your favorite team is in the Super Bowl, be it the powerhouse New England Patriots or the upstart New York Giants.

The game is still a week away but you're already nervous. You check the Internet two or three times a day just to get the latest news out of Glendale, Ariz., where the teams will play. You're watching ESPN far too much. You see Chris Berman and Tom Jackson - no friend of Coach Bill Belichick, he - in your dreams. You run outside in your pajamas to grab the morning paper despite a wind chill of minus 5.

Now, as the weeklong media circus that precedes the Super Bowl begins, here's a look at 10 story lines you're sure to be sick of come Feb. 3:

BRADY'S RIGHT FOOT

Blame the Patriots for this one. They jump-started the hype and mystery by not addressing Brady's right foot last week. How bad is it? We don't know. Brady didn't talk and he wasn't around for the beginning of practice Thursday or Friday. Belichick didn't talk. The players just shook their heads. "I try not to keep up with Tom's personal life," said fullback Heath Evans.

We all saw the paparazzi footage and photos of Brady, off with his girlfriend Giselle Bundchen, limping on New York streets with a plastic boot on his right foot. We also saw the photos of him going out without the boot.

Hurt or not? A ploy by the Patriots to get people to think he's really hurt? How will it affect his preparation and play in the Super Bowl?

Hopefully we'll see Brady this week and be able to tell you.

19-0

Well, they can finally talk about going undefeated, a subject the Patriots have avoided all season.

No one's ever done this before. The 1972 Miami Dolphins went 17-0 in winning a Super Bowl. A couple of other teams have gone 18-1. But no one has ever gone 19-0.

"Our goal is to win every game and we've been blessed to be able to do it," said Evans. "So now our goal is to go 19-0 because that's the next and the last and the only step to go."

You can be sure by the end of the week, both teams are going to be tired of hearing 19-0.

GOOD COP/BAD COP

Or in this case, coach.

Who would have thought that Tom Coughlin of the Giants would ever be considered the warm and fuzzy one of the two coaches in the big game. But he is.

Belichick, even with his wry sense of humor, has lightened up a little this year. But he's still stoic, sometimes ornery, and can shoot laser beams from his eyes if he doesn't like your question.

All you read from New York is how Coughlin transformed himself from a strict disciplinarian who fined players for being late to meetings even though they were five minutes early, into a touchy-feely guy who listens to his players' problems. OK, maybe he's not that nice, but Coughlin has certainly eased up a bit, and the Giants are playing relaxed.

BOSTON VS. N.Y., AGAIN

So it's not the Red Sox-Yankees. So the teams have only played each other eight times - ever.

It's New York and it's Boston (sort of). That's all the national media needs to turn this into one of the nastiest football rivalries ever.

It's New England clam chowder vs. Manhattan clam chowder. It's King Kong vs. the Big Dig.

"It's just two cities that put a lot of pride into their sports," said defensive end Richard Seymour. "The fans are tremendously supportive in both regards, Boston and New York, and rightfully so. They pull for their teams. I think as a player you want to play in an atmosphere where people care."

DO PATS PLAY DIRTY?

We've been hearing a lot the last couple of weeks about how the Patriots take some extra shots during games. The latest came from Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora, who said Patriots tackle Matt Light did, and said, some unsavory things in the first game between the teams Dec. 29. "I'm not quite sure he thought he was going to see me again," said Umenyiora, on HBO's "Inside the NFL."

Evans, asked to comment, said, simply,...


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