The throw jump started the Giants potential game winning drive. If the Giants win, this catch will go down as one of the best catches under pressure in NFL history.

Eli Manning is the big man in the NFL after one-upping Tom Brady and leading the New York Giants to a 21-17 victory over the New England Patriots in Sunday’s Super Bowl — in older brother Peyton’s house, at that.

Just as Manning did four years ago when the Giants ruined New England’s perfect season, he guided them 88 yards to the decisive touchdown, which the Patriots didn’t contest as Ahmad Bradshaw ran 6 yards with 57 seconds left.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick reasoned the Giants would run the clock down and kick a short field goal, so he gambled by allowing the six points.

The gamble failed.

And now Manning not only has stamped himself as the elite quarterback he claimed to be when the season began — in the same class as Brady — he’s beaten the Patriots in two thrilling Super Bowls. The Giants (13-7), who stood 7-7 in mid-December, now own the football world, and Manning owns two Super Bowl MVP awards, the same number as Brady.

It was a classic I-can-top-that showdown, and Manning won. He finished 30-for-40 for 296 yards and one touchdown, while Brady was 27 for 41 for 276 yards with two TDs and one interception.

“It’s been a wild game, a wild season,” Manning said. “This isn’t about one person. It’s about one team, a team coming together.”
Manning led six comeback victories during the season and set an NFL record with 15 fourth-quarter touchdown passes. He showed that brilliance in the clutch on the winning drive. He completed five passes, including a sensational 38-yard sideline catch by Mario Manningham to open the drive.

On second down at the Patriots 6 and with only one timeout remaining, Belichick had his defense stand up as Bradshaw took the handoff. Bradshaw thought about stopping short of the end zone, then tumbled in untouched.

“I was yelling to him, `Don’t score, don’t score,” Manning said. “He tried to stop, but he fell into the end zone.”
Brady couldn’t answer in the final 57 seconds, although his desperation pass into the end zone on the final play fell just beyond the grasp of All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski. New England (15-4), winner of 10 straight since a loss to the Giants in November, was done.

Brady headed off with his head bowed, holding his helmet, while around him was the wild celebration by the Giants, NFL champions for the eighth — and perhaps most unlikely — time.

“Great toughness, great faith, and great plays by a number of guys today,” Manning said, deflecting some of the attention.

Still, he one-upped Brady. And Peyton, the Indianapolis Colts quarterback who has one championship ring of his own but didn’t play this season as he recovered from neck surgery.

“It just feels good to win a Super Bowl, it doesn’t matter where you are,” Manning said.

It was the fifth trip to a Super Bowl for Brady and Belichick, tying the record. And it looked like a successful one when they stormed back from a 9-0 deficit and led 17-9 in the third quarter. But the Giants, who reached New England territory on every possession except a kneeldown at the end of the first half, got field goals of 38 and 33 yards from Lawrence Tynes. And it looked like Tynes, who kicked them into the Super Bowl four years ago at Green Bay and again this year at San Francisco, both in overtime, would get called on again.

Then Belichick, known to try just about anything in a game, took a risk that didn’t pay off.

The Giants are the first Super Bowl winner that was outscored during the regular season. They were 6-2 after that 24-20 victory at New England, then lost four straight and five of six.

Coach Tom Coughlin insisted “the prize” was still within reach. Now the Giants are holding tight to that Vince Lombardi Trophy.
“What I was concerned with was these guys making their own history,” Coughlin said. “This is such a wonderful thing, these guys carving their own history.”

It was the Giants’ fourth Super Bowl championship and eighth NFL title overall. They became the first team to finish the regular season 9-7 and win the Super Bowl.

New England had the ball for all of one play in the first 11 1-2 minutes, and that play was an utter failure, a rare poor decision by Brady. After Steve Weatherford’s punt was downed at the New England 6, Brady dropped to pass in the end zone and had time. With everyone covered and Giants defensive end Justin Tuck finally coming free to provide pressure, Brady heaved the ball downfield while still in the pocket.

Only problem: No Patriots receivers were anywhere near the pass. The Giants were awarded a safety for Brady’s grounding in the end zone.

Manning, meanwhile, couldn’t have been more on target early, hitting six receivers in the first period, completing his first nine throws, a Super Bowl record. He also was aided by Bradshaw, who hardly looked like a running back with a bad foot. Bradshaw broke a 24-yard run, and New England made another critical mistake by having 12 men on the field on a third-and-3 on which the Giants fumbled.

Instead, New York got a first down at the 6, and two plays later Victor Cruz beat James Ihedigbo on a slant to make it 9-0, prompting Cruz to break into his signature salsa move.

Manning’s first incompletion didn’t come until 1:19 into the second quarter.

At that point, it was 9-3 after Stephen Gostkowski’s 29-yard field goal. The Patriots got to the Giants’ 11, but All-Pro DE Jason Pierre-Paul blocked a third-down pass.

Soon after, when the Patriots had a three-and-out and Pierre-Paul blocked another throw, Belichick and offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien had a quick discussion. Then O’Brien, soon to take over as Penn State coach, went over to the struggling Brady.
The talk must have helped. On the final series of the opening half, Brady was masterful. Starting at his 4, and ignoring the last time the Patriots began a series in the shadow of the end zone, he was vintage Brady.

With New York’s vaunted pass rush disappearing, Brady went 10-for-10 for 98 yards, capping the drive that included two Patriots penalties with Danny Woodhead’s 4-yard TD reception with 8 seconds to go in the half. Aaron Hernandez and Woodhead each had four catches on the drive that, stunningly, put New England ahead despite being outplayed for so much of the first 30 minutes.

Brady kept firing — and hitting — in the third quarter, with five more completions. The Giants didn’t come within shouting distance of the record-setting quarterback. He capped a 79-yard drive to open the second half with a 12-yard TD to Hernandez, but then the game turned. Again.

Consecutive field goals by Lawrence Tynes of 38 and 33 yards brought New York within 17-15. Brady then threw deep for his tight end after weaving away from two pass rushers. His throw was short, and Chase Blackburn picked it off early in the fourth quarter.

Although the Giants moved into New England territory again, as they did on every drive to that point, they bogged down and punted.

Rodgers earned 48 votes to two for New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees in balloting by a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the NFL. The Packers star is the first Green Bay player honored since Brett Favre concluded a run of three straight seasons as MVP in 1997.

”It means a lot to be recognized as a consistent player and contributing on my team,” Rodgers said. ”I think it’s an award that relies on a player having the support of his teammates, obviously, guys blocking, guys running, guys catching, guys making plays. But I’m very honored to receive the award.”

Rodgers received a standing ovation after his name was announced by Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, the league’s only four-time MVP. The award was presented on the ”NFL Honors” primetime special Saturday night on NBC.

”We’re all really excited to see you back on the field next year,” Rodgers told Manning.

Rodgers led the NFL in passing with a 122.5 rating built on 45 touchdown passes, six interceptions and a 68.3 completion percentage as the Packers went 15-1 and won the NFC North. The Packers were beaten by the New York Giants at Lambeau Field in the divisional round.

”People really count on me to be consistent each week, to play well. Knowing that my performance, the fact that I touch the ball every play, I have a direct impact on the game, the way I play,” Rodgers said. ”And if I’m playing consistent and doing things I know I’m supposed to do, we’ve been able to have some success because of it.”

He joins former Packers Bart Starr, Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung as MVPs.

Rodgers is the third consecutive quarterback voted MVP, joining New England’s Tom Brady (2007, 2010) and Indianapolis’ Peyton Manning (2008, 2009).

The latest salvo came Friday night in a blog post written by Greg Miller in which he called Karl Malone “too unreliable and too unstable” to help the team as an assistant coach and claimed the 14-time All-Star and two-time NBA MVP lied to a newspaper about having to use a scalper to purchase tickets to a Jazz game.

The blog followed a scathing Twitter post earlier Friday by Miller, the son of longtime Jazz owner Larry Miller, who died in 2009.

“Hey Karl – you’re lying,” Miller wrote on Twitter. “You have my number. Next time you need a seat to a Jazz game, call me. You can have mine.”

Miller’s reactions came a week after Malone also called out the Jazz for their handling of the Deron Williams-Jerry Sloan feud.

During a radio appearance last Friday, Malone said the Jazz gave Williams too much power, and ultimately it was their coach who paid the price.

“I know for a fact that [Sloan] was overridden on practices sometime on the road because Deron was calling our G.M. [Kevin O'Connor] at that time,” Malone said, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. “… You give a guy that much power, and he’s the kind of player you think he played hard all the time, but if he wanted to sulk he could sulk. … I never went to [co-owner] Larry [Miller] to talk about Coach Sloan. .. It’s not one time, in my gut and heart, that I would go over his head.”

Miller, in his Friday blog post, alluded to a relationship with Malone that has a history of difficulties.

“The fact is Karl is still as high-maintenance as he ever was, but now he has nothing to offer to offset the grief and aggravation that comes with him,” Miller wrote.

Malone, elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010 after a 19-year career, helped lead the Jazz to two NBA Finals alongside John Stockton and ranks second in all-time points scored behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Williams and Sloan’s relationship began deteriorating last season before Williams was dealt to the New Jersey Nets and reached a boiling point on Feb. 9, when the pair got into a heated argument at halftime of a loss to the Chicago Bulls. Williams had gone against Sloan’s play calls, and the coach wanted him disciplined, according to the Salt Lake Tribune, but Sloan received no support from the organization. Sloan announced his retirement after 23 years in Utah the next day.

“On the whole handling of that, I would have to give [them] a D or F, and I would lean more toward an F,” Malone said in the radio interview.

“That defining moment when [management and ownership] should have stood up for Jerry Sloan, they chose Deron Williams,” Malone said. “And Coach Sloan, being the coach I know and love, said, ‘You know what? We should part ways.’ And he said what he said. And once Coach Sloan says something, it’s history.”

O’Connor later went on the radio to refute Malone’s comments.

“Karl wasn’t in the room, I was in the room,” O’Connor said, “and the only thing I can tell you is, I’d like you guys to go ask Jerry. Greg [Miller] was in there. He did everything possible with Jerry to make him stay, to have him finish off the season. [Sloan] had complete autonomy to do anything he wanted to do, as far as any kind of punishment.

“The next morning, we’d asked him to sleep on it, and [co-owner] Gail [Miller] came in and both Greg and Gail asked him. So, I can honestly say that there’s nothing farther from the truth than those kinds of comments.

“The minute [Sloan] said [he was quitting], we said, ‘Don’t do it.’ & What I know is, I was in every meeting. I heard every sentence, every word, and I can tell you what transpired. I would love for you to go speak to Jerry and to Phil Johnson & and ask them these questions.”

Sloan and Williams have since both downplayed the incident. Malone played for Sloan from 1988-2004.

Tim was hanging out on the balcony at the Bud Light Hotel party … when his buddy heard a fan down on the street begging Tebow to sign his hat.

Tebow — being awesome — instructed his buddy to signal to the fan to throw the hat up to the balcony … which he did. Tebow put his Hancock on the lid and got it back to the fan.

If you’re not into the feel-good stuff … check out the video anyway … butts, butts, butts.

Calhoun is dealing with spinal stenosis, a back condition that causes him pain and hampers his movement.

“Last summer, Jim had some significant back pain and has seen two excellent back specialists,” said Dr. Peter Schulman, Calhoun’s primary care doctor. “The initial approach recommended to him was stretching, physical therapy and exercise, and that was successful for several months. It turns out that there is some degenerative problem in the lumbar vertebrae and it’s impinging on the nerves.”

The school confirmed he will sit out Saturday’s game against Seton Hall and a Monday visit to Louisville.

“Jim has been able to manage it with the physical therapy and stretching, but over the last several days, things have become worse and he is not able to deal with this on a day to day basis, so other options need to be considered,” Schulman said. “Right now, he is physically unable to coach.”

Calhoun previous took leave of absences in 2003 for prostate cancer and in 2010 for a undisclosed medical condition.

Calhoun was also treated for skin cancer in 2008.

This latest absence creates questions about his future with the Huskies.

After winning his third national title, Calhoun delayed an announcement about his return.

The 70-year-old coach has won 867 games in his career and has talked about retiring.

George Blaney will coach the team while Calhoun is out. The Huskies are 14-7 this season and have lost four consecutive games.

Jack Nicholson has never been one to mince words … the notion of going to the Super Bowl this Sunday makes him nauseous.  

Nicholson grabbed some dinner with CSI minx Marg Helgenberger – no they’re not dating … just old friends – and a photog asked the die-hard Lakers fan if he was  going to the big game.

Jack’s answer is shocking, but then again, it is Indianapolis (kidding).

Martin, who played for the Xinjiang Tigers in China and had been required to wait until their season was over before rejoining the NBA, was cleared to return to the NBA by FIBA, the international basketball federation, Thursday.

Martin is an 11-year NBA veteran who, at 6-foot-9, is expected to bolster the Clippers’ inside strength and rebounding performance. He averaged 13.5 points and 7.2 rebounds in his 11 seasons with the New Jersey Nets and Denver Nuggets.

Last season, Martin averaged 8.6 points and 6.2 rebounds in Denver. He is 34.

Martin has a home in Los Angeles and is a friend of Clippers guard Chauncey Billups, a teammate with the Nuggets.

Other teams that had been interested in Martin were the Lakers, Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks.

“As of right now I don’t plan on being in it,” Griffin said Thursday night. “Those dunk contests aren’t my thing, I said that last year. There’s a lot of guys that can put on a great show and do some good stuff.”

Last year Griffin won the slam dunk contest, played in the Rookie Challenge and played in the All-Star Game during a whirlwind weekend in Los Angeles.

This year, Griffin, who will be a first-time starter, would like to simply enjoy the weekend and play in the Feb. 26 All-Star Game in Orlando.

“Last year was hectic and it kind of made it unenjoyable,” Griffin said. “So this year, we’ll see what will happen, but I will try to tone it down a bit and get a break instead of being so busy.”

Clippers center DeAndre Jordan could take Griffin’s place in the slam dunk contest, but Jordan said he has not been contacted by the league yet.

“He’s got some stuff that people definitely want to see,” Griffin said of Jordan.

If he were asked to participate in the slam dunk contest, Jordan said he would do it on one condition. “If I didn’t have to go against Blake,” he said.

Louise Neathway was arraigned Thursday night in Manhattan Criminal Court. Prosecutors said she extorted $6,000 from Cashman, tried to squeeze $15,000 more and engaged in “a long-term effort to control and manipulate” him.

According to a statement from an investigator for the district attorney, starting in the fall of last year, Neathway allegedly asked for money for a medical procedure that would cost more than $15,000. She allegedly threatened to “contact the press and informant’s family and assert facts that would subject the informant to ridicule and damage his personal relationships and professional reputation.”

A source confirmed to ESPNNewYork.com’s Andrew Marchand that Cashman helped lure Neathway into a police dragnet.

Judge Abraham Clott set bail at $300,000 bond or $200,000 cash, according to Joan Vollero, a spokeswoman for Manhattan district attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr.

The judge granted orders of protection for several people in conenction with the case, but no facts about those individuals were entered into the record, Vollero said.

Neathway, also known as Louise Meanwell, denies the accusation, according to defense lawyers Alan Abramson and Stephen McCarthy. They said they expect to “obtain a favorable result.”

“Mr. Cashman is very grateful that this matter is in the hands of law enforcement,” Chris Giglio, a spokesman for the general manager, said in a statement.

The Yankees declined to comment.