We Cannot Thank Eli Manning EnoughAs we face a Celtics championship, we look fondly toward Eli Manning — do you realize what sort of three-sport Masshole championship insanity he saved us from?
Happy Giant Monday
Last night, only moments after the Patriots stuttered out their last plays in Super Bowl XLII, the shouts began. From our window facing East 14th Street, we started to hear chants of “Eli! Eli! Eli!” A communal roar echoed out of bars like the Blarney Cove, Otto’s Shrunken Head, and Mona’s. A few minutes later crowds poured out of Stuyvesant Town and Alphabet City, walking down the street towards the First Avenue L stop. They whooped, they chanted — we even saw one guy dive tackle a friend into the (hard-looking) sidewalk, screaming “PLAXICO!”
This morning, when we woke up, we picked up the Daily News. Not being from New York originally, we’ve never really understood the rationale behind the “commemorative covers” that the tabloids put out sometimes. Do people in the city really have walls covered with Daily News and Post covers? But when we unfolded the paper to check out the giant photo of Eli Manning clutching the trophy, with a yell of triumph on his face, we thought to ourselves: “Huh. We’d better save this one.”
Anyway, if tomorrow is Super Tuesday, today has definitely got to be Giant Monday. Leave us some comments! We want to hear where you were last night when Plaxico Burress caught the touchdown pass with 35 seconds to go, and what you did when Manning escaped from the Patriots’ clutches to make that longshot pass to David Tyree. Oh, and which Super Bowl ad was your favorite, because ours was totally that Coke one with the Macy’s parade balloons
Related: Underdog: The Rise of Eli Manning
the sports section
Giants Win!In one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history, the New York Giants just toppled the undefeated New England Patriots, 17-14. The turning point of the low-scoring game was a set of dramatic moves by Giants quarterback Eli Manning in the late fourth quarter, culminating in a comeback touchdown pass to receiver Plaxico Burress with 35 seconds to go. In the closing ceremony, Manning was just named MVP.
If you’re still watching TV to get your post game recap, for the love of Eli, turn it off and go outside right now. That’s where the fun is!
Click here to read all of our in-love-from-afar Manning coverage.
intel
Anderson Cooper and Ryan Seacrest: Messaging Buddies
In the above video, found for us so cleverly by Soup Cans, you can watch a (shakily filmed) segment of Kathy Griffin’s latest comedy routine. In this portion (click above to view), she reveals that while she was co-hosting a New Year’s Eve Times Square special with Cooper, he spent some time sending gossipy texts about her to none other than one of her favorite targets of ridicule, Ryan Seacrest. Apparently they are text buddies. Which means, and we’re just guessing here, that they’re probably IM buddies, too! So, because it’s Friday, we’ve gone and imagined up what we think is probably an extremely accurate imaginary IM conversation between CNN anchor Anderson Cooper and American Idol (and Super Bowl) host Ryan Seacrest:
OhSayCanYouSeacrest: Whazzzzzzzzzzzzzup
HanginWithMrAnderson: DOoooooooood whasssup
OhSayCanYouSeacrest: whatchoo up to
HanginWithMrAnderson: nothin man getting psyched for the superbowl
OhSayCanYouSeacrest: hell yeah you watchin me?
HanginWithMrAnderson: don’t tell the old ball and chain but I laid $500 on the g-men
OhSayCanYouSeacrest: word go jints
OhSayCanYouSeacrest: tough to stop brady and moss tho
HanginWithMrAnderson: stopping moss won’t be a problem with that pass rush
new york fugging city
The Fug Girls: But Who Do You Take Home to Mama AFTER the Super Bowl?With Super Bowl Sunday looming, football pundits worldwide are typing their fingers to the bone predicting who will step up, who will choke, and which commercials will be the most buzz-worthy. Sure, football is a group sport and there’s no “I” — or “Eli” — in “team,” but we can’t help boiling down the big game to its most fascinating matchup: the budding legend versus the legacy kid. How do Tom Brady and Eli Manning stack up, and more important, which one looks better in spandex? Let us be your guides.
TABLOID APPEAL: Tom Brady has been all over the rags this year, thanks to his baby-mama drama with Bridget Moynahan and his ensuing photo-friendly relationship with Gisele. Whereas we only know from Wikipedia that Eli Manning is engaged; “Giants QB Really Digs College Sweetheart” probably won’t move any magazines unless he knocks her up with some baby joy. At Tom Brady’s house.
Advantage: Tom. Unless you prefer keeping your private life private, but where’s the fun there?
the sports section
So What Have Tom and Eli Been Up to Lately?So the week is drawing to a close, and we’re just beginning the ten-day countdown to the Super Bowl. Sports fans are stocking up on beer and flat-screen TVs. Spouses and roommates of sports fans are watching Rachael Ray to see what they should cook next Sunday. And gay people, well, they’re starting to finally pick up on the fact that there’s something going on. But what have Giants quarterback Eli Manning and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady been doing? It would be a great insight into the interior mental workings of those two pivotal players to see how they are spending their final days before the contest. If only we knew.
Oh, just kidding. As if the press would let either of them out of their sight for a minute this time of year. We know exactly what they’ve been doing, and, indeed, it does tell us something about the two athletes.
• Tom Brady got rid of that scary orthopedic boot he was wearing earlier in the week, just in time to stay out late at downtown hot spot Butter and hang out with Gisele and her ex-boyfriend Leonardo DiCaprio. [Boston Herald]
