Over the next few days, we're going to continue to get into the X's and O's of the New England Patriots Super Bowl XLVI match-up against the New York Giants. This evening, however, we're going to focus on a more philosophical question: what will be the bigger Patriots storyline in the big game - the chance for revenge or the chance to cement the team's legacy?
Of course, a victory in Super Bowl XLVI would kill two birds with one stone. The Patriots would get revenge against the Giants team that ended their chance for perfection in 2007, and they would cement their place in history as one of the greatest dynasties ever with a fourth Super Bowl in ten years (although the question about whether or not a Super Bowl XLVI victory would act as an extension of the dynasty will be addressed later).
Today, however, I want to know which potential storyline seems bigger to you? In other words, if the Patriots were to beat the Giants next Sunday, what would mean more to you?
For me, it has to be the chance to avenge the teams 17-14 loss to the Giants in Super Bowl XLII. There's no doubt that the loss has stuck not only with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, but the entire New England region since February 3rd, 2008. Ever since the loss, I've said that the only thing that could truly erase those scars would be another Super Bowl victory. To get it against the very team that beat the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII would be a "perfect" ending, so to speak. Or, you know, the Patriots could lose and it could be the worst possible ending to a season imaginable.
The chance to add to Tom Brady and Bill Belichick's legacy as the greatest coach-quarterback combo in NFL history also can't be ignored. As a team, the Patriots have done some pretty special stuff in the last decade. But you could certainly argue, since the team hasn't won a Super Bowl in seven years, that the "run" is over, and that a victory next Sunday wouldn't add to the legacy of those teams.
So which storyline is bigger in your eyes?