Tom Brady: Ranking all 10 of the GOAT’s Super Bowl appearances
By Peter Panacy
No. 8: Giants prove to be kryptonite to Tom Brady in Super Bowl XLVI
For the bulk of Tom Brady’s career, the only opposing quarterback and team combination that could beat him in the Super Bowl was the Giants.
Super Bowl XLVI in early 2012 was supposed to be the Patriots’ grudge match for what happened four years earlier. After all, not unlike the 2007 season, New England was riding yet another dominant regular season after going 13-3 while the G-Men again squeaked into the playoffs with a 9-7 record, then somehow ended up being gifted with a Super Bowl berth after multiple special teams gaffes by the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship game two weeks before.
Well, Eli Manning managed to outdo Brady again, which stemmed from the odd omen of Brady being flagged for intentional grounding in the end zone for a safety to kick off scoring.
Like Super Bowl XLII, Brady was good enough to win in Super Bowl XLVI, tossing 276 yards with two touchdowns against one interception. Yet the Pats offense scuffled late in the third quarter and throughout the fourth, while Manning and the Giants chipped away at a one-time 17-9 Patriots lead to take away the 21-17 come-from-behind victory over New England.
Twice having beaten Brady in the Super Bowl, Manning and the Giants would go on to earn that reputation of being Brady’s weak link, but it at least led to a pretty funny tweet photo about the only quarterback who could beat Brady in the Super Bowl.