Super Bowl XLVI Grades
The football season has sadly come to an end, but like always, it went out with a bang. No other professional sports league in the world ends their season better than the NFL does with the Super Bowl and this year's big game was no different. The Super Bowl is the biggest sporting event in the world and according to the Nielsen Company, this year an average of 111.3 million people tuned in to watch the Giants defeat the Patriots last Sunday, 21-17. So, how great was the big game? My grades for everything Super Bowl, as well as the 2011 NFL season are to follow.
Super Bowl XLVI: B+
With all the hype the leads up to the Super Bowl, some fail to live up to the excitement, and in my opinion, Super Bowl XLVI was a little disappointing. Don't get me wrong, it was a very good game, but I was disappointed with the overall play by both teams.
Overall, though, the Super Bowl was good, but I thought the first half was a little boring and I thought it would much higher scoring than just 21-17. Give the Giants defense credit for being able to stop Tom Brady and the high octane Patriots offense, but you have to wonder if the game would have been different had TE Rob Gronkowski's ankle had been 100%. Eli did make plays when his team needed them the most, the drive he led in the fourth quarter was a thing of beauty, and the Mario Manningham catch is one of those you will see on highlight reels for years to come.
This entire NFL season, though, has been about offenses putting up ridiculous amounts of yards and points, and I would have liked to seen that in the Super Bowl. Granted the game did end with some suspense, but I would have liked to see a game in the high 20s, low 30s. Still an enjoyable and exciting Super Bowl, but not the best game ever play.
Halftime Show: B
After the horrible performance the Black Eyed Peas put on last year, one of the worst halftime shows and worst performances I've ever seen, Madonna was a major improvement this year. I won't be completely happy with the halftime show until somebody figures out a way for Michael Jackson or The Beatles to performer the halftime entertainment at the Super Bowl, but I was impressed by the show Madonna put on.
I'm not a diehard Madonna fan, but I will admit some of her music is good and I liked how she incorporated current stars such as, LMFAO, Nikki Minaj, and Cee Lo Green into the performance. The graphics on the field were amazing, the performance was entertaining and went pretty smooth, expect for M.I.A. giving the camera the middle finger that the NBC censor didn't catch. I didn't notice it, but the other 111 million watching probably did.
Overall, it was not as good as The Who, Bruce Springsteen, or the Rolling Stones from year's past in my opinion, but still a good and entertaining performance. I don't know if it will happen next year, but my bold prediction is that Lady Gaga will perform a halftime show sometime in the near future. Now that would be entertaining and very interesting to say the least.
Commercials: A-
Some people thought the commercials this year weren't as good as in years past, but I beg to differ. I thought they were very good, not as funny as some of those last year, but still good and very memorable. Here are some of my favorites.
-Clint Eastwood in the Chrysler ad during halftime. The message was good and it was a brilliant idea to have Clint deliver it. The guy is a Hollywood legend and who doesn't like Clint Eastwood?
-The Dog Strikes Back for Volkswagen where the dog gets in shape in order to get out the doggie door and chase down the VW bug, followed by Darth Vader chocking the ugly looking guy from the bar in Star Wars: A New Hope. Not as good as the VW commercial from last year with the little kid dressed as Vader starting the car with the "force," but much like Clint Eastwood, who doesn't like a commercial with Darth Vader in it?
-The monkeys were funny once again in their usual spot for CareerBuilder.com.
-There were a few Doritos commercials, but the best was the baby in the bouncy sling stealing the Doritos from the kid in the tree house. Loved the music too.
-The Chevy Silverado making it through the end of the world was good, mainly because I work at the Big F and seeing the Big Boy guy leaning against the wall with his Big Boy burger was on fire gave me a good laugh.
-Matthew Broderick reclaiming his role as Ferris Bueller in the Honda CR-V ad. Great movie by the way and the Ferrari Broderick drives in the movie is 10 times better than the CR-V, but still liked the commercial.
-But my favorite was the Acura NSX commercial with Jerry Seinfeld. I don't know which I want more, the Acura NSX, sweet looking car, or my own personal network of Manhattan zip-lines, but it was entertaining and a very funny commercial. And I love the appearance of the Soup Nazi. Classic Seinfeld episode and worth a watch.
2011 NFL Season: A
Just how popular was the NFL this season?
Well, according to The Nielsen Company, the NFL regular season reached more than 200 million unique viewers, and averaged 17.5 million viewers per game, the second highest average since 1989. NBC's Sunday Night Football was the most-watched show in primetime for the second consecutive fall season and ESPN's Monday Night Football was cable's most-watched program for the sixth straight season.
And if that wasn't enough, of the 25 most-watched shows this fall TV season, 23 of them were NFL games. The other two were Game 7 of the World Series and the season premiere of Two and a Half Men. That show's not as good without Charlie Sheen, just saying.
Anyway, like I said earlier, the Super Bowl once again became the most-watched television event in U.S. history this year with 111.3 million viewers. Safe to say that America loved the NFL this season and why wouldn't they?
Fans weren't sure what kind of football they would see after the lengthy lockout this past off-season, but what fans saw this year was one of the best NFL seasons in recent memory.
This season we saw an offensive explosion where riduculous amounts of yards and points were put up every single week. Three quarterbacks threw for 5,000-yards and both Drew Brees and Tom Brady broke Dan Marino's single season passing record. The tight end position was used in a way that it has never been used before, as Rob Gronkowski and Jimmy Graham broke the single season records for receiving yards and touchdowns by a tight end.
With all this offensive fire power you could not turn off the televison before the game was over because no lead was safe. Teams rallied from 21 point halftime deficits like it was nothing and even double digit leads in the fourth quarter didn't mean a mark in the win column.
Then there was the emergence of Tim Tebow, Tebow Mania, Tebow Time, and people Tebowing all over the country. Tebow became a Twitter sensation every single week. Rookies like Cam Newton, Von Miller, Aldon Smith, A.J. Green and Andy Dalton also made a big impact and proved they could play in the NFL, even without a proper introduction into the league. All of them showed the can be great players for the next decade.
The NFL games were more exciting this season than ever before and I already miss football, which is right where the NFL wants their fans to be...wanting more.
Ratings will probably increase once again next year and who knows what we might see in 2012. My early prediction for Super Bowl XLVII in the Big Easy is the New Orleans Saints, who could become the first to team to play at home in the Super Bowl, playing against my Cincinnati Bengals. Don't bet on it, but in the NFL, anything is possible.
I'll dive back into the NFL once we get closer to the draft in April and preview what guys the Bengals can go after not only in the draft, but in free agency, as they try to get back to the playoffs. Until then, I'll be watching lots college basketball as March Madness gets closer, and getting fired up for baseball as Reds pitchers and catchers report to spring training a week from Sunday.
Super Bowl XLVI: B+
With all the hype the leads up to the Super Bowl, some fail to live up to the excitement, and in my opinion, Super Bowl XLVI was a little disappointing. Don't get me wrong, it was a very good game, but I was disappointed with the overall play by both teams.
 |
| Eli Manning won his second Lombardi Trophy and his second Super Bowl MVP award last Sunday in a 21-17 victory over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. (Rob Carr/Getty Images) |
Overall, though, the Super Bowl was good, but I thought the first half was a little boring and I thought it would much higher scoring than just 21-17. Give the Giants defense credit for being able to stop Tom Brady and the high octane Patriots offense, but you have to wonder if the game would have been different had TE Rob Gronkowski's ankle had been 100%. Eli did make plays when his team needed them the most, the drive he led in the fourth quarter was a thing of beauty, and the Mario Manningham catch is one of those you will see on highlight reels for years to come.
This entire NFL season, though, has been about offenses putting up ridiculous amounts of yards and points, and I would have liked to seen that in the Super Bowl. Granted the game did end with some suspense, but I would have liked to see a game in the high 20s, low 30s. Still an enjoyable and exciting Super Bowl, but not the best game ever play.
Halftime Show: B
After the horrible performance the Black Eyed Peas put on last year, one of the worst halftime shows and worst performances I've ever seen, Madonna was a major improvement this year. I won't be completely happy with the halftime show until somebody figures out a way for Michael Jackson or The Beatles to performer the halftime entertainment at the Super Bowl, but I was impressed by the show Madonna put on.
 |
| The stage and on field screens during Madonna's halftime show were pretty impressive. (Getty Images) |
I'm not a diehard Madonna fan, but I will admit some of her music is good and I liked how she incorporated current stars such as, LMFAO, Nikki Minaj, and Cee Lo Green into the performance. The graphics on the field were amazing, the performance was entertaining and went pretty smooth, expect for M.I.A. giving the camera the middle finger that the NBC censor didn't catch. I didn't notice it, but the other 111 million watching probably did.
Overall, it was not as good as The Who, Bruce Springsteen, or the Rolling Stones from year's past in my opinion, but still a good and entertaining performance. I don't know if it will happen next year, but my bold prediction is that Lady Gaga will perform a halftime show sometime in the near future. Now that would be entertaining and very interesting to say the least.
Commercials: A-
Some people thought the commercials this year weren't as good as in years past, but I beg to differ. I thought they were very good, not as funny as some of those last year, but still good and very memorable. Here are some of my favorites.
-Clint Eastwood in the Chrysler ad during halftime. The message was good and it was a brilliant idea to have Clint deliver it. The guy is a Hollywood legend and who doesn't like Clint Eastwood?
-The Dog Strikes Back for Volkswagen where the dog gets in shape in order to get out the doggie door and chase down the VW bug, followed by Darth Vader chocking the ugly looking guy from the bar in Star Wars: A New Hope. Not as good as the VW commercial from last year with the little kid dressed as Vader starting the car with the "force," but much like Clint Eastwood, who doesn't like a commercial with Darth Vader in it?
-The monkeys were funny once again in their usual spot for CareerBuilder.com.
-There were a few Doritos commercials, but the best was the baby in the bouncy sling stealing the Doritos from the kid in the tree house. Loved the music too.
-The Chevy Silverado making it through the end of the world was good, mainly because I work at the Big F and seeing the Big Boy guy leaning against the wall with his Big Boy burger was on fire gave me a good laugh.
-Matthew Broderick reclaiming his role as Ferris Bueller in the Honda CR-V ad. Great movie by the way and the Ferrari Broderick drives in the movie is 10 times better than the CR-V, but still liked the commercial.
 |
| Jerry Seinfeld was willing to give up the Soup Nazi for the new Acura NSX. (Photo Courtesy of Glamour.com |
-But my favorite was the Acura NSX commercial with Jerry Seinfeld. I don't know which I want more, the Acura NSX, sweet looking car, or my own personal network of Manhattan zip-lines, but it was entertaining and a very funny commercial. And I love the appearance of the Soup Nazi. Classic Seinfeld episode and worth a watch.
2011 NFL Season: A
Just how popular was the NFL this season?
Well, according to The Nielsen Company, the NFL regular season reached more than 200 million unique viewers, and averaged 17.5 million viewers per game, the second highest average since 1989. NBC's Sunday Night Football was the most-watched show in primetime for the second consecutive fall season and ESPN's Monday Night Football was cable's most-watched program for the sixth straight season.
And if that wasn't enough, of the 25 most-watched shows this fall TV season, 23 of them were NFL games. The other two were Game 7 of the World Series and the season premiere of Two and a Half Men. That show's not as good without Charlie Sheen, just saying.
Anyway, like I said earlier, the Super Bowl once again became the most-watched television event in U.S. history this year with 111.3 million viewers. Safe to say that America loved the NFL this season and why wouldn't they?
Fans weren't sure what kind of football they would see after the lengthy lockout this past off-season, but what fans saw this year was one of the best NFL seasons in recent memory.
This season we saw an offensive explosion where riduculous amounts of yards and points were put up every single week. Three quarterbacks threw for 5,000-yards and both Drew Brees and Tom Brady broke Dan Marino's single season passing record. The tight end position was used in a way that it has never been used before, as Rob Gronkowski and Jimmy Graham broke the single season records for receiving yards and touchdowns by a tight end.
 |
| Millions of fans tailgated before NFL games this season, while millions more watched on television. (Mike Roemer/AP) |
With all this offensive fire power you could not turn off the televison before the game was over because no lead was safe. Teams rallied from 21 point halftime deficits like it was nothing and even double digit leads in the fourth quarter didn't mean a mark in the win column.
Then there was the emergence of Tim Tebow, Tebow Mania, Tebow Time, and people Tebowing all over the country. Tebow became a Twitter sensation every single week. Rookies like Cam Newton, Von Miller, Aldon Smith, A.J. Green and Andy Dalton also made a big impact and proved they could play in the NFL, even without a proper introduction into the league. All of them showed the can be great players for the next decade.
The NFL games were more exciting this season than ever before and I already miss football, which is right where the NFL wants their fans to be...wanting more.
Ratings will probably increase once again next year and who knows what we might see in 2012. My early prediction for Super Bowl XLVII in the Big Easy is the New Orleans Saints, who could become the first to team to play at home in the Super Bowl, playing against my Cincinnati Bengals. Don't bet on it, but in the NFL, anything is possible.
I'll dive back into the NFL once we get closer to the draft in April and preview what guys the Bengals can go after not only in the draft, but in free agency, as they try to get back to the playoffs. Until then, I'll be watching lots college basketball as March Madness gets closer, and getting fired up for baseball as Reds pitchers and catchers report to spring training a week from Sunday.
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