"You Can't Win."

C'mon you know the scene: Right before Rocky storms out of his Main Line mansion [I know I wish he lived in North Jersey, too, but I didn't write the movie and they had to make him a Philly guy for the sentimental attachment] to drive his Lambourghini recklessly through the streets, his condescending and pessimistic wife tells him all the reasons he is crazy to fight the big, mean Russian who has just killed Apollo, culminating with the dramatic (and high-pitched), "You can't win."

So it's not a perfect football metaphor, although brilliantly written amidst mid-1980s Cold War tension, but as a Giants fan I've got to say I felt a bit like Rocky walking into the ring against the overpowering, genetically superior, and thus far perfect New England Patriots the other night.

We hung tough with them on Dec 29, losing by decision after a 15 round battle. We used the momentum from that game to catapult through the playoffs, beating the two best teams in the NFC (two of the three best teams in the league). And finally, somehow, after establishing ourselves as a legitimate contender, upended the "best team in the history of the NFL" - the undisputed heavyweight champs - with a flawless defensive scheme designed to pressure the unflappable Tom Brady, and another solid effort from our coming-of-age-before-our-eyes-QB-of-right-now.

I'd be lying if I said I knew we could do it all along. Hell I picked us to go 4-12 at the Draft Party back in April. I was nervous going into the Tampa game; I had a good feeling about Dallas; I was scared of Green Bay. Once we got to the Super Bowl, "I am just glad to be here. Wanted to do my part and help out the team." Seriously: Super Bowl runners-up; the 19th game ending in a win for a perfect team; a gutsy Giants squad who won 10 straight games on the road, including one in a European country on the hallowed grounds of Wembley, one in the hostile environment that is Dallas, one on the frozen tundra of Lambeau in the second coldest game of all-time! I mean c'mon, how could I be disappointed with that season?

The Pats were perfect. They set records in just about everything. They're a dynasty. I'd be lying if I hadn't thought "we can't win."

But then a funny thing happened at the end of a 60 minute battle. Don't get me wrong: some loose balls bounced the right way; some wayward passes fell shockingly incomplete; a QB refusing to lose somehow breaks four tackles to loft a ball downfield where a special teams expert/# 4 WR makes amazing use of his helmet during the gutsiest drive in recent SB memory (surpassing the drive Brady and the Pats had just completed moments earlier).

And we get to spend the next year as the Super Bowl Champions.

But what am I going to do for the next seven months? Ah the wonders of DVR.