I am a New York Giants fan. Yes, we had a rough season as many of our past seasons have been. We may not have made it to the playoffs, but a rookie, Saquon Barkley, proved to be exceptional. Sure I get frustrated when my team doesn't win and repeatedly doesn't make it to the playoffs. My friends like to make jokes, but at the end of the day, I am still a New York Giants fan, as well as a fan of ALL the New York teams.
Millions of viewers tuned in to the two nerve-wracking and gut-wrenching playoff games. The first was between the New Orleans Saints and Los Angeles Rams (formerly St. Louis Rams). The game was back and forth with thrilling action until the very last second. With 1:49 left in the fourth quarter, a controversial moment still has Saints fans in disbelief and rage. Saints had possession of the ball and quarterback, Drew Brees, threw a long pass to receiver, Tommylee Lewis, where Rams cornerback, Nickell Robey-Coleman, clearly interfered with the pass.
The technical term for this is pass interference. However, it was as if the referees were blind, because no call was made. Saints players, coaches and fans were obviously infuriated and somehow, the Rams got away with it. Once the fourth quarter ended, the two teams were forced into overtime where the Saints lost 26-23, and therefore, losing the chance to play in Super Bowl LIII (53). I am not a Saints fan, however, this heartbreaking loss has been apparent from any fan base.
It is truly unfair that this one play and the lack of the referee's attention to details has caused a team the chance to compete for the Super Bowl title. My dad, who was a former college football referee for many years, was appalled by this. He no longer enjoys watching football due to the poor officiating of the game. Whether this was a crucial mistake on the part of the referees or were they in cahoots with the Rams' winning, we may never know.
The game following this heartbreaking loss was the New England Patriots (surprise surprise) and the Kansas City Chiefs. Of course, as a Giants fan, I will NEVER root for one of our rivals, the Patriots, so you can imagine how hard I was rooting for the Chiefs. Again, another nerve-wracking, edge-of-your-seat game, that came down to the wire, forcing the two teams into overtime. The Patriots and Chiefs were tied at 31 closing out the fourth quarter where the action continued into overtime. The Patriots seem to always have luck on their side, as they were able to score a touchdown and win the game 37-31 making this their third consecutive trip to the Super Bowl in five years. I do have to admit that Tom Brady is one of the most talented quarterbacks in football history.
For those of you who will be tuning in to Super Bowl 53, I hope you enjoy the game, the commercials and the halftime show. May the best team win!!
