How much does overrated cost?

In the last few years, the most purely clueless sports town in America has gotten even worse. If you've ever lived around fans of New York teams, the Mets and Giants especially, then you've probably never seen a less knowledgable fan base that combines their lack of knowledge with little knowledge for the sport they follow or the games they're supposed to be watching. The Giants fan's problem is that they don't understand system football, the sum of mediocre parts equaling successful cohesion, or what Patriots fans are used to. The possible admission that players like Eli Manning or Justin Tuck would be terrible on other teams is simply too much for them. Tuck is a system player, and very productive piece of Steve Spagnuolo's defense, but he is NOT an elite defensive lineman in the NFL. That though, doesn't come close to how much better other quarterbacks in the league are than Eli Manning.

In 2007, the year the Giants went 10-6 and won the Super Bowl (the first ten-win Super Bowl Winner in twenty years), Eli Manning led the league in interceptions. Even with a field-stretching receiver like Plaxico Burress. In fact, every time Eli Manning has been forced to make a football decision with the football in his hand, he's thrown an interception. Think back to the last time he was forced to make any tough decisions before that Super Bowl run, November 25, 2007 against the Vikings (see also October 13, 2008 against the Browns). The Giants success comes mainly through the run and stopping the run. Any defensive pass rush they get is extra, but their overall success certainly doesn't come from their quarterback play. The outright joke of the 2007 season was Eli manning's questionable Super Bowl MVP. His 19-34, 255 yard performance is only more egregious than Peyton Manning's 24-38 247 yard MVP performance the year before, but since that time, Eli Manning has been viewed as an elite quarterback, and now he's paid like one.

Since Plaxico shot himself, the decline, or reality could have continued, but Giants head coach Tom Coughlin and their staff refuse to let it happen. In the one game when the Giants rushing attack sputtered miserably after Burress left the team, November 30, 2008 against the Redskins, Eli Manning had his breakout game of the season, 21-34 305 yards, one touchdown, or a slightly below average day for Drew Brees, Kurt Warner, Peyton Manning, Jay Cutler, or the player he was traded for, Philip Rivers. Basically, Eli manning at his best is still maybe tenth-best in the league. Usually though, the Giants use a three-headed rushing attack, which diminishes Eli's role immensely, and all of the quarterbacks we mentioned aside from Rivers do not share that luxury. But all of those quarterbacks can be counted on to rescue their teams in times of crisis. When the Giants are in crisis, their goal is to make sure Eli isn't the one who has to come to their rescue. That's great coaching.

What you know is going to happen...

If you weren't a Packers fan, or you didn't "pack" anything in the Nineties, then you hated Brett Favre. Then, the team declined, Mark Chmura got in a hot tub with the babysitter and the team declined some more. Mike Holmgren left, and Favre's father died. He became a mythical figure, good for two or three great moments a year. That crazy scramble and touchdown throw on Thanksgiving always overshadowed the five-interception playoff meltdowns. He's been officially forcing throws that everyone with eyes knows he can't complete for ten years. The Packers eventually moved on because possibly, a few people in their organization have working eyes. The Jets changed Brian Schottenheimer's offense last year to suit Favre's gunslinging style. When the Jets stuck with the core of Schottenheimer's offense, utilizing Leon Washington especially, the Jets beat the then 11-0 Titans. Other times though, when they'd switched to the Favre-friendly style, the Jets simply couldn't score because Favre couldn't complete passes-No touchdowns against a terrible Denver defense, one two-yard touchdown pass against Cincinnati, no touchdown passes against Oakland or San Fransisco or Seattle. Favre couldn't help the Jets beat teams that were obviously worse than them.

And now the Vikings are in love.

And you should hear from an honest source exactly what's going to happen.

Favre is the starter, and all of the Vikings players are excited about improving their quarterback play. The casual fan is interested, and the Vikings should win their first three games against the Browns, Lions and 49ers. If they are weak against the pass, the 49ers can beat them, because the Vikings run defense against the 49ers passing attack is a stalemate. They will play the Packers on Monday Night Football amidst all of the pageantry and stomach-turning press conferences and lose. They will lose a defensive struggle to the Steve Spagnolo Rams in the Edward Jones Dome. They will lose at Baltimore. They will win at Pittsburgh because Adrian Peterson won't be stopped. They will win a close game at Green Bay, but Favre won't be the reason. They will beat the upstart Lions and lose to the Seahawks. They will lose to the Bears at home, they will blow out the Cardinals in Arizona. They will beat the Bengals and the Panthers to get back into the hunt. They will lose in Chicago and end the Giants' season by beating them on the last day . The Vikings will go 8-8 and miss the playoffs. Favre, for a few reasons, will lead the league in interceptions and retire again, this time without a sound. The Vikings will cut Tarvaris Jackson, ending a career they ruined, and they will draft a collegiate quarterback with an overrated skill set like Tim Tebow or Sam Bradford.

We're going to end up rooting against the Vikings simply because Favre is going to keep trying to make miracles happen when magic doesn't always work in the NFL, and we hate guys who think their magic is better than the old. We're all going to hate Brett Favre again when this is over. The hate will be so strong that he's going to have to do something great to make sure no one boos at his Hall of Fame speech.