It was the best hangover ever. I finished the two bottles of champagne. Alex said he was at the Pour House. I left the apt and just started jogging there. I was high-fiving everybody in blue. It was amazing. I get there. People on the bar. Everyone going crazy. I'm hugging people. We start singing We Are The Champions. SNY has coverage in the locker room. I'm going out of my mind. Just loving everybody. After a pitcher of beer, I was feeling pretty sick. I managed to get to McD's for some snack wraps since all I had eaten all day was a slice of pizza. I get back. Watch SportsCenter. Koch was there. Hugged him. Just watched everything I could about the game for like an hour. It was beautiful. My bed is covered in confetti and champagne. I fell asleep somehow. I woke up at 8. Slept about 2 hours. Got up to get the paper. Still wearing my Shockey jersey. I had a tremendous amount of soreness in my bed but somehow the thought of seeing Eli's beautiful face on the cover of the Daily News just blinds it out. I'm walking to the deli and make an executive decision. I'm like, "Fuck it, I'm getting my Championship hat and shirt." No coat. Flip flops. Get the newspaper in the subway station. Beautiful. Almost makes me cry. Awesome picture. I get to Times Square. Still feeling pretty pained. I reeeeeeeeeeeeeek of champagne. There's like a champagne crust in my hair. It's just stiff. It's cold. It starts to snow. Kinda wish I had my coat. Get to Modell's. Hats aren't in. Enjoy the finest McD's breakfast there ever was. Read the coverage. It was amazing. Go back to Modell's. The hats are in! I don't even care that I haven't paid yet, I grab one and just put it on. It felt so good. I had to wait on line for a while but I didn't care. Throw the shirt on. I probably look stupid to everyone going to work and here's some kid with like 5 layers on that smells insane and just has this incredibly stupid stupid smile on his face. I get back to my apt. Finish the paper. Take the greatest shower there ever was. More highlights. The replay button on my remote is totally worn down. Watch Mike'd Up. Everything on ESPNEWS. Go for a footlong spicy Italian sub at Subway. Pick up 8 different newspapers with Eli Manning on the cover. Just soak in Mike & the Mad Dog. Great scene at the beginning with their predictions and Dog saying the Pats will win 49-7. I'm pretty tired by this point so I kind of go in and out of sleep like those guys in that Roxbury commercial. Get to work. Everyone is actually congratulating me. The hardest thing about this is that everyone seems happy that the Giants won. I haven't had one person that said they weren't rooting for them. I get back home. Just keep replaying everything on my DVR. The Tyree catch, the greatest play in NFL history! Plax Burress and the Super Bowl-winning touchdown! The Alford sack on second down! Webster just getting a piece of the ball on third down! And finally, 4th and 20 and the Giants bring the Lombardi Trophy back home!
It's my 11th season being a Giants fan and it's been disappointing for the most part, but everything was just wiped away. It reminded me why I love these teams and how it feels to win. Everything, the meltdown against the Vikings losing the onside kick and Eddie Murray, Sehorn breaking his leg, Danny Kannell just never working out, getting blown out by Baltimore, the 86 Lambuth Special, Trey Junkin the most heartbreaking loss all those penalties losing that big lead Shockey drops the touchdown and the refs messing up the call, bottoming out when it seemed like we had so much potential, Eli's 0 rating game, getting shutout by the Panthers I remember sitting in the stands at that game as Eli threw one interception after another and just feeling empty inside while Steve Smith did snow angels in the end zone, just getting torn apart last year and losing at 0:00. Everything just wiped away. Even this year, after that awful Vikings game it seemed like they were heading to another mediocre season. Getting that text message from Koch that Shockey broke his leg then seeing him leave the Stadium in an ambulance. It all just vanished. At the same time I know this wouldn't feel so good if it wasn't for all those moments. And of course there are all those little moments and all those Giants before that I will never forget. Winning the NFC East against the Redskins, Bratzke, beating the undefeated Broncos, Graham, Division Champs in Dallas, Barrow, starting off the playoffs with a kickoff return TD waving my towel spying on Donovan and The Interception, Sehorn, 41-0, Cloud Comella, Shockey wanting the ball more than Dawkins and then getting into the playoffs in OT the best regular season game I ever saw, Bryant, beating the Rams the first week of college, Fassel, Starting off 2006 as East Champs, Carter, Tiki doing everything everything everything to make sure we'd get into the playoffs at 8-8.
This year it all started rolling when Ahmad Bradshaw tore off that run against the Bills. I liked him in the preseason but I never thought that he would be such a catalyst. And without him we would never be the World Champs. I think that's true for everybody on the team. Without any one of them, we would not be the Champs. Well, maybe Ruben Droughns (just kidding). Even Chase Blackburn poor guy. If he didn't get that penalty we would have been in much worse field position and who knows what would have happened. He played great in 2005. And Steve Smith. I can't put into words how much I love him. Underrated play. Walking the tightrope. Getting out of bounds. First down. And setting up the big TD. I saw that ball in the air and Plax was wide open and all I could think was "Don't drop it!" and he didn't. And David Tyree. David Tyree, that's all you have to say. I went up to see them practice in Albany on August 1 and who would have thought that almost 6 months later they'd be going down the Canyon. I'm extremely happy that I got a chance to see the Champs at camp. I just remember watching Eli practice those fades into inflatable baskets like imaginary receivers. I sat there sweating like crazy and it was so hot watching Eli throw those high balls. Over and over and over and over and over. Fade into the left corner end zone. Fade into the left corner end zone. Fade into the left corner end zone. I could have never imagined that he would throw one for the Championship. I sat there on the hill wondering why I was watching Eli Manning throwing these fades into the left corner end zone. Maybe I was sick in the head to sit out in that heat. Maybe I needed more friends. I now know why I sat out in that heat. It's the same reason why I'm typing on my computer in my training camp shirt that I wore during the Super Bowl and now reeeeeeeeeeeeeks of champagne. And yea, I can't say that the New York Football Giants are the best team in the world, but on that one glorious day, February 3, 2008 when Eli Manning made that perfect pass into the left corner end zone, the New York Football Giants were the best team in the world. XLII Champions
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