Steelers: Best Franchise Ever

But in Super Bowl XLVI, Manning made a hero of himself

(NEWSER) - Last night's big game was intensely fought, undeniably exciting—and a little mystifying, thanks to Eli Manning's unusual brand of heroism. Analysts weigh in on the game's place in football history:

• Last night brought us "the most Eli Manning moment of Eli Manning’s career." During the game-winning touchdown, we saw "a hero shot in which the conqueror looks totally confused by his conquest," with "arms half-raised in quasi-triumph." His quiet humility was the polar opposite of Tom Brady's "aggro posture," but it remains "difficult to understand," writes Josh Levin at Slate .

Bundchen defends Tom Brady after Patriots' Super Bowl loss

(NEWSER) - Gisele Bundchen made headlines last week when she asked friends and family to pray for her husband's team to win the Super Bowl, but as we all know, those prayers went unheard. Bundchen was decidedly less sappy in her post-game comments last night, caught on tape as she left the VIP suites on her way to comfort Tom Brady. "My husband can not f****ing throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time," she said as she was heckled by Giants fans. "I can't believe they dropped the ball so many times." The Insider has the video. More»

Patriots top Bills, Saints crush Panthers, 49ers thump Rams

(NEWSER) - The New England Patriots overcame a 21-point deficit today with 49 unanswered points to rock the Buffalo Bills 49-21, the AP reports. The win earned the Pats home-field advantage and the AFC's top seed. Tom Brady threw for 338 yards and finished with the second-most passing yards in NFL history, 5,235—behind only Drew Brees, who threw for 5,486 this year with the New Orleans Saints. More»

111 million tuned in for big game: Nielsen

(AP) - For the second year in a row, the Super Bowl has set a new record for American television viewing. The Nielsen Co. said today that an estimated 111 million people watched the Green Bay Packers outlast the Pittsburgh Steelers in football's ultimate game. That tops the 106.5 million who watched the 2010 game between New Orleans and Indianapolis, and pushes the series finale of M-A-S-H, which had held the title of the most-watched TV show in the United States for 27 years, to No. 3. "We're excited about the fan reaction," said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell today. More»

Six teams have no squads, and two of those teams play Sunday

(NEWSER) - Not in the Super Bowl this year: the Chicago Bears , the New York Jets … and the cheerleaders. For the first time in the game’s 45-year history, there will be no sideline supporters in attendance, because the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers just so happen to be two of the six NFL teams without pom-pom squads. And though, as an NFL rep tells Fox News , the league feels cheerleaders “enhance the overall game day experience,” neither team will be bringing in substitutes. More»