NFL Playoff Picture: Breaking Down Super Bowl XLVI

Get ready for the biggest event in all of sports with a breakdown of the upcoming Super Bowl matchup between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants.

Each team earned its way into this game with great play, but both received a little bit of a break to help get over the top.

New England topped the Baltimore Ravens, thanks in part to a missed field goal by Billy Cundiff in the final seconds of the AFC Championship Game.

The Giants won a hard-fought battle with the San Francisco 49ers, but a fumbled punt return in overtime put the team in position to win.

Although the paths to this point were very different, one of these teams will walk away as champions of Super Bowl XLVI.

Storylines

One of the best Super Bowls in recent memory was the 2007 matchup between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants.

New England was looking to finish the year as the first 19-0 team in NFL history, while the Giants should have just been happy to be there after a 10-6 season. Instead, fans were treated to one of the best upsets of all time as New York won 17-14.

Four years later, we will get to see a rematch of these two teams featuring many new players but the same coaches and quarterbacks.

The quarterback battle alone is worth the price of admission. Tom Brady will be the second quarterback after John Elway to start in five Super Bowls, but when Eli Manning was asked before the season if he was in the same class as Brady, he surprised many by saying he was.

The quarterback completely backed up that statement, throwing for almost 5,000 yards during the season and playing excellent ball throughout the playoffs.

Manning had every added pressure in the book. He plays the most scrutinized position in sports under the microscope of the New York media. He is the son of an NFL quarterback, Archie Manning and the younger brother of one of the best ever, Peyton Manning. He was even the top overall pick in the draft.

Somehow, the youngest Manning has still exceeded expectations.

Patriots Offense vs. Giants Defense

Tom Brady did not look like Tom Brady in the AFC Championship Game.

The quarterback had two interceptions and no touchdowns that helped equal a 57.5 passer rating. Surprisingly, the performance had little to do with pressure from the Baltimore Ravens, who only finished with one sack and three quarterback hits all game.

He should face a tougher defensive line against the New York Giants, which has been able to get to the quarterback all season long. The pass defense has also improved tremendously since the beginning of the season, holding Alex Smith and Matt Ryan to under 200 yards in the playoffs while Aaron Rodgers also had the worst game of his season.

The key for the New England Patriots will be to continue exploiting the mismatches at tight end as they have done all season long. New York's secondary gave up two touchdowns to Vernon Davis because no one could contain his surprising speed.

Rob Gronkowski was injured on Sunday, but should be fine for the Super Bowl, according to the Boston Herald. If this is the case, the Giants will need to figure out a way to cover not one, but two great tight ends along with Aaron Hernandez.

Otherwise, Brady will find them all day long.

Giants Offense vs. Patriots Defense

Against the Baltimore Ravens, the New England Patriots focused on shutting down the run and were successful by holding them to 3.7 yards per carry. Unfortunately, quarterback Joe Flacco threw for over 300 yards and kept his team in the game.

Eli Manning will provide by far the toughest test for the defense this postseason.

The Patriots had statistically the second-worst defense in football, giving up over 400 total yards per game. They finished narrowly ahead of the Green Bay Packers in that category, a team that allowed 37 points in a loss to the New York Giants two weeks ago.

New York still likes to run the ball with Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs, but the game will be won and lost through the air.

Manning has done a great job of finding his best players in Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz, and, just as importantly, has taken care of the football. He only has one interception through three playoff games so far. This is something the quarterback struggled with at times this year, throwing 12 picks in the team's seven losses.

The Giants should be able to move the ball all game long, but the biggest factor will be avoiding turnovers against the Patriots, which led the AFC in takeaways.

Special Teams

The smallest plays can turn into game-changers if you are not paying attention.

One big reason the New York Giants were able to get past the San Francisco 49ers was the two fumbled punt returns. Both of these teams better make sure they are focused in this aspect of the game because more harm than good could come out of it.

Neither team has a great playmaker returning kicks, so long returns should not be expected. In fact, New England is towards the bottom of the league with only 21.4 yards per kickoff return while the Giants are only a couple of yards better.

The good news is that each team should have confidence in their kicker with the game on the line, something fans in Baltimore no longer have.

Stephen Gostkowski of the Patriots made 84.8 percent of his kicks this season and has been more than capable of kicking from more than 50 yards out throughout his career.

The Giants have a kicker who has now twice sent his team to the Super Bowl with a game-winning field goal in overtime. Lawrence Tynes struggled at times this season, but he should have complete confidence in the big game.

Coaching

Bill Belichick and Tom Coughlin are two former colleagues on the New York Giants who will face each other in the Super Bowl for the second time.

Despite being on the hot seat for most of his tenure, Coughlin has had a very solid career with the Giants. This could be a chance for a second Super Bowl victory, while his only losing season was in his first year with the team in 2004.

Belichick does not lose too often, either, totaling a 72.4 winning percentage in 12 years with the New England Patriots. He will try to join Chuck Noll as the only coaches ever to win four Super Bowls, and he will certainly be entering the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

With two weeks to prepare for the game, expect each of these teams to know every tendency of their opponent from passing formations to eating habits.

Early Prediction

Both of these teams got through tough defenses in the last round, and now will have to worry about shutting down top offenses.

While the New England Patriots have a lot of talent on the roster, the New York Giants are the more well-rounded team in this contest.

The ability to rush the passer will at least slow down Tom Brady, but the Patriots will struggled to contain Eli Manning at his excellent receiving corps.

The good news for fans is that this game is guaranteed to have a great finish. The two quarterbacks are better than anyone at running a hurry-up offense and could trade blows right down to the last second.

Super Bowl XLII had three lead-changing touchdowns in the fourth quarter and the Week 9 matchup between these teams had four.

It is an old cliché, but the team that has the ball last should win this game. I believe the Giants defense will give them that one more chance to succeed.

New York Giants 27

New England Patriots 24