Super Bowl 2012: Rob Gronkowski and Victor Cruz, Two Potential Super Bowl MVPs

Throughout the course of the 2011-12 NFL season, Rob Gronkowski of New England and Victor Cruz of New York have been consistently dominating.

That continued throughout the postseason and will shine even brighter on Super Bowl Sunday. So, here's a quick break down of each player and why they're worthy of the game's MVP award.

Rob Gronkowski: TE, Patriots

From Week 1 on, Ron Gronkowski has been on fire and finished the regular season with 90 receptions for 1,327 yards and 17 touchdowns.

In the postseason, Gronkowski has been just as impressive. He first caught 10 passes for 145 yards and scored three touchdowns against the Denver Broncos and against Baltimore, it was a solid performance of five receptions for 87 yards.

Gronkowski's ability to stretch and widen the field on any given play is what makes the Patriots pass offense so dynamic. He opens up the underneath routes for guys like Wes Welker and is a viable target when sitting in between the zones.

Gronkowski's size virtually makes him impossible to cover one-on-one, and he's also a solid run-blocker. New England may not be known as a rushing team, but it proved to pound the rock well on Sunday. That will also be key in the Super Bowl.

With an all-encompassed performance in Super Bowl XLVI, catches, yards and some key blocks, Rob Gronkowski will be just as deserving as Tom Brady to win the game's MVP award.

Victor Cruz: WR, Giants

Along the same lines as Gronkowski, Victor Cruz can stretch and widen the field for the Giants explosive offense. After the first two weeks this season, Cruz had just two catches for 17 yards and he wasn't too well-known outside of the Giants' locker room.

Then, Week 3 and thereafter happened. Cruz got his opportunity to contribute and finished the regular season with 1,536 yards on 82 receptions and nine touchdowns.

Now, although he has yet to score in the playoffs, Cruz's production has only improved. The Atlanta Falcons succeeded in isolating him to just 28 yards on two catches, but the Green Bay Packers did not.

With a five-catch, 74-yard performance in the Divisional Round, Cruz gradually gained confidence to shine in the NFC Championship Game. There, against arguably the NFL's best defense in the San Francisco 49ers, Cruz caught 10 passes for 142 yards.

Although he has yet to score a postseason touchdown, Cruz's regular season numbers are indicative of defenses game-planning to stop him. Provided that he continues to be great in getting yards after the catch from intermediate routes, New England has its hands full.

On slants, outs, curls, drags and skinny posts, Victor Cruz can take over Super Bowl XLVI if the Patriots pass defense doesn't step up.

John Rozum on Twitter