Super Bowl 2012: Why the Patriots Will Slow Down Eli Manning and the Giants

Believe it or not, but the New England Patriots defense does have a legit shot at slowing down Eli Manning and the New York Giants offense.

Much like the Giants did to the Pats in Super Bowl XLII, an eye for an eye...

Pass Rush

In the NFC Championship game, Eli Manning was sacked six times and hit an additional 12 against the San Francisco 49ers. Now, we obviously can't compare the Patriots defense to San Francisco—however, the Pats front seven is a lot better than given credit for.

For one, they sacked Baltimore's Joe Flacco three times and hit him another seven while also hitting Eli eight times in the regular season meeting. So, the Pats can provide a hefty pass rush throughout the course of a game.

During the regular season, New England recorded 40 sacks and had eight more in two postseason games. So, they will get pressure on Manning.

Whether it's Vince Wilfork controlling the trenches, Mark Anderson dipping between the guard and tackle gap, or linebacker Rob Ninkovich off the edge, Bill Belichick will get to Manning.

And like the 49ers, New England runs a 3-4 front to match speed and quickness across the board.

The biggest and only real concern is whether the defensive backs can maintain consistent press coverage to assist the front seven. The Giants will adjust, but don't expect Eli to have all day just because the Pats are vulnerable against the pass.

Rush Defense

Baltimore may have compiled 116 rushing yards against New England, but 27 came from Joe Flacco—and running back Ray Rice was limited to 67 yards with an average of 3.2 yards per carry.

New England clearly controlled the trenches against the Ravens and that physical dominance will continue in the Super Bowl. There, the Giants won't abandon the rush to keep the Pats honest. However, it won't be effective enough to really make any difference.

With a solid pass rush comes great run-blitzing. The two go hand-in-hand as each compliments the other. During the regular season, New York had the NFL's worst rushing offense. Although it's improved in the playoffs, that's because of Eli Manning and the passing game.

Defensive tackle Vince Wilfork will either draw a double-team and let his teammates roam free or defeat his one-on-one opponent. He's laterally quick enough to control the trenches, and with a 3-4/1-5-5 look, the Pats can stop any rushing attack outside or off tackle.

The Giants best option will be to stay balanced because Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw are a solid two-back tandem. The thing is, with blitzers off the edges and linebacker spies, the Giants running game will struggle.

Let's put it this way, if New England can shut down Ray Rice—who's arguably the NFL's best and most complete running back—Belichick, Wilfork and Co. can stop what was the NFL's worst ground game of 2011.

John Rozum on Twitter