Super Bowl Odds 2012: Why the New England Patriots Are the Safe Bet

According to BetVega.com, the New England Patriots are 3.5-point favorites against the New York Giants and the over/under is 55 total points scored.

That being said, the Pats are the safer bet in Super Bowl XLVI and here are a few reasons why.

Rob Gronkowski

In Super Bowl XLII, the Patriots may have had Randy Moss to stretch the field, but as we've seen in 2011, the utilization of Rob Gronkowski has been much more beneficial.

Against the Giants in the regular season, Gronkowski caught eight passes for 101 yards and scored a TD. This time around, expect even bigger numbers from Gronk because New York doesn't have an answer for him.

Additionally, expect Gronk to assist more as a run-blocker and in pass protection. To wear down New York's aggressive front four, Gronkowski must dominate in blocking and New England needs to establish the ground game. Do that against the Giants and the passing game will take care of itself.

Now in the passing game, the Pats have to anticipate that Gronk will get double-teamed. Well, having him delay routes by chipping a pass rusher will give Brady more time and Gronk a free release.

Tom Brady has never had such a dangerous tight end on his team and unless the Giants prove they can slow Gronk down, there's no reason to bet against them.

Vince Wilfork

After his dominating postseason performances so far, it's clear the Bill Belichick's defense is built around Vince Wilfork.

Against New York the first time, he recorded four tackles (one for loss) and two QB hits. Not bad for a defensive tackle against one of the NFL's best offensive lines. This time around, however, Wilfork needs to keep his dominance rolling.

In both playoff games, he controlled the trenches and was able to run stuff either A-gap. That said, if blocked one-on-one Wilfork is athletic enough to control as wide as the B-gaps. But even if double-teamed, that will just free up the linebacker and fellow defensive linesmen to get pressure on Manning.

New England has a much better pass rush and run defense than given credit for. Prior to the playoffs, the Pats had recorded 40 sacks and have eight more in just two playoff games, not to mention four forced fumbles.

With Wilfork controlling the middle and stuffing New York's ground game or allowing his teammates to do so, the Patriots have increased odds at slowing the Giants offense down.

Motivational Factor

First, they lost Super Bowl XLII which cost New England perfection. Then, for the first time in what seemed like forever, the Patriots lost at home with Tom Brady under center to New York earlier this season.

In short, although Brady had Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts' number. It appears to be just the opposite when it comes to Eli Manning and the New York Giants.

With two straight losses to their inter-conference rival, the Patriots have the intangible motivational factor of revenge on their side.

Much like Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson and the Los Angeles Lakers had against the Boston Celtics heading into the 2010 NBA Finals after losing to them in the 2008 Finals, Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and Co. have the same bone to pick with the Giants in Super Bowl XLVI.

John Rozum on Twitter