Super Bowl Line: 3 Things Patriots Must Do to Cover Spread

The New England Patriots are favored to beat the New York Giants in the Super Bowl by three points, according to Bovada.

Nevertheless, because the Giants were able to beat the Pats in the Super Bowl four years ago and because they've been very hot since the end of the regular season, the loose consensus among pigskin fans is that the Patriots are actually the underdog in this matchup. A lot of people are picking the Giants to win outright.

But hey, it's not as if the Patriots are hopelessly overmatched. This is a game they can win, and this is certainly a spread they can cover.

All they have to do is abide by the three simple guidelines listed below:

Keep the Ball in the Yard

I'm using a baseball expression because the Giants have two deadly home run hitters in Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks. Eli Manning gets the ball to them with alarming regularity, and both Cruz and Nicks are a threat to go the distance every time they catch the ball.

This is a concern for the Patriots because their secondary is made up of spare parts held together by duct tape. It is not a strong unit, and the Giants are well aware of that. They will look to exploit the Pats' secondary as often as they can.

The guys in the secondary are going to have to play the game of their life, and they're going to need some help from a New England defensive line that has been playing very well so far in the playoffs.

If things go according to that plan, the Pats will be able to keep this game from getting away from them. At the very least, the playing field will be level.

Keep the Giants' Defense Honest

In both the Super Bowl and the regular season meeting between these two teams, the Pats got over-reliant on the pass. Every time the ball was snapped, the Giants knew Tom Brady was going to drop back into the pocket and look to pass.

This kind of predictability is a problem against the Giants. It allows them to use their greatest defensive strength, which is their defensive line. It doesn't need the help of a blitz to create pressure, and it doesn't need much time to get to a quarterback.

Brady knows this as well as anyone, as the Giants' D-line was all over him four years ago. The only key difference this year is that Jason Pierre-Paul has taken Michael Strahan's place.

The Patriots will look to pass the ball, but they need to do a good job of mixing in the running game as well. With a bit of luck, their rushing attack will produce and New York's defensive front will have to stay on its toes.

Be Boring

The Patriots are unlike the Giants in that they don't have any explosiveness on offense. The Patriots are built to be a machine, not a firework.

When the Patriots are playing their game, they're driving down the field using quick-developing pass plays and timely runs. It's football efficiency at its finest.

It can also be quite boring, as the Patriots aren't likely to wow you when they're playing well. That will be just fine against the Giants. If the Patriots are being boring on offense, that means things are going well.

It also means Manning and his home run hitters are on the sidelines, which is a plus.