NFL 2012: 9 Things We Learned This Season After Super Bowl XLVI

The NFL has many characters, from the players to coaches.  The games really take on their own personalities.  Throughout the weeks, you never know what's going to happen. 

As great as the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers looked throughout the year, they couldn't make the Super Bowl. 

The Houston Texans finally got in the playoffs but were gone after the wild-card round.  The Eagles were the "dream team" that had a nightmare season but finished with four-straight wins still missing the playoffs.

What happened to the Jets winning the Super Bowl?

And didn't the 9-7 Giants, a team that was up and down all year, have a head coach on the verge of being fired? 

Well the Giants are our Super Bowl XLVI winners and these are the nine things learned about the NFL at seasons end.

9. Helmet to Helmet Isn't About Softening the Game

Although the interpretations are precise when you read the actual rule, even the referees have a hard time making the call consistently when the game is live. 

Sometimes the refs throw a flag even when they aren't sure, just to be on the safe side.

Colt McCoy was one of many NFL players that have had to leave a game with a concussion or similar symptoms.  The seriousness of this matter keeps us educated about the dangers, but still teeters on the border of what football players know instinctively and what's being interpreted through the rules books.

There's an age group of us that really understand this.  We were taught as kids to hit a certain way when a wide receiver is coming across the middle or the quarterback is a standing duck in the pocket.

Take his head off.  Point blank.   

From the amateurs to the professionals, the gurus have an appreciation for big hits.  It defines the game, but when lives are in jeopardy, it's better to play it safe. 

8. Individually, Attitude Is Everything

Chad Ochocinco wasn't the center of attention in New England and stayed quiet for the season, speaking in moderation.  He had 15 catches for the year and although they didn't win, the Patriots made the Super Bowl. 

Terrell Owens was never a problem off the field, but the true loud mouth and locker-room cancer is now supposedly broke, friendless and miserable.  The good news for T.O. is he's on his way to playing football again—in a league and for a team none of us have even heard of.

Tim Tebow, on the other hand, was told what he couldn't do and how he'd falter from the moment the season started.  Tebow not only ignored the naysayers with his unconventional throwing motion, but led the Broncos to the playoffs and reminded us all that things are what we make them to be.

With a positive attitude, we can create anything for ourselves.

7. Team-Wise, Attitude Is Everything

With a negative attitude, dissension is created amongst the ranks.

The Eagles were the dream team that woke up too late.  The loads of talent in Philly with Michael Vick, DeSean Jackson, LeSean McCoy, Asante Samuel, Nnamdi Asomugha and Cullen Jenkins still saw the Eagles finishing at 8-8. 

It didn't seem to be a matter of fighting within for the Eagles, but a matter of being too cocky about the season before it even started.  

The Jets were going to win the Super Bowl.  At least, that's what they thought and had a lot of us in agreement.  Not only were the Jets' engines down, they never even took off.  Now after a tumultuous season, the Jets are in full turmoil with almost the same roster and coaching staff set for next year. 

The Jets and Eagles weren't the only two teams to have problems within their locker room and miss the playoffs.  The Cowboys, Bears and maybe the Buccaneers could fall into the same category, but with those teams it was probably more about injuries and the real ups and downs of football. 

No other franchises had the same soap opera-esque fiasco the teams in green had.

6. There's No "I" in Team

Don't tell that to the Colts, who started and finished the season without franchise quarterback Peyton Manning. 

Not much good has come out of the Colts season that was anticipated to be finished with a home Super Bowl game.  Indianapolis ended in a tie for the worst record in the NFL at 2-14. 

The head coach, general manager and vice president have all been fired and replaced with their polar opposites. 

The only good thing out of this season for the Colts is the right to quarterback Andrew Luck with the first pick of the NFL draft.  If the Colts are smart, they'll groom Luck behind Manning and possibly get the same results the Green Bay Packers received with Aaron Rodgers.

5. Little Big Men

Maurice Jones-Drew led the NFL in rushing with 1,606 yards.  MJD is all of 5'7".

Ray Rice was second in the NFL with 1,364 yards at 5'8".

Darren Sproles is probably the most electrifying runner in the NFL and at 5'6", we're not even supposed to be saying that.

No longer is there a little man here and there just filling space on a team—they are part of the game plan and have a profound impact.  Little guys are rampant in the league from the 5'9", 170-pound DeSean Jackson to the 5'7", 155-pound Brandon Banks.

Take some of these smaller guys off their teams and there are some humongous voids to fill. 

4. Rookies Can Lead

Andy Dalton started from day one and the Cincinnati Bengals finished 9-7, but not after they started the season 6-2 with Dalton at the helm.

The Bengals made the playoffs but were immediately dismissed.

And then there was Cam.

Cam Newton and the Panthers didn't make the playoffs but that isn't the point.  Cam is realer than Real Deal Holyfield.  Newton blew up every single stereotype and criticism the so-called experts had to say about his character off the field and play on it. 

Newton did it all with the trademark smile on his face.

A rookie with numbers of 4,051 passing yards with 21 touchdowns to 17 interceptions is an aberration.  Newton also led his team in rushing touchdowns with 14 and rushed for 706 yards. 

Cam for President?  Probably not.  Panthers in a Super Bowl soon and possibly meeting the President?  We'll see.

3. It Really Starts with the Quarterback

The NFL had a record year for quarterbacks, and never mind the fantasy that Dan Marino could've thrown for 7,000 yards in today's NFL.  There were and are some really good quarterbacks in this league and the numbers don't lie. 

In total, 10 quarterbacks threw for 4,000 yards or more this season.  Brees, Tom Brady and Mathew Stafford all threw for 5,000 or more while Philip Rivers, Aaron Rodgers and Eli Manning each threw for 4,500 yards.

A shaky quarterback makes an insecure NFL team.  Ask the Dolphins, Colts and Jets.

2. The Patriots Are the Blueprint

Even if you don't like the Patriots, you can't deny good football. 

After the "spygate" scandal in 2007, you still have to give the Pats credit, they downplayed the situation with the utmost of politics.  They're still in the league and were another Tom Brady drive away from a Super Bowl victory in their loss to the Giants, 17-21.

Year after year the Patriots are in the upper echelon of the NFL, and even when they didn't make the playoffs in 2008 they were 11-5 with a backup quarterback.

Since 2001, the Patriots have won five AFC championships and three Super Bowls. 

To replicate what the Patriots have done in the past decade probably can't be done by any NFL team, but it's a great environment to try and emulate.

1. The Giants Are the Champs

The old adage is: Get in the playoffs and win.  That's exactly what the Giants did. 

The Giants receivers made the catches all night and the defensive line played up to expectations, especially on the game's final drive. 

Eli Manning is a Super Bowl MVP quarterback that keeps his poker-faced demeanor until after the victory. 

When the Giants won the championship in 2007, most people thought Eli might be a little timid and his demeanor not that of a winner.  Come to find out, that is his biggest asset. 

Don't say much, don't show too many emotions and get the job done.  These are all the ingredients for a Super Bowl winner and MVP.  Congratulations to the Giants on closing out the season in the best possible way.