Super Bowl 2012: 3 Keys to Stopping Tom Brady and the Patriots

When it comes to beating the New England Patriots, there's only two ways you can do it: outscore Tom Brady and New England's offense or simply stop Brady from scoring points.

The obvious better choice is trying to stop Brady from being effective, as battling Brady in a shootout would be a bad decision. 

With that being said, let's take a look at three keys to stopping Brady and New England's offense for the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLVI. 

Put Pressure on Tom Brady

Well, duh—this one is a no-brainer. You can say this about any quarterback.

However, more specifically, the Giants need to put pressure on Brady rushing up the middle and cause him to roll out of the pocket. If they do get him to roll out, it would be beneficial to the Giants if he rolls to his left because that's his only weakness—trying to throw the ball while rolling to his left. 

Rough Up Rob Gronkowski

We all know by now that Rob Gronkowski will be playing with a high ankle sprain—so what can the Giants do to exploit that? Rough him up. 

The Giants will need to jam Gronkowski at the line of scrimmage and make him push off of his left ankle. That should cause some pain and could even take Gronkowski out of the game. 

Don't Blitz Often—Let Jason Pierre-Paul and Justin Tuck Get There.

The New York Giants have one of the best pass rushes in all of the NFL and they need to take advantage of that by not blitzing too frequently—they need to just rush four and play the rest in coverage. 

If you blitz Brady, he will find the weakness in the defense and will exploit it immediately.

There is no one right now that is better at reading defenses than Brady, and the Giants can't play into his favor. 

Super Bowl XLVI Prediction: New England 31, New York 27

Be sure to check out Tony Santorsa's blog: PatriotsPlus