Super Bowl Quarter Scores: Giants' Victory Doesn't Tell Whole Story

It would be easy to look at the final score of the Super Bowl to see that the New York Giants won the game. But you would be doing yourself a disservice if that was the only number you paid attention to, because there was a lot more to the game than just the 21-17 final. 

Yes, the final score is the only thing that matters, and the Giants could care less how they got there. But when you break down the game quarter-by-quarter, you realize that the game should not have been as close as it was. 

Here is a look at what the numbers, which supposedly never lie, told us about the Giants' victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI. 

Team
New York Giants	9	0	6	6	21
New England Patriots	0	10	7	0	17

Giants Lead 9-0 After First Quarter

The game started off badly for the Patriots, with Tom Brady throwing a pass from his own end zone to no one in particular. The referees debated for a moment before throwing a flag for intentional grounding, resulting in a safety. 

The Giants got the ball right back and drove down the field to take a nine point lead with just over three minutes left in the first quarter. If you are following, the Patriots ran one offensive play in the first 12 minutes of the game. 

Total Yards: Giants 113, Patriots 54

Patriots Lead 10-9 After Second Quarter

The Patriots managed to take the lead just before halftime with a 99-yard drive that was capped off by a Brady touchdown pass to Danny Woodhead. 

Despite the score, the Patriots really had no offense going before that final drive. They had just 69 yards on their two drives before the touchdown. The play that opened things up for them was a 20-yard completion to Rob Gronkowski. 

You could feel the momentum shift, because the Patriots had just taken the lead without playing close to their full potential. 

Total Yards: Patriots 168, Giants 64

Patriots Lead 17-15 After Third Quarter

Remember the momentum we just talked about? The Patriots capitalized on it with a 79-yard touchdown on the opening drive of the second half. It seemed as if they were firing on all cylinders, and were ready to take control of the game. 

The Giants did not stay down long, as they came right back with a field goal to cut the lead to 17-12. The defense forced a New England three-and-out, allowing Manning to drive down the field. They stalled at the 15-yard line, where Lawrence Tynes kicked another field goal. 

Those two drives were enough to keep them in the game, and take the momentum away from the Patriots heading into the fourth quarter. 

Total Yards: Patriots 100, Giants 65

Giants Get Final Score With 57 seconds Left

The fourth quarter was uneventful up until the four-minute mark. Both offenses put together decent drives to take time off the clock, but were never close to scoring. 

When the Giants got the ball back 3 minutes, 46 seconds to play, you could tell that they were going to score right away. On the first play from their own 12-yard line, Manning hit Mario Manningham for a 38-yard gain in a pass that will live in Super Bowl infamy. 

Six plays later, the Giants were at the Patriots six-yard line with just over a minute to play. Ahmad Bradshaw took a hand-off up the middle, tried to go down before going into the end zone to prevent the Patriots from getting the ball, but he fell into the end zone. 

The Patriots got to their 49-yard line before a failed Hail Mary attempt. They had a chance to win at the end, but they finished behind in every statistical category and should not have kept the game as close as they did. 

Total Yards: Giants 139, Patriots 90

Time of Possession: Giants 37:05, Patriots 22:55

Final Analysis

The Giants clearly wanted to keep the ball away from Brady, and they executed the game plan to perfection. Their offense was efficient and made the plays they had to when it counted. 

Defensively, both teams played well. The Giants created pressure with their front four, as we all expected them to.

The Patriots hit harder and played faster than they have in any other game this year, but when the time came to get a stop late they weren't able to do it. 

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