Helmet catch and all, Brady almost wins Super Bowl XLII anyway

The Giants had everything go their way in Super Bowl XLII ... and Tom Brady still almost beat them.

Feb. 3, 2008: It had been a magical night for the Giants, who stood on the brink of an improbable upset of unbeaten New England in Super Bowl XLII. New York had dominated up front throughout the game, sacking Brady five times. The Patriots’ record-setting offense didn’t find the end zone through the air until just 2:54 remained in the fourth quarter. David Tyree made one of the greatest catches in NFL history to set up the go-ahead touchdown in the final seconds. The Giants had everything go their way ... and Tom Brady still almost beat them.

With 19 seconds left, facing a third-and-20 from his own 16, Brady rolled out to his right, loaded up and hoisted a bomb for Randy Moss almost 70 yards downfield. The pass stayed in the air for what seemed like ages, and given the magnitude of the moment and the degree of difficulty involved, it was placed perfectly—if not for a last-second intervention from Giants cornerback Corey Webster, the Patriots would have had a chance to tie or win the game from inside the red zone, and that’s if Moss hadn’t outraced the Giants to the goal line. It fell incomplete, but the pass lives on as a microcosm of Brady’s brilliance amid New England’s near-perfect season.