PDA

View Full Version : Was Harrison's or Tyree's play more pivotal? Experts debate



polamalubeast
08-17-2011, 08:06 PM
GREG GARBER: Why Harrison's return is more pivotal wrote:
With all due respect to the Giants' Eli Manning and David Tyree, this was a more meaningful play in the context of the game. Instead of trailing by four points, the Steelers found themselves up 17-7, a swing that ultimately turned the game. Technically, Ben Roethlisberger won the game 27-23 with a 6-yard pass to Santonio Holmes, but the Steelers later acknowledged that Harrison's play was more impactful.

The Manning-to-Tyree play was a terrific piece of work, but it required the cooperation of a passer -- plus the inexplicable inability of the Patriots' defenders to tackle an immobile quarterback -- a receiver and a safety (Rodney Harrison) who whiffed on the ball.




IAN O'CONNOR: Why Tyree's catch is more pivotal wrote:
Tyree rose high and caught the ball with his head. That's right: He caught the ball with his head.

Linebackers had intercepted passes before. Linebackers had taken those interceptions on long, winding touchdown runs before.

But no receiver had ever caught the ball with his head before.

This isn't to marginalize Harrison's breathless romp into history -- it stands among the greatest of all Super Bowl plays.

It just isn't the greatest.

read more


http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2010/columns/story?columnist=garber_greg&id=6007963

NJarhead
08-17-2011, 08:13 PM
Pretty weak argument there Ian. My guess is he drew the shortest straw when they chose sides here.

Psycho Ward 86
08-17-2011, 08:53 PM
honestly, flip a coin. They're both such damn good plays.

fansince'76
08-17-2011, 08:58 PM
honestly, flip a coin. They're both such damn good plays.

This is where I'm at as well. Taking my Steelers homer bias out of the equation, I honestly can't pick one over the other.

Bluecoat96
08-17-2011, 09:52 PM
I cheered almost as much for the Tyree catch as I did the Harrison INT return. Just knowing those cheating a-holes in Boston were very likely about to be beaten was an awesome feeling.

tube517
08-17-2011, 10:45 PM
If Tyree doesn't catch the ball, it's pretty much over for the Giants. Deebo's pick was at the end of the first half. Game still undecided at that point.

BnG_Hevn
08-18-2011, 11:45 AM
Are you people kidding me? The Tyree catch was EASILY more pivotal. There is a difference between "great" and "pivotal".

If Harrison doesn't make the catch, there is no guarantee that the Cardinal's would have scored, much less scored a touchdown. And even if they do score, TD or FG, the Steeler's still had the entire second half to play.

Without Tyree's catch, the Giant's simply don't win that game. Period.

Not to mention the fact that Tyree's catch put them into position to not only win but to be the Cheatriots.

Tyree's catch, by a looooongshot, is more pivotal than Harrison's INT/TD.

I think Harrison's INT/TD was better though, just not as pivotal.

suitanim
08-18-2011, 12:00 PM
Just to clarify, I have seen players catch the ball like Tyree did before. More than once. It's exceptionally rare, but it has happened before...

st33lersguy
08-18-2011, 01:26 PM
Harrison's play was more pivotal simply for the fact that Harrison's run was a TD and led to a 14 point swing. Tyree's catch although spectacular was not an actual TD and the Patriots still had a chance to stop the Giants after the play.

BnG_Hevn
08-18-2011, 02:45 PM
Harrison's play was more pivotal simply for the fact that Harrison's run was a TD and led to a 14 point swing. Tyree's catch although spectacular was not an actual TD and the Patriots still had a chance to stop the Giants after the play.

You're totaling missing the importance of the catch. It doesn't matter if the catch was Swan-esque or the most clumsy of catches, what matters is the fact that without that catch, the Giants do NOT win that game which cannot be said of Harrison's TD.

The operative word here is pivotal.

pivotal |ˈpivətl|
adjective
of crucial importance in relation to the development or success of something else : the alliance that played a pivotal role in the revolution.
• fixed on or as if on a pivot : a sliding or pivotal motion.

Was Tyree's catch pivotal to the Giants' victory? Absolutely.

Was Harrison's TD pivotal to the Steelers' victory? It helped but the Steelers still had the entire second half to play so it was not NEARLY as important.

BnG_Hevn
08-18-2011, 02:48 PM
And before anyone points out the final score, the way a team plays is based on the score at that time. If they are down instead of up leading into the second half then they call different plays.

In fact, it can be argued that without Harrison's TD that the Steelers would have aired it out more in the second half and scored MORE points making it not so close of a game at the end.

Could the opposite be true? Sure, but the point is that they had the entire second half to account for it.

suitanim
08-18-2011, 02:59 PM
You're totaling missing the importance of the catch. It doesn't matter if the catch was Swan-esque or the most clumsy of catches, what matters is the fact that without that catch, the Giants do NOT win that game which cannot be said of Harrison's TD.

The operative word here is pivotal.

pivotal |ˈpivətl|
adjective
of crucial importance in relation to the development or success of something else : the alliance that played a pivotal role in the revolution.
• fixed on or as if on a pivot : a sliding or pivotal motion.

Was Tyree's catch pivotal to the Giants' victory? Absolutely.

Was Harrison's TD pivotal to the Steelers' victory? It helped but the Steelers still had the entire second half to play so it was not NEARLY as important.

If the circus nature of the catch has no value, then I move Santo's catch against the Cards to the top of the list.