There were a lot of commercials during the Super Bowl last night. I’ve ranked them all, from worst to best. My criteria: I excluded ads for movies, ads that I personally had seen on TV before the game had started. CBS promos aren’t included, though there might have been one or two worthy of mention. I did my best to grade each ad for originality, replay value, and how well it shifted my perspective of the featured product or service. Feel free to disagree in the comments, not that any of you need permission.

We work from the bottom up, starting after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s that interception return from the Saints’ Tracy Porter, and I can’t remember the last time that I jumped up and down during a Super Bowl like I did as Porter was running down the field. After the game, Peyton Manning–who’s now being labeled as a choker again for some reason–stayed on message, repeating to reporters that Porter “made a great play” and refusing to elaborate. You can see Manning get into the ear of Reggie Wayne, the intended receiver, after the play. So who does Manning really blame? Obviously not himself…

SITE NEWS: I’m flying back from Vegas today, so posting will be a bit scattershot. Apologies all around.

Happy Monday! It’s Super Bowl hangover day on With Leather, so I’ll try to keep your Meat short and sweet.  As is with everything else on the site, the Morning Meat is a work in progress & we’re happy to take suggestions into consideration.  Now go get a bloody or 5.  Img.

Sizzling headlines straight from the griddle

Steve Phillips to Appear on Today Show, Today. Matt Lauer will be hitting Steve Phillips with the heavy questions on the Today Show this morning.  Phillips, ex-MLB analyst for ESPN, got busted schtupping his coworker. He is expected to discuss his own stint in sex rehab, and throw his two cents in the kitty about Tiger.

Mike Mil’ Has a Bury, Bury Bad Temper. Mike Milbury of NBC allegedly got into a bit of an altercation with a blogger at the Capitals vs. Penguins game yesterday.  Milbury was allegedly asked a question regarding a cocky joke he made before the game changed pace, and lost it.  Temper, temper!

One Time You Don’t Want to be in a Hole. I’m not much of a risk taker, so this video from Behind the Line is insane to me anyway.  So let’s cap it off with a skier launching off a cliff and falling into the ONE person-sized hole on the side of the mountain.  Pass.

Sunny-side up scores containing at least one 0

NBA Kings 104, Raptors 115

NHL Bruins 3, Canadiens 0

No breakfast is complete without some links!

• I guarantee you Air Bud: Golden Receiver is going to sell more DVDs than This Means War will movie tickets.  Film Drunk.
• I hope you guys really love vaginas, because you have to deal with Tyra first.  Warming Glow.
• NBA Jam was pretty much the best game for SNES ever.  These screen caps for the new NBA Jam are gettin’ me all kindsa hot.  Smoking Section.
• A Mexican game show with giant hand people and contestants win pieces of silver.  Whaaaaaaaat?  Gamma Squad.
• Just to get you ready for LOST tomorrow night, here’s a saucy little gallery of Evangeline Lilly.  Gunaxin.
• Artist Michael Leavitt has an on-going project constructing wooden sculptures the size of 3 year-olds that move about the same but probably whine less.  Comics Alliance.
• This story is so ridiculous, but it always makes me laugh, so PALAAKA!  Superbad.

Tips? Okay, but that’s it.  Anything more and I’ll have to turn you in to HR: WithLeather-Tips@Uproxx.com

The New Orleans Saints are your Super Bowl Champions. The Saints rode the momentum from an onside kick recovery to 25 second-half points and their first-ever NFL title, beating the Colts, 31-17, a score that one would have had to be a genius to predict.

“We just believed in ourselves and we knew that we had an entire city and maybe an entire country behind us,” said Brees, the game’s MVP. “What can I say? I tried to imagine what this moment would be like for a long time, and it’s better than expected.

“Four years ago who ever thought this would be happening when 85 percent of the city was under water from (Hurricane) Katrina?” Brees said. “Most people not knowing if New Orleans would ever come back or if the organization and the team would come back. … This is the culmination of that belief and that faith.”–Y! Sports.

The game was iced when Tracey Porter ran a Peyton Manning pass back 74 yards for another Saints TD and a 14-point lead. Manning’s subsequent drive stalled out and the celebration was on. The win is the culmination of a feel-good season for the Gulf region; if there’s anything that the city of New Orleans needed, it was another excuse to get totally drunk out of their minds.

…the Vikings STILL wouldn’t be the big winner chicken dinner in Miami this weekend.  I have to fess up: I’m a Viking fan and a homer for life, but I’m not (totally) delusional.  There’s still almost no way the Vikings would have won the Super Bowl this weekend against the Colts.

They’re like a 13 year-old boy getting to touch a boob for the first time.  They get the ball, get all excited and blow their load by fumbling or making other stupid mistakes.  Say Favre hadn’t thrown that interception and Rice scored, eking out a win; and in a perfect world Favre’s nasty injury healed overnight.  They simply choked and blew it, and maybe got a little unlucky.  As a whole, there were 6 fumbles (3 were lost),2 interceptions, for a total of 5 turnovers.  Minus those mistakes that game should’ve been in the bag.  Then you look at Indy vs. the Jets–2 fumbles (1 lost), NO interceptions, with only 1 turnover.

Read the rest of this entry »

The terrificly named Shane Bacon usually saves his attention for the golf world, but today he drops in to give us the poop on the game within the game. As the Colts are the favorite in this year’s big game, so does Peyton Manning’s place in corporate commercial lore loom over Drew Brees. While Brees’ team may not prevail, what about his image? Read more of Shane at Dogs That Chase Cars. And this will be it for today. Since my flight to Vegas was canceled, I’m off to catch a train to Boston. Don’t ask.

There is one thing and one thing only still interesting about “Sportscenter” — the commercials.

Long ago, when ESPN decided to run fake MLB interviews, keep Stuart Scott in my life and use touchscreens (poorly) to give us news, the “must watch now” craze of “Sportscenter” waned, and we were left with one piece of the show that is still entertaining.

Surprisingly, Sunday will bring together two of the best commercials ever made on the network, and it involves both team’s quarterbacks. One? A premier spokesperson for sports, raking in more money than a Bill Gates charity with his spots in commercials. The other? A lesser known plugger, but still someone that seems to speak well in front of a camera, almost destined to one day be in the booth with a crusty, 90-year-old Chris Berman.

Sure, some of the oldies are must-see advertising, but Peyton Manning (the best athlete-actor ever) and Drew Brees (my sleeper pick for Saturday Night Live athlete host next season) are involved in some of the classics.

The underlying question that I’m making up for this post is, which one is better? Read the rest of this entry »