The NFL has been sent spinning off its axis. The Giants have beaten the Patriots, and there is no bigger winner in this scenario than Eli Manning. He is no longer just Peyton’s little brother; he is a star quarterback in his own right, and he has the Super Bowl MVP honors to prove it.

You are going to see Eli’s face everywhere soon. The marketing machine has already been making plans for the younger Manning, just in case he didn’t lay an egg against the Patriots. Those Oreo commercials featuring Eli and Payton are just the beginning.

The betting public appears to be Sunday’s other big winner, as they pounded the Giants from the opening bell. We were still waiting at press time to get the final betting numbers; there was some expectation for late money to come in on the Patriots, but the line ended pretty much where it began at New England –12.

The New England Patriots are down to 11-point Super Bowl favorites (at press time) against the New York Giants. Is it time to bet on the Pats yet?

New England is 1-7 ATS in its last eight games, but this is the lowest pointspread the Pats have seen since Week 14, when they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers (+10.5) at Gillette Stadium with relative ease, 34-13. Offensive tackle Matt Light said his team was “back on track” that day. They haven’t covered since, yet it’s hard to picture the Patriots underperforming at the Super Bowl.

Although the Giants are one of the least productive teams ever to make the Super Bowl, Big Blue is 6-3 SU and 7-2 ATS as an underdog this year, covering three times in the past four games at +7 or higher. It would take some more line movement, and soon, before I’d want to go against recent events and pick New England.

The props will soon be overflowing as Super Bowl XLII draws near. Every book has something different to offer; here are 10 of my favorite possibilities for this year’s festivities in Glendale.

1. How long will it take for Jordin Sparks to sing the National Anthem?
2. Will there be a safety? (The Giants gave one up in Super Bowl XXV)
3. Who will have more points Sunday: the Patriots or Kobe Bryant?
4. Will a streaker reach the playing surface at the University of Phoenix Stadium?
5. Will there be more Tom Brady TD throws or Kanye West Grammy Awards?
6. Tedy Bruschi total tackles, sacks and interceptions (Bruschi leads the Pats in tackles).
7. Will Junior Seau score a touchdown? (He sometimes plays halfback in goal-line situations)
8. Will the Patriots score a rushing TD?
9. Will a defensive or special teams TD be scored?
10. Will New England score in every quarter?

On a snowy Saturday afternoon on Lambeau Field, Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers put the Seattle Seahawks away (42-20) and now find themselves competing for the NFC Championships.

By the time this one was through Lambeau Field was covered in a thick blanket of snow. All that white stuff didn’t seem to matter to Packers QB Brett Favre, who tied his personal best for successful touchdown throws in a postseason game. So now it’s off to the NFC Championships to face either the Dallas Cowboys or the New York Giants. And from there…the Super Bowl?

If Favre can lead his team to the Super Bowl he will set an NFL record for the largest gap between Super Bowl starts. The last time Favre had made it to the Big Game was 10 years ago.

Favre is the only three-time AP MVP (1995-97) in NFL history and has led the Packers to two Super Bowls: a victory against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI and a loss to the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXXII. (Wikipedia)

Two undefeated teams meeting this late in the NFL season? What are the chances? Well here it is folks- Super Bowl 41 1/2.

The quarterbacks alone make this soon-to-be-classic match-up between the 8-0 Patriots and the 7-0 Colts a special one. Brady is set to break Manning’s record of 49 touchdown passes in one season but don’t think this minimizes Manning’s greatness at all. On Sunday night we are going to see a three-time Super Bowl champ in Brady taking on Manning, a man who choreographs plays from the line of scrimmage, commands the the offense like a front-line general and pin-points passes like a heat-seeking missile.

Neither of these champion athletes is refusing to ease off the accelerator. But by Sunday evening one will be left defeated, while the other will be crowned King- at least until Super Bowl.

Is anyone going to stop the New England Patriots this year? They thoroughly outclassed the No. 2 Super Bowl favorites from San Diego on Sunday in a 38-14 blowout.

A little extra motivation always helps. The league dropped the hammer on the Pats earlier in the week for spying on the Jets in Week 1; New England responded with verve and focus instead of distraction. It’s going to be one tall mountain for the mediocre Buffalo Bills (+17) to climb on Sunday. Seventeen points!

The Detroit Lions are also 2-0, but their fate against the Philadelphia Eagles is less certain. We’ll see how well QB Jon Kitna performs during practice after suffering a mild concussion in the second quarter against Minnesota. Kitna should be fine after coming back in the fourth to lead Detroit to an overtime victory, but considering how poorly J.T. O’Sullivan played in relief, Lions supporters won’t be taking any chances.

Skepticism continues to mount over the Indianapolis Colts and their title defense, although expect it to be muted this week after Indy pasted the Saints 41-10 on Thursday night.

The Colts are 8-1 odds to win Super Bowl XLII; not only are they behind New England and San Diego on the odds list, but they’ve also been joined at 8-1 by both New Orleans and Chicago, the team they put away at SBXLI.

Defense is once again the big question mark in Indy, enough so that Jacksonville is looking more and more like legitimate AFC South contenders. The Colts remain the overwhelming division favorites at 1-3.

Interested in making some free picks? Check out The Fanyard.

If Indy’s offense doesn’t propel the team to the division title, there’s still some buffer room for a Wild Card even if the Colts skim under the posted total of 10.5 victories. The “under” is a slim dog at –105. Then the playoff gauntlet begins. The Colts are 5-1 to win the AFC, which just goes to show the sheer amount of talent in the conference.