My two cents: This was worth 50

By: JOHN MAFFEI - North County Times commentary | Sunday, February 3, 2008 10:50 PM PST ∞

The folks at Fox couldn't have asked for more.

They got more - much, much more - than they could have anticipated: a close, compelling, well-played game that ended in a stunning final-minute upset.

Whether that translates to a 50 rating - a target number that has been hit by just two shows in the history of TV, never for a sporting event - will come down sometime late today or early Tuesday.

If Fox hits the elusive 50 mark, it can credit three things:

1. A great, competitive game with the 18-0 Patriots falling to the Giants.

2. Tremendous work by the network's camera crew, which gave the audience all the required shots and replays, and had tremendous secondary shots.

3. Perhaps the best game ever by announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman. From the opening kickoff to the final gun, they were on their game. Buck didn't wait to make calls. He saw plays developing and made great calls. And Aikman was on his game like never before, the perfect complement to Buck.

Fox gave us great high-angle camera shots the entire game. And from the first-quarter interception in the end zone, to Amani Toomer's toe-tap catch on the sidelines in the second quarter, to Michael Strahan's sack of Tom Brady in the third quarter the shots were great.

But the last few minutes put Fox over the top.

Eli Manning's amazing scramble and long throw to David Tyree was captured on both the throw and the catch from several angles.

Fans saw Manning's winning TD pass to Plaxico Burress with 35 seconds remaining develop from a great overhead shot. They got several replays. And Aikman's description of a "Sluggo Route" was perfect.

After the winning score, Fox had superb shots of the Giants sideline as players sweated out the last few Patriots plays.

The classic shot, however, was of sourpuss Patriots coach Bill Belichick deserting his team and walking off the field before the game was over.  This was truly a Super Bowl that will go down as one of the best - if not the best - in history.

It was a game worthy of a 50 rating.

Pregame show

The four-hour production was about 2 1/2 hours too long.

The worst part was Ryan Seacrest on the red carpet.

I know he's a popular guy - handsome and articulate, but who cares who's coming into the stadium? The folks at Fox said they didn't want to give us four hours of football in the pregame, so they mixed it up with Seacrest interviews and other entertainment segments.

And while Seacrest wasn't bad, it's just that I tuned in to watch football, not Samuel L. Jackson walking into the stadium.

Some other pregame low-lights:

- Outside of Dennis Miller, is Frank Caliendo the least-funny man in America? I certainly think so, but Fox continues to jam him down our throats.

- The New York versus Boston clash on the streets. It was just plain stupid.

- It wasn't her fault, but the audio on Paula Abdul's new song was barely audible. I couldn't tell if it was good or bad because it was too hard to hear.

- I can't decide if Jillian Reynolds' look at Super Bowl parties you and I will never be invited to was interesting or stupid. But I'm certain that she's easy on the eyes.

- Jay Glazer, an announcer who I think is vastly overrated and overhyped, did a nice job in a round table with Shawne Merriman, John Lynch, Tony Gonzalez and Jason Witten. But what was with the orange-glow lighting on the set?

The highlights included:

- Jimmy Johnson's opening comments on the allegation that the Patriots taped a walkthrough before they played the Rams in the Super Bowl were outstanding. "Those guys are in suits," Johnson said. "They show nothing. You're in an opposing stadium, so I always assumed someone was watching."

- There was an interesting feature on the business of the Super Bowl.

- There was a nice feature on the 1972 unbeaten Miami Dolphins.

- Terry Bradshaw had a good interview with Archie Manning.

- There was a fun feature with the Giants defense.

The national anthem

While she was no Whitney Houston, Jordin Sparks did a nice job with the national anthem.

But did we have to hear a shameless Fox plug, telling us she was the winner of the 2007 American Idol? The Fox crew, however, did a great job of capturing the flyover.

Commercials

Did you find yourself scratching your head, wondering how could someone spend $2.7 million for a 30-second commercial spot and come up with that?

Certainly, there were some entertaining commercials. But there were plenty of busts.

- Audi's spot with a "Godfather" theme was weak.

- Godaddy.com's "Danica Patrick exposed" bit was stupid.

- Tide's talking stain was dumb.

- Any product Richard Simmons advertises should be boycotted. I won't be buying Bridgestone tires anytime soon.

- Why did E*Trade find it necessary to use a baby spitting up in a commercial?

- Life Water's dancing lizards was an attention grabber, but it was stupid.

- MP3 wasted a lot of money using Justin Timberlake in a commercial.

- Did energy drink Amp really think a fat guy with jumper cables attached to his nipples was funny? It was absolutely disgusting.

On the positive side:

- I liked the Fed-Ex spot with the giant pigeons.

- The giant balloons chasing an inflated Coke bottle was cute.

- Gatorade's sloppy dog drinking out of a bowl was a classic.

- Vitamin Water's spot with Shaqille O'Neal in a horse race was a hoot.

- T-Mobile's Charles Barkley-Dwyane Wade Fave 5 spot was good.

- Budweiser's commercial with a dog working with a Clydesdale with Rocky music in the background was neat.

- The Victoria's Secret ad late in the fourth quarter featuring model Adriana Lima certainly got your attention.

- Being a San Diego State grad, I loved the fourth-quarter spot with ex-Aztecs football players Ephraim Salaam and Chester Pitts. They're wearing Aztecs T-shirts, so maybe it will help recruiting.

Shameless promos

Surprisingly, Fox - a network know for shamelessly promoting itself - actually kept things in check.

While CBS and NBC averaged more than 70 promos over the last two years, Fox topped out at 65 - 12 for "American Idol" and 11 each for "House" and "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles."

Salute to Mike Carey

Referee Mike Carey got plenty of air time, and rightfully so.

One of the most-respected officials in the NFL, Carey got his start working high school games in San Diego.

Even 20-plus years ago, you could tell he was destined for greatness.

John Maffei's TV/Radio Column appears every Friday. He can be reached at (760) 740-3547 or jmaffei@nctimes.com.