Super Bowl 50: Top 5 Things New York Giants Fans Will Focus On
By Mike Luca
3. Brandon McManus
MetLife Stadium is gaining reputation as a placekicker factory. Josh Brown just played in the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career, preseason casualty Chris Boswell mopped up the Pittsburgh Steelers’ special team woes post-Josh Scobee, and McManus is one-upping both of them.
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With the First Pick
After being traded to Denver in August of 2014, McManus is in the midst of a 37-field goal campaign—including a brilliant 7-for-7 this postseason—for Sunday’s AFC representative. With honorable mention going to Carolina’s stolen general manager Dave Gettleman, the big and versatile leg of perennially chipped McManus is the alum Giants fans should be most proud of.
With six of the last eight Super Bowls coming down to one possession and the extended distance of extra points, a kicker’s role in Super Bowl 50 is more pivotal than ever. Ironically, the two double-digit losses in that span were both orchestrated by Peyton Manning.
For an offensively challenged Broncos squad, McManus’ name will assuredly be called upon in several key spots, cueing the G-Men’s Katy Perry cover. Time will tell if such opportunities render him the next Adam Vinatieri, Scott Norwood…or Josh Brown.
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