A full-page photo of Giants quarterback Eli Manning and the headline ‘CHAMPS’ consume the entire front page of today’s Star-Ledger (print version, of course).

“NOW THAT’S PERFECT!” screams the sports section lead page. And inside: reams of photos and copy deconstructing the game.

A fitting tribute to the home team on the occasion of one of the most stunning victories in the annals of professional sports.

But something’s missing, right?

In Saturday’s paper, seven out of eight Sledger football writers predicted a Patriots victory in Super Bowl 42.

Strike that: they predicted a blowout by New England.

One of them, Jerry Izenberg, also wrote a column under the headline ‘Giants win the game? Don’t bet on it.’

This while the both the editorial and marketing departments of the paper were milking the Giants presence in the championship game for all it was worth.

Today, in this video, two of the doubting Thomases, Mike Garafolo and Steve Politi, stand on the confetti-littered field where the game was played and chat about the outcome. Or Politi tries to, and Garafolo runs around throwing confetti like a fool.

Trying to bring Garafolo down to earth, Politi allows that, “I must admit, I’m a little surprised at what happened tonight.”

But neither he nor Garafolo can bring themselves to say what Giant fans want to hear: “We were wrong.” You can also search high and low in the print edition, but if you find it, you’ve got better glasses than we do.

Now, the Sledger Seven were far from alone in getting swept up in the Glorious Inevitability of Brady & Co. And one can debate whether the hometown newspaper owes the hometown team its blind allegiance.

But seven out of eight being so terribly wrong about a team they’re supposed to know inside and out? Shouldn’t the Sledger Seven being eating bucketsful of Secaucus Swamp Soup today?

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