GLENDALE, Ariz. -- It took most of a hypnotic hype-drenched week for anyone to fully imagine the chain reaction of history-changing events it would take to derail the New England Patriots' Superfecta, and even then, even yesterday, everyone knew it would still take a giant upset.

It would take a New York Giant upset of colossal, enduring proportions, to be specific, and that's exactly what unfolded over three compelling hours of unforgettable football in Super Bowl XLII at University of Phoenix Stadium.

The Giants toppled the Patriots, 17-14, on a momentous 13-yard pass from Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning to Plaxico Burress, who cradled it in the left corner of the end zone with 35 seconds left, making the point in the most conspicuous way possible, that in this National Football League, in this era, well, nobody's perfect.

Yes 35 years ago, the Miami Dolphins went 17-0 to go through an entire NFL season unbeaten. That the Patriots could not duplicate it last night doubtlessly left the surviving Dolphins and their fans fairly delirious, but no more so than Burress.

"That's what a team's all about; we just kept fighting," Burress said. "We're world champions and it's the greatest feeling in professional sports. It just feels great to be a New York Giant tonight."

Like the '05 Steelers, these Giants won all their playoff games on the road to put a stunning flourish on a season in which they won every road game but their first, then added their third Super Bowl title by undoing the most celebrated team of the past decade.

"I don't know how to feel right now," Patriots center Dan Koppen said. "We just didn't make enough plays and I thought they played very well. They have a great front seven. They just have tremendous players up there and they just outplayed us."

The Giants' offense awoke from an extended slumber with a gorgeous 80-yard drive early in the fourth, a drive fueled by a trio of rookies, Kevin Boss, Ahmad Bradshaw and Steve Smith.

Boss got loose in the middle of the Patriots' zone on the first play of the possession, and Manning found him smartly for a play that eventually would measure 45 yards, longest of the game. On the ensuing third-and-4, Manning hit Smith for 17 yards to the New England 12. Bradshaw then gained 7 up the middle to the 5, from where Manning faked to Bradshaw and found David Tyree near the back of the end zone for New York's first touchdown.

It was Tyree's first touchdown catch of the season and, when New England managed only one first down on its next possession, began to look downright immense.

Still, Brady drove the Patriots 80 yards to a 14-10 lead, finding Randy Moss with a 6-yard scoring toss with 2:42 left. But Brady was sacked five times, more than in any game this year.

"New England was 18-0 and deservedly so," said Giants defensive end Michael Strahan, long the inspirational leader of New York's pass rush. "We've heard a lot and read a lot about them and about how our team was not supposed to do anything and that we had a false sense of confidence. No, we didn't. We've got the confidence we need.

"Osi [Umenyiora, the other defensive end] came up to me at breakfast and said, 'Do you realize that we don't hit Brady, we don't win the game?' We put a lot of pressure on ourselves."

For most of the first half, the Giants' offense succeeded mostly in wasting a heroic effort by the New York defense, which not only sacked Brady thrice, but put him on the ground three other times, forcing repeated three-and-outs and making the Patriots look confused.

The third of those sacks, the second by defensive end Justin Tuck, forced the fumble Umenyiora recovered to end the Patriots' final possession of the half.

Typical of New York's inability to capitalize offensively was the previous possession, on which the Giants drove to the New England 25, but a breakdown on Manning's blind side resulted in a fumble that running back Bradshaw tried to swat out of bounds. He instead swatted it forward, resulting in a drive-killing penalty.

If the bedrock philosophy of New York's game plan was to keep Brady off the field, the Giants' initial possession was a virtual philosophy text.

The Giants kept the ball for one second short of 10 minutes, and when Lawrence Tynes whumped a 32-yard field goal as the clock blinked to 5:01, New York not only had a 3-0 lead, but had established something of a comfort level for Manning, a first-time Super Bowl quarterback facing the most dominant team of the past decade.

Manning completed his first three passes and went 4 for 7 on the opening drive on which New York converted three third-down opportunities, including a 14-yard strike to Burress, who had been nimble all week, and most of this season, with knee and ankle injuries.

The Patriots answered New York's opening drive -- the longest by elapsed time in Super Bowl history -- by demonstrating why it's so important to keep Brady on the sideline. The league MVP promptly took New England 56 yards in 12 plays in a lead-snatching drive that included the first of several critical mistakes by the NFC champions.

On third-and-10 from the New York 17, Brady stood in the shotgun and fired to tight end Ben Watson under the crossbar, but Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce face-guarded him and drew the appropriate flag. That set up the Patriots at the 1, and Maroney banged it in at the opposite end of the field on the first play of the second quarter.