When all was said and done, it wasn’t too shabby a way to close out the 2009 NFL season. The Colts and Saints went toe-to-toe for four quarters with N’awlins prevailing 31-17, in what will be considered by the football pundits an upset.

I’ve seen much worse Super Bowls, like say the Steelers-Seahawks horror show a few years back. I’ve also seen better, like last year’s nail-biter between the Steelers and Cardinals. History will likely stash Big Game 44 somewhere in the middle of the pack. It lacked the necessary drama and entertainment value to be considered one of the best, but it certainly can’t be called a flop. Watching Peyton Manning lose a game he was supposed to win made it worth the price of admission.

I could easily point out why the game was a disappointment, but I’m in a non-critical mood. So, here are ten things I found satisfying about the NFL’s biggest spectacle:

10 – Very few flags. Only eight called penalties by referee Scott Green and crew. Nice. One thing I can’t stomach is a bunch of yellow hankies littering the field. Extra props goes to Green for correctly reversing the decision on Lance Moore’s two-point conversion catch.

9 – Joseph Addai and Pierre Thomas running hard the whole game. This pair tend to get nicked, but that’s only because they are a load to bring down. Both backs handed out their fair share of punishment to the defenses.

8 – The halftime show. Oh wait, that totally sucked. Can we please get an artist or group younger than my dad to perform at next year’s proceedings? The Who are legends, but they had no business being on that stage. If they wanna go geriatric again, at the very least hire Iron Maiden or Black Sabbath.

7 – Peyton Manning reminding everyone he’s the same guy who couldn’t beat Florida in college. I am far from a Peyton hater, but this isn’t the first time he’s lost a spotlight game.I guess going against Drew Brees is a tad more difficult than facing Rex Grossman.

6 – Me having nothing bad to say about the winning team. I’ve always been neutral when it comes to the Saints. Don’t hate ‘em, don’t love ‘em. Unlike say the Steelers and Giants, who I loathe.

5 – The Letterman, Oprah, Leno commercial. Who saw that coming? Weird.

4 – There wasn’t an overabundance of shameless CBS plugs during the broadcast. Don’t get me wrong, they were there, but not to the extent I anticipated. CBS has a long way to go before they can rival FOX’s non-stop whoring.

3 – Tracy Porter’s haircut. Did you see that abomination? It was classic.

2 – Phil Simms eating his own words after the Saints blitzed on Peyton’s game-sealing pick six. Simms was adamant they shouldn’t bring the house. At least he admitted his error.

1 – The Saints not folding after a poor first quarter. Too many times I’ve witnessed teams collapse after stumbling out of the gate. It’s never pretty, so it was refreshing to see Brees and Co. fight their way back and come out on top.

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