EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- By almost all accounts, Super Bowl week has been a definitive success.
The events in New York City and New Jersey have been safe, smartly coordinated and well-attended. The weather has cooperated as well. The frigid cold earlier in the week has given way to weekend temperatures hovering in the neighborhood of 50 degrees. Super Bowl XLVIII has represented a vicious body blow to the reputation of the Farmers' Almanac.
John Mara, the New York Giants co-owner who played an instrumental role in luring the big game to the region, said he'd like to see a Super Bowl sequel in New York/New Jersey.
"Based on everything that's happened so far, yes," Mara said Sunday on ESPN Radio's "The Ian O'Connor Show." "If we can be assured that we'd get the same cooperation from all the different government entities that were involved, which has been tremendous so far, I don't see any reason why we shouldn't consider doing it again.
"I think that when the NFL owners that are here, when they leave MetLife Stadium tonight after this game, I'm pretty confident that most of them will say to themselves that it was a great idea to have this event in this area, New York and New Jersey, and why not come back here again. It's good for the league."
Mara believes the success of the week will help other cold-weather cities make their case for the Super Bowl -- to a certain extent.
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"I think it will open up some people's eyes as to why not at least consider other areas and I think we will do that," Mara said. "But let's face it, there is only one area like this one with the number of attractions and venues and all that New York and New Jersey have to offer. But I certainly think it does open the door a little bit for other venues."
Want a quasi-criticism of this Super Bowl week? It hasn't set the city on fire in the way that it did in New Orleans and Indianapolis, to cite the two most recent examples. New York is just a different animal -- a complete outlier, really -- and using it as a gauge for other cities is pointless.
We're not even sure that counts as a criticism. It's just ... different.
*Live from New York, it's the NFL "Around The League Podcast" Super Bowl Preview! *
