The road to Super Bowl XLII has been a long, albeit very different, trip for both the Giants and Patriots.

 

There are countless reasons for the success of each team in 2007. But the chance to play for the Lombardi Trophy always comes down to the conference championship games. And, often, those championship games come down to a single drive that proves the difference between victory and defeat, the one drive that sums up an entire season in one single series, or in which the victor implants its will to go to the Super Bowl upon the other team.

 

For the Giants, it was an improbable second-half drive against Green Bay that mirrored the edge-of-your-seat, white-knuckle roller-coaster ride of their 2007 season.

 

For the Patriots, it was a smashmouth fourth-quarter drive that sucked the life out of San Diego and defied everything the 2007 Patriots were known for from Week 1 through the playoffs.

 

Here's a look at the single most critical drive from each conference title game in which the championship contenders earned their way into the Super Bowl. It includes an overview of each drive, along with a complete play-by-play chart.