Mike Celizic

Beantown? That’s it? Beantown?

There may be a city with a worse nickname somewhere, although I’m not sure what it could possibly be. Is there a Phlegmville out there?

On the one hand, you got Beantown. On the other, you got the Big Apple, Gotham, the City that Never Sleeps. Did Sinatra ever sing a song about Boston? Did anybody? Even the old rock group “Boston” never sang a song about Boston. No wonder Boston has such an inferiority complex. Compared to New York, it really is inferior.

You want to put Boston in a good light, pick a comparable town. Like Cleveland. Or Sacramento. Maybe Minneapolis.

OK, Boston’s won two World Series in the past four seasons and the Foxborough Patriots have won three of the past six Super Bowls. Even a New Yorker will admit that’s a nice little run. But can we have a little perspective here?

The Yankees won the World Series five straight years from 1949-53 and went to the World Series in 10 of 11 seasons. More recently, they won three straight and four out of five. The Red Sox have, what, six titles? Call me when you get to 26, which is what the Yankees have, and then I’ll start adding in all the titles won by the Giants, Dodgers and Mets and you can slink back up I-95 and comfort yourselves with a nice, warm pot of beans.

I’ll grant you that nobody has ever dominated any sport the way the old Celtics did back when the NBA wasn’t important enough to get its playoff games broadcast nationally. And the Bruins were a pretty good hockey team back when the Knicks, which used to be a basketball team, were also pretty good.

But what have you guys really done? Three football titles, which matches the three that the Giants and Jets have won — not counting pre-Super Bowl championships, of which the Giants have four. A couple of World Series wins after 86 years of nothing, zip, nada. A basketball team that could win a title again — 22 years after its last one. In the immortal words of former Net Derrick Coleman, whoop-de-damn-do.

And when you get done feeling good about all of that, what’s left? New York has Broadway and Wall Street and Fashion Avenue and Harlem and Spanish Harlem and more museums than you can shake a palette knife at. Boston has, well, I’m not sure what it has. I was going to say Harvard and M.I.T., but those aren’t really in Boston; they’re across the river in Cambridge.

Super Bowl XLII Thousands of New Yorkers cheer champs Giants stun Pats  |  Best Super Bowl ever The biggest Super Bowl upsets  |  Vote Relentless ‘D’ stifles Pats  |  N.E. Patriot-ed NBC: Giants believed  | 5 reasons behind win MVP still a Manning  |  Big time  |  More titles? Tyree’s catch of a lifetime saves Giants Brady no longer the perfect QB  |    Images Super Blog: Pithy comments, reader reaction First person: Fan photos  |  MVP?  |    Discuss Team pages:  Giants  |  Pats  |  More coverage

Anyway, even if we give Boston Harvard, when all of those movers and shakers take delivery of their sheepskins and go out into the great world, they don’t stay in Boston. They go to New York or Washington or somewhere else important.

Now, it may be that Boston has charms that I haven’t seen during my many visits to that town. And given the condition of the local streets, I never will see them.

Have you ever tried to get anywhere in Boston? There’s not a single 90-degree intersection in the entire city. And the next time someone stops for a red light will be the first.

MORE FROM SUPER BOWL XLII

Super Bowl XLII Section Front

The Biggest Super Bowl upsets Vote: Biggest upset in Super Bowl history? Celizic: This was greatest Super Bowl of all-time NBC Sports: 5 reasons behind Giants’ victory Ventre: Pats can be super again, if they make changes NBC Sports: Brady, Jeter more alike than you think Opinion: Strong chance Patriots will be back in 2009   Slide show: Images from Super Bowl XLII NBC Sports: Eli proves he’s big time with one drive Super fans share their Patriots, Giants photos Super Bowl XLII Section Front   Add Super Bowl XLII headlines to your news reader: