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VITALS
THE LINE: Patriots by 13 1/2
TV: Ch. 9, Ch. 4, Ch. 2, NFL Network (Bryant Gumbel, Chris Collinsworth)
RADIO: WFAN-660 AM (Bob Papa, Dick Lynch, Carl Banks); Nationwide on Westwood One (Don Criqui, John Dockery)
FORECAST: In the mid to high 30s with winds around 9 mph.

INJURY IMPACT
The Pats’ pass protection could be weakened if RT Nick Kaczur has to miss the game with a foot injury. He did not work Thursday. Neither did tight end Kyle Brady, who missed last week’s game with an ankle injury. He is also very involved in protection. For the Giants, RB Ahmad Bradshaw (calf), WR Sinorice Moss (back) and CB Kevin Dockery (hip) missed practice and might be rested. WR Plaxico Burress practiced back-to-back for the first time all season.

FEATURE MATCHUPS
C Shaun O’Hara vs. NT Vince Wilfork: The Giants’ O-line will have its hands full, but if it can get onto the Patriots’ linebackers, the Giants can play this game on their terms. It starts here. Wilfork is a stud who’s not going to be pushed around, and with Richard Seymour and Ty Warren flanking him, their gap control is excellent. The Patriots are superb at taking away a team’s strength, so we’ll probably see a lot of Rodney Harrison in the box as the Pats try to put the game on Eli Manning.

WR Randy Moss vs. CB Aaron Ross: It takes Mother Nature to get the Patriots out of their spread formations, and with the Giants’ liabilities in coverage, Tom Brady is certain to attack downfield. Defenses have recently been assigning a shadow to Moss, doubling him along the way. Ross has gained valuable experience against Terrell Owens and the like, but Moss is different in his surprising speed and wonderful body control while going up for balls. With Brady and Moss needing two TDs to break their respective single-season records, expect a lot of shots to be taken.

SCOUT SAYS
“Steve Spagnuolo has his old boss (Eagles defensive coordinator) Jim Johnson’s blueprint in hand. He’ll go after Brady with a variety of blitzes while trying to keep as many as seven back in coverage. What he lacks, however, is the elite corner to blanket Randy Moss. That inevitably opens things up for Wes Welker, who will test the linebackers’ coverage skills underneath. The Giants, simply, have to keep the game out of Eli Manning’s hands as much as possible and stick with the running game. That’s not easy against New England’s front, but if they can start to get Brandon Jacobs off-tackle and isolate Bradshaw against those linebackers, that’s their ticket.”

INTANGIBLES
It’s the Great Debate: Tom Coughlin will play his regulars, but for how long? Will it matter, anyway, against what some are calling the greatest team ever? Apparently, the Giants haven’t heard of Anthony Smith, the poor Steeler sap who guaranteed victory over Bill Belichick’s gang a few weeks ago. They seem to be rather chesty and chirpy this week and it’s usually not a good idea to rile this team. The bottom line, however, is that the Patriots play every game like they’re trying to go 16-0, and now that history is on the doorstep, they will, as Belichick loves to say, do what they have to do to win the game.

PREDICTION
Patriots, 30-10. No other team finds a way to win better. Now that they’ve come this far, they’ll figure it out one more time.

BY HANK GOLA

From Lindsay Lohan to Kanye West, quotes from the year in entertainment:

“She has brought a new vitality to this show and the ratings prove it.” — Barbara Walters, on Rosie O’Donnell, her new co-host on “The View.”

“He wounded millions of women by saying that I was fat, you know?” — Rosie O’Donnell, on her war of words with Donald Trump.

“I felt very remorseful for having thrown the phone at someone that didn’t deserve it. I have a deep sense of shame for the things I’ve done.” — Naomi Campbell.

“With the support of my family and friends, I have begun counseling. I regard this as a necessary step toward understanding why I did what I did and making sure it never happens again.” — Isaiah Washington, on undergoing treatment for his use of an anti-gay slur against a “Grey’s Anatomy” castmate.

“I’m ready to make nice!” — Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks, accepting the Grammy for album of the year for “Taking the Long Way.”

“Could you double check the envelope?” — Martin Scorsese, winner of the best director Oscar for “The Departed.”

“I’ve been chased and hounded for 10 months and told I’m a publicity-seeker, yet I’ve never gone out and done anything.” — Heather Mills, on her high-profile divorce from Paul McCartney.

“I’m a good person, but I said a bad thing. But these young women deserve to know it was not said with malice.” — Don Imus, on his racial slur against the Rutgers women’s basketball team.

Brandy can breathe a little easier now.

In a belated holiday gift, prosecutors in Los Angeles have decided not to file a misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter charge against the R&B songstress for last year’s chain-reaction car crash that resulted in a woman’s death.

According to a statement from the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, authorities opted not to proceed with a criminal case after a probe found “insufficient evidence” that Brandy, whose last name Norwood, was to blame.

“After conducting a thorough investigation, which included consulting with some of the top accident reconstruction experts in the country, city prosecutors concluded there was insufficient evidence from which a jury could find Ms. Norwood guilty of such a charge beyond a reasonable doubt,” prosecutors said.

The fatal collision occurred on Dec. 30, 2006, when the Grammy-winning ex-Moesha star slammed her 2007 Land Rover into the back of a 2005 Toyota Corolla at 65 mph, setting off a four car pile-up.

The driver of the Toyota, 38-year-old Awatif Aboudihaj, careened into the highway’s center divider before being broadsided by another car. After suffering multiple pelvic fractures, the wife and mother of two died the following evening in the hospital.

Weeks later, once news of the accident became public, Brandy issued a statement through her publicist in which she “express[ed] her condolences to the family of the deceased” and called it a “terrible tragedy.”

After investigating the crash scene and testing Brandy’s sport utility vehicle for any mechanical defects, the California Highway Patrol eventually recommended a misdemeanor manslaughter charge be filed against her, saying negligence was responsible for the accident.

A guilty conviction could have netted the 28-year-old entertainer anywhere from a year in jail and a $1,000 fine to house arrest or a work-furlough program.

Brandy’s attorney, Blair Berk, said the performer was grateful for the prosecutors’ decision.

“We are extremely pleased that after a more thorough and extensive investigation by the authorities, the Los Angeles City Attorney has determined that Brandy Norwood should not be charged with any crime whatsoever relating to the traffic accident,” she said.

“These past 12 months have been extraordinarily hard for Brandy and her family, who were unfairly forced to live under a cloud of suspicion initially caused by an ill-advised and premature press release sent out by the California Highway Patrol, accusing Brandy of wrongdoing before the police investigation was even finished,” Berk continued.

“However, Brandy continues to be mindful that she was extremely fortunate not to have been injured in this accident and that there was a life lost.”

But Brandy’s ordeal isn’t over by a longshot. She must now sweat out three civil suits launched by the victim’s families.

The first is a wrongful-death complaint filed in January by Aboudihaj’s parents holding the singer-actress directly responsible for “driving recklessly” and seeking $50 million in compensatory and punitive damages.

The second was filed on behalf of the victim’s two children, 15-year-old Mrwan Mohammed and 11-year-old Kareem Mohammed, who were with their mother in the car when the crash took place and suffered injuries their attorney said will cause them permanent damage.

Then there’s Aboudihaj’s widower, Maroune Hdidou, who claimed Brandy was driving “too fast for conditions” and “following too closely” and sought unspecified compensatory and punitive damages for the loss of his spouse.

In May, Brandy launched her own legal salvo against one of the motorists involved in the pile-up, accusing 50-year-old Simi Valley resident Mallory Ham of negligence and blaming her for causing the accident.

The action came in response to Ham—who’s also named as a defendant in Hdidou’s suit—suing the erstwhile America’s Got Talent judge for negligence and vehicular damage.

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) Here is a round-up of this week’s U.S. celebrity magazines People, Life and Style, Us Weekly and In Touch Weekly. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

TOP STORY - FALLOUT FROM SPEARS PREGNANCY

- Actress Jamie Lynn Spears and her mother, Lynne, were paid about $1 million by OK! magazine for the exclusive story on her pregnancy, with options to purchase additional material, including first pictures of the baby. “Lynne knew OK! would pay the most,” says a source. “It was her decision” - US

- The father of Britney and Jamie Lynn Spears is furious with his ex-wife’s decision to cash in on their 16-year-old daughter’s pregnancy. “He doesn’t get a dime from his daughters,” a source said. Jamie has been working as a private chef to make a living, the source added, while ex-wife Lynne arranged the $1 million deal with OK! magazine, for which she will take a cut. Lynne also receives a percentage of her daughters’ salaries - US

- Pop star Britney Spears is devastated that her younger sister is pregnant. “Britney felt like it was a slap in the face,” an insider said - IN TOUCH