INDIANAPOLIS - When the drama ended, with a Tom Brady Hail Mary landing incomplete in the end zone, just inches from Rob Gronkowski's fingertips, a Super Bowl piñata erupted at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Silver streamers rained from the roof. Four confetti cannons fired shreds of red, white and blue ribbon upwards. And the New York Giants raced wildly in divergent directions, delirious after their latest championship.

In another suspense-filled classic, the Giants captured Super Bowl XLVI on Sunday thanks to the poise of indisputably elite quarterback Eli Manning, the body control of receiver Mario Manningham and a strange final-minute touchdown by Ahmad Bradshaw that provided a 21-17 victory over New England.

Bradshaw's 6-yard TD run with 57 seconds left capped another remarkable Manning rally, this one in the form of an 88-yard touchdown drive on New York's final series. That magic came four years and two days after Manning led a similarly clutch 83-yard march to beat the Patriots 17-14 in Super Bowl XLII.

Manning's biggest play Sunday came with 3:46 left, a 38-yard bomb down the left sideline that Manningham caught between New England's Sterling Moore and Patrick Chung while managing to tap both feet down in bounds.

Eight plays, 50 yards and four Manning completions later, the Patriots allowed Bradshaw to score the season's final points, even with the running back trying to stop but falling backward into the most significant score of his career.

"It's the greatest feeling in my life," Bradshaw said.

His quarterback agreed, experiencing this championship elation for a second time.

For all those years that Brady and the Patriots built their legacy by torturing Peyton Manning, who knew the payback could come like this, with Peyton's younger brother delivering Super Bowl magic in Peyton's home stadium against Peyton's biggest nemeses? Eli finished 30-for-40 for 296 yards Sunday, again delivering a dream comeback and laying claim to a new black Corvette as the game's MVP.

Still, the Lombardi Trophy was the gift he truly coveted and earned.

Sunday's triumph completed an amazing six-game winning streak during which the Giants transformed from a mediocre 7-7 squad in mid-December into unlikely Super Bowl champs. On Sunday, their defense did enough to contain Brady and his array of receiving targets. The Patriots' 17 points matched their lowest output this season. And the Giants' biggest defensive plays came via an interception by Chase Blackburn with 14:17 left -- the game's only turnover -- plus a clutch sack by Justin Tuck with 36 seconds remaining. That cost the Patriots 6 yards and their final timeout.

Tuck also provided the game's first fireworks early, pressuring Brady enough to force an intentional-grounding penalty in the end zone. The resulting safety provided a 2-0 Giants lead. And they followed immediately with a 79-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 2-yard Manning-to-Victor Cruz dart.

"It was salsa time after that, baby," Cruz said.

Brady (27-for-41, 276 yards, two TDs) was most brilliant on New England's final first-half drive, leading a 14-play march on which he completed all 10 of his passes for 100 yards. The final bullet was a 4-yard TD strike to Danny Woodhead that gave the Patriots a 10-9 lead, following a first half that New York seemed to control.

During a two-possession stretch sandwiching halftime, Brady set a Super Bowl record with 16 consecutive completions. Those went to six different receivers and chewed up 154 yards, the Giants temporarily unable to disrupt his rhythm.

But Brady also failed to capitalize in several big moments. In addition to his interception, with a little more than 4 minutes left, he also threw behind a wide-open Wes Welker on second-and-11 from the New York 41, a play that should have gone for big yardage.

Instead of adding to a 17-15 lead, the Patriots punted, leaving Brady with his second Super Bowl near-miss in five seasons.

"I hope we get back here again," he said. "I've been lucky enough to play in this game five times in the past 10 years. So I'd love to keep coming back and taking a shot."

As thrilling as the Giants-Patriots showdown had been in 2008, this sequel proved equally compelling. The tension lasted to the final play, that championship-deciding bomb from Brady thrown into an end zone mosh pit.

When it landed, the Giants had conquered again.

Said coach Tom Coughlin: "What a wonderful experience it was to see this team come together like they did."

Dan Wiederer • dan.wiederer@startribune.com