In some strange way, I'm not too broken up about this outcome. Maybe because this wasn't an outright caste match-up, with a black quarterback/black coach/85% black roster on the other side, such as what we had last year.
Gronk was not 100% which was a major factor in the game. Unfortunately, Welker's drop was a huge difference maker. Also, Brady missed a big opportunity to stamp his legacy as the best ever QB, and instead had his second subpar SB game in a row. I hope he gets one more chance and win another ring, but at 34, he's now in that age range where QBs slowly start to decline, so it needs to happen fast. He has 2-3 more years left, and the Pats are equipped to make another run, as long as they fix that lousy defense.
As others have said, this was a great year for White players overall, and there's a good deal of positives to look forward to in 2012.
PS Eli Manning has joined an elite company of multiple SB winning QBs. He has a good 5-7 years left to build up his resume and join his brother in the HOF one day.