02-04-2008, 05:52 PM
http://www.mcall.com/sports/football/all...0253.story
| New York City already had a victory parade planned for the Giants.
While that was practical in terms of being ready for any eventuality however remote, it was widely regarded as something bad to share with the New England Patriots in advance of Super Bowl XLII.
But what some of the Patriots allegedly said during the game might have served as a bigger motivational boost for the Giants in their 17-14 victory that ruined New England's previously perfect season.
'They were inviting us to their parties after the game,'' Giants wide receiver Amani Toomer said. ''They showed us no respect.''
New York defensive end Michael Strahan said a lack of respect was something they had become accustomed to, even as they were winning three road games in the playoffs.
''We've heard a lot and read a lot about how [we] aren't supposed to do anything, especially during the playoffs when people said we had a false sense of confidence from that first game [the 38-35 loss to the Patriots in the regular-season finale] against his team,'' Strahan said. ''No, we didn't. We got the confidence we needed and did what we needed to do.''
A little later, Strahan concluded his postgame press briefing by saying: ''Forget that parade in Boston, it's in New York City!''
All in the family: Guard Chris Snee should have been the Giants player most pleased with Coughlin's kinder, gentler approach this season, because Coughlin is Snee's father-in-law.
But that doesn't mean the two greet each other on a Chris-Tom basis at family gatherings.
''He's still 'Coach,''' Snee said. ''I still refer to my high school coach as 'coach,' college coach the same. You just get used to calling him it so much. I'll probably still say 'coach' to my high school coach for the rest of my life.''
Different perspective: Wes Welker came into the Super Bowl off a career-best 112-catch season in his first year with the Patriots, up from his previous best of 67 during three seasons as a Dolphin.
But asked for the differences between New England and Miami, Welker looked elsewhere during a break in Super Bowl preparations: ''Weather, women, wins.''
Missing piece: The New York Daily News took a little jab at injured Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey. In a cartoon that depicted several Giants personalities rolling along in various vehicles, a caricature of Shockey was depicted riding in a sidecar attached to a motorcycle driven by rookie tight end Kevin Boss, who filled in for Shockey during the playoffs.
Shockey suffered a fractured fibula and ankle injury on Dec. 16 in the Giants' victory over Washington.
''I think the team would be doing the same if Jeremy was here, it is just unfortunate that he got hurt,'' Giants general manager Jerry Reese said earlier in the week. ''He was doing a tremendous job for us when he was here. I think it [the Giants' playoff success sans Shockey] is just a coincidence. I think we would be winning if Jeremy was here.''
Odds 'n ends: In all the guides the NFL and participating teams publish to provide background info for reporters covering the Super Bowl, the most interesting stuff is found in the ''Super Bowl Notes, Quotes and Anecdotes'' section of the annual Postseason Media Guide.
This is where you learn it cost $6, $10 or $12 to attend Super Bowl I. Super Bowl XXII was the first with a ticket price of $100. And tickets to this year's Super Bowl had face values of $900 or $700.
It's also where you learn the ticket distribution: Each participating team gets 17.5 percent of the tickets. The host city team gets five percent, and the league's other 29 teams each get 1.2 percent of the tickets. The remaining 25.2 percent of the tickets are retained by the league office for distribution to the fan lottery, the players' union, media and ''other NFL associates.''
The NFL does not destroy all merchandise prepared in anticipation of a team winning the Super Bowl after that team loses. According to the guide, about 10,000 items carrying references to the Oakland Raiders as ''Super Bowl XXXVII Champions'' -- a Super Bowl the Raiders lost to the Buccaneers -- was donated to World Vision, a Christian relief and development organization that assists people in 92 countries.
Prior to Sunday, 21 quarterbacks had been named Super Bowl Most Valuable Player. Essentially every position had at least one MVP, but not offensive lineman nor punter.
According to a 2002 USA Today poll, 38.7 percent of fans surveyed thought the best job at the Super Bowl was player, followed closely by reporter/announcer with 32.9 percent, and more distantly by cheerleader (17.3 percent), coach (6.4 percent) and referee (4.7 percent)
| New York City already had a victory parade planned for the Giants.
While that was practical in terms of being ready for any eventuality however remote, it was widely regarded as something bad to share with the New England Patriots in advance of Super Bowl XLII.
But what some of the Patriots allegedly said during the game might have served as a bigger motivational boost for the Giants in their 17-14 victory that ruined New England's previously perfect season.
'They were inviting us to their parties after the game,'' Giants wide receiver Amani Toomer said. ''They showed us no respect.''
New York defensive end Michael Strahan said a lack of respect was something they had become accustomed to, even as they were winning three road games in the playoffs.
''We've heard a lot and read a lot about how [we] aren't supposed to do anything, especially during the playoffs when people said we had a false sense of confidence from that first game [the 38-35 loss to the Patriots in the regular-season finale] against his team,'' Strahan said. ''No, we didn't. We got the confidence we needed and did what we needed to do.''
A little later, Strahan concluded his postgame press briefing by saying: ''Forget that parade in Boston, it's in New York City!''
All in the family: Guard Chris Snee should have been the Giants player most pleased with Coughlin's kinder, gentler approach this season, because Coughlin is Snee's father-in-law.
But that doesn't mean the two greet each other on a Chris-Tom basis at family gatherings.
''He's still 'Coach,''' Snee said. ''I still refer to my high school coach as 'coach,' college coach the same. You just get used to calling him it so much. I'll probably still say 'coach' to my high school coach for the rest of my life.''
Different perspective: Wes Welker came into the Super Bowl off a career-best 112-catch season in his first year with the Patriots, up from his previous best of 67 during three seasons as a Dolphin.
But asked for the differences between New England and Miami, Welker looked elsewhere during a break in Super Bowl preparations: ''Weather, women, wins.''
Missing piece: The New York Daily News took a little jab at injured Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey. In a cartoon that depicted several Giants personalities rolling along in various vehicles, a caricature of Shockey was depicted riding in a sidecar attached to a motorcycle driven by rookie tight end Kevin Boss, who filled in for Shockey during the playoffs.
Shockey suffered a fractured fibula and ankle injury on Dec. 16 in the Giants' victory over Washington.
''I think the team would be doing the same if Jeremy was here, it is just unfortunate that he got hurt,'' Giants general manager Jerry Reese said earlier in the week. ''He was doing a tremendous job for us when he was here. I think it [the Giants' playoff success sans Shockey] is just a coincidence. I think we would be winning if Jeremy was here.''
Odds 'n ends: In all the guides the NFL and participating teams publish to provide background info for reporters covering the Super Bowl, the most interesting stuff is found in the ''Super Bowl Notes, Quotes and Anecdotes'' section of the annual Postseason Media Guide.
This is where you learn it cost $6, $10 or $12 to attend Super Bowl I. Super Bowl XXII was the first with a ticket price of $100. And tickets to this year's Super Bowl had face values of $900 or $700.
It's also where you learn the ticket distribution: Each participating team gets 17.5 percent of the tickets. The host city team gets five percent, and the league's other 29 teams each get 1.2 percent of the tickets. The remaining 25.2 percent of the tickets are retained by the league office for distribution to the fan lottery, the players' union, media and ''other NFL associates.''
The NFL does not destroy all merchandise prepared in anticipation of a team winning the Super Bowl after that team loses. According to the guide, about 10,000 items carrying references to the Oakland Raiders as ''Super Bowl XXXVII Champions'' -- a Super Bowl the Raiders lost to the Buccaneers -- was donated to World Vision, a Christian relief and development organization that assists people in 92 countries.
Prior to Sunday, 21 quarterbacks had been named Super Bowl Most Valuable Player. Essentially every position had at least one MVP, but not offensive lineman nor punter.
According to a 2002 USA Today poll, 38.7 percent of fans surveyed thought the best job at the Super Bowl was player, followed closely by reporter/announcer with 32.9 percent, and more distantly by cheerleader (17.3 percent), coach (6.4 percent) and referee (4.7 percent)