Head coach Tom Coughlin says the New England Patriots are favorites to beat his New York Giants in Super Bowl 2012 - just as they were in 2008
The New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin believes his team are still the underdogs for Sunday's Super Bowl against the New England Patriots, telling reporters on Thursday that he believes the situation is just as it was when the teams met in the NFL's championship game four years ago.
In 2008 the Giants had entered the playoffs as a wildcard team, while New England had gone unbeaten right up to the Super Bowl. Although the Patriots were again the top seed in the AFC this year, they had not beaten a team who finished the season with a winning record until the Conference Championship game. The Giants only scraped into the playoffs with a 9-7 record ? one win less than they managed in 2007 ? but after winning five straight against quality opposition have been talked up in some quarters as favourites.
Coughlin, though, rejected that notion out of hand. "It's still us against the world," he said. "That's the way we play it, period. I've seen a lot of the stuff that's been said. We're still the underdogs, we still have an awful lot to do. And as I said, talk is cheap. That's exactly what it is."
Comments made by some of his players this week suggests that one or two might think rather differently. "We are going to win this thing," the safety Antrel Rolle told reporters on Tuesday. "We are going to win this thing for a lot of good reasons." The wide receiver Mario Manningham, meanwhile, has been open in saying that he thinks the Giants can exploit match-ups with Julian Edelman ? a receiver converted to defensive back by the Patriots this season ? in the passing game.
Coughlin, though, said he was not worried that there had been too much talk. "I'm not sure how you deny talking much in this atmosphere," he said. "[But] I haven't seen anything. If there's anything that I would be upset about then I'm sure I would have been informed.
"I've seen some of the statements in the past and I've tried to corral a player and explain what significance that might have played or not played. But I think the players have a pretty good idea of what we expect of them. And anything that is ? we try to frown on anything that becomes bulletin board material. But I think for the most part they've done an outstanding job."
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/feb/02/underdogs-new-york-giants-tom-coughlin
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