NFL

Coughlin played cards right by showing Giants ‘love’

INDIANAPOLIS — The coach who felt tough love was the only way to drive a team learned he could drop the tough and show the love.

Tom Coughlin could not recall if he ever did it before, and acknowledged not long ago he never would have considered doing it, ever. The night before his Giants played like champions, Coughlin told his players he loved them.

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There is no tangible way to measure how much a part that revealing display of emotion played in another stunning performance — this time, like four years ago, using an Eli Manning-inspired, last-minute touchdown for the winning points in a 21-17 comeback victory over the Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI.

The way the Giants banded together, cared for each other and accepted Coughlin’s nurturing affection had to affect the way this team held together when, after 14 games, it was 7-7 and should have been on the verge of coming apart.

“This is a very special team, and it was appropriate at this point in time to let them know how I felt about them,’’ Coughlin said yesterday, his face still flush with victory as he and Manning accepted the Vince Lombardi Trophy from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. “So they didn’t have any question in their mind that I deeply appreciated what they accomplished, where they’ve come from, the fact they’ve done it together, and I wanted them to know it.

“I wasn’t afraid. I told them ‘I’m man enough to tell you I love you.’ ’’

That the once hard-bitten coach has come this far is a testament to his ability in his 60s to view the man in the mirror and admit change was needed. Still, softening a stance here and lightening up there is a far cry from dropping the “L” word on a bunch of professional athletes during a team meeting before the biggest game of all their lives. It is not the way Coughlin grew up in the coaching profession, not the way he was taught, not the way he believed a coach should act.

“Never gave it a whole lot of thought, but when I started out, that’s not the way you envisioned — what’s the word everybody uses, tough love?’’ Coughlin said. “It’s that. That’s your relationship normally and very rarely do you explain it any other way. You’re the guardian, you’re trying to shape all these things. It’s not touchy-feely, as you know. It’s that feeling one man can have for another when he takes great pride in who they are and what they’ve become.’’

What the Giants became is a team that got so very hot at the right time and carried that surge of momentum further than anyone had a right to imagine. Co-owner John Mara said hearing Coughlin say he loved his team was “probably pretty telling,’’ but not shocking, given the nature of the team Coughlin assembled.

“One thing that struck me watching our guys all week: They have great camaraderie, great spirit, really unlike any other team I’ve been around,’’ Mara said. “It really was a special group.’’

Brandon Jacobs, who has been through a great deal with Coughlin, figured it was “probably a big deal’’ for Coughlin to say what he did on the eve of the game.

“There’s a lot of men who feel that way but are never able to say it to each other,’’ Jacobs said. “We all know how tough that is for men to get up and tell a bunch of grown men that you really love them.’’

This time, Coughlin said, felt different than that improbable night in Glendale, Ariz., when the Giants tarnished the Perfect Patriots.

“The first one I wasn’t wise enough to step back and look at it,’’ Coughlin said. “This time I was, and it really gave me a tremendous appreciation for the effect it can have not only on our team but on our organization and our fans.’’

The twists and turns of the season and the way the Giants held together made Coughlin feel younger than his 65 years.

“The word fun, I think I understand what it means in relationship to our business when it all comes together … that’s fun,’’ he said. “When that took place, you know what? There wasn’t any fatigue. It was all invigorating.’’

paul.schwartz@nypost.com