GREEN BAY – The Giants were swept in the two-game regular season series against the Cowboys and then knocked them out of the playoffs.
The Giants in the second game of the season faltered in the fourth quarter of a 35-13 loss to the Packers and last night knocked the Packers out of the playoffs with a 23-20 overtime victory in the NFC Championship Game at Lambeau Field.
The Giants in the regular-season finale decided to go for broke and not rest anyone, even with the playoffs already clinched, and they put on a thrilling display in a 38-35 loss to the Patriots in a game that catapulted Eli Manning’s confidence and sent the Giants into the postseason in a good frame of mind.
This retribution tour continues.
The Giants on Feb. 3 face the unbeaten Patriots in Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, Ariz., once again looking to beat a team that beat them the first time around.
“We know what it takes to beat ’em,” Manning said.
“We wouldn’t want it any other way,” added center Shaun O’Hara. “At least now we know nobody can pick us.”
No doubt, the Giants will be the “other” team for the week out west.
They are a fat 13-point underdog and they will hear for the next two weeks how they are heading into Mission Impossible trying to keep the Patriots from a historical 19-0 season and perfection.
“The Patriots are a good football team, it’s going to be a fight, we’re going to go in there and give ’em our best,” running back Brandon Jacobs said.
“We went against every quarterback, everybody say you can’t beat that guy,” linebacker Antonio Pierce said.
“You can’t beat Jeff Garcia, you can’t beat Tony Romo, you can’t beat Brett Favre in the cold weather.”
And now, you can’t beat Tom Brady.
“That’s beautiful,” Pierce said. “That’s what we want.”