Tom Coughlin is late.
He’s not “Coughlin time’’ late — his unwritten arrive-five-minutes-early rule designed to push his players to arrive early to meetings. Coughlin is days late.
Doesn’t he know this is Patriots week?
It’s already Saturday, the day before his Giants play the Patriots at Gillette Stadium, and we haven’t heard a controversial peep out of Coughlin about Bill Belichick, his New England counterpart.
By now, Rex Ryan would have tweaked, chided and cajoled Belichick a half-dozen times if his Jets were playing the Patriots.
Coughlin? He avoids controversy the way tax cheats steer clear of the IRS.
Despite an accomplished career that includes leading the Giants to a Super Bowl title just three seasons ago (beating Belichick’s then-undefeated Patriots, no less), Coughlin gets less credit than a guy who’s defaulted on his student loan and had his credit cards canceled.
Across the Gillette Stadium field from Coughlin tomorrow will stand Belichick, who has justifiably been deified as the elite of the NFL’s head coaching elite.
Despite the fact he has a more recent Super Bowl title than the great Belichick, he’s not only not considered among the elite, his job status seems to be an annual issue pending results.
To date, the way the Giants have overcome injury after injury to key players this season you can make a good case for Coughlin being a leading Coach of the Year candidate.
“I have no clue why he doesn’t get the credit he deserves, but Coach doesn’t spend time thinking about it,’’ Giants defensive tackle Chris Canty said. “It’s not the type of person he is and, quite frankly, it’s not the type of team he wants to coach. People who know football understand just how good a football coach he is.’’
Belichick, who was a Giants assistant with Coughlin under Bill Parcells, is one of those people, saying he has “learned a lot’’ from Coughlin.
“I know his teams are well prepared, I know he’s very thorough and demands a lot from his players and his team,’’ Belichick said. “We try to do the same thing. He treats people fairly, he is honest and he is tough. I respect all those things.’’
So do his players.
What works for Ryan in Florham Park, about a half-hour west of the Giants training facility in East Rutherford, isn’t what works for Coughlin.
“We are very different, but Tom knows the only way he’s going to be successful is for him to be himself and I’m the same way,’’ Ryan told The Post. “The thing that I appreciate most about Coughlin is his consistency.’’
That consistency is what most of Coughlin’s players will tell you they admire most about him. And just because you don’t hear bombastic things coming from Coughlin in public doesn’t mean he doesn’t motivate his players.
“Tom is just as outspoken as Rex, it’s just more private,’’ said punter Steve Weatherford, who played for Ryan with the Jets before signing with the Giants as a free agent this summer. “Tom shows a lot of confidence in his players, but it’s done behind closed doors.’’
Canty, who played for Parcells in Dallas, said: “There’s one thing that Coach Parcells used to say all the time and Coach Coughlin reflects this in every regard — he’s the same guy every day.’’
Right tackle Kareem McKenzie, who has played for Coughlin the last seven years after spending his first four with the Jets, summed up Coughlin’s style this way: “It’s as simple as one of his mantras: ‘Talk is cheap, play the game.’ ’’
McKenzie said he admires Coughlin most for his disregard for his own personal glory.
“Don’t forget, I’m a dinosaur,’’ Coughlin said jokingly. “I came through a whole different era. Everything we do is along the lines of being selfless, with no ego. I really don’t like the other side of it. I always make the point, ‘Don’t tell me, show me.’
“I believe in being humble enough to prepare and confident enough to perform. I tell the players that all the time. It’s not about me. It’s about us.’’