New York Giants defenders know they must overpower New England blockers and disrupt Patriots quarterback Tom Brady with pressure to have the best chance of winning Sunday’s Super Bowl 46.
“Up front, somebody has to do something against somebody if we’re going to get to Tom,” Giants defensive end Justin Tuck said on Wednesday. “You have to hit these guys. You can’t allow time to stand and look upfield the whole game.
“You can’t let him be comfortable. It’s like pounding away at a rock. Eventually it’s going to break. We haven’t gotten Brady to the breaking point yet.”
Brady, capping the greatest passing season of his career, is trying to lead the Patriots to their fourth NFL title in 11 seasons. He would match the record for quarterback Super Bowl wins shared by Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw.
But first, he must stay upright long enough to connect with his receivers.
“It wouldn’t be the Super Bowl if they weren’t talking about coming after me and knocking me down and knocking me out,” Brady said. “Our offensive line gets paid too and they do a great job of protecting me.”
Patriots coach Bill Belichick has milked the most of uncertainty about key blockers with injuries, including tackles Matt Light and Sebastian Vollmer and tight end Rob Gronkowski, a major receiving threat as well as a tough lineman.
All said they were well on Wednesday, although Gronkowski missed practice again and has not worked out since his injury 10 days ago. All are waiting to hear their status for Sunday.
“I don’t really pay much attention to that,” said Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora. “Everybody is going to be themselves on Sunday. They’re going to be ready to play.
When the Giants have the ball, Tuck expects great things from Eli Manning, whose drive for the winning touchdown in the final seconds of the 2008 Super Bowl enabled New York to beat New England and deny the Patriots an unbeaten championship run.
“You have confidence in Eli that no matter what’s going on, he is going to get us in position for that game-winning score,” Tuck said. “There are only a handful of guys who can do that and he is one of them.”
The Giants went through their first practice session in Indianapolis on Wednesday after a travel day and an off day.
“We’re excited about getting on the field,” Tuck said. “A lot of guys were champing at the bit. We wish we could play it today but we’ve got to wait until Sunday.”
