Super Bowl XLII - Preview

New York Giants (13-6) vs. New England Patriots (18-0)
University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
Sunday, February 3, 3:18 p.m.

Coaches' playoff records:
Tom Coughlin, NY Giants, 7-6
Bill Belichick, New England, 15-3

Last meeting:
December 29, 2007 at East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Tom Brady threw a pair of touchdowns to Randy Moss as the Patriots rallied from a 12-point deficit in the second half to complete a perfect regular season. Brady's 65-yard pass to Moss early in the fourth quarter was part of a run of 22 unanswered points by New England, which trailed, 28-16, in the third quarter - its largest deficit of the season. Eli Manning threw four touchdown passes and Domenik Hixon ran back a kickoff 74 yards for a TD for the Giants, who had nothing to play for and had already been locked in as the No. 5 seed in the NFC.

New York offense against New England defense --------------------------
Key Matchups:
RBs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw vs. NFL's 10th-ranked run defense QB Eli Manning vs. NFL's 6th-ranked pass defense WR Plaxico Burress vs. CB Asante Samuel C Shaun O'Hara vs. NT Vince Wilfork RT Kareem McKenzie vs. LB Mike Vrabel Manning has been a model of efficiency in the postseason, with four TD passes and zero turnovers. He has led a critical drive in each game - none more impressive than the momentum-changing touchdown the Giants scored in the final minute of the first half against the Dallas Cowboys. However, efficient might not cut it against the vaunted Patriots' attack. In the regular-season finale, Manning attacked New England from the outset, hitting Burress with a 52-yard pass on the second play from scrimmage. Similar tactics may be needed this time around, for the Giants cannot afford to play from behind against New England. The idea is to stay close or have the lead heading into the fourth quarter and then utilize the two-pronged attack of Jacobs and Bradshaw, who did not play in the first meeting. Watch out for rookie tight end Kevin Boss, who had four catches for 50 yards in the first matchup, although he had none in the second half.

New England offense against New York defense --------------------
Key Matchups:
QB Tom Brady vs. NFL's 11th-ranked pass defense RB Laurence Maroney vs. NFL's 4th-ranked run defense WR Randy Moss vs. CB Sam Madison WR Wes Welker vs. FS Gibril Wilson LT Matt Light vs. DE Osi Umenyiora New England's main objective will be to get Moss more involved in the offense. Coming off a regular season in which he set a league record with 23 scoring passes, Moss has just two catches in the postseason, but he singed the Giants with two TD catches, including a 65-yarder in the fourth quarter to put the Patriots ahead to stay. While Maroney rushed for two touchdowns in the first matchup, he was held to 46 yards by New York's defense - the only game under 100 yards for Maroney in his last five. Of course, part of that was a result of the Patriots playing from behind, which necessitated that Brady throw for 356 yards. The Giants had no answer for Welker, who hauled in 11 receptions, or reserve running back Kevin Faulk, who added eight more. Faulk also is coming off an eight-catch performance in the AFC championship game. The Giants need to get more pressure on Brady this time around. They had just one sack in the regular-season finale despite the Patriots QB attempting 42 passes.


Three keys to the game ----------------------
1) Better than perfect: While Manning's play has been exemplary, he threw for just 185 and 163 yards, respectively, in New York's first two postseason victories. The latter was enough to beat the potent Dallas Cowboys, but likely will not suffice against the Patriots.

2) Bombs away: Moss has been invisible in the postseason, serving mainly as a decoy. The Giants also kept him under wraps fairly well until the fourth quarter of the regular-season finale, when Moss broke loose for a 65-yard touchdown that had a deflating effect on the Giants.

3) Just for kicks: Neither place kicker has a ton of playoff experience. While the Giants' Lawrence Tynes hit the game-winning 47-yarder in OT in the NFC title game, he also had two pivotal misses and failed to connect on a chip shot in the playoffs last season with Kansas City. The Patriots' Stephen Gostkowski was 8-of-8 in the playoffs as a rookie, but is just 1-of-2 this postseason.