Giants' pressure defense kept Patriots grounded

BY JIM BAUMBACH | jim.baumbach@newsday.com

11:33 PM EST, February 3, 2008

GLENDALE, Ariz. - Entering Super Bowl XLII, the Giants knew that to have any chance to upset the undefeated New England Patriots, they had to make the unflappable quarterback look human, for once.

And the Giants made their defensive strategy clear right from the start. They pressured quarterback Tom Brady every time he dropped back, and the inspired play of Justin Tuck and Michael Strahan in particular was the primary reason the Giants stuck around and prevailed in this game, 17-14.

Brady's Patriots scored more points this season than any other team in league history -- 589, for an average of nearly 37 per game -- but Sunday night they managed only 14. That total was a direct result of the constant pressure from the Giants' defensive line on almost every play.

Strahan came up with one of the biggest defensive plays of the game in the third quarter when he single-handedly prevented the Patriots from padding their 7-3 lead.

On the Patriots' first drive of the second half, they moved into field-goal range and had third-and-7 from the Giants' 25. Brady dropped back to pass, but Strahan quickly emerged from the scrum at the line of scrimmage and landed on Brady for a sack and a loss of 6 yards.

That knocked the Patriots back to the 31-yard line. Patriots coach Bill Belichick went for it on fourth-and-13 instead of attempting a 49-yard field goal. Brady's deep pass on fourth down, intended for Jabar Gaffney, was overthrown, and the Patriots turned it over on downs.

Before that play, Tuck was having perhaps the best game of any Giants defensive player. He sacked Brady twice in the first half, including on the Patriots' final offensive play of the half. The Patriots had first-and-10 at the Giants' 44 with 22 seconds left when Tuck got to Brady and forced a fumble that was recovered by Osi Umenyiora.

Tuck, a third-year pro who recently signed a five-year extension, also got his hands on Brady at least two other times.

The Giants sacked Brady five times -- two by Tuck and one each by Strahan, Kawika Mitchell and Jay Alford -- for losses totaling 37 yards. They also held the Patriots to 45 yards rushing on 16 carries, including 36 yards on 14 carries by Laurence Maroney.