Giants bask in warmth of home cooking

The year was not 17 hours old, the sun barely had set and already Sunday, the lots outside MetLife Stadium were mostly full of people, and full of anticipation.

It was the way a big NFL game day is supposed to feel, and this clearly was the biggest in the two-year history of the building.

Four hours later, the Giants took the field and their properly charged-up -- and, um, warmed-up -- fans helped carry them to a rousing victory over the Cowboys and an NFC East championship.

"Surreal," receiver Victor Cruz said of the support from the paying customers.

"Amazing," defensive end Justin Tuck said.

"Great," defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul said.

There are venues where such things are a given, but for many years some coaches and players privately -- at times publicly -- have grumbled about Giants fans' having too little energy and/or too much negativity.

Just this past November running back Brandon Jacobs bluntly complained about booing after a home loss to the Eagles.

The resulting perception that the Giants have a limited home advantage, including among many fans themselves, only has grown since the move into MetLife. It is a larger, grayer facility than Giants Stadium, full of ultraexpensive seats that often are empty while fans are inside enjoying food, warmth and other amenities.

Then came Sunday, when the stakes, the presence of the hated Cowboys, an unseasonably warm (if wet) night, a holiday weekend and the traditionally younger-than-usual prime- time crowd combined to bring the place to life. Players noticed, and many said it made a difference.

"Our crowd was amazing," Tuck said. "The 'All In' towels were waving . . . It was just one of those special nights. It seemed like everything came together."

Cool. But what about this Sunday, when MetLife hosts its first playoff contest and the Giants again turn to their fans for an emotional boost?

This time, kickoff is 1 p.m. and the opponent is the nondescript Falcons, so some of the built-in juice from last week figures to be drained. But it needn't be. Fans ought to take that as a challenge and give themselves an early wake-up call.

If nothing else, keep in mind what a rare opportunity this is.

The Giants hosted two playoff games in the preceding 10 seasons and have not won one at home since shortly after Pierre-Paul's 12th birthday, when they crushed the Vikings, 41-0, on Jan. 14, 2001, to win the NFC championship.

They lost to the Panthers in the 2005 season and Eagles in 2008, both dreary affairs that gave fans little to cheer about.

That's where things get tricky for coaches and players who urge fans to be proud and loud. At some point it's up to the team to give them reasons to stir.

There was too little of that in awful home losses this season against the Seahawks, Eagles and Redskins, non-playoff teams all.

Net result: The only playoff team with a home record worse than the Giants' 4-4 is the Broncos (3-5).

Those four victories do not include the one over the Jets before a MetLife crowd dressed mostly in green. But that unusual "road" game does mean that Sunday will be the Giants' fourth game in a row in the building, so they will have familiarity going for them.

Cruz, who grew up in New Jersey and is the best story of the Giants' season, stopped to bask in the love after leading the team over the Cowboys, making sure to celebrate with fans as they celebrated him.

"It was just exhilarating to see all of the fans," he said. "Essentially, part of this game is that we do it for them. It's for them to be around to keep us in the game. They're a big part of this game as well."

That was last Sunday. The Giants must hope it will be so again next time.