Roster moves give Tom Coughlin 'hope for everybody in this world'

Most teams are optimistic that the have made the right choices in whittling their roster down to 53. Tom Coughlin took it a step further, saying that the process gave him "hope for everybody in this world."

On the eve of his 68th birthday, the Giants coach said he was touched not only by the improbable storylines of the players he kept, but by the emotions of those he had to cut.

"Even on a day like this where I have to let people go, I see what the game means to certain players and when I see that, then I think there's hope, to be honest with you," he said via Giants.com. "Not just hope here, hope for everybody in this world because we're not going through the motions."

Coughlin, who also noted that keeping players like undrafted rookies Corey Washington and Kerry Wynn "re-energizes" him, said even the sour emotions that likely walked out the door of his office in the past 24 hours are inspiring.

"They love it," Coughlin said. "They love what they're doing, they love the game. That's how it all starts. For the normal young person that comes along and plays this game, it started with the love of the game. You compete, it's about competitors. It's still about competitors and people who are determined to be the best that they can be at what they do. That's what reinforces me."