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MOBILE, Ala. - Dallas Cowboys coach Wade Phillips told FOXSports.com that he's "probably like everybody else" in believing New England will defeat the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLII.
Phillips, though, isn't guaranteeing anything after his last prediction went awry.
"I didn't think the Giants were going to beat us," Phillips deadpanned Tuesday after a Senior Bowl practice.
NFL Playoff Roundup
New York did just that with road upsets of Dallas, Tampa Bay and Green Bay in the postseason. But it was a 38-35 loss to New England in the regular-season finale that Phillips believes triggered New York's playoff run. The Giants led by 12 points early in the third quarter before New England pulled away with a 22-0 run.
"The Giants were kind of off and on," said Phillips, whose team won both its regular-season meetings against New York. "They were 4-4 the last eight (regular-season) games. It wasn't like they won all eight of them.
"They are a solid team and a good team. The New England game gave them a lot more confidence. Going into Tampa and Dallas, those are two hard places to play with two good teams and they won. And to go into Green Bay and win, gee ...
"I just think they've gotten better and better as they've gone along because they've gained confidence."
But it clearly takes more than self-assuredness to stop the undefeated Patriots. Just ask Phillips and three coordinators whose teams were among the 18 that New England has beaten this season.
"You've got to make them kick some field goals and you've got to get some turnovers like San Diego did," said Pittsburgh defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, referring to New England's 21-12 victory over the Chargers in last Sunday's AFC Championship game. "Then you've got a good chance of beating them. Otherwise, they're going to keep the ball — that's been their modus operandi — and pile up points."
That's how New England dismantled Pittsburgh during last month's 34-13 home rout. The Patriots controlled the football for 24-plus minutes in the second half while outscoring the Steelers, 17-0.
Remarkably, the Patriots called only three runs in that span as quarterback Tom Brady methodically picked apart what was the NFL's top-ranked defense.
"If you sit back, he's very patient and will take the underneath stuff," LeBeau said. "We took the pressure route and he did a very good job of getting the ball off short to the quick guys. We hit him a bunch of times but the ball already was completed for a plus-7 or plus-8 (yards). Sometimes, those receivers are quick enough that the plus-7 becomes a plus-15. They kept moving the ball."
New England was even more efficient in October's 52-7 pasting of Washington. But Commanders offensive coordinator Al Saunders believes Super Bowl XLII could be more of a defensive struggle than expected because of the lag time from the conference title games.
"With two weeks to prepare for a team, it generally favors the defensive side of the ball," Saunders said. "You can go back and look at every game that was played and have a little more time to detail the tendencies of an offensive team. For most teams, tendencies don't change a whole lot so you have an opportunity to have more insight into what they do."
Then again, New England isn't like most teams.
"The Patriots really are an individual-specific game-plan team," Philadelphia offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said. "The Giants could see something totally different than what (New England) has done all year. The Patriots are so good early in the game because they try to keep people off-balance by changing things up."
The Eagles were one of the few teams that staggered New England before suffering a 31-28 road loss in late November. Philadelphia consistently pressured Brady and registered three sacks while Eagles quarterback A.J. Feeley successfully attacked the middle of New England's defense. Feeley passed for 345 yards and three touchdowns but his three interceptions ultimately led to Philadelphia's demise. The Eagles also averaged just 2.9 rushing yards on 19 attempts.
Mornhinweg said the effectiveness of New York's vaunted pass rush and a ground game spearheaded by Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw will be key in Super Bowl XLII.
Brandon Jacobs will need to help the Giants control the clock vs. New England. (Chris McGrath / Getty Images)
"(New York's) blitzes and fire-zones, they have so many that you're not going to be able to practice against all of them," said Mornhinweg, whose team surrendered 15 sacks in two losses to the Giants this season. "Combine that with the excellent pass rushers they have, they can really put some heat on you. It's difficult to prepare for that much. If you try, you may be giving your signal-caller too much (to handle) and then a mistake here or there happens and they start seeing ghosts.
"The Giants have a powerful back (Jacobs) and then their change-up back (Bradshaw). If the Giants can run on a consistent basis, that will make the game interesting. However, getting past that, I think you need to throw the football effectively against the Patriots to win."
Phillips said being able to pressure Brady with a four-man rush and generating turnovers "gives you a chance" to defeat New England. The Cowboys squandered their opportunity against the Patriots with a 48-27 home loss in October.
"The thing about the Pats, they just have to play their game," Phillips said. "If they play like they've played all along, they should do well.
"New England has had such a tremendous year and really proven themselves as a great team. I think it will be tough for the Giants. But the Giants played them well and were 12 points ahead of them. They certainly have a shot. That's all you can ask for."
It's more than what the Cowboys have.
Phillips, though, isn't guaranteeing anything after his last prediction went awry.
"I didn't think the Giants were going to beat us," Phillips deadpanned Tuesday after a Senior Bowl practice.
NFL Playoff Roundup
New York did just that with road upsets of Dallas, Tampa Bay and Green Bay in the postseason. But it was a 38-35 loss to New England in the regular-season finale that Phillips believes triggered New York's playoff run. The Giants led by 12 points early in the third quarter before New England pulled away with a 22-0 run.
"The Giants were kind of off and on," said Phillips, whose team won both its regular-season meetings against New York. "They were 4-4 the last eight (regular-season) games. It wasn't like they won all eight of them.
"They are a solid team and a good team. The New England game gave them a lot more confidence. Going into Tampa and Dallas, those are two hard places to play with two good teams and they won. And to go into Green Bay and win, gee ...
"I just think they've gotten better and better as they've gone along because they've gained confidence."
But it clearly takes more than self-assuredness to stop the undefeated Patriots. Just ask Phillips and three coordinators whose teams were among the 18 that New England has beaten this season.
"You've got to make them kick some field goals and you've got to get some turnovers like San Diego did," said Pittsburgh defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, referring to New England's 21-12 victory over the Chargers in last Sunday's AFC Championship game. "Then you've got a good chance of beating them. Otherwise, they're going to keep the ball — that's been their modus operandi — and pile up points."
That's how New England dismantled Pittsburgh during last month's 34-13 home rout. The Patriots controlled the football for 24-plus minutes in the second half while outscoring the Steelers, 17-0.
Remarkably, the Patriots called only three runs in that span as quarterback Tom Brady methodically picked apart what was the NFL's top-ranked defense.
"If you sit back, he's very patient and will take the underneath stuff," LeBeau said. "We took the pressure route and he did a very good job of getting the ball off short to the quick guys. We hit him a bunch of times but the ball already was completed for a plus-7 or plus-8 (yards). Sometimes, those receivers are quick enough that the plus-7 becomes a plus-15. They kept moving the ball."
New England was even more efficient in October's 52-7 pasting of Washington. But Commanders offensive coordinator Al Saunders believes Super Bowl XLII could be more of a defensive struggle than expected because of the lag time from the conference title games.
"With two weeks to prepare for a team, it generally favors the defensive side of the ball," Saunders said. "You can go back and look at every game that was played and have a little more time to detail the tendencies of an offensive team. For most teams, tendencies don't change a whole lot so you have an opportunity to have more insight into what they do."
Then again, New England isn't like most teams.
"The Patriots really are an individual-specific game-plan team," Philadelphia offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said. "The Giants could see something totally different than what (New England) has done all year. The Patriots are so good early in the game because they try to keep people off-balance by changing things up."
The Eagles were one of the few teams that staggered New England before suffering a 31-28 road loss in late November. Philadelphia consistently pressured Brady and registered three sacks while Eagles quarterback A.J. Feeley successfully attacked the middle of New England's defense. Feeley passed for 345 yards and three touchdowns but his three interceptions ultimately led to Philadelphia's demise. The Eagles also averaged just 2.9 rushing yards on 19 attempts.
Mornhinweg said the effectiveness of New York's vaunted pass rush and a ground game spearheaded by Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw will be key in Super Bowl XLII.
Brandon Jacobs will need to help the Giants control the clock vs. New England. (Chris McGrath / Getty Images)
"(New York's) blitzes and fire-zones, they have so many that you're not going to be able to practice against all of them," said Mornhinweg, whose team surrendered 15 sacks in two losses to the Giants this season. "Combine that with the excellent pass rushers they have, they can really put some heat on you. It's difficult to prepare for that much. If you try, you may be giving your signal-caller too much (to handle) and then a mistake here or there happens and they start seeing ghosts.
"The Giants have a powerful back (Jacobs) and then their change-up back (Bradshaw). If the Giants can run on a consistent basis, that will make the game interesting. However, getting past that, I think you need to throw the football effectively against the Patriots to win."
Phillips said being able to pressure Brady with a four-man rush and generating turnovers "gives you a chance" to defeat New England. The Cowboys squandered their opportunity against the Patriots with a 48-27 home loss in October.
"The thing about the Pats, they just have to play their game," Phillips said. "If they play like they've played all along, they should do well.
"New England has had such a tremendous year and really proven themselves as a great team. I think it will be tough for the Giants. But the Giants played them well and were 12 points ahead of them. They certainly have a shot. That's all you can ask for."
It's more than what the Cowboys have.
