New York Giants Official Website

Missed Opportunities
By Michael Eisen, Giants.com

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JANUARY 12, 2009

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - Tom Coughlin kept his focus on the good and the future - instead of the unpleasant recent past - as the 2008 Giants gathered for the final time today.

On the day after their dreams of repeating as Super Bowl champions were eviscerated in a 23-11 NFC Divisional Playoff loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, Coughlin discussed the game and the season in a news conference in the crowded Giants Stadium press room. Once 11-1, the Giants lost four of their final five games to finish 12-5. They couldn't take advantage of owning home field advantage throughout the playoffs. A season that was once so promising will ultimately be remembered as one in which the Giants did not realize their goals.

"Today we share in the disappointment and the sorrow of expectations lost - of remorse for opportunities that we let go astray, that we were not able to take advantage of," Coughlin said. "I think you can have all kinds of rationalization. This is what I told our team: 'We are not a team of excuses, we are not a team that rationalizes, we are not a team that tries to come up with reasons why. Rather the fact that we did not accomplish what we set out to, and that is why we feel the way we do today.' However, I did also tell them that while this day was not something in which I was going to spend a lot of time in the negative, I did want them to realize why we were not successful yesterday and to have great resolve going forward to come back again in the offseason program and to recommit ourselves to the goal of trying to be world champions. We cited a couple examples of teams that won Super Bowls, came back the next year sometimes didn't even make the playoffs, and yet came back after that and were successful.

"It is not a good day, it is not a happy day, it is a long day, it is a tough day. But we accomplished the Super Bowl championship a year ago by being one, by being the best team in football, the best group of young men supporting one another, loving one another, being there and believing in one another, and the same thing prevails today. In the disappointment of not winning, we are still one, we are still a team, and I believe that is where our strength is."

A year ago at this time, the Giants were in the midst of their inspirational four-game postseason run. Underdogs each time, they defeated Tampa Bay, Dallas, Green Bay and unbeaten New England on their way to victory in Super Bowl XLII. The still-fresh memories of those victories and earning championship rings make it even more difficult to accept yesterday's defeat.

"All you think about is just win one game. That is what we talked about - let's keep playing," Coughlin said. "Win one game and let us keep playing. Give us another chance to keep playing and then when that is denied, when it is taken away from you, it hurts and it hurts a lot. It hurts a lot, but you know what? That is the expectation you want. You want everybody in the building, every Giant everywhere, to feel the same way and you can understand their frustration because of that. That is what we want. We want to play and play to the finish and win the whole thing. It was denied, so therefore we are disappointed and frustrated and it does hurt and maybe it hurts more than it ever has hurt because of what happened last year. But you have to be a man about it. It is over and there is nothing I can do about it now. It should have been done yesterday."

The Giants outgained Philadelphia and had a significant advantage in rushing yards (138-59). But they were doomed by their inability to score touchdowns from in close. Three times the Giants advanced inside the Eagles' 20-yard line. Three times they settled for field goals. Including the regular season finale in Minnesota, the Giants settled for three-pointers on each of their final five trips into the green zone.

That begs the inevitable question: Would Plaxico Burress have made a difference? The team's leading wide receiver was wounded in an accidental shooting on Nov. 29. The Giants won the following day in Washington, then lost four of their final five games. They scored 34 points in an overtime victory over Carolina on Dec. 21 - which clinched the conference's No. 1 seed - but only 52 total points in their final four defeats.

The slide, and the offense's struggle to put points on the board, coincided with Burress' absence. But Coughlin refused to use it as an excuse.

"I think our team rose above that," Coughlin said. "It all happened on the Washington weekend and we played very well in a very emotional setting down there. There is a drain, there is no doubt about it, but our guys have been good about rising above those kinds of things. We don't want distractions. Don't get me wrong, distractions are not good for a team, they are not, unless they are created by the head coach."

Coughlin was asked if he would welcome Burress back to the team next season.

"I am not talking about that issue," he said. "I haven't even thought about that one. The answer to yesterday's question was you can ask me all you want, but Burress is not on the field."

How much would the Giants have been helped if he was?

"You just have to be a realist," Coughlin said. "He wasn't there, therefore you move on. We have other players. We have other guys that can make plays. It is not just one guy."

But the guys who were out there, for whatever reason, did not make enough plays down the stretch - especially yesterday, when even one touchdown could have changed the entire tenor of the game.

"That is something that I told the team I am going to be thinking long and hard about myself because we didn't finish the way (we wanted to)," Coughlin said. "One of our axioms is you have to be playing your best in December into January and, quite frankly, we didn't. We have to spend some time, and again there are not going to be any excuses for it, that is what happened."

Because of that, their postseason ended quickly. Today, Coughlin held a team meeting at which he congratulated them for winning the NFC East. He reminded the players they did much good and played well for the vast majority of the season. After the meeting, Coughlin stood in the locker room and shook hands with each player.

When they reported to training camp in July, questions were asked about their resolve and determination after winning a championship. Thanks to Coughlin's eternal quest for improvement and for his demand that the players focus on what lies ahead, the Giants proved all season that they remain a hungry and single-minded team.

"I think we came out, we transitioned, we bridged from the Super Bowl year to the next season very well," Coughlin said. "Our competitiveness was there, our fire, our attempt to take the success of the Super Bowl season on into the next season was very successful. We were 11-1 and we did come out of camp and play very, very well for a very long time. We, of course, played well and the record stood for that. We didn't finish the season as well as we would have liked to, but I think we answered the questions of what this team was about."

In the wake of yesterday's defeat, new questions must be answered. The Giants have made a franchise-record four consecutive postseason appearances, and Coughlin believes the players he addressed today can help the Giants continue their success in the future.

"I think the nucleus is in place," Coughlin said. "I think that obviously we have to pursue the avenues as best we can, whether it be draft or whatever, to make our team a better football team. But the nucleus of people is here. We have experienced the opportunity to win it all and of course the disappointment here and I hope that this group again can come back with greater resolve than ever."

With Tom Coughlin in charge, resolve is never an issue.