If the New York Giants were trading on the open market, there wouldn't be a better time to buy stock.
A day after receiving their Super Bowl XLVI rings – the fourth in franchise history – a few members of the team visited the NASDAQ MarketSite in Times Square on Thursday afternoon, inviting fans to join in the celebration while ringing the closing bell.
Antrel Rolle, Mathias Kiwanuka, Kevin Boothe, Bear Pascoe and Jake Ballard were on hand for the ceremony in Manhattan that was streamed outside on the big screens. Also flashing through midtown were images of Giants fans with their “virtual” Super Bowl rings, which the players were there promoting.
"Our organization [was] able to celebrate a fabulous end to our season by getting these great championship rings that you see," Boothe said. "We were able to go to Fifth Avenue to the Tiffany store and we were able to truly enjoy it. We know that all of our success this year is due to our fans. They've always been there for us through thick and thin, and we want them to share in this championship. And what better way for them to share in this championship than to use augmented reality and have a virtual ring of their own?"
Vice President of NASDAQ OMX Group David Wicks, a Giants fan himself, welcomed the Super Bowl champs to the event.
"Some people have called the NASDAQ a virtual market and that's because we're not bound to a physical place to trade stocks," Wicks said. "So how appropriate is it that the Giants are here at NASDAQ today to give Big Blue diehard fans around the world the ability to virtually try on and take photos with the newly revealed Tiffany & Co.-designed ring as well as each of the team's three previous Super Bowl rings using the free GoldRun mobile app."
The perks keep coming for the Giants as they set out to defend the title, especially for Ballard.
Prior to getting the key to the city along with the rest of the team at City Hall two days after the Super Bowl, the tight end “flipped the switch” to light up the Empire State Building in Giants blue leading up to the first round of the playoffs.
"It's pretty cool, all the opportunities we get," Ballard said. "With closing the NASDAQ, the big thing is making sure that the fans know that they can all get their virtual ring, take pictures and share it to make it look like they have a ring on and know they're part of the team."
PHOTO GALLERY: GIANTS RING NASDAQ CLOSING BELL
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