RB SHANE VEREEN This past February, New England's Shane Vereen set the Super Bowl record for most receptions by a running back and the Giants knew they had to have him on their roster. Heading into his first game against his former team, Vereen is the third-leading receiver on the Giants and is on pace for 60 receptions, 549 yards and five touchdowns. "I watched a little bit of tape of him throughout the year, and he kept popping up," Coughlin said in his exclusive interview with Giants.com. "That was some performance [in Super Bowl XLIX]."

QB ELI MANNING Eli Manning and long snapper Zak DeOssie are the only Giants players remaining from both Super Bowl XLII and XLVI teams. Since the first one, the Giants are on a three-game winning streak against the Patriots and are the only team in the NFL that New England has not defeated in that span. "We see them every four years and just kind of caught them on the right nights, I guess," Manning offered. "They're always very good and talented teams. They're well-coached and [have] good players. So hopefully we can play well and catch them on a good night again."

LB DEVON KENNARD With middle linebacker and defensive captain Jon Beason on injured reserve, Devon Kennard took over on-field communication and relayed the signals from the sideline to the huddle in Tampa Bay. Along with Jasper Brinkley and Jonathan Casillas, all three linebackers are stepping up to fill the void left by Beason. "I thought the communication was good," Coughlin said. "And I thought they worked together to get that done."

DE JASON PIERRE-PAUL It's not a secret formula: get to Tom Brady if you want to have any chance of success. It's not that simple, of course, but Jason Pierre-Paul is back and looking to return to form at the right time. The two-time Pro Bowl defensive end made his season debut last week in the Giants' win over Tampa Bay, recording two tackles and a pair of quarterback hits. "He's trying to find his, I don't want to say find his niche, just find his tools, then oil them up and get ready to go," defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said. "He's had another week under his belt, so hopefully that makes a difference this week."

CB DOMINIQUE RODGERS-CROMARTIE The Giants lead the NFC East largely because they lead the NFL in takeaways (21) and turnover differential (plus-12). But Sunday will be strength vs. strength as New England has the fewest giveaways (five) and is second in differential at plus-seven. There are no plays off for the secondary with tight end Rob Gronkowski and wide receivers Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola coming to town.  "They definitely don't make mistakes, and they rely on you to make mistakes," Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie said. "And [Tom Brady is] a guy that's definitely going to find it, so it's going to be a tough one. I think this is going to have to be one of the most disciplined games we have to play."