New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick and New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin comment ahead of Sunday's Super Bowl (US time) match-up in Indianapolis.
"Every Super Bowl is special, and it's a real privilege to be involved. I know this is my eighth one as a head or assistant coach, but it's what you work for all year going all the way back to February or March when you start putting your team together and training camp and all the meetings. It's like 111 practices a year, or whatever it is, but it's a long haul. To be able to get here is what you work for, so it's a great experience. Each one is different. They're all special, and it's really a great reward for all the hard work and competitive success that we've had on the field throughout the course of the year to be able to be here and represent our conference in this great game. Happy to be here. Very happy to be here,” says Bill Belichick, New England Patriots coach
Q. Is there any possibility that a Super Bowl win on Sunday could make you decide that it's the right time to maybe ride off into the sunset?
"Right now, I'm really thinking, 'What's the best thing I can do to help our football team on Sunday against the Giants?' I want to really try to do a good job in the job that I have. I enjoy all the aspects of the job. I enjoy the team-building, the drafting, the free agents, team acquisitions - those kind of things. I enjoy bringing in the young players and working with guys who haven't been in the NFL and teaching them the basic fundamentals in how to become a professional football player for the New England Patriots."
(on fitness of tight end Rob Gronkowski following ankle injury).
"I think he (Rob Gronkowski) was OK this morning. I think he was OK. I don't think we had any setbacks. We'll see how it goes out there today, but I think that he's been on a…Rob's worked extremely hard. He's gotten treatment morning, noon, and night, and he's gotten better on a daily basis. Hopefully we'll be able to continue that same process today, tomorrow, and all day Sunday."
"Ahmad (Bradshaw) has practiced two days in a row, which is very unusual. It tells you the kind of excitement that has built up there. Everyone wants to be a part of it at this point in time. No-one wants to be someone who is not able to participate or to be a part of this wonderful experience. We've had everyone practice field, and hopefully, thank God, it will be that way Sunday,” says Tom Coughlin, New York Giants coach.
Q. This run to the Super Bowl, you've coached now in five consecutive must-win games for your team. Can you talk a little bit about that experience and what it's been like getting here?
"As you know, the Washington game, back in the regular season, we did not play well. Washington came in and played very well. Following that game, I simply walked into our team and said, 'Look, we have two games to go. We have to win two games. If we do that we determine our own fate, we get into the playoffs and we can be the champions of the NFC East. From that point on, it has been one single elimination game after another. The players have responded very, very well. They've come together as a group. There's been no question that our confidence level is boosted by the play of our defence. All of a sudden were able to get our entire defensive team together. We've made some progress along those lines that's given us the boost. We've played in harmony with all three units in those five games. Of course, special teams came through for us out in San Francisco against a very, very good San Francisco team. We were able to turn the ball over at the end of the game and win it. It's been that way. We've had our backs to the wall. The players have performed very well under that circumstance. Our leader, our quarterback, has been a very cool customer and has done very well late in the fourth quarters of many games this year, and put us in a position where we're going to win."
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