I like Plaxico Burress a great deal. I really do. When you chat with him and you ask questions, he takes the time to give you a thoughtful answer. You don’t get the stock answer, you generally get something well-thought out. But having not been here before, I can only assume that he probably didn’t think yelling out some numbers on a ramp would cause the main stir of Super Bowl week.
TC had indicated Tuesday that he would have a discussion with Burress regarding his prediction, but this morning, said he had not done so as of yet. I applaud the fact that PB hasn’t backed off his comments, and in fact, I think they’ve been completely blown out of proportion.
But that happens. It’s the Super Bowl. Even Tom Brady seemed a little puzzled. "We're only going to score 17 points?" Brady said. "OK. Is Plax playing defense? I wish he had said 45-42 and gave us a little credit for scoring more points."
Anyway, more eyebrows were raised earlier today, when PB didn’t show up for the media session until he was 33 minutes late. It turns out, he was with his wife and son, mixed up the schedule. He was genuinely surprised when the reporters hoarded around his table. He stayed late and answered every question until Pat Hanlon pulled him away a good 15 minutes after the session had ended.
What else... let’s see...
I went over to the Patriots’ media availability, and had some good chats with Matt Light, Wes Welker, Adalius Thomas, and Asante Samuel. Welker still seems like the kid very concerned about everything he’s going to say to the media, and he’s hopeful the coach won’t get mad at him. (Translation: great guy, not the best interview.) And Samuel, despite the presence of a microphone, wasn’t shy about saying the Patriots’ performance in Week 17 was “sh—ty.” You won’t hear that in the interview on the website.
Good talk with Mike Matthews today as well. Here’s a guy who came in as an un-drafted free agent from Georgia Tech, and when Darcy Johnson went down in training camp, became a huge part of the Giants’ offense. He’s quietly done a great job blocking this season.
On the injury front, nothing looks terribly serious. Kevin Dockery is still somewhat limited, but he has insisted all week that he’ll be ready to go. The biggest concern would be Rich Seubert, but you should still feel pretty comfortable with him.
Two random things:
- Proof that Rutgers is everywhere. I was stopped at a light in downtown Phoenix, and I looked to my left and saw a young guy who looked familiar pulling on overnight bag with wheels. Yeah, it was Brian Leonard. I pulled over – he was headed back out of town after picking up his tickets and visiting some friends. Not a better kid on the planet.
- Peter King has been wearing a Tampa Bay Rays (not “Devil” anymore) all week, and by golly, the man makes it work.
Check you tomorrow. Answers to your questions, plus a preview still to come this week. Send them to
giants@wfan.com.
And some short interviews with players on the website. Check ‘em out.
CC out without a doubt
