Published : Jan. 17, 2012 - 18:50
EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (AP) ― Antrel Rolle doesn’t come from the Tom Coughlin mold for the New York Giants.
There’s a touch of Jets coach Rex Ryan in him. The safety says what’s on his mind and he doesn’t care if it irritates an opponent, even if Coughlin doesn’t approve of the message.
And that brings us to the NFC title game Sunday in San Francisco.
The only way the Giants (11-7) don’t beat the Niners (14-3) and advance to the Super Bowl in Indianapolis is if they beat themselves, a cocky Rolle said Monday, a day after New York ended the Packers’ hopes for the second straight NFL title with a 37-20 win in Green Bay.
The victory was the Giants’ fourth straight and clearly this is a team that is playing its best football after a season marked by inconsistency. Eli Manning and his brigade of receivers continue to make play after play, while the defense is once again harassing quarterbacks and slowing down potent offenses in the process.
It is 2007 all over again, the year the Giants made a late season run to their third Super Bowl title.
“We are not going to be denied,” said Rolle, who was not a member of the team that beat the-then undefeated Patriots in February 2008 for the championship. “We are not going to be denied at this point. We understand what we have as a team. It’s not all talent, it’s about chemistry and we are jelling at this point. Coaches and players being one the same page at the same time. We have one mind, to win a championship.”
When asked if the Giants were unstoppable after following a 24-2 win over the Falcons in the wild-card with the throttling of the Aaron Rodgers and the Packers (15-2) , Rolle didn’t hesitate.
“We don’t want to say we are unstoppable,” said the six-year veteran who appeared in a Super Bowl with the Cardinals in 2009. “Our mindset is extreme at this point. We are not going to be denied, that is our mindset. I may be a little biased, but in our minds we know we can’t be beat. That’s the approach we are taking week in, week out.”
The way the Giants are playing, it’s hard to argue with Rolle.