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Giants Fearless When On Road

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 19, 2008

GREEN BAY, Wis. - The Giants must sleep at Holiday Inn Express hotels on the road, because they have achieved incredible success away from home this season.

The Giants are 9-1 on the road season and will be looking for their 10th win when they play at Green Bay in Sunday's NFC Championship Game. After losing its opening game of the season in Dallas, New York has won a record nine consecutive road contests. The only other team to win nine road games overall in one season was Pittsburgh in 2005.

"I think it is just a matter of the grit, the determination, the character, the leadership, the toughness and the mental toughness," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. "In a lot of ways, when we come out and we get booed, we are kind of interested in how high the volume of the boos are."

Even though the jeers have increased in New York's two playoff victories, the Giants have been undaunted.

New York defeated Tampa Bay, 24-14, in an NFC wild-card game and knocked off Dallas 21-17 last week. New York's biggest accomplishment is having a plus-4 turnover ratio on the road.

"You have to go in there with a tremendous focus and just try to basically give yourself a chance to win the game in the fourth quarter," Giants WR Plaxico Burress said. "That is what we have been able to do - keep ourselves in the game enough so that we are one play away from winning the football game."

MUCHO FRIO: New York enjoyed sunny weather in Tampa during its first playoff game, and weather was not a factor in Dallas, but those conditions will be a memory Sunday. The high temperature is projected to be 6 degrees, while the low is 2. Those playing conditions seem to favor the Packers, who are accustomed to the frigid temperatures.

"You don't worry about the weather," Giants QB Eli Manning said. "You wear some warm clothes and you wear a hand warmer. It is still all going to come down to how your team performs on the field."

New York practiced outdoors this week to prepare for Green Bay's weather. It snowed heavily during Green Bay's home game last week against Seattle, although snow is not expected this week.

"You know, in football we all like to think of ourselves as tough guys, so no matter what the weather is, I think most guys will probably go out there with no sleeves and play it just like it was 80 degrees," Packers CB Charles Woodson said. "Usually in the bad weather games, teams go to the running game. But last week, Seattle's a passing team, they tried to throw the ball a bunch of times, but our secondary played well."

SIMMS OFFERS PRAISE: Manning has taken heat throughout this year, but he recently received praise for his playoff performances. Manning has completed 32 of 45 passes for 348 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions, and he had a 132.4 passer rating last week. It is one reason Phil Simms, who led the Giants to a Super Bowl XXI victory, recently praised Manning.

"They have a tremendous offensive line, and Eli Manning has changed," Simms said. "They're not lining up every week and saying to Eli, 'Let's outscore them. Now, it's let's play a little more conservative.' They are giving their running backs more opportunities and Eli is throwing a little bit shorter. It's really clicked for them."

NOTES: The Giants have chosen former linebacker Harry Carson and U.S. Army Lt. Col. Greg Gadson as their honorary captains. Carson is a Hall of Fame linebacker who played for New York from 1976-88, while Gadson lost both of his legs in May when an improvised explosive device detonated while he was serving in Iraq ... Favre has thrown more than one touchdowns in 13 postseason games (second in league history) and needs one more to tie Joe Montana's NFL record of 14 ... Giants DE Michael Strahan has 8.5 sacks in eight career playoff games and needs 1.5 to become the ninth player in history with 10 or more career playoff sacks. He would do it in the second-fewest games, behind Richard Dent of the Bears, whose 10th sack came in his seventh playoff game.

Anwar S. Richardson

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