When Giants coach Tom Coughlin and the Patriots’ Bill Belichick were assistants together on Bill Parcells’s Giants staff in the ’80s, Coughlin coached the receivers and Belichick the defensive backs, so Coughlin wasn’t surprised to see Belichick tinker with the Patriots’ secondary.
“He’s done it pretty much throughout his career with different players at different times,’’ said Coughlin. “Last week, [Edelman] was the third receiver, he played the nickel back position, and he ran their punts back. I don’t think he sold tickets, but he may have.’’
Still, trouble could come if Edelman draws the Giants’ leading receiver, Victor Cruz, as an assignment. Edelman typically covers the slot, where Cruz has made a killing this season.
“They’ve played different people in that spot, they don’t have to play Edelman in that spot,’’ said Coughlin. “If they do play Edelman in that spot, Victor will be in that spot as well.’’
When he considered if he could make a position switch like Edelman has, Cruz said, “Coming from a guy that likes to make guys look bad, I don’t think I could do it.’’
Giants wide receiver Mario Manningham doesn’t think much of Edelman’s switch.
“I hope he’s out there when we play them,’’ Manningham told the Boston Herald. “I don’t want to sound like that, but you know what I mean. To our advantage, I hope he’s out there.
“It’s a different stage,’’ Manningham added. “This ain’t regular season. That ain’t your real position, so we’re going to try to expose you. It’s all or nothing now. That ain’t your position, this is the Super Bowl and we want you to play that position.’’
Fighting words
