SMITH’S BIG DAY
GLENDALE, Ariz. – For so much of the season, rookie Steve Smith was asked by his older teammates what it felt like to be sitting out his red-shirt year. It was a playful but pointed dig at all the injuries and all the games Smith missed in his first year with the Giants.
“It was tough,” Smith said. “I got off to a great start during training camp and the regular season and then I got hurt. That kind of messed up my timing.”
Nothing was messed up last night, as Smith completed a memorable rookie year by making five catches for 50 yards last night, playing a big part in the Giants 17-14 upset of the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.
Smith came in with big-game experience from his days winning national titles at USC, and he didn’t back off on the grand NFL stage. He caught passes of eight and nine yards on the first drive of the game, but in the second quarter, he failed to hold onto an Eli Manning pass that bounced off his hands and into the clutches of cornerback Ellis Hobbs for Manning’s only interception.
In the fourth quarter, Smith came up with a clutch 17-yard grab with the Giants trailing 7-3, helping to set up Manning’s scoring pass to David Tyree. On the game-winning drive, Smith made the play before the play. The Giants had no time outs to work with when Smith beat safety Brandon Meriweather to the right sideline, making a clutch 12-yard catch before running out of bounds on the Patriots 13-yard line. Manning hit Plaxico Burress for the game-winner on the very next play.
