ESPN

Just looking at his statistics, Cincinnati tight end Adrien Robinson didn't appear to do much offensively.

But the Giants were ecstatic to land a tight end who had a total of 12 catches for 183 yards and three touchdowns last season.

General manager Jerry Reese says Robinson is kind of like the "JPP of tight ends" in terms of raw athleticism and potential. That's high praise, considering Jason Pierre-Paul was a first-round project who emerged into a Pro Bowl defensive end in his second season.

"We really think this guy has a huge upside," Reese said. "He is a big, big man [with] long arms. He didn't catch a lot of balls for them. But he is kind of a late bloomer who has really come on. And we think this guy is kind of a JPP of tight ends. We like these kind of people."

The Giants believe the 6-4, 264-pound Robinson is full of "untapped" potential.

"He's a physical specimen," said Marc Ross, director of college scouting. "He ran a 4.5. He's just learning how to play football. We think he has tremendous upside. And the kid plays hard for being a former basketball player. Just didn't get a lot of chances. We think the sky is the limit. Coaching, the way we'll use him, I think he will just flourish."

And of course, when it comes to developing tight ends, few are better than tight ends coach Mike Pope, who has helped undrafted tight ends like Jake Ballard and Bear Pascoe emerge into starters.

"I don't know if he does the flips," head coach Tom Coughlin said of Robinson, in reference to Pierre-Paul's ability to do back flips. "He's got a lot of work to do to understand the pro game. He's athletic, a very, very athletic guy. It's all in front of him and we're anxious to get to work with him."

The Giants, of course, can use another tight end with Ballard and Travis Beckum recovering from torn ACLs suffered during the Super Bowl. They signed former Dallas tight end Martellus Bennett, another athletic, big player full of potential. And they have Pascoe and Christian Hopkins, who spent last season on the practice squad.

But the Giants brass could not contain its enthusiasm over landing Robinson in the fourth round.

"He is just a big, gigantic man with long arms," Reese explained of his JPP comparison. "He has got those freakish athletic numbers. When we got Jason we said, 'This guy hasn't scratched the surface.' And Jason still has a lot of learning to do [and] continuing to grow. This kid [Robinson] hasn't scratched the surface yet. He has a chance to be really something, we think."

NEW YORK -- Justin Tuck knows that he probably won't sleep much over the next week or so in the aftermath of the Giants' Super Bowl victory.

Tuck said, after serving a few sandwiches as part of Subway's Footlong Nation Mobile Tour at a Fifth Avenue store on Thursday, that once the festivities are over, he can finally rest his ailing body and give it at least a month before even thinking about football again.

What he does not know, however, is if his friend and teammate Osi Umenyiora will be back with Big Blue for next season's run at back-to-back championships.

"I would hope so, obviously," Tuck said. "We had seven great years together being kind of that 1-2 punch on the line. We had [Michael] Strahan early in our careers and JPP [Jason Pierre-Paul] now. It's fun to play with that guy, man. I'm hoping that he can come back but, more than that, I'm hoping that he can do what's best for him and his family."

Umenyiora started the 2011 season wanting either a new contract or a trade. As the season progressed, the 30-year-old defensive end, with one year and $4 million remaining on his contract, was pushed to the bench. He was also required to play both sides of the defensive line because Pierre-Paul had a breakout season playing on the right side, where Umenyiora would normally play.

Umenyiora missed the first three games of the regular season with a knee injury. He missed another four with an ankle injury. But Umenyiora was dominant when he did play. He recorded 12 sacks in 11 games, including two on Tony Romo to clinch the NFC East. He recorded another two on Aaron Rodgers when the G-Men beat Green Bay in the second round of the playoffs.

"I know he loves New York City and I know he loves the fans and this organization," Tuck said. "He did his part. He came out and had a brilliant year. [Giants general manager] Jerry Reese is a brilliant guy when it comes to things like that. He knows how to put together a team and he knows what's best and until that happens we're all just taking a shot in the dark."

Tuck doesn't have to deal the pressure of free agency or contract negotiations like Umenyiora or Mario Manningham do, but he will have to worry about his body.

Asked about the numerous injuries he battled throughout the season to his neck, shoulder, toe and groin, Tuck said, "You can add a couple more to the list if you want."

Distracted by a ticker-tape parade and public appearances, Tuck hasn't yet had time to assess the status of his health. He said he would know by next week whether he will need offseason surgery on his ailing shoulder. Tuck said he played with more pain this season than at any point in his career.

"It was rough man," he said. "But I think our trainers did an excellent job of getting me ready for Sunday. That’s all I asked for. Football is a contact sport. You’re going to get some bumps and bruises and some hurts here and there, but I think mentally, I was in a good space those last couple games this year and that allowed me to just go out there and focus on helping my team."

Considering the Giants' 7-7 start this season, GM Jerry Reese may need to tweak things a bit. Do you have any recommendations?

Vote here in our Take 'Em or Trash 'Em poll.

A pair of second-year players stole the show.

While Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning elicited the loudest roars during the celebration at MetLife Stadium on Tuesday, he was closely followed by the ovations for sophomore players Jason Pierre-Paul and Victor Cruz. The fans chanted "JPP" for the defensive end and yelled out "Cruuuuz" for the wide receiver during the pep rally.

"It's New York City, baby," Pierre-Paul said of his ovation.

When the Giants arrived on their elevated stage and the players had been introduced, a video was shown highlighting the season and included plenty of big plays from the pair. It showed Cruz's long touchdowns against the Eagles, Jets and Cowboys, as well as his Super Bowl touchdown, while Pierre-Paul's sacks were shown as well as his game-winning blocked field goal against the Cowboys.

The video reinforced the notion that without those two players, the Giants would not have been crowned champions. Pierre-Paul had 16.5 sacks and was the steadiest player on defense while Cruz was third in the league in receiving yards and had a knack for the big play. His 99-yard touchdown against the Jets potentially saved the season for the Giants.

"It was awesome to experience this in just my second year," Pierre-Paul said. "Man, it's a blessing. We just got to say humble as a team and see what the future holds for us."

After the pep rally ended, Cruz, a native of Paterson, N.J., ran around the stadium and slapped hands with fans to reciprocate the love. It was a special moment for the homegrown receiver who went from being undrafted to becoming one of the top statistical receivers in the league almost overnight.

"It was amazing," Cruz said. "To be from Jersey and to come back and celebrate with the people I grew up with, it's something I always dreamed of doing."

Due to his play this season, Pierre-Paul has been compared to many legendary Giants' defensive players like Lawrence Taylor, but the defensive end wasn't that concerned with those comparisons. He's going to continue to play what he calls great football and is going to continue to be himself.

Only next season, he'll be doing it as a Super Bowl champion.

"Honestly, it didn't hit me until today. We are Super Bowl champions," Pierre-Paul said. "It's an honor to be a part of this organization and to play New York Giant football."

Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul’s father, who is blind, attended his first NFL game on Sunday. If only he could see the smile on his son’s face after JPP capped off a remarkable second season with a Super Bowl XLVI championship.

“It means a lot,” Pierre-Paul, who finished the regular season with 16.5 sacks and had two tackles and two pass deflections in the Giants‘ 21-17 victory over the Patriots, told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols. “My dad can’t see, but I was playing for him [Sunday night], and my dream came true.”

INDIANAPOLIS -- Quick thoughts on the first half:

1. Great quarterback play by Eli Manning and Tom Brady. Neither player is taking many chances, mostly underneath stuff, but they've been very accurate and in command. Manning is 13-for-17, 120 yards, and one TD pass; Brady is 15-for-18, 147 yards and one TD. Manning started 9-for-9, but Brady heated up after a slow start (a safety on intentional grounding in the end zone). Brady went 10-for-10 on the Patriots' final drive, a 96-yard gem that may have been their best of the season. Two terrific quarterbacks are playing their best, and it's a treat to watch.

2. This one's for all the "Rudy" stories out there. The only touchdowns were scored by Giants WR Victor Cruz and Patriots RB Danny Woodhead, neither of whom was drafted out of college. Like they say in the scouting business, it's all a crapshoot. It's great to see two guys like this shine on the biggest stage.

3. After a fast start, the Giants' defense started to encounter problems with TE Aaron Hernandez and WR Wes Welker, who have combined for nine receptions. The Giants are mixing up their coverages, but Brady has stayed one step ahead of them, finding the best matchup.

4. Where is the Giants' vaunted pass rush? Jason Pierre-Paul has a couple of bat downs and a tackle-for-loss and Justin Tuck pressured Brady on the safety, but the four-man rush isn't nearly good enough. On the 4-yard TD pass to Woodhead, the Giants actually dropped Tuck and Pierre-Paul into coverage, which made no sense. Defensive coordinator Perry Fewell also made a couple of other ill-advised calls earlier on the drive.

5. The Giants are running the ball fairly well, but they need to put the ball in Manning's hands with three wide receivers, attacking the Patriots' patchwork secondary. They haven't exploited that matchup as well as they should be. All they're doing is playing into the Patriots' hands.

6. Former Jets P Steve Weatherford is having an excellent game, with two punts inside the 20. His first led to the safety. But he wasn't good enough for the Jets. Crazy.

INDIANAPOLIS -- What to expect from the Giants:

It's here. After two weeks of build-up, the Giants play for their fourth Super Bowl championship. Kickoff is 6:29 p.m.

Long day. The Giants don't have to travel far to Lucas Oil Stadium. In fact, it's only a half-mile from their hotel in downtown Indianapolis. Tom Coughlin opted not to change hotels Saturday night. He did it that way four years ago in Arizona, and he wasn't about mess with something that worked. But it makes for a long day of waiting around.

Storylines. So many. Coughlin and QB Eli Manning could vault into the Hall-of-Fame conversation with a second Super Bowl title ... Manning could surpass his brother, Peyton, who made his reputation in this very city ... Osi Umenyiora and Brandon Jacobs could be playing their final games in Giants uniforms ... Victor Cruz will attempt to salsa his way into America's hearts ... Jason Pierre-Paul called out Tom Brady, and now the pressure is on him to back it up.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Jason Pierre-Paul says Tom Brady is a great quarterback.

But he can be rattled by the Giants' pass rush.

"Anybody can be rattled," Pierre-Paul said. "Tom Brady is a great quarterback, but at the end of the day, he is just a quarterback. It is not like he is God."

"We've just got to get to him," Pierre-Paul continued. "We know what’s at stake and we've got to get there fast enough. I know our secondary is going to do a great job covering wide receivers and tight ends and we've just got to get to him. It all starts up front, no matter what."

The Giants have been asked repeatedly about trying to stop Brady and his weapons in Super Bowl XLVI. Antrel Rolle went out of his way to praise Brady, wide receiver Wes Welker and tight end Rob Gronkowski, among others. But by Wednesday, Rolle was in combat mode and respectfully said he's done with the compliments. He respects the Patriots but he's also ready to get the rumble started.

"I'm not speaking of Wes Welker or Gronkowski," Rolle said when asked about defending the Patriots' weapons. "I'm not speaking of those guys anymore. I have spoken about them enough. I gave them all the compliments that they are going to get from me and that's it. The game has to be played. I'm done commending those guys. I'm ready to play ball."

Of Chris Canty's 16 career sacks, zero have come against Tom Brady.

"It would be about time for one, though, right? Canty said. "It would be a good time for one."

It certainly would. Just like they did in 2007 and like they try to do in every game, the Giants are hoping to bring the pressure and get after Brady when they face the Patriots in the Super Bowl. The Giants have registered nine sacks in their first three victories in the playoffs after recording 48 in the regular season.

"I think that's going to be a big part of it," defensive end Dave Tollefson said of pressuring Brady. "When you're playing with one of the best quarterbacks of our generation, you don't want to let him sit back there and pick his spots. There's going to be some great pressure on us up front to get pressure and that's what we want. Big players make big plays in big games and this is as big as it gets."

As the Giants have defeated the Patriots the last two times they have faced them, the pressure the team has been able to put on Brady has been key. The Giants sacked him five times in the Super Bowl and two times back when the teams met in November, a 24-20 win for the Giants that came down to the final minute.

With Brady able to slice up opposing defenses almost at will when he's afforded the time, the Giants are out to try and make life uncomfortable for New England's hurler. The Giants have had success thus far in the playoffs taking opposing quarterbacks, including likely MVP Aaron Rodgers, out of their element with a consistent pass rush.

"You want to rush the passer and you want to hit the quarterback and obviously hits on the quarterback are cumulative, they effect him, the continuous pressure affects the quarterback," Canty said. "Obviously you want to be in situations where you can get hits on him but to be able to do that you have to stop the run."

Canty stressed the importance of being able to stop the run before the Giants can start sending the masses at Brady. The defensive tackle said stopping the run means the Giants can put the Patriots in downs and distances that will be more favorable for the defense. If the Patriots are able to establish the run and face short distances on second and third down, that makes it harder for the pass rush to have an effect on the game.

"You have to create second-and-long, third-and-long situations to allow the pass rusher to really get after the offensive line in pass situations," Canty said.

In the playoffs, the Patriots' offensive line has been very stingy by allowing just one sack in its two games. The Giants' pass rush is going to have to be at its best to try and rattle one of the premier quarterbacks in the league.

"Applying pressure is a big thing otherwise he is going to dink and drop us all the way in our secondary," defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul said. "We just have to get to him fast enough and at the same time we have to play the run game and stay positive and focus on what is in front of us."

Everyone has been talking about the Giants' defensive line, and how much impact it's had during this current run to the NFC Championship Game.

On Thursday, defensive coordinator Perry Fewell called his front four the key to his defense and its success.

"That's where our energy comes from, that’s where our confidence comes from, that's where our swagger comes from," Fewell said. "Those guys, unlike most teams that you are associated with, they set the tone for us. They are the catalysts for what we do and how we do it. It sets the whole mindset for our defensive football team."

When asked to elaborate on why this is unusual, Fewell said:

"On our team, on the New York Giants, you have three or four defensive ends, and then two tackles -- the two tackles really set the tone in the middle for you, but you have three or four defensive ends that can change the complexion of the ballgame on any given play.

"A lot of teams that I've been associated with in the past, you may have one, possibly two -- when you had two, you felt like, 'Man, we are great up front.' But if you have three or four, at any point in time one of those guys can make a game-changing play like Osi [Umenyiora] did last week."

Who will make the big play this Sunday? Justin Tuck? Jason Pierre-Paul? Umenyiora again?

The Giants will likely need a game-changer from one of those three to vanquish the 49ers.

Jason Pierre-Paul is one of the G-Men's breakout stars of the season but JPP's biggest fan, his father, has never seen him play.

Jason Pierre-Paul backed off his guarantee just a tad on Tuesday in an appearance on WFAN radio.

When asked about his Sunday guarantee about the Giants going into Lambeau and winning, Pierre-Paul said, "If the defense, offense and special teams, if we all do our job and go out and executed like we did on Sunday, we should win."

When reminded that he sounded a lot more certain on Sunday, after the 24-2 win over the Falcons, Pierre-Paul stood by his words.

"Of course I said that," the humble-but-confident defensive end said. "I am not going to twist my words, but it is the simple fact that we won and it was exciting [after beating Atlanta]. If we go out and do our jobs, we should win."

Tom Coughlin said he would have rather had JPP talk about the Packers later in the week than right after beating the Falcons. But Pierre-Paul said he had not heard from his head coach about his comments.

"He didn't talk to me about it," Pierre-Paul said. "It wasn't a comment that was hurtful. It was a statement."

Eli Manning called in to ESPN New York1050's "The Michael Kay Show" on Monday to discuss the Giants turning it around, the weather in Green Bay, and JPP's guarantee.

On Sunday, Jason Pierre-Paul guaranteed that the Giants will beat the Packers in Sunday’s NFC divisional playoff matchup.

“We gonna win, 100 percent,” JPP said after the Giants took care of the Falcons, 24-2, in their wild-card clash at MetLife Stadium.

Coach Tom Coughlin would’ve preferred it if his All-Pro defensive end hadn’t done that.

“I would’ve said we’ll talk about them after we’ve had a chance to understand this game [the Atlanta win],” Coughlin said Monday, before joking. “But obviously that didn’t take place.

“And you should ask me to stand next to him when you ask a question like that.”

JPP is understandably confident. The Giants have won three games in a row, and their defense has allowed just 30 points over that span. On offense, they ran for a season-high 172 yards on 31 carries against Atlanta. And most importantly of all, they played the Packers down to the wire in East Rutherford on Dec. 4 and lost by a field goal at the buzzer.

Pierre-Paul wanted to no part of reporters as they surrounded his locker Monday.

Defensive captain Justin Tuck was asked to give his own guarantee.

He declined.

“But I am going to guarantee that we are going to go up there and try to get the win. Knowing you guys, you probably asked him a loaded question (“dirtbags” anyone?) and he gave you his honest opinion about it,” Tuck said.

Defensive end Dave Tollefson said he has JPP’s back.

“JPP is my boy. Whatever he says -- guarantee or not -- I got his back and we’re gonna do our best,” Tollefson said.

The Giants aren’t known for their bravado like the Jets are, but they have done some more talking than usual this season.

GM Jerry Reese guaranteed the team would make the playoffs. So did outspoken safety Antrel Rolle. JPP is just the latest to make a guarantee.

“I think our confidence is at a really high level right now,” Tollefson said. “Our play without question is doing the talking despite what some guys are saying. We’re gonna continue to that be the case, and we’re gonna bust our a-- and play all four quarters and give it all we got.”

You down with JPP’s guarantee? Let us know in the comments section.

Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul was named a first-team All-Pro by the Associated Press on Friday. Wide receiver Victor Cruz was a second-team selection by the AP.

Pierre-Paul recorded 16.5 sacks -- the fourth-highest total in the NFL -- along with 86 tackles and two forced fumbles during the regular season.

Cruz finished third in the league -- and broke the Giants' single-season record -- with 1,536 receiving yards. He also had 82 catches and nine touchdowns.