10th trip to the Super Bowl has largely been a celebration of his improbable 21-year career. Most of the media's questions for Brady have centered around his pursuit of a record seventh Super Bowl ring, his succe sful battle with Father Time, his meticulous diet and workout regiment, and his past life as a New England Patriot.But there is one topic that forced Brady to re-live the most notorious lo s of his career. In Super Bowl XLII, Brady's , a heavy favorite against
Deonte Harris Jersey the , mustered just 14 points while coming up just short in their quest as becoming the NFL's only 19-0 team. New York's 17-14 victory is considered the second-biggest upset in Super Bowl history, trailing only the ' upset over the in Super Bowl III."That game, is one of my least favorite football memories," Brady said this week, . The Giants' defensive coordinator that day, Steve Spagnuolo, will once again try to disrupt Brady when his face the in Super Bowl LV. Including the playoffs, Brady is 2-3 versus Spagnuolo as a defensive coordinator. He's 0-2 with four touchdowns and three interceptions against Spagnuolo as the Chiefs' defensive coordinator."Spags runs a great scheme and he really caters to the strength of his players," Brady said. "His schemes have evolved. I've played him several times over the last 13-14 years, and I think he's a tremendous coach."While his schemes have changed in order to keep up with today's NFL offenses, Spagnuolo's basic blueprint when facing Brady remains the same. Put as much pre sure on him as you can while not giving up too much manpower in the secondary. A good front-four is key, which is something his '07 Giants had and his current Chiefs' defense po se ses. Spagnuolo keeps his safeties deep to protect against Brady's deep threats. Remember 39-yard touchdown catch against the ? Or 50-yard catch earlier in the first half? Those are the plays Spagnuolo has largely been able to
Christian Ringo Jersey eliminate in his prior matchups against Brady. Spagnuolo is also notorious for moving players around in an attempt to confuse Brady. He did this ad naseum with former Giants defender , moving Tuck from defensive end (his normal position) and having him line up all over the field.The ability to confuse Brady for just a few plays could be enough to sway Sunday's outcome, Spagnuolo said. A third-down sack here, a hurried incomplete pa s there, could result in the Chiefs hoisting up their second Vince Lombardi Trophy in as many years. But if his defense is unable to accomplish this, Spagnuolo knows what the likely ramifications will be."He's a step ahead of everything," Spagnuolo said of Brady, . "Every film clip that you put on, he's putting their guys in the right (position). That's always the challenge when you go against what I call a 'cerebral quarterback,' and we all know Tom is like that. He has total control. He gets them out there in time to change things. We're going to have to be
Bob Pollard Jersey really good on the back end not to show
Drew Brees Jersey him things, or as we say, don't let him read our mail. Because if he can read our mail, he knows exactly what to do." Pre suring Brady remains the No. 1 key to po sibly having succe s against him. In Tampa Bay's five regular season lo ses, Brady was sacked 11 times. He was sacked just 10 times during the Buccaneers' 11 regular season wins. He was sacked three times in Tampa Bay's wild-card win over Washington. The Buccaneers' line did a better job protecting him against the and Packers, as Brady was sacked just once in both games.Game plans aside, Spagnuolo has found another succe sful way to help his players prepare for Sunday's game: home-cooked food. With the '07 Giants, Spagnuolo's wife, Maria, cooked meatballs, sweet potato pie, and banana pudding with wafers for the defense. That tradition has been reborn in Kansas City, and it has become such a part of the Chiefs' routine that put in a special meatballs request prior to last year's win over the in the AFC title game."The meatballs had me feeling amazing," Jones said after playing through an injury and helping the Chiefs advance to their first Super Bowl in 50 years, . Spagnuolo's weekly routine in 2018 may have played a role in his succe s in Kansas City. After his second stint with the Giants ended in 2017, Spagnuolo would drive
Albert Huggins Jersey 45 minutes to NFL Films headquarters every Monday to watch film of the league's offenses. Instead of joining another staff, Spagnuolo spent that fall gathering information and deciphering what made the league's best offenses tick.A little over two years later, Spagnuolo is back in the Super Bowl. Once again, he has been tasked with beating the quarterback many have already proclaimed as the greatest of all-time."We're going against one of the best," Spagnuolo said. "A guy that can change anything at any time. So, he's probably going to be right. We've just got to hopefully make a few more plays than they do."
