When the New York Giants stunned the undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, it was one of the greatest upsets in sports history. The Giants entered as double-digit underdogs and beat one of the greatest teams the sport has ever seen.
It’s well documented that the Super Bowl losses still haunt NFL legend Tom Brady to this day. In fact, on multiple occasions, Brady has admitted he would trade two of his Super Bowl rings for the win in Super Bowl XLII.
What may surprise some is that as much as the seven-time Super Bowl champ hates the memories of those losses, he has nothing but respect for his opponents.
Brady was recently a guest on The Pivot Podcast and discussed losing to the Giants in the Super Bowl after not suffering defeat all season long.
“Then ’07 came, and we went undefeated which I thought, we were so talented, it was unbelievable. It was the most fun I ever had playing football,” Brady said. “And the fact that we can have the most fun we’ve ever had playing football and have the most success and then not win.
“I remember that was still a tough loss but you know, I give the other team a lot of credit, they beat us. So even when I see (Michael) Strahan and he rubs it in or Eli (Manning) and they joke, I’m like, ‘man, respect.’ Like, good for you. I’m happy when other people win. You know what I hate? I hate haters — that bothers me. Everyone’s just trying to win. When you win, give them the respect they deserve.”
Although Brady might be the greatest quarterback to ever play the game, he has certainly received his fair share of hate throughout (and even after) his career.
The respect he has for both Eli Manning and Michael Strahan is something we haven’t heard much of since the Super Bowl XLII matchup. However, as the phrase goes, “game recognizes game.”
The Giants certainly earned respect across the NFL that day.
