Mismanagement

Bill Belichick returns to the sidelines after talking with Tom Brady in the final minutes of Sunday's Super Bowl. The Patriots had a shot to run down the clock, but Brady threw two incompletions. ASSOCIATED PRESS Enlarge

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Super Bowl's day-after press conferences Monday, featuring New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin and quarterback Eli Manning, the MVP of Sunday's 21-17 win over New England, both touched on legacy. Both demurred when asked and shone the spotlight elsewhere.

In Coughlin's case, though, taking a team that was 7-7 entering a game against the Giants' bitter rivals, the New York Jets, on December 24, to an NFL championship on February 5 might be the key that someday unlocks the doors to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

His overall record as a head coach is 154-121, not bad by any means but not gaudy, either. Remember, though, that his first eight seasons were in Jacksonville, where he became the most successful expansion coach in league history with two trips to AFC Championship games, and that he has now won the Super Bowl twice in the last five seasons, both times beating the Patriots, as New York's coach.

If he makes it to the Hall, he'll be joined by Bill Belichick, the Pats' coach whose bust is all but assured with five Super Bowl appearances in 11 years, three of them victorious. He's done it with one of the game's all-time great quarterbacks, Tom Brady, and prior to this season with tremendous defenses, but otherwise hasn't always had eye-popping talent.

That decade-long excellence -- the Patriots are 150-48 since the start of the 2001 season -- pretty much gives Belichick a pass on criticism. That and the fact he is most often surly, dismissive, noncommunicative, and doesn't give a rat's patootie about what you and I might think.

He should not get a pass, however, on what happened in the fourth quarter on Sunday.

No, we're not talking about having his defense sit down and let the Giants score a go-ahead touchdown with 57 seconds remaining in the game. Time management dictated such an unconventional decision. If it had worked and Brady had directed a last-minute touchdown, one hoodie would not be large enough to contain Belichick's genius.

But what about the time management on the possession that preceded the Giants' 88-yard scoring drive?

New England had a second down at the Giants' 44-yard line and was positioning itself for a field goal that would have produced a 20-15 lead. More importantly, there was 4:06 left when the second-down play was snapped and whatever else might happen the Pats should have been able to run the clock down to the vicinity of the 2:00 warning with the Giants already having wasted two of their three timeouts.

The situation called for two running plays or, at the most daring, safe and short passes. Instead, Belichick either called -- or failed to veto offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien, now off to coach at Penn State -- for two downfield strikes.

Brady's first pass, deep left, was bobbled and botched by Wes Welker. He was open, and although my scribbles describe his in-air body position as "awkward," it's a catch Welker, as dependable as any receiver in the game, makes 99 times out of 100. This was No. 100.

On third down, Brady had superb protection and was able to wait for Deion Branch to break free in the deep middle, but delivered it behind his target.

Short, safe passes might have been dropped or off-line too. A running play could have resulted in a fumble. Who knows? What we do know is that the Patriots ran just 20 seconds off the clock and, after punting, the Giants and Manning had 3:46 -- too much -- with which to work.

In the end, Belichick gave away the go-ahead touchdown in order to salvage precious seconds.

He should have been as time-conscious earlier.

Contact Blade sports columnist Dave Hackenberg at: dhack@theblade.com or 419-724-6398.