Robert Sabo/New York Daily News
NY Giants' Tom Coughlin shows off the Vince Lombardi trophy after Big Blue?s 21-17 win over the Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI.
INDIANAPOLIS ? Tom Coughlin is 65 years old, with nearly three decades of coaching experience in the NFL, but he says he isn?t close to being done. The coach of the Super Bowl-champion Giants has another four or five years in him, he said, and he?d like to spend them in New York.
?Everybody thought I was kidding when I said, what 72?? he said, referring to a joke he?d made during the regular season about coaching into his 70s. ?I?ll lean on that.?
Coughlin is set to coach the Giants in 2012, but he arrived at the NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium with nothing in place after that. Team owner John Mara said after the Super Bowl that he planned to discuss an extension with Coughlin in the coming weeks, but on Friday, Coughlin said that no in-depth talks have taken place.
?We haven?t talked seriously,? he said.
Still, it seems likely that Coughlin will get a lengthy extension after his second Lombardi Trophy in the last four years. The coach who battled numerous questions about his future before Big Blue?s late-season surge was at peace about it.
?It?ll be going forward,? he said.
The rest of the team has Coughlin concerned. The Giants spent the last two months rattling off six straight wins on their way to the Super Bowl title. But the realities of the NFL offseason threaten to wreck that chemistry. Victor Cruz wants more money; Mario Manningham, who made the catch of the Super Bowl, could leave via free agency; and Brandon Jacobs could still be cut before he?s due a $500,000 roster bonus next month.
Coughlin has already lost a pair of key offensive assistants ? QB coach Mike Sullivan, who is now the offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay, and assistant line coach Jack Bicknell Jr., who took over as O-line coach in Kansas City. But he hopes to keep the nucleus intact, starting with the much-maligned Jacobs, who has said he would take another pay cut to return to New York.
?Brandon?s been an outstanding part of our team for any number of years (and) two Super Bowl teams,? Coughlin said. ?And as far as I?m concerned, he?s a big part (of the future).?
So too is pass-rushing defensive end Osi Umenyiora, Coughlin said. Umenyiora is under contract for the upcoming season, and he has said he doesn?t plan to replicate last year?s tumultuous offseason, when he requested a trade and staged a brief holdout.
When asked if he expected Umenyiora to remain, Coughlin responded quickly: ?I do.?
It is Manningham who seems most likely to leave. According to reports, no progress has been made, and he plans to test the free agent market.
?You?d love to have him back,? Coughlin said. ?We?re not naive. The guy just made a Super Bowl memorable play.?
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