Antrel Rolle says he’s come around on Tom Coughlin

A year ago Giants safety Antrel Rolle said that it was time for coach Tom Coughlin to realize it’s 2011 and update his coaching methods. But in 2012, Rolle says he has come around to see the wisdom in the way Coughlin does things.

“My first season I questioned a lot of things that coach Coughlin was doing,” Rolle said today. “After taking a step back and reflecting on all of it, I understand exactly why he is the way he is. I used to always wonder, I felt like he was always trying to turn us into men. Does he not know that we are men before we ever step on the football field here as a Giant? I used to ask myself questions like that. Once I matured enough and I took a step back, he is not trying to turn us into men, he is trying to help us become better men. That is something that I realize and that is something that I have taken on my shoulders and I am man enough to admit.”

Rolle now credits Coughlin’s structured approach to running the team for the way the Giants have been able to deal with the distractions of the Super Bowl.

“I understand everything behind his discipline and his structure, it comes with a reason,” Rolle said. “Things are tough in New York and he has to be that way. He has prepared us for a bigger and brighter stage, which is the stage we are on right now. For us to come here and be able to handle all the press, all the media, all the festivities and things around us and our team has done an exceptional job doing that. I see it, I see it in our eyes that our focus is the game and the game only. I think that this is what he has been trying to prepare us for all year I long. He has just going about it in different ways.”

It’s easy to see why players would find it frustrating that Coughlin has exacting standards about minor details like how they wear their socks, but Rolle said he now sees some benefits to Coughlin holding the players to a high standard. It’s hard to argue with the success Coughlin has had as a head coach.


(profootballtalk.com)