Tom Brady's ankle must be all right. For the second consecutive day, he was listed on the New England Patriots Injury Report as having full participation in practice with his right shoulder listed as an injury (as always).

Wide receiver Jabar Gaffney, meanwhile, once again had limited participation in practice with a shoulder injury.

One change on the Giants Injury report: wide receiver Plaxico Burress once again did not participate, but he had a knee injury listed as well as an ankle injury.

Cornerback Kevin Dockery and guard Rich Seubert, both with limited participation on Wednesday, had full participation on Thursday.

The Patriots once again practiced in full pads and, unlike Wednesday, had a crisp, clean session.

"Another day always helps,'' said Coach Bill Belichick. "These guys care. They want to practice well. When we make mistakes we've got to correct them. They want to get it right the next time.''

Belichick added that the team was close to being ready for the Giants.

"We'll review some stuff (Friday),'' he said. "There won't be hardly anything new. Just reviewing situations. We're as ready as we're going to be. We could spend four weeks preparing for the Giants. But we'll be ready to go.''

Once again, a chill is in the air in lovely Phoenix. 38 degrees when we awoke to head to the Patriots interview session on Thursday!

This is the last time the media gets to interview the players before Super Bowl XLII.

Head coach Bill Belichick had an interesting comment when asked who the best quarterback was that he ever saw. We all know his affinity for Tom Brady. But he didn't want to come out and annoint Brady in the middle of his career.

So he mentioned Johnny Unitas, noting that he grew up in Annapolis and watched the Baltimore Colts many times.

He also said that, "as a pure passer, you couldn't put anyone ahead of Bert Jones.'' Jones also played for the Colts.

Belichick later posed for photos with some young fans after the press conference ended.

Brady, wearing a gray zipped-up sweater, was asked about left guard Logan Mankins and at one point offered this: "When there's a fight at practice, Logan's involved, along with Richard Seymour.''

Seymour said that's true: "It's our competitive spirits. We both play with an attitude.''

Brady was also asked if this was the biggest game of his life. His response: "I think it's the biggest game of all our lives. We're going to be remembering this game for as long as we live, win or lose.''

Gino Cappaletti, one of the Patriots' greatest all-time players and now the color analyst on their radio network, was also present. He said he's never seen an offense quite like New England's, which set NFL records for points and touchdowns in a season.

"Not with this kind of precision,'' he said. "It's like 11 parts moving as one.''

We'll try to update later today with the Thursday Injury Report and practice reports from both clubs.

Quarterback Tom Brady's right ankle was not listed on the New England Patriots' injury report Wednesday. Brady participated in every practice drill, though pool reporter Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune reported that the "passing game was a little uneven.''

He was listed as having full participation in practice because of a right shoulder injury, Bill Belichick's standard practice for the last three seasons.

Wide receiver Jabar Gaffney, however, had limited participation in practice because of what the Patriots are calling a shoulder injury.

On the New York Giants injury report, wide receiver Plaxico Burress did not participate in practice because of an ankle injury. He has seldom practiced this year because of that injury.

Cornerback Kevin Dockery (hip flexor) and guard Rich Seubert (knee) both had limited participation in practice.

The Patriots practiced in full pads for the first time this week. "We tried to get the tempo up a little bit and we did that,'' said Belichick.

The Giants practiced in shells and shorts. "I'm more concerned about speed and the execution,'' said Coach Tom Coughlin.

Once more, greetings from the Valley of the Sun, where it's about 60 degrees today and sunny, though more rain is in the forecast.

A couple of observations before we get into what was said at the New England Patriots interview session on Wednesday.

1. The sun rises later here than in Maine. It was 7:15 a.m. before it peaked over the horizon today. It also sets a little later, but I'm never outside to see that.

2. It's not as warm as you'd think. Temperatures were in the low 40s this morning as we left for the interview session. Locals say this is the coldest it's been all year. Figures. Just like in Houston and Jacksonville, the last two Patriots Super Bowl sites.

3. Most houses here are one-story, have small yards and many have orange trees growing in their backyard.

4. Palm trees and cacti, some as tall as 15 feet, line every street and highway.

Okay, on to what was said and seen:

Wide receiver Randy Moss, a free agent once the season ends, said he wants to stay with the Patriots. What else would he say?

"I still love doing what I do,'' he said. "And being here with the New England Patriots is where I want to be. I would love to retire a Patriot.''

Head Coach Bill Belichick, wearing his son's No. 23 Rutgers lacrosse windbreaker, has his players running on Mountain Time. He likes the fact that the starting time out here is at 4 p.m., not 6 p.m., as it is back home. "It shortens the time leading up to the game,'' he said.

Moss, talking about Giants' receiver Plaxico Burress' prediction of a 23-17 New York victory, said, "Those are tough words to back up. We'll see when the clock shows 00:00 on Sunday.''

Dante Scarnecchia, the offensive line coach, on how well his unit played this year: "I became a better coach, and they became better players, when No. 12 became the quarterback.''

Well: A little less crazy at the Giants portion of Media Day. Fewer journalists.

Seems the Patriots are still the big story out here.

The Giants seemed relaxed, but also seemed a little tired of hearing about the Patriots and their historic quest to go 19-0. "We're here to play a football game,'' said defensive end Justin Tuck. "I don't care about history.''

Defensive end Osi Umenyiora was having a little fun at Tom Brady's expense. Asked about Brady and his injured right ankle, Umenyiora said, "I think he needs a rest. His ankle is still bothering him. He already has three Super Bowl rings. He doesn't need another. I do. So they should rest him.''

Eli Manning talked about asking big brother Peyton for any advice.

"Watch film,'' Peyton told him.

Head coach Tom Coughlin noted that injured tight end Jeremy Shockey sent him a test message recently telling him how proud Shockey was of the team and how much he missed being here in Phoenix.

And, yes, if you were watching this unfold on television, that was someone dressed as a genie asking questions. Just goes to show you they'll let anyone in.

And, an update from this morning. Ines Gomezmont, the intrepid television correspondent from TVAzteca in Mexico City, was still walking around in her skimpy wedding gown, looking for attention. (See Ines here.)

No word on whether she actually asked Eli Manning to marry her, but her gig worked. She was being interviewed by just about every television network there.

OK, the madness has officially begun here in Glendale/Phoenix.

Here's some sights and sounds from a cool New England Patriots session during media day at University of Phoenix Stadium:

Good morning from Phoenix, where the sun is out and the high temperature is supposed to be 61 today.

The toughest thing about being here is the time change, especially when you wake up at 4:30 a.m. There's not a whole lot open that time of the day.

Today is Media Day, when every player and coach from both the New England Patriots and New York Giants is available to the media.

The Patriots go first, from noon to 1 p.m. at the University of Phoenix Stadium. The Giants follow from 2-3 p.m.

By the way, a record 4,786 media credentials have been issued for Super Bowl XLII. And based on the questions asked during the early interview sessions, it's obvious a lot of these media members have never seen either team play.

We'll report a couple of times today on what's happening at Media Day, which always has its share of surprises.

Both teams held media sessions Monday afternoon and wide receiver Wes Welker had the comment of the day when asked about how Tom Brady looked at practice.

Welker, always a serious sort, said, "Well, Tom is Tom and he is one of the best quarterbacks around. He looked great. He has the same dimples and everything.''

The New York Giants landed in Phoenix Monday evening – a day later than the Patriots – all dressed in black.

"Team unity,'' said wide receiver Amani Toomer. "That's all it is.''

The Giants were relaxed and having fun during a press conference, even Coach Tom Coughlin.

Asked about the upcoming media circus that will greet his team, Coughlin said, "We're from New York. This is like a normal day New York-media wise.''

He was asked what the secret of New York's 10-game road winning streak was and answered, "We have a lot of secrets we can't share with you.''

He added that the team arrived a day later than the Patriots because "we thought we were best served by doing as much as we could at home.''

The players were equally relaxed, answering questions long after NFL officials declared the interview session over.

Defensive end Michael Strahan asked about the reports that Brady limped through the Patriots practice said, "I'm not buying it. I mean, everybody's injured, everybody's beat up. If he was that injured, he probably would have been in Boston getting treatment instead of in New York.''

Strahan, who held out of training camp, was asked if he thought the Giants would ever get to this point. He said, "Let's see, we were 0-2, (giving up) 80 points and I'm thinking why did I leave the beach?''

Linebacker Antonio Pierce said he wasn't even thinking about the possibility of the Patriots making history, going 19-0, against the Giants.

"To me, it's always about us,'' he said. "We're here to make our own history this week.''

Just some things to chew on while counting down the days to Super Bowl XLII:

Each member of the winning Super Bowl XLII team will receive $78,000, a $5,000 increase from the last two Super Bowl winning shares. Members of the losing team will receive $40,000, an increase of $2,000 over last year.
That's not exactly a bad day’s work, eh?

The Patriots have been designated as the home team and are practicing at Arizona State University in Tempe. New England was 10-0 as a home team this year.

The Giants, of course, are the road team, and they've won an NFL-record 10 consecutive road games, including three in the playoffs. New York is practicing at the Arizona Cardinals facility in Tempe.

Anyone tail-gating at Super Bowl XLII will have to do so with cold food. Security measures have banned grills. In a security release on Monday, Super Bowl officials noted that fans “may tailgate near their vehicles with their own food and beverages but may not bring grills. Fans may not take up more than one parking spot and tents are prohibited.’’

Maybe open fires are OK?

The pre-game show will include the music of nine-time Grammy Award winner Alicia Keys.

Jordin Sparks, who last year became the youngest winner of American Idol, will sing the national anthem. Her father, Phillippi Sparks was a cornerback for the Giants and Dallas Cowboys.

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, a top rock band since their debut album in 1976, will provide the halftime entertainment. The group is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Greetings from Phoenix, where it's 59 degrees with clearing skies after a heavy rainfall Sunday that led to some flash flooding.

Here's what's on tap for Monday from the site of Super Bowl XLII:

The Patriots will hold a press conference beginning at 5:30 p.m. (EST), with Coach Bill Belichick. He'll be followed by Rodney Harrison, Matt Light, Junior Seau, Adalius Thomas, Ty Warren and Wes Welker.

Quarterback Tom Brady, whose right foot is now as famous as he is (and who proclaimed himself fit to play Sunday night when the Patriots arrived), will not be available again to the media until Tuesday, at Media Day at the University of Phoenix Stadium.

This is the first Super Bowl for Welker, who set a Patriots record with 112 receptions this year. It'll be interesting to hear what he has to say.

Seau is back after a 13-year absence. He last was here with the San Diego Chargers in Super Bowl XXIX when they lost to San Francisco 49-26.

The upstart New York Giants arrive this afternoon and will have a press conference at their hotel, the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass, at 7 p.m. Tom Coughlin will be the first speaker.

Players will include Eli Manning, Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer, Michael Strahan, Antonio Pierce and Jeff Feagles.

Toomer and Strahan are the only Giants left from the team that lost to Baltimore, 34-7, in Super Bowl XXXV.

We'll update things later as they develop.

Quarterback Tom Brady and his injured right foot were once again absent from the New England Patriots practice during the 15-minute period the local media was allowed to watch on Friday.

Columnist Steve Solloway reported that Rodney Harrison, absent on Thursday, was at practice. Harrison told reporters that his absence on Thursday was no big deal.

Offensive tackle Ryan O'Callaghan was not present, however.

Coach Bill Belichick again offered no insight to the Brady situation in his Friday morning press briefing. And the Patriots players made light of the situation.

Wide receivers Donte Stallworth and Wes Welker added levity by saying that they had spoken to Belichick earlier in the day and were told that they would be quarterbacking the team in the Super Bowl.

Stallworth went as far to say that the team would run the option against the Giants. Remember, he's the same guy who plotted to fly to San Diego and kidnap a couple of Chargers last week.

Quarterback Tom Brady, who was photographed walking New York streets with a boot/brace on his right foot, was absent from the 15-minute portion of practice that the New England Patriots media was allowed to watch on Thursday.

The portion included stretching and a couple of drills.

Matt Cassel and Matt Gutierrez participated in the passing drills.

Coach Bill Belichick earlier had no comment about Brady's injury status.

Also absent were safety Rodney Harrison, who was listed last week as having a thigh injury, and safety Mel Mitchell, who was out last week with an arm injury.

The New England Patriots had their first media access since winning the AFC championship and since Tom Brady was seen in New York wearing a brace on his right foot.

Guess who wasn't around for interviews?

Yep, Brady.

Coach Bill Belichick addressed the media and was followed by players Richard Seymour, Adalius Thomas and Mike Vrabel. Asked if Brady was going to talk, a Patriots media representative said, "No.'' And Brady wasn't seen in the locker room either.

Belichick didn't address the "injury'' either. Asked to comment on it, he said. "I don't have any comment on it … The injury report will be out next Wednesday and we're excited to get that to you. I can't wait to give that to everybody. I know you're anxious for it.''

The players who did show up in the locker room thought it was a non-issue.

"Nothing at all,'' said running back Kevin Faulk, when asked what he made of it. "Change the channel. Because I know what type of person, what type of player, Tom is.''

Fullback Heath Evans said he fully expected Brady to play.

We'll see if Brady is at practice this afternoon.

The Patriots are off until Thursday, but their players are still making news.

First defensive end Richard Seymour was called a dirty player, among other things, by San Diego's Nick Hardwick, a charge both Seymour and Coach Bill Belichick denied. The Boston Globe's Mike Reiss has the story. Read Seymour's reaction here.

Then there's the story of quarterback Tom Brady being hobbled. Brady told listeners on WEEI in Boston on Monday that he was fine. But he was photographed in New York with a brace on his right foot and limping as he entered his girlfriend's apartment. Click here for TMZ website and then scroll to the Brady and his Bundchen video.

All in all, a quiet couple of days, right?

One note of some interest here in Maine, NY Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and linebacker coach Bill Sheridan each spent a year in Orono on the staff of Jack Cosgrove.

Spagnuolo was at Maine in 1993 as the defensive backs coach. Sheridan was at Maine for two seasons, 1987-88, as the linebackers coach.

Here are some final notes from the Patriots 21-12 victory over San Diego in the AFC championship game.

At 18-0, the Patriots have tied the NFL record for overall victories in a season. Both the 1984 San Francisco 49ers and the 1985 Chicago Bears went 18-1 in winning Super Bowl titles.

The Patriots are making their fourth appearance in the Super Bowl in the last seven seasons and an NFL-high sixth in the last 25 years.

New England is now 11-1 at home in the playoffs, with 11 consecutive wins; 6-1 all-time in AFC championship games; 21-12 all-time in the playoffs.

The victory was the 100th of Tom Brady's career (100-26) and he is 14-2 (.875) in the playoffs, trailing only the great Bart Starr (9-1, .900) in winning percentage.

The victory was Bill Belichick's fourth conference championship as a head coach. Only Don Shula (6) and Tom Landry (5) led their teams to more Super Bowls.

Asante Samuel had a huge interception in the second quarter, leading to a 12-yard touchdown pass to Jabar Gaffney. He has five career playoff interceptions, second only to Rodney Harrison's seven.

Tedy Bruschi played in his 21st playoff game to set the team record. Jerry Rice holds the NFL record with 29 playoff games.

It's on to the Super Bowl.

The New England Patriots continued their path to an undefeated season, pushing back the San Diego Chargers 21-12 in the AFC championship game.

Tom Brady threw three interceptions, but also two touchdown passes.

New England is now 18-0 on the season and will play the NFC champion, either Green Bay or New York, in the Super Bowl on Feb. 3.

The Patriots defense continually thwarted San Diego drives deep into their territory, forcing four field goals.

Laurence Maroney rushed for over 122 yards for the second consecutive playoff game.

The crowd began chanting "Super Bowl, Super Bowl'' with 3:00 left after Maroney made a key first down run.

The game ended with red, white and blue confetti flitting through the air, swirling around in the wind that whipped through Gillette Stadium.

Tom Brady's touchdown pass to Jabar Gaffney in the second quarter gave him a touchdown pass in 14 consecutive playoff games, the second-longest streak in NFL history.

This is the coldest Patriots game since the 2004 AFC championship, in Pittsburgh, when the kick-ff temperature was 11 with a wind chill of minus-1.
The game began at 23 degrees, with a wind chill of nine.

Laurence Maroney's 1-yard touchdown run gave him touchdowns in five consecutive games.

Junior Seau's sack of Philip Rivers in the second quarter was his first playoff sack since Super Bowl XXIX, back in 1995.

The Patriots came out slow, with Tom Brady having a passer rating of 29.4 in the first quarter, but came on in the second to take a 14-9 lead into the half.

Two Patriot interceptions off Philip Rivers helped, the first by Asante Samuel leading to a 12-yard touchdown pass from Brady to Jabar Gaffney that gave the Patriots a 14-6 lead.

Ellis Hobbs had an interception on the next series, but Wes Welker dropped a third-down pass that forced the Patriots to punt.

The Patriots have been helped by the fact that San Diego's LaDainian Tomlinson hasn't played since the first series of the game. It was announced that he has a sore knee but could return.

Still, the Chargers stayed close as his replacements, Michael Turner and Darren Sproles, provided a strong running game. Sproles, in fact, ran for 34 yards on consecutive draws to help the Chargers drive down for their third field goal of the game, with eight seconds left in the half.

After that, Rivers, with a brace on his injured right knee, left and went into the San Diego locker room.

Of note, the game time temperature was 23 degrees, with a wind chill of nine.
Entering the game, the Patriots had a record of 22-3 since 1993 when the game-time temperature is 34 or lower.

It's an hour before kick-off, the crowd is slowly filtering in and both teams are coming out for warm-ups. Based on the flags atop the goal posts, the wind appears to be whipping around pretty good.

San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers, who injured his knee in last week's win over Indianapolis, is on the field throwing passes, but so is back-up Billy Volek, who isn't wearing any long sleeves under his jersey (Rivers is). Rivers is testing his injured right knee by jumping back and forth. Most of Rivers' passes are in the short-to-medium range.

The inactive players have been announced. The Patriots list includes wide receiver Troy Brown, one of two players on the team who were on the 1996 team that won the AFC championship.

We'll check in once in a while from the game.

We're used to seeing the New England Patriots in sweat shirts or uniforms. Friday they came in their Sunday best for Friday's AFC press conference. Setting the tone was coach Bill Belichick, who dumped his usual gray hooded sweatshirt, for a light green dress shirt and dark green khakis.

Of note: he still had the sleeves rolled up, so they resembled the cut-off sleeves of his gray hoodie. Must be his fashion statement. Also, he wore brown loafers with no socks.

He was followed by Mike Vrabel, Tedy Bruschi, Kevin Faulk and Tom Brady. Faulk was the best dressed, in a pin-striped maroon vest and slacks, with silver shoes.

As far as what they said in advanced of Sunday's AFC title game with the San Diego Chargers at Gillette Stadium:

Belichick stressed the turnover factor, saying protecting the ball was "a point of emphasis'' in practice this week.

Vrabel on long San Diego drives: "If they have the ball for 12-13 plays, two things are happening. One is that Tom Brady doesn't have the ball and two is that they're getting a chance to score.''

Bruschi on weekly distractions: "We feed off it and become closer from it.''

Faulk, on his captaincy this year: "It means to much to me. It's one of the most important things in my life.''

Brady on a possible Hollywood career after football: "I'm not quitting this job just yet. I hope that's a long time from now. I'm still a young guy.''

The countdown to the Patriots' fifth appearance in seven years in an AFC championship game continues on Friday when the league holds its pre-game press conferences, to be televised live on NFL Network.