On a day when cornerback Asante Samuel moved on to Philadelphia, signing a six-year, $54 million contract, the New England Patriots had lesser news.

They re-signed linebacker Tedy Bruschi – whom many folks thought would retire after the team's 17-14 Super Bowl loss to the Giants – long snapper Loni Paxton and wide receiver Kelley Washington.

Washington is an interesting signing. He was a great special teams player for the Patriots. But now, with Donte Stallworth gone, could move into the No.3 or No. 4 receivers role, especially with Jabar Gaffney looking elsewhere.

That Bruschi is back for a 12th season indicates how much he wants to play and how much the Patriots – never too sentimental about anyone – want him to finish his career in Foxborough.

Given his talent and experience in the Patriots system, it's easy to see why New England wants him back.

As far as Paxton . . . well, when's the last time you saw him make a bad snap? Right, I can't remember either. And that's why he's important.

Still no word on a Randy Moss deal, which is surprising. Everyone expected that deal to be done immediately.

Dom Capers, hired by the New England Patriots Thursday as a special assistant/secondary coach, spoke with the New England media Friday in a conference call and said his primary job was to coach the secondary and then aid wherever needed.

Capers, who was the Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator last year, was previously a head coach at Carolina and Houston. He's hoping that can be to his advantage in his new situation.

"One of the advantages of being a head coach for a number of years is you always knew what you were looking for in assistants and hopefully I can be that guy'' he said.

Asked about linebacker Zach Thomas, who was recently released by the Dolphins and reportedly offered a contract by the Patriots, Capers said, "I’ve been in the NFL for 22 years now - this will be 23 years. He’s one of the best preparers that I’ve been around. He’s one of he top guys. I mean, the guy is obsessive in his preparation. He’s very much a professional. He’s the one who spends probably as much time as the coaches do to get ready for the game, and I think that’s why he’s been able to have the kind of production and the success he has over his career.''

While Thomas still hasn't committed, it should be noted that the Patriots re-signed special team player Larry Izzo on Thursday. That could be significant because Izzo is a close friend of Thomas from their days together in Miami.

Eli Manning, Super Bowl XLII MVP, met the media Monday morning to receive his tropy and new car – he chose a Cadillac hybrid Escalade – and sounded a lot like Tom Brady in his comments.

Manning credited his teammates and coaches and said they never doubted their ability, even when all things were going bad.

"We just had a great will on this team and it was the right group of guys,'' he said. "It was a special group of guys. We were determined and we had great faith in ourselves. Everybody knew their role and their responsibility and no matter what happened, what we've been through, it helped that a lot of the players have been together the last three or four years and we've learned to deal with adversity. We've had to overcome mistakes or bad play or disappointment and had to put it behind us.''

Manning said he got little sleep Sunday night, spending the time after the game with his family and friends. He watched the game again – especially the jaw-dropping 32-yard completion to David Tyree in which Manning escaped a sack by Jarvis Green and Adalius Thomas and Tyree held onto the ball on his helmet – and then replayed it in his head.

"I didn't get to appreciate what a great catch it was,'' he said.

There was a light moment when Manning was asked how he would spend the next couple of weeks. He noted that he would like a little time off to rest before the team gets together for off-season workouts. He said he didn't know when they began and Coach Tom Coughlin, sitting to his left, said, "Monday.''

Coughlin noted that it was nice that Manning won a car, but noted there weren't any other free cars around.

Coughlin praised the Patriots for being a great opponent. Of his team he said, "We kept getting better and our confidence grew and the players felt we could win under any circumstances.''

Some final notes from the Super Bowl:

Tom Brady set a record for most career Super Bowl completions. He now has 100. He also attempted the most passes in a game (48) without an interception.

Wes Welker tied the single-game mark with 11 catches.

The teams combined for the longest scoreless stretch in Super Bowl history (33 minutes, 52 seconds).

New York punter Jeff Feagles became the oldest player (41 years, 333 days) to appear in a Super Bowl.

The teams combined for the fewest rushing attempts (42) and fewest rushing yards (136) in a Super Bowl game.

Junior Seau set a record for most years between Super Bowl appearances (13)

The Giants became only the second team in Super Bowl history to win the championship after trailing in the final minute of the fourth quarter (San Francisco beat Cincinnati in Super Bowl XXIII on a John Taylor touchdown reception with 34 seconds left)

The Giants were the first team to win a Super Bowl after trailing at the half since Dallas beat Buffalo 30-13 in Super Bowl XXVIII after the Bills led 13-6 at the half.

The 10 combined points after three quarters between the Patriots and Giants is the second-lowest number of points in a Super Bowl after three quarters.

In Super Bowl IX, Pittsburgh led Minnesota 9-0 before winning 16-6.

Running back Kevin Faulk, the team's big third-down player, became the third Patriot to be injured against the Giants in Super Bowl XLII.

Faulk limped off the field holding his left hamstring after the Patriots failed on a fourth-down play with 6:43 left in the third quarter.

Earlier, defensive back Randall Gay suffered an arm injury (but returned) and guard Stephen Neal suffered a knee injury. He was replaced by Russ Hochstein.

The Patriots lead Super Bowl XLII, 7-3, in a defensive first half.

Neither team had much going offensively. For New England, Tom Brady was 8-for-14 passing for 82 yards, but he was sacked three times, twice by Justin Tuck.

Laurence Maroney, who scored on a 1-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter, had just 11 yards on eight rushes. Overall, the Patriots had just 20 yards rushing.

For New York, Eli Manning was 8-for-16 for 85 yards and was sacked twice.

Brandon Jacobs had 35 yards rushing and Ahmad Bradshaw 26.

New York led in time of possession: 19:27 to 10:33. That included a Super Bowl record 9:59 drive on its first possession.

Stephen Neal, the Patriots guard who missed eight games in the regular season because of a shoulder injury, limped off the field after Tom Brady was sacked for the second time in the second quarter.

It was announced that he suffered a knee injury and his return was questionable.

Lawrence Tynes' 32-yard field goal on New York's only possession of the first quarter gave the Giants a 3-0 lead.

The quarter ended with the Patriots at the Giants 1-yard line, courtesy of a pass interference call on linebacker Antonio Pierce on Benjamin Watson in the end zone.

Low-scoring Super Bowl first quarters are nothing new for the Patriots.

They trailed St. Louis 3-0 and were tied, 0-0, with both Carolina and Philadelphia.

Patriots defensive back Randall Gay was injured and taken to the locker room after a collision with safety Rodney Harrison just 4:21 into the game.

It was announced as an arm injury. His return is questionable.

Troy Brown, the veteran wide receiver who played such a huge role in the Patriots three Super Bowl victories, is inactive for today's game against the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLII.

Brown, who had off-season knee surgery, was activated in late November but played in one game this season, on Dec. 23, against Miami.

Other inactive players for New England included wide receiver Chad Jackson, cornerback Antwain Spann, tackle Wesley Britt, guard Billy Yates, tight end Stephen Spach and defensive lineman Le Kevin Smith.

For the Giants, the inactive list included running back Danny Ware, defensive back Geoffrey Pope, tackle Adam Koets, defensive tackle Manny Wright, wide receiver Sinorice Moss, tight end Jerome Collins and defensive tackle Russell Davis.

Welcome to University of Phoenix Stadium, where the crowd is slowly filtering in and the roof is closed. Rain is in the forecast for this afternoon here, with a heavier rain into the evening.

The excitement is slowly starting to build among the fans. And it appears at first glance that there are more Giants fans here than Patriots fans.

If you ever get a chance to come out to this stadium to see a game, make sure you stop by the Pat Tillman monument. It is a statue of the late Tillman running in his football uniform with his helmet in his hand. Across the plaza is a reflecting pool.

Tillman, remember, was a safety for both Arizona State and the Arizona Cardinals. After the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, he quit football and joined the Army and was later killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan.

It is a stirring memorial to him and worthy of a stop and prayer.

Andre Tippett, the New England Patriots all-time leader in career sacks with 100, was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on a beautiful 65-degree sunny day in Phoenix on Saturday.

Tippett, who holds the team's three top single-season sack numbers (18.5 in 1984, 16.5 in 1985 and 12.5 in 1987), will enter the Hall along with wide receiver Art Monk, defensive back Darrell Green, offensive tackle Gary Zimmerman, defensive end Fred Dean and cornerback Emmitt Thomas.

Saturday was a light day for the Super Bowl XLII participants. The New York Giants held a 50-minute walk-through at University of Phoenix Stadium and wide receiver Plaxico Burress, unable to practice this week because of ankle and knee troubles, participated fully.

The Patriots did not hold a walk-through. Instead, they posed for a team photo at the stadium, which resembles a giant silver spaceship that landed in the desert.

The forecast for Sunday calls for rain during the game, so the roof will likely be closed.

The countdown has begun. Both teams held their final practices Friday afternoon and issued the Injury Report for Super Bowl XLII.

Plaxico Burress, the Giants big-play wide receiver who predicted a 23-17 Giants victory, was listed as questionable on New York’s Injury Report with knee and ankle injuries. That means he has a 50-50 chance to play.

The ankle has been a problem all season for Burress, who didn’t practice regularly until the last four weeks. The knee swelled up on Tuesday.

The good news for Giants fans is that Burress did run a few pass routes on Friday, the first time this week he’s been able to participate in practice.

“He’s improved,’’ said Coughlin. “He’s done it all year under all kinds of circumstances. We’ve just got to be hopeful he can do it one more time.’’

Giants cornerback Kevin Dockery (hip flexor), guard Rich Seubert (knee) and defensive end Osi Umenyiora (thigh) were all listed as probable.

The Patriots Injury Report listed, as always, quarterback Tom Brady as probable with a right shoulder injury. But wide receiver Jabar Gaffney, who was limited in practice the previous two days because of a shoulder injury, was not listed on the report.

The Patriots practiced for 80 minutes in shorts and shells Friday. Afterward, Belichick said, “We’re ready to roll. We’re ready as we’re going to be.’’

Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown, who made the rounds of Radio Row earlier in the day, spoke to the team before practice at Belichick’s request. Brown got to know Belichick when he was the head coach of the Cleveland Browns.

Coughlin described the Giants practice as energetic and enthusiastic. "We talked about coming here and having a solid six hours together,'' he said. "We had that each day we worked.''

Saturday is an off-day, with the Giants having a walk-though at the stadium. The Patriots are skipping it.

We'll next report Sunday in pre-game. Check in then.

Reebok, which likes to let everyone know that it outfits every NFL team, did something no one else could this week – brought together some members of the 1972 Miami Dolphins, the only team in NFL history to finish a season undefeated when they went 17-0, to Phoenix.

Four members – running backs Mercury Morris and Jim Kiick, kicker Garo Yepremian and guard Larry Little – held a sometimes hilarious half-hour press conference to talk about the prospects of the Patriots joining them in NFL history.

The sat next to a sign for Perfectville, a soon-to-be fictious town created by Reebok and the focus of a television commercial to be shown after the Super Bowl. The town was established in 1972. Its population is 1.

As you might guess, none of them picked the Patriots to win.

Kick had one of the best lines, saying that he's been asked, hypothetically, if they could beat the Patriots. "Of course not, we're 60 years old,'' he said.

Morris, as he has been all season, was the most passionate of the four, defending the Dolphins' record. Asked if the Patriots finish 19-0 would they be considered the greatest team of all time. Morris said the number of wins didn't matter. "It''s about the zero at the end.''

Morris did say the Patriots have made his 1972 teammates relevant again. "The reason why we're here now is the exact same reason. We live in the state of perfection. And they're trying to get it on their license plate. And we'll find out on Sunday, when all the talking stops, whether or not they'll be riding around our neighborhood, or whether they'll be able to park.''

Little had a good line when asked if he would embrace the Patriots should they go undefeated. "We'll be 1-A, they'll be 1-B. They'll be like our little brother.''

Coughlin's press conference was much lighter than Belichick's, sharing some laughs with the assembled media. Unlike Belichick, who walked away from the podium when his press conference ended, Coughlin posed with the Vince Lombardi Trophy, smiling and holding a Giants helmet.

Asked about Plaxico Burress and his injured left ankle/knee, Coughlin said it's a day-to-day situation. "He was better yesterday than he was the day before and hopefully he'll be even better today.''

Asked about the difference in Super Bowl experience between the teams – New England has 20 players with experience, the Giants three – Coughlin said: "There's no question about the experience factor, but the young people bring something to the game as well. They bring an exhuberance, an excitement.''

We'll have another update if anything happens. Otherwise, we might be off until Game Day.

Stay tuned.

Well, before we get into what Bill Belichick had to say two days before the Super Bowl, it should be noted that football royalty arrived at the Media Center.

Jim Brown, the Hall of Fame running back from the Cleveland Browns (and possibly the greatest running back in NFL history), just made his way toward Radio Row and everyone else parted.

On to Belichick. He spoke for about 18 minutes, didn't have much to say (as usual) and didn't pose with the Vince Lombardi Trophy, which was positioned about five feet to his right.

Some of the things he said:

Asked about his relationship with the Giants: "I have the greatest respect for that organization. But I'm on the other side of the field now and there's no way I'm pulling for them.''

On whether the regular-season game between the teams will matter: "Each game takes on its own personality. I know we hope we can hold them to less than 35 points this game, just as I'm sure they hope they can hold us to less than 38.''

On how the team has maintained its dominance this season: "Give the players all the credit. They deserve it.''

Giants Coach Tom Coughlin is up next. We'll let you know what he has to say.

Good morning from the Valley of the Sun, where it was 36 degrees at wake-up Friday. Can't believe I'm actually wearing gloves and a fleece vest.

Anyway, here's what's on tap for Friday: Players are unavailable to the media. We get press conferences with the head coaches, Bill Belichick first and then Tom Coughlin, and we'll let you know what, if anything, they have to say.

Check back later.

By the way, the price of gas is much cheaper here. I've seen it as low as $2.81 a gallon for regular unleaded.