Face it, you hand to wonder if New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin had considered walking away from football if the Giants defeat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI on Feb. 5. Well, CBS Sports is reporting that you can forget that idea.
"I feel good," Coughlin said "Retire to do what? ... I still love what I do."
Thank goodness for that. Coughlin is the oldest coach in the league, and will be the oldest to ever win a Super Bowl if the Giants pull it off. As far as I'm concerned, though, I hope he stays on for a few more years.
Here are the numbers on Coughlin at this point in his career, from the Giants PR Department.
- Coughlin improved to 11-7 as a head coach in postseason games. The 11 victories tie him with three coaches, including two former Giants coaches, for the seventh-highest total in NFL history:
Coaches Postseason Victories:
20: Tom Landry
19: Don Shula
17: Bill Belichick, Joe Gibbs
16: Chuck Noll
13: Mike Holmgren
12: Bill Cowher
11: Tom Coughlin, Bill Parcells, Dan Reeves, Marv Levy
Coughlin and Belichick are the only two active coaches on the list and will face each other in Super Bowl XLVI.
- The victory in San Francisco was Coughlin's seventh on the road as a head coach, tying Hall of Famer Tom Landry for the most in NFL history. Coughlin is 7-4 on the road in the playoffs (5-1 with the Giants). Landry was 7-7.
- Coughlin's seventh postseason victory with the Giants is one less than Parcells' Giants' record. Parcells was 8-3, a record Coughlin will match with a victory in the Super Bowl.
- In his 16-year head coaching career, Coughlin has 142 regular season victories and 11 postseason triumphs. The 153 victories tie him with Giants Hall of Fame coach Steve Owen for 18th place on the NFL's career list. Marv Levy is 17th with 154.
Prisco even referred to Coughlin as "grandfatherly." Amazing how times, and perceptions, change.