EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - If hurt has to look like something, it may look the way Kerry Collins did after Super Bowl XXXV. Ernie Accorsi, the New York Giants' general manager, approaches Collins in the locker room and sees his face. What do you say to a quarterback who throws four interceptions in the biggest game of his life?
Accorsi pats Collins on the back and beckons Collins' agent into the room, circumventing rules, figuring Collins needs someone to talk to. Wellington Mara, the Giants' co-owner, walks over to Collins to console him. "We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you," Mara says.
Eventually, however, Collins is alone with the hurt, which gnaws at him. But then the hurt is shoved aside, and he begins to long for a second chance in the Super Bowl.
"It would mean a lot to me," Collins said Thursday, walking through the runway outside the Giants' locker room. "When you go in the first time and things don't go so well, you say, `I want to get back; I'll get it the next time.' I would know what it's all about, what all the hype and the hoopla is all about. I knew it was there, but it's not something you can truly understand until you go through it."
The Giants most likely will need three road victories in the next three weeks to reach Super Bowl XXXVII. They would have to beat San Francisco today and then win in Philadelphia or Tampa Bay, perhaps in Green Bay. It would be a monumental task, with the promise of extraordinary reward for the team - and, in particular, for Collins, who bore the brunt of the one-sided Super Bowl loss to the Ravens two years ago.
"He had a bad day, admittedly," said running back Tiki Barber. "I would love to see him get a chance to redeem himself. He's been through a lot in his life, and he's a champion in that regard, but I would love to see him be a champion on the football field, as well."
Giants coach Jim Fassel said, "I think he'd like to go back and show the world what kind of player he is."
The Giants' offense was overrun by the speed of the Ravens' defense in Super Bowl XXXV. Accorsi said he still can remember Barber approaching a gaping hole early in the game, yards of open space ahead of him - only to be swiftly cut down for a loss by linebacker Ray Lewis. Collins was forced to shoulder the load of the offense, and his game collapsed.
Collins completed 15 of 39 passes against the Ravens, accumulating only 114 yards. "That was probably the worst I've ever played in a game," he said.
