It’s not how Giants’ Coughlin, Patriots’ Belichick drew it up their first time around.

By Kurt Kragthorpe

| The Salt Lake Tribune

Indianapolis • Kevin Gilbride kept waiting for the voice in his headset to stop him from having his quarterback throw the football all around Candlestick Park.

New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin never interrupted his offensive coordinator’s play-calling flow, even if it represented a radical departure from Coughlin’s ingrained approach to football.

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At a glance

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Passing fancy

The Super Bowl XLVI contestants produced more regular-season passing yards (with sacks subtracted) than any previous pair of Super Bowl teams.

Season Teams Yards

2011 Patriots, Giants 9,818

1984 Dolphins, 49ers 8,919

2009 Colts, Steelers 8,870

2008 Steelers, Cardinals 7,975

2002 Raiders, Buccaneers 7,920

2007 Patriots, Giants 7,885

1999 Titans, Rams 7,838

2001 Patriots, Rams 7,752

2010 Steelers, Packers 7,725

1996 Patriots, Packers 7,598

Source: SI.com

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Bill Belichick’s philosophical transformation in New England came earlier, and the theme of Sunday’s Super Bowl XLVI is readily evident: The Giants and Patriots are coming to pass.

Two coaches who long subscribed to the theory of running the ball, maintaining field position and playing good defense have adapted to the NFL of this century. Thanks to their elite quarterbacks and rules changes that give receivers more freedom to run their routes and more protection from vicious hits, these coaches have evolved with the times.

The Giants and Patriots could challenge the Super Bowl record of 93 combined pass attempts, set 17 years ago by San Diego and Steve Young’s San Francisco 49ers. In the regular season, New York and New England collectively passed for nearly 10,000 yards (with sacks subtracted), by far the most of any pair of Super Bowl contestants in history. Two vulnerable defenses also should contribute to the passing frenzy Sunday.

In the NFC championship game in San Francisco, Coughlin authorized 58 passes. Counting six sacks, Gilbride called 64 pass plays and 26 runs.

"That’s not Coughlinesque," said NFL Network analyst Steve Mariucci, chuckling.

Coughlin’s natural approach is much more conservative, "but that’s not the way the game’s played anymore," said Mariucci, a former NFL coach.

Brian Billick won a Super Bowl in this century with Trent Dilfer as his quarterback in Baltimore, but he says the style of his Ravens team would not work now. "The old idea that you can play good defense and run the ball, that doesn’t get it done," Billick said.

It helps that Belichick and Coughlin have Tom Brady and Eli Manning as their quarterbacks.

Beyond that, the struggles of their defenses and personnel issues at running back have dictated their passing emphasis this season. The Patriots ranked second in the NFL in passing yards (317.8) and the Giants were fifth (295.9), after never making the top 10 under Coughlin.

When these coaches first appeared in a Super Bowl, their offensive strategy was much different. In the 2001 season, New England was 22nd in passing. In 2007, New York was 21st. The Patriots’ statistics in ’01 were partly attributable to having Brady, as a second-year player, replace the injured Drew Bledsoe. As Brady developed his talent over his years, Beli­chick opened the playbook in ways that would have seemed unimaginable when he was Cleveland’s coach in the early 1990s.

"Bill understands that the way the rules have changed, the only way you can score points is to throw the football," said Michael Lombardi, a former Cleveland executive. "Bill’s about problem-solving; he isn’t about doing it his way."

Belichick describes the increased passing as merely "a function of execution." Coughlin is only slightly more expansive about his outlook, saying, "You learn, develop and change every year."

In any case, Super Bowl XLVI is easily scripted. In Indianapolis, where Peyton Manning’s passing success basically merited the construction of a Super Bowl-worthy stadium, Coughlin and Belichick will air it out Sunday, even if that’s contrary to their natures. The game has changed, and so have they.

kkragthorpe@sltrib.comTwitter: @tribkurt