The Giants stood 83 yards from the lead, trailing an unbeaten team by 4 points with only 2 minutes 39 seconds left in Super Bowl XLII. Defensive players paced the sideline shouting one-word directions: Believe.

Last week, the Giants heard reports of the Patriots’ attempts to secure rights to “19-0” (already trademarked, as it turned out), of a book planned to hit the presses immediately after a New England triumph, and of plans for a victory parade in Boston.

Of course, all of those were simply cases of people preparing for the possibility, not necessarily the expectation, that the Patriots would win. Plans for a parade up Broadway in Manhattan on Tuesday were being made, too.

Being fueled by doubters was a trick that even reached the winning drive. Receiver Amani Toomer said the Patriots, who had come from behind to defeat the Giants in the regular-season finale, were teasingly inviting him to their postgame celebration as the Giants tried to mount their comeback, trailing by 14-10 in the final two minutes.

They Might Be Champions: One Last Drive of Conviction - New York Times