Super Bowl Update

Just like yesterday when I put a post up about Jerrel Jernigan, here's one with Lawrence Tynes, the former Trojan (AP photo) who kicked the game-winning field goal to send the Giants to the Super Bowl.
The Jernigan story runs in the Wednesday Dothan Eagle. Still haven't set a date for Tynes, but it may be Thursday. Meanwhile, here is some of what he had to say.

The kick against the 49ers was from 31 yards out, straight on. The one against the Packers in a similar situation four years ago was from 47 yards out, following a miss in regulation.

Which kick had more pressure? "They’re both the same. I don’t know if there was more this time, I think they’re both equal. They’re both kicks to go to the Super Bowl and they have their own circumstance, but pressure-wise, they’re both the same."

But this one was shorter, right? "It was, but the weather was terrible. I saw the TV copy and it didn’t really do it justice. The rain was three different ways, the wind was howling, especially in overtime when the wind really picked up and was howling.

"I was probably a lot more relaxed this time just because obviously I’ve done it before and it was a little bit shorter kick. I think having done it before really helped calm me down a little bit."

Get recognized more since the last big kick? "Yeah, for sure. I don’t have a problem going out anywhere. People mention that kick and I’m sure they’ll mention this one too. It’s such a big city and I’m just like a regular guy, so I can just fit in most places and not be noticed. People do bring it up a lot. It’s cool to play in this market. It’s really good when it’s going good and when it’s not going good, it’s not the greatest place to be. Fortunately, we’ve had a nice career here and won a lot of games, so it’s been good."

4-year-old twin sons Caleb and Jaden. Do they comprehend what you do for a living? "They go to a little private school here in town. All the kids and teachers know what I do. They’re at an age now where they know Daddy plays football. Jaden actually told me that he told people to stop talking about his daddy today because everyone was talking about me. It was pretty funny.

"They know I kick. Before a game, they say Daddy, kick it high and far. It’ll be pretty cool to have them at the game."

The kids will be at the Super Bowl, but didn't go to San Francisco for the NFC Championship Game: "They go to most of the home games, the 1 o’clock games. They’ll stick around for a half. The Giants have a really nice childcare facility and they’d almost rather go down there and be with their buddies that they’ve grown up with."

At age 33, Tynes is the oldest Giant, and he has no plans of slowing down: "This is my 11th year in pro ball – 8 in the league, 2 in Canada, 1 in NFL Europe. I’m actually the oldest guy on the team. I’ve had a goal to play to 40. I feel as healthy as I’ve ever been and strong as I’ve ever been at this stage, so I don’t see why not. Plus, they moved the kickoffs up five yards, so that’s been a big help."