When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs square off in Super Bowl LV on Sunday, there will be significant rooting interest for current and former members of the New York Giants.
On Kansas City’s side, there are familiar faces in defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and defensive backs coaches Sam Madison and Dave Merritt, among others.
On the Buccaneers’ side, there are also a few familiar faces, but perhaps none more familiar than edge rusher Jason Pierre-Paul.
That causes some conflict when it comes to picking a team to cheer on, but most seem to be leaning in the direction of JPP and the Buccaneers, which also means they’ll be rooting for Tom Brady.
“This is beyond bizarre for us,” retired offensive lineman David Diehl told NFL.com.
Although the Giants’ offensive line did battle with JPP every day in practice, he entered the league lacking experience and they actually took him under their collective wing. Diehl, Shaun O’Hara and others not only taught JPP the proper way to lift weights, they regularly worked with him on his technique and showed him what to look for at the point of attack.
“He was a handful,” O’Hara said.
The goal of the group was to mold JPP into a player who would embarrass them. Mission accomplished. They saw potential greatness in Pierre-Paul and helped him reach that ceiling.
Now, all these years removed from those informative 2010 practice battles, the group is watching on as JPP chases his second Super Bowl title.
“It’s a hell of a second act,” retired defensive lineman Chris Canty said.
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