Super-Bowl Champion Giants 'All In' At Trip To White House
NEW YORK (WFAN/AP) -- To the victor go the spoils.
The Super Bowl champion Giants have paraded down the Canyon of Heroes and received their rings from Tiffany & Co. For Eli Manning, there was the "Late Show" and "Saturday Night Live." A few former Giants have cashed in elsewhere, and others were rewarded with a pay bump from Big Blue.
The latest formality was on tap Friday for the NFL title-holders: a celebratory trip to the White House.
President Barack Obama honored New York's Super Bowl XLVI victory over New England in a ceremony starting at around 2:45 p.m. In return, Tom Coughlin's squad presented the president with his own No. 44 jersey.
Obama credited the Giants as a team that didn't quit despite obstacles. He said that while no one on the team was "perfect," everyone did their job.
The Giants, as expected, were active on Twitter leading up to the visit. Punter Steve Weatherford led the charge, posting image after image from the team's train ride to Washington, D.C.
"Bear Pascoe is stoked to meet Barack Obama! #yeehaw," Weatherford tweeted, along with a shot of the tight end in his White House-worthy cowboy hat.
"In 2001, my 8th grade class was supposed to take our class trip to the White House, 9/11 happened so we couldn't go," wrote linebacker Spencer Paysinger. "Told myself I'd make it there one day."
It was the second title in four years for Super Bowl MVP quarterback Manning and the Giants. Obama said that for many members of the team, "this is just welcome back" to the White House.
The Giants won their final two regular-season games to win the NFC East. The team then won four postseason games, capped by a 21-17 Super Bowl win over the New England Patriots.
As Obama seeks re-election, Coughlin joked that "we both have a goal" to get back to the White House next year.
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