Super Bowl - Brandon Jacobs Hopes His Power Comes Into Play Giants running back Brandon Jacobs scoring in the fourth quarter of the N.F.C. title game. EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The value of Brandon Jacobs to the Giants was reinforced during the championship game last Sunday. Not in San Francisco, where the Giants outlasted the 49ers to reach the Super Bowl, but in Foxborough, Mass. There, trailing by 3 points in the closing seconds, the Baltimore Ravens had the ball on the New England 14 and needed 1 yard for a first down. Twice they passed. Twice they threw incompletions. Tom Coughlin, the Giants" coach, noticed. "You have to keep the ball," Coughlin said Friday. You have to have the ball in order to have a fresh set of downs - you got another opportunity. As the Giants seek their second title over New England in five seasons, it is possible that their best defense against Tom Brady may involve not Jason Pierre-Paul and Justin Tuck but someone else who shares their hulking size. "When we get down there, we definitely have to get points and not field goals," Jacobs said. Because you'll get beat if you only get field goals. Perhaps the Giants should tape Jacobs's words inside their locker room at Lucas Oil Stadium, for their truth is unassailable. Every team that has played New England since Nov. 6, when the Giants marched into Gillette Stadium and won, has subscribed to that theory, and no one - not the Jets, not Denver and not Baltimore, which went 1 for 4 in the red zone - has succeeded. The Giants would love to grab an early lead and hold it, rolling behind Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw, who missed the last meeting because of a fractured foot. "You're always more confident when you have all your guns," Jacobs said. In a sense, the Giants" rushing offense is not unlike the Patriots" defense. Both units are maligned, sitting near the bottom of the N.F.L. during the regular season. But the rankings - 32nd for the Giants, 31st for New England - are somewhat misleading. Just as the Patriots have improved since the run-stopping linebacker Brandon Spikes returned for the season finale after missing two months - they bottled up the Ravens" Ray Rice (67 yards on 21 carries) last Sunday - the Giants" running attack has surged since Bradshaw came back in Week 13. Over those eight games, the Giants have averaged a yard better per carry (4.2 to 3.2), pounding Atlanta in particular - for 172 rushing yards in the wild-card round. Guard Chris Snee praised the offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride for sticking with the run when "we really haven't given him much reason to do that." "We're getting more consistent cutting down on the negative runs and taking the 2- to 3-yard runs," guard Kevin Boothe said. Before, we were putting ourselves in the whole second-and-11 or second-and-12 where we become more one-dimensional. In turn, that placed a burden on Eli Manning. The Giants, with a dynamic quarterback and a diverse and versatile receiving corps, are more explosive than their three Super Bowl-winning predecessors, but they know they need a substantial effort from their running game to beat New England. "Oh, no question," Jacobs said. I definitely think we are going to have to play a bigger role. As long as we stick with the run, be patient, hang with it, something is going to pop at one point or another. Jacobs, operating in fits and spurts, has served as a microcosm of the Giants" running game. At times he has thrived. At others he has fizzled, his season divided into uneven segments. He went from struggling as a backup to dealing with a knee injury to foundering as a featured back to rebounding during the final month, when he averaged a robust 5.1 yards per carry. "We need Ahmad to stretch the defense and get the front moving," tight end Jake Ballard said. And we need Brandon to power in there and run over some guys. Throughout his challenging season - injuries and frustration, losing streaks and shifting roles - Jacobs has remained a critical asset in short yardage. According to ProFootballFocus.com, Jacobs has converted 70.8 percent (17 of 24) of his opportunities in that situation - 2 yards to go or fewer - and 61.5 percent (8 of 13) in the red zone. "Especially down there, where yards become tough and space becomes limited, he definitely becomes valuable," Boothe said. He wears on defenses. I can't think of anyone in the world who would like to tackle a 260-pound-plus runner over and over again. Just ask the Patriots. Their memories of Jacobs are probably not of his 72-yard output on Nov. 6, but rather a 2-yard rush on Feb. 3, 2008. On fourth-and-1 from the Giants" 37, Jacobs went over Snee and gained the first down. Seven plays later, they scored the game-winning touchdown. In the Super Bowl.