Tiki Barber 'ecstatic' for Giants
BY RALPH VACCHIANO
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Wednesday, January 23rd 2008, 4:00 AM
Tiki Barber has no regrets about the timing of his retirement, even though he quit the NFL one year too early to join the Giants on their wild, Super Bowl ride.
In fact, Barber said he's "ecstatic" for the teammates he left behind and insisted during The Barber Shop last night on Sirius NFL Radio that he's been rooting for the Giants all along. Asked by his brother and co-host, Ronde, if he was "sad" the Giants were doing it without him, Tiki said "I'm not, dude. I really am not."
"It's interesting," Barber said. "My wife asked me that exact question: 'So you have to feel, even just a little bit of remorse that you left early.' I said, 'Honey, I'm trying to make myself think that and wish I was still there, but I'm not. I was done with football. In my heart I knew I didn't want to do it anymore. My passion is elsewhere."
Barber said he was happiest for Michael Strahan and Amani Toomer, the only two players left from the Giants' 2000 Super Bowl team. He also took aim at his many critics who he feels have labeled him "a Giant hater" because he has often been critical of his old team.
"I said what I said about the New York Giants because it's my job, but that doesn't mean that I'm not a supporter of the New York Giants," Barber said. "People think I'm a Giant hater. I'm not. I went down to Tampa to watch (Ronde) play (three weeks ago). I was rooting for the Giants."
He also seems to have a new-found respect for his old nemesis, Tom Coughlin. In discussing how the Giants have succeeded in the postseason so far, Barber - who once ripped Coughlin for being "out-coached" in the postseason in 2005 - said, "The last three weeks they have out-coached their opponents. Their game plans have been better than the teams they have played."