EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Whenever Eli Manning has been faced with a significant challenge or prepared for a big game in his four-year NFL career, he has been asked, without fail, if he called his older brother Peyton for advice

QB Eli Manning will lead the Giants against the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII!

Well, that might change, at least for a while. On Sunday, Manning – that would be Eli – led the Giants to a dramatic and hard-fought 23-20 overtime victory over the Green Bay Packers in frosty Lambeau Field. The Giants now advance to Super Bowl XLII a week from Sunday in Glendale, Ariz., against Peyton’s old nemeses, the New England Patriots. Peyton’s Indianapolis Colts were eliminated in the divisional round by the San Diego Chargers. Last night, Peyton called his young brother after the biggest victory of Eli’s career. “He said, ‘I am proud of you, congratulations, this is fun, take it all in, and enjoy it,” Eli said today. Peyton, of course, was the Super Bowl MVP last year after leading the Colts to a victory over the Chicago Bears. So of course, Eli was asked today – all together now – did Peyton offer him any advice last night?

“He said I am past the point where he can give me advice now - he wants it the other way around,” Eli said. “I don’t know if I believe that, but it is good to hear him say that. And I will take all the advice I can get from him.”

Manning and the Giants were letting it all sink in today – the fact that they upset the Packers in the brutal cold in Green Bay (where the wind chill was minus-23), that they had posted one of the most memorable, exciting and significant victories in the 83-year history of the franchise, and that they were getting another shot at the undefeated Patriots – who beat them 38-35 in the regular season finale – on sport’s grandest stage.

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But as great as it all is, the season will have a hollow ring if they can’t beat the Patriots. As more than one player said, no one remembers who lost the Super Bowl. Because they are so determined to retain their one-game-at-a-time sensibility, the Giants were reluctant to talk about what the victory means in the grand scheme of things.

“As I have maintained for the entire season, I’m not really the reflective type,” Coach Tom Coughlin said. “And I’m sure at some point (he will reflect on the season), but not now. What we have been able to do all year long is kind of stay looking forward. And the one thing I was telling somebody last night is that I am real proud of this team in that the modest success that we have had – we have never kind of gone and looked at that and thought, ‘Gee, that’s pretty good.’ We have always gone forward to the next guy and I think pretty much that is the attitude we will keep.”

To outsiders, the story of the Giants’ three-game postseason run has been the development and maturation of Manning. He has completed 62.4 percent of his passes and has not thrown in interception in 85 attempts. Coughlin is proud of how well Manning has played, but he is anything but surprised. To him, Manning long ago had his coming-out party.

“Everybody wants to know about change, change, change (in Manning),” Coughlin said. “This is a guy that just consistently goes in that (ascending) direction. His temperament is so good. He stays out of the valley and he doesn’t get up on the peak to the point where he lets all of this business affect him. He’s managed the game extremely well and he’s made the plays necessary to help us win. He’s thrown the ball extremely well, no matter what the conditions are. He hasn’t made the errant thrown. He’s stayed away from the interception ball. He’s done all of those things to help his team win. He’s taken charge of everything. He’s in a position where he’s leading his team to victory. He likes that spot. He’s always, always cherished that. I remember him sitting in my office his rookie year, (saying), ‘Coach, I want to be the starting quarterback of the New York Giants.’ I see that in him now.”

Coughlin was asked by a reporter if the media underestimates Manning.

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“I think that you sometimes, you write what you see, but you don’t see what I see and for that matter, you could call it underestimating him, but we don’t,” Coughlin said. “We know what he is capable of doing and he is just scratching the surface in our opinion.”

Manning, who has absorbed his share of criticism, said he has no desire to say, in essence, I told you so.

“This is bigger than that,” Manning said. “This is about this team. It is about the players, the coaches, everybody who has believed in us, who has had no doubt and just comes to work every day preparing and keeps working. That is what it is about. It is not about proving anything to anybody. It is just about doing it for yourself, doing it for your teammates.”