Super Bowl 2012: Giants Who Will Be on Hot Seat vs. Patriots

If the New York Giants are going to upset the New England Patriots for the second time in four years in the Super Bowl, they are going to need monster performances from lesser-known sources. It's the same formula that allowed them to win the Lombardi Trophy last time.

Here are three players on the hot seat heading into Super Bowl Sunday.

David Diehl

Keeping Eli Manning upright is clearly the top priority for the Giants. If he gets time to stand tall in the pocket, he shouldn't have much trouble picking apart New England's porous secondary. That remains a big if, however.

Diehl will be tested in every way possible by the Patriots. Whether it's extra rushers to his side or stunts to catch him off balance, they will be throwing everything but the kitchen sink at him.

He's one of the most underrated tackles in the league, but he'll have to prove he belongs in the elite class by slowing down the Patriots. If he doesn't, the Giants will be in deep trouble.

Lawrence Tynes

After being treated like castoffs for most of the season by the media, kickers take on a completely different role in the Super Bowl. They often become the hero or goat depending on the outcome of the two or three chances they get to make an impact.

Since Sunday's game is fully expected to come down to the final minutes, there's a good chance Tynes will get his chance to shine on the big stage. He converted on less than 80 percent of his kicks during the regular season, which is a worrisome number.

All Tynes has to do is look at Scott Norwood to see how one kick can change the way a player is viewed forever. That's a lot of pressure.

Michael Boley

Boley will have a lot on his plate against New England. Not only will he be expected to chase down Tom Brady on the blitzes the Giants will undoubtedly bring, but he'll also need to help contain Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.

That's a lot of expectations, even for a player of his caliber. It also makes him a dark-horse pick for MVP. He's going to need to make two or three huge plays if the Giants are going to prevail, so he'll get noticed out there, unlike many defensive players.

There won't another non-QB on the field with more responsibility than Boley. How he handles it will be one of the major deciding factors on the entire game.