Giants' Smith seizes healthy chance

0 Comments | USA TODAY, February, 2008 | by Mike Dodd

CHANDLER, Ariz. -- In the regular season, New York Giants wide receiver Steve Smith caught eight passes for 63 yards. In three playoff games, he has nine receptions for 102 yards, including four catches on third down or in a two-minute drill.

The difference? Health and opportunity. The conclusion? The Giants picked a player undaunted by the big stage when they selected Smith in the second round of the NFL draft last spring.

Few rookies are better prepared for the buildup to the Super Bowl than Smith, who played in two Bowl Championship Series title games while at Southern California, against Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl and against Texas in the Rose Bowl.

"It's helping me, big," Smith says of the experience. "I tell my friends and family you only...