Cast Aside by Giants, Jeremy Shockey Savors 2nd Super Shot

Jeremy Shockey has a Super Bowl ring, but this time the New Orleans Saints tight end will play in the game, unlike two years ago when he missed the New York Giants' Super Bowl XLII win vs. the New England Patriots because of a broken leg.

Asked if he truly feels like a player who has won a Super Bowl, Shockey raises his eyebrows and scrunches his face in dismissive surprise.

"Oh, yeah," the four-time Pro Bowler firmly says.

"I mean, there's a void there, because I'm a competitor and I want to play in the game," Shockey says. "But I played for (the Giants) six years, and you don't win a Super Bowl in one year -- it's takes a building block, and I was (part of) the process of that, and I feel great about that."

Shockey always has been a flamboyant-but-fierce competitor on the field, and he never has been afraid to speak his mind off of it.

He once said the Giants were "outcoached" after a loss. He and Eli Manning weren't exactly best buddies, especially early, when Shockey sometimes questioned decisions by the young quarterback.

Giants coach Tom Coughlin and management often were not amused, yet among fans he became one of the most popular Giants in years.

But it finally got to the point where he simply didn't feel he could make the most of his skills with New York and that a trade might be the solution. He was dealt to the Saints for two draft picks in July 2008.

And here he is, back where he starred for the University of Miami, preparing to face the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV.

"It's a great fit here, (but) I have nothing but good things to say about the organization in New York and the city and everything," Shockey says. "So I hope the fans up there understand I wasn't forced out of New York. It was more of an option than anything. It was just my time to leave."

Third-year Saints running back Pierre Thomas shakes his head and smiles when asked what Shockey has brought to the team.

"Shockey brought his own little deal," Thomas says. "Shockey, he's a special guy. Everybody knows what Shockey is capable of doing. He's a wild guy. He brings excitement. And you know? That's what sometimes you need on a team.

"And he's determined -- determined to be successful. He's a hard worker, as hard a worker as anybody I've ever seen."

Shockey was the team's fourth-leading receiver this season with 569 yards and three touchdowns on 48 catches.

But he also has been bothered by foot and knee problems that kept him out for nearly a month of the regular season before he returned for the playoffs, where he caught a touchdown pass in the divisional round against the Arizona Cardinals.

Still not at full strength, he had one catch in the NFC Championship Game vs. the Minnesota Vikings but says there's no question about his ability to play Sunday in the Super Bowl.

After the Giants' Super Bowl win two years ago, Shockey skipped the victory parade and later the ceremony at the White House. He says he heard and read the talk that he was being something of a malcontent.

"Everyone made it out to be, 'Jeremy was unhappy about his team winning. Jeremy was unhappy about the success his team had without him,' and that's the complete opposite," says Shockey, who paid his own airfare to Phoenix for Super Bowl XLII after deciding at the 11th hour to attend, then watched the game from the owner's private box.

"I was very excited, it was much deserved and it was a great experience for me to enjoy my teammates' hard work and being the underdog and actually controlling that game," he says.