Brady said passing against the Giants in Super Bowl XLVI was “like throwing in a forest.” Defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul batted down a pair of passes. Michael Strahan had a batted pass in the 2008 contest.

“That’s what we wanted to do. That’s what [Brady] does anyway,” Umenyiora said. “The edge rush doesn’t really bother him much. You need to have some really good interior rushers.”

For the Falcons, that means having the league leader in sacks, Vic Beasley, getting pressure off the edge and forcing Brady toward Atlanta’s best interior rusher, Grady Jarrett. Then they can rely on their offense to supplement their defense.

The Giants realized that keeping Brady off the field was the best way to slow down the future Hall of Fame quarterback. The fewer opportunities he had, the better off they were. It may sound like common knowledge, but it’s harder to execute.

Lost in the shuffle of Brady’s brilliance and the Patriots’ high-powered offensive glitter is that Belichick builds tough teams, especially his defensive fronts. Belichick is known for taking away the opposition’s top playmakers.

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Wide receiver Plaxico Burress had two catches for 27 yards in Super Bowl XLII; wide receiver Victor Cruz had four catches for 25 yards in Super Bowl XLVI. Although both had key touchdown grabs, their production was limited.

“The only football we thought New England respected was physical football,” said former Giants offensive lineman Chris Snee, who started at right guard in both Super Bowl wins. “We had to be more physical. You go against the offense, but both defenses we played against were physical defenses. It kind of gets lost in the shuffle. I think that is kind of the case this year, too.”

Trying to match the Patriots score for score wasn’t a viable option for those Giants (especially in the 2007 season) and likely won’t be for the Falcons. New England scored the third-most points in the NFL this season and has the unflappable Brady.

The Falcons scored the most points this season, but trying to win that battle with these Patriots might not be prudent in the Super Bowl. The Giants’ Super Bowl wins over New England were by scores of 17-14 and 21-17. They beat the Patriots by outrushing them and winning in the trenches.

That was the plan.

“That was what we had to accomplish. We had to be able to run the ball somewhat, No. 1,” Snee said. “If Belichick went in saying he wanted to take something away, I don’t think he went in thinking, ‘We have to take away the run game.’

“He was confident in who he had. He had [defensive tackle Vince] Wilfork in the middle and inside ’backers who could stop the run. We knew coming in we would have to say, ‘We’re better up front than these guys, and we have to be able to run the ball.’ And by doing that, [Belichick] may have to change some things as the game goes along. Any time you get into that kind of game where they have to make adjustments, it’s to your benefit.”

1. Keep Brady off the field and out of rhythm.

2. Pressure him with a four-man rush when he’s on the field.

3. Run the football.

“[The game plan] has to be the same because Brady is the guy. He’s the one on the field pulling the trigger,” Umenyiora said. “Belichick can’t come out there and play. It’s going to be the exact same thing. You’re going to have to get outside pressure forcing them into your inside rushers. If they can do that, they can have success.”

Easier said than done in the Super Bowl against Belichick, Brady and the Patriots.

“These were needs that not only were critical to his day-to-day, but critical to his development, preparing to go back into surgery.”

Fortunately for the Olsens, they could afford the care. Since 2013, their foundation has helped 47 families that could not.

Luann and Brian Register, whose son Brantley was born with HLHS in 2014, said they would have lost their home had it not been for Olsen’s program.

Aimee’s husband, Frank, knows for sure he couldn’t have afforded the additional $20,000 to $25,000 in-home nursing cost on top of the other hospital bills.

“The first time [Olsen] met with a lot of us in the hospital as a group, he wanted to give these kids and these families the world, anything that he possibly could. We were actually the ones that said, ‘Slow down. We can’t do all that.'”

Kari Crawford-Plant, a pediatric nurse practitioner at Levine Children’s Hospital

He didn’t stop short of saying it was lifesaving for his daughter.

“I think that’s why they probably started the foundation,” Frank said. “They found out how difficult it is. Having that for my wife and me, it was phenomenal.”

Tears to advocate

Kari Crawford-Plant, a pediatric nurse practitioner at Levine Children’s Hospital, first met the Olsens in 2012 right after T.J.’s diagnosis.

“It wasn’t the best meeting because they were both sobbing,” she said. “I just introduced myself, told them they would get through it and that we would [tour the facility] another day when they collected themselves.

“He shook my hand and shut the door, and the next time I saw them was when they had twins.”

Crawford-Plant has watched Olsen grow from a father in disarray to a nationwide advocate for families affected by congenital heart defect.

“The one thing I have learned about Greg is he’s a big visionary,” said Crawford-Plant, who has become the go-to person at Levine for HEARTest Yard families. “The first time he met with a lot of us in the hospital as a group, he wanted to give these kids and these families the world, anything that he possibly could.

“We were actually the ones that said, ‘Slow down. We can’t do all that.’ “

Slowing down isn’t Olsen’s style. On the field this season, he became the first tight end in NFL history to have 1,000 yards receiving for three consecutive years.

Off the field, between his HEARTest Yard campaign and Receptions for Research campaign — founded for breast cancer research because Olsen’s mother was diagnosed with that while he was in high school — the foundation has raised well over a $1.25 million.

Olsen’s foundation received a $25,000 donation from Nationwide recently when he won a social media competition among the 32 Walter Payton Award nominees.

Among those who pushed him over the top on Twitter were actors Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and William Shatner, as well as NASCAR star Dale Earnhardt Jr.

“He has a lot of popular celebrity connections that always help,” Crawford-Plant said. “

Game-changer

Olsen recently ran into a child at Levine whom he didn’t know had the same heart defect as T.J.

“They were just playing in the hallway,” Crawford-Plant said. “He turned and asked his grandmother, ‘What does he have?’ She told him. I could see that look on his face when he realized it was the same thing.

“It’s a game changer, and we witnessed that firsthand. It’s one of those things that is hard to imagine until you find yourself in that situation.”

Greg Olsen

“T.J. was standing there beside the child and they hugged and compared scars. I’m sure they have a lifetime bond there. It was sweet to watch.”

T.J. is 4 1/2 years old now and doing well, but even with an in-home nurse there were tough days. There were times when Olsen would leave in the middle of practice and rush home or to the hospital because of an emergency situation.

Those are things he’s able to share with other families.

“The biggest message we try telling them is the day to day, you’re going to have some bad days and you’re going to have some good days, and neither one of them is a sign of how it’s going to be forever,” Olsen said.

“Just take it as it comes, don’t get too far ahead of yourself and try to map out the next week, month, year, because it’s hard enough in the beginning to map out what the next 12 hours are going to be like.”

That’s why Olsen is so passionate about the HEARTest Yard. He only has to walk down the hall to T.J.’s room to understand what others are experiencing.

“It’s a game-changer, and we witnessed that firsthand,” he said. “It’s one of those things that is hard to imagine until you find yourself in that situation.”

Starstruck to dad

Frank Cantadore was coaching a high school basketball game at Concord First Assembly Church last year when he received one of those calls Olsen got at practice.

“I knew right away it was Macie,” he said. “Her blood saturation level, it’s supposed to be in the 80s and it was at zero. It’s a very scary time going through this, knowing your kid’s chest is wide open and you’re just helpless.”

Having a nurse there to help, Cantadore said, indeed was a lifesaver. Having an advocate like Olsen has been comforting.

“I don’t know Greg, but I’ve seen pictures of his kid running around and happy, so that was really good to hear when they told us Macie had the same thing,” he said.

Many families are starstruck when they first meet the 6-foot-5, 255-pound Olsen.

“He’s a tall man,” Crawford-Plant said. “I think they all take a step back. They get over that pretty quickly, because then they realize he’s just a dad.

“Kara and him were just two parents that were fighting the same battle to make sure not only that their child survived but thrived through their childhood.”

Saves lives

Macie Joy celebrated her first birthday two Saturdays ago.

Offense: This one isn’t close. The Chargers have an elite, established quarterback in Rivers, a premier running back in Gordon and, if healthy, a legitimate No. 1 receiver in Keenan Allen. They averaged 25.6 points per game last year, ninth-highest in the NFL, while the Rams have spent each of the last two seasons dead last in average yards. Jared Goff, the No. 1 overall pick in 2016, had one of the worst rookie seasons ever for a quarterback. Gurley, the No. 10 overall pick in 2015, had one of the biggest second-year drop-offs ever for a running back. And the Rams’ receiving corps has lacked a reliable, consistent playmaker pretty much since the days of Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt. Oh, and their offensive line was quite possibly the worst in the game last season. Edge: Chargers

Defense: The Chargers have a couple of Pro Bowl cornerbacks in Hayward and Verrett. They have a young, dynamic defensive end in Joey Bosa, who was taken third overall in 2016. And they have a couple of solid contributors in defensive tackle Brandon Mebane and linebacker Jatavis Brown. But the Rams have arguably the game’s best defensive player in Donald, the centerpiece of a defensive line that can be devastating at full strength. They have a couple of athletic linebackers in Alec Ogletree and Mark Barron. And they recently hired one of the NFL’s most accomplished defensive coordinators in Wade Phillips. The Rams defense fell off down the stretch, but that was largely because their hapless offense put so much pressure on this unit. If they can re-sign cornerback Trumaine Johnson and shore up depth throughout their secondary, they’ll be just fine here. Edge: Rams