FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Between the theatrics of the game's suspenseful final minutes and the excitement that surrounded the Giants' victory today, a rejuvenated Brandon Jacobs may have gone unnoticed amid the headline-grabbing moments.

That might not come as a surprise, given the circumstances and that Jacobs has spent the better part of the season astray from the success the Giants have had, in part due to his performance and in part due to his mouth.

Jacobs came into the 24-20 victory over the New England Patriots today a struggling running back, averaging just 3 yards per carry. He came away with a performance that had defensive end Justin Tuck professing how important Jacobs is and can be.

“It’s important for him to understand that being 6-4, 270 pounds he’s just as fast as anybody else on that football field. When he comes downfield, when that guy’s motor is rolling on a play, he’s tough to handle. I don’t care who’s playing. A lot of people do not want to see him in the hole when he’s running like he ran today. I hope he understands that. I hope he understands how valuable he is to this team,” Tuck said.

“As a defense we love to see him run like this. Those defensive linemen, those linebackers, you hit one of those guys across the head with a 270-pounder running like that, the next time they’re going to stick an arm there. Then the next time they’re going to wait for their buddy to hit you. Before long you’re just gashing them. It’s important for him to understand what impact he can have on a football game,” he said.

Jacobs had an impact today. He rushed for 72 yards on 18 carries, running with a vigor rarely seen from him this season. He attacked open lanes and showed flashes of the bulldozer who scored 15 touchdowns in 2008.

After a first half in which both offenses sputtered, Jacobs helped crack open the game in the third quarter when he scored the first touchdown of the game to give the Giants a 10-0 lead.

“I was fired up for this one,” Jacobs said. “I can get my opportunity to go out there and get some totes and really be effective and help my team win. I was just hitting it hard.”

The Giants’ running game, which has struggled this season and had to come into this daunting stadium without the injured Ahmad Bradshaw, received a much-needed boost.

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The offense averaged 4.4 yards per carry and totaled 106 yards mainly behind Jacobs, filling in capably for his missing friend. As much as this game drew parallels to Super Bowl XLII, both in form and fashion, so did Jacobs.

“He played really well,” coach Tom Coughlin said. “He was powerful and there wasn’t any east/west or any thoughts of that today. I mean he just dropped his shoulder and ran and he pounded his way to some really nice runs. And he also, when the hole wasn’t there, he made 2 or 3 (yards) many times, which ... second-and-7 is a lot better than second-and-10. So, I thought he played well and I thought he played tough.”

Mike Vorkunov: mvorkunov@starledger.com