Q&A: Kate Mara

Mara: My dad said to me recently, "Well, it looks like you're not our good-luck charm anymore." He was laughing, but I was like, Oh, no. I'm hoping that I'll make a comeback.

SI: How do you watch a game?

Mara: If we're obviously going to win, then I'm OK and I'll interact with friends or family. But I usually bite my nails off and drink 10 bottles of water. There's nothing worse than people who want to make you feel better when you are losing. I just want to smack them.

SI: Your father, Chris, is the Giants VP of player evaluation. Can you give us insight on how to evaluate an NFL player?

Mara: Good God, no. But my dad knows so much about the league. Whenever any news happens, I call my dad right away.

SI: You were 17 when the Giants played the Ravens in the Super Bowl. Tell me about that day.

Mara: I remember it being one of the most exciting times for my family. It was really thrilling. Before the actual game it was parties every night, everyone celebrating. Then the game happened. There was a party after the game, which we all found sort of silly. Why are we celebrating that we lost? But you have to celebrate that you got that far. It's sort of a thank-you to the players for giving their all. I remember all of us being glum. It's crazy going high to low in such a short amount of time. I didn't want to go to school the next day. It was rough.

SI: Who is the first Giants player you had a special feeling for?

Mara: Phil Simms and Lawrence Taylor. Simms was the quarterback, and you usually go with the quarterback. He was so great and my family loved him so much. He was such a good guy. I remember a few times people mistook my dad for Phil. I think people thought they looked alike for a second, and when I was younger I thought that was the coolest thing in the world, although sometimes they were screaming at him because we lost and saying, "Phil, you suck!" I was like, Oh, my God, Dad, they think you are Phil Simms. That was sort of my first player I really started to notice. Then L.T. became my all-time favorite.

SI: What's your favorite Lawrence Taylor story?