INDIANAPOLIS (Reuters) - New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said his team paid the price for missed opportunities as he suffered his second Super Bowl loss to the New York Giants on Sunday.

The Patriots were not able to make the most of chances on both sides of the ball with fumbles they failed to recover and also some dropped receptions in falling 21-17 to the Giants in the National Football League's title game.

"We had a couple of missed opportunities out there. Every guy in the locker room wishes he could have done a little bit more and maybe the outcome would have been a little bit different," Brady told reporters.

"It was a very hard fought game and we fought until the end. I'm very proud of that. I'd say we just came up a little short."

Brady, who would have equaled Hall of Famers Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw's records of four Super Bowl wins with a victory over the Giants, was gracious in his praise of New York.

"I'd like to give the Giants a lot of credit. They certainly made the plays when they needed to. That is a very good football team and they put a lot of pressure on us," said Brady, who was accompanied in the media area by his Brazilian supermodel wife Gisele Bundchen.

Brady was given the ball with 57 seconds left and the Giants 21-17 up but he was unable to lead the touchdown drive that would have given his team victory.

"We got to the 50 yard line and just ran out of time. We threw a Hail-Mary at the end. I'm not sure how close we were to getting it. Obviously I wish we could have done a little more," he said.

Brady gave up a safety on his first possession after being penalized for intentional grounding while throwing the ball from the end zone without an apparent target to avoid being sacked.

"It is a referee's judgment call. I was looking down the middle of the field and (Justin) Tuck was looking to come get me and I tried to get rid of it. The referee made the call," he said.

Brady now faces the difficult task of trying to reach his sixth Super Bowl next season but said he would be ready to take on the challenge again.

"I said after the game 'I'll keep coming to this game and keep trying. I'd rather keeping coming to this game and lose than not get here.'

"Hopefully we will be back at some point. We had a great year, we just didn't make enough plays today."