Monday, September 28, 2009

ANOTHER GIANTS WIN

43:38 Time of Possession
28 Rushing yards allowed
58 Passing yards allowed
5 first downs allowed

Not much more needs to be said.

The GIANTS continue to focus on themselves and correct what is correctable.  They are honest about their play and their schemes, and they do what they have to do to get better.  Unlike some teams in this league ( The one in Texas comes to mind) they don't make excuses, and they don't blame others.  They scout themselves constantly, and fix the problems.

If you watched the game yesterday you saw a beautiful defensive scheme.  Tampa has no deep receiving threats, they had to rely on the run, and some short passing because of pressure.  At any one time you could count 10 defensive players within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage for the New York GIANTS.  They simply smothered the Tampa offense.

Not much of a test, but many of us remember when these games were either closer than they should be, or even losses.

Back on the road next week to Kansas City

Friday, September 25, 2009

A MAJOR LOSS.....

The loss of Kenny Phillips for the year is a major blow to the GIANTS defense and their chances of a championship.  Phillips was a hard hitting safety who could play the deep ball and support the run.  He will be missed by a team that is already struggling stopping the cut back run, as mentioned previously here, and is suffering other injuries.

Justin Tuck is questionable, Ross and Dockery are still out, Nicks and Ware are still a week away, and Canty is still not practicing.  The only good news is that it is early and it will be a huge boost when these players return healthy and rested.  The schedule favors the GIANTS the next few weeks, and they have been very good at fixing themselves, and challenging themselves each and every week.  Tom Coughlin is doing a wonderful job.

The Tampa team is strange at best.  They are 0-2 with the number 4 offense in the league.  They can score points, but give up many more than they score.  They too have injuries this week.  Their starting running back is questionable, along with both wide receivers.  This still will be a tough test for the defense.

The GIANT offense will be the key this week.  They need to run the ball effectively, and Eli needs to stay hot against a beat up secondary.  It will be hot and humid in Tampa this Sunday and the GIANTS need to stay focused and challenge themselves to stay undefeated.

GIANTS are 6-7 point favorites.  2nd of three straight on the road.

Enjoy!

Monday, September 21, 2009

64 MILLION DOLLARS AND THERE"S NOTHING ON!

1.2 Billion for a new stadium
64 million for a Jumbotron
Beating the Cowboys in their first game:  PRICELESS

As you can imagine, Jerry Jones wasn't Wellington Mara's favorite person.  After the GIANTS beat the Cowboys in Jerry's first season as an owner Mr. Mara had one comment  "IT"S NICE TO SEE ARROGANCE HUMBLED"  I think the sentiment remains true today.

Phony, I mean Tony, Romo was awful.  The pressure of the Giants, the pressure of the moment, got to Romo last night and he was what he always is in big games....Invisible.  3 interceptions that led to 21 Giants points.  That was the story of this game.

The GIANTS are even more banged up than before this game with Justin Tuck missing the second half.  No word yet on how long he will be out.  The positive news was the start of Michael Boley.  he was everywhere last night and you can see why they signed him this offseason.  He will be a full
time linebacker with this group and will make a difference in their pass coverage.

Eli was Eli.  He is comfortable in any situation, and you have to feel now that anytime you are within one score with 3 minutes or less, he will get the job done.

Mario Manningham took a huge step last night, and with Hixon and Nix out, he will be an major player on offense.

2-0 in the division, a great start....off to Tampa next week!

Friday, September 18, 2009

A VERY TOUGH SPOT...

The GIANTS get the honor of opening the Cowboys new stadium this weekend in Dallas, or actually Arlington Texas.  The hole in the roof is still there, but now it can be closed in inclement weather.  The PSL's for this stadium range from $30,000 to $150,000.  It seats well over 80,00 and will have a full attendance of over 100,000.  The main attraction is the video board that hangs over the field, it is 60 yards long and 20 yards wide.  Basically there will be a 100,000 people watching t.v. in the stadium on Sunday.

The Cowboy defense looked awful as usual against Tampa last week.  They gave up plenty of yardage through the air and on the ground.  They will be vulnerable to the GIANTS running attack this week, and the offensive line of the GIANTS has something to prove after their poor showing last year.

The GIANTS unfortunately are not at full strength for this meeting.  As mentioned before in this blog, injuries are going to slow this defense down a bit before it grows into a dominant unit.  No Aaron Ross, no Chris Canty, and a maybe on a few others in the secondary.  The good news is that Michael Boley will play his first game for the GIANTS.  He should add to the athleticism of the linebacker corp and help slow down the backs and tight ends of the Cowboys.

Look for Eli to switch to running plays often and exploit the Cowboys defense.
If the GIANTS can weather the crowd and very talented Cowboy offense for the first half, they will have a great chance of going 2-0 and take a lead in the division.  They need to shut out the distractions and put the Cowboys under pressure.  Remember the Cowboys lost their last game at old Cowboy stadium, they surely won't want to lose the first one here.

Cowboys favored by three at home means it's a dead even game.

Enjoy

Monday, September 14, 2009

GIANTS FOOTBALL

Time of Possession: 36 minutes and 8 seconds
18 first downs, 46% on third down conversions
351 total yards of offense.

Only bad stat is the o for 3 in the red zone.  That will have to get better.

Defense looked strong and stout.  Gave up some cut-backs and passes over the middle as discussed, but they are missing some key ingredients in the secondary and linebacking corp.
Not sure if anyone noticed, but 3rd and 8 for the 'Skins with about 3:45 to go on the third, Campbell comes to the line and what does he see?  The 5-1-5!  He immediately called a timeout.

One good thing about having Tom Coughlin as head coach, the fake field goal will NEVER happen again!


Overall good performance, will have to check on injuries during the week, nothing reported as too serious.

Back on Friday with the preview.

Friday, September 11, 2009

ONE TEAM.....ONE CHANCE

This is the mantra for the New York Giants for the 2009 season.  They feel empty after last year, having accomplished so much, and having nothing to show for it.  Tom Coughlin has tried to instill the belief that in today's NFL you only get one chance as a team to succeed.  Every year the team changes, people move on, and this is your one chance to come together and get it done.

Things to look for this year:
Offense: The "Rally Offense"
The GIANTS will use what they call the rally offense this year.  We all know that the offense has struggled at times to get the plays called and get the ball snapped on time.  The GIANTS will go to a semi-huddle, no huddle offense.  It is not for the purpose of rushing the play, but to get ELI to the line sooner, let him make his reads, and change anything he wants to change.  It will help keep the rhythm going and should solve the problem of getting the play off on time.
Backs: The backs will be more involved in the passing game this year as primary receivers.  Instead of being the last resort, or simply a check down, the backs will have passing plays designed for them to get them more involved in the passing game and get them out in space.
Long Ball: The GIANTS will throw the long ball more this year than we have ever seen.  The receivers they have now have speed, something Amani Toomer and Burress never had.  They are quick and have speed.  Eli throws the long ball as good as anyone in the league, and you will see it on display this year.

Defense:  Pressure, Pressure, Pressure.  That is the backbone of this defense.  You will see corners blitz, line backers blitz, safeties blitz.  The GIANTS are deep and quick up front with OSI back, and you will see fresh rotations of players inserted to keep maximum pressure on the opposing offense.  The only shortfall of this defense is the cut back run, and the short crossing pattern.  The linebackers are not the best in the league, and they plan on covering up this weakness by applying pressure.
The 5-1-5: This is a unique defense the GIANTS will employ mainly on third downs.  It's 5 lineman, 1 linebacker, and 5 defensive backs.  It provides for maximum pressure or maximum coverage depending on how the offense lines up.  If they go 5 wide receivers, there is a defensive back for all of them and then it's 6 against 5 up front.  If they go 3 wide, it's a defensive back covering a running back, and 7 against 5 up front.  It will be exciting!
Injuries: Aaron Ross is out.  Chris Canty may not be 100%.  Michael Boley is on a one game league suspension from last year.  This may cause for a little bit of a slow start.  This coupled with a new coordinator and a slightly new system may be cause for a slow start.  Don't be discouraged early, it will be a very good defense.

The GIANTS are 6 1/2 point favorites at home on opening night.  sounds like a safe bet.  The REDSKINS are notoriously slow starters, with a QB that they tried to replace all off season.

Enjoy the opener and I will review on Monday

Saturday, September 5, 2009

The Final Cut

No surprises today as the roster was trimmed to 53 players.  Five of the seven draft choices made the team, a signature of the Reese era, one is on injured reserve.
The 2 names you will notice missing are Michael Matthews, a backup tight end that was traded to new England for a draft pick and Super Bowl Hero DAVID TYREE.  Tyree who had the famous catch of Super Bowl 42 was bothered by a hamstring problem all camp and just didn't perform well when given the chance.  Tyree knew it was coming and was accepting, and will always be remembered for the play that gave the GIANTS a chance to win in 2007.
The Giants open the season against Washington in the Meadowlands next Sunday afternoon, followed by three road games.  The first place schedule as usual is difficult, but will give the Giants the chance to show they are again the class of the league.
Season and week one preview published here on Friday.