STEP ONE

    The Giants played an inspired second half of football yesterday and improved their record to 7-4.  The first step towards positioning themselves to control their own destiny.

     We mentioned in our last posting about the need to return to "Giants Football"  Well I can't think of a better definition of Giants football then ending the game with three consecutive sacks, the last resulting in a forced fumble and a turnover.  While the beginning of the game had some rough spots, an inspired speech by Justin Tuck and some key adjustments at halftime turned the game around.

     The offense was supposed to struggle this week with all it's new and moving parts, but they really held their own.  Although they came up short on some long drives and had to settle for 3 points at a time, they did not commit any costly errors.  No Turnovers is a major step for this team.  The new receivers seemed to have no impact, but after reviewing the tape, Michael Clayton did a very good job blocking in the running game.  Kevin Boss was the obvious star of this unit, not only making big catches and reading the defenses properly, but his blocking was also much improved yesterday.  The Giants ran for 135 yards with Brandon Jacobs leading the way with 14 carries for 87 yards and Ahmad Bradshaw adding 49 yards on 9 carries and 34 yards with 4 catches.  One difference I noticed was the amount of counter steps the two backs took during the game.  This is a new wrinkle for our running backs.  The first step away from where they are really headed seemed to cause the desired hesitation, and allow for some big holes to be opened.   The Giants responded with 15 points in the 4th quarter to win.

     The Defense struggled in the first half stopping the run.  All the mis-directions and options, along with slant patterns, and quick outs kept them off balance.  The announcers made a point that many teams don't run the option often because they don't have a QB with the skills of David Garrard, but it's also because not many coaches like seeing their QB get pounded after pitching the ball to the running back.  The Jaguars went away from the option and other finesse plays in the second half.  Garrard was off target early in the second half, and although he did make some more plays with his legs, the Giants really slowed down the two running backs and took away the quick slants, allowing the pass rush to be effective.  The GIANTS set themselves up to punish the opposition when they were down.  I love the way our defense continues to attack no matter the situation.  When some teams get a first and 20 on a team, they sit back and play coverage, allowing for the short throws and defending the first down line.  Not our team...we continue to pressure and try and get to the QB before any receiver has a chance to run 5 yards, let alone 25 yards.

    Even the Special Teams had a good day.  good kick and punt coverage, the one missed punt rolled for 53 yards, and we found out that the kick returner we have been searching for has been on the roster the whole year.  Danny Ware did a great job returning kicks yesterday.

5 games left....3 in the division....tied for first place with the number 2 defense in the league.  Not a bad spot to be in, and further proof that it is a long season.

Have a good week...Speak with you on Friday