LAST STAND

The cowboys come calling this weekend for their final trip to the "old" Giants Stadium.  Both teams need this game for their playoff possibilities.  The Cowboys have a little more leeway, however they both need this game to take a step forward.

The GIANTS have made some changes on defense this week that will be very noticeable.  They have benched Osi  and Fred Robbins.  They will play Mathias Kiwanuka and Chris Canty in their stead.  This will give them more size and quickness, and these players have earned the right to see if they can make a difference.  Also Chase Blackburn will be replaced by Jonathan Goff, a bigger, tougher middle linebacker. This being the NFL, all of the players will play, but the situations in which they are used will be different.  Osi has been awful against the run all year, and they believe that Canty can "Hold the Edge" better, and that Kiwanuka has the quickness to get the needed penetration into the oppositions backfield.

The offense is still thin at running back as D.J. Ware is out with a concussion, making the questionable Ahmad Bradshaw a pivotal player in this weeks game.  He is listed as questionable, but insists he will play Sunday.  The running game has to establish itself in this game, it must be a consistent weapon used to keep the Cowboys honest.  The Arlington Cowboys are very thin in the secondary and their starting safety Ken Hamlin was ruled out of the game as of today.  The Giants need to force the Cowboys to commit people to the run in order to get time to pass, and have somewhere for Eli to throw the ball.  Without a running game, this will be a long day for our beloved Big Blue.

The Cowboys always bring out the best in the Giants.  This should be a fantastic game IF the Giants can play to their ability level.  The usual trash talking has accompanied Cowboy week,  including Jerry Jones putting the pressure on his team to win this game to wrap up the division in his mind.

As usual there will be no weather ( whatever happened to weather in the NFL?) 43 degrees and partly cloudy.  The GIANTS will welcome back Tiki Barber Sunday as an honorary captain.  I'm not sure the crowd will be as welcoming....but with the stadium closing soon, they need to pay homage to the guys who made the memories.  This will keep him away from the closing game where I imagine lots of the old GIANTS will be honored.  But as Wellington Mara always said "There are no Ex-Giants, just inactive Giants."

Enjoy this one.....

Giants getting points for the first time all year.