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Special Report

Sent: 02-15-12

E-GIANTS
Dave Klein was the Giants' beat writer for The Star-Ledger from 1961 to 1995.
He is the author of 26 books and he is one of only four sportswriters to have covered all the Super Bowls. Dave has allowed TEAM GIANTS to reprint some of his articles.


REVIEWING THE WILD 2011 SEASON: HOT, COLD, DARK -- AND SUPER

By Aaron Klein
The Super Bowl XLVI Champion New York Giants took an interesting path on their way to the title, to say the least.

Let us remember.

Most coaches like to break down their team's 16-game schedule into quadrants, much like the four quarters of a game, and figure that success in each fourth translates into overall success and a ticket to the post-season.

Much like this: Aim for a 3-1 record in each quarter of the regular season, and if you get it you finish with a 12-4 record, likely the best in your respective division and probably a first-round bye.

In three of the Giants' four quarters of the season, they did just that, finishing each four-game stretch at 3-1. Sure, it was infuriating at times, and each section saw one inexplicable and downright awful loss amid the three wins.

Oh, and there was some weird stretch of four games during which the entire team, staff and front office was whisked away into captivity.

The Giants went 0-4 in the third quarter of the season and everything went dark. Even before the season began, everyone knew it was the meat of the schedule, during which the Giants needed to win at least half of the time to ensure the NFC East title and a playoff berth.

Instead, they lost four straight, all to NFC foes, all with playoff implications. Along the way, calls for the ousting of head coach Tom Coughlin, general manager Jerry Reese, ownership, half the roster and even some concession workers at MetLife ran rampant throughout Giants Land.

And yet, just like they did in many of their victories, the Giants found life again in the fourth quarter, turned around for another 3-1 stretch. Most importantly, they won three division games, beating Dallas twice to overtake the Cowboys for first place in the NFC East, booking a home playoff game against Atlanta in the process.

How did we get there?

The tumultuous 2011 season began with a bang when the drawn-out labor strife ended in mid-July and there was a mad rush to get to training camp. There were no off-season organized team activities (OTAs), nor was there an off-season workout program... all of which translated into less preparation than ever.

The Giants elected to hold training camp in East Rutherford instead of UAlbany, and it was probably the right move from a logistics standpoint as well as from a pre-season one. They needed to get up and running as soon as they could and staying at the Timex Performance Center was the best choice.

They won two preseason games, including one over New England (that's foreshadowing for you) but lost cornerbacks Terrell Thomas and Brian Witherspoon in the same game. Lost wide receiver Domenik Hixon in Week Two, as well.

We didn't see the best of 2011's key players yet, guys like Eli Manning, Victor Cruz, Jason Pierre-Paul, Hakeem Nicks, Justin Tuck, Michael Boley, Jake Ballard and many others... yet.

FIRST QUARTER
The first four games of the regular season began with a whimper in an inexplicable loss to Washington, replete with a performance by Redskins' quarterback Rex Grossman that shocked everyone and a complete lack of fire on the part of the Giants. It was as though they weren't there at all, though we saw glimmers, especially in the play of the defensive line and the Manning-Nicks connection.

With a relatively soft schedule ahead of them, the Giants rebounded and beat St. Louis. No, they didn't crush the Rams and they should have, but the defense let the opponent in the door too many times. Nothing was easy for the Giants in 2011. Up next were games at Philadelphia and Arizona, the former a rematch with the ultimate rival and the latter a potential trap game.

The Giants cruised (Cruz-ed) through both, surprising many who had seen the season opener, and we all started to see that Manning might be headed to a career year. Ditto Nicks, who exploded against Arizona. More importantly, we finally saw what Cruz was all about. He got his chance with Mario Manningham out with a bad knee, but he took a regular role with both hands against the Eagles, beating Philly's free agent coup, Nnamdi Asomugha for two touchdowns.

SECOND QUARTER
Another inexplicable loss, this one to Seattle, opened the second fourth of the schedule. The Giants showed the world that they could start weakly and scramble back, sometimes even to victory. In this one, it was too little too late and the defense let them down again, though you surely remember Manning's three picks, and the eight-percent third-down conversion rate, and the pass defense.

Still, at 3-2 the season was still young. The Giants ripped off a pair of wins over AFC East foes Buffalo and Miami, neither without drama and tension, before the bye week. They beat Buffalo without Justin Tuck, Chris Snee and Brandon Jacobs. They faced a Buffalo team that had gone on a tear and became the darlings of the league. The Giants became the "Cardiac Kids" once again and, despite the 5-2 start, looked a little lost.

Then came the bye and we were mostly worried about two things -- injuries and righting the defensive ship.

And there were those Patriots again, looming on the horizon. The Pats weren't playing their best ball yet, either, but somehow over the last four years these two teams had become rivals. Winning would not only mean one more "W," but it would also be a moral victory. With a loss we'd all start to wonder how the team would do in November and December.

Win.

THIRD QUARTER
At various times, the Giants were without Tuck, Jacobs, Bradshaw, David Baas, Manningham and on and on.

But the team found its dark side, that scary, underachieving side that has gotten it into trouble many times before. Once again, many wondered (incorrectly, as it turned out) if Coughlin was the right guy to lead the team, if defensive coordinator Perry Fewell could do the job necessary to win the division and go to the playoffs.

However, upon closer inspection, two of the four third-quarter losses were winnable games regardless of the result. The Giants were right there against San Francisco and, aside for one, final drive from Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers that saw great offense and plainly lousy defense, the Giants were right there, too.

They were far, far away in losses to Philadelphia and New Orleans, however. The former was a killer loss to an NFC East rival and the latter a painful defeat against an overwhelming New Orleans offense.

The four losses put the Giants in a huge 6-6 hole. Worse, the impression was that they were plainly finished and that the season had just imploded.

As always, there was more to this story.

FOURTH QUARTER
With their collective backs against the cold, hard brick wall of another lost season... ahhh, just the way they liked it.

"Must win" proceeded "all in" when it came to inspirational slogans. They had no choice but to win at least three of the final four and hope for a favor or two from the Dallas Cowboys.

Let's forget that other blip, the one against the Redskins, the one in which the Giants seemed ready to go to sleep for the winter. Maybe they just felt too comfortable at 7-6. Maybe they needed a little extra pressure, as if they didn't have enough already.

At 7-7, with the season on the line --- maybe even a few jobs, too --- two games remained, one against the blustery and big-mouthed New York Jets and the final contest against Dallas, again. They had to win both to have a chance at winning the division. A wild card position was out of the question.

The offense, minus the powerful running game that had defined Giants football for so many years, was prolific with Manning, Nicks, Cruz and Manningham. The offensive line was a patchwork, the tight end position was erratic with Jake Ballard doing all the right things when he was healthy, Bear Pascoe and Travis Beckum holding serve when Ballard was not.

Defensively, everyone knew the Giants had a great pass rush from the line, but Tuck was still hurting. The good news was that not only had Pierre-Paul arrived, but Osi Umenyiora, who had missed most of the season with a bum knee, had returned to form.

At linebacker, Chase Blackburn, back from private life and playing out of his head, was holding fort at the MIKE position and Matthias Kiwanuka was strong as a SAM-DE hybrid.

It was Michael Boley, however, who emerged as the defensive quarterback and was playing a career year.

The secondary, on the other hand, was still struggling after a series of injuries and terrifying experiences at the hands of Drew Brees and even Rex Grossman, of all people. It was as though the secondary had still not recovered from the loss of T-2 in the preseason.

What happened over the final two games was damned near epic. The Giants were strong against the Jets, a game in which Cruz completed his journey to greatness with an inconceivable 99-yard touchdown catch, breaking three tackles and taking off. Even Bradshaw, who had just 54 yards on 15 carries, punched in two touchdowns. The Giants were standing tall and the NFL was taking notice. After losing four straight, the Giants looked as though they were ready to peak, and there were murmurs of 2007.

And on that same weekend, the Giants got a little help from the "Dream Team" when Philadelphia woke up long enough to beat Dallas.

So on New Year's Day night, the Giants found themselves in a win-and-in situation. Just the way they liked it.

They rolled, of course, simultaneously crushing Dallas' playoff hopes while winning the NFC East title with a 31-14 victory. Cruz pulled off a 74-yard touchdown and went 6-for-178. Nicks caught five for 76 and a score. Bradshaw scored twice.

Most importantly, the defense came alive, stifling Dallas and Tony Romo with six sacks and a pick.

Suddenly, the Giants had gone from an afterthought to the dark horse to win it all.

They hit their stride at the right team, got hot and earned a chance to go all the way, making everyone forget the four-game losing streak, the losses to Washington and Seattle, the injuries and the finger-pointing.

They took it all in, burned it for fuel and went all the way instead.

Have something to say? Got a question? Thoughts?
Send it over to aklein22@verizon.net
or follow me on Twitter @_AaronKlein_.

Check out Dave's website at E-GIANTS where you can subscribe to his newsletters which run much more frequently than what is available here.
- Team Giants

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