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.

THE GIANTS' STARTING OFFENSIVE TACKLES
DISMISS RUMORS OF THEIR ADVANCING AGE

By Dave Klein
The two starting offensive tackle were lined up side-by-side in the locker room after the practice session of the third OTA was concluded.

It wasn't intentional - their lockers are next to each other And it was, perhaps for one of the last times, that both of them will be able to say they represent the starting tackles for the Giants.

Kareem McKenzie and David Diehl, men so big they could pass for redwoods, looked no worse for wear after the grueling workout - and remember, this is just springtime and these were non-contact drills.

McKenzie is 6-6 and weighs 327 pounds. He will be 31 on Monday. Diehl is 6-5 and 320, and he's 29 (although he'll be 30 two days after the season starts).

But McKenzie has been said to have a chronic back spasm condition while Diehl has, for a few years now, been rumored to be facing a move to left guard, which in turn would push the erstwhile starter, Richie Seubert, to the bench.

"A chronic condition of what?" McKenzie yelped. "I'm fine. I'm not hurting. I keep hearing about that but it just isn't true. You know, don't believe everything you read in the newspapers, present company excluded."

McKenzie has played in the NFL for 10 seasons, the first four with the New York Jets and the balance as a Giant. So it was time to ask that "old man" question.

"Would you compare yourself five years ago with today?"

He smiled. "Am I older? Yep, but I'm smarter about my position," he began. "Am I a little slower? Yep, but I know how to get to where I have to be faster. All things considered, I'm a better tackle now than I was five years ago."

Diehl chimed in loudly. "You know, this competition thing is what keeps the NFL going," he said. "Every team wants to replace every one of its players with someone younger, stronger and better, but it doesn't usually happen. That's why there are so many veterans still starting."

What about moving to guard? "That's an old story," Diehl laughed. "I'm a left tackle and I intend to remain the starting left tackle. I can't tell the team what to do, or the coaches, but if they find somebody better, I guess they'll make the move."

McKenzie is in more immediate jeopardy. The Giants drafted Will Beatty last year and he played well enough as a rookie to warrant a legitimate shot at the right tackle position. In all truth, however, he has the skills of a left tackle - the problem is that the Giants don't have another left tackle and if McKenzie's back is problematical (you are allowed to believe SOME of the things you read) then Beatty can't stray from the right side and that means Diehl is going to stay on the left.

The backup tackles are Guy Whimper, Adam Koets and free agents Jacob Bender, Reuben Riley and Herb Taylor.

"If every kid who came up was as good, strong, fast and smart as the coaches and scouts say," Diehl laughed, "there would be new starters on every team in the league every season. The veteran guys like us are here for a reason; we're still the best around."

EXTRA POINTS - Starting tight end Kevin Boss will undergo "debridement procedure" on his right ankle next Monday at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York and will be unavailable for between four and six weeks ... The surgery will be performed by Dr. Martin O'Malley. ... Medically speaking, debridement is "the surgical excising of dead, devitalized or contaminated tissue and the removal of foreign matter from a wound."

Boss, the "veteran" of the tight ends after just three seasons, smiled wryly. "I will try to do everything I can to help those 'younger' guys out," he said. "You know, literally it feels like just yesterday that I came in as a rookie and I had Jeremy Shockey to mentor me, but the years slide by and now I am one of the older right ends." ... That's for sure, since the others are Travis Beckum (a rookie last year) and rookies or first-year players Bear Pascoe, Scott Chandler and Jake Ballard.

The rest of the injury report - Guard Kevin Boothe will undergo surgery next week to repair a torn pectoral muscle and will not be ready for the opening of training camp. ... "This is an extensive thing," said head coach Tom Coughlin. "I don't see training camp [for him], no." ... Boothe, a four-year veteran, has mostly played guard but has also filled in at tackle and is expected to be out a minimum of four months ... Safety Kenny Phillips, the Giants' first round draft pick in 2008, underwent knee surgery last September and still isn't ready for full participation. ... But he was on the sidelines and interjected himself into many of the defensive huddles. ... "I just can't wait to play," he said. "I think I'll be ready. I'm on track and I think everybody is just being cautious for now. I get nothing but good reports from the doctors and trainers."

Running back Andre Brown, who suffered a torn Achilles tendon during training camp last summer, took part on a limited basis but did do some running with the ball. ... "It felt good," he said. "They had to pull me out at times. I made a few cuts and I was feeling good. I shouldn't have any limitations by training camp."

Oh, and don't you dare call him Andre the Giant.

Jonathan Goff looked like the starting middle linebacker but that was only during the first drills. ... "Don't put anything into that," said Coughlin. "They are all going to rotate. This is just springtime and nothing is set." ... The others under consideration for the job vacated by the release of veteran Antonio Pierce are Gerris Wilkinson, Bryan Kehl, Chase Blackburn and rookie Phil Dillard, the fourth round draft pick. ... Someone slipped and called the rookie "Phyllis Diller," but fortunately not to his face. ... Defensive end Jay Alford, who tore knee ligaments in the first preseason game in Chicago last August, participated in the drills.

Coughlin on his young players -- "After the rookie minicamp the rookies had to be told the same thing 20 times, I can see improvement. Now we only have to tell them the same thing 15 times. All rookies are equally confused."

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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