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.

NOT SO MUCH WHAT THE GIANTS DID BUT MORE OF WHAT THEY DIDN'T DO

By DAVE KLEIN
We are less than a week away from the Giants' mandatory three-day minicamp, after which time some of the players will continue to work, others will attempt to gain some sort of vacation time before the real crunch begins, head coach Tom Coughlin will fly off to Iraq and Afghanistan with four other coaches (past and present) on the USL-NFL tour and training camp will begin on Aug. 2.

What the Giants have accomplished in the days and months since their embarrassing playoff elimination defeat at the claws of the Philadelphia Eagles remains to be seen, but for these purposes it might be wise to dwell on what they have not accomplished.

For instance, they have neither replaced wide receiver Plaxico Burress nor Amani Toomer, their two starters when last season began. Plax is gone, having been released early in April after the prolonged discussion about his future as "The Shooter" on the team.

Toomer, the 13-year good guy veteran, was simply allowed to walk off into the sunset, perhaps a mistake and (some think) perhaps one that might be rectified before training camp starts.

Now the wideout corps consists of such as Steve Smith, Mario Manningham, Derek Hagan, Sinorice Moss, rookies Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden and a few hopeful free agent babies. Perhaps overlooked by many, quarterback Eli Manning, starting his sixth season, is older and has more years of NFL experience than any of his receivers.

There are other potentially dangerous weak spots in what might be an outstanding team if they are fixed. For instance, there is the need for at least one quality (read: experienced) safety as a backup to Michael Johnson and Kenny Phillips. The corners seem secure and deep. The linebackers might come up with a few problems -- the age and slight loss of speed of Antonio Pierce in the middle, the questionable status of Danny Clark (will rookie Clint Sintim get a real chance?) on the strongside and the newness of UFA signee Michael Boley at weakside.

But the front seven (or eight) might be the best in the league, featuring ends Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, Mathias Kiwanuka and Dave Tollefson; tackles Barry Cofield, Fred Robbins, newly-signed veterans Chris Canty and Rocky Bernard and Jay Alford. The kind of speed, power and quantity can make up for many small weaknesses behind them.

In terms of next week's minicamp (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday), Coughlin has no special plans. "It will be a continuation of where we are [now]," he said. "We'll try to take those areas where we need the most work and [now] having introduced it, come back to these people for a second time and see how the young guys respond with that information in front of them. It will be a culmination of what we have done all spring. It will be under a magnifying glass because the practices are rapid fire and the camp is over before it even starts."

***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****

The recent series of questions concerning the continued absence from the team (and the roster) of veteran wide receiver Amani Toomer prompted several comments from E-GIANTS subscribers.

First and foremost, the overwhelming reaction was negative towards the Giants' handling of the situation, since the 13-year veteran was simply (at least to the public perception) ignored and allowed to wander off into the twilight of his Unrestricted Free Agent status.

Many of you wrote your discontent and unhappiness with the situation, and most of you correctly pointed out the value that would almost certainly be gained from his years of experience as an on-the-field tutor to the young wide receivers. Imagine, of all the wideouts on the roster at the moment, the ones with the most experience are Derek Hagan, Sinorice Moss and Domenik Hixon -- they have been in the league for three seasons, but only Moss has spent that time (often disappointingly) with the Giants.

Steve Smith, arguably the best of the crop, will be starting his third season this year and is clearly written down in pen-and-ink as a starter.

So listen to a few of the e-mails from other Giant fans. Then go compose your own.

From Joe F. -- Great thoughts and insight. I could not agree with you more. Unless Toomer suddenly lost his ability to run precise routes along with his uncanny gift of making very difficult sideline catches while keeping his feet in bounds....It would seem that he still provides value. His contributions in making key receptions during the 2007 Super Bowl run is well documented along with a number of outstanding regular season plays that helped the Giants get to the playoffs. The touchdown against the Bears is a prime example. Even last year the Giants do not beat the Steelers if he does not make the 30 yards diving over the shoulder, keeping his feet in bounds catch, that led to the winning TD.

From John F. -- I've been really disappointed the way Amani has been more or less pushed aside. I know it's the way of the NFL these days -- aging player, making too much money. But still, look at our friend [Bill Belichick] over on the Patriots sideline -- he finds a way to keep and use valuable veterans in just the right way. There must be a way to use Amani's skills at least one more season. I think they are going to miss him more than they now realize. The talk has been all about how they will miss Plaxico Burress, but I think they are going to miss Amani almost as much, or more in some ways. One thing that has been consistent when the Giants have been at their best is that they have had veteran leaders at key positions. As much as anything I think they are going to miss his leadership. I hope we haven't seen the last of Amani.

From Marty F. -- Well put. In the playoff run through the Super Bowl it was Toomer who led in receptions and touchdown catches -- and he led in catches during the Super Bowl. The "star" (Shooter, as you have so aptly named him) had only one catch. Yes, it was the winner but they weren't in position to win because of him. Last summer, after Domenik Hixon couldn't keep is feet in bounds in the first practice game, it was Amani who worked with him during the next week and showed him how to get his feet down. The next week Hixon was the newest star receiver, getting his feet down on multiple touchdowns and being anointed by the uninformed as a Pro Bowler. The Giants still need Amani's veteran presence.

From Rodney B. -- I think one of the reasons that Amani was not signed was because management wants all of the practice reps to go to the young ones. [Offensive coordinator] Kevin Gilbride has said that the Giants are a 'power running team' although I think they should air it out a little more. The 'power running game' was not good enough to win many games last December.

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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