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.

THERE IS A SIMPLE EXPLANATION, FANS - MAYBE THE GIANTS AREN'T THAT GOOD

By Dave Klein
There was no excuse for the way the Giants played against the Washington Redskins on Sunday.

But there was an explanation, and it isn't the one any fan will be happy to hear.

This is just not a good team.

Whether the Giants go to the playoffs or not, and they will if they win their last two games (but who's counting on that?) there is still tons of work to do, many, many changes to be made and it would not come as a surprise - not at all - if many of the coaches, if not all, suddenly joined the ranks of the unemployed.

It was embarrassing and humiliating, sure, but even more than that it was unforgivable. The Giants are 7-7, and yes, they have been wracked with injuries. No question, players who have been lost were players who had value and would have provided assistance.

But study that a little deeper. If Steve Smith hadn't bolted to the Philadelphia Eagles and if Domenik Hixon hadn't hurt his knee and been placed on Injured Reserve, Victor Cruz would not have gotten the chance he got. And all he has done with it is become the team's leading receiver, with more than 1,000 yards.

If defensive end Osi Umenyiora hadn't found several injuries to suffer after negotiating all summer for a new contract and being rebuffed, then young Jason Pierre-Paul would not have played nearly as much as he has - and he has 14.5 sacks to become one of the NFL's most feared forces. He had 16 tackles against the Redskins and didn't even play every down. That is almost impossible. But he was one man against a tide of ennui, against a team that simply didn't seem to put forth enough.

Tight end Kevin Boss chose to sign with the Oakland Raiders, so the Giants had no choice but to try free agent Jake Ballard. Given that choice now, which one would you pick? Right, Ballard.

There is something deeper and yes, almost sinister, in the periodic collapses of this team. Are the veterans not trying hard enough? Are the rookies and young guys still in awe of where they are? Are the injuries and "bumps and bruises" that cause a handful of veterans to miss practices during the week real or imagined?

No one will say, of course, not even free safety Antrel Rolle, who never stops to say anything else that comes to his mind. Tight end coach Mike Pope once said about Jeremy Shockey: "He has no 10-second delay from his brain to his mouth. If he thinks something, he says it."

Rolle appears to suffer from the same affliction, but his act is getting tired. He can find fault with others but not himself, and he hasn't played all that well this season. In fact, when the Redskins were looking at a third-and-17 situation late in the first quarter, quarterback Rex Grossman (who appears to be good only against the Giants) threw a 16-yard pass to wide receiver Donte' Stallworth. Who missed the tackle? Antrel Rolle.

That set up a far more possible fourth-and-one from the Giants' 41, and Grossman converted that, too. Four plays later he threw to wide receiver Santana Moss for a 20-yard touchdown and a 10-0 lead.

Adding insult to all this injury, the victory marked the first time since 1999 that the Redskins had won both games against the Giants. Embarrassing? Their record is now 5-9, and their only victories against a team with a winning record came Sunday; when they beat the Giants in the season opener, nobody had a record.

Now it's the Jets on Saturday, another team that was hopelessly outplayed Sunday by the Philadelphia Eagles (and isn't it weird, the Eagles are still technically alive in the NFC East?). What we have here is a pair of under-achieving teams with high expectations and almost nothing to show for it.

The Jets can make the playoffs as an AFC wild card team, and to do that it would be of great help if they won Saturday. The Giants cannot be a wild card team, since the runner-up in the NFC East won’t have a good enough record.

It will do precious little good to go over the players' comments - "we have a big game coming up, we have to focus on that, we can't change what has happened, we are only concentrating on the Jets." It's all nonsense. Players have to say something, so they do, and in truth they are saying nothing at all.

"This is a big game because of the circumstances," says Eli Manning. "We have to win, they [the Jets] have to win. Both teams are fighting for a playoff spot and both of us are coming off losses, and no factor is bigger than that both teams are looking to get into the playoffs."

Manning, whose QB rating through 13 games was up near 97, finished Sunday with a QB rating of 45.5, and in case you aren't aware, that's terrible. He completed 23 of 40 passes for 257 yards and no touchdowns. But there were three interceptions. His receivers didn't help much - Hakeem Nicks and Cruz each dropped absolute touchdown passes; Nicks was thrown to 12 times and caught five, Cruz was Eli's target nine times and caught five.

It was horrible, and with the exception of Pierre-Paul, the defense was verily invisible. Washington had 10 more minutes of ball possession than the Giants, Grossman converted eight of 15 third-down opportunities, the Redskins had a 17-3 lead at halftime and the Giants never even made a motion or a gesture to threaten them in the second half.

Well, there is one hopeful sign. The Giants have a better record this season on the road (4-3) than they do at home 3-4). And wouldn't you know that this game Saturday is a Jets' home game? Golly, fans, another chance to exert superiority on the road. Well, sort of, anyway.

So get ready for the Jets on Saturday and then, if the Giants should lose, get ready for Baggie Day a week from Monday after the season finale - horrors, another home game - against Dallas.

And then get set for the myriad changes that should be put into effect.

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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