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 five sportswriters to have covered all the Super Bowls.
Dave has allowed TEAM GIANTS to reprint some of his articles.

By DAVE KLEIN
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Tiki Barber had done everything a running back can do in his nine-year career with the Giants except make it to the Pro Bowl.

He can't say that any more. He was named one of three NFC running backs to the Feb. 13 game in Hawaii yesterday, along with Seattle's Shaun Alexander and Green Bay's Ahman Green. They are the top three rushing leaders in the NFC.

In a gratifying twist, Tiki's brother, Ronde, a cornerback for Tampa Bay, was also voted to the Pro Bowl (his second such honor). They become the seventh set of brothers to make it there, but the first set of twins.

"I think I'm happier for Ronde," Tiki said. "I am always happy for my brother when he accomplishes something. Yes, I'm excited for myself, too. It is quite an accomplishment, and I think the things I did during the off-season have finally paid off."

Those things included taking direction from head coach Tom Coughlin on how to carry the ball, how to protect it and the overall concept of ball control. Last year, when he gained 1,216 yards but fumbled nine times, losing five of them. "The individual numbers didn't matter as much as the fact that I was hurting the team," he said. "I worked hard in the off-season and I credit coach Coughlin with changing my mentality concerning how I carry the ball. He focused on what I needed to focus on, how to hold the ball safely."

That translated into a "high and tight" technique, and it worked. Tiki has fumbled only four times this season and lost the ball only twice. He's using both hands now, clutching the ball higher against his chest instead of swinging it wildly with one hand.

"I had to learn something [how to hold the ball] and I did," he said. "It was hard work but I have never minded that. I focused on not causing turnovers that hurt the team and now, if I play well, it gives us a better chance of winning. That's what I focus on."

The Giants were not without other Pro Bowl selections, but the three others were chosen as alternates. They included David Tyree, first alternate special teams player; Jeremy Shockey, second alternate tight end; and Carlos Emmons, fourth alternate linebacker.

Tyree leads the team with 13 special teams tackles, and has had a couple of spectacular "saves," pulling a punt just out of the end zone before it hit the ground and downing it deep in the other team's territory. One such save put the ball on the 1-yard line, the other on the 5-yard line.

"It's always good to be recognized," said Tyree. "Whether it's as a starter or an alternate, it's still an honor. Who made it as the starter?"

He was told it was Ike Reese of the Philadelphia Eagles, who placed nine men on the NFC squad. "Ike Reese? I guess I can dispute that a little, but I'm not going to throw shots at Ike. He's been doing this for a long time [which is a shot by itself, isn't it?]"

The Giants, 5-9 and swallowed in a seven-game losing streak, are preparing for their trip to Cincinnati the day after Christmas against a suddenly strong Bengals' squad that has only a slightly better record than the Giants (6-8) but significantly more offense and significantly fewer injuries.

Keep your eyes on the Johnsons -- wide receiver Chad and running back Rudi -- as they interact with second-year budding star Carson Palmer at quarterback. Chad has caught 82 passes for 1,161 yards and seven touchdowns; Rudi has rushed for 1,324 yards in 314 carries and scored eight touchdowns.

The interesting situation is that these two teams are quite similar. Both have recently been terrible, although the Giants did get to Super Bowl XXXV, and strange as that sounds, it was less than four full seasons ago.

The Bengals hired a new head coach last year, Marvin Lewis, and he has entered his second year of rebuilding. Unlike the Giants, Cincinnati had no compunction to call it what it was -- rebuilding. Coughlin has preferred to call it "a work in progress," and until last week's narrow but impressive 33-30 loss to powerful Pittsburgh, the work in progress wasn't making any progress at all.

Cincinnati did it with patience and clever drafting. Lewis took the shot with Palmer with the Bengals' overall first pick in the draft last year, and then sat him for the full season. Asked whether he agreed with that decision, rather than to "throw Eli in as a raw rookie," Coughlin said yesterday that it depends on the circumstances. "I don't think there is any one formula that everybody follows [with rookie quarterbacks]. You can look at any number of outstanding [quarterbacks] in this league and they have been groomed in different ways. So one philosophy my not be the way to go in all circumstances. There are a number of ways to do it and there are different opportunities during the course of a season to maneuver or do what you think is the right thing for your club."

EXTRA POINTS -- Coughlin expects the weather in Cincinnati to be "very cold" Sunday, and advance forecasts put the temperature at 10 by game time. ... "You anticipate cold and you try to do the best you can with practicing for it," he said. "It affects everything we do in terms of trying to be outside. We monitor the weather and do research on the field itself, and what people are wearing on different fields that we play on, the type of shoes they are wearing, and try to emulate that a little bit in terms of how we practice."

With weakside linebacker Barrett Green definitely out (knee, and he seems to have decided to go for the full-fledged surgery), the job is Nick Greisen's -- and it might stay that way. ... "Nick has done an outstanding job," Coughlin said. "He has proven, under all circumstances, [that he can] make plays. He has made plays with the ball coming right at him, he has made plays on the edge, he has defended the pass. He has done a good job and he has been … well, his play, nothing more, he has solidified the way our defensive staff feels about his contribution. He has, over the course of time, put some consistently outstanding games together."

Defensive tackle Norman Hand (groin), rookie guard Chris Snee (glandular infection), rookie strong safety Gibril Wilson (neck burner) and offensive tackle Brandon Winey (concussion) are out for the Sunday game. ... Kenderick Allen (ankle), Shaun O'Hara (ankle), Derrick Ward (hamstring) and wide receiver Jamaar Taylor (quad) are questionable. ... Allen has become important to the Giants, and Coughlin says he has a chance to become "an anchor [run stopper] like Hand." ... That would make him a very good anchor indeed. ... If Allen doesn't play, last year's top draft pick, William Joseph, will start. ... Good luck!

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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