Sun Jan
28, 6 pm (CBS) - Giants - Ravens
The
new millennium
Some
people argue about the exact date of the new millennium.
Historians and mathematicians have a problem as
to when things actually got started. Depending on
how you figure it, some pick Jan 1, 2000, and others
like to go with the Jan 1, 2001 date. There are
some other possibilities. Giants fans will correct
everyone.
For them, the new Millennium started on Jan 14,
2001, at the Meadowlands. That's when the NY Giants
team unleashed everything they had on the favored
visiting Minnesota Vikings, beating them thoroughly
on both sides of the ball, to earn the right to
go on to Super Bowl XXXV. The resounding score of
41-0 rocked Giants Stadium to it's foundation.
The
resounding stopped inside the stadium walls
Somehow the rest of the football world failed to
take notice of this. Somehow, the 41-0 score earned
the Giants merely the right to be underdogs in Superbowl
XXXV to the smash-mouth Baltimore Ravens. The problem
as we see it, is that the Giants made it look way
too easy.
The lesson is this. Never take your magic marked
deck and say, "Pick a card, any card.",
and immediately proclaim, "Three of clubs!".
If you do that, no one will believe it's very hard.
The Giants took their magic trick playbook and made
it look all too easy against the Vikings. Now everybody
and his brother knows how to beat those purple chumps.
Just gather up a few of your neighbor buddies and
line up against the Vikings. It's easy once you
know how the trick is done.
Ravens
up next
OK, so the Ravens
are favored by 3 points. They were not favored in
their previous two playoff games, but they have
shown that they can take the field and physically
beat the hell out of the other team until they get
the ball close enough to the goal posts. If this
was the rugby Super Bowl, the Ravens would be favored
by 33 points.
In any event, the Raven feel they have arrived.
"We're thrilled about being favorites," linebacker
Peter Boulware said. "We've been wanting attention
and we've been wanting recognition all year and
now we've got it."
Recognition
and attention can be a bad thing
The Ravens
have been in the limelight all week, and not everyone
likes what they see. Their head coach, Brian Billick,
berated the press and then turned his team loose
to saunter around the town. Tony Siragusa, recently
fined $10,000 by the NFL, proclaims that the Baltimore
Ravens have the greatest defense in the history
of the NFL. This is a big claim to make in the state
of Florida where the Miami Dolphins once ruled on
defense. As Nick Buoniconti has pointed out, "It
was a great ride for us down there (in Miami), three
Super Bowls, an undefeated season.... I'm very grateful
for having played on a team that lost only six games
in three years and a defense that was second to
none in the history of the game."
Baltimore's Ray Lewis, who wears a tattoo of his
own likeness on his right leg, compared himself
to Jesus when asked about his involvement with some
friends in a double-murder incident. Shannon Sharpe
said that by 9 o'clock Sunday night, the Ravens
will be celebrating a championship.
Sharpe and Lewis are not only guaranteeing a victory,
but there's talk of a shutout over the Giants, which
would be the first Super Bowl shutout ever. They
were even predicting another quarterback knockout,
this time on Kerry Collins, and one player had the
nerve to talk about knocking out both Kerry Collins
and backup Jason Garrett.
Teams usually show a bit more respect towards opponents
who have made it this far, especially for a game
revered as much as the Super Bowl. The Ravens are
clearly being recognized, and have been drawing
attention to themselves, but mostly it's not a good
thing.
Quarterbacks
The Ravens
have destroyed quarterbacks in three straight games.
Denver's Gus Frerotte, Tennessee's Steve McNair
and Oakland's Rich Gannon were each forced out of
the game. Fines were levied later on Lewis - $7,500
for his hit on McNair, and Siragusa - $10,000 for
smashing Gannon into the dirt. The NFL should make
up a chart so the Ravens can have a check on hand
to present to Paul Tagliabue when he hands over
the trophy, because they have come to learn that
smashed up quarterbacks mean victory.
Trent
Dilfer
The last time
the Giants played against quarterback Trent Dilfer,
it was right here in Raymond James Stadium, in the
1999 season opener against Tampa Bay when Dilfer
was their quarterback. Dilfer was 15-of-31 for 174
yards and a touchdown, and he tossed three interceptions
before being replaced by Eric Zeier in a 17-13 Giants
victory.
Kerry
Collins
The Giants
front line has kept Kerry Collins free of injury
all year. He threw every regular season pass. Kerry
had an amazing outing last game when he was 28 of
39 passes for 381 yards and had 5 touchdowns, setting
postseason club records for completions, yards and
TDs. This was done against a Vikings defense ranked
28th in the league.
Kerry is up against a much tougher defense this
Sunday, but his front line is still effective, and
Kerry is mobile enough to work with a smart mix-it-up
game plan to keep the ball moving down the field.
We don't think the Giants will be able to run much
on the Ravens, but a few dump-offs to Tiki, some
short passes to Hilliard, Joe Jurevicius, and Greg
Comella should do the trick.
Toss in a few deep ones to Amani Toomer and Ron
Dixon with a surprise visit by Joe Montgomery, and
there are certain to be points on the board. As
many suggest, Pete Mitchell would be perfect here,
but we feel compelled to exclude him.
We
Giants fans laugh
Every
time we read some reporter's account before a game
where he says "now is the perfect time to use
Pete Mitchell" we laugh. Not at the reporters
strategy which usually makes sense, but because
he doesn't realize that the Giants have a special
place for Pete Mitchell. It could be in their hearts,
or mind, or more likely the doghouse, but whatever,
it's certainly not on the field. There seems to
be some kind of moratorium on using this particular
tight end. Pete Mitchell is just for show, and that
was even proven just this week when he was chosen
as the Super Bowl bachelor women "most want to score
a touchdown with."
At least they're willing to throw him some passes.
In post season play against the Eagles, Mitchell
had just two catches. Against Minnesota where Kerry
Collins spread his 28 completions to seven different
receivers, incorporating five touchdown passes,
Pete Mitchell had no catches.
Pete Mitchell does have class. He says, "I'd love
to make a play that would make a difference in the
game. That's my goal every week. But there are a
lot of guys on this team who can do that, and we
spread the ball around." Pete Mitchell has the kind
of class that people have come to expect from these
Giants who play in the Meadowlands, but no one truly
expects him back next year, and we fans don't exactly
know why.
Saturday
night
Coach Jim Fassel said
the Giants will gather for a mandatory team dinner
tonight at 6 after which they will be locked down,
without any visitors, at the team hotel.
The
pick
Giants 27 Ravens 6.
Why so many points for the Giants against this tough
defense? We feel that if the Giants get ahead in
this game, they won't be able to run the ball and
the clock down against the Ravens. That means more
ball control through passing, resulting in more
yards and scoring.
Injuries:
GIANTS: PROBABLE: FB Greg Comella (buttocks);
CB Reggie Stephens (foot); WR Amani Toomer (ankle-knee);
S Shaun Williams (hamstring).
Baltimore: PROBABLE: LB Peter Boulware (shoulder);
LB Cornell Brown (thigh); WR Billy Davis (knee);
S Kim Herring (ankle).
Notes
Ravens
are 16th in total offense, 5th in rushing, 22nd
in passing.
Ravens are 2nd in total defense, 1st against the
rush, 8th against the pass.
Giants
are 13th in total offense, 11th in rushing, 13th
in passing.
Giants are 5th in total defense, 2nd against the
rush, 16th against the pass.
Punt
returner Jermaine Lewis led the NFL with a 16.1-yard
average this season, the highest in league history
for anyone with at least 30 returns .
Including
playoffs, Giants have limited the opposition to
fewer than 100 yards rushing in 8 straight games.
TE
Howard Cross, is the lone remaining member of the
Giants' Super Bowl XXV team.
Jason
Garrett has three Super Bowl rings that he won with
the Cowboys, where he played 8 years behind Troy
Aikman. He never took a snap in any of those Super
Bowls.
This
season, the Giants had the fifth-best defense in
the NFL, and they were second only to the Ravens
in run defense.
Jim
Fassel is one of only four Giants coaches with more
than one playoff win:
Bill Parcells 8, Jim Fassel 2, Jim Lee Howell 2,
Ed Danowski 2.
Kerry
Collins one of only four Giants quarterbacks with
more than one playoff win:
Phil Simms 6, Jeff Hostetler 3, Kerry Collins 2,
Steve Owen 2.
Next
year the Super Bowl will be played at New Orleans,
then Houston (2004), Jacksonville (2005), and Detroit
(2006).
For
those very organized fans.
If you use a Palm Pilot and
want to keep the Giants schedule, and actually,
the whole NFL schedule on it, there is a free download
available here at PFL.
Last
Week's review, Giants
41, Vikings 0
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