Sat Aug 05, 8pm UPN 9 -
Chicago Bears at New York Giants
The
start of a brand new preseason
The Giants closed out last year with a three game losing
streak, and finishing at 7-9 for the season, they decided to make
some big changes. They made QB Kent Graham an offer he couldn't
refuse - almost no pay to stay, and so he wisely went elsewhere
(Pittsburgh).
The plan here is to have Kerry Collins stand alone as the undisputed
first string QB for the Giants. That wouldn't have worked if Kent
Graham was still around, and second string QB Jason Garrett, picked
up from Dallas, is fine working in that position. The Giants feel
that Kerry has the arm they need to get to the playoffs and beyond.
Now there is no confusion for the troops or misplaced loyalties
to distract anyone from the tasks at hand.
Fassel plans to play Kerry Collins for only a quarter against the
Bears, so there will be plenty of time to see Jason Garrett and
Mike Cherry in action.
A
Quarterback can't do it alone
The Giants needed some better blocking for their quarterback, so
they revamped the whole front line, signing left tackle Lomas Brown,
left guard Glenn Parker and center Dusty Zeigler as free agents.
They moved Luke Petitgout from guard back to right tackle, a position
he's much more familiar with, and only right guard Ron Stone is
playing in the same position he held last year. While this veteran
group has more individual experience and maybe overall talent, the
problem is that it takes time for players to learn each others moves
and become an effective unit.
New
Offensive Coordinator
Sean Payton is calling all the plays now, since they discovered
he does it so much better than head coach Jim Fassel Expect to see
some pre-snap shifting, multiple formations and special plays designed
to confuse the defense and create mismatches on the field.
The Giants have lots of speed, and that, combined with this kind
of changing offense, can produce some really big demoralizing plays
for the opposition.
The Giants defensive players have noticed this as they practiced
against their counterparts during training camp. They feel that
things are a bit harder to handle now compared to the predictability
that was there last year. Now that's really good news.
A
solid running game will make things a lot easier too, and the Giants
drafted Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne, with their first draft
pick. After finishing 24th in the league in rushing in 1999, they
hope to wind up in the top ten with the new offensive line, new
plays for shifty runners like Tiki Barber and Sean Bennett, and
new power running back, Ron Dayne.
Viewing pleasure?
Maybe not much this game. These same two teams are going
to play each other in the third week of the regular season. Most
likely, they will not want to expose anything that seems to work
very well for very long. The major focus for this game will be seeing
how the Giants offense, especially the running offense, does against
the Bears defense that also has been reinforced from last year with
a number of free agents.
There has been a lot of attention focused on WR Ron Dixon, the Giants
third round draft pick. He's has lots of speed and confidence and
made some great plays in camp. Jason Sehorn has been looking real
good also, and could be back to his original form of 1997, after
two years of injuries. A lot of fans would love to see that.
Mostly for Giants fans, this game is a chance to see the new draft
picks in action, watch Kerry Collins toss a few to the growing bunch
of speedy receivers, while hoping that the banged up defense can
hold against the tough Chicago offense.
The
call?
The Giants get the edge in this game because the Bears have been
banged up even worse than the Giants, and will probably have make
do, and for longer, with more of their newer players.
That's not to say that the Giants are so pleased to have defensive
players Michael Strahan (back), Keith Hamilton (hamstring) and Shaun
Williams (toe) sitting on the sidelines this game. Running back
Joe Montgomery (cut lower lip) and linebacker Michael Barrow (bruised
knee), might also miss the game.
Next
Game
Aug
11, at Jacksonville 8:00 PM.
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