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| Dec 31 All
season long people wondered what was wrong with Brandon Jacobs. Now we know
the answer: It was his knee. Jacobs' disappointing season came to end Wednesday
when Tom Coughlin announced the Giants' running back will miss the season finale
in Minnesota and will have arthroscopic surgery on his right knee next week. According
to a team source, Jacobs has a partial tear of the meniscus cartilage that needs
to be "cleaned out." "Frustration,
man, definitely a whole bunch of frustration," Osi Umenyiora said Wednesday
in explaining his postgame comments. The importance of the game, he said, was
one thing. The Giants needed to win to stay alive in the playoff race. The game
also was the team's final one at Giants Stadium. And on top of that was his lack
of playing time, being sent on the field only in passing situations. "In a game
of that magnitude, in a game of that seriousness, just the way everything went
down, I was angry and frustrated and said some things I wish I would have kept
to myself," he said. In
his current role, Osi Umenyiora stays on the sideline on first down and often
on second down, and then if it's a passing situation for the opponent, he will
be summoned onto the field to try to get the quarterback. It's a part-time deal
for the defensive end. He accepted it as the good ship Giants sunk but he says,
moving forward, he will not take it any longer. Umenyiora said he has no problems
with Sheridan. "I can't take no shots at Bill, man," he said. "It's his first
year as a D-coordinator. He's done an admirable job in my book. I hope he doesn't
get fired. But whatever happens, I have no control over that. He's a good man." Asked if he thought he was still as much in the Giants plans as he wants to be, Osi Umenyiora replied. " I am not a general manager; I don't know what is going on. I just play football, I have tried for the most part to do everything that has been asked of me for the last couple of weeks. Obviously I am a great competitor and a man of great pride, so it's been difficult, it's been rough. I have tried to keep my mouth quiet and keep my head down and do everything that has been asked of me, but unfortunately I let my emotions get the best out of me on Sunday and said some things that I shouldn't have said." Dec
30 Last
year, when the Giants were the NFC's No. 1 seed, a conference-best six of
their players were named to the Pro Bowl. This year, they'll send one -- center
Shaun O'Hara. O'Hara, who is the first Giant to be named to back-to-back Pro Bowls
since Tiki Barber and Jeremy Shockey in 2005 and 2006, is a reserve on the NFC
team. Danny
Clark is a soon-to-be unrestricted free agent who is unlikely to return. Same
with safety C.C. Brown, defensive tackle Fred Robbins and backup QB David Carr.
Depending on what happens with the NFL's collective bargaining agreement talks,
defensive tackle Barry Cofield and receiver/kick returner Domenik Hixon could
be unrestricted, too. There could be other pieces dismissed. Defensive coordinator
Bill Sheridan might still be fired. It's unclear if Reese wants to bring back
Antonio Pierce. Clearly there will be changes on defense. Reese may also decide
an upgrade is needed along the suddenly aging offensive line. With this week’s game against Minnesota having no implications on the Giants’ season -- since they have already been eliminated from the playoffs -- it’s possible the team could sit players who have been battling through injuries. One of those banged-up starters is RB Brandon Jacobs, who has a lingering knee issue. Former
Giants Dec 29
On
the day after what might have been their sorriest performance in the history
of Giants Stadium, the Giants said "Sorry" to their fans. Though it might not
be much of a consolation to anyone who witnessed the 41-9 farewell loss that both
closed the stadium and helped knock the Giants out of the playoff hunt, both Tom
Coughlin and Eli Manning did offer their apologies Monday. But they could not
offer any excuses for the team's collapse. One player who did not face the media Monday was defensive end Osi Umenyiora, who hinted after Sunday’s game that his time as a Giant may be nearing an end. Unofficially, he was on the field for 14 of the Panthers’ 64 snaps. "He’s very much in our plans," Coughlin said. "He’s a very, very important asset to our team. We’ll leave it at that." Coughlin said the reason Umenyiora did not play much Sunday was because the Giants knew the Panthers were going to run the ball, and that Carolina used a lot of two-tight-end, two-running-back sets for that purpose. It's too late for apologies from a team that has an overrated talent level and clear coaching deficiencies, especially on the defensive side. Apologies won't wipe the slate clean, and the honeymoon from winning the Super Bowl is over, too. It's up to Coughlin to fix this mess so he won't wind up apologizing for his team's performance this time next year, too. Revamping the offensive line, bringing in another quality running back, and upgrading the depth in the secondary and linebacker crops are priorities. So is a search for a new defensive coordinator to replace the ineffective Bill Sheridan. In five seasons under head coach Tom Coughlin (excluding 2004, when Manning was a rookie quarterback), the Giants are 19-20 in the second half of the year -- and 23-23 when the postseason is included. In comparison, the team is 30-10 in the first half of those seasons. The 2007 season, when the Giants got hot late in the year en route to a Super Bowl title, is the notable exception. These numbers also include games like the Week 17 loss in Minnesota last year, when the Giants already had the NFC No. 1 seed sewn up. But by and large, the Giants have not finished well in recent years. Just two years ago, Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning were celebrating the Super Bowl championship in a Canyon of Heroes parade and City Hall ceremony. But Monday, they were apologizing for the team's pathetic performance against the Panthers. That's how far this franchise has fallen. The Giants need a makeover in attitude, leadership, pride and personnel. Coughlin and GM Jerry Reese must prevent what happened this year from happening next year. It's a good thing all but 2,000 of their PSLs are sold. Read about the Daily News' Five-Point Big Blue Blueprint For Success in 2010. I know the coaching staffs have changed over the years, but you can’t help but wonder if the Giants led the league in games lost to backup quarterbacks this decade. I'll probably miss one or two here, but from my notes I can see Matt Moore has joined a list that includes: Craig Krenzel (Bears, 2004), Doug Johnson (Falcons, 2002), Kurt Kittner (Falcons, 2003), Tim Hasselbeck (Redskins, 2003), Todd Collins (Redskins, 2007), Brad Johnson (Vikings, 2005) and Jeff Garcia (twice with the Eagles in 2006). Dec 28 Giants lose to the Panthers, 41-9 | Photos
ESPN - Moore, Stewart help Panthers end Giants' playoff hopes. Giants.com - Giants fall to Panthers, 41-9. Giants.com - Transcript: Postgame Giants Players. StarLedger - Giants send Giants Stadium out with a whimper in 41-9 loss to Carolina Panthers. StarLedger - Defensive end Osi Umenyiora questions role, future with NY Giants. StarLedger - Mario Manningham's fumble set the tone for NY Giants' dismal performance. StarLedger - Giants' defense suffers historic struggles, continues falling short of expectations in loss. StarLedger - Giants' last game at Giants Stadium: One to forget with 41-9 loss to Carolina Panthers. StarLedger - Giants officially eliminated from postseason contention. NYDailyNews - Giants crushed by Panthers in Stadium finale, eliminated as Cowboys beat Redskins. NYDailyNews - Osi Umenyiora rages about playing time in Giants' crushing defeat to Carolina Panthers. NYDailyNews - Panthers linebacker Na'il Diggs leaves mark on Giants Stadium. NYDailyNews - Pitiful loss to Carolina Panthers shows Giants' Super Bowl run in 2007 was a fluke. NYPost - Giants dominated by Panthers, 41-9; playoff hopes buried. NYPost - Fans' final memory: Real stinker. NYPost - No defense for this Giant debacle. NYPost - No heart, no pride, no playoffs. NYPost - Panthers LB revels in Big Blue revenge. NYPost - Great game, except for final 52:48. NYPost - Hideous loss has Eli & Co. singin' Blues. NYPost - Pride goeth before Big Blue fall. TheRecord - Giants give Stadium a gutless goodbye. TheRecord - Blue day for Giants fans. TheRecord - Giants embarrassed by Panthers in Giants Stadium farewell. CharlotteObserver - Steve Smith breaks arm on TD catch. CharlotteObserver - Fox deserves one more chance. CharlotteObserver - Matt Moore making case to start in 2010. Game 15 Preview - Giants (8-6) vs Panthers (6-8) Last Sunday night the Panthers came alive and beat up the Minnesota Vikings 26-7. They held Brett Favre to zero touchdowns and 1 interception while sacking him four times. They also held the Vikings Adrian Peterson to just 35 yards rushing although he got their one lone score, a 4 yard touchdown run. On Monday night, the Giants had a commanding game against the Washington Redskins. They scored on six of their first seven possessions and looked like the kind of team people expected to see appear at times throughout the season. The final score of 45-12 gave them their eighth win but they still need help to make the playoffs. NFC East. On Sunday at 4:15 PM, Denver (8-6) will play in Philadelphia (10-4), and later that night the (9-5) Cowboys will be playing in Washington (4-10). The Giants, Eagles and Cowboys are favored to win their games. Notes. Giants halftime show will include Bruce Springsteen singing (on tape) "Wrecking Ball," the song he wrote to commemorate the stadium's closing. Giants will have a special game program dedicated to the stadium and the team and players. Approximately 60,000 programs will sell for $1 - the price when the stadium opened in 1976. NFC East News The Eagles pulled out a 30-27 victory, then waited for the outcome of Dallas' game at Washington. A Redskins win would wrap up the NFC East title for the Eagles. With a Cowboys win, this Sunday's game in Dallas will be for the division title. The Cowboys' 17-0 victory raised Dallas' record to 10-5 and guaranteed the team a trip to the playoffs, thanks to Carolina's rout of the New York Giants earlier in the day. The NFC East and a first-round game at home are on the line against Philadelphia next Sunday. Dec 27 Tom Coughlin and several teammates noted Manning realized his role as tutor for the receivers as far back as the spring, when he began working on the finer points of the passing game with them. He spent more time throwing with them during offseason workouts and worked with them in the classroom and the film room. Manning has continued to do so during the season. Each Friday, he gathers the receivers for a film session without any coaches. During those meetings, Manning is the coach. Eli Manning is having a career year in terms of number of touchdown passes, and Monday night’s win against the Redskins was another example of how on point he has been in recent weeks. Manning completed passes to 10 players while throwing three touchdowns and no interceptions - the first Giants quarterback to do that in consecutive games since Phil Simms in 1984. All the help they need is irrelevant if the Giants do not help themselves. They need to win their remaining two games, starting this afternoon against the Panthers, and hope the Cowboys or Packers lose one of their last two games to have a realistic chance at the playoffs. Given how they’ve gotten to 8-6 and put themselves in such a precarious position, the Giants will deserve what they get if they can’t get it done today. Panthers coach John Fox spent five years as the Giants defensive coordinator, making today's final Giants game at Giants Stadium nostalgic for him as well. Fox recalled the 41-0 rout of the Vikings in the 2000 NFC Championship Game as his fondest memory. "That whole [playoff] run was tremendous," Fox said. "That stadium, it is almost indescribable the energy and the excitement in that stadium. "In those two games I don't know if I ever have been in an outdoor stadium that loud." Players come and go. Coaches come and go. Not one current Giants player has ever won a playoff game at Giants Stadium. Rich Seubert has the most seniority of any active Giant and he's been here nine years. After the Giants try to keep their playoff hopes alive today against the Panthers, many of the fans will walk to their cars with a heavy heart. It will be the last game they ever attend as a Giants season-ticket holder after reluctantly deciding to give up their spot in the exclusive club. The weathermen clearly have no sense of history, which means they are simply a small link in the long chain of people for whom this afternoon means so much less than it should. The weathermen say the temperature for East Rutherford at kickoff will be 46 -- and sunny. And that is so wrong. "This place," Lawrence Taylor said not long ago, "when I think of this place, I think of bitterly cold afternoons and hard hits and fans that wouldn’t let us lose, that wouldn’t let the other guys out of here alive. When I think of this place, I think of football."
The
fans will not be left out of the Giants' farewell. Among those involved in
the celebration are Leonia High School athletic director Tom Curry and his uncle,
son and daughter. The Currys were selected as a third-generation ticket-holders
to participate in the pregame coin toss as honorary captains. Curry's grandfather
originally bought season tickets in 1958 and his family has been attending games
since. "It's a great honor and we are thrilled," Curry said. John Mara, the Giants' co-owner, will watch his team's final game at Giants Stadium today from his customary spot in a lower-level booth at the 25-yard line. As usual, his brother Chris will be sitting next to him in the first row. His brother Steve will be on one of the two stools in the second row, just as he has for every home game. The second stool. Nobody sits there anymore. It's been that way since Wellington Mara died in 2005. Dec
26 From
the postgame locker room in Washington to the locker room at their practice
facility late in the week, the Giants’ pass rushers were repeatedly asked the
same questions. What did you do differently against the Redskins to finally break
through and get to the quarterback? And where, frankly, has this kind of performance
been? "Those questions are from people who don't really know what’s been
going on," said defensive end Osi Umenyiora, who had one of the team’s five
sacks on Monday. Eli Manning's numbers are good enough to earn him a return trip to the Pro Bowl. His recent play has also been good enough to get the Giants into the postseason. The fact that the team remains one game out of a wild-card spot with two to go cannot be placed on the quarterback's shoulders. He has completed 61.2 percent of his passes for 3,584 yards and a career-high 26 touchdowns with 11 interceptions. Instead of usually fading down the stretch - except for one major exception - he has been hot of late. He has thrown three touchdown passes without an interception in each of his last two games, the first Giants' quarterback to do that back to back since Phil Simms on Sept. 2 and Sept. 9, 1984. The Giants need to win out and get a loss from either the Packers or Cowboys in the season's final two weeks to make the postseason. And that’s the easy part. "If they do start this run and win this week and next and make the playoffs, then they have the first round of the playoffs against either Arizona or Philadelphia most likely," says former Giants tight end Howard Cross. said. "[Whoever] they get, they are going to have to play their best ball. You can't be giving up big plays." Coach Tom Coughlin is counting on the fans to help give the team and the stadium, the site of so many great Giants memories, a memorable sendoff. Giants Stadium has been the Giants' home since 1976. The Jets have played their home games there since 1984. The stadium has hosted 475 regular-season games, easily the highest total of any stadium in NFL history. The Giants are 155-116 in Giants Stadium, including games against Jets and the New Orleans Saints (in 2005) in which they were the visiting team. They are 4-3 at home this year. Dec 25 Terrell Thomas just missed an interception on a slant route to receiver Devin Thomas on Washington’s second possession of the game. The Redskins had called the same play two snaps earlier, and Thomas was able to jump the route this time. But he said the ball "crept up on me," so he was only able to deflect it instead of making the pick. He would get his interception in the third quarter, when Washington quarterback Jason Campbell misfired on a screen to tight end Fred Davis deep in Redskins territory. A tangible change to the defense came three weeks ago when coach Tom Coughlin and Sheridan decided to shake up the starting lineup, moving in defensive tackle Chris Canty, middle linebacker Jonathan Goff and defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka and moving out Fred Robbins, Chase Blackburn and Osi Umenyiora. It's not as if the defense was instantly transformed, but the immediate result was a greater emphasis and forcefulness in stopping the run. The Cowboys, Eagles and Redskins rushed for 45, 77 and 89 yards, respectively, with the new starters and an old mindset combining to make a difference. "It has helped, there is no doubt about it," Coughlin said. Kevin
Gilbride was both vague and precise when asked how many players he would commit
to Julius Peppers when the Giants host the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. "As
many as necessary, however many it takes," said Gilbride, the Giants' offensive
coordinator. "He is a special football player. We always chip, help and do whatever
is necessary to give Eli (Manning) a chance to throw the ball." Brandon Jacobs was fined $7,500 for unnecessary roughness, NFC information manager Randall Liu said. Haynesworth drew a $10,000 fine for his unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, Liu added. Brandon Jacobs denied he received a letter from the league about his on-field fight with Redskins cornerback DeAngelo Hall and defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth. But then, he was asked directly if the NFL fined him. "I guess they did," Jacobs said with a smile. "But that was expected." The Giants will celebrate their final game at Giants Stadium on Sunday with halftime festivities. There will be a video of players and coaches who have left their mark as well as the final countdown to the No. 1 play and No. 1 moment in Giants Stadium history as voted by the fans. Lawrence Taylor is among the former Giants expected to attend. The Giants also have created a special game program dedicated to the stadium and the team and players who called it home. It will sell for $1, the price of a program when the stadium opened Oct. 10, 1976. Dec
24 In
an ideal scenario for the Giants their final game at Giants Stadium would
be in the playoffs. But the only way that can happen now is a long shot: The Giants
make the postseason as the No. 5 seed and play the No. 6 seed at home in the NFC
Championship Game. More than likely, the final game played in the stadium will
be the Jets’ Jan. 3 game against Cincinnati. Maybe it's just a coincidence, but the Giants have been playing much better against the run since Tom Coughlin made the three lineup changes before playing Dallas three games ago. Coughlin inserted Mathias Kiwanuka for Osi Umenyiora at right end, Chris Canty for Fred Robbins at tackle and Jonathan Goff for Chase Blackburn at middle linebacker before the rematch with the Cowboys. In the first meeting, Dallas had ripped the Giants' defense for 251 yards on the ground. Since the three moves, the Giants have allowed an average of 70 rushing yards to the Cowboys, Eagles and Redskins. The
Giants placed Darcy Johnson on injured reserve Wednesday - two days after
he was inactive for the first time while a member of the Giants' active roster.
That move (the other end of which was the signing of tight end Scott Chandler
off the Cowboys' practice squad) ends the season for Johnson, an undrafted free
agent who was added to the active roster late in the 2006 season. Johnson told
reporters he has a nagging shoulder injury he originally suffered in Week 4 against
the Chiefs and aggravated on Thanksgiving against the Broncos when he was hit
by safety Brian Dawkins. The
Giants merely held a jog-through on Wednesday, not a full practice, as the
players are still recovering from Monday night's game against the Redskins. And
according to their injury report, there's plenty of hurts from which to recover.
Thirteen players are listed on the report, making it the longest list of the season. Steve Smith has shown the Giants he can be their No. 1 receiver. Now he wants to be paid like one. Hoping to cash in on the finest season of his three-year career, Smith, through his agent Ralph Cindrich, told the Daily News he's informed the Giants that the receiver wants a contract extension and they plan to press the issue after the season is over. Dec 23 In up-and-down year, predicting the Giants' potential playoff fate is a tough mystery to solve. The Giants played a perfect game on Monday night, which goes to prove absolutely nothing. They may clean up against Carolina on Sunday, or they might play like they did against the Eagles twice and get rocked to sleep. And while they're winning or losing against the Panthers, the Cowboys and Packers might win or lose games this weekend they are both supposed to win. One week ago, after a frustrating loss to the Eagles, Giants head coach Tom Coughlin neatly diced up the responsibility: The offense had a winning performance; defense and special teams did not. But after Monday’s 45-12 win at Washington, there was no need for such a breakdown. Finally, the Giants were successful in all three phases of the game -- something Coughlin harps on every week, but also something that has been a rarity this season. Maybe everyone should have learned their lesson two years ago. Just when you're ready to count the Giants out, that's when they pull you back in. Just like they did in 2007, the Giants have come back from the brink of elimination late in the season, right when the world was busy writing them off. This time they did it with a rousing, 45-12 win in Washington Monday night. It
has been more than two months since the Giants accomplished what used to be
second nature to them: Winning back-to-back games. What certainly could serve
as a springboard to bigger and better things might be looked back on as merely
one impressive evening if the Giants cannot build on their momentum this Sunday
against the Panthers in what will be their final game at Giants Stadium. With one trick play, Redskins Coach Jim Zorn shows defiance. The zaniest, most off-kilter called play of the NFL season began with the Redskins' punter taking a snap from the backup tight end before halftime with, incredibly, no line in front of him. As if the New York Giants were supposed to count to "Three Mississippi" before they rushed past Todd Yoder to disembowel poor Hunter Smith. That absurd call Monday night was the only way Zorn could exact some revenge on his meddlesome bosses, the only way he could get back at a splintered organization he will almost certainly cease to be a part of by the first week of January. And if that's the case, well, it's about time. Here's a head-scratching move: the Giants have signed tight end Scott Chandler off the Cowboys' practice squad, according to someone informed of the transaction. The person requested anonymity because the team hasn't yet announced the move. It's unclear at this point why the Giants added Chandler, as they already have four tight ends on the active roster: Kevin Boss, Darcy Johnson, Travis Beckum and Bear Pascoe. Dec 22 Giants win over the Redskins, 45-12 | Photos
ESPN - Giants score on six of first seven posessions in domination of Redskins. Giants.com - Giants defeat Redskins, 45-12. StarLedger - Giants clobber hapless Washington Redskins, 45-12, on Monday Night Football. StarLedger - Giants secondary dominates without Aaron Ross. StarLedger - Giants pass rush regains form while smothering Washington Redskins. StarLedger - Giants receive holiday gift, but still need more. TheRecord - Eli Manning, defense help Giants rout Redskins and stay in playoff hunt. TheRecord - Easy Eli Manning shows he's tough as nails. NYDailyNews - Giants rout Washington Redskins, 45-12, to stay in hunt in NFC playoff picture. NYDailyNews - Feisty New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs takes on pair of Washington Redskins. NYDailyNews - Giants channel past win over Washington Redskins in 45-12 rout. NYPost - Giants' flay Redskins with postseason ferocity. NYPost - Fast start fuels Eli, GiantsFast start fuels Eli, Giants. NYPost - Nothin' but 'fun' night for Ahmad. NYPost - Jacobs feels punchy. NYPost - Hopefully, it's not too little, too late. NYPost - Coughlin’s team not dead yet. NYPost - Giants rout Redskins, 45-12. NYPost - Giants show signs of what could have been. Game
14 Preview - Giants (7-6) vs Redskins (4-9) Dec 21 The Redskins had to remove more than 10 tons of snow from the FedEx bowl after this weekend’s massive snowstorm. Now they can all but remove the Giants’ postseason hopes on the cleared field. Dallas’ rare December win over the previously unbeaten Saints does not mean the Giants will be eliminated from playoff contention with a loss to the improving Washington team. But a defeat basically will put their tragic number at 1 where a Cowboys’ win or a Giants’ defeat in the last two weeks basically will end their string of four straight postseason appearances. The
Packers' loss to the Steelers was decent news for the Giants because, with
a win over the Redskins, the Giants would move to 8-6 and would pull within a
game of Green Bay (9-5) for the fifth seed in the NFC. Now, in the event the Giants
and Packers get locked up in a tie at the end of the season, the Giants would
have the edge. Center
Shaun O'Hara said. "We're 1-1 in those last two games, but I thought we really
played with a lot of heart and a lot of passion. If we play that way in these
last three weeks we've got a shot." The shot got much more difficult when the
Cowboys, on Saturday night, upset the previously-unbeaten Saints. Here's the unsavory
deal: If the Giants lose tonight, they will be eliminated from playoff contention
if the Cowboys win one of their remaining two games -- at Washington or home vs.
the Eagles. Not a pretty picture. The Giants were encouraged this past week by Manning’s dumping the ball off to his hot reads (Hixon, tight end Kevin Boss and rookie receiver Hakeem Nicks on a few plays) against the Eagles instead of getting bogged down by one of his worst habits: making pre-snap adjustments as the play clock ticks down. Offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride said. "Don't feel like you have to redirect it, getting everything schooled up so it’s perfectly blocked. Sometimes that’s difficult (because) it slows down the momentum, the tempo of the game." Center Shaun O’Hara said "(Last) game, he thought, 'They're bringing a lot of pressure, so I'm just going to throw it to the hot receiver and let him make a play.' Certainly, his ability to see that is the first half of the battle." Dec
20 A
little more than a year since Plaxico Burress shot himself in the thigh before
a game against the Redskins last November, the Giants return to Washington tomorrow
night with a receiver who's having a record-setting season. Smith enters the game,
now more crucial to Big Blue after the Cowboys ended the Saints' perfect season
Saturday night, with 85 receptions, tied for fifth-most in the NFL with Arizona's
superstar receiver Larry Fitzgerald. Aaron
Ross converted to safety in an effort to get on the field when he returned
from injury in Week 11, and he started at that position last week in place of
the injured Michael Johnson. But his natural position is cornerback, and if he
does plug in for Webster Monday night, it will be Ross' first start at cornerback
since the 2008 season. "Safety was something I was trying to learn,"
Ross said. "Corner is something I know. So I feel very comfortable at corner." No one who has followed Rich Seubert’s nine-year career needs a reminder about his courage, determination or toughness. His ability to come back from a shattered leg suffered in 2003 is testament enough to all three of those qualities and more. So it should be no surprise Seubert has battled through an undisclosed shoulder injury this season. The Giants’ starting left guard hasn’t missed a game, leaving only one game early - the Week 3 victory over the Buccaneers. Replacing Plaxico Burress this season hasn't been nearly the challenge the New York Giants anticipated. But the Giants have dealt with an entirely unexpected set of problems instead. They have found themselves usually able to score points but unable of late to prevent opponents from scoring even more, and they'll enter Monday night's game against the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field clinging to evaporating postseason hopes. NFC
East News Dec 19 At
the end of practice Thursday, Aaron Ross reaggravated the same hamstring that
kept him out of the season’s first nine weeks - casting uncertainty on his status
for Monday night’s game against Washington and the remainder of the season. Ross
had an MRI Friday to determine the severity of the injury and will know the results
Saturday, according to someone informed of his injury situation who requested
anonymity because they are not authorized to speak for the team. It’s on to Plan C at CB. The game of musical corners to play primarily alongside Terrell Thomas comes after a beleaguered secondary was torched by Tony Romo and Donovan McNabb in successive weeks. Kevin Dockery, a four-year veteran, has played just eight games this season and could be inching toward the end of his Giants career - he is not signed beyond this season. He said Monday could be one of his last chances to prove he belongs for 2010. How in the world did this Giants defense - the staple of the franchise, the former blood-and-guts home of LT and Sam Huff - devolve into a Charmin-soft unit that routinely surrenders points by the dozens? Sheridan had better solve that riddle against the Redskins, Panthers and Vikings, or it will be three-and-out for the leader of a defense that couldn’t force a punt if its coordinator’s career depended on it. Dec 18 The
Giants will be without right tackle Kareem McKenzie when they face the Redskins
on Monday night. They might be without cornerback Corey Webster. And they'll probably
have running back Ahmad Bradshaw. As for practice Thursday, they're without all
three. Corey
Webster’s status is still day-to-day, and he did not practice Thursday. He
has an extra day to recover before the Monday night game, but if he can’t make
the turnaround, the Giants could start Aaron Ross in his place. Since returning
from the hamstring injuries that kept him out of the season’s first nine games,
Ross has helped bolster the secondary at the safety position. But his natural
spot is cornerback, and coach Tom Coughlin has left the door open for him to switch
back. Eli,
you shouldn't have to throw for 391 yards and three touchdowns again to beat
the Redskins on Monday night at FedEx Field or the Panthers on Dec. 27 at Giants
Stadium or the Vikings in the Jan. 3 regular-season finale at the Metrodome. But
the way Bill Sheridan's defense rushes the passer, the way it covers receivers,
the way it communicates, the way it melts down in the fourth quarter, who the
hell knows what coach Tom Coughlin will need from you. Shaun
O'Hara will 'emphatically' appeal $15,000 fine from Philadelphia Eagles game.
"I thought there was a possibility that something might come, but obviously I
was a little surprised at the amount. I think the one thing I’ll do is I’ll go
through the process and appeal it, and that’s something I hope will be justified
when it comes to that." Some questioned if ESPN could carry on the legacy "MNF" created with the likes of Keith Jackson, Howard Cosell, Al Michaels, Frank Gifford and Dan Dierdorf. They hit the streets, talked to the fans and came to the realization that football fans wanted one thing -- football. Out went the guests before 2008. In came Super Bowl-winning coach Jon Gruden for the departing funny-man/columnist Tony Kornheiser, who left because of the heavy travel schedule this season would have required. Stadium News Dec 17 Mario Manningham had two chances to score a touchdown in the Giants’ loss to Philadelphia on Sunday. He landed out of bounds on both. The day after the game, the second-year receiver grew aggravated when asked about those plays - and about what he can do better on routes near the sideline. Eli
Manning on pace to set career highs in passing yards, touchdowns. Through
13 games, he has career-highs in completion percentage (60.4 vs. 60.3) and yards
per attempt (an impressive 8.0 vs. 6.8), is one touchdown away from tying his
career-high of 24, needs only 446 yards to set a new single-season mark. As they prepare for a three-game finishing kick they hope will lead to a postseason berth, the Giants have several facets of their game that need improvement. While the shortcomings of the defense have received the most attention, an inability to score points early has also hurt the Giants. Justin
Tuck prefers not to speak in absolutes but the defensive yesterday said Monday
night's game against the Redskins at FedEx Field is a "must win" and that the
Giants are thinking they must sweep their remaining three games. For
the first time since this hard-to-watch playoff run commenced, the Giants
will face a team with nothing tangible at stake. Motivation and urgency hasn't
sparked winning out of the Giants as they prepare for a Monday night meeting with
a Redskins club that continues to lose, but in feisty fashion. For the last 15 years members of the online message board community, Big Blue Interactive (BBI), tailgate before games. But the get-together before the Giants-Eagles game Sunday was unlike any other such gathering. The large group had something more important to talk about - the sad and sudden death last week of Hope Johnson, Giants season ticket holder and fan extraordinaire and an active and beloved BBI member. Dec 16 It seemed like a good plan at the time. Staring at a pass rush that faded down the stretch in 2008 and saddled with a rookie defensive coordinator, Giants GM Jerry Reese tossed around $84 million in contracts to bolster his defense during the offseason. Reese has gotten next to nothing out of defensive end Chris Canty, linebacker Michael Boley, defensive tackle Rocky Bernard and safety C.C. Brown from his offseason free-agent spending spree. Injuries have ruined Canty and Boley's seasons. Brown and Bernard have been busts. Fans of the Giants long for the days when their team had a take-no-prisoners defense that could be relied on to make big stops at key moments. That's what the Giants were all about the past two years with Steve Spagnuolo calling the shots and yesterday he expressed his belief that beleaguered first-year coordinator Bill Sheridan can turn things around. "Bill, I think, is as knowledgeable a football coach as I've ever been around," Spagnuolo said on Sirius NFL Radio. "I tremendously leaned on him when I was there. It's a tough setting and the expectations are high there and they should be. But I do believe they'll bounce back." One thing is for sure: the Giants' final game at Giants Stadium will be the Dec. 27 matchup with the Carolina Panthers. If they do sneak into the postseason, they will be on the road exclusively. So what? Isn't that the way they won the Super Bowl after the 2007 season? True, but if you remember back to those good ol' days, you will recall a facet of their game which has all but disappeared this season. The Giants used to be able to rush the passer. Not anymore. The Giants have 26 sacks this season, just 12 of them coming in the last eight games during which they are 2-6. Eli
Manning desperately wants to believe there's an awful lot of life left in
this Giants season, even though they have played so poorly for two months they
really don't deserve to make the playoffs. "We consider ourselves a playoff team,"
Manning told the Daily News Monday. "Now it's time to prove it." For Manning,
who is always friendly and usually guarded, this amounts to a bold declaration.
Maybe he's just trying to shock his team out of its two-month funk. Right
now, the Cowboys are the only team that stands between the Giants and semirespectable
first-round elimination in the playoffs. Dallas is not a formidable barrier, but
the Giants are not a fearsome battering ram. Nobody can remember a situation like
this, when two teams were locked so early into a race for the final wild-card
spot in a conference. Either the Giants or the Cowboys surely will claim the No.
6 seed, stuttering and stumbling into a brief postseason that will take just a
bit of the heat off their coach and coordinators. The way these two teams are
going, two wins out of three will surely be enough. That would also be a small
miracle. Dec
15 Bill
Sheridan is the Giants' defensive coordinator for the remainder of the season,
for better or for worse. Tom Coughlin made that clear Monday when he was directly
questioned on the subject of Sheridan's performance and his job security. Giants center Shaun O'Hara and Eagles defensive end Trent Cole are facing almost certain and possibly hefty fines from the NFL this week after exchanging shoves and punches in a fight at the end of the Eagles' wild 45-38 win over the Giants Sunday night. Sunday
night, after spraining his left knee in a loss to the Eagles, Kareem McKenzie
walked with a heavy limp. The Giants' starting right tackle has a sprained medial
collateral ligament and could be sidelined for a few weeks, according to coach
Tom Coughlin. Tom Coughlin was asked about the Eli Manning slide play when he fumbled. "The rule is that if you are not hit, then the ground can cause the fumble. If you are hit and you go down as a result of contact and the ball comes out, then it is not ruled a fumble. Now the whole question, the way it was explained to me, was that, yes indeed Eli was hit, but he took three more steps. Well, my argument is push me from behind I am going to take three more steps before I fall down. Now does that mean I just fell down on my own? If I fell down on my own, I am not protected by the ground. I never did buy that part of it and I have asked for an explanation." Dec 14 Giants lose to the Eagles, 45-38 | Photos
ESPN - Jackson ties NFL record for long TDs as Eagles get shootout win over Giants. Giants.com - Giants fall to Eagles, 45-38. StarLedger - Giants' playoff hopes take big hit with 45-38 loss to Philadelphia Eagles. StarLedger - If the defensive coordinator isn't the problem for the NY Giants, then what is? StarLedger - Giants let DeSean Jackson run free again and it costs them in 45-38 loss to Eagles. StarLedger - Hakeem Nicks drops three passes but scores impressive touchdown in Giants' 45-38 loss to Eagles. StarLedger - DeSean Jackson punt return for touchdown sparks Eagles to 45-38 victory over Giants. NYDailyNews - DeSean Jackson and Philadelphia Eagles torch defenseless Giants, 45-38. NYDailyNews - DeSean Jackson's two touchdowns tie record, help sink Giants. NYDailyNews - Giants fizzle against Philadelphia Eagles, lose chance at first place. NYDailyNews - With 4th straight win over Big Blue, Philadelphia Eagles clearly own New York Giants. NYDailyNews - Mathias Kiwanuka: New York Giants effort on defense is 'unacceptable'. TheRecord - Giants fall to Eagles, 45-38, playoff hopes take a big hit. TheRecord - Tom Coughlin talks to the media after loss to Eagles. TheRecord - Eli Manning talks after Giants' tough loss. TheRecord - For Giants fans, good weather, bad result, worse defense. TheRecord - Giants squander chance to take lead in NFC East. NYPost - Rookie's first start roller-coaster ride. NYPost - Eli's non-slide proves costly. NYPost - No-show defense no laughing matter. NYPost - These Jints just pretenders. NYPost - Boley regrets dropped INT. NYPost - Speedy WR burns Giants' defense. NFC
East News Game
13 Preview - Giants (7-5) vs Eagles (8-4) Dec 13 The Giants' two-month slump opened the door for the Cowboys and Eagles to take control of the NFC East, but neither of them managed to pull away. The Cowboys even had a chance to finish off the Giants themselves last weekend, but blew that, too. So now here the Giants are, still teetering on the edge of elimination, but with an unexpected last chance to thrust themselves into the thick of the NFC East title chase - maybe even the lead. Safety Michael Johnson said he believes tomorrow night at the Meadowlands, the Giants have to settle the score with Philadelphia. "Some people might be angry about it, some people might just say we lost that game and it's another game," the Giants safety said yesterday. "But me personally, I think we owe them a good licking. We owe 'em a physical game. We need to be physical with 'em. Because they out-physical-ed us last game." Aaron Rouse stood in front of the west end zone, frozen in triumphant pose, as he let the reaction to his first career sack resonate through Giants Stadium last week. Ten weeks after being discarded on the waiver wire by the Green Bay Packers, Rouse was one big play into what would be a performance worthy of a defensive game ball. The race might be tight, with three teams separated by just one game and plenty of big divisional games to play, but the Eagles have been the most consistent of late. The Cowboys have a history of flopping in December. The franchise is 18-32 after December since 1996, and Tony Romo is 5-9 in December games. That history is unavoidable. The Giants beat the Cowboys, yes, but their issues remain. Eli Manning might be healthy, the defense might be fixed, the offense might have found its groove again, but they could revert to the team that lost to New Orleans, Arizona, the Eagles, San Diego, and Denver. We'll see on Sunday.. It really doesn't get any better than this December night: Giants vs. Eagles, teams that can't stand each other, perfect NFC East bone-chilling weather and the Giants desperately trying to save their season again after the Cowboys generously administered life support last weekend. What more could you want? "This is what you live for," Justin Tuck said. The Giants dialed up the emotion, reached down deep and found their pride against Dallas. They played with an attitude. Now they have to do it against the Eagles. It's the final weeks for Giants Stadium and the old joint will be jumping. The basic point Michael Strahan makes: Who are the leaders on the Giants defense? The answer is, no one really knows yet. How far the 7-5 Giants go this season will depend on who develops into that leader. The Giants have a history of high-performing and vocal greats on the defensive side of the ball, from Strahan to Jessie Armstead to Harry Carson to Lawrence Taylor and many others. This is one of the first times in recent Giants history they don't have that kind of vocal and talented player. When Ray Odierno, general commander of the Multi-National Force in Iraq speaks, soldiers listen, even presidents. On this Wednesday, Giants listened. And you could have heard a pin drop. "You just watch the way he talks, the way he moves around, I think that it kinda inspires everybody to be more of a leader, more of a man," Mathias Kiwanuka said. "It was a good inspirational message." Former
Giants Dec 12 This is what the Giants promised yesterday: There will be no more sleepwalking games like that Thanksgiving humiliation against the Broncos. That last Sunday's 31-24 win over the Cowboys was just the start for a team that is finally committed to playing emotional football. And this Sunday night, there will be physical payback for the Eagles' earlier destruction of the Giants. Talk about toughing it out, they even practiced in the cold and wind yesterday, leaving the comfort of their plush indoor facility to prepare for tomorrow night's encounter with the elements. Michael Johnson said there are Giants who are still mad about the Eagles' 40-17 destruction of Big Blue on Nov. 1. And there could be some who view that game as history, nothing more. Johnson said he believes tomorrow night at the Meadowlands, the Giants have to settle the score with Philadelphia. "Some people might be angry about it, some people might just say we lost that game and it's another game," the Giants safety said yesterday. "But me personally, I think we owe them a good licking. We owe 'em a physical game. We need to be physical with 'em. Because they out-physical-ed us last game." The Giants will again miss Brian Westbrook on Sunday night. The Eagles' star running back is out for the fourth straight game thanks to a concussion. The Eagles, 5-1 without Westbrook this season, also didn't have him in their first game against the Giants on Nov. 1, and won 40-17. The Eagles' primary ballcarrier figures to be rookie LeSean McCoy, who's rushed for 530 yards and averaged 4.1 yards per carry. Against the Giants, he ran 11 times for 82 yards and had a 66-yard touchdown. Eli Manning threw a perfect pass: over Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins' outstretched hand, toward the sideline and just in front of the pylon. It should have been a touchdown. And it would have been a touchdown if Mario Manningham hadn't been out of bounds. The Giants' second-year wide receiver got past Jenkins to the outside on a deep fade pattern. But instead of pushing his route away from the sideline, Manningham trotted alongside the white paint and eventually onto it, denying the Giants a chance at six points. "I just got too wide," Manningham said. Manningham has made the mistake several times, including once on a failed third down against the Cardinals. Tom Coughlin is so practiced in the fine art of obsessive caution, he will fib to the media about practically every innocuous, trivial matter. And so again Friday, he was asked simply whether he pays attention to the NFC standings, and to the tiebreakers, that make this game Sunday night against the Eagles triply important. "No," Coughlin said. "Philadelphia Eagles. That's all." On the same day that Coughlin was saying this, however, he also was passing out information to players that detailed the NFC East standings, the teams' records against their own division and against their own conference. Coughlin does this every Friday, according to one team source, using these numbers as just another motivational tool. When
Dave Merritt, who coaches the Giants' safeties, yells "Hey, Aaron!" these
days, two heads snap in his direction. Even if he says "Hey, Aaron Rouse!" or
"Hey, Aaron Ross!" he still may get a pair of reactions. "One guy thought I was
Aaron Ross, and I told him no, I'm Aaron Rouse," one of the Aaron non-brothers
said when asked about confusion caused by the similar names. "Even Coach Merritt
gets tongue-tied once in a while." Rouse has started the last four games after
being claimed on waivers by the Giants three weeks into the season. He led the
team with 12 tackles including a sack in the 31-24 win over Dallas on Sunday. Dec 11 Giants employing 'floating front' blitz in effort to better utilize pass rush. Osi Umenyiora got into his stance slowly, almost reluctantly, while Mathias Kiwanuka leaned forward and then backed away. Michael Boley was just sort of walking around on the left side of the defense, appearing to take a casual Sunday afternoon stroll while perhaps pondering the attendance at Giants Stadium. And Clint Sintim hopped and walked backward in no apparent rush to do anything. But at the snap of the ball, the Giants unleashed what Sintim called “organized chaos” - a five-man zone blitz. At
times it has been a tough season for Corey Webster. He was a factor in all
three of the Chargers' touchdowns during a 21-20 loss back on Nov. 8. And last
Sunday, Dallas' Roy Williams scored two touchdowns and Miles Austin had another,
all with Webster being the closest Giants defender. Defensive coordinator Bill
Sheridan isn't concerned yet with his best cover corner.
The
Giants have saved their two best performances of the year for the Cowboys,
accompanied by talk of 'hatred' for their rivals. It is time for the Giants to
point some of their anger at another NFC East opponent. Herm Edwards, an analyst
with ESPN, said he knows how brutal this I-95 rivalry can be even when nothing
is on the line. Edwards said he believes the key for the Giants is to pound the
ball with running back Brandon Jacobs and keep the ball away from the Eagles'
explosive offense.
As
big a test as Dallas was for the Giants last week, the Eagles present an even
larger challenge, because Philadelphia has beaten the Giants three straight times
and the Eagles have the kind of explosive offense that is difficult to contain
for four quarters. Dec 10 Steve Smith is making the Giants forget about Plaxico Burress even as Burress can't forget about them. No development this season has been more important than Smith's ascent to the No. 1 receiver. He already has 78 catches, needing just five more to break Amani Toomer’s team record set in 2002. A supposed weakness has become a strength. The running game is suspect and the defense gives up gobs of yards, but a franchise that hasn't manufactured a Pro Bowl receiver since the Johnson Administration (that’s Homer Jones in 1961) might have another. Terrell Thomas has made the right cornerback position his own property. Aaron Ross returned three games ago but has not been able to supplant Thomas, who absolutely is fulfilling his draft destiny as a second-round pick out of the powerhouse USC program. He is the most dependable corner on the roster, making him a key player as the Giants face the Eagles on Sunday night looking to gain a share of first place in the NFC East. "He has done a good job, a solid job, and we are fortunate," Tom Coughlin said. The
Giants played with more emotion and passion last week than in any game since
the Super Bowl. They are going to need more of it Sunday night against the Eagles.
The first three months of the season have proven this Giants team is not as talented
as the Super Bowl team. So what they don't have in ability, they must make up
for with desire and emotion. Tom Coughlin lit a fire under his team before their
win over the Dallas Cowboys. Against the Falcons last weekend, Michael Vick made his most significant contributions since returning to the NFL after his federal dogfighting sentence. He scored on a 5-yard run in the third quarter, then connected with tight end Brent Celek for a 5-yard touchdown pass later in the game. Eagles coach Andy Reid said Vick's increased role wasn't because he was facing his former team, it just worked out that way - perhaps because, for the past three weeks or so, Reid has felt like Vick has reclaimed his NFL form. Eli Manning has a 5-9 record at home in December and January in his six NFL seasons. That's not a good sign with the Giants (7-5) facing the Philadelphia Eagles (8-4) in yet another must-win game at Giants Stadium on Sunday night. According to The Weather Channel, the kickoff temperature should be in the low 30s, and there's a chance of wet and windy conditions, too. The last time Manning played on a cold, windy day at Giants Stadium was in the playoffs last January - and the results were not good. NFC East wars are football at its finest. Welcome to the NFC East, the killing fields of pro football, the division that at any one time contains more passion, more petulance, more fury, more fire, more hatred, more hostility, more contempt (and, by the way, more terrific football) than any of the league's other seven divisions combined. "You're talking about four teams that are almost always closely matched, who are almost always playing for something meaningful, and who know each other so well that they don't really surprise each other," said Eli Manning, The
stakes always seem to be high when Donovan McNabb and the Eagles meet the
Giants late in the season. Last January, McNabb stunned the Giants at the Meadowlands
in the NFC Divisional playoffs. On Sunday, McNabb can not only move his Eagles
a step closer to the NFC East title, he could also deal the Giants' playhoff hopes
a huge blow. McNabb is expecting nothing less than a war. "Two physical teams
that don't like each other too much," McNabb said yesterday. Tom Coughlin said Chris Snee "is coming along" and added "there's always hope" that Snee will be available to play and make his 77th consecutive regular-season start. Snee answered a question with a question when asked how he's doing. "What did Coach say?" Snee asked. Informed Coughlin said he's coming along, Snee added "Then I'm coming along." Asked to elaborate, Snee smiled and said "Period." NFC
East News Dec 9 The Giants envisioned Steve Smith to be more of a great complementary player than a leading man when they took him out of USC in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft. The departures of Toomer and Plaxico Burress thrust him into a starting role. He’s been better than advertised and at times is impossible to hang with over the middle. Smith doesn’t have great size or speed, but his moves are subtle and crisp and his hands are trustworthy. He has developed into one of the most reliable receivers in the league, as no one has more than his 31 third-down catches. He’s second in the NFC (behind Larry Fitzgerald) and fourth in the NFL in receptions. Domenik
Hixon has been selected as the NFC Special teams Player of the Week. Hixon
is the first Giant to be named Special Teams Player of the Week since linebacker
Chase Blackburn in Week 9 of the 2008 season. He is the first Giants player to
be honored for his returning exploits since Amani Toomer in Week 8 of the 1997
season (when Toomer scored on a 53-yard punt return). The win over the Cowboys has brought the 2009 season back into focus, particularly the enormity of Sunday night’s game against the Eagles at Giants Stadium. What the win also did was give the Giants a better shot at the wild-card spot if they can’t sneak in as divisional champions. A loss to the Eagles and they still would be in play for a wild-card position. Then they would have to root hard for the hated Eagles to win the division and throw the Cowboys into the wild-card pot with the Green Bay Packers. By sweeping the Cowboys, the Giants would have the tiebreaker advantage over Dallas. The NFL didn’t suspend Flozell Adams, but they hit him in the wallet about as hard as they could. According to a report from an NFL Network reporter, the Cowboys left tackle has been fined a whopping $50,000 for his after-the-whistle hit on Justin Tuck on Sunday. There's a picture that was sent to Kevin Boss that summed up his season - a dramatic action shot of him making a 25-yard catch. The picture caught him just as he took a brutal, helmet-to-helmet hit from Cardinals safety Antrel Rolle in October. That was the first of two helmet-to-helmet hits the Giants' tight end took in a two-week span (the other came from Chargers safety Eric Weddle), and despite the look of pain and the fact that he felt like he was in a car wreck the next mornings, Boss insists he did not suffer any concussions. Stadium
News Former
Giants Dec
8 Bill
Sheridan altered some of his strategy with more creative defensive fronts
and more frequent blitzes. He often had his linemen standing along the line of
scrimmage like linebackers, making it unclear whether they were coming forward
or dropping back. He even unveiled a version of the four-end line that Spagnuolo
used to use, with three ends - Justin Tuck, Kiwanuka and Umenyiora - and rookie
linebacker Clint Sintim. The veteran Michael Boley called the defensive signals for the second straight game as second-year man Jonathan Goff made his first NFL start in the middle. Boley also was the only linebacker who stayed on the field for the entire game. Calling the signals is not something the former Falcon is accustomed to doing. However, someone has to fill the role now that longtime leader Antonio Pierce is out for the season with a neck injury. After
Dallas' Flozell Adams shoved Justin Tuck to the ground just after the whistle
blew on the final play before intermission, the Cowboys' left tackle was assessed
a 15-yard personal foul penalty. But because it occurred on the final play of
a half, it was automatically declined, according to NFL rules. It's possible Adams
could face a suspension this time. The league is expected to inform the Cowboys
of its decision on that this afternoon. The
Giants hate the Eagles just as much as they hate the Cowboys and they have
additional motivation Sunday night against Philly as they continue a desperate
attempt to save their season: Revenge. Philly has beaten the Giants three straight.
The Eagles have their number and it's time for the Giants to take it back. Everson Walls will tell you he has a good life. But every so often, when he's watching ESPN Classic something stirs deep within. Walls led the NFL in interceptions three times and has 57 career picks, good for 11th on the all-time list, ahead of Hall-of-Famer Darrell Green. And before letting wideout Dwight Clark sneak by to score the game-winning TD in the Niners' 28-27 NFC Championship Game win, Walls had picked off two Montana passes and recovered a fumble. Still, he spent his NFL career fighting to atone for that one botched coverage. Dec 7 Giants win over the Cowboys, 31-24 | Photos
ESPN - Jacobs, Hixon lead way as Giants sweep Cowboys in preparation for Eagles. Giants.com - Giants defeat Cowboys, 31-24. StarLedger - Domenik Hixon's 79-yard punt return for touchdown a key play. StarLedger - War of words between Giants' Justin Tuck and Cowboys' Flozell Adams continues. StarLedger - Call from LaVar Arrington snaps NY Giants' Osi Umenyiora out of funk. StarLedger - One big play by Brandon Jacobs just might have turned NY Giants' season around. NYDailyNews - Eli Manning, new-look defense lead Giants to big 31-24 win over Cowboys. NYDailyNews - Brandon Jacobs turns game into win for Giants, but calls his leadership 'terrible'. NYDailyNews - Osi Umenyiora: 'Extremely painful' to not start in game against Cowboys. NYDailyNews - Giants' Justin Tuck takes a stand, calls Flozell Adams 'dirtbag' for cheap shot. NYDailyNews - Tiki Barber greeted with boos, cheers from crowd at Giants game. NYDailyNews - Bill Sheridan's 'inspirational' coaching quirk helps Giants exact revenge over Cowboys. NYPost - Another December loss bothers 'Boys. NYPost - Giants, Cowboys in gunfight at not-OK corral. NYPost - This was a season-saving win. NYPost - Brandon's tip-toe TD a truly magical 'feet'. NYPost - Extra sweet for Jacobs. NYPost - Gutty comeback revives Big Blue's playoff dream. NYPost - Osi makes key fumble recovery. Record - Coughlin's crew shows its mettle. Record - Jacobs leads Giants back from edge. Record - Tempers flare between Justin Tuck and Flozell Adams. Record - Austin's star still shining. DallasNews - It must be December: Dallas Cowboys stumble, 31-24. NFC
East News Game
12 Preview - Giants (6-5) vs Cowboys (8-3) Dec 6 Since Barry Cofield became a Giant more than three years ago, he had been pretty much surrounded by the same players on the defensive line. But last week, he saw Mathias Kiwanuka to one side instead of Osi Umenyiora at end, and saw Chris Canty in Fred Robbins’ spot at tackle to the other. The message had been sent - and not just to the players who were replaced. "Guys are fearing for their jobs," Cofield, the Giants' starting defensive tackle since the team selected him in the fourth round of the 2006 draft, said the other day. "Our unit's been together for years. In comes (Justin) Tuck, out goes 'Stray' (the retired Michael Strahan), but other than that it’s been the same unit. In
fact, it's now or never, at least as far as the NFC East race is concerned
when the slumping Giants (6-5) mount one last divisional stand against the Dallas
Cowboys (8-3) at Giants Stadium this afternoon. A loss would put them three games
back with only four games to go. And given how poorly they've played, while losing
five of their last six games, that's far too big a deficit for the Giants to overcome. Out of nowhere? No, just from under the noses of the Jets and Giants. The Cowboys' season was on the brink in Kansas City. They were a .500 team, just 2-2 after a losses to the Giants and Denver. Jerry Jones was looking aghast, Wade Phillips was looking lost and Tony Romo was looking for anyone who could catch a pass. And suddenly, there was Miles Austin with the best receiving day of any Cowboy since Bob Hayes. Without his record 250 yards worth of catches, including a 60-yard TD in overtime, the Cowboys wouldn't have beaten the lowly Chiefs that day. Without the big plays he's continued to make (15 plays of 20 or more yards in all) they wouldn't be 8-3 with the chance to bury the Giants' divisional hopes this afternoon. The economy is ailing, and we’re all pinching pennies, but in the parking lot at Giants Stadium on game day, tailgaters are still shelling out some cash to have a good time in these bad times. And while the standards — hamburgers, hot dogs and chicken — remain the most popular foods, some fans are bringing finer fare to the pregame party: Fish, pork tenderloin and even Kobe beef and wine. One thing remains constant, though. Giants fans from more than 15 pregame gatherings interviewed by The Record all agree: The tailgate is the best part of the game. Dec 5 Giants
coach Tom Coughlin says 'we'll have to see' if DE Osi Umenyiora starts against
Dallas Cowboys. "We preach team defense," coach Tom Coughlin said when asked about
potential lineup changes on his defensive front. "We are going to try to get other
guys involved as much as we can and see if we can't solve some issues." Felix Jones ran one play for 56 yards, Marion Barber one for 35 more. Barber also had a 27-yard run and Jones another for 24. Even wide receiver Patrick Crayton got into the act with a 20-yard gallop. Those big runs and some little ones added up to 251 rushing yards for the Cowboys when they opened their new stadium against the Giants in September. It was the first sign the Giants’ run defense was not going to be as lock-tight as many expected in 2009. "It’s something we obviously have been forced to relive this week," defensive tackle Barry Cofield said Dec
4 Giants
defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan reiterates admission his unit isn't physical. Giants
defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan doesn't think his unit has been physical
enough this season. Justin Tuck begs to differ. While the Giants' defense has
been pushed around for much of the last month, the defensive end isn't thrilled
with the notion that his unit is soft in any way. It won't be experience coming to the aid of the defense on Sunday, but perhaps an injection of youthful energy can provide the spark the Giants need to cast aside their losing ways. The role the Giants have waiting for Jonathan Goff is starting middle linebacker, a key spot Goff moves into with no margin for error. One more setback for the reeling Giants -- losers of five of their past six games -- will mean the end of legitimate playoff contention. Goff, a second-year player with virtually no NFL snaps other than special teams, gets thrust into the fray against the first-place Cowboys. Two weeks ago, before Aaron Ross was about to make his belated season debut against Atlanta, coach Tom Coughlin affirmed that Ross "is a cornerback." Ross said the same. After playing two games as a safety in the Giants’ sub packages, Ross again affirmed Thursday that "I'm still a corner" - albeit one that’s getting "more comfortable" at the safety position.. Yeah,
Eli Manning signed the wall inside the visitors locker room at brand-new Cowboys
Stadium back on Sept. 20, after the Giants escaped with a thrilling 33-31 last-second
victory. If the Cowboys have a problem with that, well, no disrespect intended
-- and tough luck. That's pretty much Manning's feeling, as yesterday he scoffed
at any notion that his autograph is cause for any controversy. Ahmad Bradshaw can run straight ahead at full speed. He did that yesterday off on the side while the Giants were practicing. If he can add some cutting ability into the mix, he should be a go for Sunday's game against the Cowboys. Bradshaw is trying to work his way around two sprained ankles. The Giants practiced for a second day Thursday with just 52 players on their roster. "We have to decide what the pressing need is first," coach Tom Coughlin said of the delay in filling the spot opened by the placement of LB Antonio Pierce on injured reserve. That need probably will be either at safety, where Michael Johnson (groin) did not practice, or running back, where neither Ahmad Bradshaw (ankles) or DJ Ware (concussion) practiced. Ware has already been declared out of Sunday's game against Dallas. Dec 3 A position that once was bursting with talented players is now almost devoid of them. Ahmad Bradshaw (two sprained ankles) and DJ Ware(concussion) did not practice today for the Giants and neither is expected to be ready in time for Sunday's game against the Cowboys. That means for the moment the running back situation is Brandon Jacobs as the starter, seldom-used Gartrell Johnson (11 career NFL rushing attempts) in reserve and no one after that. Though
the team hasn’t confirmed the switch, it's clear Jonathan Goff is on track
to make his first career start Sunday against the Cowboys and their sixth-ranked
rushing attack. Blackburn has had his struggles, so plugging in Goff makes sense.
After all, with Antonio Pierce dealing with a serious injury on his way into the
final season of his contract, the Giants have to figure out whether Goff is their
middle linebacker of the future. If Goff struggles, they can always throw Blackburn
right back onto the field. "It's not gonna change the way I do things,"
Blackburn said. The
last time the Giants played was Thanksgiving night at Denver. They played
as if they had just pushed back from the table and were stuffed with turkey and
the trimmings. After the game, most of the players simply shrugged at how poorly
they had played in the 26-6 loss. It was a strangely cavalier attitude considering
they were playing for their playoff lives. Now the Giants (6-5) are in an even
more critical situation as they prepare to take on Dallas (8-3), which holds a
two-game lead in the NFC East, at Giants Stadium on Sunday. When New York went to Dallas in Week 2 and left with a 33-31 come-from-behind win inside the opulent new stadium, they never figured to be trailing the Cowboys by two games now. Their seasons took different paths because Dallas (8-3) has been far more consistent than New York (6-5). That didn't stop the Giants from talking Wednesday like a team ready for a fight. Cowboys defensive captain Bradie James has revenge on his mind. James said that Giants quarterback Eli Manning rubbed in a Week 2 win that opened the Cowboys' new stadium by scribbling his name and adding the score, the date and the words "First Win in the New Stadium" on a concrete column in the visitors' locker room. James hasn't seen it, but he's seen a picture and is convinced it's real. True or not, it's being used as motivation. "We won’t forget that," James said. "It just makes for a more intense game." NFL
News Dec 2 Whether it was due to the short week, the travel or a lack of aggressiveness, the Giants’ defense didn’t tackle well against the Broncos last week. By an unofficial count, the team missed 13 tackles — four of which came on an 11-yard run by spinning Broncos RB Knowshon Moreno. The 13 missed tackles were a season-high (again, unofficially) for the Giants, who missed 12 tackles in the blowout loss to the Saints. Antonio
Pierce is not the player he was when the Giants signed him to a six-year,
$26 million contract in 2005. And now that he's 31 and has a bulging disk in his
neck, he may never be that player again. So the Giants have to start thinking
about their future at middle linebacker. What they'll find, however, is that Pierce
won't be so easy to replace. Dec
1 Antonio
Pierce's season, and very possibly his Giants career, is over. The team placed
the 31-year-old middle linebacker on injured reserve Monday afternoon, according
to a team spokesman. Judging by his comments earlier Monday afternoon in his weekly,
paid interview on WFAN, Pierce was likely stunned by the team's decision. (audio
link above) Justin Tuck guarantees Giants' playoff run. What is Justin Tuck's level of optimism that the Giants will cast aside their losing ways and actually make a run at the playoffs? "Give me a scale," Tuck requested yesterday. One to 10, he was told. "Eleven," Tuck replied. The Giants are a team in need of more than Manning's skills now. They need his strength. They need him to shoulder more of a load than he's ever been asked to carry if they are to somehow negotiate their way to the end of the season without being stranded like roadkill on the path to the playoffs. Eli Manning firmly put his foot down and insisted his latest injury is not an issue when he's in uniform. "I feel I can go out there and practice and do everything I need to do," Manning said on a conference call. "It's not something that is truly annoying me or bothering me, and I don't feel like it is affecting my performance on the field." Nor does he believe surgery will be necessary when the season concludes. Giants quarterback Eli Manning feels fine, but we've heard that one before. In 2005, Eli Manning said he wouldn’t miss any time after spraining his elbow in a preseason game against the Panthers. He missed the next two games and was affected early in the regular season. Two years ago, Manning said the shoulder injury that should have kept him out a month wasn’t an issue after playing through it the first week. He later admitted it bothered him for about a month. Nov
30 Eli
Manning has said recently his foot feels better and that the plantar fascia
injury is behind him. But that apparently doesn't mean he's free of any issues.
According to an ESPN report, Manning is suffering from a "stress reaction" that
resulted from his overcompensating for the injury he suffered against the Chiefs
in Week 4 and the plantar fasciitis that was nagging him before that. Nov 29 They've been here before with games against the Chargers and Falcons that were practically dubbed season-saving, must-win "Super Bowls." And if they beat the Cowboys, they might even have a few more. But if they lose and potentially fall further behind the Eagles and the Packers in the race for the NFC wild cards, there might be no critical games down the stretch. There are clearly signs the leaders of this team believe something needs to be said. Case in point: O'Hara suggesting the players need to take their jobs more seriously, which he clarified the next day by saying it’s not a team-wide criticism but rather "a blanket statement ... that is probably only going to cater to three to five guys." Running backs coach Jerald Ingram says the problem with the Giants' rushing game is that they've been using Brandon Jacobs all wrong. He said the 6-4, 264-pounder should be used like a battering ram, not like a finesse back told to dance to the outside. So what's happened since? Jacobs has rushed 23 times in two games, mostly to the outside and often in stretch plays he's ill-suited for running. Plus there's no commitment to the run. The Giants ran just 15 times in 59 plays (25.4 percent) against the Broncos. They played like they were down by four touchdowns, despite being in the game until the fourth quarter. Since the bye, they've only run on 42 of 125 plays - or 33.6 percent. Maybe Tom Coughlin should have let Bill Sheridan stay in the coaches' box, rather than on the field, as was his preference. Maybe Coughlin should let Sheridan head upstairs now. Things can't get much worse than they were Thursday night in Denver when a mediocre offense with a mediocre quarterback diced them like pieces of turkey stuffing. So there have been several legitimate reasons offered for the collapse. But here's one that may be at the root of the whole problem. Maybe this team just isn't that good. For a team that twice in the past three games has failed in an admitted "must have" contest, this truly is the last stand. The Cowboys represent the solitary quality win for the Giants, a 33-31 victory back on Sept. 20 to christen the brand new Cowboys Stadium. The Cowboys, after a 2-2 start, have gone 6-1 and are looking to pull away in the NFC East. Kevin Gilbride, the Giants' offensive coordinator and a Bergen County resident, uses his two decades in the NFL, including his tenure as the head coach of the San Diego Chargers (1997-98) and the Giants’ 2008 Super Bowl championship, as a way of spreading awareness about polycystic kidney disease (PKD). Former
Giants Nov 28 Despite
how they played Thursday, the lights on their season are dimmed but not turned
out. A win next week would pull the Giants to a half-game back of the Cowboys,
factoring in the tiebreaker, with four games to play. The more you see of the Giants, the more you figure they aren't made of the right stuff. The more you hear from the Giants, the more you get the idea they are in denial about what they are and where they're going. Tom Coughlin and linebacker Antonio Pierce talked Bill Sheridan, the first-year defensive coordinator, out of his preference to be away from the mayhem, making cool and detached decisions from above. But after 11 games, even sideline-to-booth will not remove Sheridan far enough to save the Giants' season. Tom Coughlin said watching the tape of the game was a sad tribute. He did not try to place a glossy frame on an ugly picture. "We just did not play well", Coughlin said. "We did not play as physically on either side of the line of scrimmage as we could. I was not disappointed in special teams. The effort and the intensity in which those groups played, I was not disappointed. I can't say the same thing for either side of the ball." Stadium
News
ESPN - Broncos stop losing streak at four with win vs. Giants. Giants.com - Giants fall to Broncos, 26-6. StarLedger - D.J. Ware suffers concussion as offense struggles in 26-6 loss. StarLedger - Neck specialist concurs with Giants' doctors on linebacker Antonio Pierce's bulging disk. TheRecord - Giants get gobbled up by Broncos, 26-6. NYDailyNews - After flat Thanksgiving Day performance against Broncos, Giants becoming a big disgrace. NYDailyNews - Giants tumble in 26-6 Broncos basting, season is officially in danger. NYDailyNews - Danny Ware costs Giants big time after Denver capitalizes on critical fumble. NYDailyNews - Emotions get the best of Osi Umenyiora as he screams at teammates in loss to Broncos. NYDailyNews - NFL Network airs Broncos coach Josh McDaniel's unbecoming curse word. NYPost - Big Blue's playoff hopes tumble in return to losing ways. NYPost - Disgusted Brandon: We didn't want it. NYPost - No spark from Jints' backup RB. NYPost - These guys just Giant softies. NYPost - Broncos show Big Blue ‘D’ no respect. Denver Post - Broncos dominate Giants 26-6. Game
11 Preview - Giants (6-4) vs Denver (6-4) Nov 26 They have had no time to recover and hardly any time to prepare before boarding a flight that would take them halfway across the country. But the Giants didn't spend this short week complaining. They know it could have been worse. "Obviously you want to go into a trip like this with some type of momentum," said defensive end Osi Umenyiora. "And I think we might have that." When
Eli Manning’s struggling, it’s obvious in his form and his demeanor on the
field. Though he might not admit it, his confidence can often go down and stay
down for a while. But the flip side is, when he feels good, it lasts. And according
to Coughlin, it’s contagious. Perhaps that’s the biggest reason for Manning’s
streakiness. Eli Manning and the Giants will need another solid game from Manningham and the rest of the receivers against a Denver defense that has been pretty stingy against the pass. The Broncos have allowed only 182.5 passing yards per game, which ranks third in the league. That means the Giants will have to commit to the run Thursday night against Denver’s 19th-ranked run defense. The equivalent of a full season's games has been played since the Plaxico Burress incident and the Giants are a mediocre and disappointing 8-8, including the postseason loss to Philly. They could not make up for the loss of Burress last season as teams began to load up in the box and single-cover the receivers, but the wideouts have not been the problem this year with emerging stars Steve Smith and Mario Manningham. Ahmad Bradshaw won't be with the Giants Thursday when they face the Denver Broncos. But Antonio Pierce might be stopping by. Both players have been ruled out of the Thanksgiving night game due to injuries, but Pierce is considering a detour to Invesco Field on his way home from California. The Giants' middle linebacker and defensive captain was in Los Angeles yesterday to get a second opinion on his neck injury from Dr. Robert Watkins, an orthopedic surgeon. Nov 25 Brandon Jacobs has dealt with his share of adversity this year, whether it’s a toothache, a short work week or criticism about his performance. All of it is background noise this week as he tries to help the Giants (6-4) generate some momentum for the final stretch of their season. "A good finish makes everything look better," said Jacobs, who will have to pick up the pace with Ahmad Bradshaw almost surely out of tomorrow’s game. After battling through a pair of injuries in his right foot, Ahmad Bradshaw injured his other one during Sunday's victory against the Falcons. And this ankle sprain is much worse than the right ankle sprain that has been hampering him this year. "Right after the game, we thought he had a (mild) ankle sprain," Coughlin said. "But evidently, it's more severe than that." Giants linebacker Michael Boley was pretty excited to play his former team for the first time on Sunday. And he played so well he was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week. Boley, the former Falcon, won the honor for his performance in the Giants’ 34-31 overtime win over Atlanta. He had 13 tackles, a sack, two tackles for losses and two quarterback hits." Between the end of Sunday's home game against Atlanta and kickoff Thanksgiving night, there will be just 100 hours. Combined with a cross-country flight and Denver’s mile-high altitude, the short week imposes the ultimate physical tax on the Giants' bodies. The Giants are putting trust in strength and conditioning coach Jerry Palmieri for quick turnaround against Broncos. The Giants usually wouldn't start thinking about their next opponent until Wednesday. If they waited that long this week, they wouldn't start preparing for the Broncos until they boarded their charter flight to Denver. It was nothing like a normal Monday at the Timex Center. There was no review of the tape from the previous day's win over Atlanta, much to the relief of a defense that got skewered in the second half. Denver's defense is giving up nearly three times more points per game and more than double the rushing yards during this four-game skid than it allowed during the 6-0 start. The Broncos were excellent on both sides of the ball in third-down conversions, time of possession and turnovers during their first six victories. They have been horrific in those areas during their four-game swoon. The Denver Broncos have lost four straight games and, now, their cool. So, among the things they're hoping to fix during their short week of preparation leading up to their game against the New York Giants (6-4) on Thanksgiving is their loss of composure. After telling the Chargers defenders, "We own you," Coach Josh McDaniels watched the main target of his taunt, Shaun Phillips, sweep around fill-in right tackle Tyler Polumbus to force Chris Simms to fumble away the ball on Denver's first pass attempt. Nov
24 On
an afternoon when Eli Manning had a career day passing, the Giants' victory
was an uneasy one. Because underneath the gaudy numbers for Manning lurked a more
disturbing problem for Big Blue. The Giants' vaunted defense lost a 14-point,
fourth-quarter lead and allowed Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan to engineer TD drives
of 65 and 76 yards to send it into OT.
Fresh
off their season-saving 34-31 overtime victory over the Falcons, the Giants
yesterday were back at it, pushing their sore bodies out for an afternoon practice.
Tomorrow, they will board their cross-country charter flight to Denver for Thursday
night's game against a Broncos team that has lost four straight after a 6-0 start.
Nov 23 Giants win over the Falcons in overtime, 34-31
ESPN - Giants right themselves after defense surrenders lead. Giants.com - Giants ended a four-game losing streak with their first victory since Oct. 11. NYDailyNews - Giants almost give away another before beating Atlanta Falcons in overtime, 34-31. NYDailyNews - Eli Manning keeps New York Giants' season alive with OT win over Atlanta Falcons. NYDailyNews - After bye week, TE Kevin Boss catches two score for New York Giants. NYDailyNews - Lawrence Tynes keep cool, boots OT field goal for New York Giants. NYDailyNews - Hurt Antonio Pierce says he can play with New York Giants despite doctors orders to sit out. StarLedger - Giants end four-game losing streak with 34-31 overtime victory against Atlanta Falcons. StarLedger - Giants' victory, improving neck has Antonio Pierce feeling 'great' StarLedger - Giants tight end Kevin Boss produces first multi-score game of his career in overtime victory. StarLedger - Giants' Aaron Ross says he still plays cornerback despite extended time at safety against Atlanta. StarLedger - Giants will rely on Eli Manning to salvage this season. NYPost - Eli rallies Giants to victory after defensive collapse. NYPost - Franchise QB comes up Big Blue in OT. NYPost - Blackburn responds in Pierce's absence. NYPost - Giant TE is focal point for offense. NYPost - Tynes doesn't 'miss' chance for redemption. TheRecord - Tynes' 36-yard FG leads Giants over Falcons in OT. TheRecord - Franchise QB saves a franchise. AJC.com - Manning has record day against Falcons' secondary. AJC.com - Falcons lose a close one but again find a quarterback. NFC
East News Game
10 Preview - Giants (5-4) vs Atlanta (5-4) Nov
22 In
what might be the most critical moment of a season already teetering on the
brink, the Giants will have to play Sunday afternoon without their defensive leader.
But make no mistake, the "heart" of the Giants' defense will still be there. "We
won't have (Antonio Pierce) on the field, but we will have him on the sideline
and we'll have his heart and his leadership there to rally the troops," Tom Coughlin
said. "All the troops. Defense, offense and special teams. He will be there to
lend his support to all of them." This is a big game for the Giants, who are just 5-15 in games coming off their bye week, 2-3 under Tom Coughlin. And they will have to play it without their middle linebacker and defensive signal-caller, Antonio Pierce, who was diagnosed Friday with a bulging disk in his neck and may be out as long as six weeks. Chase Blackburn will replace Pierce in the base defense, while the nickel packages had to undergo a late reshuffling to make up for his loss. Since Plaxico Burress went clubbing one Saturday night about a year ago, the Giants are just another football team. Oh sure, that is exactly what their record says they are. Since Burress tried to turn himself into Wyatt Earp, the Giants' record is 7-8, and that includes their one-and-done playoff loss to the Eagles at Giants Stadium last January. So if they beat the Falcons today, they become a .500 team since Burress began a journey that finally took him to jail. So before our eyes, they have gone from being a team on its way to two Super Bowls in a row to a bunch of underachievers. That needs to end today. Danny
Ware Sr. doesn’t like to fly, so he was driving from Georgia to New Jersey
on Friday for Sunday’s Giants-Falcons game. It will be his first time watching
his son play live in the NFL — partly because Danny Jr. hasn’t played much, but
also because of Danny Sr.’s fear of flying. Perhaps it’s fitting the father of
a running back prefers the ground to the air. Nov
21 NY
Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce out indefinitely with neck injury - Antonio
Pierce, who practiced fully all week long and was not listed on the injury report,
underwent an MRI on his neck. The test revealed a bulging disc that will keep
Pierce out of Sunday's game against the Falcons - and many more. An injury like
this is often a season-ending one, though someone familiar with Pierce's injury
said the Giants are hopeful the bulging disc will subside a bit and Pierce will
be able to return in six weeks or so. The statute of limitations on the 2009 Giants feeling good about themselves expired after about six hours. After Tom Coughlin, following practice, had pronounced his team the healthiest it has been all season, he found out early last evening that defensive signal caller Antonio Pierce has been lost indefinitely with a bulging neck disc. No matter how much Pierce has slowed down, this can't be a good thing. It means snaps for Jonathan Goff, a 2008 fifth-round pick and all the inexperience that implies, and he is far from the only Giant in line for a reality check beginning tomorrow afternoon against the Falcons at Giants Stadium. Who is Jonathan Goff? Well, who anymore are these Giants? Aaron
Ross took another step toward making his season debut tomorrow by working
out at safety -- yup, safety -- yesterday. But head coach Tom Coughlin insisted
afterward not too much should be made of the switch. "There's only so many guys,
so they work in multiple spots," Coughlin said. "He's a corner. It's however we
use a guy in practice, but he is a cornerback. That's what he plays." And Coughlin
doesn't expect to use Ross at safety in the near future. "Not at this point in
time, but you never know," Coughlin said. Former
Giants Stadium
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