Nov 20 Don't expect to see end of Reid era yet. Yes, they have qualified for the playoffs nine times in 11 years. But they've made it past the wild-card round only twice since 2004. His curious decision to promote Juan Castillo from offensive-line coach to defensive coordinator has blown up in his face. An NFL-record five fourth-quarter collapses. An "all-in" team with so much talent, but so little chemistry. Surely, there is no way Reid returns if their slide into oblivion continues, right?
The end of the NFL lockout brought a shock-and-awe free agency attack that left the Giants confronting a Dream Team menace down the Turnpike and their fans up in arms that their general manager, Jerry Reese, had been asleep at the switch, especially after the Eagles had taken great delight by brazenly stealing Steve Smith out from under Big Blue's broken nose. No one back then knew of Victor Cruz. Or Jake Ballard.

Justin Tuck and the Giants can put the Dream Teamers out of their misery Sunday night at MetLife Stadium. The Eagles are 3-6 and trail the Giants by three games in the NFC East and they are three games out of a wild-card spot. The Eagles have ruined the Giants' season three times in the last five years. The Eagles season is already ruined, but the Giants can put an exclamation point on it.
The main concern for the first-place Giants (6-3) is staying ahead of the Cowboys in the division, but an added benefit this weekend is thrusting the dagger into the hearts of the season for the Eagles, who are 3-6 and one loss away from irrelevance. The Eagles will go without Michael Vick (two cracked ribs), and Vince Young will get the start at quarterback.

You do not want to see a picture of you allowing Vince Young to escape your clutches under the headline "Tackling Dummy," but that's the way it was for Mathias Kiwanuka on Nov. 27, 2006, the day after the Titans turned a 21-0 fourth-quarter deficit into a stunning 24-21 victory over the Giants in Nashville. Kiwanuka as a rookie made a huge mistake that lives on in YouTube videos, as he released his grip to free Young from a sack..

The Giants do not have one player who can replace Michael Boley at linebacker, so tonight they will use three and possibly four of their rookies to find a way to keep Eagles running back LeSean McCoy under wraps. McCoy has scored at least one touchdown in all nine games this season, a franchise record.
The shifty McCoy only had 30 carries total the past two games -- both Eagles losses -- but given his success against the Giants earlier this season and the Eagles' uncertainty at quarterback (Michael Vick will sit due to a couple of broken ribs), expect McCoy to be featured prominently tonight.

Giants rely on Will Beatty. The savage dance takes place each time Eli Manning drops back to pass, a violent ballet of choreographed steps and synchronized movement often performed by 300-pound men. The bull rush. The speed rush. The swim move. Will Beatty glides along with each, as if they were dance moves and the pass rushers were his partners on a ballroom of grass. The left tackle sees it as an art, the melding of mind and body in the protection of Manning's blind side.

Nnamdi Asomugha not only lost his first battle with Victor Cruz, he lost an aura of superiority that he has since failed to recover. But if Asomugha was at all excited about the rematch or impressed by Cruz's breakthrough season, he wasn't indicating it in the Eagles' locker room this past week. The 30-year-old went from engaging to abrupt when asked about Cruz's surprising two-touchdown performance against the Eagles and subsequent rise to prominence.

The Eagles have won their last four at New York. DeSean Jackson played a major part in the last two, also scoring punt-return and receiving touchdowns in 2009. In the Eagles' September home loss to the Giants this season, Jackson was held to two catches for 30 yards. The following week against San Francisco, he caught six passes for 171 yards. But since then, his numbers and impact have steadily declined.

Former Giants
Carl Banks has been selected as the Giants Alumni Man of the Year. he received the award Thursday night at the Giants' annual Kickoff Luncheon, which was postponed from its original Aug. 31 date because the Giants had to play two preseason games in four days after Hurricane Irene.

Nov 19 All signs point to Michael Vick missing Sunday's game because of the fractured ribs he sustained in last week's loss to the Cardinals.Vick missed his third straight practice Friday and refrained from throwing on the sideline. Although coach Andy Reid didn't rule out the quarterback, a report from the Wilmington News Journal of Delaware said Vick will not play.
That means the Giants won't have to face a guy who led a 21-point fourth-quarter comeback against them last year. Instead, they'll have to deal with a quarterback who led a 21-point fourth-quarter comeback against them in 2006. That would be Vince Young, whom Tom Coughlin believes is nearly as much of a threat as Vick and allows the Eagles' offense to stay regular.
Still, Young hasn't played much this season, appearing in just two games and not completing a single pass, so he will be rusty. "The game plan doesn't change," safety Kenny Phillips said. "Vince Young is similar to Vick. But he doesn't have that many snaps under his belt. So you have to get after him and rattle him." That will be the approach of the Giants defense: Keep enough pressure on Young until he cracks.

Osi Umenyiora hopes to get his hands on the Philadelphia Eagles' LeSean McCoy, who called him "overrated" on Twitter this summer. "He said some things he shouldn't have said. He made a mistake there," Umenyiora said, adding: "He ran his mouth, he crossed the line that shouldn't have been crossed. If he was going to say something, this should've been the week he should've said some things like that.
McCoy bashed Umenyiora in the middle of June. But this week, the NFC East -leading leading Giants have heard nothing but silence from the typically chatty McCoy and slumping Philadelphia. From wideout DeSean Jackson's contract discontent to quarterback Michael Vick's rib injury, the 3-6 Eagles have too many problems to trash-talk.
McCoy, who had 128 yards and a TD on 24 carries in a 29-16 loss to the Giants in the first meeting this season, will be an even bigger point of emphasis should quarterback Michael Vick -- as expected -- sit out due to broken ribs. "If Vick doesn't play, our main focus will be to shut [McCoy] down," Umenyiora said.

Giants linebacker Michael Boley said he is still "holding out hope" that he will recover from his hamstring injury in time to face the Eagles on Sunday. But that doesn't seem likely , and that could mean that rookie Mark Herzlich sees his first action -- and possibly his first start -- on defense.
Herzlich, whose cancer battle was recently chronicled in his own segment on "60 Minutes," appears to have a good chance to get the nod because the Giants are down on fellow rookie linebacker Greg Jones' coverage skills and decision-making. The undrafted Herzlich has played in nine games this season, but all his snaps have been on special teams.
Herzlich will be one of four rookie linebackers the Giants will rely on to replace Boley, who doubles as the team's vocal leader and quarterback. Against the speedy Eagles, the Giants defense ordinarily lines up in a nickel package more often than not. Without Boley that will only increase.

Rookie Prince Amukamara thought he was going to play last week - - and the week before that - - so he shied away from making any predictions on Friday. But the former Nebraska standout was optimistic. "I think it's a lot better than last week," Amukamara added. "It's pretty promising this week."
Safety Deon Grant, who said last week that Amukamara wasn't ready yet, called the rookie "special" on Thursday. "He hasn't been walking with the limp anymore. In the meeting room, the questions that have been asked to him, he's been answering them correctly. "Mentally, he's definitely there. As far as physically, he's got to knock some of the rust off him, but he's been looking good."

Nov 18 Brandon Jacobs still hasn't forgotten about last season's "Miracle at the New Meadowlands." They beat the so-called "Dream Team" in Week 3, and they have a chance to end the Eagles' nightmare of a 2011 season on Sunday night. "We can't fall asleep on them and let them come alive against us," Jacobs said. "We know the type of team that they are, [backs] up against the wall, and they're gonna come out fighting. Mathematically they're still in this thing, so they're not gonna come in and just lay down."

Amid injury-plagued season, Justin Tuck admits 'I'm not a very good player right now'. He's had neck and groin issues, has missed four games and has only two sacks, which puts him on pace for his lowest total since a backup role and a foot injury resulted in a sackless, six-game season in 2006. Meanwhile, he's watching Osi Umenyiora and Jason Pierre-Paul combine for 16½ sacks. As Tuck put it, "I'm not enjoying this season."
Defensive coordinator Perry Fewell says Tuck has made an impact since returning against the Miami Dolphins three weeks ago, but he has done it subtly. Sacks are rare occurrences, but Tuck's presence has eased Pierre-Paul's workload.Tuck is also anchoring the defense against the run, Fewell said, and that was one of the key reasons that the Giants held San Francisco RB Frank Gore without a yard last week.

There was a different feeling around Prince Amukamara's locker on Thursday. A feeling of optimism. The Giants' first-round pick practiced fully for the first time all season, and it sounds as though he's going to make his NFL debut on Sunday night against Philadelphia.
The Giants also appear more likely to have Amukamara make his NFL debut at home against an injury-depleted Eagles passing game than on the road Nov. 28 on "Monday Night Football" against Drew Brees and the Saints in the din of the Superdome.

Once fearful he might miss the rest of the season with a broken bone in his foot, Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw is now predicting a return for the Nov. 28 Monday night game at New Orleans. "Yeah, I'm comfortable enough to say I'm going to try to go [against the Saints]," said Bradshaw, who has missed the past two games and isn't expected to play in Sunday's showdown at home with the rival Eagles.
Not only is Bradshaw the team's best running back but the Giants also rely on Bradshaw in the passing game on screens. Eli Manning has thrown to Bradshaw for the highest percentage of a team's screen passes in the NFL (66.7 percent). And this would be a good week to have Bradshaw in the screen game since the Giants used the screen often against the Eagles in their Week 3 victory.

Nov 17 Though Victor Cruz apparently did no wrong on Tuesday, his name was the first one publicized as being in attendance while a fatal shooting occurred. He got top billing over a list of celebrities and athletes (though the accuracy of said list is in question, as Hakeem Nicks and Aaron Ross denied they were there) and has had to answer questions about the situation for two days now.
The first thing Victor Cruz thought about, after he had heard the fatal gunshots from across the room and hurled himself under the table at the Juliet Supper Club, was his unborn child. He and his longtime girlfriend, Elaina, are having a daughter. The due date is Jan. 24, so this was a very bad time to be hiding from bullets.
Escaping the violent neighborhood where he grew up served as motivation to become the best athlete he could be, a work ethic that has driven him to this break-out season with the Giants. Bizarre isn't it? Just when Cruz seems to have fulfilled his dream of making an impact in the NFL, he winds up dodging gun shots again.

Tom Coughlin says he may make a reference or show his team some footage of last year's meltdown against the Eagles sometime this week. But Antrel Rolle says Coughlin shouldn't bother. This is a different season. "I don't give a [hoot] about that game last year," Rolle said. "Last year is last year. That don't affect anything with us this year. If he wants to be reminded, he can be reminded."

Whether the Giants' defense will be without its most experienced linebacker and play-caller against the Philadelphia Eagles' top-ranked rushing offense Sunday night is still up in the air. Michael Boley, who strained his hamstring dropping back into coverage late in the first half of the Giants' 27-20 loss at San Francisco, did not practice today, instead watching his teammates while pedaling on a stationary bike.
With Michael Boley nursing a hamstring injury, the Giants are taking a look at all their young linebackers. Linebacker Mark Herzlich is hoping he will finally get a crack at playing a defensive snap. Herzlich has been only a special teams contributor up to this point but the Boston College standout is ready if his name is called upon on Sunday night if Boley is unable to play against the Eagles.

They know he is tough and they expect him to play, despite all the reports out of Philadelphia that Michael Vick probably will not be a part of Sunday's game. The Giants yesterday all but lined up and sang the praises of Vick's heart, but it's his two broken ribs that will stand out like a bull's-eye if he dares take the field.

Defensive tackle Jimmy Kennedy said he tested positive for a banned substance he believed he had been cleared to take. The Giants' defensive tackle was suspended by the NFL after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs, spent the past five weeks away from his teammates and, like many former Penn State players, was shocked and saddened when the allegations against Jerry Sandusky were made public.
Kennedy - who denied using steroids and said everything from cold medicine to creams are on the league's banned list - said he disagreed with Penn State's decision to fire former head coach Joe Paterno, but expressed sympathy for the victims. "If Coach Paterno would've saw it himself, it would have been a done deal," he said.

No one in the Giants organization imagined they'd be facing the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday with a chance to put them out of their misery. No one dreamed the "Dream Team" would be almost out of the division race before Thanksgiving. None of them are gloating or laughing either, because despite Philly's ugly 3-6 record, nobody on the Giants is giving up on the Eagles in the NFC East just yet.

Former Giants
Steve Smith will make his return to MetLife Stadium as the enemy in green. And he figures he'll receive a frosty welcome since he left the Giants for the green (dollar bills). "I don't know," Smith said on Wednesday according to The News Journal of Wilmington. "I had some big years but I came to Philly, so the reception might not be that good.New York fans are pretty brutal," he added.
Steve Smith has been a flop with the Eagles, but the wide receiver says he has 1.3 million reasons -- as in dollars -- for not regretting his decision to spurn the Giants. Just as the Giants predicted, Smith has given the Eagles little return on that large investment with 10 receptions for 110 yards and no touchdowns in spot action.

Nov 16 Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz and a handful of teammates were at a Manhattan night club early Tuesday morning when a gunman opened fire, killing one man and injuring two others according to reports. Cruz and his teammates were not injured and not involved in the shooting which occurred early in the morning shortly before 2:30 a.m. at the Juliet Supper Club on W. 21st street.

Tom Coughlin is in the midst of one of his finest seasons as a coach. He's taken a battered team that was hemorrhaging players during the summer and made it believe it could contend. Coughlin should be in the running for NFL Coach of the Year. But if there is a collapse, he'll undoubtedly hear the annual screams that it's time to give someone else his job.

Giants safety Antrel Rolle confirmed what Tom Coughlin and LB Greg Jones said: Jones should've covered San Francisco 49ers tight end Vernon Davis on Davis' 31-yard touchdown Sunday. Jones was only in the game because linebacker Michael Boley, who is iffy for Sunday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles, was out with a hamstring issue.

Giants tight end Jake Ballard has filled a hole in the offense, making 26 catches for 430 yards and three touchdowns. Teams have noticed and are now looking to jam the 6-6, 255-pounder at the line of scrimmage and disrupt his routes. "That happens once you start getting stats and you contribute more to the offense. You just have to have a plan of action before every play."

The Eagles are having one of those seasons that get people fired. And who usually gets fired, the people who put it all together or the people who could not make it all work? A 3-6 record? This was unthinkable barely three months ago, when the 2011 endgame for Reid seemed more likely to culminate in him getting hoisted up and toasted, finally, as a champion as his Eagles fulfilled their presumed destiny with a Super Bowl triumph.

With the status of Michael Boley in doubt, the weight of the linebacking corps falls on rookies Greg Jones, Spencer Paysinger and Jacquian Williams. Jones handled many of the run plays and Paysinger often handled passing downs in Boley's absence Sunday. No matter who plays how much and in what capacity, they will be challenged by RB LeSean McCoy and Vick or backup QB Vince Young."
Jacquian Williams may have a major role Sunday. Williams, 23, has not forgotten the Giants' first game against the Eagles, a 29-16 Week 3 victory in Philadelphia in which he had a game-high 10 tackles and earned a game ball. The speedy 6-foot-2, 224-pound rookie served as a "spy" on Vick, shadowing his every move to keep him from fleeing the pocket.

Nov 15 The ball never got to Giants receiver Victor Cruz on Eli Manning's fourth-down pass on Sunday because 49ers lineman Justin Smith batted it down at the line to preserve San Francisco's 27-20 victory. Niners linebacker Patrick Willis was all over tight end Jake Ballard at the line -- a little too much, in their opinion. Include Tom Coughlin in that group.
Giants coach Tom Coughlin thought his team got the shaft on a pair of plays during Sunday's 27-20 loss in San Francisco: Dave Tollefson's offside penalty and the non-call on Patrick Willis for impeding Jake Ballard's progress on the 4th-and-2 incompletion that ended the Giants' comeback bid late in the fourth quarter.

Michael Boley, the team's most experienced linebacker, strained his hamstring dropping into coverage late in the first half. He could only watch from the sideline as his teammates surrendered two fourth-quarter touchdowns during the 49ers' 27-20 win. The 49ers took advantage of Boley's absence on both of their touchdowns.
The pass coverage and communication has to get better, which could be a challenge if Michael Boley is sidelined, particularly considering we're only two weeks removed from the Saints and Packers taking their whacks at this defense. And the running game just isn't good enough right now. It's not being blocked well up front and the backs aren't getting enough space with which to work.

Giants coach Tom Coughlin could only laugh when asked Monday if there was anything the Giants could've done differently to stop David Akers' onside kick, which was recovered by the 49ers. It eventually led to a field goal that gave San Francisco a 9-6 lead heading into the second half.

It didn't take long for Giants coach Tom Coughlin to become peeved during his Monday afternoon conference call. Two questions in, a reporter asked Coughlin about his team's historic second-half struggles in light of Sunday's 27-20 loss at San Francisco. In just over 7 1/2 seasons at the helm, the Giants have gone 47-17 in first halves under Coughlin, never starting a season with a record worse than 5-3. But in the second half, they're just 24-33, including 0-1 now in 2011.
It won't be easy for the Giants (6-3), who are clinging to a one-game lead on the Cowboys (5-4) in the NFC East. After a home game against the 3-6 Eagles, who they can bury Sunday, the Giants have a tough game against the Packers, a road game in New Orleans and two games against the Cowboys in the last month of the season. Dallas, it should be noted, has a decidedly easier schedule the rest of the way.

The Eagles are dead. Washington, as per usual, has become irrelevant. The Cowboys are revived, and the schedule is mischievous. It is really all about Dallas and the Giants now, marking time and place for three more weekends before the titans clash.

For the second time this season, the Giants will head into a game against their heated rival, the Eagles, not knowing if they will face dangerous quarterback Michael Vick or not. They will not only have to prepare to face Vick, but also backup Vince Young.
Michael Vick has two broken ribs and his status for Sunday night's rematch with the Giants is up in the air. But the Giants are expecting Vick to play. In their previous meeting, the Giants held Vick to 16-for-23 passing for 176 yards and one interception. They sacked him twice and injured his hand.

Former Giants
Amani Toomer makes right call in saying Eli can't be Giant crutch. While he didn't seem angry, Toomer had seen enough. He basically said the Giants were using Manning as a crutch, too comfortable with the notion he could pull their butts out of the fire. This kind of dependency, Toomer said, will destroy a team.

Nov 14 Giants lose to San Francisco, 27-20   |   Photos  |  Photos

Game 9 Preview - Giants (6-2) vs Niners (7-1)
Last week the 49ers' notched their sixth straight win by defeating the Redskins 19-11 in Washington. They now have a commanding lead in the NFC West. Head coach Jim Harbaugh has certainly sparked this team to new life.
The Giants gave their fans a chance to remember what it was like a few years ago when they beat the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. Eli Manning engineered his fifth fourth-quarter comeback of the season on the Giants last drive when the ball fell into the hands of number 85, Jake Ballard, in the endzone for the 24-20 lead and final score.
San Francisco 49ers. He completed 58.8 percent of his passes and ended up with a quarterback rating of 77.6. We're not talking about the 49ers quarterback Alex Smith. Those were Jim Harbaugh's numbers over an NFL quarterback career that spanned 15 seasons and six different teams. Harbaugh was sacked 361 times but can still deliver a good hard handshake. Name the only Indianapolis quarterback to ever receive the AFC's player of the year award - Peyton Manning - wrong. It was Jim Harbaugh in 1995. (The award was discontinued in 1997).

Nov 13 Giants wide receiver Mario Manningham, who caught a fourth-quarter touchdown against the Patriots on Sunday, has been added to this week's injury report with a knee issue. He's listed as questionable. It's unclear when the problem first occurred or what happened to force the team to list him on the injury report.
The Giants likely are going to have to take to the air today against a 49ers defense that is the NFL's best at stopping the run. Will Eli Manning have enough targets to throw to? That's a legitimate question after Mario Manningham yesterday unexpectedly was added to the injury report with a knee issue.

Could Da'Rel Scott be following in Bradshaw's footsteps? Scott is a rookie seventh-round pick who last week finally got his first career rushing attempt in the Giants' eighth game. He likely will supplant Devin Thomas today as the primary kickoff returner, and the Giants are searching for ways to get the ball in his hands on offense. With Bradshaw out again with a stress fracture in his foot, Brandon Jacobs and D.J. Ware will handle most of the carries, but Scott -- the fastest back on the roster -- could have an expanded role.

On offense, the 49ers will not just feature running back Frank Gore, but will rely on him to carry the ball and the team. On defense, the 49ers will try to outhit the Giants, not outsmart them. "They don't blitz too much. They don't do anything crazy," tight end Jake Ballard said. "They pretty much line up in front of you and say 'Hey, here's what we're doing, try and beat us.'"

Giants defensive back Deon Grant has been key in helping Giants stop the run, something Big Blue's defense has struggled with this season as they are ranked 24th in that department. "How hard is it to stop Frank Gore? There is no answer," Tuck said. "We have a huge challenge slowing him down."

Yes, a lot still can go wrong for the Giants, starting today in San Francisco against the upstart, high-flying 49ers. Yes, every time you want to embrace the Giants as legitimate contenders, not only in the East but in the NFC, they will throw a Seattle stinker at you, or Miami near-miss. But even the most skeptical fan has to say: 6-2 isn't such a bad place to be. Would that skeptical fan say as much to general manager Jerry Reese?
If you thought the criticism from the media or talk-radio callers was harsh this summer, Jerry Reese says you should've heard some the messages left on his voicemail. Every move he made - or, more to the point, every move he didn't make - was met with an army of angry critics. There were even a few doubters down in his own locker room. "I think everybody had a little part of them that said, 'What is he doing?" admits Giants defensive end Justin Tuck.
One of Giants GM Jerry Reese's best moves was allowing Steve Smith and Kevin Boss to flee when their prices got too steep, and replacing them with talented, young players Victor Cruz, 25, and Jake Ballard, 23, instead of big names (and big salaries). To those outside the organization, it appeared Reese stood by and did nothing, a football Nero without a fiddle.

David Baas said five other teams made offers -- some to play guard and some at center. The Giants, in desperate need of a center, offered $27.5 million over five years. Baas obviously wants to prove he was worth every penny. "The communication is getting better. Half the time, we don't even have to talk," Baas said. "It's just they've been here so long and know everything about each other. It just takes a little time because they don't know anything about me." Slowly, they're learning.

Nov 12 In preparing to face the San Francisco 49ers this week, there is a large change in strategy for the Giants. Perhaps as vast as the distance they'll have to travel to get to the West Coast. Last week, in New England, they faced a pass-heavy Patriots offense with Tom Brady as its maestro. In the Niners they find a run-predicated team with running back Frank Gore as its bedrock. The dichotomy calls for a change in game plan. Greg Jones stands to be benefit.
From the the Buffalo Bills to the New England Patriots, the Giants have faced a series of pass-happy opponents, and that has kept Jones on the bench. But when Big Blue arrives at 3COM Park on Sunday, it will meet a punishing ground attack. The 49ers rank sixth in the league with 137.6 rushing yards per game, and they boast tailback Frank Gore, who has five straight 100-yard games.
Jones is the rookie middle linebacker from Michigan State who began the season as a starter because of Jonathan Goff's season-ending injury. But after starting the first two games and three of the first four, Jones has started just once in the Giants' last four games. He also has seen his snaps sliced, as the Giants have gone to nickel packages to defend against pass-heavy teams.

Hakeem Nicks participated in more than half of practice yesterday and the Giants' top receiver said his ailing hamstring has been fine all week. Nicks, who missed last week's game against the Patriots, is expected to return tomorrow in San Francisco against the 49ers. He said the only other gauge for his hamstring would be "waking up in the morning, seeing how it felt after [yesterday]. They'll let me know something in the morning." Nicks officially is listed as questionable for the game.

With the injury bug biting the Giants' secondary this season, safety Deon Grant has served as a "pseudo-linebacker." Recognizing Grant would be more valuable up front, the Giants' coaching staff primarily expected to use Grant, who re-signed with the club in August, closer to the line of scrimmage this season. That all changed when the team's injury plague seeped into the secondary during the preseason.

San Francisco's Candlestick Park has the reputation as a veritable wind tunnel, the inside of an F-4 tornado for athletes. "Candlestick is notoriously a little breezy but it's not that bad," Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes said. "I play in the Meadowlands." Maybe Tynes versus his 49ers counterpart, former Eagle David Akers, isn't the sexiest matchup, but it could be one of the more important with the defenses involved.

Nov 11 Ahmad Bradshaw was originally telling teammates he expected to miss about two games with a stress fracture in his foot. That will clearly be the case. Though there's a chance he could miss even more time. After sitting out the victory over the New England Patriots on Sunday, the Giants' running back won't play against the San Francisco 49ers this coming weekend, according to someone briefed on his injury status.

For the second straight day, Justin Tuck's name was not on the injury report, and those are the only two days that has happened all season long. If only that meant that the Giants defensive end was actually healthy, too. "That's not the case," Tuck said on Thursday. "But it's a good thing that I'm off it, though, huh? We're making strides."

Eli Manning has completed 62.9 percent of his passes, possesses a 98.9 QB rating and has thrown just six interceptions in 280 attempts. Plus, he's been money in the fourth quarter. So why has he been able to turn it around? Offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride works with Manning all the time, so he'd be the one to know.
No one is insinuating the Giants will scrap their running attack altogether and put the game in Manning's hands, but they can set up the run with the pass. "Each game you have to figure out what kind of game it is going to be and you play to those circumstances," Manning said.

Alex Smith is having his best season for the 49ers. There's no debating that, and the fact this former No. 1 overall pick is still a starting quarterback for the team that drafted him in 2005 is remarkable, considering he hasn't played like a top pick in the past. According to Justin Tuck, he's still not quite at that level.
He's got a QB rating of 97.3, but Tuck doesn't seem impressed. "He is a guy who they are trying to keep out of position to win the football game," Tuck said. "Obviously, with a back like Frank Gore and the O-Line keeping them in third and short situations and even if it is third and six or seven, they still feel that they can pick it up running."

Brandon Jacobs found some running room in last Sunday's win over the New England Patriots, but he figures to face a tougher challenge against the 49ers in San Francisco. The Niners own arguably the best rush defense in the NFL. They allow a league-low 71 yards per game on the ground and 3.5 yards per carry. And their 3-4 defense is designed to funnel ball-carriers into the waiting arms of linebackers Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman.
For Jacobs, the game could serve as another chance to prove that he is still a full-time tailback. The 29-year-old has spent most of the last two years as Ahmad Bradshaw's backup, and late last month, he complained about his lack of touches. But with Bradshaw still fighting to return from a fractured right foot, Jacobs once again finds himself in the spotlight. He made his first start of the season in last week's win over the Patriots, racking up 100 total yards.

Giants special teams coach Tom Quinn said the plan is to incorporate rookies Jerrel Jernigan and Da'Rel Scott into the return game, a plan that, in part, could be unveiled Sunday against the 49ers. "We've been hoping to ... get them to a point where Jerrel can start being the punt returner and Da'Rel can be the kick returner, but it hasn't got to that point yet," Quinn said.

"Beckum is Beckum," is arguably Giants coach Tom Coughlin's best quote of the year. "One-Play J.J." is arguably his best player nickname. It certainly drew a lot of laughs from reporters during Coughlin's post-practice press conference on Thursday. And rookie return man Jerrel Jernigan definitely earned it. On his first opportunity to return a kick Sunday in New England, Jernigan was drilled in the hip by a Patriot helmet. Just like that, he was out of the game.

Tom Coughlin is the least desired coach in the NFL, according to a Sporting News' player poll. Of the 111 players interviewed from 31 teams, the Giants' Coughlin got 22 votes. Miami's Tony Soprano was second with 21, while New England's Bill Belichick received 15. No other coach got more than six.

Nov 10 Special Report - So Sunday his guys will fly across the country to play the 7-1 San Francisco 49ers, who own first place in the NFC West by at least six light years, and after the effort the Giants expended in beating New England last Sunday, one might expect Coughlin to boast just a little. No, sir, because that would, in some way, demean the Niners. "They are technically very sound," he said Wednesday. "They have outstanding personnel. Their two inside linebackers [Patrick Willis and NoVarro Bowman] are really good ones, powerful, big. Their safeties are very involved in [stopping] the run. They're just very sound."

In the locker room on Sunday, right after the Giants knocked off the Patriots and not long after Brandon Jacobs finally put him back on the ground, Tom Coughlin composed himself and focused his attention on his team's upcoming trip to San Francisco. And his message to his team was a pointed one. "We ain't going on a six-hour ride not to come back with a win," he said.
The task is clear: Deal with Frank Gore, who will come at the Giants early, often and with a relentless fury whether the Niners are up, down or even. Trickery is for other games in other weeks. Wild air shows from gifted quarterbacks are the norm, but not this Sunday in San Francisco. "This is old-school football, man," linebacker Michael Boley said.

Tom Coughlin, who is in his eighth season with the Giants, is one of a handful of long tenured NFL coaches, along with Eagles coach Andy Reid, Patriots coach Bill Belichick, Bengals coach Marvin Lewis, Chicago coach Lovie Smith and Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio. Only Reid and Belichick have coached longer than 10 years, and Reid is on the hotseat in Philly. Longevity isn't part of the job package for an NFL coach.

Devin Thomas found a home with the Giants as a kick returner this season. But now, he is out of a job. Thomas told the Daily News that the Giants have taken away his kick-return responsibilities and will likely go with rookie Da'Rel Scott and D.J. Ware as their primary return men on Sunday against the 49ers. Thomas said he learned of the move when he checked the weekly depth chart on Wednesday. "It's a reality check," Thomas said. "It checks your pride, but I'm going to bounce back."

Prince Amukamara remains a practice-only player. But he hopes that's about to change. The rookie cornerback played "a few snaps" with the first team defense on Wednesday. "Just proving myself," he said. Will he prove enough to coaches to play Sunday in San Francisco? That's a question that will likely be answered later this week.

In his final five seasons with the 49ers, David Baas missed only one game. He's already missed two in nine weeks with the Giants. "I've had dings and stuff like that. But I've never missed games or anything like that. Of course, nobody likes getting injured. But I didn't expect somebody to get thrown into my knee or get my face mask grabbed." Baas suffered his first neck burner when a player grabbed his face in the first couple of weeks of the season. (He didn't mention the player or team.)
This summer, David Baas was a free agent, and new 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh wanted to keep him in San Francisco. "Heck, yeah. Told David that," Harbaugh said yesterday. "I was looking forward to having another Michigan man on the squad." That didn't happen, though Harbaugh and Baas can reminisce about the Wolverines this weekend. After spending six seasons with the 49ers, Baas signed a five-year, $27.5 million deal with the Giants. On Sunday, he'll face his former squad for the first time.

Kareem McKenzie's reaction to the scandal at Penn State - his alma mater - was the same as anyone else's learning about the heinous crimes levied against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. "Of course I was shocked," the Giants tackle said. "I didn't expect anything like that to happen. When I knew Jerry when he was there, he was a great guy and a devoted coach. It's unfortunate that this has come about."
On Wednesday morning, longtime Penn State coach Joe Paterno announced that he will retire at the end of the season, his career brought down because he failed to do all he could about the allegations against Sandusky. McKenzie called the whole situation "sad" and "sorrowful" on Wednesday. McKenzie did not want to pass judgement on Paterno, who hasn't been accused of legal wrongdoing.

Nov 9 The Giants were beaten long before the games ever started this season, at least that's what so many thought. Too many free-agent losses. Way too many injuries. The world had a good laugh when GM Jerry Reese insisted he had a playoff team.
Giants general manager Jerry Reese has seen the Giants win this year in-part because of the players he believed in rather than going for free agents. With Cruz and Ballard combining for 57 catches for 983 yards and seven touchdowns (compared to 13/223/1 for Smith and Boss), the pass rush leading the league with 28 sacks and players like Boothe and Tollefson filling in for injured starters, the critics have been quieted.

There are team meetings. There are position meetings. And then last Monday, the Giants held a debriefing. Fighter-pilot style. Eli Manning picked out 30 plays and as the clip of a single play ran, anyone who saw something he felt he could've done better was supposed to speak up. If a player didn't own up to an error, one of his teammates could point it out.
Giants' position-by-position report card. It seems like ages, but it was only just a couple months ago when the Giants were coming off what felt like the worst preseason of any team in the NFL. They lost Kevin Boss and Steve Smith while opting not to make any major moves in free agency. Terrell Thomas, Jonathan Goff and Clint Sintim were among a host of players who had suffered season-ending injuries.

There might not be any relaxing Sundays with the Giants, but winning as they have in fashioning a 6-2 record ultimately will be the reason why they remain atop their division. Last season, the Giants found ways to lose down the stretch. This season, they create ways to win. Perhaps it is a bit of football karma that the teams involved in last season's most captivating comeback/collapse have now reserved their fortunes.

Mathias Kiwanuka earned NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his game in the win over New England. Kiwanuka had 12 tackles, one interception and a pass defended. He also played in coverage more than usual and impressed head coach Tom Coughlin.

Giants defensive end Justin Tuck believes the rival Eagles are failing their chemistry class. "I think everybody expected a little bit more," Tuck said yesterday on The Jim Rome Show. "When they put it together, the thing I was quoted saying is, 'You can't buy championships.' And what I meant by that is, you've got to build chemistry." The Eagles, a self-proclaimed Dream Team and an overwhelming favorite to win the NFC East, are 3-5 and tied with the Redskins for last place.

The Giants announced veteran offensive lineman Adam Koets has been waived. Koets, a sixth-round pick in 2007, played in eight games last season with four starts. He was the starting center in place of the injured Shaun O'Hara before being replaced in an offensive-line shuffle against the Seahawks.

The Giants-Eagles showdown at the Meadowlands on Sunday night, Nov. 20, will remain a Sunday night game. The NFL announced on Tuesday that it will not be "flexed" and will kick off as scheduled at 8:20 p.m. on NBC. Also not being flexed is the Giants' game against the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers, set for Sunday afternoon, Dec. 4 at the Meadowlands.

Nov 8 Giants coach Tom Coughlin's nomination for the play of the game in Sunday's 24-20 victory over the New England Patriots isn't Jake Ballard's catch or one of the two times they intercepted Tom Brady, or even the game-winning touchdown. His selection is a play that gained no yards and simply lives on record as "E.Manning pass incomplete short left to J.Ballard."
Nine weeks into this NFL season, Jake Ballard has put an end to the Giants' tight end uncertainty, making everyone forget about Kevin Boss . Receiver David Tyree also comes to mind. None of it has shocked Ballard. In four years at Ohio State, Ballard was a blocking tight end and he wasn't even chosen in last year's draft.

The Giants have a tough stretch ahead. This week the team heads to San Francisco, followed by games against the Eagles, Saints and Packers. With such formidable competition, coach Tom Coughlin said the Giants are keeping up their guard against an all-too-familiar second half letdown.
So yes, the Giants currently lead the NFC East by two games, and yes they are among the biggest surprises in the NFL. But are they just getting everyone's hopes up again, setting the stage for another winter of disappointment? "Not this time, man," Osi Umenyiora said. "We've been through that too many times. There's going to be no collapses."
Winning tight games -- the last four victories have been by four, three, three and four points, and all required fourth-quarter rallies -- is a departure from last season's end-game fadeouts. The Giants now must expunge another bad memory from their performance.

Giants-Patriots game review: The entire Giants team is elite right now. Tight end Jake Ballard proved he's no fluke with a clutch third-down catch and then the game-winning touchdown in Sunday's upset victory over the Patriots. Running back Brandon Jacobs ran with purpose in Sunday's victory over the Patriots.

Often portrayed as the antithesis of a stage dad, Archie Manning is not immune to the bee sting of criticism when it comes to his son Eli, especially when that criticism is delivered by FOX broadcasters Troy Aikman and Joe Buck. "I don't always listen to Troy and Joe," Archie said. "They're kind of hard on Eli. Joe's always been really tough on Eli, and it seems this year Troy is too. But that's OK. Sometimes I just mute them."

A day after the Giants put together a 24-20 win over the Patriots in Foxborough, Mass., coach Tom Coughlin wasn't ready to declare that several key players will be ready to play in San Francisco this week.
Giants' injured trio improving, but status still uncertain for San Francisco 49ers. Ahmad Bradshaw, Hakeem Nicks and David Baas will meet with the Giants' trainers Tuesday to gauge their progress and set the course for the rest of the week as the troika rehabs from their assorted injuries.
Osi Umenyiora after the game marveled that, "Half our offense wasn't here and we still came down and beat a great football team." Now the Giants are hoping some of their injured offensive players can get back on the field for Sunday's game out west against the 49ers.

Justin Tuck admitted the Giants "got carried away" with their postgame celebration Sunday night after their thrilling 24-20 comeback victory over the Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Not only did Brandon Jacobs hoist a jubilant Tom Coughlin into the air, but the coach sounded a bit like a preacher when he congratulated his flock of Giants during an emotionally charged scene in the visitors locker room.

Coach Rex Ryan praised the Giants' performance in their 24-20 win at New England -- and said he wouldn't mind paying the cross-town rivals back at some point. "It shows the kind of team the Giants have," Ryan said. "That's an excellent football team, because you don't beat New England unless you're a heck of a football team. Especially there, they've won like 20 games in a row in the regular season.
That only adds to the intrigue, of course, a plot that will only grow thicker and tastier in the 46 days connecting now and Christmas Eve, when the teams will play what, right now, looks like the most intriguing, important game they've ever played.
So, which team is better? Is it the Giants, who have Eli-te Manning at quarterback and are coming off their most impressive and emotional victory since Super Bowl XLII? Or the Jets, who have won three in a row after losing three straight, and finally have their swagger back. Sorry, Rex, but right now it's Big Blue.

Nov 7 Giants win over the Dolphins, 24-20   |   Photos  |  Photos

Game 8 Preview - Giants (5-2) vs Patriots (5-2)
Last week the Patriots lost their game in Pittsburgh to the Steelers 25-17. They were behind in the game from start to finish as the Steelers strategy was to keep the ball out of Tom Brady's hands as much as possible and to keep him from throwing downfield. Sure, all teams want that, but the Steelers figured out a way to do it and other teams will likely follow the pattern.
The Giants saved their best for last as they trailed the Dolphins from the first and into the fourth quarter. Eli Manning tossed the game-winning 25-yard scoring pass to Victor Cruz with 5:58 left to go. Unable to establish a running game, Eli Manning used his arm to carry most of the workload, completing 31 of 45 passes against Miami, throwing for 349 yards and two touchdowns in their 20-17 win.

Nov 6 All of Eli Manning's friends who caught passes on the dramatic Super Bowl drive that beat the Patriots are gone.David Tyree won't be there to make a spectacular helmet catch, which turned out to be the last reception of his career. Steve Smith is in Philadelphia waiting for his turn on the poorly named Dream Team. Amani Toomer is retired and Plaxico Burress is busy catching 3-yard touchdowns -- and not much else -- for the Jets.

On the wall outside the locker room at the Giants' training facility, there's a massive picture from Super Bowl XLII. In the picture that sums up the Giants' defensive effort in the 17-14 Super Bowl XLII victory in 2008, Justin Tuck jars the ball loose from Tom Brady as Osi Umenyiora grabs the New England Patriots quarterback from behind. All are back for today's rematch at MetLife Stadium.

Brandon Jacobs wants the ball more. Well, he should get it on Sunday. Again and again and again. With running back Ahmad Bradshaw hampered by a broken bone in his foot, Jacobs will likely be the Giants No. 1 back against New England. "What would be better than the opportunity that he's going to get now?," Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride said earlier this week. "He's been clamoring for a chance. The chance is here. This is an opportunity. You want to show what you can do."

By now the story is old and tired, but the point stands the same. If Manning wants to prove he's elite, there's no better time to do so than the week he's facing Tom Brady, the quarterback to whom he drew comparisons. Especially because this will be a game in which the passing game will be vital. The Patriots allow a league-worst 323 passing yards a game and second-to-last 8.3 yards per pass attempt.
The Patriots are coming off a loss that sent the New England players and coaches into "mourning," according to Tom Brady. That's not good news for the Giants considering Brady is 25-6 after Patriot losses, and the home team has won 20 consecutive regular-season games in Foxborough. The Patriots are in a fight in the AFC East, tied with the surprising Bills (5-2) and just a game ahead of the always-cocky Jets (4-3).

The stage isn't the same as it was four years ago, but the theme is still the same. The New England Patriots are the powerhouse. The Giants are the upstarts and underdogs, convinced nobody is giving them much of a chance. And just like four years ago, when they marched into Glendale, Ariz. all dressed in black and left carrying a Super Bowl trophy, the Giants are looking forward to proving everybody wrong.
They have a two-game lead in the NFC East despite being ravaged by injuries (Terrell Thomas, Jonathan Goff, Domenik Hixon), free agent defections (Steve Smith, Kevin Boss, Barry Cofield) and near-constant turmoil (the Eli Manning "elite" controversy, Plaxico Burress, Brandon Jacobs' unhappiness). The Giants will be without Nicks -- their top receiver -- who is out with a strained hamstring. And their top rusher -- Bradshaw -- who Saturday was ruled out with a stress fracture in his foot. And one of their top pass rushers Pierre-Paul who is questionable with concussion-like symptoms.

Nov 5 The Giants, only last week a renewed picture of health, are now depleted once again. This week has been a losing battle of attrition, from Sunday to today. It's gotten to the point that when Tom Coughlin was asked about Hakeem Nicks' status on the injury report, he said to wait for the official list because he could not quite remember what he had been marked down as. "We talk about so many people, I am not sure what we said," the head coach said.

Defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul spent Friday getting tested for concussion-related symptoms. He has yet to be diagnosed with a concussion, but his status for Sunday's visit to Foxborough is questionable. Pierre-Paul was involved in a helmet-to-helmet collision with another player during practice drills on Thursday. Coughlin said the hit hardly seemed serious at first, but then Pierre-Paul began complaining of headaches.
If he makes the trip to New England, he will most likely play. If not, the Giants' vaunted pass rush will take a hit. The team leads the league with 26 sacks and Pierre-Paul has 8.5 of them. Perry Fewell's 'D' still has Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, Mathias Kiwanuka and Dave Tollefson to rush Tom Brady. But Pierre-Paul brings a combination of size and speed that is difficult to replace.

Prince Amukamara will travel with the Giants to New England. Coaches have yet to decide if the rookie will play. He thinks he's ready to go. Safety Deon Grant, however, disagrees. "He's looking good. He ain't ready yet. But he's looking good," Grant said on Friday.
Amukamara, though, said he believes he's "extremely ready," and safety Kenny Phillips agreed. "I haven't seen him in live action going against live bullets, but he's looked pretty solid in practice coming back from his injury," Phillips said. "He knows the defense pretty well because he's been in meetings asking questions and staying after practice working."

Barden returning to Giants in 'Nicks' of time. Though coach Tom Coughlin was coy with his answers yesterday about the availability of receiver Ramses Barden, a read between the lines strongly indicates Barden will make his 2011 debut in New England. Barden has been on the physically unable to perform list all season, recovering from the broken left ankle he suffered last year. But the receiver has been practicing of late and is eligible to be taken off the PUP list and put on the active roster.

Don't count Ahmad Bradshaw out just yet. The Giants' top tailback has a cracked bone in his right foot, and he hasn't practiced all week. But there is still a slight chance he suits up against the Patriots on Sunday, and he is definitely not heading for the operating table. "The doctors felt that it wouldn't be necessary for him to have surgery right now," Tom Coughlin said.

Former Giants
David Tyree -- little more than a special-teams standout heading into Super Bowl XLII -- ran a deep post, and when he looked back, Manning was fashioning his great escape from the clutches of Patriots defenders. "The only thing I'm saying in my head is, 'I'm bringing this one down.' Obviously, I didn't have a clue of the magnitude of what was going on."

Nov 4 Both running back Ahmad Bradshaw and receiver Hakeem Nicks were missing from practice Thursday afternoon, and it will be "several weeks, at least" before Bradshaw is back, according to a team source. Nicks, who is nursing a hamstring injury, has missed the last two days of practice and there's no indication that he's getting any closer to a return.
As offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride notes, the Giants will sorely miss Bradshaw's blocking skills if he can't play Sunday. He's not sure how either rookie Da'Rell Scott or D.J. Ware will do in game situations, but he's liked what he's seen from both in practice. Tom Coughlin was also complimentary of Scott's showing in practice.

Brandon Jacobs could see an increased role now that tests show Ahmad Bradshaw has a stress fracture in his right foot. There's a chance Bradshaw could heal by resting. In fact, someone who recently spoke with the fifth-year veteran said he initially told teammates he expected to miss about two weeks.
Jacobs missed two games with a swollen knee and his return last week was not impressive. He had to recover his own fumble on his first rushing attempt and later dropped a swing pass that fell off his hands. Jacobs was booed loudly by the fans at MetLife Stadium. "He is working hard and that is the only thing I have noticed," Coughlin said.
Can Jacobs, mired in the worst season of his career, be what he once was, an every-down running back capable of moving the chains and moving bodies out of the way as he rumbles for yards? "If we need him in that capacity, he can be that," Tom Coughlin said.

Hakeem Nicks may miss Sunday's game if it means long-term health the rest of the season. The decision whether to play will likely come down to the last-minute on Sunday. "Im hoping to wake up and the pain be gone," Nicks said. "Just got to take it day-to-day."
Nicks was asked if the offense has enough to match the Patriots offense point for point without him and Ahmad Bradshaw. "Definitely," Nicks said. "We got talent at every position, and it's deep. At least on this team, whenever guys got opportunities, they always take advantage of it. So I don't doubt it at all. I think we'll find ways to win."

With the Giants now at risk of missing several weapons against the New England Patriots, an opportunity opens up for an increased role for Jake Ballard. New England is 27th in the NFL in guarding tight ends, according to FootballOutsiders.com. Last week, the Pittsburgh Steelers' Heath Miller caught seven balls for 85 yards, including three straight catches on their first drive.

The Patriots have protected Tom Brady well this season. Brady's been sacked just 14 times and hit 33 times so far, putting the Pats in the top 10 in both categories. But they will be tested on Sunday. The Giants lead the NFL with 26 sacks, one more than Baltimore. But can they bring enough pressure to bother the normally unflappable Brady? Mathias Kiwanuka thinks so.

Former Giants
Plaxico Burress took a step down memory lane, revealing that he was practically a gametime decision to play in Super Bowl XLII against the Patriots nearly four years ago. The now-Jets-receiver had a knee injury that he feared might have kept him out of the game. He obviously played and caught the game winning touchdown pass with 35 seconds remaining in the 17-14 victory. Burress said that game was the toughest to play through for him because of the injury.

Nov 3 Antrel Rolle on Wednesday was in no mood to sing the praises of Tom Brady, Wes Welker or the Patriots. Make no mistake, he heaped plenty of praise on New England's array of stars, calling Brady "one of the quarterbacks of the decade" and Welker "a great receiver" Rolle, though, wanted to make sure there was no mistaking his praise for feeling as if the Giants are not up for this challenge.
Asked why Welker gives so many defenses problems, cornerback Antrel Rolle didn't flinch, instead offering up a dose of bravado that would raise the hair on the back of Rex Ryan's neck with envy. "I don't know; you have to ask guys he's given trouble to," Rolle said. "I don't plan on having to answer those questions [after the game]. Welker's a great receiver, but it's not a one-man offense. He's human. Welker doesn't throw the ball to himself."

Antrel Rolle and the Giants' defense will face the New England Patriots passing game that ranks second in the NFL with 327.4 yards per game. Rolle certainly isn't fearing the Pats, whom the Giants face on Sunday. Not even close. And his attitude is apparently contagious because his fellow defensive backs were echoing his sentiments.
Kenny Phillips believes the Giants' pass rush will be able to "rattle" Tom Brady. He went on to say the Giants' 13th-ranked pass defense matches up well with the Pats' second-ranked pass offense because he, Rolle, Aaron Ross, Corey Webster and Deon Grant can cover Welker, Aaron Hernandez, Rob Gronkowski and the rest of New England's targets.

The Giants might not be at full strength to go against the Pats' secondary, as Hakeem Nicks (hamstring) yesterday did not practice and Mario Manningham (illness) also sat out. That left Victor Cruz and Ramses Barden -- who will likely come off the Physically Unable to Perform list this week -- to work as the starting receivers.

Perhaps the most appropriate indicator of the Giants' depth chart, Victor Cruz felt a tinge of loneliness on the practice field in East Rutherford. Not out there with him were Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham, the two receivers most targeted by Eli Manning this season. With those two receivers out, Ramses Barden was the beneficiary. He stepped in and took what he called "a good portion" of the snaps with the first-team offense.

Eli Manning still has no regrets about the bold statement he made on the radio in August that set up a storyline for his entire season. In hindsight, he said, he was simply being "honest" when he said he was a top-five quarterback who belonged in Tom Brady's class.
Tom Coughlin set the stage for the Super Bowl victory upset by going all out in Week 17. In a home game that drew so much hype it was broadcast simultaneously on three networks (an NFL first), the Giants lost a thriller, a 38-35 slugfest that elevated Tom Brady and his record-setting offense among the greatest regular season teams of all time.

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said he sometimes reflects on the loss to the Giants in Super Bowl XLII, just not this week as the teams prepare for a rematch. "That's a distant memory. There's not much you can take from that," quarterback Tom Brady said. "This is an entirely different team that we have and that they have - strengths and weaknesses.
For two guys who fought over a Super Bowl not long ago, Bill Belichick and Tom Coughlin are pretty tight. Belichick, famous for his terse answers in press conferences, was highly complimentary of Coughlin during a chat with reporters on Wednesday. Belichick and Coughlin were on the Giants coaching staff under Bill Parcells from 1988-1990.

Bill Belichick is spending the week trying to cook up schemes for the league's No. 32 pass defense to slow down the NFL's No. 3 ranked quarterback. Belichick has a way of getting into a quarterback's head -- he did that to Eli's big brother for a while -- but he has a long way to go to make up for the trophy he let Manning take from him.
The Patriots are still Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, and they were 14-2 in 2010 before getting Rex-slapped in the playoffs by the Jets. It is what the Ravens did in the playoffs the year before, what the Giants did to the Patriots in the Super Bowl. So these are not your mother's Patriots, haven't been for a while. There is still too much talent for them to ever be called Patsies on offense. But on defense? Yeah, they are.

Nov 2 Sunday against the New England Patriots, Manning will make his 111th consecutive regular-season start. That's good enough for the fourth-longest streak ever by a quarterback and is the longest active streak in the NFL. Making it even more interesting and timely is the man whom he'll tie for fourth: Thomas Edward Patrick Brady, whose streak ran from his first NFL start on Sept. 30, 2001 until the second week of the 2008 NFL season, when Matt Cassel filled in for an injured Brady.

Eli Manning has had a nice run through the first seven games of the season, completing 64.7% of his passes for 2,127 yards, 13 touchdowns and only five interceptions. With a passer rating of 102.1 he trails only Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers (125.7) and Brady (104.4). The next few weeks will be the true test of how elite Manning really is. He has games against Brady, Rodgers and New Orleans' Drew Brees in the next five weeks. Those are widely considered to be the three best quarterbacks in the game.

Eight weeks into the 2011 season, the statistics say Victor Cruz and Jake Ballard have far and away outperformed Steve Smith and Kevin Boss. This wasn't supposed to happen. Smith and Boss were supposed to be putting up huge numbers in Philadelphia and Oakland, while Cruz and Ballard were supposed to getting situational snaps at best.

Corey Webster has done a remarkable job this season covering a slew of big, No. 1 receivers such as Larry Fitzgerald (6-3), Sidney Rice (6-4), Steve Johnson (6-2) and Brandon Marshall (6-4). But covering the Patriots' No. 1 receiver on Sunday - the 5-9 Wes Welker - might be too tall a task.
Brady has a synergy with tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez and the Giants linebackers could struggle in that matchup. Given time, Brady can dissect anyone and everyone. The Giants specialize in limiting time. They did it masterfully back in Super Bowl XLII, and the ingredients are there to do it again Sunday. .

Brandon Jacobs is in a funk this season, but vows he will snap out of it. Less than 48 hours after Jacobs' dud of a performance against Miami (10 yards on four carries, no TDs), Jacobs said he "already forgot about Sunday," and is ready to play three more years of pro football after his contract is up next year.
But anyone waiting for the unhappy running back to apologize for his comments is still waiting. Jacobs' four rushing attempts were his fewest since Week 3 of last season, when he also had four carries. The Giants only have had one 100-yard rushing game as a team over the past four games

Former Giants
Shaun Williams, who started at free safety for the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV, is in his third year as the Pioneers' secondary coach. Williams, who spent eight years with the Giants after being taken 24th overall in the 1998 NFL Draft, would love to be a Division I head coach or work in the NFL.

Nov 1 The Giants are completely unfazed it's Tom Brady and the Patriots who will be kicking off the Murderers Row stretch of their schedule, mostly because Eli Manning is playing at an even higher level than during his magical playoff run that culminated in Super Bowl XLII.
Eli Manning beat Tom Brady and the Patriots in the Super Bowl nearly four years ago with one of the great plays in NFL history, but their meeting coming up this week in Foxborough still looked like a terrible mismatch. Not any more. Not the way Manning is going the first two months of the season. Manning is playing well enough to slug it out with Brady and beat him again.
There are only 14 players with the Giants who played in Super Bowl XLII, and the Patriots have undergone an even greater turnover, with only seven players on the roster from that game four years ago. If Coughlin waxed poetic about that game or Belichick dealt the revenge card, it's likely both coaches would be met with blank stares from the majority of their players.
With an assist from Rex Ryan, the Steelers might have written the blueprint Sunday on how to slow down Tom Brady enough to beat the Patriots. Fed up after losing six of their seven meetings with Brady, the Steelers borrowed heavily from Ryan's playoff strategy last January of flooding the field with defensive backs in hopes of confusing the Patriots' Canton-bound passer.

Coach Tom Coughlin marveled how reserve cornerback Justin Tryon was able to play nearly three quarters of the Giants' 20-17 victory over the Dolphins with a broken right arm. Tryon yesterday had surgery on the arm, was put on injured reserve and is done for the season.
The Giants suffered a crucial hit as Justin Tryon underwent surgery for his broken arm. He suffered it early in the victory over the Miami Dolphins, then exacerbated it tackling Reggie Bush on a punt return in the fourth quarter.

Giants wide receiver Hakeem Nicks received good news on his injured hamstring after undergoing an MRI and expects to play on Sunday against the Patriots.
Tom Coughlin said the wide receiver's status would be "day-to-day" this week. However, "the plan is not to miss anything," the source added.

The Giants took two steps back in their rushing attack, gaining just 58 yards on 2.5 yards per carry. The offensive line failed to open holes and, consequently, the running game never found a rhythm. It then ground to a halt when Ahmad Bradshaw (50 yards on 13 carries) was forced to leave the game with a sore foot.
Running back Brandon Jacobs gets called out by Dan Dierdorf, Howard Cross for uninspired play against Miami Dolphins Jacobs' complaining and poor play annoys TV announcers. Brandon Jacobs is not the same running back from two years ago, as most spectators witnessed Sunday.
"He needs to play," coach Tom Coughlin said Monday. "He needs to play and get back to work." Coughlin said Jacobs' performance could be attributed to him being rusty. Makes sense. So what's the excuse then for the running game as a whole?

Eli Mannimg - "Part of the reason that we weren't running, that we didn't have the success that we had, was we were running into some bad looks. That's on me. There's probably five or six runs that we did have on that I should have checked off and checked to a pass just because if teams are bringing certain blitzes or having seven, eight guys down there near the line of scrimmage. You can run just to get runs in, but if you want to have success later in the game - they're playing two-high and I check to a run and we get twelve, thirteen yards. It's my job to put us in better positions to get us out of runs."

There was nothing good about most of the first half for the Giants on Sunday. It was, at times, a disaster. But when you win in this league, that's never a bad thing. And it creates good vibes moving forward.

Justin Tuck claims he didn't think he'd make it through the Giants' victory over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, both before and during the game. He believed his neck and groin injuries would force him to tap out. He was wrong. "Honestly, the energy from the crowd there in the fourth quarter helped a lot."
There were no wasted words from Justin Tuck. He didn't have much to say about the Giants' run defense -- once again porous against the Miami Dolphins -- so he was short and blunt. "What run defense?" Tuck asked rhetorically. "We didn"t play well against the run."
Here's Tuck on playing with all four defensive ends being in the game at the same time: "It took us a while to get in the flow of things. I said I didn't want to be a distraction. I don't know if I was, but I don't think we played up to our abilities in that first half."

 Oct 31 Giants win over the Dolphins, 20-17   |   Photos  |  Photos

NFC East News
Eagles rout Cowboys, 34-7, create logjam behind Giants in NFC East.
Redskins allow nine sacks in 23-0 loss to Bills, ties most in team history.

Game 7 Preview - Giants (4-2) vs Dolphins (0-6)
Last week the Dolphins had a 15-0 lead over the Denver Broncos with less than 5 1/2 minutes left in the fourth quarter, trying for their first win of the season over a team with a 1-4 record. Denver quarterback Tim Tebow went mostly no-huddle and led his team to a touchdown. Denver recovered the onside kick allowing Tebow to work his magic again and score another touchdown.
Tebow increased his legend by personally rushing the ball over the goal line for a 2 point conversion to tie the game. In overtime a 52 yard field goal gave Denver an 18-15 win over the Dolphins and really their disappointed their home crowd fans.
The Giants were on a bye last week and had a chance to review all the areas that need work. In the win against the Bills two weeks ago, they got the running game on track for a season-high 122 yards. Still, that was against one of the league's weakest run defense teams. This week they face a winless Dolphin team who can play the run.

Oct 30 Mother nature gave the Dolphins a rude welcome to the area. A rare October snowstorm dumped four to six inches of snow and wintry mix on New York City on Saturday afternoon, closing Newark Airport and diverting the Dolphins' travel plans. According to the New York Daily News, Saturday's storm was only the second October snowfall in New York City since 1952.

The Dolphins may be bad, but they have been humiliated, embarrassed and are on the verge of becoming a national joke. You know what would be even more humiliating than what the Dolphins are going through right now? Being the first team to lose to them this season.
As long as the Giants don't go into a funk like they did against Seattle - the worst thing to do against a bad team is get off to a slow start and give them hope - they will come out of this game at 5-2.

The Dolphins, like any football team, are expected to stand on three legs. They need players to execute plays. They need coaches to develop players. And they need a personnel department to select those players. The Dolphins are broken in all three areas.

Though Miami ranks in the middle of the pack in sacks this season, the Dolphins have shown signs of life lately. In their first three games they took down the quarterback four times. In their past three, they've done so 11 times. Against Denver, the Dolphins stunned the Broncos' offensive line for six sacks.

The laptop computer in Corey Webster's locker is filled with video of Brandon Marshall, the dangerous receiver he'll be shadowing all afternoon. It has more than that, too. It's a treasure trove of clips of the NFL's best receivers and cornerbacks. It also has clips of nearly every play Webster has ever made.
Brandon Marshall will be the latest tough assignment for Webster. The Giants' No. 1 corner has covered the opponents' top wideout week in and week out with Terrell Thomas out due to a torn ACL. Webster welcomes the challenge presented by Marshall this Sunday.

Hakeem Nicks, the 2009 first-round pick out of North Carolina, played through a broken toe for much of his rookie season, stayed on the field against the Philadelphia Eagles last year while dealing with a painful condition in his leg known as compartment syndrome, and didn't miss any time after injuring his knee in this year's opener against the Washington Redskins.

Oct 29 The Giants claim they don t need any extra motivation for tomorrow s game against the 0-6 Dolphins, that they are focused entirely on Miami and not thinking ahead to New England. But Bra ndon Marshall just wanted to make sure.
Miami Dolphins receiver Brandon Marshall made a proclamation on Twitter about a Miami victory. He tweeted, "To: Media When we win Sunday please don't say the Giants didn't take us serious." The 0-6 Dolphins come into the Meadowlands as 10-point underdogs.
Nostradamus, he ain't. There you have the essence of the Giants' response yesterday after brash Dolphins wide receiver Brandon Marshall used Twitter to guarantee something tomorrow against Big Blue that woeful Miami hasn't seen this season -- a victory.
Marshall made headlines and raised eyebrows before last week's game against the Jets when he said he would start a fight with Bart Scott or Antonio Cromartie and get ejected in the second quarter. Compared to that, the Giants said Marshall's tweet was harmless.

The Giants dreams of a fearsome three-end rotation have been scuttled all season, thanks to injuries to Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck. But tomorrow, for the first time all year, the entire threesome is expected to be intact. Tuck should make his return from persistent groin and neck injuries against Miami.
Success in the NFL is all about mismatches. Find and exploit the advantage until someone figures out a way to neutralize it. In the NFC East - heck, maybe in the entire conference - there is no greater mismatch to try to solve than the one created by the Giants' defensive front against all comers.

Willing to take a hit, Eli is throwing fewer interceptions. Manning, who threw a career-high 25 interceptions last season, has thrown five interceptions this year with three of those coming in the loss against Seattle Oct. 9. That means he has played five games with one or no interceptions.

Lawrence Tynes said one notable skill of Steve Weatherford's is pretty similar to one of former Giants punter Jeff Feagles'. "For [Weatherford] to be only in his fifth or sixth season and have the ability to paint the sideline like he's done, it reminds me of Jeff," Tynes, the Giants' kicker, said of Weatherford's directional punting. "He kind of reminds me of a younger Feagles."

Mark Herzlich joined Eli Manning, Brandon Jacobs and other Giants teammates at an event in midtown organized by Tom Coughlin to raise money for the Jay Foundation. The foundation was created in the honor of McGillis, who died of leukemia while playing for Boston College.

Former Giants
Y.A. Tittle retired 47 years ago, but he apparently still considers the Giants' quarterback job his own. The Hall of Fame passer visited his old team yesterday and spoke with Eli Manning after practice.
Ike Hilliard said he first got the coaching bug as a player with the Giants. Now Hilliard is coaching Brandon Marshall, Brian Hartline, Davone Bess and the Dolphins' other receivers.
Matt Dodge worked out for the Jets on Wednesday. Special teams coach Tom Quinn said Dodge showed more consistency in the preseason. "That is his biggest thing, the inconsistency," Quinn said. "He can hit one 65 yards and can't hit the next one 35 yards."

Oct 28 Brandon Jacobs has outwardly accepted his role as the Giants backup running back to Ahmad Bradshaw without complaint. Until now.
Brandon Jacobs knows the end of his Giants career is approaching, and likely sooner than later. So far, it has been an "aggravating" and "frustrating" ending for the big, underused running back.
He bemoaned his lack of carries and indicated he doesn't see himself with the Giants after his contract is over. His contract was restructured this summer with a $500,000 roster bonus coming in March that could quickly determine if he will be with the team next year to earn a $4.4 million base salary.
It was his way of forcing the Giants' hand to make a decision on his future in the late winter rather than the late summer, when jobs are tougher to find. Given Jacobs is owed $4.9 million in total compensation next season, it's likely both sides are seeing the end of their relationship before any of that money is paid.

Tom Coughlin praised Ramses Barden for his work on the Giants scout team on Thursday. Barden and Michael Clayton were asked to mimic Miami receiver Brandon Marshall. If and when Barden takes the leap from the Giants' practice field to MetLife Stadium, look for him to contribute as a slot receiver.

Giants rookie cornerback Prince Amukamara got his teammates and coaches fired up during practice with a pass defensed on what defensive coordinator Perry Fewell called a "laser" from Eli Manning. Still, don't expect to see Amukamara this Sunday against the Dolphins. He still appears to be too limited to be ready for game action.

Former Giants
Matt Dodge had a tryout with the Jets Wednesday. It's not clear the reason for the Jets trying out Dodge; they have brought several players in for tryouts through the season at a variety of positions, including six Tuesday. This is the first specialist the Jets have tried out after choosing T.J. Conley over Chris Bryan in camp.

Oct 27 Tom Coughlin begins each Wednesday press briefing with a rundown of what makes the Giants' upcoming opponent so dangerous, so you better believe everyone was dying to hear what he'd come up with about the winless Miami Dolphins. "It's tough to block out the fact they're 0-6 when you look at the film," defensive tackle Chris Canty said. "We've got our work cut out for us, there's no question about it." He knows better. Everyone knows better.
The sales job couldn't have been easy, but Tom Coughlin sure was trying. He told his team how many games the Miami Dolphins have almost won this season. He trumpeted their lack of penalties. He said they were a good road team - in 2010. Coughlin did stop before he reminded everyone that the Dolphins were also undefeated in 1972, mostly because he wasn't trying to be funny.

Bill Parcells' fingerprints are still all over the disaster in Miami that seems to get worse by the day and has left his hand-picked coach, Tony Sparano, feeling like a lame duck. How lame? After being caught by a local TV station telling the referee "I'm fired" during Sunday's 18-15 overtime loss to the Broncos, Sparano said yesterday that his Miami-area house is for sale.
Giants backup quarterback David Carr has been where the Miami Dolphins now stand and he doesn't recount those days fondly. The Dolphins are surrounded by a fan-driven campaign proposing (wistfully) that the team, at 0-6 this year, give up on the season to ensure they earn the No. 1 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft and the prize of Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck. They call it "Suck for Luck.
Matt Moore understands why some Dolphins fans would be rooting against their own team. But that doesn't make it any easier to take. "If that's the case, they want the No. 1 pick, whatever. That's fine. As a player, no I don't get it, because we're going out and trying to win every game this year," he said of the 0-6 Dolphins.

When Tom Coughlin stood in the middle of the practice field and looked out over a sea of players Wednesday, he saw something that he had not seen since last season. Everybody. "I hope we have enough uniforms for these guys," Coughlin joked before practice began. They needed every available jersey, too, because all 53 players on the roster - and one of their two players on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list - participated in at least some part of practice Wednesday.
They returned from the bye healthier than they have been all season. Six players (Justin Tuck, Brandon Jacobs, Prince Amukamara, Osi Umenyiora, Michael Boley and Henry Hynoski) were on the injury report and all were listed as participating on a limited basis. It was the first time all season that everyone on the roster was able to practice.

The Dolphins at 0-6 don't present many matchup problems, but the one they can exploit is Brandon Marshall against whoever lines up across from him. Marshall has gone against the Giants only once in his career, but that one game was enough to make an impression. He caught six passes for 86 yards on Thanksgiving night in 2009 and two of the receptions were leaping, one-handed grabs over Corey Webster, who applied tight coverage but got nothing for his efforts.

Eli Manning was better than Tom Brady in the Super Bowl four years ago and he gets a chance to outplay him again in 10 days in Foxborough. Although Manning is not in Brady's class, which he claimed to be this summer, there is no shame in that. Brady is the second-best QB in NFL history behind Joe Montana. But it turns out that Manning was right when he suggested that he is a top five QB.
No one is laughing at him now for saying he believes himself to be an elite quarterback in Brady's class. He isn't Brady, or Aaron Rodgers, or Drew Brees. But guess what? He is the only other quarterback in the NFL with a quarterback rating over 100 (101.1). He believes the best is yet to come.

Steadily, Prince Amukamara is taking steps to making his debut at cornerback for the Giants. But having missed nearly two months of the season, he is still a step behind. Amukamara said. "Physically, I am just trying to get the timing down. I haven't lined up across from someone in a couple months so I am just trying to get acclimated to that speed." In terms of his health, he is improving. While he isn't completely pain free, the soreness that comes with his comeback is dissipating.

Giants wide receiver Ramses Barden, who has been recovering from leg surgery, has practiced twice this week. He's still on PUP, but the three-week window for him to be activated is under way now that he's practiced twice this week. Barden says he feels great and likes the way he looks on practice film ("I wasn't favoring anything, I was balanced," he said), though he's not sure if he'll be added to the active roster before Sunday's game against the Miami Dolphins.

Oct 26 Teams coming off their bye week this season are just 3-9 in their first game back, so it was considerate of the league to schedule a scrimmage this weekend, allowing the Giants to get back in gear as they grind down the winless Dolphins. It's the appetizer course to be followed by a tasty five-game sampler of the best the NFL has to offer.
With quarterback Matt Moore dealing with an injury to his ribs, the Dolphins signed J.P. Losman and placed former Giant Sage Rosenfels on the Reserve/Non-Football Injured list days before facing the Giants. It's the second time this season Rosenfels has been placed on a reserve list.

Watching from the sidelines almost is punishment for Justin Tuck. He felt left out in the Giants' two victories without him. And he thought he could have made a difference in the two games they lost in his absence. But as much as Tuck can't wait to return - he said Tuesday he's "feeling better" and expects to play Sunday, barring a setback, when the Giants host the winless Miami Dolphins -- he is just as concerned about disrupting the good thing the defensive line has built without him.
Just because it's a good problem doesn't mean it's not a problem. The word that Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell prefers is "bonus." That's how he describes the likely return of defensive end Justin Tuck on Sunday. That means, for the first time since Week 3 of last year when Jason Pierre-Paul was still a little-used rookie, he'll have Tuck, Pierre-Paul, Osi Umenyiora and Mathias Kiwanuka all available.

Standing in front of more than 50 second-grade students on the playground of P.S. 19 in the Lower East Side, Justin Tuck had a visibility issue of sorts. In front of that audience, the Giants defensive end could not compete for their attention with the life-size Charlie Brown and Snoopy mascots that came out to bookend his appearance at the school.

CBSSports.com reported Tuesday that intermediaries for the Dolphins have contacted people close to Bill Cowher about Cowher becoming Miami's coach. Cowher would not consider talking to the Dolphins or any other team while a coach is still in place, according to a close associate. Cowher, a CBS analyst, reportedly will consider coaching offers after this season but there's no guarantee he will take a job.

Oct 25 Chris Snee returned to practice yesterday after missing time with a concussion.Now, rested and back to health after a bye week, the Giants have regained something that has been unfamiliar to them as of late: an offensive line in place with all five starters. And just in time as the Miami Dolphins come in fresh off a seven-sack performance Sunday against the Denver Broncos.
He called the week after he suffered the concussion a miserable one. "The thing is, you really can't sleep," Snee said. "I was just laying in bed." Snee said he never wanted to go to the hospital. He was fighting at the time because he didn't want to be transported in an ambulance with his kids in attendance and have them worry about his condition, but it had to be done.

The Giants had several marquee players missing time before the bye and nearly all of them participated in some aspect of practice. That bodes well for the Giants, who look to be at or near full strength for Sunday's game against the winless Dolphins (0-6), the last game against an also-ran before a hellacious five-game stretch.
Convincing the 4-2 Giants the 0-6 Dolphins are a dangerous team is part of the challenge coach Tom Coughlin faces in a season where a bye week has been detrimental to a team's success. Kenny Phillips admitted, "It's easy to come back off a bye and still have the mentality like you're in a bye week," but the fourth-year vet saw no signs of that yesterday.

For the last 10 games of the season, the Giants coaching staff will be looking to have some fresh blood rejuvenate the LB core. A typical NFL defense sees more than a thousand plays per season. Before the bye, linebackers like Michael Boley and Mathias Kiwanuka were on pace to virtually play all of them. Time for some new - and young - blood. Linebackers coach Jim Herrmann said as much last week, and he'll be looking to rookies Spencer Paysinger and Mark Herzlich to share the load for the first time.

Ramses Barden is officially on the clock. The wide receiver participated in practice -- in a limited capacity -- on Monday and is off of the PUP list. The Giants have three weeks to activate him. After going through limited drills on Monday, Barden is optimistic about playing Sunday against Miami. Preparing to play and actually playing are two different things. And it's unlikely that the coaching staff will use Barden much on Sunday, if at all. He hasn't played competitive football in nearly a year.

Mathias Kiwanuka's playing time may decrease when Justin Tuck returns. But Kiwanuka is OK with that. "I always feel like if you're out there on the field and you make plays, they're going to continue to put you out on the field. They'll get me out there. It's just my job to make enough plays to affect the game," Kiwanuka said.

Although they may be off the field during games, the practice squad has much to do with the Giants' success on it on Sunday's. This gang of eight cushions the 53-man roster in each organization, primarily responsible for mimicking the upcoming opponent's looks and tendencies during the week of preparation. "That's how we get plays run," Eli Manning said. "They've got to give looks and they've got to have an idea of what the defense is we're playing, what kind of technique they play. And they're in charge of making sure our receivers are getting solid looks or the offensive line is getting good looks of the movement and the pressure. They're a huge reason for us having success."

Former Giants
Plaxico Burress admits now that the whole idea of carrying a gun into a nightclub that night in November of 2008 is pretty silly, in hindsight. "When I look back at it, I say if I was to get into a situation where I had to use my firearm, would I actually pull it and use it -- return fire, or shoot? Just the thought of that just gives you goosebumps to think about it."

Oct 24 Jim Herrmann knows there are going to be mistakes from his young corps of linebackers. That's what happens when you carry four rookies on the roster the way the Giants have this season. For Herrmann, it's not about avoiding those mistakes; it's about limiting them. That's what he's tried to do with his young players, particularly Jacquian Williams, who has seen much more time this season than expected.

Former Giants
Plaxico Burress catches three touchdowns, NY Jets comeback on San Diego Chargers for 27-21 win. Burress had not had a big day as a Jet until yesterday. This was his first three-touchdown game since 2007 when he was with the Giants. "You've got to evaluate yourself," Burress said. "I looked at myself and said 'I've got to play better.' It was not on anybody but myself."

NFC East News
Redskins lose to Panthers 33-20. Washington's John Beck threw for 279 yards and scored on a short keeper in his first start in four years, showing enough mobility to keep plays alive and buy time for his receivers. But he didn't get the Redskins back to the end zone after his third-quarter keeper until they were down 30-13.
Cowboys top Rams 34-7. So the first time the Dallas Cowboys asked DeMarco Murray to be an important part of their offense, all the rookie did was run for more yards than Hall of Famer Tony Dorsett and NFL rushing king Emmitt Smith ever gained in any game.

Oct 23 Giants at the Bye Week: A look at Eli Manning, the run game and the rest of the team so far this season. What they're doing well: Keeping the ball - Scoring in the red zone - Getting after the quarterbac. Biggest disappointment: The running game. Biggest Surprise: Iake Ballard. Must Improve: Third down - Open-field tackling - Defensive creativity.
Giant to-do list for after bye week: The Giants are 4-2 and will be 5-2 after they beat the awful Miami Dolphins after the bye week. We know that because they're always 5-2. Six times in Tom Coughlin's first seven seasons as head coach of the Giants, they've been 5-2. The only time they weren't was in 2008 when they started 6-1. Unfortunately for the Giants, with the exception of 2007, the real story for them is always how they finish.

At 6-6 and 275 pounds, Jake Ballard was overlooked by most scouts and coaches because he was seen as primarily a blocking tight end. But through the first six weeks of this season into this bye weekend, he has proved to be so much more. Though they're not quite sure how he does it, they're glad Ballard has come through so far.
Ballard, seemingly out nowhere and with no advance warning, after six games has been a 6-foot-6, 275-pound revelation with 15 receptions for 273 yards and two touchdowns. That Ballard is averaging 18.2 yards per catch and been able to get downfield has stunned the Giants coaching staff and no doubt caught opponents off guard.
The Giants' tight end, who is off to a surprisingly productive start, is a chronic sleepwalker. In fact, that's the first thing Jim Cordle, his teammate with the Giants and at Ohio State, mentioned when asked what the general public should know about Ballard.

24-year-old Victor Cruz has dazzled in his second year in the NFL, emerging as one of the Giants' biggest playmaking threats in the passing game. Already, he's caught 21 passes for 398 yards and three touchdowns and been involved in several controversial plays: both good and bad.

Jason Pierre-Paul isn't even a starter. The second-year defensive end may not be Justin Tuck or Osi Umenyiora -- at least, not yet. In fact, the bulk of his playing time has come with the Pro Bowlers missing a combined seven games due to injury. But the Giants' 2010 first-round pick has blossomed into a star -- even though he still has a lot to learn.

Giants special teams coach Tom Quinn thinks kick returner Devin Thomas could be a lot better. "Too many muffs. He's got to start catching the ball cleaner," Quinn said Tuesday. "I think all returners, they want to bring every ball out. Sometimes he needs to keep it in the end zone so we don't put our offense in a negative situation."

Jonathan Goff is one of nine Giants who have been relegated to the injured reserve list this season, just another ghost haunting the trainer's room while his teammates prepare for the next game. Goff faces another four to six months on the sidelines, measuring his recovery in milestones such as jogging, running, sprinting and changing direction. But he refuses to give in to the frustration that's natural in such circumstances.

Oct 22 Despite missing defensive ends Justin Tuck for four games and Osi Umenyiora for three, the Giants came into this weekend's bye leading the NFL in sacks. Young Jason Pierre-Paul is the biggest reason why. He has 7½ sacks second in the league, and his coaches say his vast potential is beginning to be tapped.
Jason Pierre-Paul was fined $10,000 by the NFL for roughing the passer in Sunday's victory over the Bills. Pierre-Paul was flagged after hitting Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick in the head with his hand after Fitzpatrick delivered a 9-yard pass to running back Fred Jackson in the second quarter.

Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride was asked Wednesday if he was worried about Brandon Jacobs complaining about a lack of carries. He chuckled at the question. Why? Because Gilbride says all players want the ball, no matter what they say publicly. "Show me one of them that's not [upset about not getting the ball]," Gilbride said.

Eli Manning may not have the weapons he once had, but he's making do with young unknowns like Victor Cruz and Jake Ballard. The growing pains have been there, but Manning is quick to point something out to Cruz or Ballard after the youngsters make a mistake.

Oct 21 Through the first six weeks of the season, Eli Manning has put himself on par with almost any quarterback in the NFL. He ranks among the league's best with a 101.1 quarterback rating (third), 1,778 passing yards (fifth) and 63.8 completion percentage (ninth), and if extrapolated over the course of a season, those statistics would give him career highs.

Numbers were never going to define Victor Cruz. He was always sure of that, from the day he started learning to play football. It was never about how many passes he caught. It was how he caught them. His life would not be about statistics, although four years ago, Cruz found himself on the verge of becoming one.

Perry Fewell hasn't had to say Corey Webster's name much so far this season. And that's a good thing. To Fewell, it's an indication that Webster's been doing his job, and doing it well. Through the season's first six weeks, Webster has two picks and is tied for fourth in the league with six passes defensed.

If you ask Giants defensive line coach Robert Nunn, Osi Umenyiora has been the ultimate professional. He hasn't let his holdout and unsettled contract situation affect his play or preparation at all. "Osi has never done anything for me but come to work and do a great job," Nunn said.

With no game to prepare for this weekend, the Giants coaching staff spent much of the week in self-scouting mode, treating its own team as if it were the opponent, poring over each game tape to determine obvious tendencies, strengths and weaknesses and personnel deployment.

Giants owner John Mara was appointed chairman of the NFL Management Council, the league's most powerful committee. Commissioner Roger Goodell also has formed a committee on health and medical issues that will be chaired by San Francisco 49ers owner John York. There have been few significant changes to the committees in recent years due to labor and other issues.

Oct 20 The timing of the bye week is just right for Antrel Rolle. "Bodies are banged up," the Giants safety said on Wednesday during his weekly WFAN radio spot. "Right now I can't even feel my fingers, fingers are jammed every which way. The bye came at a good time." Rolle and the Giants don't have to report back to work at the Timex Performance Center until Monday and players scattered across the country for their five-day break.
Antrel Rolle rarely if ever comes out of games. So when he has to cover slot receivers on third down, he may be tired. That's what makes his play so impressive, says Giants secondary/safeties coach Dave Merritt. "For him to go into the slot position and cover that third wideout that comes into the game fresh when he has been on the field the entire time is tough," Merritt said. "That is the one thing that I want to make sure everyone understands."

Giants rookie running back Da'Rel Scott made the first catch of his career in Sunday's win over the Buffalo Bills, a four-yard gain coming out of the backfield. With a litany of backs above him on the depth chart, the Giants are looking for ulterior ways to get him touches. With his ability to catch the ball, he may eventually make for a good third down back. In the Buffalo Bills game, they wanted to see what he could do.

Early in Corey Webster's career, the Giants' defensive coordinator had no faith in him. That coordinator was Tim Lewis, and Webster believed it was a "personal shot" Lewis didn't believe he could cover an opposing team's No. 1 wide receiver. Six years later, it's the complete opposite situation. With Terrell Thomas out for the season, Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell has asked Webster to cover Larry Fitzgerald, Sidney Rice and Stevie Johnson over the past three games.

This summer, when the Giants decided to move David Diehl inside to guard after four seasons at left tackle, Pat Flaherty "didn't blink an eye." Through six games, the team's offensive line coach still isn't flinching -- no matter what many on the outside believe they've seen from Diehl this season. The website ProFootballFocus.com, which was founded in 2009 and uses baseball-type metrics to rate football players, has Diehl ranked as one of the worst guards in the league. In its Giants-Seattle Seahawks game review, the site said Diehl had six pressures allowed and "continues to try to prove those who said he couldn't be worse at guard wrong."

Mathias Kiwanuka does not mince words. He wants to get after the quarterback. Sure, the 6-6, 267-pound hybrid defender is more than willing to play a variety of roles for the Giants. But in the ideal situation, he would line up in a three-point stance and tee off on every single snap.