Dec 18, 1:30 pm (CBS) - Pittsburgh at Giants
The Standings.
If you look at the official NFL Standings, they list this matchup as: Steelers -- 1st place, AFC North. Giants -- 2nd place (tied), NFC East. That doesn't sound so bad right? Just don't look
at the win loss records. The Steelers are 12-1, while the Giants are 5-8. The Steelers are shooting for the whole thing - a bye week, and home field advantage in the playoffs. The Giants still
have not been eliminated as a wildcard and are shooting for a win.
Eli Manning.
Wouldn't it be something if Eli Manning had a breakout game against the Steelers? It's not likely, and would mean that Christmas came real early to the Meadowlands, but wouldn't it be something?
Everyone feels that the kid has the talent and potential so the fans all wait and hope every game that it will all come flowing out in a sudden burst, like a cork popping from a champagne
bottle. Of course, champagne is reserved for things like New Years, and that would put Eli more on a schedule to pop on January 2 against the Cowboys in the last game of the season. I guess
that would be a sign that Eli is really next year's vintage, like many also seem to believe.
Ben Roethlisberger.
This rookie, who the Giants could have picked up in the draft if they wanted, is 11-0 as a starter. He has the advantage of not playing behind the Giants patched together offensive line, and
that gives him quite an edge to say the least. Roethlisberger also has two running backs, Duce Staley and Jerome Bettis, who take some heat off, as they share the load and star in the number
two ranked rushing attack in the league. Pittsburgh's defense is an added bonus, as they rank number 1 in the league.
You've heard so much about Ben Roethlisberger that you think he's winning games all by himself, but he's not. Roethlisberger has completed 164 of 248 passes (66.1 percent) for 2,084 yards.
He has 14 touchdowns against 8 interceptions, and he plays a smart game that relies more heavily on ground play. The Steelers have 494 rushing attempts opposed to 284 passes. Against the Jets
last week, Roethlisberger was only 9 of 19 for 144 yards.
Believe it or not.
If you don't believe that Eli Manning was a better quarterback choice for the Giants in the draft than Ben Roethlisberger, we might as well get you more excited and remind you that Ernie Accorsi
also passed on Seattle's Shaun Alexander in favor of Ron Dayne. The reason back then was that Shaun Alexander was too much like Tiki Barber.
Believe it or not - The Giants Passing Offense (178.1 ypg) is ranked 24 in the league by the NFL, which is higher than the Steelers Passing Offense (160.4 ypg) which is ranked 27th.
The Plan.
OK here it is. Tom Coughlin, going against the grain, will accept Eli Manning not trying to be perfect for this game. Eli doesn't have to go up to the line and try to figure out every detail
the defense has in store for him as they shift and shuffle around. Eli said, "Last week we felt that we were trying to make everything perfect and the Ravens were moving people around,
jumping. We were sitting there a long time, and the more we tried to fix things, the more they jumped around. Sometimes, you've just got to play football. It's a matter of seeing things, getting
the ball snapped and making plays."
This week Eli, with a more simplified game plan, will get up there and run the play, come what may we guess. A better plan might be to keep reminding the Steelers that next week they will
be playing the Ravens, the only team to beat them this season. Give those guys something to think about.
Notes.
Last week Eli Manning threw for 27 yards in the first 54 minutes he was in the game.
Kurt Warner threw for 50 yards in the first 54 seconds he was in the game.
Giants are 8-2 in their last 10 December games against the AFC.
Pittsburgh's only loss of the season was an away game at Baltimore.
Three Steelers have at least 4 interceptions.
Like Pittsburgh, New England also is 12-1, but Pittsburgh holds the tiebreaker over the Patriots and can secure home field by winning their final 3 games.
Giants will be eliminated from playoff contention if St. Louis beats Arizona and Carolina beats Atlanta.
If either the Rams or Panthers lose, the Giants will still only be one game out of the NFC's last wild-card spot.
Uniformed Marine reserves will collect new, unwrapped toys at receptacles located at each of the Giants Stadium entrance gates for the annual Toys for Tots
drive. The toys will be distributed to needy children in the metropolitan area.
Next Game
Giants at Cincinnati Dec 26, 1:00PM.
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