Mon Sept 15, 9:00 pm (ABC) - Cowboys at Giants
Looking good on defense.
If you liked how the Giants looked on defense last week (you did), just wait until Fassel doesn't need to spell those guys because they need it. As the players toughen up to regular season durability,
the coach can more readily pick and choose his moments for substitutions. Strahan, Hamilton and some other seasoned players were generous with their praise for the newer guys who did come up
big here and there, but you could still see the difference when they weren't on the field.
Of course, they will only get better with more playing time, and as the season wears on, the Giants will have fresh horses going into the fourth quarter, which has been a problem for them.
The Offense.
They didn't star in the opener. Many of the things they did good, they undid with early season mistakes. We think all this is a product of coaches 'protecting their players' in the preseason.
The starters no longer get as much playing time as they need going into the opening games. Sure, everyone is healthy, but when they don't get the reps they need, you get fumbles and penalties.
This seemed to be the case for a number of teams last week. That won't last for very long, and hopefully you won't see many of Kerry Collins drives aborted by turnovers, or get cut short by
multiple penalties.
Jim Fassel on last week's game.
Fassel said QB Kerry Collins "played an outstanding football game." Collins was 14-of-26 for 202 yards, but Fassel praised his management of a game in which he didn't get much time to throw.
Right tackle Ian Allen, played the entire game Sunday, but not well. "I think Ian Allen had a rough day," Fassel said. "He has to get better."
With quarterback Kerry Collins under pressure, they went with shorter drops, shorter passes and runs by Tiki Barber, who had 24 carries for 146 yards. "I knew our salvation was going to be
running the football," Fassel said.
Bill Parcells.
Parcells spent 1983-90 with the Giants, leading New York to an 85-52-1 record and to wins in Super Bowls XXI and XXV. He is 3-3 as the visiting head coach at Giants Stadium. Bill decided he
needed to get back into football again and he signed on with Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys. Bill has a bit of rebuilding to do, and he started some of it by picking up Sean Payton as
his assistant head coach / quarterbacks coach, Dan Campbell as his blocking tight end, and Maurice Carthon as his offensive coordinator. All formerly Giants.
Jeremy Shockey.
Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey said some foolish things (as he tends to do from time to time) about the Cowboys new head coach, and Bill Parcells said he's all right with this. We think otherwise.
What better way for Bill to put on a show for the Monday night crowd, than to stage his own 'Jeremy Shockey offense' using Dan Campbell in the Shockey role, and Sean Payton in, well, a similar
role he used to have with the Giants, picking some plays for a talented tight end. If they can mount any offense doing this, then even if the Cowboys lose this game, Parcells will have shown
up the Giants.
How? He will have out coached Jim Fassel for overlooking a player on his team who could have been utilized a la Jeremy Shockey for a number of years, something Fassel craved for, and the Giants
really needed. Jeremy Shockey will be shown that others can do as well as him if only given the chance, and Sean Payton will look ever effective for his part in all this.
Is Bill Parcells sneaky enough to do something like this? Well, just a few successful plays in front of the Giants crowd on national TV, and he will have made his point, and given the Dallas
fans something to look forward to.
Dan Campbell - 2001
Campbell was a third round draft choice (79th overall) by the Giants in 1999, Mostly known for his blocking skills which helped Tiki Barber achieve 1,387 rushing yards for a career-high, and
allowed Kerry Collins to get 4,073 yards passing, a club-record.
Campbell has also shown that he can catch the ball. In the pre-Shockey 2001 season, when the Giants weren't really utilizing a receiving tight end (Why?), Dan Campbell led the Giants' tight
ends with 13 receptions for 148 yards and a touchdown. Nine of his 13 catches resulted in a first down.
Dan Campbell - 2002
In the 2002 season when called on, and even with Shockey around, Campbell started in all 16 games and caught 20 passes for 155 yards, for a 7.8 yard average and one touchdown. Giants tight
ends coach Mike Pope calls Campbell the best blocking tight end in the league. Parcells also sees something in Dan Campbell. The Cowboys paid him a $1.47 million signing bonus, put him into
the starting lineup, and cut loose veteran tight end Tony McGee.
Dan Campbell
- 2003
It is possible that not re-signing Dan Campbell in 2003 will equal the Giants big mistake of 2002, when they didn't re-sign Morten Andersen. The kicking game was solid in 2001. Andersen converted
23 of 28 field goals, (3 misses came from beyond 50 yards), and he made 29 of 30 PATs. GM Ernie Accorsi holds Andersen in very high regard, and has said many times that he regretted not having
the money to re-sign him in 2002, for just $750,000, the veteran minimum.
Head coach Jim Fassel says.
About the Cowboys - "This is a good football team that actually played better than Atlanta last week. They just made the errors to cost them the game. They had more yards, more rushing yards,
more passing yards. The only negatives they had were more turnovers and their red (-zone production) was not good."
Note: The Cowboys lost to the Falcons, 27-13. They had 149 rushing yards, and quarterback Quincy Carter passed for 268 yards, completing 15 of 32 passes with a touchdown and interception.
The worries on offense.
This week it's the same thing we said before last game, only worse. The Giants weak point is the line, and it's even more obvious to opponents now after last week, that Ian Allen is struggling
at right tackle. Also, when LT Luke Petitgout (back spasms) left
the game, the pressure was so great on Kerry Collins that Fassel had him resort to three-step drops. The result was that Kerry was 14-of-26 for 202 yards, with Amani Toomer's feet turning
one 34 yard catch into a 77-yard completion.
Toomer had only 1 other catch for 11 yards, and Ike Hilliard had 4 for 32 yards, as passing downfield became an after thought. Kerry's numbers were better in 15 of the 17 games he played last
year. The bright spot was Tiki Barber's running, which ate some clock and took a lot of the pressure off the line.
This week going into Saturday, Luke Petitgout has yet to return to practice, although Fassel
maintains that if he improves by Monday night, he'll play even if he doesn't practice at all. Also, fullback Jim Finn is still nursing a bad quad injury, and that's not good at all. Jeremy
Shockey, who had three catches for 36 yards last week, is now the best blocking tight end on the Giants, and line problems could cut into his chances to
be explosive in this game.
The worries on defense.
Are you kidding? After last week we're not worried, although defending against a mobile quarterback is always a problem.
Notes:
Don't get too excited about division rivals Philly and Dallas losing on opening day.
Last year only 6 of the 12 playoff teams won their opening games.
The Giants have won five straight regular season games.
The Cowboys have been limited to 17 or fewer points in four straight games and 13 of their last 17 contests.
Kerry Collins is 7-2 against the Cowboys.
Tiki Barber led all running backs in the first week with 146 yards on 24 carries.
The Giants earned their most lopsided regular season win under coach Jim Fassel, with a 37-7 rout of the Cowboys here last Dec. 15. The Giants rushed for 157
yards, Amani Toomer caught six passes for 99 yards, and Kenny Holmes returned a fumble 50 yards for a touchdown.
Next Game
Sep 21, Giants at Washington 4:05 PM.
The rematch will be Dec. 21 in Dallas.
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