"Pick Six" is becoming a very prevalent phrase all of a sudden, and I had never heard it before last night when analysts were describing the Giants' and Eagles' losses. It's always really interesting to me when a new phrase comes out and everyone starts using it every time they refer to a specific event. "Eli Manning's first pick six was different from his second pick six and then his third pick six really iced the game." Really? You really can't just say that he threw three interceptions returned for touchdowns, or at least just vary the phrasing once in the course of that sentence?
Anyway, I'm not going to go into the whole rant, because the Giants really showed me something on Sunday: they didn't point any fingers. Nobody would have gotten angry at Michael Strahan if he said something like, "We really didn't have a chance in this one, the offense just gave up too many points," after the game. Instead he got behind Eli Manning and said that it took more than one person to lose this game and everyone needs to improve. That's a huge step from last year when he would have thrown Manning, Tom Coughlin and the entire offense under the bus.
But that's it for the good from this game. Manning needs to make better reads (first pick six), and the offensive line failed at giving him enough time to sit back in the pocket and make good throws (second and third interceptions returned for touchdowns). Aside from that, it seemed like the defense played alright, they didn't give up many highlights after the first 60-yard bomb by Tarvaris Jackson.
Aaron Ross was burned on that play, so I sound pretty dumb for calling him the Giants' savior in the secondary, however I am pleased that the coaching staff put him on the opposing team's number one receiver. That said, the team has to rebound from this game, and go at least 2-3 the rest of the way, if they want to make the playoffs and have a chance at beating Tampa, New Orleans or Seattle, or really anyone else who wants to make the playoffs in the NFC west or south.
The defense has the talent to step up, and the offense needs to stay healthy to lend Manning enough support to win games.
It's easy to say Manning is terrible, and that the Giants need to move on and get a new quarterback in the draft this offseason, but not every quarterback is as good as Peyton Manning or Tom Brady. Eli Manning is better than Kurt Warner, and Warner won a Super Bowl. Manning is better than Jeff Garcia, and he led the Eagles deep into the playoffs a few years ago. Not every Super Bowl quarterback is going to be the best quarterback in the league. If this is the best Manning has, that is more than good enough. He is somewhere between the 11th and 17th best quarterbacks in the league. That means that there are at least 15 teams who have worse quarterbacks than Manning is, and those same 15 teams would probably be vying for him if he was a free agent.
If the Giants stay healthy, and the offensive line plays up to its capabilities, Manning won't lose many games for his team.
In sum, since my professor keeps looking over here and wondering what I'm typing, the Giants need to stay healthy and play up to their capabilities during these last five games if they want any chance to make the playoffs and help Manning win his first playoff game.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Monday, November 19, 2007
Injuries abound (again) and secondary concerns (...again)
During the Giants' 16-10 victory over the Detroit Lions (6-4) on Sunday, there were a number of factors that media outlets are ignoring that indicate that these Giants are not too far removed from the 2006 version.
First of all, there is no pass-defense on this team. Yes the Giants picked up three interceptions, but only one of them was on a good play by a defender. Two of the interceptions were on tipped passes that could easily have been big gains for the Lions, if the receivers could have just held onto the ball. The Butler interception wouldn't have happened if it was Calvin Johnson or Roy Williams running that route. That was just a mistake by Lions quarterback Jon Kitna.
My girlfriend must have asked, "Why was that guy wide open?" about ten or fifteen times over the course of that game. And of course, the only answer I could give was that the Lions' receivers are just plain better than the Giants' secondary.
The Giants' best cornerback, Aaron Ross, didn't accumulate a single statistic over the course of the entire game. I looked for him, and I don't know that I saw him on the field at all - of course I was just watching the broadcast on Fox, so I can't say with any certainty that he didn't play at all, but I can tell you that he didn't get a single tackle, or block a single pass.
With Ross in the game, the Giants' secondary is not that bad. He does a good job of blanketing receivers, and he has pretty good hands from what I've seen so far this year. What would help the Giants would be the addition of one fast cornerback, who can run with the likes of Santana Moss, Terrell Owens and Randy Moss. Just someone who can speed down the field and at least get a hand on them after they catch a 25-yard pass.
I just can't stand watching other teams' receivers run fly-routes past the Giants' secondary anymore. This has been going on since the Wills' era of the late 90's. Ross was a good improvement, but the Giants aren't done there. Knowing the front office, however, it's pretty obvious that they'll either pick up another D-Lineman, or another small, slow corner that won't work out (a la Corey Webster).
The second thing that pretty closely links this year's Giants to the 2006 Giants is the injuries. Two more big names went down during last night's game: Mathias Kiwanuka (Broken fibula, out for the season) and Brandon Jacobs (Pulled hamstring, listed as day-to-day). This is a professional sports franchise.
The Giants consistently have way too many players on injured reserve and while they have been able to avoid that so far this season, that specter is always hanging over this team. Personally, I blame the Giants' training staff. I don't know what the turnover is in that area, or who is there who has been there for the last 10+ years, but why is it that the Giants' players consistently get hamstring injuries, or groin injuries, or ankle injuries every year. With Strahan it's the pectoral injuries which are also preventable.
Obviously, I can't blame the training staff for Kiwanuka's broken fibula - there isn't a doctor in the world who can predict a 250 pound man falling on your leg - but why is a professional football player, WHO JUST HAD A BAD LEG INJURY, getting another leg injury? Shouldn't the training staff have done something about that? It's not like they didn't know Jacobs' legs were in trouble, he just missed four weeks with an MCL sprain.
All told, however, the Giants are looking pretty good this year and at the very least, their defense is consistent. The offensive players, including center Shaun O'Hara have thanked the defense for saving them in a number of games, but really it's the front-seven who saves the defense on every down. If the Giants allow a quarterback more than 2.5 seconds to look around before throwing the ball, that quarterback has a 15 yard completion. Against a team like the Lions, that could have been awful, but thanks to a few bad decisions and a few lucky drops, the Giants came away with a victory.
I guess what I'm trying to say is, pretty please, with a cherry on top, find a cornerback who can run fast. I know they exist. Please Jerry Reese, do yourself a favor, and stop relying on Sam Madison. He's a great player, and he still has skills, he's just not fast enough to line up across from Terrell Owens and Randy Moss. And Terrell Owens is in the same division as the Giants are. It just doesn't make any sense for a team to know that, and not have a corner fast enough to keep up with him.
First of all, there is no pass-defense on this team. Yes the Giants picked up three interceptions, but only one of them was on a good play by a defender. Two of the interceptions were on tipped passes that could easily have been big gains for the Lions, if the receivers could have just held onto the ball. The Butler interception wouldn't have happened if it was Calvin Johnson or Roy Williams running that route. That was just a mistake by Lions quarterback Jon Kitna.
My girlfriend must have asked, "Why was that guy wide open?" about ten or fifteen times over the course of that game. And of course, the only answer I could give was that the Lions' receivers are just plain better than the Giants' secondary.
The Giants' best cornerback, Aaron Ross, didn't accumulate a single statistic over the course of the entire game. I looked for him, and I don't know that I saw him on the field at all - of course I was just watching the broadcast on Fox, so I can't say with any certainty that he didn't play at all, but I can tell you that he didn't get a single tackle, or block a single pass.
With Ross in the game, the Giants' secondary is not that bad. He does a good job of blanketing receivers, and he has pretty good hands from what I've seen so far this year. What would help the Giants would be the addition of one fast cornerback, who can run with the likes of Santana Moss, Terrell Owens and Randy Moss. Just someone who can speed down the field and at least get a hand on them after they catch a 25-yard pass.
I just can't stand watching other teams' receivers run fly-routes past the Giants' secondary anymore. This has been going on since the Wills' era of the late 90's. Ross was a good improvement, but the Giants aren't done there. Knowing the front office, however, it's pretty obvious that they'll either pick up another D-Lineman, or another small, slow corner that won't work out (a la Corey Webster).
The second thing that pretty closely links this year's Giants to the 2006 Giants is the injuries. Two more big names went down during last night's game: Mathias Kiwanuka (Broken fibula, out for the season) and Brandon Jacobs (Pulled hamstring, listed as day-to-day). This is a professional sports franchise.
The Giants consistently have way too many players on injured reserve and while they have been able to avoid that so far this season, that specter is always hanging over this team. Personally, I blame the Giants' training staff. I don't know what the turnover is in that area, or who is there who has been there for the last 10+ years, but why is it that the Giants' players consistently get hamstring injuries, or groin injuries, or ankle injuries every year. With Strahan it's the pectoral injuries which are also preventable.
Obviously, I can't blame the training staff for Kiwanuka's broken fibula - there isn't a doctor in the world who can predict a 250 pound man falling on your leg - but why is a professional football player, WHO JUST HAD A BAD LEG INJURY, getting another leg injury? Shouldn't the training staff have done something about that? It's not like they didn't know Jacobs' legs were in trouble, he just missed four weeks with an MCL sprain.
All told, however, the Giants are looking pretty good this year and at the very least, their defense is consistent. The offensive players, including center Shaun O'Hara have thanked the defense for saving them in a number of games, but really it's the front-seven who saves the defense on every down. If the Giants allow a quarterback more than 2.5 seconds to look around before throwing the ball, that quarterback has a 15 yard completion. Against a team like the Lions, that could have been awful, but thanks to a few bad decisions and a few lucky drops, the Giants came away with a victory.
I guess what I'm trying to say is, pretty please, with a cherry on top, find a cornerback who can run fast. I know they exist. Please Jerry Reese, do yourself a favor, and stop relying on Sam Madison. He's a great player, and he still has skills, he's just not fast enough to line up across from Terrell Owens and Randy Moss. And Terrell Owens is in the same division as the Giants are. It just doesn't make any sense for a team to know that, and not have a corner fast enough to keep up with him.
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