Get the IVs ready

1) This sounds like fun:
a) Tuck possibly out (?) w/ a torn labrum. Vacch: "long shot."
b) Canty likely out (?)
c) Derrick Ward and Cadillac Williams know how to run
d) AT Tampa Bay
e) 1PM start

"Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the mid-day sun." Add Giants Defensive Linemen. Better have lots of those IVs ready at halftime. Will they be lucky enough to make it that far? These are the games where you love to have ALL of your linemen for rotation. For the Giants to be w/o two of them is nothing short of cruel... for the others that are left. This is where I get to segue to one of my favorite NFL video shorts, the one about Fran Tarkenton. When you get to the clip with Deacon Jones, you'll understand. Merlin Olsen's remarks weren't bad either.

Back to this Sunday's game, the Giants DL has my condolences. If they thought it was hot at the Palace in Dallas, wait'll they get to Raymond James. Forecast- 89 degrees and a 40% chance of precipitation/scattered thunderstorms. Rain never sounded so good.

2) Garafolo is not sure how serious a shoulder injury is with Mario Manningham.

3) All injury issues aside, is there anyone in their right mind who could think that Hixon should be ahead of Manningham on the depth chart?

On Monday Russ drew extra attention to a comment by
Raymond Sultan: "I think that making (Hixon) a kick return specialist and, for a while at least, only a situational receiver might actually really boost his confidence and get him back to a place where he's a serious every-game difference-maker for the team."
Russ: "Brilliant! Sometimes we find our niche (like Joba Chamberlain when he was a reliever) and we don't even know it. Time to resurrect the big-play Dominick."

That is a really nice observation, Raymond. Simple and powerful. Hixon's track record already shows him to be brittle anyway, so keep his plays down and he can come in and make some plays off the bench. And FOR GOODNESS SAKE, GET HIM BACK THERE RETURNING KICKOFFS PLEEEEEEZE! I do not know what was more insane, the Miami dive on 3rd down or (the emperor not having any clothes and) not having Hixon on kickoff duty. Frightening. Absolutely frightening.

4) Want a rookie LBer? Maualuga and former USC teammate Cushing have 4 starts, 30 tackles, a sack and 2 forced fumbles between them. Good thing these guys are only rookies.

5) They have these Weekly Power Ratings and they are mostly as useful as toilet paper. This week is no exception. Having the Ravens as the #1 team after beating two AFC West teams is a joke. Yes, beating the Chargers in SD is respectable, but let's face it, it is Norv Turner. And Norv Turner is the same retread loser (think: Wade Phillips) we saw in other hotspots like Washington and Oakland. He is 78-96-1 in his career. My apologies in advance to Charger fans and Ravens fans, but there has to be more to it than that. The fact that they can have the Giants #2 is another joke. Not at the Giants or at #2, but the whole exercise is flawed because there are too few data points to even know enough about the team. I would classify many of the commenters on this site as extremely knowledgeable about this team and all of us would to a man agree that there are still so many issues and variables that remain to be settled before we can anoint this team. Health? Defense? Gilbride? Red zone? Short yardage? SHERIDAN? Special teams on kickoffs? To see the Giants even ranked is a joke- it should be "I," as in INCOMPLETE. To be determined. Needs more games. Right now you could put the Giants #1 or put them #10 and I could make arguments for either. Which is why this Weekly ranking system this early is ... toilet paper.

6) Nobody asked me, but I'll tell you anyway.. the two teams at this moment who are impressive are the Saints and Jets. Brees has the same potent offense with a little more defense. And the Jets have given up spit on defense this year. It's not how you start, it's how you finish. Those two teams (and of course the Giants, to name just three) have the raw material to be contenders down the stretch. There is so much football to be played, let's try to figure out who is even DRESSING this weekend! G-I-L-F!

7) Toni Monkovic of The Fifth Down asks for ideas or solutions for freezing of kickers with a few seconds left. Leave it alone, it serves one good purpose.. it is very good at identifying the loser head coaches who are desperate enough to be grasping at straws.