Ultimate NYG has moved!

You should be automatically redirected in 5 seconds. If not, visit
www.ultimatenyg.com
and update your bookmarks.

Saturday, September 5, 2009

THE GIFT

Two items today, the roster cuts and AN IMPORTANT OBSERVATION.

1) Roster- Today they will make some cuts that some people will like and some will not. The only cut today that would not make sense is Bomar. Every other cut is a numbers game. Coughlin on Bomar after the Patriots game: "a gutsy performance."... "He made some nice plays, pulled the ball down and ran. It was a good night for Rhett."

2) Now onto much more important things. It's the 3 day weekend, no one is even online except you because everyone else is at the beach (me too tomorrow), but this may be the most important comment before the season starts...

THE GIANTS CATCH A HUGE BREAK BY PLAYING A LOT OF WEAK TEAMS EARLY. THIS ALLOWS THE WALKING WOUNDED TO HEAL AND TO COME TOGETHER ON DEFENSE WHILE WE PLAY.

Canty hamstring. Boley hip flexor. Cofield knee. Osi MCL. Ross hamstring. Robbins knee. Pierce foot. Alford knee (season-ending IR). Heck even Phillips did not suit up vs the Pats, although he should be fine. But the point is that these guys need to get into season shape, they need to play with each other AND they need to make sure they are on the same page with their new defensive coordinator.

Here comes THE GIFT:
WASH
at DAL
at TB
at KC
OAK

Forget that Dallas is going to have trouble with their defense this year and that that game is winnable. Even if the Giants lose to Dallas, they rate to be 4-1 before the schedule accelerates. WE PLAY THE AFC WEST, a gift that will keep giving, especially when we are less than stellar early on yet win vs the likes of KC and Oakland. TB just fired their offensive coordinator, they have a rookie Head Coach, so we are not worried about them. Ditto KC, the OC was let go there too. And while we are at it, the rookie head coach Cable Guy threw a punch at one of his coaches, so that is more of the same. If we cannot beat Washington at home (-6.5), well we have bigger problems. So we can be 4-1 or 5-0 and allow this defense to get its act together.

At this moment in time we have way too many (HEALTH) question on defense. We can get answers by getting guys like Boley and Canty on the field and getting a little cohesion. On the job training. This does not mean the team is out of the woods. It means the defense has the chance, the OPPORTUNITY, to buy some time and find its rhythm. We need to be 4-1 or 5-0 AND IMPROVING. If you can tell us that all of the above mentioned players recover and are all playing at 100% of their abilities by Week 6, I will tell you we are in great shape to vie for a Super Bowl title.

Note how we do not even mention the offense in this context. Sure, we want to see Manning get more rhythm with his WRs etc. But let's remember the LAST RULE, Defense Wins Championships. If this team is going to have a chance to win ANYTHING, it starts with defense. As more than a few commenters have noted here, what was our strength on paper is now in flux. In the end it is always about defense. People like to remember that it was Manning to Tyree and Plaxico (and SMITH ON 3RD AND 11!) to win the Super Bowl, but it was the defense that held the 18-0 offensive juggernaut to FOURTEEN POINTS which enabled the Giants to still be in the game.

This (relatively) easy start is what the doctor ordered. Coughlin is very good at getting across the message of always building on what you have done and improving the level of play every game. This will be necessary, as NO, AZ, PHL, SD and ATL are waiting immediately thereafter. How would you like to have those 5 games first?! Ya think Brees, Warner, Rivers, Ryan and McNabb would have problems scoring points against us right now? Ya think? Time heals all wounds. Let's hope it heals the Giants'- it could be a huge positive for this team's chances. It's not who you play, it is when you play them.

11 comments:

Mitch said...

This was on SNY last night. Brian Custer interviews Eli Manning for about 7 1/2 minutes. He tries to bait him in different ways about past Giants players, present players, the wind issue at Giants Stadium and his inability to master it...etc. You really have to admire how calm Eli is in deflecting the questions and never falling into the interviewer's trap. I don't know how many other players would be able to have done that.

http://web.sny.tv/media/video.jsp?content_id=6460345

Anonymous said...

Eli has every tool you could possibly need mentally to be a great quarterback. If he could solve his accuracy problem he will be great. Until he does that he will only be above average good but not in the top QB

Motown Blue said...

AP confirms UltimateNYG's point about the Defense:

http://trainathought.insidefootball.com/2009/09/giants-defense-aims-to-get-back-on-track-.html

AP is not worried about Sheridan but is more worried about execution as a unit. Pressure on Sheridan will still increase if they stumble out of the gate and execute poorly. NY media will drum it up but just keep in mind what Andy said here and AP's comments.

dberenson said...

You discount Dallas and Washington at your peril.

Washington will have a terrific defense this season from Day 1. Their offense will be nowhere near as good, but they'll have a decent running game and short passing game. Given the Giants' current situation, Game 1 could go either way.

Dallas has question marks at defense, but they have always, always played the Giants tough. The only time the Giants have gotten past the 'Boys with ease was when they fielded Brad Johnson at QB. We won't be that lucky. And they'll be pumped up for their home opener at the new ridiculous stadium.

Andy F. said...

The Dallas game can go either way. I respect Dallas enough AND THE GIANTS ENOUGH to know that either team can win that game.

As for Washington, their offense had BIG trouble against us twice last year and they did little in the offseason to improve that. So when I think of the Giants defense as the unit that needs time together, that is a break- for the Giants to be playing a team with an offense that is not gangbusters. If the Redskins defense causes turnovers, that is the (only realistic and plausible) way I see them winning.

When Daniel Snyder gets out of the way, then I will begin to respect the Skins. Until then, they can win a game here or there (including Sept 13, to be fair), but they are a poorly run franchise that does not maximize their resources. The amount of money they spent on DeAngelo Hall was INSANE. He's an opportunistic QB in a cover 2, but when you give him $9M/yr how does the rest of your team not suffer? That money needed to go to upgrade their offense.

Bob said...

Eli could be a politician when he retires from football. In all his interviews pre/post game, he always gives the totally cool, unemotional,
politicially correct answer. To the point that be's predictably boring
in interview.

Motown Blue said...

https://twitter.com/NJ_Giants

Tyree, Maurice Evans, Matthews, and Shareef Rashad cut.

Dissapointed about Evans as I think he has a lot of upside and won't survive waivers to get to the PS.

Bob said...

Andy
You make an excellent point, very astute. We've got 5 "relatively easy"
games before the going gets real tough. Although I never discount Dallas & Washington. One thing that worries me is the GMEN in tne past have had letdowns against the weaker clubs, and have frequently played best against tougher opposition.

Crazed Giant fan said...

There is no such thing as a gimme game in the NFL.

What do we really know about this years Giants? Lots of question marks. Real concern about depth in the secondary and LB. And yes DL. Can Robbins and Cofield play at the level of the first 8 games last year? Can Bernard and Canty pickup the slack?

How bout the offense. What happens if Mackenzie's back flares? Or O'hara, or Snee get hurt. The name of the game in the NFL is depth and we are on the thin side.

You have to get lucky with your draft picks and UFA. These are the guys who have to step up and produce. Who out there against the Pats did that in the second half?

AB has to deliver, Jacobs has to stay healthy.

So many question marks.

Andy F. said...

I think the point is that these games will not be "easy" while the Giants are coming together as a unit. So I would not expect a letdown, given that AND last year's professional conduct in going 11-1 w/ ample oppty for numerous letdowns.

Motown- I like Evans too. I was just listening to Ross Tucker, a former NFL player interviewed on WFAN, who writes for SI.com. He was very upbeat on Maurice Evans, and the way he was talking (from the point where I broke in) he did not imply that he knew Evans was cut. So I think they will definitely try to keep him on the practice squad if clears waivers.

Lou Spevack said...

About Washington.... This is the first year since Cambell became QB that he has the same OC 2 years in a row. Also, the Skins showed definite improvement in the last 2 games. Add to that the Giants injuries and tendency to slow start and I think the game will be competitive. Gmen will win but will not beat the spread.

Sports Business Directory - BTS Local
Blog Directory - Blogged