SB Nation - Ramses Barden

What do the Giants do now? Ideas for salvaging the season

Ed Valentine — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:00:19 -0000

OK, gang. We have spent the past few days commiserating about the problems our 6-5 New York Giants are having. The hated Dallas Cowboys come to East Rutherford this week, so it is time to turn the page and look forward.

The Giants MUST (is there anything bigger than capital letters for emphasis?) win this game if they hope to salvage the season. So, the question is, what -- if anything -- can be done over the next five games to get this team going again?

First and foremost, say your prayers for Eli's foot. If he goes down to a stress fracture, find something else to do with your Sunday afternoons. I doubt the Giants will be watchable.

Anyway, here are my thoughts on what the Giants can do in an effort to salvage the season.

Run Brandon, run! -- As we discussed Sunday, this is an obvious one. He probably isn't running as well as he did the past couple of years. And we know the line isn't blocking as well. But, the Giants have to have balance. And they have to let Jacobs try to wear defenses down. He is the guy opposing defensive players fear, and when the Giants don't make full use of him they do the defense a favor.
Turn the kids loose, Tom -- Rookies make mistakes, and coaches of contending teams don't like to play them if they have a choice. Giants coach Tom Coughlin is hardly alone there. But the season has reached a point where it has become pretty obvious that the Giants aren't really contenders. And that there are certain veterans whose warranty has expired. So, let the kids play.

-- Activate Ramses Barden -- Sure, wide receiver isn't really an issue. But, the Green Zone still is. And, yes, that probably means de-activating Derek Hagan, an idea which I hate. But, you know what? The coverage teams stink with Hagan, who might be the team's best cover guy. For now, they can stink without him. It's time to start finding out about Barden.

-- Same for Travis Beckum -- Every snap that Darcy Johnson is on the field is really a wasted play as far as the future of the Giants. He really is not a good blocker, so if it's a blocking situation use an extra offensive lineman. If it's a passing situation, get Beckum on the field. He will never turn into a weapon standing on the sidelines, and you know by now that Johnson is pretty much just taking up roster space.

-- Start William Beatty at right tackle. Maybe he is the future left tackle, we don't know that yet. But, continuing to play Kareem McKenzie at right tackle is going to get Eli Manning killed, Or David Carr, if Eli's 'stress reaction' turns into a fracture. It's pretty obvious that McKenzie is a pass-blocking liability, so get Beatty on the field full-time and let him begin to learn. At least you know that if he gets beat he will learn and get better.

-- More Clint Sintim. I have to qualify this one. I know that the Giants started getting Sintim more action several weeks ago. I also know that Antonio Pierce's injury has made playing Sintim difficult. Sintim admitted recently that he was relying on AP to get him lined up and to make sure he understood what his responsibilities were, and I'd be lying if I said it didn't bother me that Sintim still needed help figuring out how to line up. But, it's really obvious that Danny Clark won't be a Giant next year, and that Clark's lack of athleticism hurts this defense. Let Sintiim make his mistakes now, in a season thatr appears to be quickly going down the drain, so that he can become the play maker we all want in 2010.

-- Give Jonathan Goff a chance -- We have seen one good game and one bad one from Chase Blackburn filling in at middle linebacker for Antonio Pierce. Blackburn is smart, and I love the guy. I'm not sure he is athletic enough, or physical enough, to be the long-term answer in the middle, though. We know Pierce needs to be replaced, quite possibly next season. Get Goff on the field enough to find out if the kid can play.
More Kiwi, less Osi. A lot less Osi -- If any Giants fan out there still thinks Osi Umenyiora is a great defensive end, all I can say is this. You are thinking with your heart, not your eyes or your brain. Osi is an atrocious run defender, and at this point in his career only a so-so pass rusher. He makes one great play every couple of games, that's about it. Mathias Kiwanuka played right defensive end all of 2008, and did a better job than Osi is doing this season. Especially against the run. Every offensive coordinator in the league knows at this point that if you need a couple of yards against the Giants, running right at Osi is the way to get it.

One more thing. How about no more Chris Canty at defensive end? The Giants are paying him $42 million to clog the middle, which he can't do playing right defensive end when Osi isn't there. What the heck is he doing out there? Get him in the middle where he is supposed to be, and let Kiwanuka play defensive end.
Boot Bill Sheridan upstairs. I know many of you would have been happy if I stopped at 'Boot Bill Sheridan.' That is not going to happen during the season, though, so I'm not even going to go there. Sheridan, though, obviously is not effective from the sideline. He is undoubtedly not a motivator. And, he can't seem to get a feel for calling the game, since so many of his calls seem to wind up leaving the Giants vulnerable. So, kick him upstairs where we know he originally wanted to be and see if he can do a better job from up there. If that doesn't work, well, then I think we know what needs to be done.

That's about all I have for now. I am curious to hear your ideas for the rest of the season. And, please, keep it to how to salvage the next five games. We have months to discuss the draft and what to do next season. It's not time to tackle that yet.

For the New York Giants, time is now for some changes

Ed Valentine — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:15:09 -0000

More photos » by Bill Kostroun - AP

Hopefully we will see a lot more of linebacker Clint Sintim (97) for the remainder of the season.

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The bye week is over. The New York Giants have had time now to look in the mirror and assess what has gone wrong during their current unexpected four-game slide into mediocrity.

The question now is simple. What can they do to turn things around over the next seven games? Can they get back to being the team we all thought they were going to be, and that they were through a 5-0 start?

Defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan was asked last week about using the bye week to make changes in areas where his defense has been struggling. His answer, I thought, was instructive not just for the defense but for the Giants as a whole. I am taking a little editorial license with Sheridan's remarks, removing the parts where he specifically discussed red zone defense.

"You can sit back and look at a nine game self-scout and kind of take a picture of what you are doing ... How you are playing defense and what kind of calls you are or are not making. It gives you a chance, about a couple of days to do that, to maybe rethink some thoughts defensively about what you can do maybe a little differently," Sheridan said. "You can’t make dramatic changes but you definitely can modify it ... I think you can step back and take a look at what you are doing and maybe consider some other types of things."

Like I said, I think Sheridan's words apply to the entire team. Tom Coughlin, Kevin Gilbride, the players -- everyone. Now that they have had time to think about what has gone wrong, can they make some changes to get this ship sailing back in the right direction?

Here are my suggestions for things I would like to see the Giants do differently during the remaining seven games.

A lot more Brandon Jacobs. Is he running well? Isn't he running well? I'm tired of talking about it. Fact is, during the four-game skid he simply hasn't been running enough. In four losses Jacobs had 7, 13, 20 and 11 carries, 12.75 per game. In the five previous wins, Jacobs had more than 20 carries three times and no less than 16 in any game. He averaged 20 carries in those five victories. When the Giants are playing football their way, dominating teams physically and controlling the clock, Jacobs is punishing defenses 17-25 times per game. It's time to stop protecting the 6-foot-4, 270-pound Jacobs and start using him. As Yogi Berra would say "it's getting late early around here."

Stick with the short passing game. The Giants offense got back to the short, ball-control type passes against San Diego, and it's a trend I would like to see continue. There is a time and place for the long ball, and it is awesome when it works, but let's be honest. After beating up on JV teams the early part of the season Gilbride and Eli Manning fell in love with it. The Giants best receiver, Steve Smith, is a machine on short-to-intermediate routes. Mario Manningham and Hakeem Nicks are showing the ability to turn short throws into huge plays. Kevin Boss is a quality tight end. You don't have to throw the ball 40 or 50 yards downfield to make teams pay for stuffing the box or blitzing the house. Short, quick completions they can't cover -- and ones that occasionally turn into huge gains -- will do the trick. Besides, we are heading into that time of year in the Meadowlands where we know throwing the ball down the field will become more and more dicey. So, stick with what you do best, and what has the best chance to succeed.

Give me some Ramses Barden. Please. I know the third-round pick from Cal-Poly is a work in progress. And I know he has to contribute on special teams to be active on Sunday. But the guy is a 6-foot-6 physical freak, and he needs to be given an opportunity to get on the field and make a couple of plays. Even if Barden doesn't run perfect routes, I saw over and over during training camp that he can use his size and strength to make plays in traffic even when he seems covered. C'mon, now! Is Sinorice Moss really helping the special teams enough to keep Barden inactive every Sunday? I don't think so.

Unleash Danny Ware. We all love Ahmad Bradshaw, but it is plain to see that AB's foot and ankle injuries are slowing him down. His production just hasn't been the same in recent weeks. Ware has fresh legs, gobs of talent and he is dying for an opportunity. I think it's time the Giants give him one.

More Clint Sintim. During pre-season, a lot of folks thought Sintim, the second-round pick, would be the Giants rookie who had the biggest impact this season. A leg injury has derailed the young linebacker, but he is healthy now. Danny Clark might grade out OK on film, but we all know he is not a play maker. The Giants need play makers on defense right now, guys who are fast, strong, athletic and can make plays that change games. Michael Boley and Chris Canty might be those kinds of players. Sintim, too. The Giants need to get him on the field and see what he can do.

Less zone blitz. In fact, no zone blitz. Rip it out of the defensive playbook. I really, really hope that Bill Sheridan has looked at his propensity to call zone blitzes -- something he promised he would not do -- and realize that is the dumbest defense ever invented that is not called the prevent. Dropping Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora and Mathias Kiwanuka into coverage against tight ends is stupid, a recipe for failure. Let them do what they are paid to do, and what they do best, go crush some quarterbacks.

A little faith, Tom. The worst thing a head coach can do is play not to lose, rather than show faith in his eam and play to win. TC played not to lose at the end of the San Diego game, and ended up losing. If he allows the Giants to take a shot into the end zone and it doesn't work I can stomach that loss a lot easier. I also think TC's lack of faith is hurting the kicking game. Coughlin is so afraid of returns he has Jeff Feagles kicking everything out of bounds, and now Feagles -- one of the best directional punters ever -- is all screwed up. He's got Lawrence Tynes kicking squibbers and bouncers and God-awful looking kickoffs all over the place. Show a little faith in your coverage teams. And your quarterback, Tom. That's what you did in 2007. Don't show fear. Show belief.

Poll

Will the Giants make the playoffs

Yes

871 votes

No

209 votes

1080 votes | Poll has closed

New York Giants news & notes: Ross has played safety

Ed Valentine — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 13:31:54 -0000

We mentioned yesterday that Aaron Ross finally returned to practice for the New York Giants. There has been much speculation that if Ross ever got back in the lineup the Giants on whether the Giants would consider playing either him or Terrell Thomas at safety.

Well, Ernie Palladino pointed out something yesterday that I did not know -- Ross has played safety before. And, as he told Ernie in a conversation Wednesday, he is willing to do it again.

"If I'm asked to move, I'd be more than willing," Ross said. "We're supposed to know the whole defense, anyway; know what everybody else is doing."

I can't imagine Ross being able to play more than a handful of snaps. But, if he can play some safety in long-yardage situations I would think that would be a boost to the pass defense.

The Giants assistant coaches were available to the media Wednesday. Check out all the interviews on the Transcripts page. Here are a few highlights.

Kevin Gilbride also dropped a little knowledge in his interview. He always takes a lot of heat over the distribution of carries between Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw. Turns out, which back is in the game is not his call. It's up to running backs coach Jerald Ingram. Here is that part of Gilbride's interview.

Q: Is Brandon getting enough carries – not yards but carries?

A: Oh, I don’t know. As I said to you early on when all of you were complaining that he was carrying it too much and not doing it well enough, that in the end of the season I thought the numbers would reflect a solid season for him. I think I still feel the same way. When it is all said and done it will all balance out. But they are trying to get --- Ahmad at the beginning of the year was our hot runner and doing a great job. And everybody wanted to get him more carries. And now everybody wants to get Brandon more. You can’t do it all. So you try to split it up. And it is up to our running back coach, who does a great job. And Tom, again, sets the parameters that Gerald operates in. And you just hope that you have the right guy in at the right time.

Defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan is focused on finding ways to improve the Giants' porous red zone defense.

For large portions of the game we play very well, but for a bunch of different reasons, we haven’t done a great job of stopping people when they get the ball down in the red area. That has got to change because you can play great for 50 snaps a game, but if they get the ball inside your 10 and you are not putting up enough resistance to keep them out of the end zone, they are going to have seven points instead of three. You are going to have a hard time winning games. If it had to be one thing, it is very easy to pinpoint and say that would be it. Doing a better job of executing and keeping people out of the end zone and forcing field goals.

Wide receivers coach Mike Sullivan was asked a couple of questions about everyone's favorite mystery man, Ramses Barden. Here is ssome of that exchange.

Q. In terms of his skills as a receiver, we all figured he would have a little bit of an adjustment period coming from Cal-Poly. But how do you think he has been in terms of his receiver skills?

A. He came in from a program that wasn’t oriented towards a pro style passing attack, so there has been a learning curve. He certainly worked hard and there are some mechanics that have improved in terms of his route running and in terms of his releases. The next step for him is to go right over into the game and based upon his performance in the preseason, while he has showed some flashes, he also showed some areas that he needed to improve and to develop and grow. That’s what the good thing is in terms of how he has been throughout this season. Whether it’s getting sprinkled in with some reps with our offense or being part of the demonstration with the show team, he continues to improve in those areas, so that combined with some of the special teams value which you really can’t separate, those would be the two factors that I think will be critical with getting him more opportunities.

Q. During training camp he was like the star of camp, just doing physical work. Then when it got more into the games and everything he kind of faded?

A. That’s always the big test for a football player, to be able to transfer success into success from practice into a game scenario. That’s the challenge. I think one of the things when you look at the three receivers who have had the most opportunities thus far this season it’s been a combination of health, being able to be out there and stepping up when getting an opportunity. Then making plays when given opportunities. The guys that are able to do that stay out there and are the ones who are going to be out on the field the most.

Sullivan also said Barden needs to show special teams value to be active on game days.

Giants News: Giants Inactives for today

Jim Schmiedeberg — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 15:59:40 -0000

From Pat Hanlon:

Ramses Barden, Danny Ware, Aaron Ross, Adam Koets, Guy Whimper, Domenik Hixon, Clint Sintim, & Chris Canty...

On the plus side, Kevin Dockery and Hakeem Nicks will be active today

'Kudos & Wet Willies': Giants get 'Kudos,' the Bucs get a 'Wet Willie'

Ed Valentine — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 11:00:22 -0000

More photos » by Chris O'Meara - AP

Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Kellen Winslow (82) loses the football after taking a hit from New York Giants' C.C. Brown (41) and Antonio Pierce (58) during the third quarter an NFL football game Sunday Sept. 27, 2009 in Tampa, Fla. The Giants shut out the Buccaneers 24-0.

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If I really wanted to keep this short and simple, I would just say this. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a very bad football team. The New York Giants are a very good one. Except for Lawrence Tynes misadventures, it is pretty hard to find anything to complain about today as a Giants fan.

Anyway, there must always be 'Kudos & Wet Willies' following Giants football. So, I'll give it my best shot.

Kudos to ...

The Giants defense: No Kenny Phillips? No Aaron Ross, Kevin Dockery or Chris Canty? Justin Tuck on the field for just a few plays? Who cares? Stung by criticism after a poor performance a week ago, the Giants defense pitched a shutout and held the Bucs to 86 total yards, an effort Antonio Pierce called "One of the best (defensive performances) I’ve been a part of." Yes, it was against a woeful Tampa Bay team. Yes, the Giants did not record a sack. But, dominance is dominance. The Bucs ran just 36 plays and had the ball for a microscopic 16:22. I'm not even going to bother singling anyone out. The defense wasn't on the field long enough for any one player to actually have a huge day.
Ahmad Bradshaw: Brandon Jacobs might be a nightmare for defenders to tackle, but in his own way Bradshaw is as tough -- if not tougher -- to bring down. Bradshaw compiled 104 yards on 14 carries (7.8 yards per carry) Sunday, including a 38-yard run. Through three games he has been better than Jacobs.

Steve Smith: I think it's time we stop calling this guy "the other Steve Smith." He's pretty darn special in his own way. The guy is impossible to cover on short to mid-range routes, makes difficult catches along the sideline and always seems to show up when Eli Manning needs to make a key throw. Sunday was just another 7-catch, 63-yard, one touchdown day for Smith. Nothing big, just whatever Eli needed.
Tom Coughlin: For recognizing how much of a blowout the game was and getting Manning, Jacobs and some other guys out of the game midway through the fourth quarter. How many times have you stubbornly seen coaches leave stars in blowout games too long, only to watch someone needlessly get hurt.
Green Zone offense: Yippee! The Giants went 3-for-5 inside the Green Zone, their first three scores of the season in that area. They got touchdowns both times they had first-and-goal-to-go situations. They also converted 10-of-16 third downs, including some short ones. There were some power runs, but I liked some of the other things I saw. There were some spread formations. There were draw plays. There were some passes. Nothing came his way, but I saw Ramses Barden check in during at least one Green Zone series. Yes, it was against the Bumbling Bucs, but Sunday's performance was a positive.
Gartrell Johnson: Six carries for 23 yards in his debut, and had what I believe was a 19-yard run wiped out by a penalty. We just got a fourth-quarter glimpse, but you could see why the Giants like this guy.

Wet Willies to ...

Lawrence Tynes: I have tried to defend Tynes in the past. I cut him some slack last week even though he missed a 29-yarder -- figuring he did make 4-of-5 and nail a game-winner. I can't defend him now, though. No professional kicker should EVER miss from 21 yards. No excuse, even if holder Jeff Feagles didn't get the laces all the way around. It's 21 yards, for crying out loud! It's sad, but I'm pretty sure I can make that kick. "I wish I had an answer," Tynes said. "I didn’t kick good all week. I didn’t kick good in pregame and I didn’t kick good in the game. It was pretty much just a bad week all around for me." Coughlin won't put up with this forever.
The Tampa Bay offense: That is an NFL offense? Sorry, but I don't think so. The Giants defense played hard and did a good job against the run, but that was one of the most inept offensive performances I can remember watching. I wonder if Derrick Ward (5 carries, 2 yards) wishes he had kept his mouth shut last week.
Tony Siragusa: Did anybody else get tired of listening to Siragusa criticize Jacobs repeatedly throughout the game? If my TV wasn't so expensive I might have thrown something at it. Jacobs did not have his best game, but he was effective enough to lug the ball 26 times.

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Swapping questions with Ernie Palladino

Ed Valentine — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 11:00:17 -0000

[Ernie Palladino is a long-time New York Giants beat writer for the Journal-News who is a now a full-fledged member of the blogosphere, writing about the Giants at Ernie Palladino's Giants Beat. Ernie and I will be answering the same set of questions each week. Ernie's answers are below. Check out his site for my answers.]

From Ernie: Before we get to questions and answers, let me first say what an honor it is to be a guest on the Big Blue View. You guys have been around a long time, and your loyalty to this space is very impressive. If I get half the support on my spot, I'll be delighted.

So let's answer some questions.

1. What would you do to correct the 0-8 Red Zone problems?

Ernie's Answer: Well, first of all, let's tailor this a little. In fairness, they're really 0-7 because that last field goal drive Sunday night wasn't designed to score a touchdown. But, hey, 0-7 is pretty bad, especially at the beginning of the season.

I think Dallas provided the answer. And it's really common sense, when you think about it. What did they do when they got in close? Bunch up? Nope. They spread the field. Two and three wide sets. That way, the corners and at least one of the safeties has to respect the possibility of the quarterback throwing it into the end zone. And that leaves fewer players to crash the middle, even if you decide to send Brandon Jacobs head-long into a 958-pound defensive tackle like Albert Haynesworth. The quarterback draw was a perfect case in point. The Cowboys were spread out enough at the 2 that all guard Leonard Davis and tackle Marc Colombo had to do was seal one DT and pile-drive the other to give Tony Romo a clear path to the end zone. It worked to perfection.

That was a goal line situation, however, which was something the Giants were not presented with in Dallas. But they did get to the 20 and in four times before the final field goal. They were plenty spread enough. But on each occasion, Eli Manning threw to receivers before the end zone. Not a single pass -- we're not counting Mario Manningham's touchdown because it came from the 22 -- went into the end zone. And the worst of the bunch was the lousy two-yard completion that found Steve Smith on third-and-goal from the 12 in the second quarter. He never had a chance to fight his way through the secondary.

I'm thinking, and I'm mighty curious, about rookie Ramses Barden here. He wasn't used at all in the passing offense despite being active while fellow rookie Hakeem Nicks' foot heals. At 6-foot-6, it would seem he'd be an ideal Red Zone target. It's a limited playbook down there. Let him line up wide and throw that Plaxico Burress fade to the corner. Worst-case scenario, the kid doesn't get open and it gets knocked away or falls out of bounds. And who knows? Maybe he out leaps a DB and puts up six. The Giants can always use that, right?

2. Where will Mario Manningham be in five games?

Ernie's Answer: Interesting thought. Right now, he's looking like and playing like a starter. And you can't quibble with his production, 14 catches for 208 yards and two touchdowns. He's showing outstanding speed and concentration on the imperfectly-thrown passes, and he's playing both flanker and split end spots. That's great production for a second-year kid who's really more of a rookie because of injuries last year.

But let's stop right there. It's too early to anoint him as the next great wide receiver. The situation may be very different by the time this team hit's the Arizona game on Oct. 25. Teams are going to have plenty of tape on this kid by then, and defenses are definitely going to make adjustments. He might see double-teams if he continues along these lines, and those could be hard for him to deal with. Also, teams are eventually going to stop stacking the box against Brandon Jacobs so they can drop that safety into coverage. That, too, might clog things up.

Consider, too, that a lot of Manningham's production right now is tied to the health and welfare of Domenik Hixon. If not for Hixon's knee injury Sunday night, Manningham would have remained the slot receiver and probably not have caught 10 passes. But there's no doubt he's earned more playing time, and perhaps in a featured role even if Hixon does make a healthy return. Still, look for Manningham's numbers to drop either way as defenses start rolling in his direction.

3. Is Osi Umenyiora the same player as he was in his Pro Bowl year of 2007?

Ernie's Answer: No. He might still be recovering from the knee surgery that cost him 2008, but he doesn't seem to have that old speed. Granted, he made a fantastic play in the opener, swatting the ball from Jason Campbell and returning it for a touchdown. But that was really the only play he made that game. And last week, he only hit Romo once. He never really got close the rest of the time. The old Osi would have at least been chasing him around.

It's too early to call him a liability, but he hasn't done well against the run, either. A whole bunch of the Cowboys' runs went his way, and he wasn't even in the frame. He finished with one tackle, giving him seven on the season. Not exactly what you'd expect out of him. But it's early. And he did have Flozell Adams most of the time. But the fact that he never really got around him is cause for concern.

4. What will this win do for the Giants long-range?

Ernie's Answer: Hard to say. Off-hand, you'd think the emotional momentum would carry them a long way. But we've seen more than once the hangover effect. It could come this week against a bad Tampa Bay squad. But the fact that Eli engineered yet another comeback victory should give them confidence that, in a bad-case scenario, if they remain within a touchdown or 10 points of the Bucs, they'll always have a chance to win. Every team is different, and until it comes back on an opponent, the level of faith has to be low. The arrow's pointing up now, thanks to the heart-pounding finish in Dallas.

Denver Broncos Season Storyline - Week 2 Vs Cleveland

Jeremy Bolander — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 15:22:13 -0000

Grading Out Broncos (1-0) vs. Bengals (0-1)

Before moving on to Week Two, a quick review of the Cincinnati game, and a report card for both teams will help us to put the Win in the rearview mirror, after which we will look at the season's storyline as it continues to develop.

Denver

Cincinnati

Rushing Offense

C+

Correll Buckhalter showed great burst and acceleration, while Knowshon Moreno looked like a favored choice to get key reps in his development. This is a trend that will likely continue, with Cleveland's defensive front being quite similar to Cincinnati's. The line is still working on perfecting some of the new techniques, and the cutback lanes haven't been totally clean, but against a defensive front featuring Tank Johnson they still managed a healthy yards-per-carry and protected the ball well. The offense featured two-back sets with Peyton Hillis leading the way as a fullback. Hillis actually got more plays than he has in the past, but fewer individual looks, seeing only one carry and two targets.

C+

Cedric Benson continued to struggle with consistency, and this game marked the first time he had over 20 carries in a losing effort. 10 of his carries were for 2 or fewer yards and he was far too tentative to the hole. He started picking up steam late in the game, a signature of Benson's. The Bengals' short-yardage game looked good, however, and could be a strength for their inexperienced line going forward, and a great source of confidence.

Denver

Cincinnati

Rushing Defense

B+

Just missed making the A grade in this category due to late-game mental mistakes that allowed cutback lanes to open a few times, including Benson's longest run of the night. Overall the timely run support from the safeties was topnotch, and the defensive line looked terrific, stacking and shedding consistently and allowing the Broncos to keep one and even two players in coverage. Despite entering Denver territory on every drive, Cincinnati's inability to rush the ball led to most of the mistakes that earned Denver's D the stops.

A-

Great hitting and fast linebackers set the tone early, and despite a number of quick gashes, the D-line was very effective and the run support was excellent. Rey Maualuga and Keith Rivers both looked terrific, while the D-line got good penetration to break up many of the plays.

Passing Offense

C+

Several receivers had drops and Kyle Orton had a number of poor and late reads, but the performance edges towards the positive when the morning's scheme is considered, where the Broncos effectively protected the ball and avoided turnovers. Cincinnati's DBs played very well, which they are more than capable of doing, and even Roy Williams was tackling well. The maturation of the offense was expected to take time, and with Cincinnati's particular matchup problems, unfortunately the passing game was asked to take a backseat to ball protection in this game. The brunt of the negative in this grade comes from inconsistent execution, as many plays were left out on the field in the passing game.

C+

The overall scheme seemed to suffer from a lack of vision, with far too many third downs thrown short of the 1st-down markers. With the long ball effectively taken away, the Bengals didn't look prepared to work underneath and Carson Palmer was mostly ineffective at threatening in the short passing game. He did, however, move well in the pocket, and the line was adequate in protecting Palmer, a critical area for this game. A few bad passes from Palmer and a few drops by his receivers left many plays on the field for the Bengals as well.

Passing Defense

Denver played this according to plan, leaving deep safeties deep and giving the underneath coverage a chance to shine. The pass rush wasn't as consistent as the preseason promise it showed, but flashes were there, and from unexpected sources, including Andra Davis, Mario Haggan and Darrell Reid. Cincinnati's talent was a good test, but with doubts about how well the Cincy team has gelled to date, greater tests loom, especially the Dallas matchup in three weeks.

The weakest area of a strong defense didn't fail catastrophically in any way, except for failing to play the whole field on Denver's final play; but they had numerous short area breakdowns that allowed Denver to twice press into FG range and convert for points. In most games that would be enough to keep Cincy in it, but they needed to clamp down with more consistency in Sunday's unexpected field position battle.

Special Teams

C+

Matt Prater continued his regular-season kicking streak to 12 straight FGs, in addition to his perfect record for the preseason. He has yet to kick a de facto game winner for the Broncos, though; so his toughest challenges are still yet to come. Brett Kern outkicked his coverage a number of times and didn't force any fair catches. In a game that was quickly and completely turned into a battle for field position he was less than perfect, and the Broncos know they have other options if they need them; and they are looking at them. Eddie Royal did as well as he could against an above-average punting and coverage team, but the Broncos' coaches will keep looking for more help to take some of the load off of Eddie. Failure to recognize a fake punt early is a downgrade, but is also a factor of coaching as well.

Long snapper Brad St. Louis is the sole source of downgrade on this unit, though the unit as a whole played mostly average. The ineffective snap to the holder was terrible on many levels, and ruined an otherwise decent day for the STs unit where they converted a long fake punt for a first down, and where punter Frank Huber posted an expectedly-good showing.

Coaching

B-

Not all will agree with the gameplan going in, but based on Cincy's strengths and weaknesses, the Broncos made a great choice for how to combat them. There are a lot of ways to skin a cat, and the Broncos chose ball control and time of possession on offense. With no real true weakness on the Bengals' defense, the Broncos chose instead to try to wear them down and force weakness upon them, to mixed results. Unable to consistently execute in the return game, the offense was usually starting from square one, with no clear advantage. On defense, the choice to prevent quick strikes was a perfect complement to the ball-control offense, and with the Bengals needing 59 minutes to score their first points, it was executed nearly flawlessly. The choice to protect the cornerbacks earned a couple of plays from Alphonso Smith and Champ Bailey, which will work out more times than it fails for the Broncos. Cincinnati was able to refocus and drive on this defense late in the game, something they are eminently capable of doing, and it would have been nice to see the defense earn a couple more shots at the ball on that drive; but overall, it was a terrific scheme that put the team in a position to compete for 60 minutes.

C-

The Bengals stated before the game that they were expecting a finesse, pass-happy team in the Broncos. While the defense adjusted accordingly to Denver's ball-control rushing offense, with only a few minor setbacks, the offense failed almost completely to adjust to the Broncos' choice to take away the big play. The further decision to abandon the run in the second half was also questionable. It wasn't until the Bengals moved to a more-spread-out offense that they started having success finding open men underneath, but by then it was nearly too late, and when they did score, the Broncos were looking at having a decent amount of time on the clock to set up a winning FG.

Week 1, Win at (0-1) Cincinnati: Nothing wrong with a miracle to help get that first win of the season, especially when it comes in a way that teaches so much, and on the heels of a team effort and coaching gameplan that was admirable in its quality. But as far as the Bengals are concerned, Denver earned nothing.

"We played pretty well, regardless of that play," Bengals safety Chris Crocker said. "That play was a miracle. I'm not going to give them any credit and they didn't do anything to deserve that play. We played our butts off."

Crocker may or may not give Denver any credit for how the game ended, but he is certainly within his rights to point out how well the Bengals played. The closest their defense allowed Denver to get was the 24-yard line, and they didn't allow a single passing first down until Denver ran their 2-minute drill late in the first half. What they need to recognize is just how in situ Denver's current offense is, and how limited it was by design. They will need to play much better to have a chance at Lambeau Field, where they have never won, and where the 1-0 Pack brings a much more mature and cultivated offense to the table.

Their offense will also need to do a much better job of limiting mistakes, such as Chad Ochocinco's two fouls, an offensive pass interference and a holding call, both on plays that resulted in negated third-down conversions. And while they managed 4.5 yards per first-down carry, that tapered off dramatically to 2.6 yards on second and third downs. The offensive line still needs time to gel, but the skill players need to start holding up their end of the bargain as well.

Going Forward:

Laveranues Coles needs to get over the drops. He showed #2 potential to get open on Sunday, but he contributed next to nothing to the bottom line.
DE Antwan Odom had an unlikely day, recording 2 sacks, 3 tackles for loss, and one pass deflection. If the Bengals keep rotating him with DE Michael Johnson, he may keep getting the looks he needs to stay fresh and be successful
Roy Williams continues to be a double-edged sword. His 9 tackles were a key part of the defensive effort that held Denver short multiple times, but his boneheaded choice to lay out Marshall instead of play safety at the end of the game was costly. Too costly. He may never change his stripes, but the Bengals would like to see something different, and they won't get it.
The O-line could be in even more trouble, and if Cincinnati struggles more post-Denver, this could be the biggest reason why. Their LG Nate Livings hurt his knee in the second quarter and may need to be replaced. The only upside is that he didn't have any more time to gel than anyone else at this point...

Week 2, Home Opener Against (0-1) Cleveland: QB Brady Quinn looks like he is going to challenge Trent Edwards for the "Captain Checkdown" label, as his first-half numbers (7-of-11 for 47 yards, 2 sacks for 10 total yards lost, and a net production of 37 yards) should tell you. He was quickly reduced to a game manager in a game where the Vikings pulled away with accelerating boredom.

Blame it on the Vikings defense, a tough card to draw in your first regular-season opener.

Regardless, until the Vikings' lead had increased to 14 points, Quinn found zero traction, and failed to find the end zone until there was only 30 seconds and a 21-point deficit left. Despite this, he has the blessing of his coach, Eric Mangini, and the spectre of the "Offseason of Doom" Denver Broncos to look forward to. How bad to you have to be playing for the media to declare that this is a "winnable" game for the Broncos??

Going Forward:

As Jamal Lewis goes, so will this offense go, at least as long as Quinn is starting. The good news is that that isn't such a bad thing. In limited carries he was excellent with a 5.7 yard average and 47 yards receiving, but the bad news is that with James Davis' shoulder injury, he may be asked to take on even more reps. He is confident that that won't hamper him. The history of RBs 30-and-over says otherwise.
Replace Quinn with Derek Anderson? Always a possibility, but in particular it becomes an issue if the team is in desperate need of a quick strike score, which DA brings to the table.
There doesn't appear to be any chemistry in the WR group with a miscommunication between Quinn and Braylon Edwards leading to an INT and Edwards catching only one of 6 passes thrown his way, and with Josh Cribbs running incredibly athletic, but wholly unsuccessful receiver routes. Robert Royal at the TE position is inconsistent and dropped two passes that the team really needed. Watch for Mike Furrey to replace Cribbs at #2 WR, and for the receiving to instantly begin to gel. Hopefully this is a decision that gets put off until Week Three at the earliest, as Denver's DBs could have some fun baiting Quinn...
Not that Cribbs is all bad... :) What is the best way to handle the league's best kick returner? Some say kick it away. Some say kick it smart and give your coverage the best chance for a stop. I don't know what to say. He is a bad dude, and in his own way, better than Hester was. They just need to stop forcing the issue of having him in the base formations. He is good enough to execute trickery even when teams suspect something. For the good of the team, the Browns should just leave it at that.
How are the Browns going to protect Quinn? They allowed 4 sacks and numerous hits on Quinn against Minnesota's 8-man fronts, and Denver brought pressure from 6- and 7-man fronts with their numerous disguises. At best, more sacks are on the menu; at worst, the INTs might start racking up...
With that said, Denver needs to choose their battles. LT Joe Thomas dominated Jared Allen, and Denver will be hard-pressed to face him with someone who can get around him. Elvis Dumervil (DOOM) may be our best choice, due to DOOM's unorthodox style, but it is one heck of a challenge.
Did anyone else see Shaun Rogers lined up at MLB last week?? How scary is that dude with a running start?
For the second time I'm bringing up Kamerion Wimbley. With 1 sack and multiple pressures he is making good on the option of moving him around. Denver needs to watch him before every snap and get the right calls out for him.
Eric Wright is an excellent cornerback, but he could be the source of a terrific offensive matchup for the Broncos offense. Runs to his side can see success, and any RB worth his salt can break an Eric Wright tackle.

@ (0-1) Oakland: "They're very hurt," Tom Cable said. "I've been a Raider since 2007 and it felt like that was the first time in the locker room after a loss where it really got us in the gut, and that's a good thing. That's the way you're supposed to feel about this game. So I'm proud of them. Very proud of them."

Gotta start somewhere, right? I described this as a culture of losing, and so I can kind of understand where Cable is coming from, but as far as addressing this culture, well, this isn't exactly what I had in mind... That said, they had a chance to win the Monday Night game against the Chargers, and the difference maker was Philip Rivers. (If we want to go through the agonizing process of defining a "franchise QB" we can make it even more agonizing by starting the discussion with a look at Rivers. He stacks up in a lot of ways, it pains me to say...)

Oh, and Al Davis needs to stop calling plays down to the field. That would help, too.

Richard Seymour makes a pretty good Raider. 2 sacks, 6 tackles and an unrelenting pressure on the pocket. Bastard.
The Raiders held the Chargers to 151 yards for three quarters... and then gave up 166 yards and two TDs on two drives. The difference between playing your heart out, and playing your heart out for 60 minutes. Glad Denver seems to have learned this lesson.
The Oakland running game is missing Justin Fargas for now, and even on returning he may not be 100% with a hamstring pull. He is the most gnat-like of the raider RBs: effectively annoying. His absence is a huge reason why the running game started hot but sputtered quickly.
TE Zach Miller was a legitimate threat as expected, but for now he is the ONLY threat. With Chaz Schilens battling an injury, Johnnie Lee Higgins leaving the game after taking a serious hit and Darrius Heyward-Bey dropping 2 and catching none of his 5 targets, there doesn't appear to be any help on the horizon. Javon Walker continues to be a healthy scratch.
The Raiders allowed 66-yard and 59-yard returns to Darren Sproles. Now we'll see how they do against the Kansas City return units, but it is shaping up to be an opportunity for Denver to establish or gain some momentum on special teams when they face them.

(1-0) Dallas at Home:

Despite the hubbub surrounding Romo's great start, the Cowboys still gave up 174 yards rushing. Next up is Brandon Jacobs. They also gave up 276 yards passing and recorded no sacks. There could be opportunity here...
The Cowboys appear to have officially upgraded one key area. I talked about how STs is devastated when team building is conducted in the manner that Dallas appears to be caught up in. Well, Dallas took the Shanny approach and fired the coordinator and hired a new one...and so far the dividends are positive. Outside of a blocked kick, multiple touchbacks and good FG kicking, the coverage units held Pro Bowler Clifton Smith in check all day.
The Cowboys are insisting on using TE Martellus Bennett to challenge defensive coverages by splitting him out wide. It's not the passes he catches that hurt you in this situation, it's the attention he forces his way, with the other weapons on the field. If Hillis is kept secret, the Cowboys may be in for a dose of their own medicine in Week Four.
The battle between Orlando Scandrick and Mike Jenkins for the #2 CB position is still up in the air. They both played well, but they both failed to cash in on multiple opportunities. The longer this battle plays out, the more it benefits Denver.
I continue to see gratuitous similarities to the Denver of Shanny's final days. Lots of talking up the offensive brilliance while ignoring the defensive failures, though that isn't rooted in the personnel issues and is more an "option". Under this type of team building, units on the team suffer, while other units get saddled with increasing resources but increasing responsibilities - ones which exist in conflict with their primary responsibilities. For example, a stellar offense is charged with not only using its loads of talent to score quickly, but is also charged with keeping a weak defense off the field. But that is an either/or proposition, and contradictions will always come back to bite you. All units require the same amount of attention, or the whole thing becomes so unbalanced that it tips over. It just needs the right kind of push...

Quick Notes:

(1-0) New England @ Home:

Laurence Maroney is once again no lock to be the go-to guy. Fred Taylor on the other hand is a perfect fit...
Right now the Pats are exhibiting a weakness against the screen, a staple of Josh McDaniels' offense. We'll see how long it takes them to get the issue cleaned up.

Newly-acquired cornerback Leigh Bodden might've been the most excited player in the Patriots' locker room following Monday's win. Bodden played for the winless Lions last season and hadn't been on the winning side of a professional football game since 1997. "It feels good," he said. "It's just amazing to me the resilience that this team has, just because you're down it doesn't mean that we're going to go in the tank. Other teams that I've been on it's like, 'Here we go again.' But here I didn't hear any of that. I just heard, 'We're going to get this done,' and we got it done."

@ (1-0) San Diego:

RG Louis Vasquez and C Nick Hardwick both left the Monday Night game with injuries. Hardwick may be out for an extended period of time.
The Chargers are looking at the Ravens, Dolphins and Steelers in the next three games... they allowed 148 yards rushing to the Raiders, and you can bet that these three teams will make every effort to establish the run, and quickly. Unlike the Raiders, it is doubtful that these three teams will snatch defeat from the jaws of victory...
The secondary is showing some holes. Watching Antonio Cromartie and Clinton Hart screw up their coverage to allow a TD is like a symphony in motion to this Broncos fan. The McDaniels Offense is designed to take mistakes like that and make teams pay, so hopefully Orton has it down by then. Quentin Jammer is still the real deal though....
Say what you will about Norv Turner and the slow starts and playoff losses... the dude doesn't seem to ever lose patience. Maybe he should...

@ (1-0) Baltimore:

501 total offensive yards against KC...
Terrell Suggs doesn't look like the same player. No sacks, no pressures, no hits on the QB.
TE L.J. Smith may not be ready to go; but then, he may not have to, what with Todd Heap's reappearance after an injury-riddled 2008. He looked like a quality target and was able to go after the ball, and Joe Flacco seemed to gain a lot of confidence in him as the game went on. A blast from the past for the Ravens...

(1-0) Pittsburgh @ Home:

Expect Troy Polamalu to make the Denver game his first game back from injury for PIT. He could possibly be back sooner, and he is a competitor so that shouldn't be ruled out, but without setbacks, the expectation is 6 weeks to heal from the MCL sprain.
The running game from 2008 didn't look great, and so far, it isn't looking like anything special in 2009 either (and may have gotten even worse). And yet, the Steelers still managed to find a way to win. There is that franchise quarterback discussion that we all love so much...
The pass defense looks porous, but the run defense looks stout as ever. That is something that can be built on, at least.

@ (0-1) Washington:

Albert Haynseworth isn't racking up the stats, but that doesn't mean his impact isn't being felt. He played very stoutly against the run in limited playing time, and that is where the Redskins wanted to start with him. But they will need to get some wins under their belt or they may be facing a classic Haynesworth inversion, where he disappears completely on the field. It may not be a fair criticism, but it is always threatening, based on his past history.
DeAngelo Hall and Fred Smoot are incredibly weak links in the Redskins secondary. Whether those links hold long enough for Denver to get a turn taking advantage of it in Week 9 is anybody's guess though...
Jim Zorn needs to get the college ball out of his system. After opening with a very unlikely 34-yard rush from Clinton Portis, he followed with an embarrassing option pass from Antwan Randle-El. That is how you destroy healthy momentum in the NFL, and from that point forward (outside of an excellent fake FG that the Redskins had stored in the hopper for the Giants), the Giants had the Redskins right where they wanted them.

(1-0) New York Giants @ Home:

Giants WR Ramses Barden should see the field next week, and I will definitely be watching... I wasn't a big fan of his, but it will be interesting to see what a team like NYG can do with him.
So far, the running game isn't all that it has been touted as, with only 3.3 yards per. Part of it was going against Albert Haynseworth, but part of the blame rests firmly on the Giants' O-line. They get Dallas next, who are having trouble already with stopping the run, so the proof should be in the pudding after next week's game.
They got burned badly on a fake FG before the half that allowed the Redskins to gain new life. Don't expect it to happen again...

@ (0-1) Kansas City:

Against the Ravens, the Chiefs unveiled a new strategy: don't beat yourself. They committed zero turnovers and committed only three penalties. They did, however, consistently miss blocks and assignments on offense. So I guess it is more like, "Don't beat yourself...too badly."
The Chiefs' run blocking really struggled, but that is mostly a testament to the Raven's D-line which spent most of its time in the backfield. Still, this is something to watch for a (hopefully) lack of improvement.
If KC can get production out of its "odd man out" D-line prospects (notably Tamba Hali and Tank Tyler) then they can consider themselves ahead of the curve for their rebuild. Both Hali and Tyler were supposed to be casualties of the switch to the 3-4, but they are producing - Tank as a converted NT and Hali as a converted OLB (though to be fair, Hali's production comes when he is lined up as a DE).
CB Brandon Flowers is not back on the field yet, but will be soon. He is an excellent young corner who is hard to replace (though Maurice Leggett did a decent job against Baltimore).

@ (1-0) Indianapolis:

At this point, Denver can expect that WR Anthony Gonzalez will be back by the time they play Indianapolis. More weapons for Peyton Manning is never a good thing.
DT Antonio Johnson, acquired off of the Jacksonville practice squad by Bill Polian, earned a gameball in his first start. He stacked and shed like a vet and got 9 tackes (5 solo) for his efforts. Could be another solid find by the Colts... Also Rookie CB Jerraud Powers was impressive in his first start.

@ (1-0) Philadelphia:

The Philly defense hasn't lost its edge with the passing of its architect, the late Jim Johnson. With 7 turnovers and 5 sacks, it shows the kind of aggressive promise that it always has.
Despite the convincing win, the passing game was struggling, earning barely over 4 yards per attempt.
DeSean Jackson, who was widely regarded as a much better receiver than Eddie Royal before the draft, is starting to show some of that promise again. He isn't the pure receiver that Eddie is, but he is finding ways to be productive out of the Wildcat, on reverses, and in the return game (where he had one return for a TD against Carolina).

Examining the New York Giants green zone issues

Ed Valentine — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 13:20:59 -0000

The New York Giants offense needs to remember that green means 'Go.'

View full size photo »

If you are talking about traffic signals green means 'go' and 'red' means 'stop.' That has to be why New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin calls that area inside the opponent's 20-yard line the green zone. Everyone else, of course, calls it the red zone.

The Giants offense seems confused by this whole concept. Maybe the players have forgotten the traffic laws. Maybe they are color blind. Maybe ... ah, maybe ... ah, whatever. Point is, the Giants offense has not done a good job the past couple of seasons taking full advantage of scoring opportunities.

Ernie Palladino has the numbers, pointing out that that the Giants were just 35-of-69 (51%) in green zone situations last season. You know it's an issue. I know it. The coaches know it. The players know it.

"We have to put the ball in the end zone when it is fourth and one. We have to convert the two third and one's," said coach Tom Coughlin (full transcript). "Anytime you are 0-3 in the green zone, obviously you need to get touchdowns instead of field goals. And so we continue to make that a matter of emphasis."

Quarterback Eli Manning summed up the problem this way.

"It is not really a green zone or red zone problem, it is a third and short problem," he said.

So, what is the problem here? The Giants have a 270-pound running back, one of the game's best offensive lines and a terrific blocking fullback. You would think they would be able to jam the ball down an opposing defense's throat and get a yard when they need one.

"We just assume that on third and short we are going to be able to run and be able to get it," said Manning.

Problem with that, to me, is that as good as the Giants offensive line is it is not a power, straight-ahead line. It excels at pulling and working in space, which is not typically the way short-yardage plays are blocked. Also, Brandon Jacobs is not exactly shifty in terms of squeezing into a small crack.

What can be done?

So, I'm not a football coach and Coughlin and offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride know more about this than I do. Here, though, are five suggestions for how the Giants can try to improve this situation.

1. Pass the ball more

From Tom Rock of Newsday, who is rapidly challenging Mike Garafolo and Ralph Vacchiano for the title of my favorite Giants beat writer, comes the play-by-play of the Giants three trips into the green zone against the Redskins.

First Drive
First-and-10 from the 20 -- Pass to Jacobs +8
Second-and-2 from the 12 -- Jacobs run left +1
Third-and-1 from the 11 -- Toss right Bradshaw NG

Second Drive
First-and-10 from the 12 -- Pass to Smith +7
Second-and-3 from the 5 -- Jacobs run right +2
Third-and-1 from the 3 -- Jacobs run left NG
Fourth-and-1 from the 3 -- Jacobs run middle NG

Third Drive
First-and-10 from the 13 -- Holding -10
First-and-20 from the 23 -- Pass to Bradshaw +6
Second-and-14 from the 17 -- Inc. pass to Bradshaw
Third-and-14 from the 17 -- Pass to Bradshaw +7

A penalty stalled the third drive, but the first two were halted by an inability to pick up short yardage while trying repeatedly to simply run over the Redskins' defense. Out of those three drives, the Giants got six points. They could have had 21. Obviously, that would have made a huge difference, turning a fairly close final score into a rout.

I agree with Rock, who advocated more passes in those situations. I would particularly like to see some play-action. Some coaches consider it a sign of weakness if you have to pass to pick up a yard. I don't care, as long as the job gets done.

Manning also hinted at the possibility of passing more.

"We have to throw the ball a little bit more possibly in some of those situations," he said. "But, down there we're a team that is going to be physical, we have a big back, and we should be able to get that surge and should get a first down in those situations."

2. Spread the field

By now, I think the evidence is pretty clear that the Giants don't do their best work in the mano-a-mano 'heavy' formation situations. So, spread the field. Go three wides, even four, move Kevin Boss into the slot. Don't let the entire defense sit in the box and wait for Jacobs to come slamming up the middle. That way, you can run when you are at even strength with the defense.

3. Change the blocking personnel

On the fourth-and-one play where Jacobs got stuffed by Albert Haynesworth and the Redskins, Boss was the lead blocker. Sorry, but that's not gonna work. Boss has become a good edge blocker, but he can't be leading critical plays like that. Where is Madison Hedgecock, who gets paid to do that? Better yet, get one of the tight ends out of there if you choose to go 'heavy' and get an extra offensive lineman in the game. I really don't care which one, but an offensive lineman has a better chance of moving the pile than Boss or Darcy Johnson.

4. Run to the edges

Those kinds of plays, where maybe you can pull a guard, are the kind the Giants line seems to block the best. Maybe it takes a tad longer to develop, which is dangerous in short-yardage, but it is the kind of play the Giants run best. Play to your strength, not your weakness.

5. Ramses Barden and Travis Beckum

I know these two rookies have a ways to go before they earn the trust of the coaching staff. But, these are the types of situations Barden and Beckum were drafted for. Barden is a physical mismatch for any corner in a jump ball situation, and Beckum is a mismatch for most linebackers. As the season unfolds, the Giants need to find ways to take advantage of the talents possessed by these two young guys.

Summary

I don't think the Giants will solve this overnight, and they have proven they can win a lot of games even if they never figure it out. It sure would make things a lot easier, however, if they could take advantage of more of these situations. Hopefully, we will see some of the things I have suggested in future short-yardage situations.

Land of the Giants: Football on today's menu

Ed Valentine — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 11:00:26 -0000

After we seemingly debuted the Big Blue View Food Channel Thursday (Don't know what I'm talking about? See the comments in this post) I hope you guys are ready to get back to football today. I have a whole plateful of it for you.

With the rash of recent offensive coordinator firings around the NFL I know some of you secretly (or not so secretly) have been wishing Kevin Gilbride would join the list of the unemployed. Well, KG's not going anywhere. At least, he's pretty sure he isn't. (Oh, and I know I have just opened myself up to a slew of 'Fire KillDrive' comments).

"I checked the fine print of my contract to make sure that it was OK," Gilbride said.

KG was also asked what head coach Tom Coughlin said to him about the firings.

"He said, 'Just make sure you mind your p’s and q’s. You could be next.' (laughs) No, he didn’t say that," Gilbride said. "From a coach’s point of view it is somewhat disturbing because they haven’t even played a game, you gotta give them a chance, but that is the way it is. You just don’t know – it’s like a relationship between a man and a woman. Behind closed doors you don’t know what is going on."

Giants' middle linebacker Antonio Pierce was his typical, testy self in a meeting with reporters Thursday. Short answers, not much in the way of helpful quotes. He was much more expansive in a one-on-one chat with Michael Eisen of Giants.com, though. Here is a snippet of Eisen's conversation with Pierce, in which AP is probably more candid than he has been about his performance in a long time.

"Physically, mentally and emotionally, I am as ready for this season as I have ever been," Pierce said today. "Physically, I feel great, no problems with my foot or whatever that was (in the preseason). Mentally, I feel like I'm very sharp. It seems like the more and more the years go on, the game is slower and slower. It's like I am in the matrix sometimes in my head, I can just see things a lot slower. Being in the same defense for three years and working with the same group of guys in this locker room on defense, it makes everything easier, because I know my surroundings. It's not an uncomfortable situation, like when I came in here in '05 - for one, fitting in and two, figuring out the guys around me."

Pierce led the Giants in tackles each of the last three seasons. It would certainly be four in a row had he not suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the 13th game of the 2005 season. He was a Pro Bowler in 2006 and a catalyst on a Super Bowl champion the following season. But Pierce is well aware of the perception some share that he has declined.

"I thought about it hard this offseason," he said. "I went back and I watched all 16 games I played in (he missed one game with a quad injury) and it's one of those things where I can't let two or three plays dictate my whole season. I asked was I consistent, did I give my team a chance to win every week? Hey, you don't win every play. There is not a player on this team that succeeds 100 percent in a game.

"I didn't look at this year as a redemption year. I look at it like I want to be considered as I always do, as one of the top five linebackers. You have to go out there and shoot for perfection. At the end of the day you know you are not going to get that in a game, but I have to set my standards and my goals a lot higher."

Good stuff from Eisen and, finally, from Pierce.

Back to Gilbride for a second. He was, of course, asked if the process of evaluating wide receivers is still ongoing.

"It definitely is. And I think certainly a lot of questions have been answered in our minds – I don’t want to necessarily announce it to them – exactly what we are doing and who is going to be where. But I think some things have clarified themselves. Some things are still definitely ongoing," Gilbride said. " And quite candidly, I think some guys are in a position they will probably play more this Sunday but as the year goes on maybe other guys will become more and more an integral part of what we are doing. At least, that’s kind of what I think is going to happen. ...

" I think we kind of feel like they all have their strengths and they all have their areas that we still need to get better at. And so that is why, as I said, I can see certain guys right now we think are ahead, but maybe in another five or six weeks maybe some other guys that we think maybe physically can be better at that."

That's a long-winded way of saying you could see a whole lot of Domenik Hixon and Steve Smith now. And, maybe, a whole lot of Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden later.

The Sporting News recently put together a panel that selected the top 100 players in the league. From ESPN's Matt Mosley, here are the Giants who made the list and his thoughts on them (my thoughts are italicized).

28. DE Osi Umenyiora -- Maybe the ballots were passed out immediately after the Giants' Super Bowl win.(Agreed. No way he is the Giants' best player).

46. DE Justin Tuck -- Way too low. At this point, I'd rank him ahead of Umenyiora. He's the most respected voice in the Giants' locker room. (Once again I agree. Osi still has the big rep, but I stand by my belief that Tuck is right now the better player).

50. QB Eli Manning -- I'd have him at least 20 spots earlier. And I'd probably put him ahead of McNabb.(Matt Mosley, you are my hero today. There is no way you can put Eli at 50 and McNabb at 22. I can see putting them in the same neighborhood, but I guess Eli will always be a guy who doesn't put up numbers and doesn't get much love).

53. G Chris Snee -- He's quietly emerged as one of the best in the league. Good to see him get recognized.(Snee is the best player on a Giants line better as a unit than as individuals).

RealClearSports aggregates NFL power rankings from a variety of sources and comes up with the Giants as the third-ranked team in the league by their formula.
Mosley also has five things to watch in Sunday's Giants-Redskins game.
Chase Blackburn will start Sunday in Michael Boley's spot.
Coughlin lends support to Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

From the Giants:

When the Giants open the season at home Sunday against the Washington Redskins, Coughlin will wear a pin to help increase the public recognition about Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. The pin depicts a gold ribbon.

"It’s just my way of recognizing children who have cancer and what their families go through and how much support, both financial and emotional, is needed to help families that are in this predicament," Coughlin said Thursday. "There are so many wonderful and great causes. But this is one that is very close to our family. If in some way we can call greater attention to it by some small thing that we do, then so be it. I want the significance of the pin to be recognized."

Land of the Giants: Can we stop the talking, already?

Ed Valentine — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 11:09:56 -0000

I don't know about you guys, but I am ready for some football already. I am tired of the talk, which there was plenty of on Wednesday. Let's look around and discuss a lot of what was being said by and about our New York Giants.

The Giants know, of course, that teams will play run-first against them and dare their offense to prove it can succeed via the air. They are expecting that from Washington on Sunday, and practically salivating at the opportunity.

"Well, we would have to expect that to a certain extent, but it probably would be a good thing if they did that," said coach Tom Coughlin. " I think we have had some experience down the field this preseason and certainly that would be one thing that you could do to answer that."

Eli Manning also expressed confidence the Giants could make the Redskins pay for overloading their defense against the run.

"I think we have receivers who can make plays. Guys who can get down the field, guys who can break tackles and we are going to see what the defense is doing and make our adjustments. If I can get us in and out of good plays, I think we have the guys out wide who can be explosive and get down the field and do some great things," Manning said. "It’s not like to hit big plays you have to throw it fifty yards down the field, you just have to hit guys on the move and guys have got to break tackles and you have to be effective blocking up front and throwing the ball. It is a combination, we are going to have a great mix of run and pass, but we have to be able to do both well."

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Albert Haynesworth doesn't see the big deal about trying to tackle the 270-pound Brandon Jacobs. We found that out Wednesday. Well, Jacobs says isn't worrying that much about the 340-pound Haynesworth, either.

"I’m taking it as if you run into any defensive lineman in the league. He’s a human being, he walks on two feet, and he bleeds. He puts his pants on one leg at a time. I mean he is a great player, don’t get me wrong. Probably one of the most dominant players in the NFL, but there is no reason to go in there and only think about him," Jacobs said. "They have a whole defensive team and they are very good at what they do. We are just looking forward to going out and executing against them."

CB Terrell Thomas says he will start against Redskins

"The coaches already notified me that I'll be starting this week, Monday," Thomas said. "I've been preparing since the season ended last year for this day. "I'm gonna try to keep it, when 'Dock' comes back, when Ross comes back, we're going to compete and if so be it, I'll go back to nickel or special teams. I'm just trying to do whats best for the Giants."

Neither Aaron Ross nor Kevin Dockery practiced Wednesday according to various reports. Ernie Palladino says you can start worrying now about all the playing time undrafted rookie free agent Bruce Johnson is likely to get Sunday.

Johnson thankful for opportunity

Speaking of Johnson, the rookie from the University of Miami was not sure he was going to get this chance.

"I feel like I had a pretty good camp," Johnson said. "I know there are a lot of things I could have improved on, but overall I think coming in for a rookie I did pretty well."

But he still sweated out cut down day. Johnson believed he had done enough to make the team, but it's like the draft - uncertainty reigns.

"I knew when I was coming into camp there were a lot of guys in front of me; I had drafted players in front of me," Johnson said. "I knew I just had to keep working and when the cut time was coming, it's a toss up and you never know. I was basically just waiting on the phone seeing what was happening. Thank Jesus that they didn't call me.

"I was glad not to get a call. I was very fortunate and very happy. I was humbled by it, so I'm just going to keep working."

Jay Alford coming to terms with season-ending knee surgery

"For a few days, I was just really depressed," Alford said. "Asking, 'Why me?' and stuff like that. After a while, you realize there's only one way, it's only rehab after this. There's no reason to be depressed or upset about the situation. It happens, and you have to deal with it accordingly. I had to get over it, tell myself I had to get through it."

"Football is not my focus right now," Alford said. "It's getting my knee better. I don't think I can even watch it; I don't think I can watch it right now. Once I can be mobile, my focus will be football again."

Kirwan: Eli has enough receiver options

Pat Kirwan of NFL.com has seen enough that he isn't worrying about the Giants wide receivers. That makes one supposed 'expert' who isn't.

The Giants didn't play very well in their pass offense after Plaxico Burress shot himself last year. The team didn't address its receiving issues in free agency but did use the draft in an attempt to replace Burress. Some observers thought it was a tactical error not to go get a veteran receiver. I think the Giants got it right. Rookies Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden and returning veterans are going to put the Giants' passing game back in a very solid position. There might be some bumps in the road early but after watching Nicks practice I am encouraged by the Giants' plan for the passing game. Ultimately, however, time will tell.

Diehl ready to get started

Giants' left tackle David Diehl updated his blog Wednesday with some thoughts on the opening of the 2009 season.

When it’s over, no one describes your season by how you did in training camp or preseason, it’s all about what you did in the regular season. It is what gives you an opportunity to get to the playoffs and to win the Super Bowl. It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. You have to go out there each and every week for a 16-game stretch and do whatever you can to be in the best position to make a run at the Super Bowl.

That’s what we’re all playing for and it starts now.

25 things you didn’t know about the Giants

This is a really fun read from Newsday's Tom Rock. He gets Giants players to reveal things about themselves that you never even knew you wanted to know.