Jan 242007
 

Where Has the Time Gone?

I’m 39 years old. The last time the New York Giants won an NFL Championship was 16 years ago. I was 23 years old at the time. 16 years! When I think back to what my life was like 16 years ago, I can’t believe how much time has passed. I was fresh out of college, starting my first real professional, white-collar job. My life centered around dating girls, hanging out with college buddies, drinking, and the Giants. In those 16 years, I went from sharing apartments, to having my own apartment, to owning my first house. I got married and had two kids. I’m a family man now and I don’t get out much. My life is much different. The first gray hairs are appearing.

And I’m still waiting for the Giants to win another Super Bowl.

Think back to where you were 16 years ago when Scott Norwood’s last-second field goal attempt sailed wide right. How different was your life? Consider how much time 16 years really is. That’s how long we’ve been waiting. The old timers will say 16 years is nothing; that they had to wait 30 years between 1956 and 1986 for another Championship. It’s a valid point, but it doesn’t make me feel any better. I don’t really want to wait until I’m 53 until the Giants win another Super Bowl.

The average life expectancy in the United States is about 77. If I live to be 80, it means that I just spent one-fifth of my life watching the Giants futilely attempt to regain Championship glory. Worse than that, consider these embarrassing facts: (1) the Giants have only won three playoff games in those 16 years; (2) the Giants have not won a road playoff game during that time period. Yikes!

What Went Wrong?

How did the Giants go from a team that won two Super Bowls in four years to a team that that averages a playoff win every five years? The answers are pretty obvious: (1) bad personnel moves and (2) uninspiring coaching.

For all the positive work that General Manager George Young and Director of Player Personnel Tom Boisture did in the 1980’s, their magic quickly disappeared in the 1990’s. Young left the Giants after the 1997 draft and Boisture left the Giants after the 1998 draft. During that time period in the 1990’s, high-round picks were spent on players of dubious talent such as Jarrod Bunch, Kanavis McGhee, Derek Brown, Dave Brown, Marcus Buckley, Thomas Lewis, Thomas Randolph, Gary Downs, Tyrone Wheatley, Rodney Young, and Cedric Jones. And the Giants completely mismanaged the salary cap and free agency. The team overspent to keep its own mediocre talent, let talented players get away, and spent its remaining limited resources on guys like Mark Jackson, Carlton Bailey, and Ray Agnew.

It didn’t get much better under General Manager Ernie Accorsi and Director of Player Personnel Marv Sunderland. Accorsi’s first draft (with Boisture) was a disaster – Shaun Williams, Joe Jurevicius, a 3rd and 4th round pick for Brian Alford, Toby Myles, Todd Pollack, and Ben Fricke. Then from 1999-2002, the Accorsi-Sunderland team spent high picks on Joe Montgomery, Sean Bennett, Ron Dayne, Ron Dixon, Will Allen, Cedric Scott, Tim Carter, and Jeff Hatch. The Giants never seemed to have any cap space but did finally add some decent football players in free agency such as Mike Barrow and Dusty Zeigler. However, there were also big mistakes such as Kenny Holmes.

After the 2002 draft, Jerry Reese became the new director of player personnel. He and Accorsi spent high picks on players such as William Joseph, Osi Umenyiora, Visanthe Shiancoe, Rod Babers, Eli Manning (1st, 1st, 3rd, 5th round picks), Chris Snee, Reggie Torbor, Gibril Wilson, Corey Webster, Justin Tuck, Brandon Jacobs, Mathias Kiwanuka, Sinorice Moss, Gerris Wilkinson, and Barry Cofield. It’s been a mixed bag, but drafting does appear to be better. However, almost everything depends on the Eli Manning trade and we don’t know how that will pan out yet. Free agent additions during this time frame included Brian Mitchell, Jeff Feagles, Jim Finn, Dorsey Levens, Mike Hollis, Ryan Kuehl, Fred Robbins, Carlos Emmons, Shaun O’Hara, Barrett Green, Barry Stokes, Terry Cousin, Lorenzo Bromell, Martin Chase, Norman Hand, Brent Alexander, Kurt Warner, Antonio Pierce, Kareem McKenzie, Jay Feely, Kendrick Clancy, Plaxico Burress, Bob Whitfield, R.W. McQuarters, Sam Madison, Will Demps, Grey Ruegamer, Jason Bell, and LaVar Arrington. A lot of names – some good, some bad.

The net effect of all of this? Of the players added to the roster since 1991, both in terms of draft picks and free agent acquisitions, only seven have been voted to the Pro Bowl: Jessie Armstead, Michael Strahan, Ron Stone, Jeremy Shockey, Tiki Barber, Osi Umenyiora, and David Tyree. Sixteen years of work and only seven players who have been considered among the best at their position.

At the forefront of the frustrating personnel issues has been the inability to stabilize the quarterback position with an upper echelon talent. Since Phil Simms was forced to retire, we have gone from Dave Brown to Danny Kanell to Kent Graham to Kerry Collins to Kurt Warner to Eli Manning. And whether you believe in Manning or not, he certainly has not lived up to expectations yet. For better or worse, the fate of this franchise for at least the next few years is tied to Eli Manning.

There has also been been mediocre coaching. After the Jim Lee Howell/Vince Lombardi/Tom Landry Giants won the NFL Championship in 1956, the Giants did not win another until Bill Parcells/Bill Belichick appeared on the scene. And they have not won another since. The franchise has been led by Ray Handley, Dan Reeves, Jim Fassel, and Tom Coughlin with some bad assistant coaches such as Rod Rust, Johnnie Lynn, Tim Lewis, and John Hufnagel.

Mediocre talent + mediocre coaching = mediocre results.

Current Events:

So let’s move to the current situation. Let’s recap what has transpired. In 2005, both Wellington Mara and Robert Tisch passed away. Their sons, John Mara and Jonathan Tisch, have taken over. According to press reports, the front office tried to convince Tom Coughlin to dump Hufnagel and Lewis after the 2005 campaign despite a largely successful season where the Giants won the NFC East. If true, Coughlin obviously refused. As we all know, the Giants were embarrassed at home in the playoffs by the Panthers 23-0.

Expectations were high entering the 2006 season. The team won all four preseason games, but came damn close to a disastrous 0-3 regular season start until Eli Manning saved the day with late-game heroics in Philadelphia. Then the Giants went on a five-game winning streak, highlighted by their 36-22 destruction of the Cowboys in Dallas on Monday night. The Giants completed what was supposed to have been the toughest part of their schedule 6-2 and had a two-game lead in the NFC East. The Giants had, at that time, the second-best record in the NFC. Life was good.

But the Dallas game was costly as the Giants lost LaVar Arrington and Justin Tuck for the season. Osi Umenyiora also got hurt and missed the next five games. Then Michael Strahan got hurt against the Texans. An MRI revealed an ACL tear in Amani Toomer’s knee. And Luke Petitgout fractured his leg against the Bears. Antonio Pierce had ankle and knee issues. Brandon Short missed a month with a quad injury. Sam Madison pulled his hamstring. Corey Webster suffered a turf toe injury. A team cannot lose that many quality players and not expect the product on the field to suffer. And it did. The Giants began a 2-7 slide. They finished the regular season 8-8, barely limped into the playoffs, and got immediately bounced by the hated Eagles.

Nevertheless, the disastrous finish to what had been an extremely promising start cannot be blamed completely on the injury situation. Questionable coaching decisions were a factor in losses to the Bears, Titans, Cowboys, and Eagles. The coaching staff was publicly criticized again by players after losses to the Seahawks and Jaguars. While many point to the loss to the Bears as the turning point to the season, I believe the real turning point was blowing the 21-0 fourth-quarter lead to the Titans. That was a devastating emotional loss. To the credit of the coaching staff and players, the team did fight hard in close losses to the Cowboys and Eagles, but odd red-zone play calling helped to prevent victory. More importantly, the defense was coming apart and Eli Manning was wildly up-and-down in every game. The low-point came when the Saints trashed the Giants 30-7 at home in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score. The fans, before they left early, started chanting, “Fire Coughlin!” Coughlin (or the front office) decided that a change was needed and Hufnagel was fired. The Giants’ running game came to life again against the Redskins and the Giants defeated Washington 34-28. The outcome of this game was incredibly significant, not so much because it put the Giants in the playoffs, but it very likely saved Coughlin’s job.

Against the Eagles in the playoffs, the defensive problems that plagued the team in the second-half of the season continued, as did Manning’s up-and-down play. Issues with red-zone play calling remained despite the fact that Quarterbacks Coach Kevin Gilbride was now calling the plays. It was truly a microcosm of the entire season. An incredibly disappointing 2006 campaign ended with an equally disappointing finish as the Giants allowed Philadelphia to easily move down field and set up the game-winning field goal with no time left on the clock.

And then we all waited. Waited to see if Tom Coughlin would be fired. Waited to see who the next general manager would be. There were wild rumors of major changes. Names such as Patriots’ Head Coach Bill Belichick, Notre Dame Head Coach Charlie Weis, and Patriots’ Vice President of Player Personnel Scott Pioli were mentioned.

What we can safely assume is that it was not a given that Coughlin would return. Ownership never spoke up in his defense during the late-season slide. And nothing was said for the first few days after the season was over. Coughlin’s annual post-season press conference was not held as both sides met. Three days after the season ended, it was formally announced that Coughlin would be retained and that his contract would be extended one more season. It was not a ringing endorsement.

“Jon Tisch and I sat down with Tom Coughlin on Monday afternoon and had a lengthy discussion with him about the state of our team,” said John Mara. “Those discussions continued on Tuesday. At the conclusion of those discussions we told Tom that we wanted him to continue to be our head coach…(Coughlin) knew that obviously we were not happy finishing 8-8, particularly after starting 6-2. We addressed our concerns to him.”

“It is our strong belief that consistency, stability, loyalty, and sticking by your people are extremely important,” said Jonathan Tisch.

But consistency, stability, loyalty, and sticking by your people didn’t seem to apply to Hufnagel, who was fired with two games to go in the season, and Tim Lewis, who was fired the day after the decision to retain Coughlin was announced. In January 2004, Coughlin vowed to “provide the New York Giants with the best staff in football.” In that he failed miserably as his two most important hires – offensive and defensive coordinators – were let go due to ineffectiveness.

He also said back in his inaugural press conference the Giants must “must eliminate costly penalties” and instill “discipline which provides us all with the courage and the confidence to win in this league in the fourth quarter.” Since Coughlin has been with the Giants, costly penalties have remained an issue and the team lost too many close games in the fourth quarter in 2006. The Giants certainly did not play with much confidence or discipline. Regarding the injuries that plagued the Giants in Jim Fassel’s last season, Coughlin said, “It is something that has to be corrected. It is a mental thing I believe as much as it is anything else.” Injuries have been a huge issue during Coughlin’s regime.

On the surface, there doesn’t appear to be much respect between at least some of the players and Coughlin. Players have publicly and privately criticized the coaching staff in the press. Coughlin has also repeatedly told them not do so to no avail. The team also seems to ignore his message about not talking trash to the media about an upcoming opponent. Most Giants fans wish the players would simply shut the hell up and play.

But even if you don’t buy into all of these arguments, coaches are ultimately graded on their win-loss record. With the Giants, Coughlin is 25-23 in the regular season and 0-2 in the playoffs. In other words, he has been a .500 coach. His New York teams have experienced two second-half swoons in three years – an eight-game losing streak in 2004 and a 2-7 finish in 2006. Giants’ pride has not been restored. In his last three seasons in Jacksonville, Coughlin’s teams finished 7-9, 6-10, and 6-10. The last time Coughlin won a playoff game was 1999.

Some have argued that a coaching switch was not made because of a lack of viable alternatives and/or there will be better candidates available next offseason. I’m not sure I buy that. For one, there are always good young candidates available (i.e., Mike Tomlin). Plus, there is no guarantee that coaches such as Belichick, Weis, or Bill Cowher will be available or even want to come here. It’s not an overly attractive destination as the team has a split ownership and an entrenched new general manager and quarterback.

The next major decision the Giants made – even bigger than the decision to retain Coughlin – was the promotion of Jerry Reese to general manager. On the surface, it appears odd that the Reese was promoted after – and not before – Coughlin was retained. But Reese, at least publicly, said he supported the decision to keep Coughlin. It also seems odd that the only external candidate the Giants interviewed for the position was ex-Redskins and Texans’ General Manager Charlie Casserly, although they did reach out to Pioli (and were rebuffed). It will be Reese who will guide the franchise for the foreseeable future. That said, John Mara did make it very clear that his brother, Chris, will have an ever-larger role in personnel matters. I wonder how that dynamic will work in actuality behind the scenes. How much power will Chris Mara have? Under Reese, the Giants have drafted better in recent years, but he also said he fully supported the trade for Eli Manning and would make that trade again.

The next major announcement was the decision to promote Kevin Gilbride to offensive coordinator. This was a curious move for three reasons. For one, according to Gilbride, Coughlin immediately picked him as the man to be the coordinator. He did not interview anyone for the position. Secondly, Gilbride was quickly fired after two seasons from both of his last two offensive coordinator gigs (Pittsburgh and Buffalo). His 2003 Bills’ offense was one of the worst in the league and ultimately got his head coach fired as well. In Buffalo, Gilbride was criticized for being too pass-happy. Thirdly, Gilbride was the quarterbacks coach in charge of the immediate development of Eli Manning. Even the casual observer would question how effective he has been in that role. Indeed, I would argue that the Giants have dumped too much responsibility on Manning in his first three years in the League. The coaching staff certainly does not make it simple for him and they do not employ much of a short-passing game in order to get him in a rhythm and build up his confidence level. To the contrary, both Coughlin and Gilbride said one of their main offensive priorities in 2007 would be to throw the football down the field even more. Now to be fair to Gilbride, he has had some success as an offensive coordinator with the Oilers, Jaguars, and Bills (2002). So we shall see. As for why Coughlin did not interview anyone outside of the organization for the position, it may have been his wish not to throw another offensive system at Manning and maintain some level of continuity. There is something to be said for that approach, especially since the Giants decided to keep Coughlin.

The latest major decision was hiring Eagles’ Linebacker Coach Steve Spagnuolo as the new defensive coordinator. On the surface, this appears to be a good move as Spagnuolo has coached for eight seasons under Eagles’ defensive guru Jim Johnson. He has experience in Philadelphia working with both the linebackers and defensive backs. He also knows the NFC East, and the Eagles in particular. However, it remains to be seen if Spagnuolo is capable of replicating the Eagles’ success without Jim Johnson. “That package we had was Jim,” said Spagnuolo. “We put our heads together as a staff and came up with a few things, too, but the majority of it is Jim sitting down, mixing it together and coming up with something good.”

The Future?

So where does that leave us heading into 2007? That’s the million-dollar question. Coughlin is not in a strong position. He knows it, his assistant coaches know it, his players know it. The one-year extension means nothing. It was just for show. It’s pretty clear that the expectation level by ownership is for this team to make the playoffs and win in the playoffs. If not, Coughlin is likely gone. Some of the comments made by Coughlin recently are laughable. When talking about the decision to promote Gilbride and the Giants’ offense, Coughlin said, “It’s the New York Giants’ system. And the New York Giants’ system has tremendous flexibility.” When talking about Spagnuolo, Coughlin said, “I was obviously looking for a guy who had had the opportunity to work with some outstanding defensive people in this league. It wasn’t just a matter of the aggressiveness because the scheme that we have played here has been an aggressive scheme.” Fans would beg to differ on both accounts.

Obviously what will decide his fate will be if the team wins or not. That will be tough unless Eli Manning becomes a much more consistent quarterback. The Giants’ best player – Tiki Barber – has retired. The defense has issues in the back seven and will be learning a completely new system with the inherent growing pains that come with that. If the 2007 New York Giants experience a two- or three-game losing streak, how will it respond? This hasn’t proven to be a mentally tough football team. Will the players begin criticizing the coaching staff again? We know the press doesn’t like Coughlin and smells blood in the water. This situation has the potential to spiral out of control with the media (and fan sites such as this) fueling anti-Coughlin sentiment. If the chants of “Fire Coughlin” begin again and patrons start leaving the stadium early, a change will be made.

But there is some hope. In recent years, at least under Jim Fassel, this team has played better when expectations were lower. The Giants have talent at the skill positions and on the offensive line. I think Brandon Jacobs is going to be a heck of a player. Eli Manning lobbied for Gilbride so hopefully he will be more comfortable. Defensively, if everyone returns healthy, the defensive line is one of the best in football. Antonio Pierce and LaVar Arrington have talent. And while the Giants should add a stud corner to the secondary, the cornerbacks were not as bad as everyone makes them out to be. An improved pass rush will help. Spagnuolo’s defense will likely suit the talent on this roster better than Lewis’ system did.

Let’s just hope that history doesn’t repeat itself. In 1996, Dan Reeves was a lame duck and the team pretty much tanked after the 0-3 start. The Giants finished 6-10. In 2000, Jim Fassel was very much on the hot seat entering the season. He got his team to the Super Bowl before it was creamed by the Ravens 34-7. Fassel got an extension and held onto power for another three years before a change was made. In a way, it may be better to get this situation resolved quickly one way or the other.

Dec 152004
 
The Outsider’s Report: Special “Not Numerically Eliminated” Delusions Edition

By BigBlueInteractive.com Contributor Daniel in MI

What the hell happened? After several weeks of being, let’s say out of commission, after a particularly awesome post-Vikings game bender (that we’re told involved tequila, baby oil, a shower curtain, and several large women that swore they were Giants cheerleaders) we came to and asked ourselves, “So, what are we now? 9-4? 10-3?” After consulting some secret league inside sources, we came to the conclusion that we’re 5-8 and playing like crap. We thought, “Not again…” So, we were determined to get down to the bottom of this slide. As always, although TOSR (The Outsider’s Report) lacks contacts, sources, access, and legitimacy, and much of what we write is apocryphal if not wildly inaccurate, we do score over the pedestrian media in two important ways: (1) we’re free, and (2) we remain unencumbered by journalistic integrity. Hmm…Ok, so we’re really only differentiated by the first thing.

After long seconds of studying film, our sources diagnosed the play of rookie QB Eli Manning as a key to the team’s recent decline. Clearly, a struggling Manning might lose confidence if his team doesn’t support him. We got a chance to ask about this support when we were lucky enough to get a few minutes alone with Manning when we came across him in kitchen at Giants stadium where Eli appeared to be examining the gas vents at the back of the ovens.

We asked him whether the team has been supportive and helping him to maintain his confidence. “Oh, yeah, everyone’s been great,” he said his flat tone masking his enthusiasm. “When I come to the sidelines after a bad series, the other players help me by not crowding me or coming near me which allows me to concentrate. And, Kurt has been really helpful, before each game he reminds me not to worry just because millions of people are watching and my team is counting on me, and not even to think about how Ben is doing for the Steelers or living up to my MVP brother. Off the field, the guys have been leaving apple cores, banana peels, fish heads, and other nutritional supplements in my locker to help me keep my strength through the longer NFL season, too.” It’s good to know the Giants have been behind the kid.

Some fans and media have called for benched veteran QB Kurt Warner to return to the lineup, but Warner himself is backing Head Coach Tom Coughlin’s decision. We found Kurt sticking pins into a small doll and put the question to him. “Look, Eli is the future of this team. The team has made its decision and cannot go back on it now. They made the call to pull a former MVP in a playoff hunt for their rookie QB, and now they have to live with it. You have to send the message to the team, ‘This QB with the 0.0 QB rating is the QB we’ve chosen and we’re going to stick with him so you’re stuck with him.’ That’s the message they must send, it’s the message they deserve to send. Plus, the Steelers are a fast, physical, brutal defense and Eli will benefit from playing almost as much as I’ll benefit from watching him try. I’ll be here to help him in whatever way I can, whether it’s reading defenses or peeling his body off the turf.” That Warner is a team guy!

A strange story popping up this week is that former commentator and current Raven CB Deion Sanders said that the Giants quit, and the team atmosphere is miserable. Giants WR Amani Toomer stepped up and defended the team. We found Toomer writing his new book, “I’m an Elite WR, Damn It!: Why Touchdowns are Overrated” to ask him about Sanders’ comments. He said, “I am surprised because I didn’t see him out there that much. Of course, I’ve been closing my eyes when I go over the middle lately so I don’t see much of anything. Maybe after those years of being a TV commentator he can see into the hearts of players. Or, maybe now that he’s not in the media he forgot what it meant when I said ‘off the record’ when we talked before the game.”

This drop-off is toughest on the Head Coach and veterans, of course. Coach Coughlin came in preaching running the ball and toughness, but even though Major Tom wants ground control, Tiki Barber’s numbers have fallen off as defenders stack the run. But, how has the notorious tough guy handled the team? We asked RB Tiki Barber. “The Coach has been trying to support us as best he can, just like my brother and I do in our book, ‘By My Brother’s Side,’ he’s trying to stay positive.” We asked Tiki for examples, “Well, today for example, Coach said, ‘Tiki, you lost two fumbles in that last game which was atrocious. But, you are wearing the right size socks, so good job on the socks.’ Last week he told Osi that even though he got blown off the ball against the run, he’s really punctual to meetings. And yesterday, I heard him tell Eli that his play looks horrible, but his butt looks great in the grey pants. So, he’s really encouraging, like I say you should be in my new book for kids called, ‘By My Brother’s Side.’ Speaking of my new book, ‘By My Brother’s Side,” have I told you about the lessons it gives…” At this point we hit Tiki over the head with a copy of the book and ran.

Finally, our sources indicated that another key problem this season has been losing the young playmaker SS Gibril Wilson to a shoulder injury. Now, Wilson claims he feels good, but team doctors are keeping him out of the games. We caught up with team Physician Dr. Russell “Terrier” Warren on his cell phone trying to refinance a loan with someone named “Vito” to ask him about why Wilson is being kept out. “Well, it’s about an abundance of caution,” said Dr. Warren, “If you look at the MRI and CAT scan, and then the point spread against the Ravens and Steelers, you’d see that we’re much safer keeping a playmaker like Wilson out or you risk losing against the spread…I mean, losing the kid for the season.” While we had him, we asked him when he thought Chris Snee might recover from his mystery illness. “When my boat is paid off.”

So, there you have it Giants fans. We’re on a losing streak, facing a team with only one loss that has given two other teams their only loss, with the rookie QB playing the way we hoped ours would. But, take heart, at least Phillip Rivers didn’t have a better QB rating than Eli last week, so we have that going for us.

Sep 232004
 
The Outsider’s Report: Special First Coughlin Era Victory Edition

By BigBlueInteractive.com Contributor Daniel in MI

Well, the Giants improved to 1-1 with a win over the Redskins. This is good because the TOSR (The Outsider’s Report) staff much prefers celebratory drinking binges to the drowning our sorrows type (more chances of a round on the house). In any case, we sobered up just in time to make up more news this week – just like the rest of the media. As always, although TOSR lacks staff, inside contacts, friends, access, and personal hygiene, we do score over the more pedestrian media outlets in two important ways: (1) we’re free; and (2) we aren’t afraid to ask the tough rhetorical question. But enough about us, how’re you?

This week the Giants earned their first win of the Coughlin era by outlasting the Washington Redskins 20-14. Although the offense sputtered at times, the defense nabbed 7 turnovers to bail them out. We caught up with QB Kurt Warner to ask him if he’s starting to get more comfortable in the offense. “Oh, yeah, I was watching film and I just kept thinking, ‘Gosh, there is so much more I can do. Jeepers, I can feel that I’m improving each week. Golly, we can maybe get two touchdowns a game and not go 1-13 on 3rd down. Gee, I think I’ve really shown that I still have what it takes to win in this league. So, Jesus, someone trade to get me off this team before I get killed.'”

The defense was understandably proud of it’s turnaround after last week. A big story was how DC Tim Lewis told the players not to worry so much about the ‘Skins tendencies are, but to focus on what the Giants defense wanted to do. We asked Tim Lewis if this was a way to keep the players loose and aggressive. “Uh, well sure, I’ll go with that. To be honest, I was going against Joe freakin’ Gibbs! The guy’s a legend. I had no idea what the ‘Skins were going to do. So, I just trying to play it off like it was all about us.”

The players responded, and CB Will Peterson thinks this style will be a trend, “I think after seeing how well it worked, he’ll give us more and more leeway. And, from now on, all the game plans will include having the opposing QBs throw the ball to our safeties 5 to 7 times a game because if we don’t have that happen, we’re screwed.”

Recently, the media sommeliers gave us the weekly whine specials from the players, which featured a nice pairing: something dry from RB Ron Dayne and something zesty from TE Jeremy Shockey.

Although Dayne was giddy in the pre-season about getting a second shot at a first impression, he has apparently soured on the new regime’s use of him for something other than sideline decoration. We caught up with Ron studying films of Tyrone Wheatley’s NY press conferences and asked him about the kind of plays he wanted. “Well, I wish they’d give me more plays like I got in the pre-season. You know, successful ones. I want to play against scrubs and defenses that don’t game plan. But, the coaches have gone a different way.”

We asked him about how he’s being used. “Man, if you watch the game, you don’t even have to ask that question. You see how they’re using me: they’re asking me to carry the ball, forward, to attempt to advance the team’s field position and get a first down. I don’t think they spent a first round pick on me if all they were going to ask me to do was run the football and occasionally catch a pass or block. They could have gotten a back in later rounds for that. And he might even have been good.” When we asked why he thought they spent a first round pick on him, he said, “I have no idea.” Funny, that’s what Coughlin must be thinking, too.

For his part, Shockey’s issue is comfort with his role in the new offense. “I just feel like with everything I do, all the moving and stuff, when I watch it on film I’m not the same player I was a year ago – the player that scored two whole touchdowns each of the last 2 years. I just hope I can get comfortable soon so I can get both of my touchdowns this year.” The big man is clearly frustrated as things are not coming as naturally to him. “I’m not having as much fun as I had in the past. I mean, winning games is fun, and so we’ve only had one fun that way this year, but for me personally, I’m having less fun than before, which was a lot of fun. So, on a fun scale of 1 to 10, I’d say I’m about a 6.2, which puts me somewhere between slinging slurs at coaching legends and throwing ice into the stands.”

Finally, turning to the next opponent, the Giants will face a depleted Cleveland Browns team, which will be a reunion of sorts for OG Barry Stokes and OC Shaun O’Hara who came to the Giants from the Browns in the off-season. We caught up with Cleveland Head Coach Butch Davis trying to design a logo for the Browns’ helmet, and he commented on his former linemen, “We hold both of those guys in extremely high regard. They were awesome people…but get to a certain point with guys when you have an undisputed center that is, you know, ‘good,’ so it made it very difficult to keep players that aren’t good…I think everybody in this organization felt that they were a starters in this league, but we just thank goodness it’s not on our team.”

So, here you have it Giants fans. A win is said to cure a lot of ills on a football team, and if that’s the case imagine how many ills there must be on this team. Clearly, some more of the treatment is called for. Hopefully the Giants will make the Browns feel blue. If not, we can look forward to hearing about how newly signed practice squad CB Art Thomas doesn’t like how he’s being used on the practice squad, “I should be used to emulate the top shut down corners in practice like Sanders or Bailey; they wouldn’t have used a practice squad spot on me if just showing the opponent’s defensive alignment is all they wanted.”

Sep 152004
 
The Outsider’s Report: Eagles “Game” Edition

By BigBlueInteractive.com Contributor Daniel in MI

Well, the regular season has started not with a bang or a wimper, but more a gasp and gurgle. We at TOSR (The Outsider’s Report) have returned from our various 12-step programs and are getting back into regular season form. Our lack of contacts, informants, league sources, inside information, and integrity has really paid off. As always, although much of what we write is apocryphal, or at least wildly inaccurate, we continue to score over more pedestrian media outlets in two important ways: (1) we’re free; and (2) we show up for meetings 5 minutes after they end. We turn now to Week 1.

The Giants were abused 31-17 the Eagles this week, and careful study of film indicates that when the Eagles weren’t running on the Giants defense at will, they were passing at the Wills. CB Will Allen was a favorite target. Although some speculated his injury was the problem, Allen denied this. “No, I’m fine. That’s no excuse.”

Reporters then asked Allen if he just had a rough day. “No, that wasn’t a rough day. We just didn’t execute like we should have.” We followed that up, “Will, what exactly would a rough day look like?” He described a bad day for us, “They’d pass for like 300 yards, we’d get no turnovers, they’d score like 4 TDs against us, and their star WR everyone knew needed to be covered would get like 3 of them. Now, that’s a rough friggin day!” We pointed out that they threw for 330 yards, 4 TDs, 3 to Owens, and we got no turnovers.” He said, “Oh, we’ll I guess that is a rough day. Damn. Hey, but I’m just coming off an injury.” Allen assured us, however that “come December, no one will remember what happened in September.” Under his breath he added, “By then people will forget this and complain about our missing the playoffs.”

One problem plaguing the team’s offense has been a lack of red zone production, particularly in the passing game. After the Giants failed to score a passing TD from the 1st and 2nd string QBs in the pre-season, fans eased their fears with the knowledge that the Giants were keeping things “vanilla.” Surely a team with this offensive firepower would break out against two young CBs like the Eagles. But, again the Giants scored no passing TDs. We caught up with QB Kurt Warner working on his fumble recoveries to ask about the offense.

“Yeah, we kept things vanilla in the pre-season,” agreed Kurt, “And the coaching staff have decided to keep things more vanilla now. In fact, we’ve moved from plain vanilla to French vanilla (simple as well as cooperating with the other team). We don’t want all of our opponents to know what our REAL offense will look like, so we’re continuing to keep it under wraps. It’s really a brilliant offense, though. Coach says we’ll unveil it in the off-season when we practice in the bubble and no one can see.”

We asked Kurt if he felt confident about the offense going into the game. “Yeah, I felt great about our offense going into this game. I mean, in practice, I’m able to pass seemingly wherever I want against our defense. We get completion after completion to our WRs, TEs, and RBs, you name it. Our blocking is great against our defense, I feel no pass rush, I mean I love playing against…our…defense….Wow, that sounded kinda bad, huh?”

Meanwhile, in the search for something to distract the fans from the disaster on the field is the petty whining off it. Much has been made of the fines levied against Giants players – including Green, Strahan, Cousins, and Emmons – for not showing up the requisite 5 minutes before the scheduled meeting time. We caught up with Coach Coughlin measuring socks with a micrometer and he told us that it is all of this is part of establishing winning discipline. “You’re either on time, or you’re late. On time is on time. And that’s five minutes early. And, since five minutes early is on time, to actually be five minutes early, you need to be there five minutes before five minutes early. So, that’s ten minutes early. That’s on time. But, to be five minutes early for that, you’d better be here five minutes before that. Unless it’s a Wednesday or Thursday on a leap year, or there is a Harvest Moon, it’s Simchas Torah, or the numbers in today’s date sum to a prime number. It’s very simple. Being on-time for team meetings is covered on pages 355 – 488 in the players rule book I gave them Chapter 13, Vol. XXI, 4th Edition. So, be on time for meetings and make sure you’re on the practice field on time. And with long socks, which should be 5 inches longer than short plus 5 inches.”

We caught up with physics professor Dr. Hortence Puffinpanty to explain how 5 minutes early is really on time. “Coach Coughlin is really relying on Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity which suggests that time is not constant, but actually all relative. For example, if you were to take off in a space ship near the speed of light ½ hour before a team meeting, you might return to Earth and have missed Coughlin’s meeting all together even though time for you will not seem to have progressed more than a minute or two. Wow, I’d hate to be you if you did that. Can you imagine what that fine would be? And God help you if you were wearing sandals on that ship and they were not dress sandals…”

Finally, there is the massive hit put on P. Jeff Feagles by Eagles LB Jeremiah Trotter. Although Feagles complained the hit was helmet-to-helmet, the league counted that in order to qualify as an illegal helmet to helmet hit, the offense had to fall into one of 7 categories. Six of the categories are, of course, defined situations in which the player receiving the hit are vulnerable, and the 7th was the addition of the phrase, “and the player is not on the Giants.” But, don’t worry, DE Michael Strahan has vowed to remember the hit Trotter put on his teammate. “We’ll remember that hit,” warned the Gap Toothed Wonder, “Oh yeah, we’ll remember it. Because, I don’t ever want to get hit like that, so next time we play the Eagles, I’m going to keep my head on a swivel and just go to the ground if I see someone coming. No way I want to get lit up like that. Man, he crushed him! That Trotter can hit!”

So, don’t worry Giants fans, the team will avenge us, or at least play again next week. The Giants are even now feverishly preparing for their home opener against the Redskins, going over strategies for showing up on time to meetings, filing grievances, and discussing what constitutes a dress sandal. Watch out Clinton Portis! And look out Jeff Feagles!

Sep 142004
 
2004 New York Giants: A Slightly Different View

By BigBlueInteractive.com Reporter/Photographer David Oliver

The Giants losing to the Eagles does not necessarily presage the dawn of a nuclear winter, or a return to the football of the 70s. It was a bad match up for Game 1, as the TV mavens at NFL Central thought they might have Eli Manning to showcase. Instead they got an entire network of ex-players focusing on the Curse of Terrible Tommy. BBI seems upset with this focus, but keep in mind, these guys are ex-players, and Tommy, whatever he is, has never been known as a players’ coach. The only comments I intend to make on this fiasco go to the mewing of the fans about the “spoiled players” and how the “media” is making up stories or running with complete canards – this from an audience who has absolutely NO knowledge of what is actually happening. What we are seeing is only the tip of this iceberg. There is a deep-seated unrest, throughout the League, with coaches from an old-school background. Discipline is only a small part of this rebellion – it goes more to the point of mutuality of respect. A large part of the ethos of these young men is respect, whether you and I like it or not. It is in part economic, in part racial, and in part generational. Some players have no problem with old school coaching; others have a big problem. In the end, one or the other goes.

I am currently reading General Tommy Franks’ autobiography (which I wholeheartedly recommend). General Franks cuts to the core of the entire issue of leadership and building a winning team, in his discussion of loyalty. He makes a constant refrain of the important lesson he learned early in one of his commands that loyalty extends both ways. When you become mother and father, counselor and leader of any unit with an organizational goal of success, you MUST take into account the troops. You must go the extra step in knowing what is in their hearts and minds, and you must show them that you care and that you will not only teach and guide, but you will also nurture. I can’t speak to what is in Coach Coughlin’s heart. And I have lived a life of discipline – if I was expected 5 minutes early, I was there 10 minutes early (hearken back to my mini camp write-up; I drove from Virginia and made sure that I was the first person on the field); if I entered a meeting where an old buck didn’t think much of a staffer who got up to go to the men’s room, I would rather piss in my pants than get up and leave early. That’s how I was raised. On the other hand, much of what I have heard and been told smacks of something other than mere bullshit discipline problems. My only concern is that as a Giants’ fan, this thing will carry on, because you and I know that the Maras do not easily fire their personal choices, but we also know that these same personal choices also do not deliver.

It appears that there is a tendency to rationalize away failure on the part of those we like, and to denigrate too easily those we do not like. Coach Coughlin appears to be a man and a coach who can revitalize the offensive side of the ball, just as Coach Fassel could work wonders with a QB. Both are about equally successful, but ultimately failed coaches for almost antithetical reasons. One has been accused of running a country club; the other of being a tyrannical prison warden. Neither depiction is wholly accurate. But there is a commonality. The last team of Coach Fassel was sloppy; but people choose to overlook the cast of characters that was on the field for the final eight game stretch. The first part of Coach Coughlin’s tenure is also characterized by sloppy play, whether vanilla or not, and with a different cast of characters, mostly those brought in by the current coaching staff. When football players are confused by the scheme, or give a lackluster effort, it is not always the players. We’ve been over this ground too many times before. On defense, what we saw against the Eagles was scary. Go back to the hiring of Coach Coughlin; I wrote then that the Giants had to act fast, that they needed to make this hiring within a week after the close of the season. Everyone on the planet who knows the Giants knew that Coach Coughlin was the man. But the Giants hesitated, whether it was out of political correctness, or a last ditch fight by the Chief Wig, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that Coach Coughlin lost his choice of Defensive Coordinator Greg Williams (now with the Redskins), and therein lies the tale of Sunday’s game.

The personnel on the Giants are ill-suited for a 3-4 defense. I stand by my earlier statement that this might be the worst linebacking corps in a decade of Giants’ play. Individually, each player might be great at his position, but as a unit, they showed no cohesion. The front line also showed that you cannot build a unit of starters with everyone else’s journeymen or castoffs. If DE Keith Washington is starting after game 3, this defense will be a failed unit, now and at the end of the year. Defensive tackles Norman Hand and Fred Robbins will be good only against lesser units, and they won’t be playing many of those this year. The less said about the secondary, the better. But even if I cannot fault the schemes, or make the rationalization that this unit has not played together, I cannot rationalize the missed tackles, the arm waves, the running from this side of the field to the other, as players’ faults in a system run by a disciplinarian who allegedly laughed at the performance of last year’s scrub team. If that play was the result of poor coaching, then Sunday’s effort against the Eagles is likewise the result of poor coaching.

On the offense side of the ball, the Giants are a better than good team. The skill players are there, the QB position is a strength, and the line will be consistent and formidable as it works itself into shape. I don’t think Shaun O’Hara is a real strength at center and I am hoping that Lucier takes this job soon. Luke Petitgout has to work on some things. Otherwise, they will only get better. Tiki Barber has shown that once again, this offense is his; now Jeremy Shockey has got to knock off the rust.

It was really distressing to watch the game, not because I thought they could win, because they really were outmatched, but because the play was sloppy and disorganized, mostly on the defensive side of the ball. This is something we were assured would not happen. OK, so it was a bad match-up for Game 1. Now comes the Redskins game, and this is a game that the Giants should win. If Robbins and Hand are anywhere near as advertised, Portis will not have his 64-yard gallop to open the game. Once the run is neutralized, the Redskins can be controlled. As formidable as the ‘Skins defense looked against Tampa, it should be no match for the firepower the Giants can bring on offense. This is show time; Coach Coughlin and the new look Giants are having their unveiling before the home crowd. A win on Sunday and we will see-saw throughout the year, as most everyone expected and will accept. But should the Giants not beat the ‘Skins, it is possible they will not win a game this year.

The thing that people forget is that Coach Coughlin was not brought in to muddle around for a couple of years. He was brought in to win. If ever there was a situation for a coach to show off his system, to let the fans and the owners and the players and the rest of the League see that he can still win, then this is it. If we are going to be allowed to focus on football for the rest of this season, and if we are not to be bombarded with an ever-increasing crescendo of bullshit “why we hate the Coach articles”, the time is now.

The Giants will win on Sunday.

Sep 012004
 
2004 New York Giants Preview: A Few Thoughts Before The Real Football

By BigBlueInteractive.com Reporter/Photographer David Oliver

I don’t pay much attention to pre-season anymore; it’s difficult to learn anything about the team, and it’s harder yet to learn the names that go with the numbers before those names are gone. Last year I didn’t attend any pre-season games; this year, I have attended the Jets game, and I don’t believe I’ll make the trek Thursday night for what is basically a ‘who cares’ game, highlighting only the possible presence of Coach Fassel on the Ravens sidelines. But I have watched two of the games on the tube and I will watch tomorrow, at least part of the time, as I am drawn like a moth to a flame by the competing scenario in that other sports venue, Madison Square Garden.

What makes this year really difficult is that I can’t remember this amount of turnover in personnel, both on the field and along the sidelines, in a long time. Notwithstanding all this turnover, the fate of the team depends on the familiar names, Shockey, Amani, Ike, Tiki, RonD, Strahan, and the Wills. The big addition has been at the QB position, where the Giants have not one, but two, very real quality players. Neither might be able to fire the ball like KC, but both appear to be far superior players, with Eli Manning showing all the indications that he will be a super star and a star for a long time to come.

Of course, that is hyphenated right now by the quality and performance of the offensive line, which, for all the tinkering has been underwhelming. But the closer we get to actual gaming, the more the haze evaporates and some things are starting to become clear. And the clarity presents some ironies. With the acquisition of Whittle, it is conceivable that at some point this year the line could be LukeP, Seubert, Lucier, Snee and Diehl, with Whittle getting a lot of reps. It looks to me like the line of a deposed Coach, McNally, minus Bober, plus Snee. And Snee is a legitimate draft choice who would bolster any line. Has anyone seen Mike Rosenthal hanging around lately?

Ron Dayne is having what appears to be another renaissance and Tiki appears to be getting fewer carries. This may hold true in real combat, or it may quickly devolve into the more familiar Tiki-driven offense. Ron is running hard and gaining yards as the line appears more capable of opening holes for him – when he is used as a tailback. It shouldn’t be long before all these very stubborn coaches realize that this is his proper role – he is no power back. It should also be apparent by now that without a real fullback in the backfield, those 3rd-and-1’s will remain 4th-and-1’s. All in all, with the return of Shockey, this will be a pretty effective offense, once the final line gets some reps together. Without Shockey, it will be a very ordinary offense. Which is not to say bad. Shank (Visanthe Shiancoe) is rounding into the player MIS forecast. His confidence has always been high, but now, he can back it up with some performance. The only two things missing are a speed wideout ala Marvin Harrison and a big back that can help make holes for one of the tailbacks to gain the short yardage when necessary.

Although the defense remains a huge question mark, defensive coordinator Tim Lewis unveiled a little more of what we might see and it looked good. The linebackers, however it finally shakes out, will be used like linebackers. They will be coming forward as much as backward. Same with Mr. Williams. This promises to be a blitz-crazed scheme, which will be exciting for us, and ruthless for the opposition. Couple that with the big game of Michael Strahan and the emergence of Osi, there will be turnovers and big plays. The vulnerabilities remain the run game around the end manned by Osi, Green, and Will Pete. Green is very fast, but it seems as if he is overrunning plays at times and is not strong at the point of attack. Emmons looked good on Friday night, now we have to see if he can hold up. Nick G is playing hurt, but he was shaking off the rust as the game progressed. It is crunch time and guys are playing hurt because they know that in this regime you have to show something or you are on the waiver wire. It’s a hard position to get in and I have to wonder what will happen come November. Injuries are a FACT of the NFL, not a mental cancer, which is why it is essential to have adequate backups, and it is essential to catch an injury quickly and get it taken care of so a player can return to the game ASAP. This is not the college game where you suit up 85 guys and play the Little Sisters of the Poor every other week. When a team stays injury free, it wins. When injuries mount and there are no adequate replacements, it implodes. We don’t have to look any further backwards than last year for a good example of that.

The secondary is no more, or less, than it was last year. Absolutely no improvement has been made. The basic difference appears to be one of philosophy, wherein the current scheme appears to stress convergence to the ball as opposed to stopping the big play. It will be interesting to see how it plays out. Incidentally, Jason Doering has looked really good; the question is has he looked good enough to stick? The most improved players on the D line appear to be Osi and Lance Legree. This D seems to suit Lance better as he is allowed to move and even put some pressure on when he is in there.

Special teams look better; then again, how could they look worse. Coach Sweatman knows the game, gets the players he needs, and knows how to use them. Now we have to wait until we see the final roster to know who will actually be on that unit.

I talked to several players after the game – some with the recorder on, some off. When I talk to these guys, it is about the football. I don’t frankly care who gets fined for having a cell phone go off during a meeting – that is an obnoxious trait of the young everywhere today – movies, restaurants, automobiles. Frankly, if I were the Coach, I’d stop the meeting and lead the entire team on 3 or 4 laps around the Stadium. Then maybe 25 or 30 pushups. A little sweat is far more effective than a monetary fine. Likewise, I don’t think I have ever met a football player who is put off by hard work. These guys have been doing it since the age of 7 or 8; and they are used to verbal abuse from their coaches along the way, and as I remember it, you would be head-slapped, kicked and otherwise told what a shit you were; so a drill sergeant doesn’t bother anyone. And I don’t care to hear whining. But there are personality things that come up from coach to coach. Some are just grousing; some are real deep-seated peccadilloes. There has been a lot of talk about this particular coach. Time will tell what is fact, what is fantasy. I don’t ask, and if any player does tell, I shut my recorder off. So don’t expect little titillations from me on this count. I’m not pissed at the coach over access, because I am on the bottom of the feeding chain anyway. I am extremely privileged to get the access I do. Do I like him, or not like him? Well, the simplest way to put it is that I am a Giants’ fan; I have been for over 50 years. When the team loses, I take it personally; when the team wins, the universe is in balance. Coach Parcells was one of only two successful Giant coaches in my life. The other was Jim Lee Howell. Ray Perkins began the emergence from Plato’s cave that the Giants were in for a long time – and much as I love Mr. Mara, he changed coaches like most of us change underwear, which in hindsight wasn’t very helpful. Dan Reeves was like the third choice and Jim Fassel was a Mara favorite. He was more successful than I ever imagined he would be when he was chosen, and he did somehow get the team into the playoffs and into the Super Bowl. But he was at times infuriating, and both Eric and I called for his dismissal following that abysmal performance in the Detroit game during the SB year, a game marked by Jason Sehorn’s pants falling and the firing of Bashir Levingston, as if he were the sole fault of all the Giants’ woes.

So we come to the present coach. In my book, he has produced three losing seasons in a row. There are no excuses in this game, you win, or you go. I want him to win because he is now the coach of the Giants. Many in The Corner Forum say I don’t like his personality, or I don’t like him because I have less access, or I don’t like him because _____, you fill in the blank. None of these things are true. I am not enamored of him for the same reasons I was critical of the Jim Fassel hiring – I don’t know if he can win. When he wins, I will be the first, well, maybe the 2500th, to say, damn that was a good hire. I am a lot more optimistic now than I was in March. Of course, I never go into a season without predicting a 10-6 record.

One player I talked to on the record was Shank. I won’t do a line-by-line here, but I will say that I asked him about the QBs. He couldn’t say enough about Eli Manning. He said for a young guy just coming out of college, Eli did things that were hard to believe; he placed the ball where his receivers wouldn’t get killed; he threw it into position to allow a turn-and-go; he understands the dynamics of the game. As we talked, Shank actually got more excited and animated, so I knew I wasn’t getting company line. It is obvious the team likes him and is responding to him. We also discussed Kurt Warner and Shank was full of praise for him also, quickness, knowledge of the game, accuracy of passes. Very seldom will a receiver be critical of his QB; likewise, very seldom will you see an animated embrace of not one, but two QBs. This is a good situation for the Giants and for Giants’ fans.

In a week the wars begin. My feeling is that the team at the end of the year will be considerably different than at the beginning. I also feel that we will know very quickly if this will be a good team. If the O-Line is better, the record can’t be worse. If Shockey is in the lineup, the offense will be very successful. And if nothing else, the defense promises to be aggressive, in deed, not word alone.

Get the chips and dip ready- and hide the clicker for the first game. (grin)

Jun 242004
 
2004 New York Giants: Aggressive Defense

By BigBlueInteractive.com Reporter/Photographer David Oliver

Somewhere between Pocono Speedway and Hershey Park, it dawned on me that not everyone appreciated my writing style. I had another several hours of driving and several hundred miles to go, so I thought I’d outline a little introduction for my next piece. It’s really difficult to explain to people just how boring it is spending hours and hours away from your nice little computer and your honey-do list, of course, there is a honey-do list because most so-called men today couldn’t get away from Momma and the house apes to even attend a game, let alone 20 weeks worth, plus camps, plus other assorted ventures, so I laughed as I thought of these High Life warriors and their honey-do lists, making light of my writing style, twisting in agony which each new non-football derivation, extending on into countless characters and voluminous words in the same sentence. My entire life, it seems, has been dedicated to finding new ways of pissing off the orthodox, of not giving anyone anything they wanted in the way they wanted. And so, at this stage of the journey, and believe me, it has been a journey as I ride through the desert on a Horse with no name, I have found it. I can get more obtuse, more Byzantine, more prosaic than I ever thought possible and I have a captive audience of wanna be imitators, each panting to open the next episode to see if they can find a way to get under my skin, to titillate their fellow readers, hoping that it will be at my expense, but then, since everything I do here is at my expense, as it is well-known that critics and imitators are cheap pricks, no matter what the venue, it really doesn’t matter. My only remorse is that real Giants’ fans have to wade through my really poor efforts, often mirroring the text book illustrations of how not to do it, or as we used to say in writing class, the pissing in a clear stream approach to communications. To those, I must offer a humble, well, not apology, but explanation. See, I’m reaching the end of this particular journey, maybe not this year, maybe not next year, but soon enough; ok, so it’s not soon enough to please the real geniuses here, the Xs and Os mavens, the literati, the full paying membership in the I can do it better club, but soon enough, nonetheless, as it is easier to just take photos, difficult in its own right, but now with digital technology in full bloom, much as the recently departed cicadas, photography is relatively effortless compared to actually writing some of this stuff. I’m getting tired of listening to taped interviews and reviewing scribbled notes, then transcribing them because if I put them into MP3 form and posted them somewhere, most folks wouldn’t be able to get to them. So the journey winds down, agonizingly slow for some, maybe too quickly for others. For me, it has come down to, whatever!! (grin).

Having walked away from virtually everything in my life, religion, politics, a paying job, everything except family and the Giants, it is difficult to cut cjac’s umbilical to the Giants. There is no knot to tie, or untie, no snips steeled enough to cut through the cord, no force on earth, save possible eventual ennui and lapse into Alzheimers, which can make me walk straight away from the Giants. Which is probably the deep-seated psychosis driving my obstinate attempt to link the Giants games and players with the other facets of my own life, as for some the saying is ‘football is life’, but for me, it is a truism, ‘football (Giants version) is life,’ sina qua non, finito. It’s not Madden, or X-Box, or a casual way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Now, I know there are some that say, ‘get a life’, ‘it’s only a game’ and other such platitudes, and for those I feel sorry. If you dig deeply enough into the antecedents of man, what makes homo sapiens, or uomo, or hombre is play, and music, and explored on an even deeper level, play and music are essentially mathematics. So the ‘game’ is really the Esse of humanity, and the Giants are the essence of the game. If you can’t accept that, I guess we, you and I, can never communicate. At any rate, this entire concept, which I suppose is closer to d’Maistre than Jung and which would probably infuriate Nietzchke, who being gay couldn’t really understand the whole syncretic process of an aggressive defensive strategy, has led to enormous frustration, beginning with the meltdown in San Francisco and continuing on to the final denouement and the firing of Coach Fassel and most of his staff.

I mean, the whole thing boils down to one word – aggressive. Not passive, not passive –aggressive. Not read-and-react, not one-gap or two-gap, but the simple term, aggressive. It doesn’t matter if you are a Darwinian, or a Christian, or a Muslim, if you read Orwell or Huxley (any of them), if you are a Clintonite or a Busher, the entire progress of man, as we are today, is the result of that single term, aggressive. Whether we are a viral form, a stage on the way to Oogenesis, in the image of God, or whatever, we have survived and thrived by being aggressive. So, to see the Giants running around on the field like the headless horseman, or rather the headless chicken – for those too young to remember, chickens were killed by cutting their heads off, after which they would run around headless until the blood was gone – this past year was misery personified. That team was not aggressive, on either side of the ball, from special teams to the QB to the entire coaching staff, and so, in classic Darwinian fashion, it did not evolve. It has been ruthlessly replaced.

But the replacement remains in chrysalis; we have the words, but have not seen the unveiling, in fact, there aren’t many who can give us even a preview, other than by using avuncular imagery. Multiple and aggressive, people come to spots, flying to the ball all allude to, skirt around, touch on, but avoid the simple term aggressive. Communication is based on common understanding; semantics are more than nuance. Multiple terms result in progressions of difficulty, and ultimately breakdowns, as theory is actualized. I continue to chase the common understanding of an aggressive defense, which I started with Coach Lynn. It seems incongruous to indulge in a semiotics of football, but that is what it is. Coach Lynn continually used the term aggressive, but any defense with a Coach Rust involved proved itself over time to be something less. Coach Lynn never backed off aggressive, notwithstanding a defense plagued by breakdowns, both in understanding and communication. Coach Coughlin uses the term in a phrase, but the phrase is supplemented, modified and explained differently by each and every member of the team.

My starting point for aggressive is the defense designed and deployed by Coaches Parcells and Belichick for the world Champion NY Giants, led by LB Lawrence Taylor and his cohorts. It relied upon stalwart interior linemen, playing a two-gap set and a host of linebackers, all of whom crashed the line and converged on the ball. They were backed up by a secondary which sealed off lanes and defended against the big play. The closest thing to it was the old Steel Curtain of the Steelers, but semantically, it had a different construct. In application, it produced similar results. Today, we are told, the game has changed, the role of the linebackers has changed. This being the case, the use of the word ‘aggressive’ has little meaning to me. It appears as if the current version of the Giants linebackers may be among the weakest in a dozen years. Nick Greisen, if he develops, might be close to a Gary Reasons type player, but Emmons and Green don’t look as if they could crack the starting linebackers on the LT teams. Time will tell. Nick is a happy man right now. I don’t know if he has heard the whispers that the coaching staff might not be comfortable with him as the starter going into the season, but even if he has, he feels this is his opportunity and he’s not letting it pass. I asked him what was different for him, in attitude, from last year. He told me, “ I felt last year like I was slotted at #2 no matter how well I played, Mike was going to be the starter; no matter how poorly he played, Mike was going to be the starter.” He went on, “This year, it’s all changed.” There is a new coach, who came in with a ‘clean slate’ approach, and so Nick felt, “Everyone will start over, it’s a new opportunity.” He talked about how he felt, “almost like I was a rookie again, new faces, new guys I didn’t know, a new defense. The difference was that I had more experience.”

We talked about the term aggressive and what he was seeing in the defense. He told me, “They let us go to fly to the ball, let us open up.” He was positive and effusive about these aspects of the new D, but when I asked him if it would be more aggressive than last year’s aggressive defense, he told me that we wouldn’t know, he wouldn’t know, until they put the pads on. So we have the coach’s characterization of a multiple-aggressive defense in which people come to spots and try to strip the ball, which he acknowledges has not developed to date, and we have another characterization, similar, about opening up and flying to the ball, again with an acknowledgement that it is still theoretical. LT was the greatest at flying around, coming to the ball, or a spot and stripping the ball. There was only one LT.

I not only wanted to talk about being aggressive, I wanted some special team input. MacDuff, the Baron, Read had all failed at the mission. The last really good special teams man for the Giants was Coach Sweatman, and he has returned. I vividly remember him strolling up and down the sidelines, yelling and exhorting his troops; which was different than Coach MacDuff extending farther and farther out of the box, bending with hands on knees, trying to see something, anything, which would indicate if his message was sinking in. It didn’t. Part of the reason was in Coach Fassel’s rigid belief that subs and scrubs played special teams. It appears that failure was a concomitant of this approach, regardless of who the coaches of the squad happened to be. Coach Sweatman has always tried to recruit one of two highly motivated specialists for his unit. This year it might be Jack Brewer, who was brought in primarily as a special teams maven.

Jack and I talked about speed and aggressiveness, as he told me, “Speed, that’s how I get down the field, whether it’s kickoff, punt, whatever, be the first one down the field.” Jack is an engaging personality who laughs a lot and is having fun in the game. He told me that special teams are “where I made my mark in the League.” I reiterated, “special teams,: and he quickly answered, “Yes sir, special teams. It’s fun. I’ve enjoyed special teams from the first day I came into the League; I had a knack for doing it. I always get to the ball, just have fun out there.” His joie d’vivre is infectious, and he went on and told me that he was having a lot of fun, that, “I love the City, love the Organization, it’s first class, they take good care of you, the transition was very easy for me.” It seems as if Jack Brewer and several other recruits, as well as some of the holdovers, have not been put off at all by the head coach’s style – they are here to play football and to have fun. Of course, none of them has reached super star status yet, and not many are wearing rings, but they came looking for an opportunity, they feel they are getting that opportunity, and football is the name of the game.

We talked about the aggressive nature of the defense and he told me, “It’s very fast, speedy, everybody’s flying to the ball; it’s going to be fun to watch for the fans, and fun to play.” He said, being aggressive is “what we’re preaching and what we are all about, flying to the ball, we practice it, practice making turnovers, stripping the ball; whenever you do that, and it’s the focal point, you’re going to make a lot of plays during the season.” I asked him if there was a difference in philosophy between the NFC and the AFC coaches and he told me, “Sometimes you see coaches change between the divisions, but I don’t think there is too much of a difference. From my time in the NFC, it is a tough division as far as running the ball. The few AFC teams, I couldn’t tell much of a difference, some teams throw the ball all around the lot; for the most part the parity is there, so there’s not too much of a difference.”

I finished up by asking if he was preparing for and hoping to be a starter some day and he said, “Special teams, regular lineup, whatever, whatever the team needs; I just want to win. I think we’re doing the right things to do that.” I asked him if he’ll be here in September and he laughed and said emphatically, “I’LL BE HERE.” And a welcome addition he’ll be.

There you have it, the continuing saga of the making of an aggressive defense. Whether it’s a four, three, or a three, four, we are being told it will be a convergence defense, designed to strip the ball and cause turnovers. This could result in some missed tackles, but if it works, if it plays on the field as it is being designed in the classrooms, it could be an exciting defense, for us as well as for the players. Let’s hope this is not a semantics exercise once again and that everyone is on the same page about the meaning of aggressive.

Mar 162004
 
The Outsider’s Report: Special Off-Season Regime Change Edition

By BigBlueInteractive.com Contributor Daniel in MI

Well, it’s another off-season, and with it has come regime change at Giants Stadium. For those of us in the pseudo media, it’s been time to turn your head and Coughlin. For media with a more traditional approach involving techniques like interviewing or research, this type of turnover can be problematic as the contacts you had are gone. Luckily, our more holistic, post-modern, pre-future, traction/friction approach doesn’t involve “note-taking” or “access” or “information.” But rest assured that although much of The Outsider’s Report (TOSR) may be apocryphal, if not wildly inaccurate, it does score over the pedestrian news media in two important ways: 1) it’s free; and 2) it works out only with free weights not wimpy machines.

The big score for any reporter has been new Head Coach Tom Coughlin. He’s spoken to the media almost as little as he’s spoken to the players. Being as well known as TOSR is, we were allotted 0 minutes. But, being resourceful, that doesn’t stop us from quoting him or at least putting down something we think he would have said, which is as close as most newspapers come anyway.

When we didn’t meet with him, we pretended to ask him about the key to turning the Giants team around. He said, “The key to winning is just one thing: running the football and stopping the run. And winning the turnover battle. And not making mistakes. And being tough And being strong. And discipline. And getting the right guys. And conditioning. And desire. And some other stuff. And focusing on that one thing.”

Having clarified his philosophy, we asked him about rumors that some players might not want to come play for a known disciplinarian. He scoffed, “I ask only that players are not afraid to work, and that they are 100% focused on winning. Anyone like that will be fine – just come to work ready to pay attention in meetings. Ready to sit up straight and put your feet on the floor. Ready to tuck in your shirts and pull up your socks. Ready to ensure that when you tie your cleats, you double not them, and the loops are exactly the same size. Ready to make sure the tooth indentations in your mouth guard are uniform in depth. Ready to alphabetize your equipment in your locker. I like to check that. Sometimes, after I leave at night, I return to the stadium because I forget if I checked and I want to be sure. Follow those rules, and 132,331 others I’ve outlined in this five volume Team Preparation Manual I created in my year off (and please note that rule 17,334 is keep the Manual in it’s official hand-knitted manual cozy) and we’ll get along fine. And, if it doesn’t distract from these rules, we’ll win.” Coach Coughlin – disciplinarian, and likely undiagnosed Obsessive-Compulsive.

Apart from the HC position, there is going to be a lot of change on the roster this year. For one thing, the LBs are all going to be new. Perhaps the biggest departure was MLB Mike Barrow. We caught up with GM Ernie Accorsi to ask him about letting one of his most successful FA pickups go. “It was one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had to make this week. We really wanted to keep him, but with the salary cap, you just can’t keep a guy whose salary prohibits you from doing something you really want to do: like get another middle linebacker. Which reminds me of everything everyone else ever said. Back when I was…” At that point we hit him with a lamp and fled. Barrow himself was surprised, but his faith appeared to be critical to getting through this, “They said they really wanted me back at 60% discount, and I know that the Lord will put me where he wants me. But, I’m sure that the Lord didn’t want me to take no 60% pay cut. The Lord had more like 10% in mind, with some compensatory roster bonus. Amen.”

The players who are staying with the Giants are extremely excited about the new coaching staff and new systems. We caught up with QB Kerry Collins to get his take on the new staff and new offense. “I’m really excited about it,” Kerry said somberly. “I don’t know what it is, or how it will work, but I’m sure it will be an exciting challenge.” We asked him how the coaches explained it. “Well, they haven’t, because I haven’t actually spoken with them. From what I read, we’re going to run, and play action, and I think I heard something about rolling me out. Why, what are you hearing? Did they say anything to you? If you see them in the cafeteria, pass them this note. Tell them I like them, but only if they like me first. Ask them to check a box on the note to say if they like me or not. Ohmigod!”

Perhaps they haven’t had time to talk because the Giants staff have been busying using FA to try and upgrade the defense, signing linebackers Carlos Emmons and Barrett Green. However, some of the most important moves made so far involve the offensive line, where the Giants have added much needed talent by blockbuster signings like Shaun O’Hara and Barry Stokes. Our sources in the league can’t stop talking about these two. Here’s just a sampling of what they said. One NFC East Personnel Director raved, “JJ Stokes! The Giants got him?! Oh, Barry Stokes. Whew.” Another exclaimed, “They’re NFL players? Both of them? Are you sure?” And still another gushed, “Shaun O’Hara, Shaun O’Hara. Is he that equipment guy in Chicago? No? Hot Lips’ first husband on M*A*S*H? No? Then I have no clue who you’re talking about.” But those enthusiastic endorsements are nothing to the fans’ collective, “Oh. Ok.”

For his part, Stokes was stoked to be here. “I’m very excited to be here. And, as is apparently required as per the First Media Meeting Manual Coach Coughlin gave me, I will say the following: Ahem, ‘I am not afraid of hard work. I just want to win. I am sure that this coaching staff is committed to winning and that is part of the reason I chose to come here. Now stop talking and end the press conference.’ Oh, I guess I wasn’t supposed to say that last part.”

Lastly, we were lucky enough to corner our new Defensive Coordinator Tim Lewis, who came to us straight off a very successful termination with the Steelers. We asked about the possibility fans are wondering about: moving to the 3-4 defense. “We’re not going to go to a 3-4. We’re going to play a 4-3, but we’re going to do it in such a way that we have 3 guys up front, and they’ll be backed up by 4 guys. We’ll switch it around, and keep the defense guessing, give them a lot of looks. But, we’re definitely a 4-3 except for how we align our players and assign responsibilities on the defense.”

So, there you have it. We’re only into March, and already you can feel the excitement building. The team is putting the disappointment of last year’s 4-12 season behind them, and preparing for another one. And, we’d will finish as per Coach Coughlin’s Manual For Media by saying, “the Giants are going to focus on winning, and as long as they want to work hard everything will be fine. This is the best of all possible worlds.”

Stay tuned for our special “Blown Draft” edition!

Feb 262004
 
2004 New York Giants Off-Season Notes

by David Oliver

Winter is almost finished, free agency is upon us, draft fever is already at boiling, so it must be time to forget politics and religion and talk football. The comings have started with a coaching overhaul, the goings are underway with retirements and releases, and injury rehab is well in progress. The Giants show some signs of becoming active in the free agency period, and they may have broader plans than we can imagine, or maybe they will need to expand on their current plans. I would think that Chris Bober is going to be difficult to sign. The BBI cognoscenti are unimpressed with his performance, the Giants’ front office is never keen on giving money to free agents who came in as free agents and Chris may well attract some attention on the open market. He would fit into the niche of the million dollar contract, with a decent signing bonus because he is serviceable, and he is smart. Never a dominating blocker, he does have an aptitude for recognizing defenses and he is a help to the other linemen. So my guess is that the Giants will also be replacing the center. It remains to be seen whether they will be content to go with Lucier, or spend bigger dollars on other available centers, such as the NE Patriots center/guard.

After the last game of the season, I caught up with Reggie Stephens and David Diehl. Reggie is the oft-returned corner that Jim Fassel and staff relied upon to fill in when the cupboard got bare. Reg told me that he had workouts with the Panthers and Buffalo and some other teams and that he had some possibilities for next year. He told me, “When you are a free agent, it’s tough to stick…me, personally, I always stay in shape.” He has confidence and likes the Giants staff. He is thankful to Coach Fassel who gave him his chance, and thus became a coach “you like to make plays for.” Reg discussed the business part of the game, but told me that there is “always an emotional part also…especially for a coach who believes in you and who never gave up on me.” So it was a difficult time for Reggie in that locker room, knowing his benefactor was gone, telling me, “As a player, I want to play; he (Coach Fassel) gives us free agents a shot, so it’s tough to see him going out.” Reggie also told me that EMac was heading out to Arizona. These are likeable guys, stuck on the daisy chain of free agency, part time players caught in salary hell, but loving the game enough to go wherever it leads.

David Diehl had a whirlwind of a year. First he makes the Giants, then winds up starting, then loses his father at the beginning of the season. Although he had a rough finish, he showed enough promise to lead me to believe that he is a player and can be on the line for a long time. He told me, speaking about the year, that it was memorable for “all the tough things and tough times; it’s been a learning experience.” He also told me that he learned a lot about character and that this O-line held together, that “no matter what went wrong, nobody pointed a finger.” I asked him what the learning experience was for him personally and he answered immediately, “Coach McNally, coaching me for a year. I am so much more of a better player than I was even in pre-season; there is a world of difference. I watch the films a lot and you can see it on the tape.” We discussed his loss of his father and he told me that it has been tough and that he “used his father as a motivation.” His father knew how much he loved the game and how much he loved being around him. He told me, “He’s been at every game with me. After the season, I’ll reflect a little more on that, I’m sure it will be tough, but he is a motivation for me.” He also told me that there was a great camaraderie among the linemen, “The group of guys we had, tough guys who would fight for the whole game.” He told me that no matter how out manned they were or what it looked like, “People were fighting and doing whatever they could to help this team.”

I wanted to end last season and begin this season with David because I believe he is the future of the Giants. He is a big, tough kid who is not afraid to learn and not afraid to fight. After all, he made the team, became a starter, lost his dad, and started throughout a very bizarre year.

I have very little to say about the new coaching staff because I haven’t met them. I’m looking forward to that opportunity. I have only a few insights to offer that have been relayed to me by people close to the scene. I have been told that Coach Coughlin will be an experience. Someone who knows him a long time has told me that in the end, no one might like him. If they win as a team, his players will respect him, but if they lose, they will hate him. The same will probably hold true with the fans, who are far more welcoming to him, following the 2003 season than some of the holdover players might be. I am also informed that contrary to all the hoopla over former players saying publicly that they would play for him again (who wouldn’t say that publicly?), that many, many of his former players have placed calls to Giants players telling them to tighten their sphincters, cuz this ain’t no Sunday going to meeting experience.

Other tidbits I am picking up are that two quarterbacks are letting it be known that they would like to be Giants. Eli Manning is quietly letting friends know, and Bradlee Van Pelt appears to be telling the world that he is a Giants’ fan and wants to wear blue. Wouldn’t you know that in a year when QB may not be a priority, there are two who would love to wear the Blue. I love Van Pelt’s potential, but an Eli Manning only comes along once in a while. He will probably be the first selection and the Giants are making loud noises that they will not be chasing number 1. With Coach Coughlin’s recent remarks, it looks as if KC will be re-upped for several years, and that may be happening some time soon. If Ryan Van Dyke shows anything in Europe, he may become a serviceable 3, but he is pretty much buried. New Coach Peter Vaas has a QB he won with (different team), and something similar happened to Mike Cherry. I will be going down to Euro Training Camp, so I’ll try to get some interviews. What this means is that the Giants will be looking for a 2 prospect. I like the thoughts of Van Pelt and Van Dyke behind KC. Its symmetrical, fits the Giants modus o, having 2 Vans as backups, and both are big, strong willing to learn kind of guys.

So how can the team screw up with the #4 selection? Well, it can’t. Available players will be a choice of potentially a QB, an all-world safety, a wunderkind TE, a quick and active DE, and a huge mastiff that plays left tackle. Wait a second; don’t the Giants already have a left tackle? Yes, they do, and a good one at that. But he’s no Eagle Scout. Gallery is getting rave reviews following the Combine, a combine that Joe Gibbs wondered why he was there as no one seemed to want to work out. The funny thing is that so many people go ga ga over Combine numbers. Remembering the old days, we were told that the Combine is about stress, not performance. The scouts and personnel people have reams and reams of film and documentation on these kids. What they really need to learn is how they react to repeated BS demands, how they interact with professional staffs, can they chew gum and tie their shoes at the same time. Gallery has passed all of these tests with flying colors. But is he really a Boselli, Pace kind of player? Well, those comparisons haven’t been made before this week. Maybe he is, maybe he isn’t. So here’s a scenario looking at the Giants. Do they draft a left tackle and pay him not only left tackle money, but also #4 money, or do they go with an all world safety and pay him #4 money to go alongside the already swollen contract of their strong safety? It is a conundrum. I think the scales tip slightly towards Gallery because Ernie Accorsi has a long memory – and I’m sure he is not happy with the way negotiations went with last year’s first rounder, from the same school as the safety. If Roethlisberger is there at #4, there will probably be a wrestling match in the War Room. If Gallery is there, Coach Coughlin may have visions of Tony Boselli floating in his head. Of course, every year some coach has visions of Joe Montana or LT. Problem is, there can never be another of that guy, each of these kids has to make his own mark. In the end, it really doesn’t matter because if Manning, Taylor and Gallery are gone, or if Manning, Roth and Taylor are gone, or any combination you can make, that still leaves a TE, a WR, a DE available. And all are worthy picks.

Happy analysis, and keep the Pepto handy because some of us will be unhappy regardless of who is signed, who is released or who is picked.

Sep 052003
 
2003 New York Giants Preview: When the Weather’s Hot and Sticky

by David Oliver

That’s no time to dip your wickie; when the frost is on the pumpkin, that’s the time for wickie dunkin; and football. Velvet on antlers, testosterone rising in men, a sniff of something feral in the breeze and a symbolic pawing at the earth grip the intestines of the fast and the furious. No more prelude, no more theory; it’s run Sammy, run, time. Living in the shadow of a legend is not easy; living in the shadow of the Big Apple less so. Coach Fassel has pushed his chips to the center of the table, has shed the team of malcontents and locker revelers, has brought in his men, his coaches, and now his play book. Another year without a Super Bowl Championship and he risks being ‘Dungyzed’, as in sent off to some Midwestern hinterland to ply his craft, which, in fact, has been somewhat stellar in terms of Giants coaches since the 60s, with the exception of the brooding omnipresence of Coach Parcells, hanging over the Meadowlands, even overshadowing the ghost of Jimmy Hoffa.

It hasn’t been an easy summer, not for guys with names like Stackhouse, Ferrara and Babers. Not for me either. Frankie Ferrara was a kid from the hood living out our collective dream. He was earnest, lunch pail solid and never gave up or in. He didn’t possess the greatest talent, but he had the greatest hunger and it kept him in the game for longer than some with more obvious skills. My gut tells me he will be back, even as my intellect says here’s Auld Lang Syne for you Frankie.

The sports editor of a local newspaper recently traded jobs and took over as the weekend editor. In his farewell sports column he wrote of his apprenticeship with the Washington Capitals and how one day at lunch one of the team execs asked him why he wanted a career in sports. He told the exec he wanted to do something he loved. The exec didn’t say anything for a few minutes then advised him ‘to be careful, because when you are doing something you love, it becomes too much like work.’ There is a deep truth in those words. I love the Giants; I love football. I have been presented with the opportunity, both by serendipity and by the sufferance of someone in a position to make it happen, to be close to both the Giants and football. But it is in danger of becoming work, and with work comes bullshit, and I have a very low tolerance for that, notwithstanding lasting 30 years in a government career. Each year I tell myself it is the last; each year my wife calls me on it; each year I climb from the despair of weariness, lack of recognition, sufferance at the hands of others, and I return. It won’t happen much longer, so I am going to enjoy this ride. Unlike the guys who get paid to do what they love, I am not going to be ‘Dungyzed’, and I’m not going to lose my love for the Giants or football. I am going to move on before that happens.

It has been a close thing this year, going down to Wednesday. I just happened to wear out on the day and turned on the TV for a few minutes to catch up on the news. What I caught was THE PLAYMAKERS, which repeated the first 2 episodes, I think. And it reached out and grabbed me by the throat. Yes, it is a stylized rendition of what people who throw pencils think it must be like to throw footballs. But there was an underlying chill, a surreal feel to it. The locker scenes were riveting. I have known linebackers like the central figure, and running backs, and linemen. I have sat with guys who were minutes from being cut. I have felt the pain of the ebbing of the dream, the despair from never ending injury, the temptations that come with celebrity. My stomach seized up in agony and I felt it all; the terror of Bashir Livingston, the resignation of Adriano Belli, the dejection in the locker room of a certain XFL team, knowing that this was it, that the ‘milktrain doesn’t stop here anymore.’ I have also felt the whimsy in talking to a certain super star with movie actor looks who would endure any physical pain inflicted on a football field but who wouldn’t pull a toenail off because ‘it wouldn’t look good with sandals.’ And I enjoyed discussing the Beat Generation, particularly Charlie Bukowski with a member of the coaching staff who apparently was much better in the classroom than on the field.

During every College season, there is one game which brings in the Alumni, calls for great partying, signals that fall and football are really here. That game at the Pro level, comes next week for us. Unfortunately, I will miss ‘homocoming’ because of an obligation on the Left Coast, where I will cover the only North American Bicycle Race this year in which Lance Armstrong will compete. The man has just won the Tour ‘dee’ France, he will be sponsoring a Ride Across America for Cancer fund support, and he will be competing in San Francisco against the best on this continent. Right in the middle of all this, news comes of his pending divorce. He and his wife were unable to work out their differences this summer. Even athletes face the constant barrage of ‘despair and nothingness’ that the rest of us face, but for them it is played out on a world stage. Mostly, I am struck by how young these people are, how life has already shown them the ebb and flow of reality and of the rubric ‘that all that glitters is not gold.’

Last night’s extravaganza struck me once again with the thought that the great anti-God Mammon walks the earth. Those who have nothing want that which those who have possess. Those who have want more. And everyone thinks they are morally pure. Reminds me of the old story about the three ants riding a turd and singing ‘when the log rolls over, we’re all going to drown.” Dan Snyder sure isn’t one of those ants. He has spent outrageously in an attempt to buy himself a Championship ring. Will it work? Maybe not this year, but one of these days he will get it. And for all the drama of the four Jetskins, the game still came down to the perfidy of an offense Coach who really doesn’t understand the game of football, just the X and O’s part of the equation, and of a defensive Coach who refused to use his greatest assets, 2 stellar ends, at the most critical time of the game.

So how will it play out for the Giants? Potentially, theoretically, the Giants are loaded. The offensive skill set is powerful, with Kerry Collins, Tiki Barber, Amani Toomer, Ike Hilliard and Jeremy Shockey, complemented by a good left side of the line. The Giants can live through the loss of one, maybe 2 wide receivers. They could even survive without the Superstar TE, particularly if Visanthe Shiancoe comes to form early. They cannot survive the loss of Kerry Collins, or probably of their left tackle or guard. Potential is that fragile. On the defensive side of the ball, they have not yet shown the ability to game plan for scrambling QBs. Anthony Wright made their second/third unit look woeful, just as Donovan McNabb made their first unit look awful last year. Having said that, the front four should be much better. William Joseph just has to play well enough to spell the starters for 15 plays a game and Osi will be a force. If Strahan is ready, it could be a big sack year for Giants ends and blitz men. I am not optimistic about the secondary, as a ‘pick’ unit, and they will give up yardage. But they should present well. I really haven’t seen enough of Kato Serwanga and Ray Green to understand why they merit a slot at the expense of another defensive lineman or TE.

The biggest concern I have right now is the right side of the line. Notwithstanding the canonization of the Mouse, Coach McNally has been dealt a bad hand by the constant shuffle on the right side. Just think, Lurch and Stone, Whittle and Rosie. All were better than Giants’ fans like to admit. Diesel Diehl will be a Prime Time player; that’s not the issue. The issue is that he is a rookie, playing next to a virtual rookie, sandwiched between a couple of very young, albeit talented fellow linesmen. Somewhere along the line, probably in November, that might spell trouble.

The opposition will be primed and ready. The Redskins are game, and could hurt some people, as The Jets have already discovered. DO NOT write off the Cowboys under Coach Parcells. Maybe 8 and 8 this year; a contender for sure, next year. And the Eagles are quietly sitting there, licking their wounds, memories of last year’s Vet plastering of the Giants swirling through their pea brains. The Rams are a good test. With Warner, they are still an offensive power. Their defense is improving each year. And they always embarrass the Giants. The Rams, the Cowboys and the Redskins. A break, and we all know how the Giants play following a break, then some tough teams, before the schedule levels off. If the Giants are a Super Bowl contender, nothing less than a 3-0 start will do. Anything else will signal that once again we will have to see if Coach Fassel still has his December magic.

Under any circumstances, the season depends on two men. Kerry Collins and Coach Jim Fassel. Both must be on the top of their game if the Giants are to play Championship football. Let the games begin.