For those who’ve worked so hard to purge the memories of the Giants’ inexplicable playoff loss to San Francisco four years ago, we urge you to contact your counselor in the wake of Sunday’s implosion in Nashville. Just as the Candlestick Collapse marked of the end of Jim Fassel, the Music City Meltdown officially places Tom Coughlin in similar lame duck status. In barbecue parlance, you can stick a fork in Tom Coughlin…he’s done.
The recent weeks have been a trying time for the Giants. Words such as “dysfunctional” and “tumultuous” have been popular ways to describe life for Big Blue. To exacerbate matters, Tiki Barber – also in lame duck status, but by his own choice – made another public outcry regarding Tom Coughlin’s lack of coaching acumen. So back to basics the Giants went; by passing to Jeremy Shockey early and often, giving Tiki Barber more carries, and finally providing Brandon Jacobs opportunities beyond short yardage situations. It was about time, as for weeks those hailing in Giantdom have all but sent smoke signals urging Big Blue to get back to fundamentals. And what do you know, by midway through the second quarter the Giants had a 21-0 lead. Sure Tiki Barber would have to eat a little crow for what he said, but so what, if that’s what it took to put the pedestrian play against Chicago and Jacksonville behind them, all was forgiven. It seemed to work. For at least the first half, the Giants hadn’t played so convincingly since shellacking Dallas on October 23rd. It wouldn’t be until the fourth quarter that Vince Young would resemble Jeff Garcia from the same aforementioned game everyone wants to forget.
For most of the game, the Giants moved the ball with positive rushing yardage and simple pass routes to move the chains. It may not have been the most loaded highlight reel, but for this banged-up ramshackle bunch, it was good medicine. And then, just like in the loss to Chicago a two weeks ago, a single play seismically shifted the momentum away from the Giants. That play, of course, was early in the fourth quarter where on 2nd and 4, Eli Manning flared a pass to Plaxico Burress on simple sideline route. Why in the world the Giants had to get cute when they should have kept running the ball in order to chew up the clock is beyond anyone’s logic. Then again, questionable play calling has been subject to debate all season long. Manning’s pass was a little overthrown, but certainly catchable if Burress gave it his all. Instead Burress gave up on the route, enabling “Pacman” Jones to make his first of two interceptions. Did Burress attempt to tackle Jones? Impede his runback? Try to knock him out of bounds? No, thus allowing Jones to return the inception for 26 additional yards and put the ball in Giants’ territory. The first tremors were being felt.
For Vince Young, this was his defining day as a rookie quarterback. Many were doubtful if Vince Young would cut in the NFL, thinking that his phenomenal performance in the Rose Bowl last January artificially boosted his stock. He still had his senior year in front of him at Texas, and, well, wasn’t he another one of those “running quarterbacks” anyway? After all, the jury was out on Michael Vick, the prototypical running quarterback, who last week was dubbed a “coach killer”. The last thing Tennessee needed was a quarterback juxtaposed to a “coach killer”. Add in the fact that Vince Young had his Wunderlik score (an 8, I believe) publicized in the same manner as JFK, Jr. failing the bar exam, and voila, Matt Leinart was soon saying bonjour Nashville. As for those running quarterbacks, they’re just useless aren’t they? Especially when it’s 4th and 10 and they’re about to be sacked by Mathias Kiwanuka.
Now for those of you who are still shell-shocked and have blocked out this play, here’s the quick recap. With 2:44 remaining in the game, Tennessee is faced with a 4th and 10 while trailing the Giants 21-14. The implications of this play are pretty basic: prevent the Titans from advancing the ball ten yards and the game is over. Young drops back to pass; he remains cool in the pocket – very cool, in fact – but can’t find an open receiver. Mathias Kiwanuka, who up this moment has had stellar rookie year, has Vince Young wrapped up. For all intents and purposes, Vince Young should have been sacked the same way Mookie Wilson should have grounded out to Bill Buckner in the ’86 World Series. Yet, incredulously, Kiwanuka lets Vince Young go. Perhaps Kiwanuka thought Young passed the ball and didn’t want to draw a roughing penalty. Fine, but if that were the case, Kiwanuka would have heard a whistle. Certainly he had to know what was going on. “It’s a fraction of a second, you have to make a decision and I made the wrong one”, Kiwanuka said. One has to wonder if such a mistake will be tagged to Kiwanuka’s career the same way Scott Norwood has never lived down missing that kick in Super Bowl XXV. In any case Young got the ten yards he needed, plus nine more. They would soon tie up the game a few plays later.
With less than a minute to go, the Giants had one final possession. In all likelihood they’d have to deal with being headed into overtime unless they got a miracle kick return for a touchdown. Just kneel on the ball, regroup, and accept that they squandered a 21-point lead but still can win in OT. They’ll take their shots about making this game exponentially harder than it needed to be, but in the NFL a win is win. They’ll still take it, the heck with the tabloids.
This, however, is not how the remaining 23 seconds would shake out. Rather than go into overtime with a few minutes to rest and focus, the Giants attempted to force the issue. After completing a nine-yard pass to David Tyree, Manning made horrible off-balance pass that was picked-off for the second time by “Pacman” Jones. “We basically gave it away at the end with the interception,” Tiki Barber said. “The only thing you don’t want to do is turn the ball over and that’s unfortunately what we did.” Indeed they did. Two plays later Tennessee was in range to kick the game winning field goal and won 24-21.
“We’re going to be sick about this one forever,” coach Coughlin said. After being decimated by injuries for the last month, the Giants are now sick as well. As for Coughlin, he too will be remembered for this loss forever. Stick a fork in him, he’s done.
Monday, November 27, 2006
Monday, November 13, 2006
TOO MUCH TO BEAR
For the first 28 minutes, a patchwork team of Giant defenders displayed some of the best, most inspiring football all season against Chicago. The swarmed, they wrapped, they pounded and they punished. Then, like a flick of the switch, something happened. Not only did the team fall apart, but so did individual players. Adding to the scroll of injured Giants is left tackle, Luke Petitgout, who went down late in the first quarter with a fractured left fibula. He’s out for the season. Also ailing is Sam Madison who re-aggravated his strained hamstring. As for Tiki Barber, his thumb will likely be the most scrutinized metacarpal since the days of Darwin. Perhaps he ought to consider retirement.
The early analysis on this game zeros on two particular plays where things went awry for Big Blue. The first was late in the second quarter, where Chicago converted on third and 22 on a draw play of all things. Up to that point the Giants had shut down the Bears running game completely. Several plays later the Bears scored, cutting the deficit to 13-10 but deflating the Giants morale even further. The second, which will remain tabloid and talk radio fodder until mid-week, was the 52 field goal attempt that was way short, caught by Devin Hester, and then run back 108 yards for a touchdown. Kicker Jay Feely missed from 32 yards going in the same direction earlier in the game, so what are the Giants thinking? Both are fair points, though there’s one other play that has been overlooked.
What I love/hate about the challenge rule is that regardless of whether a team wins or loses a challenge, it can really snap the momentum of a particular drive. One beef I have with Tom Coughlin is his propensity to make stupid challenges over frivolous things. Eli Manning and the Giants are the kind of offense that needs to keep a rhythm, and throwing the challenge flag can really kill the mojo. It wasn’t Coughlin who tossed the red flag last night, but Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith. Early in the fourth quarter, the Giants were really moving the ball well. They were only down 24-20 and there was no need to create a sense of urgency besides that they thrive in a fast paced, no-huddle offense. On first down Manning hits Burress for ten yards. Next play Tiki Barber runs it up the right side for eight more yards to the Chicago 41. Then, on a second and two, Manning hits David Tyree for 12 yards on long horizontal out pattern. Tyree makes the catch, and with some nimble footwork remains in bounds by about a millimeter or two. All in all it was a nice play by Tyree, despite his not running a particularly crisp pattern, and though the ruling on the field was a completion, the Side Judge was noticeably tentative. The Giants smelled a challenge looming and tried to get the next play off before it was too late…too late. Cut to a red flag on the field while Referee Ed Hochuli looks under the hood during a TV timeout. Tick, tick, tick…the Giants hot drive cools off as the officials make sure they get it right on this nationally televised game. Tick, tick, tick…still waiting in the rain while Chicago catches their breath and makes substitutions. The last thing the Giants needed on this drive was a lull. Finally, after further review, the play stood as called. It was the right call, but you had a sense the momentum had been badly disrupted. Next play, taking advantage of losing Luke Petitgout, Manning is hammered from his blind side, fumbles, and loses ten yards but not possession. Then one more run to Tiki on 2nd & 24, and then a horribly forced pass to Plaxico Burress the down after. Drive over… then comes the decision to make the 52-yard filed goal. You know the rest.
Now of course anything could have happened after David Tyree’s reception regardless of whether Chicago challenged the play or not, but I can not deny that my intuitive read that says the Giants would have kept moving the ball and likely scored. It’s like having a productive meeting at the office get hijacked by a fire drill. You just don’t quite pick up where you left off before the alarm went off.
And by the way, where the hell was Jeremy Shockey? Did the Giants not watch the game film from the week before against Houston? Only one reception for Shockey is totally inexcusable. Talk about talent not being utilized.
After three games at home, the Giants travel to Jacksonville next week and Nashville the week after. Both of these teams are dangerous despite their records indicating otherwise. The Jaguars fall into that description of being one of those “Jekyll and Hyde” teams; you know, as in never knowing what you’re going to expect. In many ways the same could be said for the Giants, not so much for having split personalities; just split limbs.
OTHER THOUGHTS:
1) After ten weeks into the season, which is the most surprising 4-5 team, San Francisco or Cincinnati? One team is going in the right direction, the other isn’t.
2) What’s all this talk about the handshake, or lack of a handshake, between Bill Belichick and Eric Mangini? Sure there’s some tension between mentor and protégé, but how long do other coaches with less of a history, like, say, Bill Parcells and Denny Green shake hands for? I watched the “cold” handshake between Belichick and Mangini, it was about .347 seconds. The Parcells Green handshake was about .469 seconds. That’s a .122 second difference; an extra syllable said at best. Who cares? This is so not a story…move on.
3) Not to start second guessing the Giants past draft strategy, but, you know, they did have Phillip Rivers for about 15 minutes before trading him to San Diego in exchange for Eli Manning and a king’s ransom. Phillip Rivers had a career transforming game yesterday; putting up 42 second half points in Cincinnati. Manning looked simply awful.
4) Saw Matt Leinart play for the first time this season against Dallas. Man Arizona looks bad, all game long Leinart had his eyes set on whomever the play was designed for. So easy to read if you’re a defender, no pump fakes, no counters, no play action, no scouting the field for other options. I mean, everyone on Dallas knew where the ball was going on every play. How the coaches haven’t attempted to make such adjustments is beyond me. Arizona is a very, very bad football team.
5) After seeing Luke Petitgout go down for the season, is there any wonder how the Left Tackle position has become the road to riches in the NFL?
The early analysis on this game zeros on two particular plays where things went awry for Big Blue. The first was late in the second quarter, where Chicago converted on third and 22 on a draw play of all things. Up to that point the Giants had shut down the Bears running game completely. Several plays later the Bears scored, cutting the deficit to 13-10 but deflating the Giants morale even further. The second, which will remain tabloid and talk radio fodder until mid-week, was the 52 field goal attempt that was way short, caught by Devin Hester, and then run back 108 yards for a touchdown. Kicker Jay Feely missed from 32 yards going in the same direction earlier in the game, so what are the Giants thinking? Both are fair points, though there’s one other play that has been overlooked.
What I love/hate about the challenge rule is that regardless of whether a team wins or loses a challenge, it can really snap the momentum of a particular drive. One beef I have with Tom Coughlin is his propensity to make stupid challenges over frivolous things. Eli Manning and the Giants are the kind of offense that needs to keep a rhythm, and throwing the challenge flag can really kill the mojo. It wasn’t Coughlin who tossed the red flag last night, but Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith. Early in the fourth quarter, the Giants were really moving the ball well. They were only down 24-20 and there was no need to create a sense of urgency besides that they thrive in a fast paced, no-huddle offense. On first down Manning hits Burress for ten yards. Next play Tiki Barber runs it up the right side for eight more yards to the Chicago 41. Then, on a second and two, Manning hits David Tyree for 12 yards on long horizontal out pattern. Tyree makes the catch, and with some nimble footwork remains in bounds by about a millimeter or two. All in all it was a nice play by Tyree, despite his not running a particularly crisp pattern, and though the ruling on the field was a completion, the Side Judge was noticeably tentative. The Giants smelled a challenge looming and tried to get the next play off before it was too late…too late. Cut to a red flag on the field while Referee Ed Hochuli looks under the hood during a TV timeout. Tick, tick, tick…the Giants hot drive cools off as the officials make sure they get it right on this nationally televised game. Tick, tick, tick…still waiting in the rain while Chicago catches their breath and makes substitutions. The last thing the Giants needed on this drive was a lull. Finally, after further review, the play stood as called. It was the right call, but you had a sense the momentum had been badly disrupted. Next play, taking advantage of losing Luke Petitgout, Manning is hammered from his blind side, fumbles, and loses ten yards but not possession. Then one more run to Tiki on 2nd & 24, and then a horribly forced pass to Plaxico Burress the down after. Drive over… then comes the decision to make the 52-yard filed goal. You know the rest.
Now of course anything could have happened after David Tyree’s reception regardless of whether Chicago challenged the play or not, but I can not deny that my intuitive read that says the Giants would have kept moving the ball and likely scored. It’s like having a productive meeting at the office get hijacked by a fire drill. You just don’t quite pick up where you left off before the alarm went off.
And by the way, where the hell was Jeremy Shockey? Did the Giants not watch the game film from the week before against Houston? Only one reception for Shockey is totally inexcusable. Talk about talent not being utilized.
After three games at home, the Giants travel to Jacksonville next week and Nashville the week after. Both of these teams are dangerous despite their records indicating otherwise. The Jaguars fall into that description of being one of those “Jekyll and Hyde” teams; you know, as in never knowing what you’re going to expect. In many ways the same could be said for the Giants, not so much for having split personalities; just split limbs.
OTHER THOUGHTS:
1) After ten weeks into the season, which is the most surprising 4-5 team, San Francisco or Cincinnati? One team is going in the right direction, the other isn’t.
2) What’s all this talk about the handshake, or lack of a handshake, between Bill Belichick and Eric Mangini? Sure there’s some tension between mentor and protégé, but how long do other coaches with less of a history, like, say, Bill Parcells and Denny Green shake hands for? I watched the “cold” handshake between Belichick and Mangini, it was about .347 seconds. The Parcells Green handshake was about .469 seconds. That’s a .122 second difference; an extra syllable said at best. Who cares? This is so not a story…move on.
3) Not to start second guessing the Giants past draft strategy, but, you know, they did have Phillip Rivers for about 15 minutes before trading him to San Diego in exchange for Eli Manning and a king’s ransom. Phillip Rivers had a career transforming game yesterday; putting up 42 second half points in Cincinnati. Manning looked simply awful.
4) Saw Matt Leinart play for the first time this season against Dallas. Man Arizona looks bad, all game long Leinart had his eyes set on whomever the play was designed for. So easy to read if you’re a defender, no pump fakes, no counters, no play action, no scouting the field for other options. I mean, everyone on Dallas knew where the ball was going on every play. How the coaches haven’t attempted to make such adjustments is beyond me. Arizona is a very, very bad football team.
5) After seeing Luke Petitgout go down for the season, is there any wonder how the Left Tackle position has become the road to riches in the NFL?
Monday, November 06, 2006
GIANTS AVOID CARR WRECK
For those of you who’ve missed those “old Giants”, you know, the one’s that somehow beat the other team but never covered the point spread, don’t complain. You’re order against the Houston Texans has been processed. Thank you for your patronage, come see us again next Sunday. For the last two weeks, those old Giants have been back. Just winning games in unceremonious fashion where by Tuesday it’s forgotten how they did it. Regardless of who’s coaching Big Blue, the Giants have always played the good teams much better than the bad. So is beating the woebegone Houston Texans by a paltry score of 14-10 really a surprise?
All week long this game has been of high importance and high alert. The alarm sounding of a “trap game” went off when Tampa Bay exited Giants Stadium the week before. So many times the Giants have stooped down to inferior competition to keep their batteries fresh against the presumably tougher match-up a week later. Would this happen again against the Texans? For a while it looked that way.
First of all, despite the Houston Texans dreadful 2-6 record, it looks like things can only get better for this team. After all, they’ve prevented the Giants from doing something they’ve had carte blanche access to for a month; and that’s getting to the quarterback. David Carr (21/30 0 TD, 0 INT), who’s spent more time on his butt than any other quarterback over the past five years, was often poised and in position to make plays. He even scored a touchdown, though that drive was sustained thanks to the bonehead penalty by dimeback, James Butler. For the Giants, the game plan was simple: get to David Carr quickly and shut down the quietest top receiver in the league, Andre Johnson (9-83). It wasn’t that simple, as Carr relied on his patented quick release and hit Andre Johnson in the flat to move the chains along. For the most part Houston moved the ball pretty well, but failed to score on most occasions. From the beginning of the game, Houston had a chance to establish themselves on the opening drive, and took advantage of several Giant defenders (Osi Umenyiora, Sam Madison, Brandon Short, and later, Michael Strahan) being out. The problem is that teams who’ve only won two games all season find ways to stay that way. While getting into scoring position on their opening drive, Carr on a 3rd and 6 play, threw the ball to a wide open Walter Lundy (3 rec/16 yards, 20 rush/43 yards) in the flat. With nary a blue jersey in sight, Lundy let the ball squirt right through his hands. End of drive. Fourth down…field goal missed. The Texans are the opposite of the 90/10 rule. Ninety percent of their losses come from screw-ups only ten percent of the time; at least it was that way against the Giants. For the most part, Houston hung tough, only to make mistakes at the most inopportune times.
What the Giants did do well, and have needed to do for many weeks now, was get Jeremy Shockey (8/66, 1 TD) involved early in the game. It’s no secret that Shockey has a way of getting the rest of the team ramped up to play, but he’s got to get going early. With Plaxico Burress having his quarterly back spasms, Shockey pulled the mother load. Clearly Plax was missed by Giants quarterback, Eli Manning (17/28, 1 TD, 1 INT). Just like Dan Quayle is no John F. Kennedy, Michael Jennings (2/21) and Tim Carter (1/15) are no Plaxico Burress. Jennings, in his first NFL start showed some hustle and gumption, but still isn’t on the same page as Manning. Tim Carter, who knows? The guy is just so inconsistent. This week’s issue wasn’t dropped passes or stupid penalties, but rather never having enough room on the field to make a play. Seemed that every time the ball came his way, one foot was already out of bounds. That’s just careless. At least he’s healthy, generally he’s only good until Halloween.
Of course Tiki did his thing (17-115), but what was really impressive was the offensive line discipline in this game. Guards Dave Diehl and Chris Snee were very crisp when pulling across en route to create downfield blocking lanes, while Luke Petitgout kept Mario Williams relatively quiet for most of the game. And boy have the penalties come way down, in fact, the only line penalties that I can recall came from Rich Seubert and Bob Whitfield; neither of whom are regular starters.
What is a concern now that the season enters it’s latter half is injuries. Michael Strahan will be out at least 2-4 weeks with an ankle sprain while Osi Umenyiora still nurses his banged up hip. Clearly Chicago will look to exploit this weakness since David Carr came out of Sunday’s game relatively unscathed. Be careful for what you wished for, those old boring Giants just might hang around for a few more weeks…whoever’s healthy enough to go.
FIVE OTHER THOUGHTS
1) For a Giant secondary that can’t really cover, Gibril Wilson really stuck close in man-to-man coverage when Houston was deep in the red zone. Still would like to see him in more blitzes; which might be the case with the Giants defensive line being so banged up. I like Gibril Wilson a lot.
2) Other scribes have mentioned this as well, but I share their thoughts. As impressive as David Carr played against the Giants, act like a professional. Couldn’t tell if his reaction after a two-yard touchdown scamper was from his fraternity days or he was auditioning for The Price is Right. Either way it was extremely sophomoric and unprofessional. Grow up kid, you’re on a 2-6 team.
3) Saw all of the Giants-Texans game, most of the Indy-New England game (dozed off for a few minutes) and caught portions of Pittsburgh-Denver and Minnesota-San Francisco while at the gym. Added up, I equate this to about 2.672 football games watched by me yesterday. Nevertheless, I don’t think I’m exaggerating if I guessed that the Chevrolet commercial with John Mellencamp must have aired about 67 times yesterday. Message to ad agency buying airtime for General Motors: I live in Brooklyn, I ain’t buying a pick-up truck to haul calzones. Why the hell is this ad being aired in as if I’m living in Amarillo? Mellencamp fans forget about an upcoming tour, he ought to have enough royalty checks to cover him for the next ten years.
4) Not sure how long Rich Gannon has been an announcer. He’s an analyst for CBS and tends to do lower priority/small market games. In other words, we don’t get him calling too many games in New York unless the Giants or Jets are playing a team like the Texans; and so yesterday was my first experience with him calling a game. He stinks.
5) Besides Tiki Barber, Jeff Feagles will likely retire after this season as well. You don’t appreciate a good punter until he’s gone. Don’t laugh when I say that his impact will also be sorely missed. You heard it here first.
All week long this game has been of high importance and high alert. The alarm sounding of a “trap game” went off when Tampa Bay exited Giants Stadium the week before. So many times the Giants have stooped down to inferior competition to keep their batteries fresh against the presumably tougher match-up a week later. Would this happen again against the Texans? For a while it looked that way.
First of all, despite the Houston Texans dreadful 2-6 record, it looks like things can only get better for this team. After all, they’ve prevented the Giants from doing something they’ve had carte blanche access to for a month; and that’s getting to the quarterback. David Carr (21/30 0 TD, 0 INT), who’s spent more time on his butt than any other quarterback over the past five years, was often poised and in position to make plays. He even scored a touchdown, though that drive was sustained thanks to the bonehead penalty by dimeback, James Butler. For the Giants, the game plan was simple: get to David Carr quickly and shut down the quietest top receiver in the league, Andre Johnson (9-83). It wasn’t that simple, as Carr relied on his patented quick release and hit Andre Johnson in the flat to move the chains along. For the most part Houston moved the ball pretty well, but failed to score on most occasions. From the beginning of the game, Houston had a chance to establish themselves on the opening drive, and took advantage of several Giant defenders (Osi Umenyiora, Sam Madison, Brandon Short, and later, Michael Strahan) being out. The problem is that teams who’ve only won two games all season find ways to stay that way. While getting into scoring position on their opening drive, Carr on a 3rd and 6 play, threw the ball to a wide open Walter Lundy (3 rec/16 yards, 20 rush/43 yards) in the flat. With nary a blue jersey in sight, Lundy let the ball squirt right through his hands. End of drive. Fourth down…field goal missed. The Texans are the opposite of the 90/10 rule. Ninety percent of their losses come from screw-ups only ten percent of the time; at least it was that way against the Giants. For the most part, Houston hung tough, only to make mistakes at the most inopportune times.
What the Giants did do well, and have needed to do for many weeks now, was get Jeremy Shockey (8/66, 1 TD) involved early in the game. It’s no secret that Shockey has a way of getting the rest of the team ramped up to play, but he’s got to get going early. With Plaxico Burress having his quarterly back spasms, Shockey pulled the mother load. Clearly Plax was missed by Giants quarterback, Eli Manning (17/28, 1 TD, 1 INT). Just like Dan Quayle is no John F. Kennedy, Michael Jennings (2/21) and Tim Carter (1/15) are no Plaxico Burress. Jennings, in his first NFL start showed some hustle and gumption, but still isn’t on the same page as Manning. Tim Carter, who knows? The guy is just so inconsistent. This week’s issue wasn’t dropped passes or stupid penalties, but rather never having enough room on the field to make a play. Seemed that every time the ball came his way, one foot was already out of bounds. That’s just careless. At least he’s healthy, generally he’s only good until Halloween.
Of course Tiki did his thing (17-115), but what was really impressive was the offensive line discipline in this game. Guards Dave Diehl and Chris Snee were very crisp when pulling across en route to create downfield blocking lanes, while Luke Petitgout kept Mario Williams relatively quiet for most of the game. And boy have the penalties come way down, in fact, the only line penalties that I can recall came from Rich Seubert and Bob Whitfield; neither of whom are regular starters.
What is a concern now that the season enters it’s latter half is injuries. Michael Strahan will be out at least 2-4 weeks with an ankle sprain while Osi Umenyiora still nurses his banged up hip. Clearly Chicago will look to exploit this weakness since David Carr came out of Sunday’s game relatively unscathed. Be careful for what you wished for, those old boring Giants just might hang around for a few more weeks…whoever’s healthy enough to go.
FIVE OTHER THOUGHTS
1) For a Giant secondary that can’t really cover, Gibril Wilson really stuck close in man-to-man coverage when Houston was deep in the red zone. Still would like to see him in more blitzes; which might be the case with the Giants defensive line being so banged up. I like Gibril Wilson a lot.
2) Other scribes have mentioned this as well, but I share their thoughts. As impressive as David Carr played against the Giants, act like a professional. Couldn’t tell if his reaction after a two-yard touchdown scamper was from his fraternity days or he was auditioning for The Price is Right. Either way it was extremely sophomoric and unprofessional. Grow up kid, you’re on a 2-6 team.
3) Saw all of the Giants-Texans game, most of the Indy-New England game (dozed off for a few minutes) and caught portions of Pittsburgh-Denver and Minnesota-San Francisco while at the gym. Added up, I equate this to about 2.672 football games watched by me yesterday. Nevertheless, I don’t think I’m exaggerating if I guessed that the Chevrolet commercial with John Mellencamp must have aired about 67 times yesterday. Message to ad agency buying airtime for General Motors: I live in Brooklyn, I ain’t buying a pick-up truck to haul calzones. Why the hell is this ad being aired in as if I’m living in Amarillo? Mellencamp fans forget about an upcoming tour, he ought to have enough royalty checks to cover him for the next ten years.
4) Not sure how long Rich Gannon has been an announcer. He’s an analyst for CBS and tends to do lower priority/small market games. In other words, we don’t get him calling too many games in New York unless the Giants or Jets are playing a team like the Texans; and so yesterday was my first experience with him calling a game. He stinks.
5) Besides Tiki Barber, Jeff Feagles will likely retire after this season as well. You don’t appreciate a good punter until he’s gone. Don’t laugh when I say that his impact will also be sorely missed. You heard it here first.
Monday, October 30, 2006
GIANT DEFENSE RUNS PIRATE SHIP AGROUND
When looking back on the Giants 2006 season, the game against Tampa Bay will likely blur into the season like a rest stop en route to summer camp. With the swirling winds reinforcing the Meadowlands’ gusty reputation, there was little offense to be found. More euphemistically said, it was a game of “field position”…a punter’s duel, of which there were 18 punts in all. Not bad enough to watch Heidi, but with the exception of Plaxico Burress’ one-handed touchdown grab, this game provided few, if any other highlights.
The game got off to a somewhat tentative start. The Bucs in the last seven days have had to adapt to climate extremes; stifling heat at home against the Eagles a week ago, brisk chills Sunday in Giants Stadium. It’s no secret that cold weather to Tampa Bay is like kryptonite to Superman. As a result, the game started like a lumbering bear coming out of hibernation.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Giants did go for the throat, blitzing early and often. Clearly the Giants have found a way to compensate for their secondary, and that’s to simply get to the quarterback as quickly as possible. It’s nice to see again, as making life miserable for quarterbacks had been a lost art in Giantdom until recently. Even better, since the secondary hasn’t been able to cover much of anyone this season, why not ramp up the corner and safety blitzes as well? Until Sunday, Gibril Wilson had been a complete afterthought. And when the Giants had a chance to get burned by the blitz, they got help from the wind in the form poorly thrown passes from Bucs’ QB Brad Gradkowski. Add in a number of dropped passes by a frightened Joey Galloway and company, and one could see early that it was going to be a long day for Tampa Bay.
The Bucs’ however, did make some adjustments that stymied the Giants pass rush as the game worn on; putting in a two tight-end set consisting of Anthony Becht and Alex Smith. This spread out the Giants linebackers into the flat and thus took away the Giants ability to blitz. To further exploit this formation, Tampa Bay was also able to work in several screen passes to Cadillac Williams and Michael Pittman for marginal gains. At best, however, this enabled Tampa Bay to pick up a few first downs in the second half. Yet as soon as they looked to be in striking distance, something would implode in the form of a penalty, sack or turnover and kill the drive.
Even though this wasn’t the most exiting match-up, there was one very significant thing to extract from this game, and that was the innate sense the Giants had this game won from the very beginning. For years, as well as early in the Tom Coughlin era, there was always a disturbing anticipation that the Giants were about to let a game slip away. This feeling didn’t go without merit, just look at the last ten years. We’ve seen it earlier in this season as well, when they could have beaten Indianapolis, as well as in Dallas last week where the Giants had a chance to deliver the finishing blow early in the second quarter. For years the Giants have simply lacked that knockout punch. Yet something about the way they beat Tampa Bay showed no hint of the game ever being in jeopardy. It was obvious to the point of being dull, but it’s a dullness that Giant fans will happily take.
Call it magic if you want, I’ll just call it defense.
The game got off to a somewhat tentative start. The Bucs in the last seven days have had to adapt to climate extremes; stifling heat at home against the Eagles a week ago, brisk chills Sunday in Giants Stadium. It’s no secret that cold weather to Tampa Bay is like kryptonite to Superman. As a result, the game started like a lumbering bear coming out of hibernation.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Giants did go for the throat, blitzing early and often. Clearly the Giants have found a way to compensate for their secondary, and that’s to simply get to the quarterback as quickly as possible. It’s nice to see again, as making life miserable for quarterbacks had been a lost art in Giantdom until recently. Even better, since the secondary hasn’t been able to cover much of anyone this season, why not ramp up the corner and safety blitzes as well? Until Sunday, Gibril Wilson had been a complete afterthought. And when the Giants had a chance to get burned by the blitz, they got help from the wind in the form poorly thrown passes from Bucs’ QB Brad Gradkowski. Add in a number of dropped passes by a frightened Joey Galloway and company, and one could see early that it was going to be a long day for Tampa Bay.
The Bucs’ however, did make some adjustments that stymied the Giants pass rush as the game worn on; putting in a two tight-end set consisting of Anthony Becht and Alex Smith. This spread out the Giants linebackers into the flat and thus took away the Giants ability to blitz. To further exploit this formation, Tampa Bay was also able to work in several screen passes to Cadillac Williams and Michael Pittman for marginal gains. At best, however, this enabled Tampa Bay to pick up a few first downs in the second half. Yet as soon as they looked to be in striking distance, something would implode in the form of a penalty, sack or turnover and kill the drive.
Even though this wasn’t the most exiting match-up, there was one very significant thing to extract from this game, and that was the innate sense the Giants had this game won from the very beginning. For years, as well as early in the Tom Coughlin era, there was always a disturbing anticipation that the Giants were about to let a game slip away. This feeling didn’t go without merit, just look at the last ten years. We’ve seen it earlier in this season as well, when they could have beaten Indianapolis, as well as in Dallas last week where the Giants had a chance to deliver the finishing blow early in the second quarter. For years the Giants have simply lacked that knockout punch. Yet something about the way they beat Tampa Bay showed no hint of the game ever being in jeopardy. It was obvious to the point of being dull, but it’s a dullness that Giant fans will happily take.
Call it magic if you want, I’ll just call it defense.
Saturday, October 28, 2006
BY REQUEST...
I’m not sure how this happened, but somehow one of my readers got hold of my personal cell phone number and left me a message. I’ve called Verizon to get answers, but I’ve given up on customer service in New York City. He wanted my perspective of how things are shaping up in the NFC East; particularly in the wake of injuries, quarterback controversies, retirement announcements and overall concerns facing the division. So, whomever you are that called me at 9:57 on Thursday morning, here’s my take. Glad you called, I needed the release. The job that pays has kept me well occupied this week. I’ll have Verizon call off the search.
Dallas Cowboys:
Dallas is under the microscope this week because they lost badly on Monday night to the New York Giants. The Giants played well, perhaps their best performance to date. Though there’s no doubt the Cowboys made it easier than it needed to be. And as if the T.O.-a-meter hasn’t already gone on full tilt, a national television audience has now witnessed the Drew Bledsoe-Tony Romo quarterback controversy unfold before their very eyes. For now it’s saucy stuff, much juicier than the Gary Hogeboom-Danny White QB controversy of the early 1980s. Then again, the egos of Tom Landry and Tex Schram have about one eight the wattage of Bill Parcells and Jerry Jones.
First of all, I don’t think there’s much of a controversy here. I’ve never been sold on Drew Bledsoe. He’s been in the league for 13 years now and has never demonstrated any true command for the game. Perhaps if Bledsoe had a dose of Joe Montana’s smarts with the “gun slinger” aspect of Brett Favre, he might have been one hell of a quarterback. To his credit, Bledsoe has always had a strong arm and has remained remarkably durable, but unfortunately lacks the proper intangibles to have ever been great. In essence, Drew Bledsoe is Kerry Collins with higher self-esteem. Parcells knows it’s too late to change Bledsoe’s habits. He overthinks when his instincts should take command and allows impulses to override times when judgement should prevail. His wires have always been crossed, and thus it’s time to shelve the veteran rookie for someone else. Enter Tony Romo. Now, Tony, let us fill you in about this offensive line…
What’s also crazy is the sports punditry is trying to examine if there’s any power struggle going on between Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells. Jones is pro-Bledsoe, Parcells is pro-Romo. Now that Romo is starting this week against Carolina, is it because he’s the better quarterback, or is it because Parcells wants to stick it to his boss? For God’s sake, could if just have to do that Bledsoe can’t move worth a damn and makes decisions that are dumb even by junior varsity standards? Once upon a time, people concerned themselves with what the Dallas Cowboys did on the field. To loosely barrow from Simon & Garfunkel: Where have you gone Roger Staubach, a sprawling city turns its lonely eyes to you.
Jones has to be careful about his continuous desire to pull all the strings, as he’s had lousy luck finding anybody to work for him between the tenures of Tuna and Jimmy Johnson. After all, Dave Campo and Chan Gaily are, for lack of a better comparison, the James Buchanan and Franklin Pierce of Cowboys franchise history. What’s really looming is that Parcells has perhaps this season and maybe…and I stress maybe… next season to get Dallas where they want to be. We’ve all seen how Parcells gets his teams going in the right direction, then quits. The main difference with these Cowboys is that only in spurts have they’ve been competitive, failing to show any constant forward direction. Thus making for a rather un-Parcellsian anomaly. It’s also well known that Parcells hates front office intervention, though he can’t absorb the responsibility of being head coach and general manager at the same time, as previous experiments proved. Maybe Parcells’ current situation is what he wants after all, as he’s only happy when he’s miserable. And boy does he look miserable (so, then…maybe he’s happy?). Who knows? In any case, a few more weeks of these shenanigans and look out for a clandestine sighting of Jerry Jones and Jim Fassel. For Fassel it’s either talk to Jones or audition to pitch the Sleep Number Bed.
Philadelphia Eagles:
I’ve pretty much had it with this team. For some reason there’s this false believe; this illusion if you will, that the Philadelphia Eagles are among the NFL’s elite teams. Oh yes, in the second week of the season they won an impressive road game against the Houston Texans. You could say the same about America’s military prowess in Grenada. Ever since Rush Limbaugh made the politically incorrect comment that Donovan McNabb was “overrated…because the media has been very desirous to see a black quarterback do well,” there has been an overcompensating backlash about how “well” he’s played ever since. Enough already. He goofed off on the sidelines and even tried to taunt the Giants’ linebackers before that game was stolen in overtime last month. And don’t even tell me how great he looked in the game against Tampa Bay. Had he not gift-wrapped 14 points in the form of two interceptions to Ronde Barber, there wouldn’t have been a sense of urgency to begin with. That late touchdown pass to Brian Westbrook was more an example of shoddy arm tackling by Tampa Bay defenders than a brilliant, Elway-esque, comeback (which wasn’t a comeback anyway because Tampa Bay won). Yet thanks to Rush Limbaugh, McNabb is forever sacrosanct from such criticism. Somehow Marc Bulger, Tom Brady and Damon Huard have fallen well below the radar while McNabb has had his “career season”. Lest us forget that McNabb’s team is just one game north of .500. If the media is truly desirous to see a black quarterback do well, take a look at how Charlie Batch has stepped up in Pittsburgh this season. Better yet, just view the quarterback position with same color-blindness as an offensive lineman.
Washington Redskins:
The Washington Redskins coaching staff is like a collaboration of established musicians forming a new band, and sucking. Think the concept of Derek and the Dominos with the product of Asia. Thus far the “super group” billing of Joe Gibbs, Gregg Williams and Al Saunders has produced only two wins with whispers of a potential quarterback controversy as well. Mark Brunell, whose mobility could be compared to that of a hippopotamus, has been beaten and bruised all season. Though to his credit Brunell’s brittle 36-year-old body has remained largely intact. Despite another crop of mercenary receivers harvested from the Skins’ cornucopia, Brunell has had little time to get them ball. And when he does have time, his receivers, particularly Brandon Lloyd, have run the wrong route or aren’t where they’re supposed to be. Generally pre-season is the time when such kinks get banged out, however, when the offensive playbook exceeds the thickness of the New York City Yellow Pages, confusion is bound to happen.
Confusion isn’t the only problem with the Redskins offense but pass protection too. Last week against Indianapolis, Redskins tackle Chris Samuels gave his best impersonation of a bowling pin; colliding with other lineman and knocking them down while Colt defenders mauled Mark Brunell. As for the running game, Clinton Portis and the four other backs on Washington’s roster have moved the ball well enough, though Portis’ health seems to be a weekly concern. We’ve seen what Ladell Betts can do when given the opportunity, but it remains a question if he can keep his stamina if elevated beyond a supporting role.
The problem with the Skins is ever since Dan Snyder took over the team they simply don’t operate as a cohesive unit. Fewer teams have spent as much on big-ticket free agents only to see them lose their luster once they get to DC. For a team that’s always had one of the most devoted fan bases in the NFL, one wonders about the constant need for such star power. Even a scab team donning the burgundy and gold would fill FedEx Field to capacity. Sure they’re the Redskins, but are they your Redskins; the one’s that played in RFK Stadium back when Loudoun County was still farmland? Like Jerry Jones with Bill Parcells, Dan Snyder has about reached to bottom of his bag of tricks for producing head-coaches. Some say that Notre Dame Head Coach, Charlie Weis, could get pried away if the price was right; even though Weis recently stated that he wanted to remain in South Bend until he died. With Joe Gibbs looking as though the game has passed him by, the Redskins are looking like the NFL’s version of Ishtar.
New York Giants:
As much at the media wants to drum up the significance of Tiki Barber retiring after this season, it’s hardly been a distraction. There’re a lot of other things about the Giants that will likely change after this season. One main change will be in the front office. With Giants’ co-owners Wellington Mara and Bob Tisch dying within the span of a few weeks last season, Giants’ GM Ernie Accorsi postponed his retirement for another year. Of course he could change his mind again and keep working, but if Accorsi’s plan stays the same, then major change is looming. For whatever reason, this issue has been largely unmentioned. And when that happens, it’s doubtful how long Tom Coughlin will hang around. Lately the Giants have been playing much, much better, but the ebb and flow of their play since Coughlin took over three years ago has always been an issue. There’s simply something unconvincing about Coughlin manning the helm of Big Blue. The car may start for a few weeks, then it may need a jump-start, but when one really needs the car to start it fails to turn over…that’s the Tom Coughlin pattern. Just look at how the Carolina Panthers embarrassed the Giants in playoffs last season. One just never knows; as in, when’s the other shoe gonna drop?
What is getting fans riled up is the Giants are playing defense again. The pass rush that was non-existent early in the season is now in complete abundance. It’s a good thing since Big Blue’s secondary is still getting burned routinely and thankfully has some cushion. Michael Strahan still looks young and vibrant even in his fourteenth season, and the push from the Giants interior line play has stuffed the running game very well. This Sunday against Tampa Bay, Osi Umenyiora will be nursing his hip as Mathias Kiwanuka gets his first rookie start. Kiwanuka, or “MK” as he’s known, plays with uncanny quickness, and even better, he’s got a mean streak. Frankly, it’s good to see the Giants look a little meaner in order to jettison anything – and I mean anything – from the Jim Fassel era.
So far this season I’ve been off with my hunches and can’t seem to get off my own campaign to make Visanthe Shiancoe a household name. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink. I’ve done all that I can. But since I like to give my gut feeling, I do feel that Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay will be Brandon Jacobs’ first real breakout game. The reason I feel this way is I get a sense that there’s some resentment to Tiki Barber’s retirement announcement. Earlier in the week, there was some uncharacteristic jawing between Tiki and Michael Irvin and Tom Jackson of ESPN. Tiki even went to the extent of calling them “idiots”. Essentially, there’s a contingent that believes Tiki Barber is a sissy for retiring while he’s still in the prime of his career, and I think Tampa Bay is going to pursue him with a vengeance. Being that Tiki’s twin brother, Ronde, plays cornerback for Tampa Bay, they’ll do all they can to gang up on Tiki in order to show that their Barber is the boldest. To answer that assault, the Giants will launch Brandon Jacobs right into the pits, wear them down, and the let Tiki pave right over them. That’s just a hunch of course, but I’m sticking with it.
Enjoy the games everyone, wherever you might be.
Dallas Cowboys:
Dallas is under the microscope this week because they lost badly on Monday night to the New York Giants. The Giants played well, perhaps their best performance to date. Though there’s no doubt the Cowboys made it easier than it needed to be. And as if the T.O.-a-meter hasn’t already gone on full tilt, a national television audience has now witnessed the Drew Bledsoe-Tony Romo quarterback controversy unfold before their very eyes. For now it’s saucy stuff, much juicier than the Gary Hogeboom-Danny White QB controversy of the early 1980s. Then again, the egos of Tom Landry and Tex Schram have about one eight the wattage of Bill Parcells and Jerry Jones.
First of all, I don’t think there’s much of a controversy here. I’ve never been sold on Drew Bledsoe. He’s been in the league for 13 years now and has never demonstrated any true command for the game. Perhaps if Bledsoe had a dose of Joe Montana’s smarts with the “gun slinger” aspect of Brett Favre, he might have been one hell of a quarterback. To his credit, Bledsoe has always had a strong arm and has remained remarkably durable, but unfortunately lacks the proper intangibles to have ever been great. In essence, Drew Bledsoe is Kerry Collins with higher self-esteem. Parcells knows it’s too late to change Bledsoe’s habits. He overthinks when his instincts should take command and allows impulses to override times when judgement should prevail. His wires have always been crossed, and thus it’s time to shelve the veteran rookie for someone else. Enter Tony Romo. Now, Tony, let us fill you in about this offensive line…
What’s also crazy is the sports punditry is trying to examine if there’s any power struggle going on between Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells. Jones is pro-Bledsoe, Parcells is pro-Romo. Now that Romo is starting this week against Carolina, is it because he’s the better quarterback, or is it because Parcells wants to stick it to his boss? For God’s sake, could if just have to do that Bledsoe can’t move worth a damn and makes decisions that are dumb even by junior varsity standards? Once upon a time, people concerned themselves with what the Dallas Cowboys did on the field. To loosely barrow from Simon & Garfunkel: Where have you gone Roger Staubach, a sprawling city turns its lonely eyes to you.
Jones has to be careful about his continuous desire to pull all the strings, as he’s had lousy luck finding anybody to work for him between the tenures of Tuna and Jimmy Johnson. After all, Dave Campo and Chan Gaily are, for lack of a better comparison, the James Buchanan and Franklin Pierce of Cowboys franchise history. What’s really looming is that Parcells has perhaps this season and maybe…and I stress maybe… next season to get Dallas where they want to be. We’ve all seen how Parcells gets his teams going in the right direction, then quits. The main difference with these Cowboys is that only in spurts have they’ve been competitive, failing to show any constant forward direction. Thus making for a rather un-Parcellsian anomaly. It’s also well known that Parcells hates front office intervention, though he can’t absorb the responsibility of being head coach and general manager at the same time, as previous experiments proved. Maybe Parcells’ current situation is what he wants after all, as he’s only happy when he’s miserable. And boy does he look miserable (so, then…maybe he’s happy?). Who knows? In any case, a few more weeks of these shenanigans and look out for a clandestine sighting of Jerry Jones and Jim Fassel. For Fassel it’s either talk to Jones or audition to pitch the Sleep Number Bed.
Philadelphia Eagles:
I’ve pretty much had it with this team. For some reason there’s this false believe; this illusion if you will, that the Philadelphia Eagles are among the NFL’s elite teams. Oh yes, in the second week of the season they won an impressive road game against the Houston Texans. You could say the same about America’s military prowess in Grenada. Ever since Rush Limbaugh made the politically incorrect comment that Donovan McNabb was “overrated…because the media has been very desirous to see a black quarterback do well,” there has been an overcompensating backlash about how “well” he’s played ever since. Enough already. He goofed off on the sidelines and even tried to taunt the Giants’ linebackers before that game was stolen in overtime last month. And don’t even tell me how great he looked in the game against Tampa Bay. Had he not gift-wrapped 14 points in the form of two interceptions to Ronde Barber, there wouldn’t have been a sense of urgency to begin with. That late touchdown pass to Brian Westbrook was more an example of shoddy arm tackling by Tampa Bay defenders than a brilliant, Elway-esque, comeback (which wasn’t a comeback anyway because Tampa Bay won). Yet thanks to Rush Limbaugh, McNabb is forever sacrosanct from such criticism. Somehow Marc Bulger, Tom Brady and Damon Huard have fallen well below the radar while McNabb has had his “career season”. Lest us forget that McNabb’s team is just one game north of .500. If the media is truly desirous to see a black quarterback do well, take a look at how Charlie Batch has stepped up in Pittsburgh this season. Better yet, just view the quarterback position with same color-blindness as an offensive lineman.
Washington Redskins:
The Washington Redskins coaching staff is like a collaboration of established musicians forming a new band, and sucking. Think the concept of Derek and the Dominos with the product of Asia. Thus far the “super group” billing of Joe Gibbs, Gregg Williams and Al Saunders has produced only two wins with whispers of a potential quarterback controversy as well. Mark Brunell, whose mobility could be compared to that of a hippopotamus, has been beaten and bruised all season. Though to his credit Brunell’s brittle 36-year-old body has remained largely intact. Despite another crop of mercenary receivers harvested from the Skins’ cornucopia, Brunell has had little time to get them ball. And when he does have time, his receivers, particularly Brandon Lloyd, have run the wrong route or aren’t where they’re supposed to be. Generally pre-season is the time when such kinks get banged out, however, when the offensive playbook exceeds the thickness of the New York City Yellow Pages, confusion is bound to happen.
Confusion isn’t the only problem with the Redskins offense but pass protection too. Last week against Indianapolis, Redskins tackle Chris Samuels gave his best impersonation of a bowling pin; colliding with other lineman and knocking them down while Colt defenders mauled Mark Brunell. As for the running game, Clinton Portis and the four other backs on Washington’s roster have moved the ball well enough, though Portis’ health seems to be a weekly concern. We’ve seen what Ladell Betts can do when given the opportunity, but it remains a question if he can keep his stamina if elevated beyond a supporting role.
The problem with the Skins is ever since Dan Snyder took over the team they simply don’t operate as a cohesive unit. Fewer teams have spent as much on big-ticket free agents only to see them lose their luster once they get to DC. For a team that’s always had one of the most devoted fan bases in the NFL, one wonders about the constant need for such star power. Even a scab team donning the burgundy and gold would fill FedEx Field to capacity. Sure they’re the Redskins, but are they your Redskins; the one’s that played in RFK Stadium back when Loudoun County was still farmland? Like Jerry Jones with Bill Parcells, Dan Snyder has about reached to bottom of his bag of tricks for producing head-coaches. Some say that Notre Dame Head Coach, Charlie Weis, could get pried away if the price was right; even though Weis recently stated that he wanted to remain in South Bend until he died. With Joe Gibbs looking as though the game has passed him by, the Redskins are looking like the NFL’s version of Ishtar.
New York Giants:
As much at the media wants to drum up the significance of Tiki Barber retiring after this season, it’s hardly been a distraction. There’re a lot of other things about the Giants that will likely change after this season. One main change will be in the front office. With Giants’ co-owners Wellington Mara and Bob Tisch dying within the span of a few weeks last season, Giants’ GM Ernie Accorsi postponed his retirement for another year. Of course he could change his mind again and keep working, but if Accorsi’s plan stays the same, then major change is looming. For whatever reason, this issue has been largely unmentioned. And when that happens, it’s doubtful how long Tom Coughlin will hang around. Lately the Giants have been playing much, much better, but the ebb and flow of their play since Coughlin took over three years ago has always been an issue. There’s simply something unconvincing about Coughlin manning the helm of Big Blue. The car may start for a few weeks, then it may need a jump-start, but when one really needs the car to start it fails to turn over…that’s the Tom Coughlin pattern. Just look at how the Carolina Panthers embarrassed the Giants in playoffs last season. One just never knows; as in, when’s the other shoe gonna drop?
What is getting fans riled up is the Giants are playing defense again. The pass rush that was non-existent early in the season is now in complete abundance. It’s a good thing since Big Blue’s secondary is still getting burned routinely and thankfully has some cushion. Michael Strahan still looks young and vibrant even in his fourteenth season, and the push from the Giants interior line play has stuffed the running game very well. This Sunday against Tampa Bay, Osi Umenyiora will be nursing his hip as Mathias Kiwanuka gets his first rookie start. Kiwanuka, or “MK” as he’s known, plays with uncanny quickness, and even better, he’s got a mean streak. Frankly, it’s good to see the Giants look a little meaner in order to jettison anything – and I mean anything – from the Jim Fassel era.
So far this season I’ve been off with my hunches and can’t seem to get off my own campaign to make Visanthe Shiancoe a household name. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink. I’ve done all that I can. But since I like to give my gut feeling, I do feel that Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay will be Brandon Jacobs’ first real breakout game. The reason I feel this way is I get a sense that there’s some resentment to Tiki Barber’s retirement announcement. Earlier in the week, there was some uncharacteristic jawing between Tiki and Michael Irvin and Tom Jackson of ESPN. Tiki even went to the extent of calling them “idiots”. Essentially, there’s a contingent that believes Tiki Barber is a sissy for retiring while he’s still in the prime of his career, and I think Tampa Bay is going to pursue him with a vengeance. Being that Tiki’s twin brother, Ronde, plays cornerback for Tampa Bay, they’ll do all they can to gang up on Tiki in order to show that their Barber is the boldest. To answer that assault, the Giants will launch Brandon Jacobs right into the pits, wear them down, and the let Tiki pave right over them. That’s just a hunch of course, but I’m sticking with it.
Enjoy the games everyone, wherever you might be.
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
NO FRILLS, NO WORRIES
Going into Week Five with a 1-2 record, the Giants were a salesman needing a big month to offset a rough quarter. Beating the Redskins Sunday didn’t necessarily constitute a “big month”, but they satisfactorily met their goal. By winning they avoided the probationary letter this week, but to say that they’re in a secure enough position to buy that bigger house would be a bit premature. Management was reminded why they showed some patience. The Giants are reminded they’re only as good as their last game.
Coming off their bye week, the Giants had two weeks to meet, analyze and do whatever teambuilding drills were required to plug the leaks in their young season. There were tons of questions going into this game, with the biggest concerns being on the defensive end of the ball. The Giants, with all their depth on the defensive line, desperately needed some semblance of a pass rush and did; with Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan and Fred Robbins all getting a sack apiece. For most of the day, Redskins quarterback, Mark Brunell, was hurried, knocked around, and rarely with enough time to locate an open receiver. That said, there seems to be a noticeable disappearance from first round draft pick Mathias Kiwanuka. Kiwanuka’s play both in pre-season and the opening game against the Colts indicated a somewhat Taylorian presence. He’s quick and mean, not to mention a “find” coming out Boston College. Yet he seems to be relegated to cameo appearances. Why? Granted Michael Strahan still has some “gas in the tank”, but isn’t New York ready for some “MK?”
The other major defensive question was how well would the secondary play. In typical Washington DC fashion, the Redskins have enjoyed name-dropping their much touted “Al Saunders” offensive scheme. It took a few weeks for it to come together, but after the shootout against Jacksonville, it looked as though Brunell got ten years younger while Don Coryell sprinkled some magic dust over FedEx Field. Knowing how shredded the Giants secondary was in their previous three games, it was foreseeable that Santana Moss, Antwaan Randel El, and Chris Cooley could potentially post some career high numbers. It didn’t work out that way, as Chris Cooley, of all people, was the Skins’ top receiver with a paltry four receptions for 41 yards.
What made this victory significant was its situational timing as opposed to overall execution. In order for the Giants to have some motivation to keep playing this season, they had to beat the Skins. Plain and simple. If they didn’t, then questions of Coughlin having control of his team might snatch a morsel of the attention away from Joe Torre’s job status. Still though, (and this is when one goes on auto pilot when discussing the Giants) Big Blue showed once again that they can move the ball with great efficiency only to come up with less than seven points on all but one drive. As most of us know, this is a decades old rant starting with the Bill Arnsbarger era. Granted, the Giants didn’t have nearly as many drive stopping penalties as they did in previous games this season, but they did have a few. The most costly was an illegal pick by Jeremy Shockey that negated an Amani Toomer touchdown. Fortunately for the Giants, they didn’t need 42 points to win. Two safeties would have been enough to eclipse Washington’s lone field goal. Not every victory has to result with an impromptu block party. But this game gets them to 2-2, and with the deadlock in the NFC East behind Philadelphia, this game might be regarded as the springboard that kept the season alive.
Other Thoughts…
Giants Player You’ll Get To Know Better Next Week:
I have a sense that Visanthe Shiancoe, the Giants number two tight-end, is going to have a break out game next week against Atlanta. With the status of Jeremy Shockey’s ankle sill uncertain (MRI results due out soon) it looks as though Shiancoe might get a rare start. Shiancoe, though used sparingly, has shown that when he does get the ball, he holds on to it pretty well. Blocking is not his forte, in fact, you’ll have to go back to Dan Campbell (now with Detroit) to when the Giants had a tight-end that could actually block. In any case, with Shockey going into yet another season dinged up, look for Coughlin to work Shiancoe a lot more into the offensive game plan. Go ahead, read into the subtext on that one if you want. Even if Shockey did apologize for his comments after the Seattle game, I think Coughlin wants to make things a little unpleasant for New York’s favorite Okie since Mickey Mantle.
Giants Player You Got To Know Better This Week:
Tim Carter made a few key receptions Sunday against Washington. He still has to survive at least half a season before we get really exited about him. The Giants have shown patience with Carter mainly because of his speed, though that patience will continue to wear thin if the oft-injured Carter continues to drop key passes and get penalized at the most inopportune times. Each week though, Carter has gained steady ground to show he’s a legitimate third receiver after Plaxico Burress and the ageless Amani Toomer. Let’s see if that trend continues.
Five Other Football Thoughts:
1) I think it’s about time that Bill Cowher really consider retirement. After 15 years as the Steelers’ head coach, and finally winning that Super Bowl which has put him among the NFL’s elite coaches, there’s just a sense that his fire and gumption has evaporated. It’s a like a rock star who’s sold three multi-platinum albums based on angst ridden lyrics and throaty vocals. I mean, after three blockbuster albums, a house in the Hollywood Hills, and a crash pad in TriBeCa, how frustrated can one still be? What’s the fourth album going to be besides something…ummm…acoustic? That’s where I see Bill Cowher right now; as Alanis Moriseette post “Jagged Little Pill”. The loss to San Diego Sunday night proves it.
2) It’s too early to determine if Detroit Lions Head Coach Rod Marinelli is the reason to the Lions’ woeful start. Being that he’s so new, it’s easy to point the finger at Detroit’s GM, Matt Millen instead. It’s likely Millen will be ousted after this season. Too many poor draft picks, too many head coaches not succeeding (though I’m still a believer in Steve Mariucci), too many free agent busts. However, while catching the final seconds of the Detroit-Minnesota game Sunday, I watched Rod Marinelli waddle with a militant gait, like he’s got a thermometer in his lower orifice, with a clipboard stuck in the front of his pants, and I couldn’t help but think that this guy has the leadership skills of an anvil. Now I could be wrong here. After all, if you looked at Albert Einstein, you wouldn’t necessarily think he was a genius. But still, there are those types that strike an intuitive chord right off the bat, and I am sorry, but I’m just so not sold on Rod Marinelli. Based on Detroit’s current winless record, it doesn’t look like his team is either. With the exception of Andy Reid, seldom do position coaches ever make for good head coaches.
3) The St. Louis Rams are the most under-the-radar 4-1 team in the NFL right now.
4) The Dallas-Philadelphia match-up was one of the best games so far this season. But the hype around T.O. returning to Philly was about as overblown as the 1983 TV Movie “The Day After”. For those who don’t recall that movie, or weren’t born then, “The Day After” was about a nuclear attack on Lawrence, Kansas, and for weeks there was mass hysteria about the emotional consequences this film would have on its audience. The day after America saw “The Day After” everyone scoffed at the absurdity of the media hype. I mean, it was just TV…entertainment…and a B-movie at best, even if it did star the late Jason Robards. Ergo with T.O. coming to Philly. For God’s sake, he’s just a painfully insecure wide receiver who can’t keep his mouth shut, not Idi Amin coming out of exile. Extra security my foot, it would be better used guarding the Liberty Bell.
5) If there’s a team in the NFL that could use a youth movement right now, it’s the Buffalo Bills. It’s tough enough that they hail from a frigid Rust Belt city that’s seen better days, but to have two octogenarians run the show doesn’t suggest the Bills are on the cusp of football precocity. Throw in Dick Juron, a yard sale pick-up of a coach, and you’ve got the NFL’s version of Orange Julius from a mall built in 1973. Time for the Bills to find the next Jack Del Rio…now.
Coming off their bye week, the Giants had two weeks to meet, analyze and do whatever teambuilding drills were required to plug the leaks in their young season. There were tons of questions going into this game, with the biggest concerns being on the defensive end of the ball. The Giants, with all their depth on the defensive line, desperately needed some semblance of a pass rush and did; with Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan and Fred Robbins all getting a sack apiece. For most of the day, Redskins quarterback, Mark Brunell, was hurried, knocked around, and rarely with enough time to locate an open receiver. That said, there seems to be a noticeable disappearance from first round draft pick Mathias Kiwanuka. Kiwanuka’s play both in pre-season and the opening game against the Colts indicated a somewhat Taylorian presence. He’s quick and mean, not to mention a “find” coming out Boston College. Yet he seems to be relegated to cameo appearances. Why? Granted Michael Strahan still has some “gas in the tank”, but isn’t New York ready for some “MK?”
The other major defensive question was how well would the secondary play. In typical Washington DC fashion, the Redskins have enjoyed name-dropping their much touted “Al Saunders” offensive scheme. It took a few weeks for it to come together, but after the shootout against Jacksonville, it looked as though Brunell got ten years younger while Don Coryell sprinkled some magic dust over FedEx Field. Knowing how shredded the Giants secondary was in their previous three games, it was foreseeable that Santana Moss, Antwaan Randel El, and Chris Cooley could potentially post some career high numbers. It didn’t work out that way, as Chris Cooley, of all people, was the Skins’ top receiver with a paltry four receptions for 41 yards.
What made this victory significant was its situational timing as opposed to overall execution. In order for the Giants to have some motivation to keep playing this season, they had to beat the Skins. Plain and simple. If they didn’t, then questions of Coughlin having control of his team might snatch a morsel of the attention away from Joe Torre’s job status. Still though, (and this is when one goes on auto pilot when discussing the Giants) Big Blue showed once again that they can move the ball with great efficiency only to come up with less than seven points on all but one drive. As most of us know, this is a decades old rant starting with the Bill Arnsbarger era. Granted, the Giants didn’t have nearly as many drive stopping penalties as they did in previous games this season, but they did have a few. The most costly was an illegal pick by Jeremy Shockey that negated an Amani Toomer touchdown. Fortunately for the Giants, they didn’t need 42 points to win. Two safeties would have been enough to eclipse Washington’s lone field goal. Not every victory has to result with an impromptu block party. But this game gets them to 2-2, and with the deadlock in the NFC East behind Philadelphia, this game might be regarded as the springboard that kept the season alive.
Other Thoughts…
Giants Player You’ll Get To Know Better Next Week:
I have a sense that Visanthe Shiancoe, the Giants number two tight-end, is going to have a break out game next week against Atlanta. With the status of Jeremy Shockey’s ankle sill uncertain (MRI results due out soon) it looks as though Shiancoe might get a rare start. Shiancoe, though used sparingly, has shown that when he does get the ball, he holds on to it pretty well. Blocking is not his forte, in fact, you’ll have to go back to Dan Campbell (now with Detroit) to when the Giants had a tight-end that could actually block. In any case, with Shockey going into yet another season dinged up, look for Coughlin to work Shiancoe a lot more into the offensive game plan. Go ahead, read into the subtext on that one if you want. Even if Shockey did apologize for his comments after the Seattle game, I think Coughlin wants to make things a little unpleasant for New York’s favorite Okie since Mickey Mantle.
Giants Player You Got To Know Better This Week:
Tim Carter made a few key receptions Sunday against Washington. He still has to survive at least half a season before we get really exited about him. The Giants have shown patience with Carter mainly because of his speed, though that patience will continue to wear thin if the oft-injured Carter continues to drop key passes and get penalized at the most inopportune times. Each week though, Carter has gained steady ground to show he’s a legitimate third receiver after Plaxico Burress and the ageless Amani Toomer. Let’s see if that trend continues.
Five Other Football Thoughts:
1) I think it’s about time that Bill Cowher really consider retirement. After 15 years as the Steelers’ head coach, and finally winning that Super Bowl which has put him among the NFL’s elite coaches, there’s just a sense that his fire and gumption has evaporated. It’s a like a rock star who’s sold three multi-platinum albums based on angst ridden lyrics and throaty vocals. I mean, after three blockbuster albums, a house in the Hollywood Hills, and a crash pad in TriBeCa, how frustrated can one still be? What’s the fourth album going to be besides something…ummm…acoustic? That’s where I see Bill Cowher right now; as Alanis Moriseette post “Jagged Little Pill”. The loss to San Diego Sunday night proves it.
2) It’s too early to determine if Detroit Lions Head Coach Rod Marinelli is the reason to the Lions’ woeful start. Being that he’s so new, it’s easy to point the finger at Detroit’s GM, Matt Millen instead. It’s likely Millen will be ousted after this season. Too many poor draft picks, too many head coaches not succeeding (though I’m still a believer in Steve Mariucci), too many free agent busts. However, while catching the final seconds of the Detroit-Minnesota game Sunday, I watched Rod Marinelli waddle with a militant gait, like he’s got a thermometer in his lower orifice, with a clipboard stuck in the front of his pants, and I couldn’t help but think that this guy has the leadership skills of an anvil. Now I could be wrong here. After all, if you looked at Albert Einstein, you wouldn’t necessarily think he was a genius. But still, there are those types that strike an intuitive chord right off the bat, and I am sorry, but I’m just so not sold on Rod Marinelli. Based on Detroit’s current winless record, it doesn’t look like his team is either. With the exception of Andy Reid, seldom do position coaches ever make for good head coaches.
3) The St. Louis Rams are the most under-the-radar 4-1 team in the NFL right now.
4) The Dallas-Philadelphia match-up was one of the best games so far this season. But the hype around T.O. returning to Philly was about as overblown as the 1983 TV Movie “The Day After”. For those who don’t recall that movie, or weren’t born then, “The Day After” was about a nuclear attack on Lawrence, Kansas, and for weeks there was mass hysteria about the emotional consequences this film would have on its audience. The day after America saw “The Day After” everyone scoffed at the absurdity of the media hype. I mean, it was just TV…entertainment…and a B-movie at best, even if it did star the late Jason Robards. Ergo with T.O. coming to Philly. For God’s sake, he’s just a painfully insecure wide receiver who can’t keep his mouth shut, not Idi Amin coming out of exile. Extra security my foot, it would be better used guarding the Liberty Bell.
5) If there’s a team in the NFL that could use a youth movement right now, it’s the Buffalo Bills. It’s tough enough that they hail from a frigid Rust Belt city that’s seen better days, but to have two octogenarians run the show doesn’t suggest the Bills are on the cusp of football precocity. Throw in Dick Juron, a yard sale pick-up of a coach, and you’ve got the NFL’s version of Orange Julius from a mall built in 1973. Time for the Bills to find the next Jack Del Rio…now.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
THE SNYDER INN
The Giants got what Sunday’s are generally intended for last week, rest. After back-to-back road games against two of the NFL’s better teams, they’ll have an extra week to prepare for a home game against the Washington Redskins. In theory, the Giants should have the advantage here. But as it’s been incessantly stated, the Giants are generally awful when coming off their bye. They also know that Washington will be ready to play after coming off a big OT victory against Jacksonville the week before.
It’s hard to gauge what kind of team the Redskins are this year. While Clinton Portis was hurt for the first two games, and Mark Brunell was ready to be shipped to the mothball fleet, it looked as though the Redskins were looking at yet another season that failed to live up to the hype. Now after trouncing Houston and beating the bruising Jaguars a week later, the ‘Skins are looking like a team that’s indeed to be reckoned with.
Nevertheless, despite the cottage industry that Daniel Snyder has turned his favorite football team into, when it’s come to winning overall, it’s been a whole different story. To use an everyday analogy, the Washington Redskins are like that poorly located hotel which every city has. One year stands a Howard Johnson’s, the next a Days Inn, and the year after a La Quinta. In other words, lots of new looks but the same old results. Would things be any different for The Snyder Inn?
In 1999 it was The Snyder’s Inn’s turn to see what they could do with this hexed location. The new owner (Daniel Snyder), short in stature but shrewd in nature, has lofty goals and begins to shake things up right away. His first step is to fire the existing manager (Norv Turner). Apparently he’d been there for way too long. The staff was getting complacent; making beds and cleaning toilets with a noticeable lack of joie, not to mention that the hotel was seldom full. Unfortunately it happens to be peak season when this decision is made, and so the market for a new GM is tight. Begrudgingly, Mr. Snyder promotes his Assistant Night Manager (Terry Robiskie) to ride things out, but isn’t encouraging about him being his man for the long haul. Seeing the writing on the wall, Robiskie soon finds greener pastures in Cleveland. Not sure what to do, Mr. Snyder takes a more conventional route, and offers the management of his property to an industry veteran who’s been around the block (Marty Schottenheimer). He’s not the sexiest recruit, but at least Schottenheimer knows what he’s doing. Neither men seemed thrilled with the situation, yet both realize they need each other for the time being. Schottenheimer is known as an old retread who can get a place turned around, but never up to the five star level. He’s also aware that his new boss knows this, and sees that he’s still meeting other potential managers for lunch. For at least the next year or so, Schottenheimer knows he’s got a steady paycheck, but afterwards, well, who knows? Nevertheless, regardless of who’s running the place, Snyder needs to spend money and jazz things up. He decides first to build a modern exercise room (Bruce Smith). Then he goes about building a swimming pool (Deion Sanders). With no limit to what he can spend, he puts in a restaurant that spins (Jeff George); then he installs satellite TV in every room (Dan “Big Daddy” Wilkinson). But where are the guests? Why isn’t the Snyder Inn booked solid three months in advance? Something is still amiss.
So Mr. Snyder realizes his fledgling hotel still needs something else to make it sparkle. No doubt a lot of money has been poured into the place, and people had been taking notice, but what was keeping the Snyder Inn from really taking off? “Ah-ha”, the ambitious young owner thought, it was no longer about bells and whistles, it was about themes and style; an unorthodox way of doing things. Schottenheimer was fine at keeping the books and seeing that the place was clean, but it wasn’t enough to get the staff, or his guests, really exited. While attending a hospitality convention, Mr. Snyder met this hotshot professor from the University of Florida (Steve Spurrier). Apparently, he gave a whizbang presentation that immediately struck a chord with Mr. Snyder. It was all about numbers, big numbers…the kind of numbers that would instantly make the Snyder Inn one of the hottest properties in town. Mr. Snyder had something to prove, and he didn’t like seeing these expensive amenities being underutilized. But Snyder’s ego yearned for more than just proving something to his critics, he wanted to embarrass them as well, and there was no better way of doing it then posting gaudy numbers for everyone to see.
There was only one catch. Steve Spurrier’s theories had never been tested in the real world. While ensconced in the provincial world of academia, he was a star. Some even said he was brilliant, though he never practiced his own work where the going got tough. This posed a huge dilemma for Spurrier, either remain in his cozy little hole in Gainesville, or step beyond his comfort zone to show he was for real. The former gave empty security; the latter, precarious fulfillment. Either way it was a tough call until Mr. Snyder broke out his tattered checkbook.
As he expected, Schottenheimer got his one year managing the Snyder Inn before being let go in favor of a man who was sure to make a big splash no matter what. Snyder, who was no stranger to generating publicity himself, announced a big press conference once Spurrier came to town. He said all the right things, and gave hints about his big plan to turn the Snyder Inn into a stalwart property, though without ever getting specific. At last Daniel Snyder had the guy he really wanted running his place. Happy days were finally on the horizon.
Naturally, things didn’t shoot right out of the gate. But that was OK, Snyder figured the magic lamp just needed some extra rubbing. Spurrier organized various promotions that had worked marvelously in Gainesville, such as Hawaiian luaus, beach volleyball, clambakes and two-for-one Jell-O shots on certain nights. To some extent, he got the locals to stop by once in a while, but what the Snyder Inn desperately needed was full occupancy – overnight guests – to achieve the stratospheric numbers that Spurrier was supposed to bring. It seemed that all Spurrier could do was bring a party atmosphere to a place where people didn’t really come to party. Sure they moved a lot of booze and chicken wings, but the real money was renting rooms to folks with deep pockets -- adults in other words. And after a short while, it was clear that Spurrier’s head was still in the deepest galaxies of the collegiate universe. He was damn expensive to boot.
Once again Snyder was in a pickle. Not only was the Snyder Inn considered the Edsel among local hotels, there was considerable snickering going behind Snyder’s back as well. The gist of the chatter was that the whole is always greater than the sum of the parts, and the fancy, brand name parts that Snyder purchased were grossly overpriced, didn’t fit, and had expired warranties. “He had enough lemons to sink a fleet of barges”, one tradesman said. “But they only made enough lemonade to fill a thimble.” Snyder felt both fleeced and humiliated, but he was smart enough not to fling Spurrier back to the world of tweed and bubbly co-eds; at least not yet. Snyder knew that firing Spurrier too soon would be a huge admission that he hadn’t a clue to what he was doing; which is the last thing in the world he wanted to admit. And since Spurrier was still under contract, and making the sum of a small state’s lotto jackpot, Snyder decided to change things up with a laissez-faire approach. In essence, he was no longer going to be that rich micro-managing owner, instead he was going to let his guys run things their way, have some breathing room…maybe even a little fun. By doing it this way, when Spurrier got fired the following year, it wasn’t by Snyder’s volition, but because Spurrier pushed his head through the noose on his own. Secondly, while letting Spurrier do his little rah-rah thing by himself, Snyder had more time to pull what would be the ultimate coup in his brief history with the Snyder Inn.
Rather than focus so much on the future, Snyder delved into the past. It seemed that distancing himself from the day-to-day operations of the Snyder Inn was doing him some good. He did some research, and went to the library to learn more about the hotel he was struggling to own. At one time, he learned, the location where the Snyder Inn now stood was one of the region’s most prestigious properties, the Cooke Hotel. Adored by his staff, the hotel’s founder, Mr. Jack Kent Cooke, was known as a bit of an eccentric, not to mention a philanderer. However, when it came to running a first class operation, few other owners were ever in his league. It was here where the movie stars, foreign dignitaries and senators stayed. In fact, one of Cooke’s most frequent guests was Bobby Kennedy. So often did the Senator stay at the Cooke Hotel, that after he was assassinated in 1968, Mr. Cooke renamed his main banquet hall the RFK Room. It was in the RFK Room where the hotel’s most glorious memories took place.
Cooke though, didn’t do it all on his own. He was a great judge of character, often hiring solid managers who’d ultimately do even greater things, but there was one particular manager who elevated the Cooke Hotel to the top echelons of the industry (Joe Gibbs). Gibbs was a modest man with a Southern drawl that at first seemed like a misfit for such an established property. Nevertheless, he commanded respect that his reserved manner might otherwise conceal. Despite Gibbs’ illustrious career, he didn’t go without his challenges; showing his resiliency by reaching the pinnacle of success while forging through two labor strikes. In addition, he also had the misfortune of witnessing one of his best employees lose his leg on the job. Perhaps what Gibbs was best remembered for was getting the everyday worker to be as productive as possible. “He had a bunch of these big fat guys working here called ‘The Hogs’,” recalled a former employee. “But after a while those ‘Hogs’ became the backbone of the hotel. They were a hard charging bunch of guys, and everyone else followed suit.” Still though, with all the accolades and adoration Gibbs’ received after twelve years of service, it was time to move on.
While researching, Snyder learned about all the supporting characters that made the Cooke Hotel so special. There was a crazy bartender named Riggins countered by a more sedate concierge named Monk. The poor guy who lost his leg was named Joe. All these different personalities working as one cohesive unit. Snyder thought if he could only get a guy like Gibbs to run his place he’d be set. Then the “eureka” moment struck him, why not try to lure Gibbs himself?
Gibbs however, had left the hotel business all together and was now immersed as a team owner in the world of motor sports. Racing was big business, and watching cars speed around an oval track was far less stressful than running a major hotel. But even if it was an easier lifestyle for Gibbs, Snyder thought, there had to be void from the hotel business that racing just couldn’t fill. Was rubbing elbows with mechanics really as glamorous as schmoozing the Hollywood A-List? Not that the Snyder Inn even catered to the Hollywood G-List, but, well, Gibbs didn’t need to know that right away. In any case, Snyder would keep things open-ended to gauge Gibbs’ interest. If Gibbs still gave Snyder some pushback, Snyder figured he could just buy him off. He was right.
While Gibbs and Snyder secretly hammered out their negotiations, Steve Spurrier started whining about how homesick he was for campus life again. Even the most grizzled alumni were nothing compared to the sharks who stayed at the Snyder Inn. And now of all things, several rooms had become infested with mice. Spurrier tells his boss that if he has to remain in the awful world of accountability for much longer, he just might have a nervous breakdown. “Forget about the contract,” Spurrier pleads. “Just let me go home.” Snyder happily acquiesced, and, just as he planned it, made sure that Spurrier publicly blamed himself for squandering the dream job of working for him. The revolving door spins again.
The announcement of Joe Gibbs returning to where it all began took place on a frigid January morning in 2004. Had the President been shot that same day, it’s doubtful if anyone would have noticed. Of course it was a whole new organization, where the industry had rapidly changed since he stepped down in 1993, in a building that’s completely foreign from the Cooke Hotel. Nevertheless, it was still on the same piece of land, and now he was a far richer man than he ever needed to be. Which made many wonder…what the hell was he doing this for anyway?
Regardless of Gibbs’ motivation, it was pretty clear what Snyder’s was, and that was to tell the rest of the hospitality world to GET OFF MY BACK. Snyder’s attempt to lob a grenade at the naysayers, via Spurrier, only resulted in the same grenade blowing up in his lap. He learned his lesson about gimmicky hires, and now by orchestrating Gibbs’ comeback, Snyder pulled off the recruitment version of D-Day. People were impressed, and more importantly, they shut up. Snyder was finally for real, he hoped.
Since Gibbs came on board, the Snyder Inn has seen a healthy boost in occupancy. Room rates, naturally, have been jacked-up, and there’s now a gift shop where Snyder Inn sweatshirts can be bought for $30.00. Parking which previously was for free, now costs guests an additional $17.50 a day. And for $21.00, one can have a lukewarm cheeseburger sent to their room. For the most part, staying at the Snyder Inn feels no different than paying $36.00 for free-range chicken at a celebrity owned restaurant. Seldom does having one’s wallet siphoned feel so good.
While Gibbs’ presence is still felt throughout the Snyder Inn, he’s relinquished some of the control that he kept in the past. Sales and marketing have been almost entirely delegated to a seasoned professional (Al Saunders), while operations is completely in the hands of another (Gregg Williams). With this management team in place, the Snyder Inn is confident that while increasing profitability they’ll achieve what they’re ultimately striving for, credibility. As for quality control, there are still some consistency issues. Overall satisfaction from the guests isn’t quite where it needs to be yet, and there are some noticeable swoons with the production of certain employees. Job related injuries are also a concern. But all in all, if Snyder’s dream of having a five star property is ever going to be realized, this is the team that’s going to get it done. If not, then it’s time to see the Snyder Inn boast the name of another billionaire with bigger ideas and an even bigger head.
It’s hard to gauge what kind of team the Redskins are this year. While Clinton Portis was hurt for the first two games, and Mark Brunell was ready to be shipped to the mothball fleet, it looked as though the Redskins were looking at yet another season that failed to live up to the hype. Now after trouncing Houston and beating the bruising Jaguars a week later, the ‘Skins are looking like a team that’s indeed to be reckoned with.
Nevertheless, despite the cottage industry that Daniel Snyder has turned his favorite football team into, when it’s come to winning overall, it’s been a whole different story. To use an everyday analogy, the Washington Redskins are like that poorly located hotel which every city has. One year stands a Howard Johnson’s, the next a Days Inn, and the year after a La Quinta. In other words, lots of new looks but the same old results. Would things be any different for The Snyder Inn?
In 1999 it was The Snyder’s Inn’s turn to see what they could do with this hexed location. The new owner (Daniel Snyder), short in stature but shrewd in nature, has lofty goals and begins to shake things up right away. His first step is to fire the existing manager (Norv Turner). Apparently he’d been there for way too long. The staff was getting complacent; making beds and cleaning toilets with a noticeable lack of joie, not to mention that the hotel was seldom full. Unfortunately it happens to be peak season when this decision is made, and so the market for a new GM is tight. Begrudgingly, Mr. Snyder promotes his Assistant Night Manager (Terry Robiskie) to ride things out, but isn’t encouraging about him being his man for the long haul. Seeing the writing on the wall, Robiskie soon finds greener pastures in Cleveland. Not sure what to do, Mr. Snyder takes a more conventional route, and offers the management of his property to an industry veteran who’s been around the block (Marty Schottenheimer). He’s not the sexiest recruit, but at least Schottenheimer knows what he’s doing. Neither men seemed thrilled with the situation, yet both realize they need each other for the time being. Schottenheimer is known as an old retread who can get a place turned around, but never up to the five star level. He’s also aware that his new boss knows this, and sees that he’s still meeting other potential managers for lunch. For at least the next year or so, Schottenheimer knows he’s got a steady paycheck, but afterwards, well, who knows? Nevertheless, regardless of who’s running the place, Snyder needs to spend money and jazz things up. He decides first to build a modern exercise room (Bruce Smith). Then he goes about building a swimming pool (Deion Sanders). With no limit to what he can spend, he puts in a restaurant that spins (Jeff George); then he installs satellite TV in every room (Dan “Big Daddy” Wilkinson). But where are the guests? Why isn’t the Snyder Inn booked solid three months in advance? Something is still amiss.
So Mr. Snyder realizes his fledgling hotel still needs something else to make it sparkle. No doubt a lot of money has been poured into the place, and people had been taking notice, but what was keeping the Snyder Inn from really taking off? “Ah-ha”, the ambitious young owner thought, it was no longer about bells and whistles, it was about themes and style; an unorthodox way of doing things. Schottenheimer was fine at keeping the books and seeing that the place was clean, but it wasn’t enough to get the staff, or his guests, really exited. While attending a hospitality convention, Mr. Snyder met this hotshot professor from the University of Florida (Steve Spurrier). Apparently, he gave a whizbang presentation that immediately struck a chord with Mr. Snyder. It was all about numbers, big numbers…the kind of numbers that would instantly make the Snyder Inn one of the hottest properties in town. Mr. Snyder had something to prove, and he didn’t like seeing these expensive amenities being underutilized. But Snyder’s ego yearned for more than just proving something to his critics, he wanted to embarrass them as well, and there was no better way of doing it then posting gaudy numbers for everyone to see.
There was only one catch. Steve Spurrier’s theories had never been tested in the real world. While ensconced in the provincial world of academia, he was a star. Some even said he was brilliant, though he never practiced his own work where the going got tough. This posed a huge dilemma for Spurrier, either remain in his cozy little hole in Gainesville, or step beyond his comfort zone to show he was for real. The former gave empty security; the latter, precarious fulfillment. Either way it was a tough call until Mr. Snyder broke out his tattered checkbook.
As he expected, Schottenheimer got his one year managing the Snyder Inn before being let go in favor of a man who was sure to make a big splash no matter what. Snyder, who was no stranger to generating publicity himself, announced a big press conference once Spurrier came to town. He said all the right things, and gave hints about his big plan to turn the Snyder Inn into a stalwart property, though without ever getting specific. At last Daniel Snyder had the guy he really wanted running his place. Happy days were finally on the horizon.
Naturally, things didn’t shoot right out of the gate. But that was OK, Snyder figured the magic lamp just needed some extra rubbing. Spurrier organized various promotions that had worked marvelously in Gainesville, such as Hawaiian luaus, beach volleyball, clambakes and two-for-one Jell-O shots on certain nights. To some extent, he got the locals to stop by once in a while, but what the Snyder Inn desperately needed was full occupancy – overnight guests – to achieve the stratospheric numbers that Spurrier was supposed to bring. It seemed that all Spurrier could do was bring a party atmosphere to a place where people didn’t really come to party. Sure they moved a lot of booze and chicken wings, but the real money was renting rooms to folks with deep pockets -- adults in other words. And after a short while, it was clear that Spurrier’s head was still in the deepest galaxies of the collegiate universe. He was damn expensive to boot.
Once again Snyder was in a pickle. Not only was the Snyder Inn considered the Edsel among local hotels, there was considerable snickering going behind Snyder’s back as well. The gist of the chatter was that the whole is always greater than the sum of the parts, and the fancy, brand name parts that Snyder purchased were grossly overpriced, didn’t fit, and had expired warranties. “He had enough lemons to sink a fleet of barges”, one tradesman said. “But they only made enough lemonade to fill a thimble.” Snyder felt both fleeced and humiliated, but he was smart enough not to fling Spurrier back to the world of tweed and bubbly co-eds; at least not yet. Snyder knew that firing Spurrier too soon would be a huge admission that he hadn’t a clue to what he was doing; which is the last thing in the world he wanted to admit. And since Spurrier was still under contract, and making the sum of a small state’s lotto jackpot, Snyder decided to change things up with a laissez-faire approach. In essence, he was no longer going to be that rich micro-managing owner, instead he was going to let his guys run things their way, have some breathing room…maybe even a little fun. By doing it this way, when Spurrier got fired the following year, it wasn’t by Snyder’s volition, but because Spurrier pushed his head through the noose on his own. Secondly, while letting Spurrier do his little rah-rah thing by himself, Snyder had more time to pull what would be the ultimate coup in his brief history with the Snyder Inn.
Rather than focus so much on the future, Snyder delved into the past. It seemed that distancing himself from the day-to-day operations of the Snyder Inn was doing him some good. He did some research, and went to the library to learn more about the hotel he was struggling to own. At one time, he learned, the location where the Snyder Inn now stood was one of the region’s most prestigious properties, the Cooke Hotel. Adored by his staff, the hotel’s founder, Mr. Jack Kent Cooke, was known as a bit of an eccentric, not to mention a philanderer. However, when it came to running a first class operation, few other owners were ever in his league. It was here where the movie stars, foreign dignitaries and senators stayed. In fact, one of Cooke’s most frequent guests was Bobby Kennedy. So often did the Senator stay at the Cooke Hotel, that after he was assassinated in 1968, Mr. Cooke renamed his main banquet hall the RFK Room. It was in the RFK Room where the hotel’s most glorious memories took place.
Cooke though, didn’t do it all on his own. He was a great judge of character, often hiring solid managers who’d ultimately do even greater things, but there was one particular manager who elevated the Cooke Hotel to the top echelons of the industry (Joe Gibbs). Gibbs was a modest man with a Southern drawl that at first seemed like a misfit for such an established property. Nevertheless, he commanded respect that his reserved manner might otherwise conceal. Despite Gibbs’ illustrious career, he didn’t go without his challenges; showing his resiliency by reaching the pinnacle of success while forging through two labor strikes. In addition, he also had the misfortune of witnessing one of his best employees lose his leg on the job. Perhaps what Gibbs was best remembered for was getting the everyday worker to be as productive as possible. “He had a bunch of these big fat guys working here called ‘The Hogs’,” recalled a former employee. “But after a while those ‘Hogs’ became the backbone of the hotel. They were a hard charging bunch of guys, and everyone else followed suit.” Still though, with all the accolades and adoration Gibbs’ received after twelve years of service, it was time to move on.
While researching, Snyder learned about all the supporting characters that made the Cooke Hotel so special. There was a crazy bartender named Riggins countered by a more sedate concierge named Monk. The poor guy who lost his leg was named Joe. All these different personalities working as one cohesive unit. Snyder thought if he could only get a guy like Gibbs to run his place he’d be set. Then the “eureka” moment struck him, why not try to lure Gibbs himself?
Gibbs however, had left the hotel business all together and was now immersed as a team owner in the world of motor sports. Racing was big business, and watching cars speed around an oval track was far less stressful than running a major hotel. But even if it was an easier lifestyle for Gibbs, Snyder thought, there had to be void from the hotel business that racing just couldn’t fill. Was rubbing elbows with mechanics really as glamorous as schmoozing the Hollywood A-List? Not that the Snyder Inn even catered to the Hollywood G-List, but, well, Gibbs didn’t need to know that right away. In any case, Snyder would keep things open-ended to gauge Gibbs’ interest. If Gibbs still gave Snyder some pushback, Snyder figured he could just buy him off. He was right.
While Gibbs and Snyder secretly hammered out their negotiations, Steve Spurrier started whining about how homesick he was for campus life again. Even the most grizzled alumni were nothing compared to the sharks who stayed at the Snyder Inn. And now of all things, several rooms had become infested with mice. Spurrier tells his boss that if he has to remain in the awful world of accountability for much longer, he just might have a nervous breakdown. “Forget about the contract,” Spurrier pleads. “Just let me go home.” Snyder happily acquiesced, and, just as he planned it, made sure that Spurrier publicly blamed himself for squandering the dream job of working for him. The revolving door spins again.
The announcement of Joe Gibbs returning to where it all began took place on a frigid January morning in 2004. Had the President been shot that same day, it’s doubtful if anyone would have noticed. Of course it was a whole new organization, where the industry had rapidly changed since he stepped down in 1993, in a building that’s completely foreign from the Cooke Hotel. Nevertheless, it was still on the same piece of land, and now he was a far richer man than he ever needed to be. Which made many wonder…what the hell was he doing this for anyway?
Regardless of Gibbs’ motivation, it was pretty clear what Snyder’s was, and that was to tell the rest of the hospitality world to GET OFF MY BACK. Snyder’s attempt to lob a grenade at the naysayers, via Spurrier, only resulted in the same grenade blowing up in his lap. He learned his lesson about gimmicky hires, and now by orchestrating Gibbs’ comeback, Snyder pulled off the recruitment version of D-Day. People were impressed, and more importantly, they shut up. Snyder was finally for real, he hoped.
Since Gibbs came on board, the Snyder Inn has seen a healthy boost in occupancy. Room rates, naturally, have been jacked-up, and there’s now a gift shop where Snyder Inn sweatshirts can be bought for $30.00. Parking which previously was for free, now costs guests an additional $17.50 a day. And for $21.00, one can have a lukewarm cheeseburger sent to their room. For the most part, staying at the Snyder Inn feels no different than paying $36.00 for free-range chicken at a celebrity owned restaurant. Seldom does having one’s wallet siphoned feel so good.
While Gibbs’ presence is still felt throughout the Snyder Inn, he’s relinquished some of the control that he kept in the past. Sales and marketing have been almost entirely delegated to a seasoned professional (Al Saunders), while operations is completely in the hands of another (Gregg Williams). With this management team in place, the Snyder Inn is confident that while increasing profitability they’ll achieve what they’re ultimately striving for, credibility. As for quality control, there are still some consistency issues. Overall satisfaction from the guests isn’t quite where it needs to be yet, and there are some noticeable swoons with the production of certain employees. Job related injuries are also a concern. But all in all, if Snyder’s dream of having a five star property is ever going to be realized, this is the team that’s going to get it done. If not, then it’s time to see the Snyder Inn boast the name of another billionaire with bigger ideas and an even bigger head.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
BIRD FLU INFECTS BIG BLUE
Jim Fassel was the master at striking early only to see his lead slip away, Tom Coughlin likes to hand the game over with hopes of stealing it back. Imagine if the Giants played football for four full quarters? For the second consecutive season, the Giants traveled to Seattle play the Seahawks. The original production was marginal at best, the sequel is ten times worse.
It’s hard to determine what reeked most about this debacle, though the bad buzz started before the Giants even landed in Latte Land. Much like last year’s drubbing in San Diego, where the defense just weighed down the plane, the Giants were teed up to fail all during the preceding week. Though the truth was severely skewed, the Chargers’ crafty media office got their traditionally passive fans riled up about Eli Manning – the quarterback who spurned their team – coming to town. It was successful propaganda, generating a raucousness that made San Diego sound like Rome after the World Cup. In Seattle, it was a similar set of circumstances. Earlier in the week it was leaked that a particular team (hmmm…the Giants perhaps???) had suggested to the league office that the high decibel levels coming from Seattle’s Qwest Field were contributed to artificial noise being piped through the stadium’s P.A. system. The Seattle media couldn’t resist when they caught wind of this, portraying the Giants as whiney New Yorkers complaining as if their bagels’ weren’t buttery enough. So with the hope of a noiseless Qwest Field quashed, the Giants arrived looking uglier than the Fremont Troll.
When asked about the crowd noise, Giants’ Head Coach Tom Coughlin said, “It sounded like Sunday afternoon.” Nobody says that playing on the road is easy, but crowd noise can be controlled by the visiting team. For a professional football team to stress the adverse affects of crowd noise is like a comedian blaming a “rough audience” for getting no laughs. Rather than moan about a hostile house, good comics still go out and deliver funny stuff. As for the Giants crying about Seattle’s “12th Man”, good teams simply play well in order to shut them up; which, if you can recall any defensive highlights from this game, did occur on the very first play when Corey Webster wrestled the ball from Darrell Jackson for an interception. For a moment it looked that both Jackson and Webster had equal possession of the ball, which by rule, has the tie going to the offense. So luck, at least between sips of Gatorade, was in Big Blue’s favor as well.
Yet in a matter of a few plays, the break the Giants so badly needed was squandered by a slew of turnovers, porous line play, non-existent pass rush and a secondary covering from different zip codes. As a result the loud got louder, forcing three procedure penalties. Perhaps Luke Petitgout, Kareem McKenzie and Dave Diehl should form a singing trio called “The False Starts”. Anything would sound better than giving reasons for trailing 35-3 at the half, which, incidentally, was the widest halftime deficit in the Giants’ 82 year history. After the game, Jeremy Shockey, the Giants’ “volatile” tight end, went on record to say the Giants were outplayed and outcoached.
Which they were…
After all, with all the focus the Giants have put on the defensive line in recent years, how else can a line consisting of Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan, Fred Robbins, et al, suddenly look like an instant scab team? Last week in Philadelphia, the Eagles thwarted whatever line pressure the Giants had with screen pass after screen pass. And when they didn’t do that, they made a star out of tight end LJ Smith who did nothing fancier than run slant patterns all day long. Outcoached? It’s not like Andy Reid tried to replicate the siege at Vicksburg. For Seattle it wasn’t much more complicated, just force the Giants to play in nickel and dime coverage all day so Matt Hasselbeck has enough time to sort through his recyclables. For extra measure, put in a gimpy Shaun Alexander and you’ve got a line that’s waiting for the play instead of pursuing the point of attack. Shockey was indeed right that Seattle showed them things they hadn’t seen before. Last year the Seahawks won by running down the Giants’ throat, this year it was Air Holmgren until garbage time forced Seattle to chew the clock up on the ground. In essence, the Giants brought green screens against a team owned by Paul Allen.
Upon gladly leaving the state of Washington, the Giants will prepare during their bye week to host the Redskins from Washington, DC. As always for Big Blue, the bye week presents a Giant paradox. With many players already banged up, the rest is surely welcome. Then again, fewer teams have been more dreadful than the Giants when coming off their bye; going just 3-14 since the 17-week season was introduced in 1989. Whether the Giants are able to purge the past of let the Seattle stew simmer is to be determined. Should it be the latter, then crowd noise from the road may be welcome compared to the deadly silence at home.
It’s hard to determine what reeked most about this debacle, though the bad buzz started before the Giants even landed in Latte Land. Much like last year’s drubbing in San Diego, where the defense just weighed down the plane, the Giants were teed up to fail all during the preceding week. Though the truth was severely skewed, the Chargers’ crafty media office got their traditionally passive fans riled up about Eli Manning – the quarterback who spurned their team – coming to town. It was successful propaganda, generating a raucousness that made San Diego sound like Rome after the World Cup. In Seattle, it was a similar set of circumstances. Earlier in the week it was leaked that a particular team (hmmm…the Giants perhaps???) had suggested to the league office that the high decibel levels coming from Seattle’s Qwest Field were contributed to artificial noise being piped through the stadium’s P.A. system. The Seattle media couldn’t resist when they caught wind of this, portraying the Giants as whiney New Yorkers complaining as if their bagels’ weren’t buttery enough. So with the hope of a noiseless Qwest Field quashed, the Giants arrived looking uglier than the Fremont Troll.
When asked about the crowd noise, Giants’ Head Coach Tom Coughlin said, “It sounded like Sunday afternoon.” Nobody says that playing on the road is easy, but crowd noise can be controlled by the visiting team. For a professional football team to stress the adverse affects of crowd noise is like a comedian blaming a “rough audience” for getting no laughs. Rather than moan about a hostile house, good comics still go out and deliver funny stuff. As for the Giants crying about Seattle’s “12th Man”, good teams simply play well in order to shut them up; which, if you can recall any defensive highlights from this game, did occur on the very first play when Corey Webster wrestled the ball from Darrell Jackson for an interception. For a moment it looked that both Jackson and Webster had equal possession of the ball, which by rule, has the tie going to the offense. So luck, at least between sips of Gatorade, was in Big Blue’s favor as well.
Yet in a matter of a few plays, the break the Giants so badly needed was squandered by a slew of turnovers, porous line play, non-existent pass rush and a secondary covering from different zip codes. As a result the loud got louder, forcing three procedure penalties. Perhaps Luke Petitgout, Kareem McKenzie and Dave Diehl should form a singing trio called “The False Starts”. Anything would sound better than giving reasons for trailing 35-3 at the half, which, incidentally, was the widest halftime deficit in the Giants’ 82 year history. After the game, Jeremy Shockey, the Giants’ “volatile” tight end, went on record to say the Giants were outplayed and outcoached.
Which they were…
After all, with all the focus the Giants have put on the defensive line in recent years, how else can a line consisting of Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan, Fred Robbins, et al, suddenly look like an instant scab team? Last week in Philadelphia, the Eagles thwarted whatever line pressure the Giants had with screen pass after screen pass. And when they didn’t do that, they made a star out of tight end LJ Smith who did nothing fancier than run slant patterns all day long. Outcoached? It’s not like Andy Reid tried to replicate the siege at Vicksburg. For Seattle it wasn’t much more complicated, just force the Giants to play in nickel and dime coverage all day so Matt Hasselbeck has enough time to sort through his recyclables. For extra measure, put in a gimpy Shaun Alexander and you’ve got a line that’s waiting for the play instead of pursuing the point of attack. Shockey was indeed right that Seattle showed them things they hadn’t seen before. Last year the Seahawks won by running down the Giants’ throat, this year it was Air Holmgren until garbage time forced Seattle to chew the clock up on the ground. In essence, the Giants brought green screens against a team owned by Paul Allen.
Upon gladly leaving the state of Washington, the Giants will prepare during their bye week to host the Redskins from Washington, DC. As always for Big Blue, the bye week presents a Giant paradox. With many players already banged up, the rest is surely welcome. Then again, fewer teams have been more dreadful than the Giants when coming off their bye; going just 3-14 since the 17-week season was introduced in 1989. Whether the Giants are able to purge the past of let the Seattle stew simmer is to be determined. Should it be the latter, then crowd noise from the road may be welcome compared to the deadly silence at home.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
JUST SIGN THE DAMN RECEIVER
You can take a wide receiver out of New York, but you can’t take New York out of a wide receiver. So with that said, Keyshawn Johnson, who now claims he loved playing in New York, was across the Hudson on Tuesday to meet with Big Blue about a second stint in the Meadowlands, this time as a Giant instead of a Jet. It’s an interesting thought, especially since Keyshawn Johnson identifies himself with Los Angeles more than a David Lee Roth video. And as we all know, many Californians who’ve played for the Jets and Giants have said that winds of Giants Stadium, and it’s immediate surroundings, remind them of the breezes of Redondo Beach. Personally, I love the smell of Bain de Soleil while driving past the fuel tanks of Carteret, not to mention all those pick-up volleyball games at the Grover Cleveland Service Area.
All kidding aside, signing Keyshawn Johnson to the Giants could be interesting provided that the money’s right and (and this is a big and) that Keyshawn Johnson understands his role from the get-go (think Alfonso Soriano). True, he’s a chronic malcontent when not in the proper system, but with Tom Coughlin giving Plaxico Burress the kick in the ass he needed early in the season, as well as the fact that he was a wide receivers coach under Bill Parcells’ tutelage in the 1980s, Johnson and Coughlin just might be that oddball couple who winds up growing old together. For years, Johnson’s made no bones about giving his all for Bill Parcells with the Jets and Cowboys, and with Coughlin being cut from the same cloth, the loquacious Johnson just might know when to shut up if he wants to be happy.
With the Giants being about $4 million under the salary cap, signing Johnson to join an already well stocked corps of receivers may seem frivolous in terms of addressing their top priorities. One didn’t need Luminol to detect that the real bleeding came from the Giants’ linebackers and secondary. And with Will Allen signing with Miami, and Will Peterson’s career likely over, the Giants, despite acquiring Sam Madison, still have gaping holes to fill in their pass defense. On the linebacking front, it’s also been mentioned that LaVar Arrington (another chronic malcontent) would beautifully complement his former teammate Antonio Pierce, particularly in the wake of Barrett Green getting cut and Nick Greisen likely to be jettisoned as well. Word on the street is that Arrington wants around $15 million in guaranteed money before he signs with anyone. Right now it’s understood that cap-happy Cleveland is in the LaVar Arrington hunt, so signing Keyshawn Johnson could drain the Giant’s liquidity in a bidding war with the Browns.
Should Johnson become a Giant, it will expose how much those gritty seven and eight yard receptions were missed when the Giants cut Ike Hilliard in 2005. Despite the erratic, and, yes, disappointing performance of Eli Manning in the latter half of the 2005 season, the Giants offensive arsenal came with plenty of playmakers but still lacked a “go-to” receiver to move the chains. Johnson fills that void. No need to belabor all those botched third down conversions, however, a receiver like Johnson could be the final answer from taking the Giants offense beyond the cusp of contention and into prime time. Say what you want about his mouthy behavior and selfishness, Keyshawn Johnson still remains one of the toughest and most fearless receivers in the NFL. And with him as a legitimate threat in the slot position, expect another productive season by Tiki Barber enjoying the soft, drop back coverage by linebackers forced to spot Johnson. In addition, with Johnson in the scheme, the Giants could really open up the passing game by playing four wides. Such a formation could finally benefit receivers like Tim Carter and Jamaar Taylor, who have been waiting for breakout seasons for several years now. It’s no secret how Keyshawn Johnson’s presence has done much to elevate many of his past teammates into the limelight.
More than anything else, this is likely to be the final season for Giants’ General Manager, Ernie Accorsi who’s legacy will no doubt be determined by the production of Eli Manning. With yet another toy for Manning to play with, Accorsi’s betting the ranch on Manning’s pedigree may finally be insured. As for Manning though, should he have Johnson as a teammate, he’ll likely have a do-or-die type of season like Joey Harrington just had in Detroit. There is one way that Manning can shun the scrutiny…just get Keyshawn the damn ball.
All kidding aside, signing Keyshawn Johnson to the Giants could be interesting provided that the money’s right and (and this is a big and) that Keyshawn Johnson understands his role from the get-go (think Alfonso Soriano). True, he’s a chronic malcontent when not in the proper system, but with Tom Coughlin giving Plaxico Burress the kick in the ass he needed early in the season, as well as the fact that he was a wide receivers coach under Bill Parcells’ tutelage in the 1980s, Johnson and Coughlin just might be that oddball couple who winds up growing old together. For years, Johnson’s made no bones about giving his all for Bill Parcells with the Jets and Cowboys, and with Coughlin being cut from the same cloth, the loquacious Johnson just might know when to shut up if he wants to be happy.
With the Giants being about $4 million under the salary cap, signing Johnson to join an already well stocked corps of receivers may seem frivolous in terms of addressing their top priorities. One didn’t need Luminol to detect that the real bleeding came from the Giants’ linebackers and secondary. And with Will Allen signing with Miami, and Will Peterson’s career likely over, the Giants, despite acquiring Sam Madison, still have gaping holes to fill in their pass defense. On the linebacking front, it’s also been mentioned that LaVar Arrington (another chronic malcontent) would beautifully complement his former teammate Antonio Pierce, particularly in the wake of Barrett Green getting cut and Nick Greisen likely to be jettisoned as well. Word on the street is that Arrington wants around $15 million in guaranteed money before he signs with anyone. Right now it’s understood that cap-happy Cleveland is in the LaVar Arrington hunt, so signing Keyshawn Johnson could drain the Giant’s liquidity in a bidding war with the Browns.
Should Johnson become a Giant, it will expose how much those gritty seven and eight yard receptions were missed when the Giants cut Ike Hilliard in 2005. Despite the erratic, and, yes, disappointing performance of Eli Manning in the latter half of the 2005 season, the Giants offensive arsenal came with plenty of playmakers but still lacked a “go-to” receiver to move the chains. Johnson fills that void. No need to belabor all those botched third down conversions, however, a receiver like Johnson could be the final answer from taking the Giants offense beyond the cusp of contention and into prime time. Say what you want about his mouthy behavior and selfishness, Keyshawn Johnson still remains one of the toughest and most fearless receivers in the NFL. And with him as a legitimate threat in the slot position, expect another productive season by Tiki Barber enjoying the soft, drop back coverage by linebackers forced to spot Johnson. In addition, with Johnson in the scheme, the Giants could really open up the passing game by playing four wides. Such a formation could finally benefit receivers like Tim Carter and Jamaar Taylor, who have been waiting for breakout seasons for several years now. It’s no secret how Keyshawn Johnson’s presence has done much to elevate many of his past teammates into the limelight.
More than anything else, this is likely to be the final season for Giants’ General Manager, Ernie Accorsi who’s legacy will no doubt be determined by the production of Eli Manning. With yet another toy for Manning to play with, Accorsi’s betting the ranch on Manning’s pedigree may finally be insured. As for Manning though, should he have Johnson as a teammate, he’ll likely have a do-or-die type of season like Joey Harrington just had in Detroit. There is one way that Manning can shun the scrutiny…just get Keyshawn the damn ball.
Thursday, January 19, 2006
COLTS, KARMA & MAYFLOWER TRUCKS
With all the weeping sentimentality leading up to the AFC Divisional Playoff’s, you’d have thought the Indianapolis Colts were the NFL’s version of the 1980 U.S. Hockey Team…”do you believe in Miracles?” Well, perhaps the official reviewing Troy Polamalu’s non-interception does. But even that wasn’t enough to allow America’s sports punditry their desired shmaltzfest. That said, the Colts are back in their stables, morosely looking back at their “destined” season while football’s epicenters shift to Denver and Seattle.
With the NFL clearly the Goliath of all professional sports, it would seem criminal, if not downright absurd, for them to be headquartered anywhere but New York City. However, even the mighty NFL can succumb to the deadly spores of marketing garble from nearby Madison Avenue. And with Tony Dungy, a black, mild mannered coach who’s even less innocuous to white audiences than Morgan Freeman, and Peyton Manning, the tall white quarterback who hails from football’s most blessed gene pool, you have all the elements in place to sell the Colts the way Proctor & Gamble sells Tide. Add in Manning’s hometown being ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, and Tony Dungy losing his eldest son before Christmas…and, well, what’s stopping a shiny bow from being tied around this Hollywood script of a season?
While the temperatures got colder, the Colts presumably got hotter. Oh yes, they were 13-0 as December rolled in, but they were not just any 13-0 team, they were perhaps the most “complete” 13-0 team of all time. Sure there have been past juggernauts. The ’85 Bears are often the first to come to mind, but they lacked proper “balance”. Too defensively oriented, some said, not to mention lacking a durable quarterback in Jim McMahon. Still, they won the Super Bowl by trouncing the New England Patriots 46-10. Then there were the ’98 Broncos who also went 13-0 en route to winning their second Super Bowl. Yet despite their dominance, they too came with chinks in their armor; hinging too much of their fate on the aging arm of John Elway. But these Colts…these 2005 Indianapolis Colts…had every nook and cranny filled. They could run, block, pass…oh could they pass…and better yet, this year’s model came with a defense. Add on the most accurate kicker in NFL history, and here was a team with more bells and whistles than the 1958 Edsel. What could possibly go wrong?
Early signs of slippage came as the Colts let up towards the end of the regular season. Sure they lost to San Diego, a team that could beat anybody when they had their act together; which they did when they handed the Colts their first loss on December 18th. So history wouldn’t be rewritten, and Don Shula, Nick Buoniconti and the rest of the 1972 Dolphins could breath a sigh of relief knowing their perfect season remained solely intact. Maybe this was a blessing in disguise. Past teams like the ’85 Bears and ’98 Broncos both went on record to say that they were relieved from the pressure of replicating the Dolphins’ perfect season when they finally took their first loss. So now the Colts could focus on what really mattered most, winning the Super Bowl. But rather than step up to make a statement that they to be feared in the post season, Indy took the safe route and rested its starters; losing again to Seattle and then eking out a win against the moribund Arizona Cardinals in Week 17. For all the mushy rah-rah we were supposed to embrace with the Colts, a backlash was looming.
And what is it about these guys that’s so great anyway? Peyton Manning gets paid $98 million to quarterback the Colts. Granted he works hard and probably watches more game film than aspiring pilots log hours in the air, but with that kind of salary, what’s to make him tug at our hearts more than a Trent Dilfer, Jeff Hostetler, Doug Williams or Kurt Warner? The gulf of talent between these guys and Peyton Manning stretches multiple area codes, yet, unlike Manning, they all won Super Bowls for their teams. And Marvin Harrison? Indeed, he gets the nod for his professional demeanor in a position synonymous with self-aggrandizement. The NFL could probably use more Marvin Harrison’s and fewer Terrell Owens’, but you’d be hard pressed to see him take a hit across the middle. When Marvin Harrison isn’t in the end zone, he’s sprinting for the sidelines or diving to the turf so he doesn’t get hurt. Say what you want about the shenanigans of guys like T.O., Michael Irvin and Keyshawn Johnson, at least they weren’t afraid to take their shots. As for Edgerrin James, his number 32 jersey and gangsta persona reminds us of O.J. Simpson in more ways than one.
Then of course you have Tony Dungy seeing his “storybook” season marred by the tragic death of his 18-year-old son. Surely nobody wants to wish this upon anyone, much less a very decent guy like Tony Dungy. But in all fairness, fans like coaches for who they are, how they coach, and how they cope with adversity on the field, not by what happens off the field, even when it comes to losing a son. America didn’t suddenly bleed Yankee pinstripes during the World Series after 9/11, nor we did become instant Colt fans because of Dungy’s tragedy. If anything, we may have felt a bit manipulated by the whole thing. Hence more anti-Colt backlash.
Finally there’s the intangible element that’s yet to be brought up. So at the risk of sounding a little earthy, I make this point. The untold truth of the Colts failing again is because they are still in karmic debt from bolting from Baltimore in 1984. It was a surprise and sleazy move, where the footage of Mayflower trucks leaving in the middle of the night remains etched in our minds like that of the Zapruder Film. The Colts were the soul of Baltimore; which at the time was so depressed it banked its economic future on the success of a new aquarium. A blue-collar city where business lunches consist of spiced crab and draft beer, Baltimorians found out via the local news that their storied franchise had up-and-left to a sterile, Midwestern city known best for a speedway before dawn. A new stadium awaited the Colts in Indianapolis – a dome of all things – while Memorial Stadium was left to rust. Through another ugly uprooting of a beloved franchise from Cleveland, Baltimore eventually got a new team in 1996. In fact, their replacement team even won a Super Bowl in 2001. But saying the Ravens are the same to Baltimore is like saying Sammy Hagar is the same to Van Halen fans raised on the kicks and screams of David Lee Roth. The wound may have stopped bleeding, but the scar tissue remains.
As for kicks and screams, Colts’ kicker Mike Vanderjagt provided plenty for all that were watching Sunday’s defeat to Pittsburgh. More than a just a kicker who could tie the game in the final seconds, Vanderjagt was thrust into the role as the Colts’ lone representative to the karmic parole board. As he got ready to attempt his 46-yard field goal, the Steelers called time out to “ice” the kicker, and perhaps, give an extra moment for the Powers-That-Be to deliberate. The ball was snapped, Vanderjagt planted his left leg and then watched, watched, watched the ball badly sail wide to the right off his kicking foot. Clearly a verdict had been reached…
PAROLE DENIED.
With the NFL clearly the Goliath of all professional sports, it would seem criminal, if not downright absurd, for them to be headquartered anywhere but New York City. However, even the mighty NFL can succumb to the deadly spores of marketing garble from nearby Madison Avenue. And with Tony Dungy, a black, mild mannered coach who’s even less innocuous to white audiences than Morgan Freeman, and Peyton Manning, the tall white quarterback who hails from football’s most blessed gene pool, you have all the elements in place to sell the Colts the way Proctor & Gamble sells Tide. Add in Manning’s hometown being ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, and Tony Dungy losing his eldest son before Christmas…and, well, what’s stopping a shiny bow from being tied around this Hollywood script of a season?
While the temperatures got colder, the Colts presumably got hotter. Oh yes, they were 13-0 as December rolled in, but they were not just any 13-0 team, they were perhaps the most “complete” 13-0 team of all time. Sure there have been past juggernauts. The ’85 Bears are often the first to come to mind, but they lacked proper “balance”. Too defensively oriented, some said, not to mention lacking a durable quarterback in Jim McMahon. Still, they won the Super Bowl by trouncing the New England Patriots 46-10. Then there were the ’98 Broncos who also went 13-0 en route to winning their second Super Bowl. Yet despite their dominance, they too came with chinks in their armor; hinging too much of their fate on the aging arm of John Elway. But these Colts…these 2005 Indianapolis Colts…had every nook and cranny filled. They could run, block, pass…oh could they pass…and better yet, this year’s model came with a defense. Add on the most accurate kicker in NFL history, and here was a team with more bells and whistles than the 1958 Edsel. What could possibly go wrong?
Early signs of slippage came as the Colts let up towards the end of the regular season. Sure they lost to San Diego, a team that could beat anybody when they had their act together; which they did when they handed the Colts their first loss on December 18th. So history wouldn’t be rewritten, and Don Shula, Nick Buoniconti and the rest of the 1972 Dolphins could breath a sigh of relief knowing their perfect season remained solely intact. Maybe this was a blessing in disguise. Past teams like the ’85 Bears and ’98 Broncos both went on record to say that they were relieved from the pressure of replicating the Dolphins’ perfect season when they finally took their first loss. So now the Colts could focus on what really mattered most, winning the Super Bowl. But rather than step up to make a statement that they to be feared in the post season, Indy took the safe route and rested its starters; losing again to Seattle and then eking out a win against the moribund Arizona Cardinals in Week 17. For all the mushy rah-rah we were supposed to embrace with the Colts, a backlash was looming.
And what is it about these guys that’s so great anyway? Peyton Manning gets paid $98 million to quarterback the Colts. Granted he works hard and probably watches more game film than aspiring pilots log hours in the air, but with that kind of salary, what’s to make him tug at our hearts more than a Trent Dilfer, Jeff Hostetler, Doug Williams or Kurt Warner? The gulf of talent between these guys and Peyton Manning stretches multiple area codes, yet, unlike Manning, they all won Super Bowls for their teams. And Marvin Harrison? Indeed, he gets the nod for his professional demeanor in a position synonymous with self-aggrandizement. The NFL could probably use more Marvin Harrison’s and fewer Terrell Owens’, but you’d be hard pressed to see him take a hit across the middle. When Marvin Harrison isn’t in the end zone, he’s sprinting for the sidelines or diving to the turf so he doesn’t get hurt. Say what you want about the shenanigans of guys like T.O., Michael Irvin and Keyshawn Johnson, at least they weren’t afraid to take their shots. As for Edgerrin James, his number 32 jersey and gangsta persona reminds us of O.J. Simpson in more ways than one.
Then of course you have Tony Dungy seeing his “storybook” season marred by the tragic death of his 18-year-old son. Surely nobody wants to wish this upon anyone, much less a very decent guy like Tony Dungy. But in all fairness, fans like coaches for who they are, how they coach, and how they cope with adversity on the field, not by what happens off the field, even when it comes to losing a son. America didn’t suddenly bleed Yankee pinstripes during the World Series after 9/11, nor we did become instant Colt fans because of Dungy’s tragedy. If anything, we may have felt a bit manipulated by the whole thing. Hence more anti-Colt backlash.
Finally there’s the intangible element that’s yet to be brought up. So at the risk of sounding a little earthy, I make this point. The untold truth of the Colts failing again is because they are still in karmic debt from bolting from Baltimore in 1984. It was a surprise and sleazy move, where the footage of Mayflower trucks leaving in the middle of the night remains etched in our minds like that of the Zapruder Film. The Colts were the soul of Baltimore; which at the time was so depressed it banked its economic future on the success of a new aquarium. A blue-collar city where business lunches consist of spiced crab and draft beer, Baltimorians found out via the local news that their storied franchise had up-and-left to a sterile, Midwestern city known best for a speedway before dawn. A new stadium awaited the Colts in Indianapolis – a dome of all things – while Memorial Stadium was left to rust. Through another ugly uprooting of a beloved franchise from Cleveland, Baltimore eventually got a new team in 1996. In fact, their replacement team even won a Super Bowl in 2001. But saying the Ravens are the same to Baltimore is like saying Sammy Hagar is the same to Van Halen fans raised on the kicks and screams of David Lee Roth. The wound may have stopped bleeding, but the scar tissue remains.
As for kicks and screams, Colts’ kicker Mike Vanderjagt provided plenty for all that were watching Sunday’s defeat to Pittsburgh. More than a just a kicker who could tie the game in the final seconds, Vanderjagt was thrust into the role as the Colts’ lone representative to the karmic parole board. As he got ready to attempt his 46-yard field goal, the Steelers called time out to “ice” the kicker, and perhaps, give an extra moment for the Powers-That-Be to deliberate. The ball was snapped, Vanderjagt planted his left leg and then watched, watched, watched the ball badly sail wide to the right off his kicking foot. Clearly a verdict had been reached…
PAROLE DENIED.
Sunday, January 08, 2006
LOOKING LIKE WHAT THE CATS BROUGHT IN
Despite the mild January temperatures, low winds and raucous crowd, you’d have better luck finding a spark with two twigs than what the Giants brought to the field. And while LT, Harry Carson and Carl Banks were brought in for inspiration, the way the Giants linebackers played, perhaps they should have suited up instead. Even the toll collectors on the Jersey Turnpike could have stopped the run better. Oh, but if only the linebackers were the problem…
In the opening minutes of the game, the Giants, who were hosting their first playoff game in five years, seemed poised to cash in on home field advantage. Their opening kick coverage was fast and swift; of which Carolina stumbled with two false start penalties, not to mention having a frazzled Jake Delhomme looking sucked in beneath a Big Blue undertow. Unfortunately, the currents quickly changed, of which the stench of low tide lingered for the rest of this agonizing game.
It’s hard to pinpoint where the game turned, but the Giant’s recent formula as the sleepy dinosaur coming to life shouldn’t have been in their playoff game plan. They had a chance to seize control early, as they moved the ball nicely on their opening drive, only then failing to convert while passing on a third and two on Carolina’s 45-yard-line. Somehow, somewhere that seemed to send a message that the door was wide open, even if it was only the opening minutes of the game. Didn’t they learn anything for their dismal loss to Washington two weeks ago?
In terms of performance, Eli Manning (10/18, 133 yards, 3 INT’s) was simply awful. Sure, one could say it was his first NFL playoff game, but Manning’s “aw shucks” demeanor seems better fit for Baskin-Robbins than it does the NFL. Early in the season, we were in awe of his “poise” and “composure”, not to mention his being uncannily unflappable. Instead, it’s quite obvious that Manning now needs a wet towel snapped on his ass before each possession. Beating the Giants is simple: force Manning to win the game on his own and watch him lead the Giants’ head right through the noose. And with Tiki Barber relegated to a supporting role (13/41), Manning was rowing with just one oar.
While Manning couldn’t get anything going all day, it was Carolina’s simple exploitation of the Giants’ porous run defense that put this one away early. With the Giant linebackers looking sent over from a temp agency, Carolina ran the ball with a scheme simple enough for a Pop Warner team to follow. No draws, no counters, just rammed it right down the Giants’ throats with balanced production by DeShaun Foster and Nick Goings. Perhaps the most incriminating case of this came late in the first half after Jeff Feagles pinned Carolina to their own 7-yard-line. With the Giants only down by a touchdown, and a 3rd and 7 situation looming for the Panthers, a stop on this play would force a punt and presumably give good field position for the Giants to score. The Giants instead allowed Carolina to convert with a screen to Goings. Three plays later, Carolina faced a 3rd and 11 from their own 18-yard-line. Same scenario for the Giants, yet again Carolina runs Goings up the middle for a first down. When the Giants finally did force a punt, Carolina still gets the ball back, as the Giants muffed the return as the result of a bad punt gone good. Somehow, the Panthers were only up 10-0 at the half.
There are plays that speak volumes in games even though they may not have had much impact on the overall outcome. The Giants have been playing on the defensive in recent weeks. First by an ugly, unconvincing win against Philadelphia, then by getting manhandled at Washington, and finally by surviving a lackluster yawn-athon in Oakland on New Year’s Eve. Sure they’ve won games, just as Silicon Valley produced paper millionaires, but there’s been very little meat besides what Tiki Barber has done recently. In Sunday’s game against Carolina, the one play that may have ignited some badly needed mojo came with an asterisk. It came in the opening play of the third quarter on a 44-yard floater to Jeremy Shockey. Sure Shockey caught the ball, then it squirted out, but thanks to a quick whistle he was ruled down by contact. After numerous replays it seemed pretty apparent that Shockey did indeed fumble. But because he was ruled “down by contact” the play could not be reviewed. In essence, the Giants biggest play of the day was fraud. They knew it, and carried out the rest of the drive, and game, as if they didn’t deserve it.
Ironically, Tim Lewis, the Giants defensive coordinator, will interview with Green Bay and St. Louis in the wake of one of the most abysmally played performances by his squad. No doubt he’ll have some tough questions to answer. The Giants too, have plenty answers to search for; starting with a long look in the locker room mirror.
In the opening minutes of the game, the Giants, who were hosting their first playoff game in five years, seemed poised to cash in on home field advantage. Their opening kick coverage was fast and swift; of which Carolina stumbled with two false start penalties, not to mention having a frazzled Jake Delhomme looking sucked in beneath a Big Blue undertow. Unfortunately, the currents quickly changed, of which the stench of low tide lingered for the rest of this agonizing game.
It’s hard to pinpoint where the game turned, but the Giant’s recent formula as the sleepy dinosaur coming to life shouldn’t have been in their playoff game plan. They had a chance to seize control early, as they moved the ball nicely on their opening drive, only then failing to convert while passing on a third and two on Carolina’s 45-yard-line. Somehow, somewhere that seemed to send a message that the door was wide open, even if it was only the opening minutes of the game. Didn’t they learn anything for their dismal loss to Washington two weeks ago?
In terms of performance, Eli Manning (10/18, 133 yards, 3 INT’s) was simply awful. Sure, one could say it was his first NFL playoff game, but Manning’s “aw shucks” demeanor seems better fit for Baskin-Robbins than it does the NFL. Early in the season, we were in awe of his “poise” and “composure”, not to mention his being uncannily unflappable. Instead, it’s quite obvious that Manning now needs a wet towel snapped on his ass before each possession. Beating the Giants is simple: force Manning to win the game on his own and watch him lead the Giants’ head right through the noose. And with Tiki Barber relegated to a supporting role (13/41), Manning was rowing with just one oar.
While Manning couldn’t get anything going all day, it was Carolina’s simple exploitation of the Giants’ porous run defense that put this one away early. With the Giant linebackers looking sent over from a temp agency, Carolina ran the ball with a scheme simple enough for a Pop Warner team to follow. No draws, no counters, just rammed it right down the Giants’ throats with balanced production by DeShaun Foster and Nick Goings. Perhaps the most incriminating case of this came late in the first half after Jeff Feagles pinned Carolina to their own 7-yard-line. With the Giants only down by a touchdown, and a 3rd and 7 situation looming for the Panthers, a stop on this play would force a punt and presumably give good field position for the Giants to score. The Giants instead allowed Carolina to convert with a screen to Goings. Three plays later, Carolina faced a 3rd and 11 from their own 18-yard-line. Same scenario for the Giants, yet again Carolina runs Goings up the middle for a first down. When the Giants finally did force a punt, Carolina still gets the ball back, as the Giants muffed the return as the result of a bad punt gone good. Somehow, the Panthers were only up 10-0 at the half.
There are plays that speak volumes in games even though they may not have had much impact on the overall outcome. The Giants have been playing on the defensive in recent weeks. First by an ugly, unconvincing win against Philadelphia, then by getting manhandled at Washington, and finally by surviving a lackluster yawn-athon in Oakland on New Year’s Eve. Sure they’ve won games, just as Silicon Valley produced paper millionaires, but there’s been very little meat besides what Tiki Barber has done recently. In Sunday’s game against Carolina, the one play that may have ignited some badly needed mojo came with an asterisk. It came in the opening play of the third quarter on a 44-yard floater to Jeremy Shockey. Sure Shockey caught the ball, then it squirted out, but thanks to a quick whistle he was ruled down by contact. After numerous replays it seemed pretty apparent that Shockey did indeed fumble. But because he was ruled “down by contact” the play could not be reviewed. In essence, the Giants biggest play of the day was fraud. They knew it, and carried out the rest of the drive, and game, as if they didn’t deserve it.
Ironically, Tim Lewis, the Giants defensive coordinator, will interview with Green Bay and St. Louis in the wake of one of the most abysmally played performances by his squad. No doubt he’ll have some tough questions to answer. The Giants too, have plenty answers to search for; starting with a long look in the locker room mirror.
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