New York Football Giants

NEW YORK – What an incredible season it has been for the Giants. A month or so ago, fans were wondering if they would make it to the playoffs at all and here they were, finding themselves battling for the NFC Championship crown. If the Giants beat the 49ers, they would be in the Super Bowl once again. Guess what? The Giants beat the 49ers 20-17 in overtime and will be going to the Super Bowl in Indianapolis for a rematch against the New England Patriots. Hollywood could not write a more riveting script.

The Giants have owned the Patriots since 2007 including the preseason, regular season and postseason. The Patriots are the real underdogs in this game and face the hungry NFC Champion Giants.

Let me just pause for a moment to acknowledge QB Eli Manning. This guy has weathered every storm thrown his way and really showed the NFL world how tough he is last night. Manning was getting beat down the entire game by a rabid 49ers defense and he kept getting up and performing. I have always respected Eli Manning but the way he played last night brought me to another level of respect for him. Easy Eli is a tough guy and a true Iron Man. I’m glad he is our quarterback and I’m happy that he is getting the respect he deserved all along.

This game was a battle from the opening kickoff until the final FG in OT. The 49ers defense played a terrific game and my hat is off to them. The Giants took a 10-7 lead into the locker room at halftime and seemed to pick up some momentum with a nice drive prior to heading inside.

The second half of the game was intense. Both teams were fighting all the way up to the coin toss for overtime and beyond. Make no mistake, the Giants earned their spot in the Super Bowl. I am very proud to say that I am a Giants fan and really proud of what Eli Manning did on the field. Hey Giants fans, we’re going to the Super Bowl, again!

Let’s take a look at my notes from the game.

QB Eli Manning – What can you say about Manning? This guy is simply awesome and for all his quiet demeanor, a true tough guy. He finished with 316 yards 2 TD’s 0 INT’s

RB Ahmad Bradshaw – Bradshaw ran hard as usual and had his hands full with a rabid 49ers defense. He finished with 74 yards rushing and 52 yards receiving.

WR Hakeem Nicks – Nicks got banged up early but returned to the game. He finished with 55 yards.

DE Justin Tuck – Tuck was playing on another level last night and finished with 1.5 sacks.

LB Michael Boley – Boley was doing a lot more out there then the final stats would lead you to believe. He plays with a lot of passion.

WR Victor Cruz – The ‘Salsa King’ Cruz had another superb performance and finished with 142 yards 0 TD’s.

DE Jason Pierre-Paul – JPP cannot be contained and gets double teamed every game now. He was the Giants leading tackler and finished with 0.5 sacks.

S Antrel Rolle – Rolle finished in the top five tacklers once again and played a great game. I love the way this guy plays football.

RB Brandon Jacobs – Jacobs didn’t get in much work last night because they were throwing the ball all over the place and Bradshaw got a lot of work. He finished with 13 yards 0 TD’s.

LB Jacquian Williams – This young man was playing like he wanted to go to the Super Bowl. He is only going to get better and finished with 1 forced fumble.

WR Mario Manningham – Super Mario wasn’t getting many balls thrown his way but still managed to grab 1 TD in traffic. Maybe the biggest play of the game in my opinion.

CB Corey Webster – I’ve been saying it all year, Webster has taken his game to another level and really improved. He finished with 1 forced fumble.

TE Bear Pascoe – Pascoe had only one catch in this game but it was a big one. He finished with 1 TD, his first ever in the NFL. Congrats Bear!

LB Chase Blackburn – Blackburn was second on the team in tackles and I still cannot figure out why they let this guy go in the offseason. Re-sign him Jerry!

DE Osi Umenyiora – Osi was battling a tough offensive line out there all night and finished with 0.5 sacks. He simply causes havoc every game.

FB Henry Hynoski – This guy has really stepped up his game. He has been playing with a lot of heart and making contributions to the team. He finished with 20 yards.

LB Mathias Kiwanuka – Kiwi is a straight baller and was playing with a mean streak last night. He finished with 0.5 sacks.

DT Linval Joseph – I really like what I have been seeing from this young man. Keep an eye on him because he could end up as one of the greats.

S Kenny Phillips – Phillips is such an instinctual player and when he hits somebody, they fall to the ground. His angles and approaches are incredible.

CB Aaron Ross – Ross was out there making plays and continues to do a good job filling in for the injured Terrell Thomas. Good job Aaron!

S Deon Grant – Grant was in the top five for defensive tacklers and has become a force for Big Blue. I hope he retires a Giant in five or six years.

K Lawrence Tynes – What can I say? Tynes kicked the winning FG that sends Big Blue to the Super Bowl. Heck of a kick Larry!

P Steve Weatherford – The Weatherman is a weapon. He had another solid game last night. Consistency in the punting game is a relief for a change.

Giants Offense – This group of players had the toughest game of the year last night and certainly the most physical. They came out on top due to resiliency.

Giants Defense – The Giants defense had a superb game last night. This group has really stepped up in recent weeks and finished with 3 sacks 0 INT’s and 2 forced fumbles.

Giants Special Teams – The special teams play was good last night. Thomas deserves the game ball and Tynes did what he had to do. Still some missed tackles and room for improvement.

What are your thoughts on the Giants performance against the 49ers?

Category: NFL

YES!

Category: NFL

This is the game I saw coming and the one I fear more than going into the dome and facing the Saints.  The 49ers are the best balanced team in the NFL.  The #1 defense, which is strong from the front four to the linebackers and the secondary and is also tops in forced turnovers.  The running game is led by Frank Gore and his 1200+ yards in the regular season, but to ignore Kendall Hunter would be a mistake.  The 49ers have opened up the offense and given QB Alex Smith a bigger roll.  Particularly last week when he out dueled Drew Brees down the stretch of the fourth quarter to win that game.  Over his last 6 games and 190 passing attempts he has zero interceptions. The 49ers have no weakness for the Giants to exploit.

The Giants are playing their best football of the season and possibly going back to last year or even 2009 and that might not be enough.  To beat the 49ers they will have to play mistake free and make every possession count.  If the 49ers run the ball they will use clock and limit the Giants touches.  We can’t afford the three and outs and expect to stay in this game.   We have an edge with Eli and our receivers and this is the key.  If we can move the ball and keep putting up points we can force the 49ers to throw to keep up and as good as Smith has been of late I like our chances in a shoot out. 

Early in the season I didn’t post a score for the Seahawks game and while I will root for the Giants on Sunday and hope that our season has one more chapter.  I can’t put up a score that I have to fabricate and not have the absolute conviction that the Giants will win this game.

If we can come out on top and go to Indianapolis the Giants will win their fourth Lombardi and if we get the Ravens we will avenge the Super Bowl we lost.

Category: NFL

NEW YORK – The Giants are now only two wins away from the rings. The Giants played their hearts out last night and beat the Green Bay Packers 37-20. I would have normally written this last night but I was celebrating all night long. The entire Giants community has been correctly stating that the team not only beat the Packers but also the refs. Is this what we have come to in the NFL? Teams losing to atrocious refereeing? Roger Goodell better look into this and hand out some punishment including a four game suspension or something to the effect of what a player would receive. This is the second round of the playoffs and completely inexcusable. If he wants to maintain the integrity of the game in the fans mind, something needs to be done about this. There were multiple blown calls and non-calls made last night but the Giants overcame it all and will play the San Francisco 49ers next week out west for the NFC championship.

The first half of football was pretty balanced and fun to watch. Both teams seemed to move the ball well and traded points a few times. The Packers defense was playing surprisingly well and I was a bit shocked by how many cheap shots they were taking on Eli Manning with no calls from the refs. Right before the teams headed into the locker room, Manning threw a Hail Mary pass into the endzone that WR Hakeem Nicks pulled down to give Big Blue a 20-10 halftime lead.

The second half saw some of the same action with QB Aaron Rodgers moving the ball well but the fourth quarter was all about Big Blue. Everyone knows that Eli Manning owns the fourth quarter and he proved it again. The Giants defense also stepped up big time in the second half and started getting to Rodgers often and causing havoc on the field. The long break really seemed to make the Packers sluggish and out of sync.

This Giants victory sets up some very interesting scenarios for fans. The first being the San Francisco game next week. Giants fans still remember that playoff game in 2003 where another blown call by the refs cost the Giants the opportunity to win. This should be billed simply as a revenge game for the fans, although I doubt the media will look at it that way. If the Giants get their revenge and beat the 49ers an even more interesting scenario unfolds. The Patriots play the Ravens next week for the AFC championship. Regardless of who wins that game, the G-Men will see a Super Bowl rematch.

I have no preference on who New York plays but a rematch against the Ravens would be billed as another revenge game (2000 Super Bowl loss) and the Patriots (2007 Super Bowl win) game would be another New York vs. Boston type of scenario. I’d be happy just to make it back to the Super Bowl regardless of who we play and of course take home the Lombardi trophy when the game is over. The Road Warriors have returned!

Let’s take a look at my notes from the game. 

QB Eli Manning – Manning was simply brilliant once again and finished the game with 330 yards 3 TD’s and 1 INT. Manning is the hottest QB in the NFL right now.

RB Ahmad Bradshaw – Bradshaw was running hard as usual and made some critical plays late in the game. He finished with 63 yards on the ground and 21 yards receiving.

WR Hakeem Nicks – Nicks had a tremendous game and finished with 165 yards and 2 TD’s. He was clearly Manning’s favorite target last night.

LB Michael Boley – Boley is such a tough guy and great leader. He finished the night second on the team in tackles and had 2 sacks.

DE Justin Tuck – Tuck didn’t make very many tackles but he was disrupting QB Aaron Rodgers comfort zone the entire game.

WR Victor Cruz – The Salsa Man was garnering a lot of attention but still finished with 74 yards 0 TD’s.

S Antrel Rolle – Rolle made some key plays out there last night and was the leading tackler for Big Blue once again. Rolle = Beast.

RB Brandon Jacobs – Jacobs tried to stay busy in this game that was all about passing but he did get 22 yards and the dagger TD that finished off the Packers in the 4th quarter.

CB Corey Webster – Webster continues to play on another level this year and he had another great game last night.

S Deon Grant – Grant was hitting everything that came into his area and also had 1 INT. He got banged up but returned to the game.

DE Jason Pierre-Paul – JPP was getting double teamed for most of the game. This seems to be the story every week now. JPP = Beast!

WR Mario Manningham – Super Mario had a solid game and contributed 31 yards and 1 TD to the victory. Nice game Mario!

CB Aaron Ross – Ross was out there making plays and really took his game to another level last night. He made a few key plays that could have changed the game.

LB Jacquian Williams – Williams is having one heck of a season for a rookie and now finds himself in the NFC Championship game.

TE Jake Ballard – Ballard had a rough night and finished with 17 yards. I expect him to get more involved next week.

S Kenny Phillips – I love the way Phillips plays the game of football. The hard hitting safety finished with 1 forced fumble.

DE Osi Umenyiora – Osi gets my defensive game ball. The Giants need to pay this man. He finished with 2 sacks and 1 forced fumble.

DT Chris Canty – Canty was having a good game before leaving with a knee injury. He did not return to the game.

K Lawrence Tynes – Tynes went 3/4 on FG attempts with one blocked and 4/4 on extra point attempts. He also had a kickoff go out of bounds.

P Steve Weatherford – The Weatherman was brilliant once again and has really become the best special teams weapon on the team.

Giants Offense – What can I say? The Giants offense was awesome last night and put up 37 points on the best team in football.

Giants Defense – The Giants defense got off to a slow start in the first half but exploded in the second half to secure the victory.

Giants Special Teams – The special teams recovered two onside kicks and had a decent game but they still need improvement.

Category: NFL

Luckily Eli Manning got bailed out for that safety that he caused. He really should of trusted his blocker and stepped up or he should of realized where he was on the field and thrown the ball away-Giants1eva

When a veteran QB gets charged with a safety the first place I'm going to look is at the protection up front.  The other point would be that with 3 TD passes and no turnovers Eli had a big hand in overcoming that safety.  Just something to think about. 

The Giants and Packers share the same strengths on offense and defense.  GB was #2 in the NFC in passing we were #4.  They were 13th in rushing we were 16th.  Defensively the Packers were better than the Giants in rushing defense and the Giants were better against the pass.  But during the regular season the Packers clearly were consistant and a superior team.  It is a new season and the Packers will be playing their first post season game on Sunday against the Giants, however it will be game four for the Blue who have had to beat the Jets, Cowboys, and Falcons to earn this trip to Lambeau.   
The Giants team that stumbled through the first 14 games of the season has left the building.  In its place is a healthy Giants team that can run the ball, can get to Aaron Rodgers and can defend the pass.   It is January, we are on the road.  Giants 31-17

Category: NFL