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Inside the Playbook - Cardinals (1-0) at NY Giants (0-1): Could get ugly at MetLife Stadium if Big Blue doesn't start fast

Key Matchup: WR Victor Cruz vs. CBs Patrick Peterson and Antonio Cromartie

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Saturday, September 13, 2014, 11:35 AM
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504231047cp00051-san-diego.jpgThings don't get any easier for Giants offense having to face Cardinals and CB Patrick Peterson.

ARIZONA CARDINALS AT NY GIANTS, METLIFE STADIUM, 1 P.M.

LINE: Cardinals by 2 1/2

TV: Ch. 5, ( Kevin Burkhardt , John Lynch )

RADIO: WFAN-660 AM, 101.9 FM ( Bob Papa , Carl Banks , Howard Cross )

FORECAST: Sunny, mid 70s, with 9 mph winds.

INJURY REPORT

The Cardinals won’t have OLB John Abraham , their best pure pass rusher, who is contemplating retirement after announcing this week that he suffering from memory loss due to concussions. RB Andre Ellington (foot) has missed practice time and QB Carson Palmer was limited during the week with a sore shoulder. Both punters are banged up. The Cards’ Dave Zastudil is fighting through a groin strain and the Giants’ Steve Weatherford sprained an ankle in the opener. Key defenders LB Jon Beason (foot) and DE Jason Pierre-Paul (neck) are banged up but will play for the Giants.

KEY MATCHUP

WR Victor Cruz vs. CBs Patrick Peterson and Antonio Cromartie

New York Giants vs. Arizona Cardinals Preview
New York Daily News reporters Ralph Vacchiano and Ebenezer Samuel preview upcoming matchup with the Cardinals.
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Cruz has to shake loose or the Giants have no chance. He’s going to be matched up in a lot of man coverage behind the Cardinals blitz, which could change Eli Manning’s mentality to go downfield out of this scheme. But in Peterson and Cromartie, the Cardinals have one of the best CB tandems in the league. Peterson goes up against Larry Fitzgerald every day in practice and wins a lot of those battles so he knows how to cover someone out of the slot.

SCOUT SAYS

“I don’t see the Giants suddenly clicking against this defense, which played very well against a good Chargers team last week in spite of losing some key people. Eli has had trouble with tipped balls before and the Cardinals have a 6-8 defensive end in Calais Campbell who should get pressure up the middle against this group of linemen. He’s not ( Ndamukong ) Suh or ( Nick ) Fairley , but (defensive coordinator) Todd Bowles likes to play games with him and is always bringing heat. The Cardinals have to have some concerns that Larry Fitzgerald (one catch) isn’t getting open. Michael Floyd is becoming Palmer’s go-to receiver.”

INTANGIBLES

The Giants really have nothing to feel good about since preseason began. In fact, now they haven’t had much to feel good about since they won their last Super Bowl. The more they talk about how their offense will come together, the more they continue to struggle. And after laying an opening egg, they really need a fast start to do something for their confidence. They can’t get behind early or the home crowd could get ugly and they could get buried. The Cardinals play in football’s best division and, at 10-6, failed to make the playoffs last year. They’re looking at this game as a major stepping-stone since they’ve historically had trouble with East Coast starts.

PREDICTION

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Eli Manning (5 TDs), Larry Donnell (3) star as Giants rout Redskins

ANDOVER, Md. -- He wasn't drafted, people mispronounce his name, and he had no idea where he was going when he was ushered into the room for his first big NFL postgame news conference.

But Larry Donnell can find the end zone.

And, once he gets there, all he has to do is turn his 6-foot-6, 265-pound body around and haul in the pass from Eli Manning. It happened three times in the first half Thursday night in theNew York Giants' 45-14 victory over the Washington Redskins.

"You set your goals high," Donnell said. "I didn't expect it to come so quick, but it has."

More from ESPN.com

graziano_dan_m.jpgThe Giants tailored their offense to fit their players, as can be seen by Larry Donnell's star turn in a rout of the Redskins, Dan Graziano writes. Story

keim_john_m.jpgKirk Cousins struggled mightily against the Giants, but the Redskins' troubles run deeper than quarterback, John Keim writes. Story

He has become Manning's top receiver, the perfect target in the team's new dink-and-dunk offense. The second-year tight end out of Grambling State caught twisting grabs of 5, 6 and 6 yards, touchdowns so similar he had trouble differentiating them in his mind.

"They all tie into each other," he said. "Every time I think about one, I just smile from ear to ear, man. It's just a great feeling. ... When we're down there, you make eyes with Eli, you know he's about to throw it."

After struggling in his first two games running new offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo's West Coast playbook, Manning has led the Giants (2-2) to consecutive victories.

Manning is supposed to complete 70 percent of his passes in this offense, and he passed that mark against the Redskins, going 28 for 39 -- including three simple open-field drops -- for 300 yards with four touchdowns and one interception. Manning also ran for a 1-yard score, as did Andre Williams, and the Giants forced six turnovers.

"That was the whole thing, to be able to leave here tonight and be 2-2 and 1-0 in the division. That was huge," New York coach Tom Coughlin said. "It's exciting to be in the hunt, and by being able to come out of here with a win, hopefully we have a chance to be."

Donnell -- it's pronounced "don-EHL", not "DON-ehl" -- beat a trio of defenders for his hat trick of touchdowns: linebacker Perry Riley, safety Brandon Meriweather and rookie cornerbackBashaud Breeland. They barely knew what hit them.

"He's better than what we thought," Meriweather said. "And by the time we made that adjustment, he was three touchdowns in."

Donnell finished with seven catches for 54 yards. He had only one career touchdown catch entering the game, but he now leads the Giants this season in TD catches (4) and overall receptions (25). Daniel Fells had a 2-yard scoring catch in the third quarter, which means tight ends have snagged seven of Manning's nine TD passes this season.

New York's Victor Cruz added six catches for 108 yards, his second consecutive 100-yard game.

Kirk Cousins and his receivers weren't anywhere near as efficient for the Redskins, whose six giveaways led to 31 points for the Giants. A strip-sack by Mathias Kiwanuka set up New York's first touchdown, Trumaine McBride's strip of tight end Logan Paulsen after a catch ended a Washington drive deep in New York territory, and Prince Amukamara, Quinten Demps, McBride and Antrel Rolle intercepted Cousins' passes in the second half.

"I've got to look at my play," Cousins said, "because that was killing us at the end there."

Cousins, who has the starting job while Robert Griffin III recovers from a dislocated ankle, finished 19 for 33 for 257 yards with four interceptions and a fumble for first-year coach Jay Gruden's Redskins (1-3), who dropped into the cellar in the NFC East, already 2 1/2 games behind the unbeaten Philadelphia Eagles. Cousins threw three interceptions in a span of five attempts in the second half; Griffin has never thrown three picks in an entire game.

"Their coaches had them ready to play. We didn't have our team ready to play," Gruden said. "We were abysmal offensively and defensively and it showed."

Donnell, meanwhile, was asked if he kept the balls from his touchdown catches as souvenirs.

"Nah," he answered. "There's more coming."

Game notes

Redskins two-time Pro Bowl LT Trent Williams strained his right knee in the second half and will have an MRI on Friday. ... Washington TE Niles Paul left in the first half with a concussion after a nasty helmet-to-helmet hit at the end of a 28-yard catch. ... Redskins DE Jarvis Jenkins left with bruised ribs. ... The Giants scored in the first quarter for the first time this season.

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New York Giants news, 10/1: Mario Manningham released

By Ed Valentine @Valentine_Ed on Oct 1 2014, 7:25a 15







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Mario Manningham - Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports






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New York Giants headlines for Wednesday, 10/1.




Good morning, New York Giants fans! We begin your Wednesday with the news that the Giants on Tuesday released Mario Manningham, freeing the 2011 Super Bowl hero from injured reserve with an injury waiver. Manningham is free to sign with another NFL team.


The Giants signed Manningham in the offseason, hoping that after two seasons in San Francisco that were cut short by a serious knee injury, he could regain the form he had with the Giants early in his career and help their receiving corps. It never happened.





Manningham showed little during training camp or the preseason, strained a calf muscle in the preseason finale against the New England Patriots and was placed on IR. At 28, and having yet to show he can regain his form following the knee injury he sustained in 2012, the Giants were Manningham's best shot at resurrecting his career. He may be at the end of the NFL road.



Around The Inter-Google

Antrel Rolle spent part of his weekly spot on WFAN guaranteeing that he would get a Pick 6 this season. More interesting, at least to me, is how on target his assessment of the 2-2 Giants was. Here is what he said:



"As long as we don’t hurt ourselves, we have a great shot," Rolle told Joe & Evan. "I think we have a great shot. I think that’s what’s been hurting us all along … I think we’re our own worst enemy, and as long as we take care of that, I think the sky’s the limit for this team. I have all the faith in the world in this team. We’re a very, very talented group, and once you put that confidence in that group, watch out."


Giants rookie WR Odell Beckham Jr. may have Rashad Jennings to thank for improving hamstring - NY Daily News



Odell Beckham Jr. is finally getting healthy. And if the Giants’ first-round pick manages to stay that way, he’ll thank
for the assist. About two weeks ago, Beckham’s hamstring began to show serious progress and the receiver began practicing and buzz started to build that he might be ready for his NFL debut.

About a week before that, Beckham sought out Jennings, the running back with the custom-built warmup routine. Beckham has since adopted that routine, and while it hasn’t healed his hamstring (old-fashioned rest and rehab get the credit for that), it could play a critical role in keeping the injury from recurring.





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Osi Umenyiora to target old friend Eli Manning Sunday

Posted 15 hours ago

eisen_70x70.pngMichael EisenSenior Writer/Editor@GiantsEisen Read Eisen's Mailbag

Osi Umenyiora will return to MetLife Stadium as a member of the Falcons on Sunday
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – In his 12 NFL seasons, Osi Umenyiora has sacked 43 different quarterbacks. On Sunday, he will have an opportunity to add an old friend to that list.

relatedlinks-250.jpg NEWS > Coach hints Beckham could play vs. ATL > Latest Giants-Falcons Injury Report > Infographic: Giants vs. Falcons PHOTOS > Know Your Opponent: Falcons roster VIDEOS > Watch Giants locker room interviews Umenyiora, who played his first 10 pro seasons for the Giants, will return to MetLife Stadium in an enemy uniform for the first time, as a member of the Atlanta Falcons. Now limited to pass-rush duties, Umenyiora could add to his career total of 82.5 sacks by bringing down Eli Manning, with whom he won two Super Bowls.

“Eli Manning is my brother,” Umenyiora said on a conference call today. “I am not necessarily looking forward to it. I am really not. I’ve just got to approach it like every other game. I have a lot of love for pretty much everybody over there, so I am not looking forward to just going out there and destroying my former team the way most people would think. I have a job to do, and I have to go out there and execute, and that is pretty much it.”

>> 7 TAKEAWAYS FROM GIANTS MEDIA HOUR

Manning looks forward to competing against his former teammate, but would prefer to remain upright.

“He’ll be fired up,” Manning said of Umenyiora. “Osi and I had a great relationship when he was here, but I know, as a defensive end, they always want sacks. In practice he was in the backfield quite a bit, could have hit me a number of times, but you can’t hit the quarterbacks. Hopefully, our guys will do a good job and keep him away. He’s a tremendous player and can still get to the quarterback.”

Umenyiora has been credited with six tackles this season, but he does not have any of the Falcons’ three sacks.

Manning has performed well in the Giants’ new offense. He threw four touchdown passes last week in a victory in Washington and has completed 66.9 percent of his passes through four games.

>> COACH HINTS BECKHAM COULD PLAY VS. FALCONS

“He is throwing that ball really fast,” Umenyiora said. “He is getting it out of his hands in less than two seconds, it’s really amazing. It seems like he has full command of that new offense they are running there. They look like a very good team. Eli Manning has always been a great quarterback; he has always kept his cool and been one of the better quarterbacks in the league even though sometimes things didn’t work out. He has always been that type of guy. I am happy for him, I am happy he is in a system that he likes, and he is playing very well.”

When he enters the game, Umenyiora will be matched up against Giants left tackle Will Beatty, reprising a confrontation that used to take place in practice.

“Will Beatty has always been a very good player,” Umenyiora said. “I think he was very competitive, very mature beyond his age, especially when he came in and he is still that way now. I think they have him rated as the best left tackle in football. He is playing very well, I am very happy for him and I am proud of him, proud to see the type of player he has become because he was like that from the beginning. I left last year, so obviously he didn’t have anybody pushing him. That is why his game kind of slipped a little bit, but now he looked on the schedule and he sees me on there and all of a sudden he is an All-Pro left tackle again, so I am going to take credit for that. Will Beatty is just a really good guy.”

Beatty relishes the opportunity to face one of his mentors and gauge how far he has progressed.

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VIEW GALLERY | 29 Photos
Know Your Opponent: Atlanta Falcons
“I was on his scout side, trying to make him better,” Beatty said. “Now I get to go against him and that feeling that this is what you look for. You look forward to the big games and the good matchups. This is almost a division game for me going against him because of how well I know him. Let’s see how much he changed. I get to show him how much I changed and how much I grew.”

>> STORYLINES FROM GIANTS VS. FALCONS

Umenyiora joined the Giants as a second-round draft choice in 2003. A Pro Bowler in 2005 and 2007, he was a standout on the Giants teams that won Super Bowls XLII and XLVI. Umenyiora’s 75.0 regular-season sacks as a Giant place him fourth on the franchise’s career list. He also holds the single-game record with 6.0 vs. Philadelphia on Sept. 30, 2007.

In 2013, Umenyiora had 7.5 sacks in his first season in Atlanta. Now he’s hoping to have a bigger impact in games for the 2-2 Falcons.

“I am really just in on third downs, I am a pass (rush) specialist,” he said. “In New York I played all downs and we were part of a rotation over there. That is the main difference. I don’t have any complaints. Whatever they tell me to do is what I am going to do. Do I feel like I can be helping more? Yes, but I don’t have any control over that. So whatever they ask me to do, I am just going to go out there and do.”

“(He is) very, very close on a lot of back door plays, which he’s very, very good at,” Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. (He is) quick, very fast.”

Umenyiora insists his return to New Jersey will not be emotional.

“I am looking forward to it,” he said. “I think it is going to be a very good game, no questions, and I am looking forward to seeing a lot of my old teammates, the coaches, and the front office people. I am looking forward to all of that.
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Fresh off Eagles beatdown and loss of Victor Cruz, NY Giants have no time to feel sorry for selves

 

 

They need a leader to emerge now because the Giants are clearly reeling — far more so than they were during their 0-2 start when their season was on an early brink. Back then they knew they had too much talent to be as bad as they were playing. Now they were just hit with what Mathias Kiwanuka called 'a humbling experience' against the team at the top of their division, and at the same time one of their biggest talents is suddenly gone.

 

 

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, October 13, 2014, 10:52 PM
giants-cruz-football.jpgMatt Rourke/AP Losing Victor Cruz is a huge blow to the Giants, who now look for another threat on offense to step up as a playmaker.

The Giants have all been beaten badly before and they’ve all seen major injuries, but there’s no doubt it hurts more when those happen at the same time. It’s why it was so unusually quiet in the Giants’ locker room on Sunday night, and why the looks on their faces were all so serious and sad.

Because it wasn’t just any loss. It was an embarrassing, shutout loss to their most-hated division rivals in a game they were sure they were going to win. And Victor Cruz, whom they lost for the season to a knee injury, wasn’t just any player. He was one of their most popular and charismatic leaders, and the most dangerous playmaker they had.

Those are two major physical and emotional blows to take simultaneously. So how exactly are they supposed to recover from that?

“There’s no time for feeling sorry for ourselves or anything of that nature,” Tom Coughlin said. “Anything that happened yesterday was brought on by us.”

“That’s not going to help us out any,” Eli Manning added. “We’ve got to learn from this game, learn where the mistakes are, play at a higher level.

“This week we’ve got to grow up.”

That is a lot to ask of a Giants team that was in transition in many ways, even before the dual losses on Sunday night. They had just recovered from an 0-2 start and felt like they were about to show everyone they were true contenders before the angry Eagles slapped them down, 27-0. And their offense was just beginning to find its groove under new coordinator Ben McAdoo before its No. 1 receiver went down.

Replacing Cruz on the field will be hard enough and Coughlin said all options are open for discussion. Maybe rookie Odell Beckham becomes the new Cruz and shifts inside to play slot receiver. Maybe fourth-year veteran Preston Parker steps into that role. Or maybe they just figure it out as they go with Beckham, Parker and Rueben Randle all trying to pick up the slack.

Coughlin said “We’ll start with the ingredients that we have,” which sounds good except none of their ingredients seem to be anything like Cruz — “a Pro Bowl playmaker,” as Coughlin called him — who has value to the team far beyond mere catches and yards.

“Victor’s a very, very positive and popular young man who’s meant an awful lot to this franchise,” Coughlin said. “But again, it’s another test for our team. Leaders have to continue to come forward and this is an opportunity for someone else to get themselves into a position of leadership on this team.”

They need a leader to emerge now because the Giants are clearly reeling — far moreso than they were during their 0-2 start when their season was on an early brink. Back then they knew they had too much talent to be as bad as they were playing. Now they were just hit with what Mathias Kiwanuka called “a humbling experience” against the team at the top of their division, and at the same time one of their biggest talents is suddenly gone.

If this were any other time, maybe they could take some time to grieve, which is the word Coughlin used after the game. But in less than a week they’ll take their shorthanded team to Dallas to face the first place-and-streaking Cowboys (5-1) in a game that may determine whether they have any shot in the NFC East.

“The idea is to rise up,” Coughlin said. “We’ve been knocked down before. This hurts, no question about it. I’m not trying to disguise that in any way.”

ralph14s-2-web.jpgRich Schultz/Getty Images Tom Coughlin must get his team back on track to face the 5-1 Cowboys after an embarrassing loss to the Eagles and losing one of its key players.

There would be no point anyway because the Giants understand the seriousness of their situation. And there are some of them who’ve been around long enough to understand things like this have happened before.

They won a Super Bowl in 2007 after losing Kiwanuka and tight end Jeremy Shockey late in the season. They started 11-1 in 2008 after losing defensive end Osi Umenyiora to an injury and Michael Strahan to retirement. Their 2011 Super Bowl championship team had 14 players — including five cornerbacks — on injured reserve.

Maybe none of those losses (except for Strahan) were the equivalent of losing Cruz, who might have been their most irreplaceable player behind Manning. But they all still provided a lesson that Manning summed up succinctly when he said, “The key is just to move on.”

“This is a turning point in the season,” Kiwanuka added. “It’s something we’re going to have to grow up from real quick. The story of this season has not been written yet. I feel like as long as we come back out this week ready and prepared and enthusiastic about getting a win, we’ll change that perception of us.”

Right now the perception of the Giants is of a battered, beaten team, drained of its enthusiasm and energy and devoid of all hope. But if they need a spark, all they have to do is look at the calendar. Their trip to Dallas is just a few days away.

“Here we go,” Coughlin said. “We can’t lament too long. We don’t have time.

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NY Giants must give same effort against Cowboys that NY Jets showed against Patriots Sunday, against the Cowboys, against whom they played the one meaningful game they played last season after that 0-6 start, we find out something rather important: If the 2014 Giants are really any good. Or much better than the Jets.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Sunday, October 19, 2014, 12:40 AM
new-york-giants.jpgHoward Simmons/New York Daily News Tom Coughlin, once again, must find a way for his team to bounce back after a bad loss.

This was another week when the Jets provided such great coverage for the Giants you thought about using some of them to block for Eli Manning, because just about almost anybody could have done better with that last Sunday night than Eli's own offensive linemen did.

And the Jets don't stop. They make a Hail Mary trade now, for Percy Harvin of the Seahawks, and if you think Harvin is going to be a game-changer for the Jets the rest of the way, ask yourself why a team going for two Super Bowls in a row just unloaded the guy. And there is all the talk about Rex Ryan's job, and the lousy job John Idzik has done for him, and the drama surrounding Geno Smith. Maybe one of these days the Jets can figure out a way to somehow turn drama, headlines, noise into victories, and a way to finally get past the Patriots.

While all this goes on, the Giants have become a terrific organization, a model organization, really, that has been running out a mediocre product for a while.

Maybe this is the day it changes, against the Cowboys, who have looked anything but mediocre so far, and looked like the best team in the league against the Seahawks in Seattle one week ago.

The Giants are 3-3 this season, after being embarrassed by the Eagles last Sunday night. They are 19-19 since they won their last Super Bowl, they have missed the playoffs four of the last five seasons, they brought in so many new players during the offseason you sometimes got light-headed trying to follow it all. They didn't just retool, they rebuilt. Sunday, against the Cowboys, against whom they played the one meaningful game they played last season after that 0-6 start, we find out something rather important:

If the 2014 Giants are really any good. Or much better than the Jets.

We are going to find out exactly where they are against the Cowboys, with games against the Colts and 49ers and Seahawks in Seattle coming up. It is the biggest regular-season game they have played in a while, because if you can actually remember the last time they had a big win in a regular season, send up a flare.

Always in the past, we have heard about how Tom Coughlin can hold his team together in tough times, and bring it back from bad losses. Of course there has been some truth to that. And Coughlin made a good point the other day, talking about how if the Patriots can come back from the way they looked against the Chiefs, people declaring them finished, then the Giants can come back from the Eagles making them look like a team that had fallen off the back of a truck last Sunday night.

But the Patriots, despite how the Giants clipped them twice in the Super Bowl, despite how the Giants altered Bill Belichick's place in pro football history and Tom Brady's at the same time, they never look like a mediocre team for very long. It is why they are a real dynasty even if they haven't won a Super Bowl in a decade. They finish first every season. They win 10 games season after season. The Giants have won 10 games in a regular season once in the last five years. But there is this notion still that they are about to make another run to the Super Bowl the way they did after Eli threw it to Victor Cruz for 99 yards one Christmas Eve.

There was the time a couple of years ago when you thought the Giants really did have a run in them, when they pounded the 49ers on the road and pounded the Packers at home.

But then with three games to go in the regular season they lost, 34-0, to the Falcons and then lost, 33-14, to the Ravens, and that season was lost. Last season was lost after six games. Now here they are with a chance to show everybody, against what has been as complete an offense as there is in the NFL — quarterback, star running back, star wide receiver, Hall of Fame tight end, terrific offensive line — that there is still a connection between these Giants and the ones that beat the Patriots at Lucas Oil Stadium on Feb. 5, 2012.

The Giants don’t lose their season if they lose on the road to the Cowboys on Sunday afternoon at Jerry’s Place. The games against the Colts and 49ers are at home. They all talked about bouncing back this week, said all the right things after the week of Stupidville comments leading up to the Eagles game. Still: They didn't just lose to the Eagles in Philadelphia. They were overwhelmed. And once more, please imagine what people would have been saying about Rex Ryan if his team had committed 10 penalties, punted 10 times and given up more than 400 yards of offense.

Even with his team’s season disappearing like water into a drain, Rex Ryan got his team to compete mightily on the road against the first-place Patriots Thursday night. Coughlin needs to get that kind of effort — and a mistake-free effort — out of his team against the Cowboys in Arlington, Tex.

The Giants have three solid wins this season, but all have come against opponents even more mediocre than they have been through six games. Today they step up in class, in a storied rivalry, in a place where they have played well in the past. We will see if they show up.

No cover from the Jets today. The Giants have the stage to themselves. If they win the game, they are two games behind the Eagles in the loss column, just one behind the Cowboys, and can't wait to play the rest of the season. They have been trading in faded glory for a while, the Giants have. They have become just another team. If they are going to look like a real team again, this is their chance.

They don't want to hear this. But let them show up against the Cowboys the way the Jets did against the Patriots.

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With Victor Cruz out, NY Giants say Odell Beckham Jr.’s no rookie anymore

As much as the Giants may not want to heap pressure on their much-hyped first-round pick, after they return from this week’s bye, plenty will be expected from Beckham in the season’s final nine games, because in his three-game debut, he’s quickly become a breakout star.

 

 

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Tuesday, October 21, 2014, 9:28 PM
456696540.jpgElsa/Getty Images With Victor Cruz (l.) out for season, it might be up to Odell Beckham Jr. to produce more touchdown celebrations for Big Blue.

He has played in just three NFL games, and even his coaches admit that he has barely digested the whole playbook. But the kid gloves are off Odell Beckham Jr., because with Victor Cruz gone for the year, the Giants just don’t have much choice.

And that’s exactly what receivers coach Sean Ryan told Beckham a few days ago.

“I said to Odell Beckham Jr., ‘Your rookie season is over now. You’re not a rookie anymore; congratulations, you’re a veteran,’ ” Ryan said on Tuesday. “In all seriousness, there is going to be bumps in the road because of his youth, and you try to figure everything out, and you fix it as you go, get the details right and that is really where we are right now.”

As much as the Giants may not want to heap pressure on their much-hyped first-round pick, after they return from this week’s bye, plenty will be expected from Beckham in the season’s final nine games, because in his three-game debut, he’s quickly become a breakout star. He has scored three of the Giants’ four touchdowns the last three weeks, making a solid impression both on the team and on opponents.

And now, the rookie who missed nearly all of preseason and most of training camp due to injury is set to be a marked man. He started practicing just a month ago, but he already has become the go-to guy, so dangerous that one NFL personnel man compared him to Washington’s Pierre Garcon, who made a league-high 113 grabs last year.

“He can create matchup problems,” said a scout, “and he has tremendous ball skills.”

All that talent should eventually lead defenses to focus on stopping Beckham, in part because the Giants have few other threats.

Fellow wideout Rueben Randle is averaging just 9.4 yards per catch, and tight end Larry Donnell has cooled since his three-TD game in Washington. So teams will attack Beckham in ways he hasn’t yet encountered.

“I’m sure it will come,” Ryan said. “Our challenge will be to continually move him around. We have to do enough to keep defenses from targeting him.”

The Giants want to do that without overloading their first-round pick, because, as Ryan reminds, Beckham is still feeling his way around the intricacies of the offense. Ryan said Beckham is still working to learn his pre-snap reads, still cleaning up little details in his route-running.

That is why Beckham has played almost strictly at outside receiver.

usa-american-football-nfl.jpgLARRY W. SMITH/EPA As Odell Beckham Jr. (l.) scores touchdown Sunday against Cowboys, it’s no wonder one Giant coach says team isn’t treating wideout like rookie anymore.

Ryan said Beckham “definitely” has the skill set to assume Cruz’s old role, which included plenty of slot duties and a handful of plays that had him motioning into the backfield. But too much early responsibility would only hurt Beckham's development, Ryan said.

“It’s just about us being aware of, already, we’ve very quickly expanded the amount of reps and time on the field for him,” Ryan said. “And we’re trying to make sure we don’t overload him mentally and we let him play fast.”

The overload is coming, and everyone knows it. But somehow, Beckham will find a way to thrive, Ryan said.

“I expect him to be a starting receiver with the production that we need,” Ryan said. “I don’t put any limits on him whatsoever. He’s a smart guy, he’s a smart football player, and he’s a guy we need production from.”

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NY Giants loss to Colts coupled with putrid Jets signifies end of football season in New York

For Jets, Rex Ryan is halfway out the door and GM John Idzik deserves to go with him. But what about Tom Coughlin? This will be the third straight year the Giants miss the playoffs.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Tuesday, November 4, 2014, 1:49 AM
new-york-giants.jpg******Here is a shot of all the fans that still believe in the Giants after a Monday night loss to the Colts.

The 2014 New York football season is over after only two months, ending Monday night when the Giants joined the Jets in football hell.

Really, can it get any worse for Giants and Jets fans?

The Giants are 3-5. The Jets are 1-8. The possibility this season reaches January for the Giants or Jets is zero.

The compelling stuff begins when the season ends.

Rex Ryan is halfway out the door and GM John Idzik deserves to go with him.

What about Tom Coughlin? This will be the third straight year the Giants miss the playoffs following the second Super Bowl victory of the Coughlin-Eli Manning era. In Coughlin’s 10 years with the Giants, the only two years they have even won a playoff game was in the Super Bowl years.

Of course, any owner would sign off on two Super Bowl titles with any coach. Even so, if things continue to deteriorate, especially with games against the Seahawks, 49ers and Cowboys coming up, I would not be shocked if Giants ownership strongly suggests to Coughlin that they would like to put him in their Ring of Honor next year, but in order to be eligible, he can no longer be coaching.

myers4s-5-web.jpg******************Geno Smith (r.) fails as Jets quarterback and Michael Vick is in the process of failing.

That would be the classy and tactful way of telling him it’s time for a change, not that he is the problem. He did offer a convoluted explanation of his failed attempt to slow down the Colts’ fast-break offense just before Andrew Luck’s second-quarter TD pass by throwing the challenge flag too late – he had trouble getting it out of his sock — on a play he knew would not be reversed. He should have just called a timeout.

The real issue for the Giants is a lack of talent and that’s the responsibility of GM Jerry Reese, who inherited a franchise quarterback in Manning, had one great draft in 2007 – his first one – and has a bad batting average ever since.

He has wasted the prime years of Manning’s career by not putting enough talent around him. It’s much easier to find offensive linemen and skill position players than it is to find a two-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback, but Reese has failed Manning with his personnel decisions. He has also failed Coughlin.

The Giants are fading from contention after their humiliating and non-competitive 40-24 loss to the Colts, who last week gave up 51 points and six touchdown passes to Ben Roethlisberger. But Indy kept the Giants out of the end zone until it had built up a 20-point lead in the third quarter. Imagine how out of control this game would have been if the Giants were not well rested and had two weeks to prepare coming off their bye or they had not scored two garbage time touchdowns after they were down by 30 in the fourth quarter.

Of course, anything the Giants can do, the Jets can do worse.

After opening the season with a victory over the Raiders — the only winless team in the NFL at the halfway point – the Jets have lost eight in a row. This is going to make Jets fans a little queasy, but Ryan’s team is now running even with Rich Kotite’s vintage 1996 squad for the worst in team history.

new-york-giants.jpgHoward Simmons/New York Daily News Eli Manning and the Giants can only hang their heads after a 3-5 start to this season.

Kotite’s guys went 1-15. They lost their first eight games and then beat the Cardinals in Week 9. As bad as things have been for Ryan and the Jets this year, at least they were ahead of the pace of the ’96 team the first half of the season with their one victory.

Not anymore.

They are tied at 1-8, but this year’s team will have to finish the season with a 15-game losing streak to get to 1-15. Can it be done? Just go ahead and look at the last seven games and find just one where the Jets will be expected to win. The Jets have been in business since 1960 and the one victory in 1996 was the only time they have won fewer than three games.

The Jets get Big Ben on Sunday at MetLife. Roethlisberger just set an NFL record with back-to-back games with six TD passes. He will be facing the Jets’ pathetic secondary. I would say he not only has a chance to tie the record of seven TD passes in a game, but he could shatter it.

The Giants have played eight games. The Jets have played nine. The last time they had played this many games and combined for fewer than four victories was back in 1980 when the Jets had won twice and the Giants only once.

The Giants and Jets opened their $1.8 billion stadium in 2010. There’s been only one playoff game here – in 2011 when the Giants beat the Falcons in the first round. The Jets will miss the playoffs for the fourth straight year. This will be the first time the Giants miss the postseason three straight years under Coughlin.

Giants and Jets fans pay a lot of money for their PSLs and season tickets and the two teams have been emptying out the stadium early in the fourth quarter. The fans deserve better, but this season is over.

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Former Giants player Luke Petitgout charged with sexual assault in New Jersey

The former NFL lineman was arrested at his estranged wife's Woodcliff home around 6 a.m. Tuesday, a source told the Daily News. The attack, following a Giants reunion, allegedly left his wife with bruises.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Tuesday, November 4, 2014, 5:41 PM

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petitgout5n-1-web.jpgLuke Petitgout has been charged with sexual assault in Bergen County, N.J. and ordered held on $50,000 bail.
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BERGEN COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT

Former Giants offensive lineman Luke Petitgout has been charged with sexual assault in New Jersey after allegedly attacking his estranged wife.

The hulking, ex-NFL player who has a growing rap sheet was arrested at his estranged wife's Woodcliff home around 6 a.m. Tuesday, a source close to the investigation told the Daily News.

"It happened at her house where he's not supposed to be," the source said. "(The wife) was photographed with bruises," they added.

A babysitter at the house who witnessed the alleged attack is now expected to be called to testify.

Petitgout’s attorney, reacting to the charges, slammed the allegations as “baseless.”

“We intend to vigorously defend against the charges,” Patrick J. Jennings of Hackensack, N.J. told The News.

The 38-year-old had just come from a Giants reunion and was waiting for his wife to return home when the attack allegedly took place, said the source.

He was later charged with sexual assault with force and simple assault while ordered held on $50,000 bail, Bergen County jailhouse records show.

Petitgout's arrest is just the latest claim of physical brutality against him after he was accused of roughing up is wife after a night out in the Meatpacking District in August, 2013.

The wife of the 6-foot-6, 310-pound former athlete told police that she was tossed out of their parked vehicle just before 5 a.m., leading to misdemeanor assault charges.

The harassment case was thrown out three months later after prosecutors successfully argued the court being unable to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.

In June he was again arrested for allegedly punching a clubgoer inside Rockefeller Center.

An attorney for Petitgout, who was charged with misdemeanor assault and harassment in that case, later argued that the man who was allegedly punched in the face was only looking for money.

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Antrel Rolle's finger-pointing on WFAN may soon backfire for NY Giants safety Rolle is getting dangerously close to messing up a good thing during paid radio and television appearances, and unpaid ones with boss scribes. His Tuesday lines sounded as if he fished them out of last week’s garbage.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Saturday, November 8, 2014, 5:07 PM
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giants-practice.jpgRobert Sabo/New York Daily News If this continues, Antrel Rolle’s credibility will erode.

Antrel Rolle is on a fast track to a television career.

Considering the quality of his weekly performances with WFAN’s Joe Benigno/Evan Roberts and his Skype gig on SNY’s “Daily News Live” with Jonas Schwartz and his motley crew, this is no grand revelation. While his peers deliver cliches, Rolle rolls fearlessly. He is blunt, unpredictable, likeable and entertaining.

Yet in this Giants season of blah, which could dissolve into blah, blah and more talk about Tom Coughlin’s future if they fail in Seattle Sunday, Rolle is getting dangerously close to messing up a good thing.

More and more in these paid radio and television appearances, and unpaid ones with boss scribes, Rolle is morphing into a finger-pointer. He is gradually becoming very predictable. His Tuesday lines sounded as if he fished them out of last week’s garbage.

Stuff like he is “gonna play with passion” no matter what. And that some of his teammates were not playing with the same passion. “On our sideline it’s very dead,” Rolle said. “...We need a pulse.”

What exactly did Rolle do Monday night on the field against Indy for anyone to take his words seriously? What has Rolle done all season, as leader of a suspect secondary, to justify him casting aspersions on others who he says don’t play with proper passion?

Nothing. That’s the answer. Rolle should be pointing fingers, all right — in his own direction.

If Rolle were locking down receivers, coming up with interceptions rather than dropping them, and not generally looking confused back there, we could take his words seriously. Now when Rolle’s mouth roars, only stale air comes out.

If this continues, Rolle’s credibility will erode. The media covering the Giants, rightfully so, digs him because of his sincerity and ability to deliver eye-popping quotes. If he continues talking tough while under performing on the field, even they won’t take him seriously.

And at that point, when Antrel Rolle speaks, nobody will listen

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NY Giants loss to Jaguars may be final straw for Tom Coughlin As bad as the Giants are this year, as miserable as this season is becoming, it’s still nearly impossible to find someone in the organization hoping that the Coughlin Era is over. The general consensus is that co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch don’t want to fire him, either. But after what happened on Sunday afternoon, they no longer may have a choice.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Sunday, November 30, 2014, 11:09 PM
Updated: Sunday, November 30, 2014, 11:09 PM
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giants-jaguars-football.jpgJohn Raoux/AP The Giants may have no choice but to part ways with Tom Coughlin after their latest loss.

JACKSONVILLE — This isn’t the same as it was in 2006 when half the Giants locker room wanted Tom Coughlin fired. This isn’t the same as it was in 2003, Jim Fassel’s final season, when everyone in upper management seemed eager to make a coaching change.

As bad as the Giants are this year, as miserable as this season is becoming, it’s still nearly impossible to find someone in the organization hoping that the Coughlin Era is over. The general consensus is that co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch don’t want to fire him, either.

But after what happened on Sunday afternoon, they no longer may have a choice.

Because the case for keeping Coughlin just became nearly impossible to make after the Giants suffered their worst and most inexcusable loss in ages — a 25-24 disaster to the previously one-win Jacksonville Jaguars, considered by just about everybody to be the worst team in the league. It was bad enough the Giants blew a 21-0 lead. It was worse that they let the Jaguars march down the field for the game-winning field goal at the end of the game, as if the Giants defense wasn’t even present.

But the most damning part for Coughlin was this: The young Jaguars with the questionable talent and nothing to play for were the ones playing better and harder at the end of the game. The Giants were the ones making the stupid mistakes. The Giants were the ones dropping the football, unable to make a game-saving play.

And once again, the 68-year-old Coughlin was left scratching his head for answers — just as he has been for most of the season. His team, at 3-9 and careening in the wrong direction, is now the one that looks like the worst team in the league.

“It’s a loss that we feel we should’ve won,” Coughlin said. “We’ve done this too many times. We just helped somebody beat us. Instead of forcing them to beat us, we helped them.

“We came down here feeling like we could win,” Coughlin added. “We felt we again prepared well. Then nothing happens on game day.”

Nothing good, anyway. And as safety Antrel Rolle said multiple times during his post-game interview, “it’s starting to get repetitive.” That’s seven straight losses now, one season after they lost their first six games, in the midst of a stretch where they’ve missed the playoffs five times in six seasons. Only a coach with two Super Bowl rings would even have a prayer of surviving back-to-back misery like that.

Those rings have long been Coughlin’s salvation, because the best argument for keeping him has always been the long odds against finding someone better. The Giants know finding another coach like Coughlin won’t be easy. The next big thing on the market or the next hot assistant has a better chance of being Jim Schwartz or Marc Trestman than Bill Belichick or Bill Parcells.

But sometimes change is necessary, and the signs of that are becoming obvious for the Giants. Like on Sunday, when Coughlin discussed his team’s penchant for “playing two, maybe three (quarters) sometimes” and then how “the other guy kind of figures out what he’s going to do and we have trouble responding to that.” A coach truly worthy of surviving such a miserable stretch would find a way — any way — to get his team to respond.

459752504.jpgRob Foldy/Getty Images Coughlin is once again furious at the Giants' play on the field.

Or to put it another way, as he did for his team a few weeks ago: He needs to coach above the X’s and O’s.

Coughlin couldn’t on Sunday and hasn’t for weeks. In fairness to Coughlin, he’s not exactly playing with a stacked roster — especially considering they’ve been hit by the worst injury onslaught in the league. But at some point, shouldn’t he be able to do what Jaguars coach Gus Bradley just did on Sunday — get something better out of a bad team?

Instead, at a time when maybe Coughlin could’ve saved his job just by getting his team to show some fight down the stretch and not turn the end of this season into a death march, his Giants keep doing nothing on game day. At a time when Giants ownership, according to multiple sources, has been hoping and searching for any reasons to keep him, Coughlin instead has given them a reason to look away.

Maybe in the end they won’t. Maybe ownership’s love for Coughlin runs deeper than this and maybe he can still somehow salvage his job. There are four games left, including some that are theoretically winnable. Of course, if the Giants can’t beat the woeful Jaguars, are there really any “winnable” games for them at all?

Eli Manning said on Sunday that the Giants “are going to keep fighting for Coach” the rest of the season. If only they had started fighting for him a little sooner, maybe that would matter. Because after what happened on Sunday, the truth is the last four games could be irrelevant.

After losing to the awful Jaguars, there may be no saving Coughlin now.

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NY Giants win over Titans nothing to celebrate over

In the end, Sunday's win over the Titans really only accomplished one thing: It proved that the Giants are not the worst team in the NFL.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Sunday, December 7, 2014, 11:10 PM
460107090.jpgFrederick Breedon/Getty Images Markus Kuhn completes journey into end zone for 26-yard fumble return in first quarter as Giants romp against Titans for victory that helps lift spirits in locker room but means absolutely nothing in the big picture.

NASHVILLE — There were smiles on the Giants’ faces as they ran off the field, high fives between teammates in the runway. There were loud cheers and claps coming from the locker room as a happy Tom Coughlin addressed them.

“It’s very nice to win,” Coughlin said a few minutes later. “It’s very nice, again, to have that kind of feeling. I just told the team we are going to smile and we’re going to enjoy this.”

That’s fine. They should. Just as long as they don’t think about it too hard.

Because in the end, this game was a reminder of that old line about putting lipstick on a pig — the pig in this case being the Giants’ 2014 season. Their 36-7 victory over the Tennessee Titans may have given them reason to breathe a big sigh of relief and fly home for a change with a satisfied feeling. But in the end, it really only accomplished one thing: It proved that the Giants are not the worst team in the NFL.

ralph8s-4-web.jpgFrederick Breedon/Getty Images Tom Coughlin's Giants get a win over the Titans, but it is hardly a reason to rejoice.

Don’t laugh, because that was most definitely in doubt after they blew that 21-0 lead to the one-win Jacksonville Jaguars last Sunday. But while the fact that the Giants didn’t blow a 23-0 halftime lead in this game proves there’s someone worse than them, it changes nothing about their fate. They’re still missing the playoffs for the fifth time in six seasons. Their coach and maybe even their general manager are still on the hot seat.

And while, according to several team sources, co-owner John Mara hasn’t made up his mind — or at least hasn’t told anyone — about the fate of Coughlin and Jerry Reese, why in the world would this game have any impact on that decision? Unless the Giants quit on Coughlin down the stretch — something they’ve shown no signs of doing — there isn’t much that should be determined by these garbage-time games.

So what’s the value of a win like this? “The value is you’re a competitor,” said linebacker Jameel McClain. “There’s value in that you go out there to win, regardless. You go out there to put your best for your teammates, for your coaches that sacrifice a lot of time. There’s always value.”

That’s a fair point. As another failed head coach in New York once famously said, “You play to win the game.” On a personal level to the players it matters. Same for the coaches and probably for their bosses.

Nobody likes to lose, and things had become miserable around the Meadowlands the last few weeks because they hadn’t won since Oct. 5.

But back to that pig: This game, despite the score, showed many of the reasons why the Giants are in their 4-9 hole. Eli Manning, who was terrific for most of the game, threw an inexcusable interception with the Giants up 30-0 that Titans safety Marqueston Huff returned for a touchdown.

nfl.jpgDon McPeak/USA Today Sports Eli Manning throws a bad interception. That may not be new this week, but what is new is that the Giants are up 30-0 at the time so no one notices.

When Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie returned that favor early in the fourth quarter with a pick-6 of his own, it got wiped off the board thanks to an unnecessary roughness call on defensive end Damontre Moore — who laid out unprepared Titans quarterback Zach Mettenberger — and was flanked by an excessive celebration penalty on Antrel Rolle.

Those are the same kind of silly penalties and terrible decisions that have killed the Giants all season.

Sure, there were positives. Their defense looked great — eight sacks and no points against — and the pass protection for Manning was pretty good. And for thrills, there’s always the quadruple threat — catching, running, passing, returning — of super-rookie Odell Beckham Jr. But remember, the Giants were facing the 2-11 Titans, losers of seven straight, and a mess of a franchise playing a shaky rookie quarterback.

giants-titans-football.jpgJames Kenney/AP Titans QB Zach Mettenberger is down after Giants' Damontre Moore takes a stupid penalty.

In other words: Yes, the Giants won. But so what?

“It matters,” Rolle said. “Absolutely it matters. Without our record, without anything, without accolades, it matters from beginning to end. That’s something we went out to demonstrate today: That it does matter.”

Coughlin, in his postgame speech, said it mattered, too. He congratulated his team “not only on winning, obviously, but on coming to work, applying themselves, and preparing, and then being frustrated, coming back in, and doing the exact same thing and making an outstanding effort.” Of course, the reality is those are the kinds of things that are said to losing teams.

The effort was wonderful. The win was cathartic. The Giants will likely be a lot more pleasant to be around this week. But nothing changes, other than their shot at a Top 5 draft pick gets a little longer.

This is still a miserable season, and the Giants are still a very bad team

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  • 3 weeks later...

NY Giants should bring back Tom Coughlin for one last season, but need new voice for defense Coughlin will meet with Mara and GM Jerry Reese on Monday. As long as there are no major problems, the plan is for each to hold his end-of-the-season news conference Tuesday. The end result will surely be that Coughlin will be back, but for the second year in a row, there could be a staff shakeup, this time on defense.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Sunday, December 28, 2014, 10:48 PM
Updated: Sunday, December 28, 2014, 10:48 PM
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giants-v-philadelphia-eagles.jpgRobert Sabo/New York Daily News Tom Coughlin waves to the fans at MetLife Stadium as he walks off the field, but will it be for the final time?

John Mara walked quickly through the hallways of MetLife Stadium on his way to the parking lot, carrying with him the indignity of a third straight season without the playoffs, a second straight season under .500 and the worst Giants season in 10 years.

It’s a virtual certainty Tom Coughlin will be back in 2015 and despite the struggles of the last three years, I don’t think there’s any candidate out there better to coach the Giants next year with Jim Harbaugh on his way to Michigan. He deserves one more season, but if it goes poorly again, he needs to make this easy on the Giants and just retire.

Mara, who takes losing harder than his players, deferred addressing any subject after this 6-10 season finally came to an end with Sunday’s 34-26 loss to the Eagles.

PLAY GIANTS KEEP 'EM DUMP 'EM

“I don’t have anything to say,” he said. “I’ll talk to you during the week.”

Coughlin wouldn’t talk about his future, even though it’s clear he has no desire to stop coaching and the last thing he wants is to leave the organization when it’s down. “I’ll go about my business just like I always do until I am told otherwise,” he said.

He believes the program is headed in the right direction, but when I asked him if he wanted to see it through, he said, “I’m not going to say anything about it.”

So, what’s going on here? Coughlin wants to be back and the Giants want him back. Why not just say it? Because there’s a high-level meeting that must first take place.

Coughlin will meet with Mara and GM Jerry Reese on Monday. As long as there are no major problems, the plan is for each to hold his end-of-the-season news conference Tuesday. The end result will surely be that Coughlin will be back, but for the second year in a row, there could be a staff shakeup, this time on defense.

“We’re going to evaluate our team, just like we always do,” Coughlin said. “I’m going to present, along with pro personnel, to the owners, our evaluation of the players and take it from there. If there is anything else, it will be initiated by ownership.”

The employment of defensive coordinator Perry Fewell could be a major issue. Clearly, the Giants need a new voice leading the defense, whether they bring back Steve Spagnuolo, who worked for Coughlin in 2007-08, or hire somebody like Pepper Johnson, their former linebacker, who has paid his dues as a defensive assistant for 14 years under his mentor Bill Belichick in New England before working for the Bills this season.

On the Monday following the season last year, Mara crushed offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride when he said that the offense was “broken.” Gilbride was watching the news conference on a television in his office and went right to Coughlin and told him he was going to retire. He had been promising his wife he would join her in Rhode Island, but if Mara didn’t call him out like that, he probably was going to stay for another year.

Coughlin must know the defense needs a new direction. He says he wants his staff back, but I don’t imagine he will leave the organization he loves and his dream job over Fewell, who was verbally abused by fans as he walked off the field Sunday.

“Perry, you’re fired.”

“Pack your bags.”

“You’ll be gone by tomorrow.”

This is a very tough business.

Gilbride paid for Eli Manning’s career-high and NFL-high 27 interceptions last year. Ben McAdoo took over the offense and Manning had one of his most productive seasons. The Giants finished with back-to-back games with over 500 yards of offense. “I’m going to support my coaches,” Manning said. “Coach Coughlin is an excellent coach and he deserves to be the coach and we’ve got to play better for him.”

It makes sense for the Giants to get McAdoo further entrenched in the organization before taking over in a year or two for Coughlin. They think very highly of him. At the very least, they want Coughlin to return so McAdoo can return and avoid Manning playing in his third system in three years. It would be a big leap of faith if Coughlin storms out of Monday’s meeting and quits and then the Giants promote McAdoo to head coach. He’s not ready. But they can set up a seamless transition in 2016 for McAdoo to take over.

Mara is loyal to Coughlin and appreciative of the two Super Bowl trophies he’s won. But this is not a lifetime appointment. Mara is giving him the benefit of the doubt after three straight seasons without the playoffs, a six-game losing streak last year, a seven-game losing streak this year and two straight Decembers with no chance to make the playoffs.

Former Giants guard Chris Snee, who is Coughlin’s son-in-law, was hosting Christmas dinner last night for his former coach and the Coughlin family. Obviously, he doesn’t think his wife’s father is the reason the Giants had their worst season since they were 6-10 in Coughlin’s first season.

“There is no better football coach out there. Tell me who you are going to bring in,” Snee said. “Who are you going to bring in who is a better coach than he is? He has complete command of this team. Guys love playing for him . . . When a guy like Tiki Barber comes out and makes an idiotic comment the way he did, I just laughed if off. I knew the guys loved playing for him.”

Coughlin was asked how he would assess this season. “Disappointing. How else do you want me to say it?” he said. “Not enough wins, too many losses. Just close enough.”

He deserves another chance, but just one more chance.

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Steve Spagnuolo looking at big task of fixing NY Giants floundering defense It wasn’t just his scheme that turned the Big Blue defense into a monster in 2007. He had a Hall of Famer, two brilliant pass rushers and a Pro Bowler. Look around and compare that to what he’s working with now.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Friday, January 16, 2015, 10:45 PM
Updated: Friday, January 16, 2015, 10:45 PM
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redskins-giants-football.jpgBill Kostroun/AP What Steve Spagnuolo did in 2007 and 2008 is remembered as magical. But if he can do it again with this undermanned group, it will be his greatest trick yet.

If Tom Coughlin and Steve Spagnuolo talked about old times when they met on Wednesday, it was likely a short conversation. This wasn’t about sentiment, or a 68-year-old coach trying to recapture a bygone era. He was looking for a fresh approach for his floundering defense.

That’s why Coughlin reached into his past to re-hire the best defensive coordinator he’s had in his 11 seasons with the Giants.

If only he could’ve reached back and grabbed a younger Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora, too.

Because that’s really the issue facing the 55-year-old “Spags” as he begins his second tour of duty running Coughlin’s defense. He did a wonderful job from 2007-08, turning the Giants into a hyper-aggressive, swarming defense that soared in the league rankings. Players raved about his ability to adjust in the middle of the game, and they loved the way he asked for, and utilized, their input.

But it wasn’t just his scheme that turned that defense into a monster in 2007. He had a Hall of Famer on one end of his defensive line and two brilliant young pass rushers rotating in, a Pro Bowl linebacker in Antonio Pierce and another (Kawika Mitchell) who played outstanding down the stretch. Even in 2008, after Strahan retired and Umenyiora got hurt, he still had Tuck, Pierce, and a younger, better Mathias Kiwanuka.

Look around and compare that to what he’s working with now.

He surely did, probably the moment Perry Fewell was fired and it became clear to almost everyone that Spagnuolo would get the call. He saw that the Giants’ best — and maybe only — pass-rusher (Jason Pierre-Paul) is a free agent. So is one of the defensive leaders (safety Antrel Rolle). And almost every other good player he has — such as cornerbacks Prince Amukamara, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Walt Thurmond and middle linebacker Jon Beason — are coming off injuries, and who knows what they’ll be able to do next year?

This is a big job. Maybe not as big as the job Spagnuolo failed at in New Orleans in 2012, when he couldn’t pick up the pieces that disgraced defensive coordinator Gregg Williams left behind in the wake of the BountyGate scandal, but certainly bigger than the one he inherited in 2007, when he took over an underachieving, but stocked Giants defense.

What Spagnuolo did in 2007 and 2008 is remembered as magical. But if he can do it again with this undermanned group, it will be his greatest trick yet.

giants.jpgSipkin, Corey/New York Daily News Fixing Big Blue's defense is a big job for Steve Spagnuolo.

That doesn’t mean this was a desperation move, though, by a head coach who knows he has to make the playoffs in 2015 to keep his career going. Spagnuolo, despite what happened in New Orleans, is still an outstanding coach and brilliant defensive mind.

And who can blame Coughlin for wanting to surround himself with a coach he knows, and who runs a scheme he knows will work?

This isn’t the same situation as the one he faced a year ago when his offense was “broken,” and his offensive coordinator, Kevin Gilbride, was nudged out the door. Coughlin could have replaced Gilbride with a familiar, respected coach in Mike Sullivan — who recently rejoined the Giants as their quarterbacks coach. But Sullivan would’ve run a variation of the Gilbride offense, and Coughlin knew he needed a completely new approach.

As familiar as Spagnuolo is, he brings a completely new approach, too. Unless Kiwanuka is brought back — and that seems highly unlikely — there isn’t a single player in the locker room who played for Spagnuolo’s Giants defenses. The only player with any history with him is linebacker Jameel McClain who was in Baltimore in 2013 when Spagnuolo was the vaguely titled senior defensive assistant.

To everyone else — including all the defensive coaches other than safeties coach Dave Merritt — Spagnuolo’s approach will seem brand new.

And maybe if the Giants re-sign Jason Pierre-Paul, and his late-season sack surge — nine in the last five games — was a sign of things to come, Spagnuolo will have his Strahan-type pass-rusher to work with, and maybe he can turn Damontre Moore and Robert Ayers into Umenyiora and Tuck. Maybe a healthy Beason and McClain can do what Pierce and Kiwanuka once did. Plus, if everyone is healthy, Spagnuolo should have a more talented secondary to work with than he did the first time around.

Those are a lot of “ifs”, though — far more than he had when he arrived eight years ago. Back then the biggest “if” was about whether Spagunolo would be a good defensive coordinator. He proved that once. It’s not going to be easy for him to prove it again.


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New York Giants season report card

 

The 2014 New York Giants had two three-game win streaks. Their quarterback cut his interception total nearly in half from last year. And they might well have the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year.

 

But what the Giants didn't have was enough success -- not nearly enough. After going 7-9 last year and overhauling the offense, the Giants went 6-10 in 2014 and missed the playoffs for the fifth time in the past six years.

 

Yes, they had a ton of injuries -- 22 players on injured reserve, more than any other team in the league. And yes, they did have their moments on offense. But they couldn't hang with the good teams in the league and really were never a factor in the playoff race after the midway point of the season.

 

At the end of it, another disappointing year for a team that always says it wants to win the Super Bowl but, most years, can't even get itself into the postseason.

 

OVERALL

grade_dplus.jpg It was clearly a rebuilding year. Still, the Giants finished one game worse than last season. They had one win against a team with a winning record and went 0-7 against teams that made the playoffs. They deserved to be counted among the league's worst teams.

OFFENSE

grade_c.jpg Thanks to the emergence of brilliant rookie Odell Beckham and a strong statistical bounce-back season from quarterback Eli Manning, the Giants finished in the top half of the league in yards and points per game. They showed progress in the first year under new coordinator Ben McAdoo.

DEFENSE

grade_dminus.jpg The sack total jumped, due to a strong December against out-of-contention teams. But in key games and key situations against strong opponents, the Giants couldn't get the stops they needed. They allowed 30.9 points per game against teams that finished with winning records.

Team MVP: Odell Beckham Jr. To win a team MVP award after missing all of training camp and the first four games of the season with a hamstring injury takes some doing. But the Giants' rookie wide receiver was unquestionably their best player once he was on the field, and the numbers he put up in his three-quarters of a season ranked among those of the best players in the NFL. He finished the season with 91 catches for 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns in only 12 games. The Giants are excited as they look ahead to the possibility of a full 2015 season with Beckham and Victor Cruz both healthy at wide receiver.

 

Best moment: Beckham's twisting, one-handed touchdown catch in the Week 12 loss to the Cowboys might have been the No. 1 individual highlight of the entire NFL season. The catch made Beckham an instant sensation, landed him a dinner in New York City with LeBron James and shined a light on the best thing the Giants had going for them in the midst of a seven-game losing streak and overall dismal season. Those who had been watching Beckham in practice every day, in pregame warmups and in non-prime-time games were of course dazzled to see his best work live and in a difficult game situation, but the excitement over Beckham that has followed is fully justified based on the way he played before and after "The Catch."

 

Worst moment: When Cruz went up to try to catch a short pass in the end zone in Week 6 in Philadelphia and tore his patellar tendon before he hit the ground, it was as sickening and disappointing a moment as any the Giants had all year. Seeing Cruz, in tears, taken off the field on a cart with a team trainer holding his knee in place was tough to watch, and obviously the impact on the Giants' offense the rest of the way was significant. If they ever had a chance to make anything of this season, losing Cruz just as they were getting Beckham into the lineup took it right away from them.

 

2015 outlook: Hard to say for sure until we see what happens in free agency. But assuming they add a piece or two on the offensive line and address the pass rush, either by re-signing Jason Pierre-Paul or finding a high-end solution on the market, there is reason to hope next year will be better than the past two were. They obviously demonstrated progress and growth in Ben McAdoo's offense as the year went along. Quarterback Eli Manning had a fine season and -- apart from one five-interception mess against the 49ers -- did a better job of protecting the ball and making smart decisions than he has in years past. The array of weapons around Manning heading into 2015 gives reason for optimism.

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  • 1 month later...

With Steve Spagnuolo back, Giants look to upgrade defensive line

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Sunday, March 8, 2015, 11:52 PM
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g9s-1-web.jpgAndrew Weber/USA Today Sports Bills defensive end Jerry Hughes (l.), here rushing Michael Vick, is drawing interest from the Giants but is reportedly close to re-signing with Buffalo.

When Steve Spagnuolo first served as Giants defensive coordinator in 2007 and 2008, he built his scheme around a defensive line so fearsome that it powered the franchise to an improbable Super Bowl XLII victory.

Now that Spagnuolo is back, the Giants may be working to recreate that D-line. On Sunday, the second day of the NFL’s “legal tampering” period, Big Blue’s free agent plan seemed to come into focus.

According to ESPN, the Giants had shown interest in Buffalo Bills defensive end Jerry Hughes, and they’ve also made contact with Cardinals defensive tackle Dan Williams. Hughes, who has 19.5 total sacks the last two years, was reportedly close to re-signing with the Bills Sunday night, but if he reaches the market, he’ll be the top available defensive end. Williams, meanwhile, is a sturdy run-stuffer. There has also been chatter of interest in ex-Texans linebacker Brooks Reed, although a source said the Giants aren’t considered the frontrunners.

Combine those pursuits with the initial rumors that the Giants were considering pitching soon-to-be Dolphins DT Ndamukong Suh, and the team seems intent on upgrading a once-proud defensive line that had only minimal impact last year. Thanks to a late-season flourish, the Giants finished fourth in the NFL with 47 sacks, but they were also one of the league’s most ineffective run-stopping units, surrendering a whopping 4.9 yards per carry.

That doesn’t exactly remind anyone of the unit that Spagnuolo once pushed to so much success. In the Super Bowl year of 2007, his defense led the NFL with 53 sacks, thanks to the defensive end trio of Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck and eventual Hall-of-Famer Michael Strahan.

Right now, the line has just two building blocks: Johnathan Hankins, who had seven sacks and emerged as a solid run-stuffer last season, and Jason Pierre-Paul, who the team placed its franchise tag on last week, guaranteeing the defensive end a 2015 salary of $14.813 million.

Beyond that are question marks: DaMontre Moore is coming off shoulder surgery, Robert Ayers is coming off a torn pectoral, DT Cullen Jenkins is aging, and Markus Kuhn is unproven.

Adding a talented defensive end would also provide the Giants with some insurance if Pierre-Paul refuses to sign his franchise tender, or if he bolts after 2015. And it would give the club the balanced pass rush it didn’t have last year, when the recently cut Mathias Kiwanuka struggled through injuries.

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With Antrel Rolle likely gone, Giants could explore these free-agent safeties

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Thursday, March 5, 2015, 5:13 PM
Updated: Thursday, March 5, 2015, 11:42 PM
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455881036.jpgAl Bello/Getty Images Sorry, Giants: Antrel Rolle intends to listen to all offers.

Antrel Rolle has said he wants to stay with the Giants, and the Giants have said they want him back.

But it doesn’t look like that is going to happen. In an interview on ESPN Radio on Thursday, the leader of the Giants’ secondary since 2010 declared that he is heading for free agency next week. He may still return to the Giants, but he’s going to listen to all offers.

“This is strictly a business move,” Rolle said. “If there’s 32 teams interested, I’m going to listen to all 32 teams.”

Rolle said there will be no hometown discount for the Giants, and he did not put a percentage on his chances of returning.

According to a source, Rolle’s representatives and the Giants have discussed a return. But as The News reported Wednesday, Rolle, 32, still views himself as a top safety and wants to be paid that way.

Rolle insisted on Twitter that he had not spoken with any other teams, though, and added that “I have not put a price on myself.” But his business-first approach will not yield positive results with Giants GM Jerry Reese, who has shown little interest in overpaying aging players.

Last season, Reese had no qualms letting longtime defensive end Justin Tuck head for Oakland, and he may operate in similar fashion this offseason. Even coach Tom Coughlin seemed to understand that at last month’s NFL Scouting Combine, proclaiming that he’d love Rolle back but it may not be possible.

“There are financial restrictions involved,” Coughlin said.

Rolle spent the last five seasons with the Giants, emerging as one of the league’s most vocal players. He was a team captain last year, and he piled up 87 tackles and three interceptions. He never missed a game as a Giant, and he’s missed just one game since 2006.

Rolle said the franchise will always be special to him.

532632539ml00124-afc-champi.jpgMaddie Meyer/Getty Images Devin McCourty.

“Whether I’m with the Giants or not with the Giants, I’m always going to be a Giant at heart,” Rolle said.

With Rolle likely gone, the Giants safety corps lack veteran leadership. Just two safeties, 2013 fifth-rounder Cooper Taylor and 2014 fifth-round selection Nat Berhe, are under contract, and neither has started a game. The Giants are trying to keep Stevie Brown from departing in free agency, but aside from his eight-interception explosion in 2012, the veteran has done little to distinguish himself.

The Giants may draft a safety come April, but there are few plug-and-play talents past Alabama’s Landon Collins, a likely first-round pick. The free agent safety class may be thin, but here are a few possible options Reese could explore:

DEVIN McCOURTY
It was surprising that the Patriots did not place the franchise tag on their ultra-versatile safety, and they still may re-sign him before he hits the market. But if McCourty reaches free agency, the Rutgers product would be the top available safety. He bares a striking resemblance to Rolle, too, as a former corner who shifted to safety and offers the versatility to man-cover slot receivers.

RAHIM MOORE
There’s a significant drop-off after McCourty, and ex-Bronco Moore may be the best of the bunch, a heady 25-year-old who brings solid size (6-1, 195 pounds) and an ability to cover. He’s now two years removed from a serious knee injury as well. If McCourty doesn’t hit the market, though, every safety-needy team will be in pursuit of Moore.

TYVON BRANCH
The ex-Raider can play either safety spot, and he brings impressive speed. He’s not a huge playmaker, but he can be a steadying defensive presence. He must prove he can stay healthy, though, after playing just five games the last two years.

Branch reportedly visited the Colts earlier this week.

BLUE MOVE: The Giants gave exclusive rights free agent CB Chandler Fenner his tender offer, a one-year $510,000 deal, according to a source.

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  • 2 months later...

Giants WR Victor Cruz back running at ‘about three quarters speed’ seven months after knee injury

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Tuesday, May 12, 2015, 8:41 PM
Updated: Tuesday, May 12, 2015, 8:41 PM

 

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cruzweb13s-1-web.jpgHoward Simmons/New York Daily News Victor Cruz says his recovery plan plan is 'still intact' and expects to be back with the Giants in August.

Victor Cruz is one step closer to a return to the field.

On Tuesday, the Giants receiver, who missed most of last season with a torn patellar tendon in his left knee, said he had started running routes. He still plans to sit out the Giants' offseason training program and June's mandatory minicamp, but he said he's happy with how rapidly he's healing from an injury that left him in tears in Philadelphia early last season.

"I feel pretty good," he said at the United Way of New York City's Annual Gridiron Gala in Manhattan. "(Today I did) some intermediate stuff, some cutting, planting left and right. I'm just excited to continue that. It feels very, very good right now."

Cruz added that he ran at "about three quarters speed." But it was still progress, and he emerged from the workout with no soreness.

"We're working," he said in general. "We're doing some agility stuff, some lateral movement stuff. It's feeling good."

VACCHIANO: CRUZ CERTAIN HE'LL BE READY FOR GIANTS OPENER

The plan, said Cruz, remains a return come August, although he expects to make a cameo during the team's June minicamp. He plans to work off to the side, continuing his rehab while the rest of the team practices. He said he continues to listen to trainers and doesn't want to speed back, despite his rapid progress.

"I'm in no rush at all," he said. "I think it's just a matter of this is the process that we're in (of) the recovery. The plan is still intact. I just go in there day to day and they tell me what to do."

He's been patient through the entire process, he said, and that can't change now.

"I have a tremendous amount of patience I didn't know I had," he said. "I think I developed a tremendous amount of patience during this process."

***

Coach Tom Coughlin said he spoke to defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, who still has not signed his franchise tender, about two weeks ago. He added that he "expects" Pierre-Paul at next month's minicamp but "we'll just have to see" . . . Corner Prince Amukamara (bicep) said he believes he is now fully healthy. He has bench-pressed and done pull-ups, and the final test will be his ability to press receivers in coverage . . .

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Giants looking at left tackle Jake Long

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Thursday, May 28, 2015, 11:06 PM
giants29s-1-web.jpgMarc Serota/Getty Images Jake Long, the former No. 1 overall pick, is drawing interest from the Giants.

Maybe first-round pick Ereck Flowers won’t be the Giants’ left tackle this season after all.

On Thursday, according to a source, free agent left tackle Jake Long visited the Giants. The top pick in the 2008 NFL draft was once considered one of the league’s elite blind-side protectors, but he’s coming off two ACL tears in each of the last two seasons. That led the Rams to release Long, 30, in March.

There is likely little rush to sign Long, who is still working his way back from his most recent ACL tear, which occurred in October.

Still, the Giants need to re-establish depth along their offensive line in the wake of Will Beatty’s pectoral injury last week. Beatty, the Giants’ longest-tenured lineman, is expected to be out until at least November.

That led the club to give the touted Flowers extensive action at left tackle during Wednesday’s OTA workout, although some scouts still question the rookie’s readiness to handle the position. While Flowers has the size and power to develop into a left tackle, his technique has been questioned, and coach Tom Coughlin admitted Wednesday that he’s not a finished product.


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“We knew there were a couple of things we need to clarify and work on him,” Coughlin said.

The Giants have questions along the line. Before Beatty’s injury, Flowers seemed likely to start at right tackle. With Flowers’ shift to left tackle, Marshall Newhouse, who started five games last season, played right tackle during Wednesday’s OTA.

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No chance’ Jason Pierre-Paul gets long-term deal from Giants before deadline after fireworks injury: source

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, July 6, 2015, 2:37 PM
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456694722.jpgElsa/Getty Images Defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul won’t get a long-term deal before the July 15 deadline.

It never seemed likely that Jason Pierre-Paul would get a long-term deal before the July 15 deadline he had to sign one. But according to a Giants source, there’s “no chance” of that now.

Any offer is now off the table in the wake of the hand injury Pierre-Paul suffered over the weekend in a fireworks accident, the source said, and there almost certainly will be no further talks about a deal in the next nine days. The sides were never believed to be close to a deal anyway, but the NFL Network reported that the Giants had a $60 million deal on the table.

The report did not mention any specifics of that deal, or even how many years were involved. But if it was at all similar to the five-year, $60 million deal (with $33.6 million guaranteed) the Saints gave to defensive end Cameron Jordan last month, it might have been enough to get something done. Even the news of a big offer was somewhat surprising, given that several team sources had expressed concern over JPP’s lingering back injuries in recent years, and seemed to indicate the team was comfortable letting him play under his “franchise tag” in 2015.

new-york-giants.jpgHoward Simmons/New York Daily News Giants head coach Tom Coughlin (r.) walks with GM Jerry Reese at end of practice.

Regardless, that reported big offer — which JPP had to sign by July 15 under the “franchise tag” rules, otherwise he wouldn’t have been able to even talk to the Giants about a long-term deal until after the 2015 season — has been pulled. But that doesn’t mean much for the 26-year-old’s future with the Giants. According to the source, the team is not currently considering rescinding the “franchise tag” they placed on him in February – though that potentially could change in the coming days as the Giants learn more about his injuries.

If Pierre-Paul signs that tag, it becomes a one-year contract worth $14.813 million. But it’s important to note that the salary is not guaranteed for any non-football related injury – and this injury is obviously not football related.

jppmoney7s-3-web.jpgJulio Cortez/AP Giants co-owner John Mara.

Meanwhile, the Giants were apparently still in fact-finding mode about the injury Pierre-Paul suffered over the weekend. He reportedly hurt his hand when lighting fireworks near his home. According to a source familiar with his situation, he suffered serious burns on three of his fingers and part of one hand, and at least some minor injuries to his other hand.

Pierre-Paul remained hospitalized in Miami on Monday morning and was scheduled to be examined by more doctors later in the day. While the Giants seemed to be convinced the injuries are not career- or even season-threatening, the source said the biggest concern was that there might be nerve damage in Pierre-Paul’s fingers.

A Giants spokesman declined to give any details on Pierre-Paul’s situation, except to say “Our first concern is for JPP’s well-being.”

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Jason Pierre-Paul risked future with Giants by playing with fireworks

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, July 6, 2015, 1:05 AM
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456694710.jpg Jason Pierre-Paul nearly ruins his chance at a long-term deal with the Giants.

It’s hard enough to understand why anyone would put their life, health and career in jeopardy by doing something as dangerous as playing with fireworks. But it’s almost impossible to understand what was going through the mind of Jason Pierre-Paul this weekend, considering everything else he had at stake.

Because at this point in his offseason the only thing the 26-year-old defensive end should’ve been doing with his hand was signing the one-year, $14.813 million contract offer that’s been sitting on his table since late February — the key to both his financial future and the revival of the Giants’ defense. Instead, according to multiple reports, he badly burned his hand and some fingers with fireworks during a holiday celebration in South Florida.

That information, from a team source informed of JPP’s status, actually qualifies as good news in this unfortunate incident, because for a few hours on Sunday, as the Giants scrambled for information, some in the organization feared that his injury was much worse. He still has to meet with doctors to determine if he damaged any nerves on his fingers, but at least the belief on Sunday night was that he may have escaped with just one hand and a few fingers with charred flesh.

In other words, it could’ve been much, much worse, which is why the Giants were breathing at least a cautious sigh of relief. It sounded like Pierre-Paul’s injury wouldn’t be career-threatening or season-threatening. There was even some hope that it potentially wouldn’t even be bad enough to keep him out of any games.

But just the possibility that it could’ve threatened any of that is where this whole thing becomes scary and mind-boggling. First, just think of what Pierre-Paul put at risk by being anywhere near fireworks — and the 15 million reasons he had for keeping his hands and body away from anything even remotely hazardous. He didn’t sign his “franchise tag” in the hopes that the Giants would offer him a lucrative long-term deal — even though they weren’t likely to offer one lucrative enough for him because of their concerns over his lingering back issue.

Yet instead of cashing checks, he put himself in a position where the Giants might have considered yanking that offer off the table. Paying $15 million to a pass rusher who hasn’t been a dominant force since 2011 was risky enough. They certainly weren’t going to pay him that much if he was going to miss half a season or more.

And it wasn’t just himself he potentially could’ve hurt, because the damage to the Giants’ defense this season would’ve been irreparable if JPP was lost. They are counting on new defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo to revive their moribund defense, and it’s no secret that he’ll be counting on a strong pass rush to lead the way. And JPP isn’t just part of their pass-rushing plan for 2015 — he is the entire plan. They are counting on him to play like he did in 2011, when he had 16½ sacks and was as dominant a defensive player as there was in the league.

new-york-giants.jpgHoward Simmons/New York Daily News Pierre-Paul is extremely lucky that the accident was not any worse.

Without Pierre-Paul — who had 12½ sacks last season, including nine in the last five games — where is the pass rush going to come from? There is potential in players like the young, unproven Damontre Moore and rookie Owa Odighizuwa and veterans like George Selvie and Robert Ayers, but none of them have the spectacular talent and ability of JPP. He is the key to everything Spagnuolo is trying to do on defense this season. The Giants are expecting to have a Top 10 offense. JPP is the key to whether the defense will be able to pull its weight too.

He knows that, for sure. Yet with his own financial future and the fate of his team resting on his shoulders, Pierre-Paul apparently got colossally careless, making a mistake that may have the Giants as concerned about his maturity and his intelligence as they are about his balky back. Thankfully, Pierre-Paul’s life and career appear to have gotten out this mess unscathed, even if one of his hands didn’t.

The Giants now hoping their season and their hopes for a return to the playoffs get out of the mess unscathed, too.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Giants training camp preview: Five issues facing Big Blue in 2015

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Saturday, July 25, 2015, 1:28 PM
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459081884.jpgAl Bello/Getty Images Odell Beckham looks to build on his explosive rookie campaign.

It’s playoffs or bust for the Giants in 2015. Three straight postseason-less campaigns and back-to-back losing seasons don’t fly in East Rutherford (especially after a major rebuild), and John Mara made that crystal clear in December, saying that it was “not unfair” to term this year “win-or-else.”

 

These Giants are confident that they’ll find a way to win, that an offseason of tweaks, a full season with a more mature Odell Beckham Jr., and a second year with Ben McAdoo running the offense will yield success. But they don’t look like an instant NFC East contender, either, especially not after the Jason Pierre-Paul fireworks fiasco in early July. Here are five hot issues the team faces as training camp approaches:

 

CAN THE GIANTS SURVIVE WITHOUT JPP?

The Giants’ most disruptive defender began the offseason training hard, seemingly intent on building on his strong 2014 season. The biggest question for the Giants seemed to be whether he’d play out his one-year franchise tag or nail down a long-term deal.

But that was all before July 4, when an immature decision to play with a truck full of fireworks left Pierre-Paul with serious hand injuries. Now, nobody in the franchise knows when Pierre-Paul will show up, or how he’ll perform without his amputated right index finger. The Giants have depth along the D-line, led by relentless Robert Ayers and ex-Cowboy George Selvie. But neither has the pass-rushing upside of Pierre-Paul. Third-year man DaMontre Moore will need to develop to fill that void.

 

CAN SPAGS REVIVE THE ‘D’?

It’s possible.

Steve Spagnuolo, the architect of the fearsome pass rush that pushed the Giants past the unbeaten Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, returned this offseason, replacing Perry Fewell, who was axed after five underachieving seasons. Players complained that Fewell’s schemes were too complicated, and the results were ugly.

Spagnuolo’s system is viewed as more “player friendly,” and he has talented pieces, including the lockdown corner tandem of Prince Amukamara and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. But his schemes have historically relied on a potent pass-rush, so his unit may struggle early on without Pierre-Paul.

 

HOW WILL CRUZ PERFORM?

Victor Cruz is battling back from the torn right knee patellar tendon that ended his 2014 prematurely, and by all accounts, his recovery has gone well. Cruz has talked of being ready for the season opener in Dallas as well.

Despite all that optimism, there are no guarantees for any player coming off a serious knee injury. The Giants seemed to understand that this offseason, retaining the services of last year’s third receiver Preston Parker and signing free agent Dwayne Harris. Both players can man the slot if Cruz’s return to game action takes longer than expected.

 

IS FLOWERS READY TO STEADY THE O-LINE?

When the Giants selected Ereck Flowers with the ninth overall pick in the NFL draft, he seemed likely to play right tackle or right guard. But when Will Beatty tore his right pectoral muscle in a weight room workout, those plans changed, and Flowers spent most of the offseason workouts manning left tackle. The 6-6, 329-pound behemoth from Miami certainly looks the part, but it’s hard to truly evaluate a lineman in non-contact workouts. A good showing throughout the preseason will set the Giants at ease. If Flowers seems shaky, McAdoo has indicated he’s not against shifting pieces around on the O-line again. The Giants will also watch right tackle Marshall Newhouse, a backup with the Bengals last year, very closely.

 

WHAT DOES ODELL DO FOR AN ENCORE?

How exactly do you follow up 91 catches, 1,305 receiving yards, 12 TDs (in 12 games mind you) and one of the greatest grabs in NFL history? Beckham knows: In a post on his website last week, he talked of hoisting a Lombardi Trophy this year.

To do that, he’ll need another big year, but it won’t solely be about record-setting numbers. The Giants added several offensive weapons, including pass-catching RB Shane Vereen, so Beckham won’t need to shoulder the load alone, especially if Cruz regains his old burst. He just needs to keep making big plays, and he may need to tone back his on-field antics. The receiver has talked of learning from Manning this offseason, which should help him stay more even-keeled on the field.

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/giants/giants-training-camp-preview-5-issues-facing-big-blue-article-1.2304064

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