CrazedDogs

You were so right about him.

Yeah, I'm not giving up on him yet. He's done too many great things in mediocre situations... if the pass protection can just be average, I think we'll see him play the way we expect. I'm more concerned that they're asking a guy who is special on the intermediate to deep throws to play a long hand off game; the touch on the short throws is the one area that he's never been good at.

lol, nice oh look, finally a reason for optimism.

I'm coming around to this point of view.

... That is a depressingly good point.

He's been hard to watch for a couple seasons, but 2011 wasn't that long ago.

I still don't really understand why Cruz was the guy, not Nicks. But after that, I saw things happen that I hadn't seen from a Giants receiver since the days of Plaxico Burress. I didn't understand it and couldn't explain it because it was Nicks' contract season, but his suddenness of movement clearly wasn't there like it was previously... and Nicks was one of my favorite Giants ever too. I was a fan, I wanted him around, so I do not think my eyes were deceiving me. But Defiler made a good point... maybe there was some bitterness there, between Cruz's contract and the way Nicks' health had been treated like it was disposable. I don't know, at this point I just wish him the best.

That is a really good point. He was dogging it (or was more nicked up than I thought), but this at least gives a reasonable explanation why he was taking it easy and protecting himself out there. Can't say I blame him either.

can't argue with that analysis....

The Lions could be beastly this season, so, there is that. Its not like the Giants just had their heads handed to them by the Jaguars for a half.

I feel bad for her... she got her ass beat down, and now she doesn't even have her meal ticket anymore.

I was about to post a thread to the same effect, fishgut. Well said. I haven't forgotten how bad the D looked in those first couple games in 2007. The first couple games of the regular season, if you've got a new system coming in, those may as well be looked at as pre-season games. Its not reassuring that Detroit also has a new offensive system, and they didn't seem to have any communication issues....

The entire offense, aside from Jennings who just had nothing to work with, was awful. Randle sucked hard, he doesn't even look like a pro. Saw Jernigan get alligator arms a couple times. First one was real bad; Gruden said Eli missed, but he didn't, I rewatched and the throw was good enough, Jernigan was just channeling his inner vagina. Cruz was meh... Donnell may be a player though. Other than the communication miscue, he looked pretty decent out there.

on a few occasions I saw a pulling offensive lineman miss the Lions player and block another Giants offensive lineman. It was like an episode of the Three Stooges out there. I saw a some reason for hope elsewhere... (the D looks like it might be okay as long as they don't have to cover Calvin Johnson).. but the offensive line was so bad, even worse than I expected.

I predict David Wilson will lead the league in yards from scrimmage.

A defensive tackle named Hamilton, good move.

Indeed. I thought they would be good every season from 2008-2012. But in 2007 I had them as a bottom feeder.

Golic had them at 4-12 this morning. I don't know, but I just have a real hard time believing that Coughlin can't coax them to around .500.

the pass protection was poor in 2011.... nowhere near as bad as 2013, but very poor none the less. Eli was amazing that season, he should have won MVP in my opinion.

420

I think almost every team, and more so their fans, believe they've gotten better on both sides of the ball. (Except maybe Giants fans, we're a delightfully pessimistic bunch.) As for the Eagles, I think I agree that their roster looks better on paper now than this time last year. But it will have to be better, because their offense - which I have come to love, by the way - won't take anybody by surprise this season. And how was the Eagles health last season? I used to do a little analysis of NFL results each off-season to try to learn more about impact of injuries - this was before I had kids and had time for that sort of thing. But what I found was this - the relationship between a teams record and its games lost to injury by starters is extremely inversely correlated. If you want a good short hand predictor for who will do well in the coming season, look at the teams that had the most starters go down for the most time the prior season, and among them pick the team that had the best record. Not sure how the Eagles or the rest of the NFC East fared in the injury department last season, but I've read that the Giants led the league in starter games lost to injury... and still finished at 7-9, by the far the best among the other most-injured teams. By the old short hand, they would be my surprise pick for this coming season. And I don't think it ever failed me before. Granted it was a flimsy 7-9, but I'll take any reason for optimism I can get...

The middle one was an off-target throw, but the top and bottom throws look like miscommunications with the receiver (although the one on top wasn't being caught regardless). footballoutsiders.com is a great site.

Well, I wouldn't say I'm betting on it. Nicks would have to be a total shit head to deliberately slack off like that. But subconsciously, maybe his focus wasn't all there? That could be, it happens to all but the best of us.

I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt about injuries and all that, but whether the difference was health or effort, it was impossible to miss the difference in Nicks on Saturday vs. his performance in 2013. It would have been highly irrational for him to dog it last season merely out of spite... but nobody is perfectly rational.

Observations: Eli... dude. He looks completely lost. If he doesn't show something this week, I'm hitting the panic button. And on what planet is Painter better than Nassib? I don't give a shit what happens in practice, Painter wets himself when there are live pass rushers in his face. The D may be nice this season... if you watch closely in the early 2nd quarter, you'll see the Giants 2s (+ Rolle) taking it to the Colts 1s. (Then again, when the Colts 2s came in, they moved the ball... Hasselbeck is a tricky son of a bitch). Also, the officiating was awful towards the Giants defensive line... by all rights they should have had multiple sacks on Luck, or at least a few holding calls in their favor. Even Kiwi looked like he was getting after it.