2007 NY Giants Articles and Video

[Virginia Giant]

BIG BLUE AIMS FOR RED DAWN

 

PIERCE: WE ARE GONNA SHOCK A LOT OF PEOPLE

 

 

November 10, 2007 -- IN and around Giants Stadium, a Red Storm is brewing.

 

Clad in their red jerseys, the surging Giants believe they are ready to sweep the Cowboys out to sea in tomorrow's King of the NFC Hill showdown and shock that part of the world that views them more as pretenders than contenders.

 

Linebacker Antonio Pierce can see it and hear it and feel it everywhere he turns, especially in the way the Giants have practiced all week ... especially on his side of the ball.

 

"Faster; probably our fastest we could practice all year, as far as defensively," he said. "We got guys flying to the ball ... it looked like we were in minicamp almost, when guys first get out there and everybody's running to the ball ... it looks like a training tape almost."

 

He sees and hears it and feels it inside the meeting rooms.

 

"Everybody's a lot more attentive to detail - looking at more film, asking more questions in meetings - guys normally ask questions in meetings but ... certain questions: being more exact, being more to the point," he said. "By [Thursday] we had guys already kinda calling out plays and knowing formations and stuff, which is very key for us."

 

Pierce was told that must give him a confident, optimistic feeling.

 

"Of course; it'd be different if we had eight guys or four guys doing it, you know?" he said. "But we got all 11, and then you got your backups coming in and doing it. That lets you know that everybody understands what's at stake this week."

 

I asked him when was the last time he saw this team this ready for a game.

 

"Probably the Washington game, 36-0, two years ago, [following the death of Wellington Mara]," he says.

 

The sign that greets the Giants when they enter their locker room reads "Have Something to Prove." The Giants will try to prove they can beat a big team in a big game, try to prove they belong in any Super Bowl conversation.

 

"When you get 53 guys having something to prove," Pierce said, "you got a nasty group there. Then when you got a team that is coming to your place and they're favored, and they're the top dogs and that's what you want - what else can you say but have something to prove?

 

"Right now it's four teams with better records than us [two in the NFC]; we're the fifth team ... if we keep going the way we're going, are we a team that deserves to get a bye week and be favored later on in the playoffs, or are we a team that, every week you don't know what you're gonna get?

 

"I think we're gonna get a team that's gonna play with so much energy and fire that it's gonna shock a lot of people."

 

Why would it shock a lot of people?

 

"Because I don't think they've ever seen us play this way," he said.

 

Meaning?

 

"The fire and energy that we're gonna play with," he says.

 

How can you be that confident?

 

"The way we practice; we've done it every day," Pierce said. "It's not an overconfidence, it's not an arrogance thing, it's a belief. We believe we're a good team."

 

Will the Cowboys be surprised by this fire and energy?

 

"No; I expect them to come out the same way," Pierce said. "It's just who's gonna have more, who's gonna have it for 60 minutes? If you're talking about just the beginning of the game, we go out there and we shoot our guns off and then by the fourth quarter we're shooting blanks. I'm talking about 60 ... 61 minutes of it."

 

Sixty-one?

 

"I always say 61; I always play through the whistle," he said.

 

Pierce has to play Me and My Shadow with Marion [The Barbarian] Barber. Big Red's fearsome foursome must keep Tony Romo, so dangerous on the run, in the pocket. "We need to make sure he's got some concrete in his feet," Pierce says.

 

How ready are the Giants?

 

"About 90 percent," Pierce said. "If we do what we did in practice all week, we'll be OK, we'll give Giants fans something to remember.''

 

Come Sunday at 4:15, how ready will this team be?

 

"100 percent," Pierce said.

 

"101 percent."

 

 

[jerseygiantfan]

Plaxico Burress' bad ankle worsens

 

BY RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Tuesday, November 13th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

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Plaxico Burress has gritted his teeth and played through a painful ankle injury all season. But it's clearly getting worse.

 

One day after he was held to an ineffective four catches for 24 yards in a 31-20 loss to Dallas, Burress said his right ankle felt "probably the worst it's felt" all season - amazing since it's been bothering him since he first sprained it on Aug. 2.

 

"It seems like its getting worse," Burress said yesterday. "All I can do is keep getting treatment and rehab. That's really all I can do about it."

 

Burress has caught just 11 passes for 81 yards and no touchdowns in the last three games (though one game was played in sloppy conditions at London's Wembley Stadium). In the first six games, he was averaging five catches for 84.5 yards and 1.3 touchdowns.

 

Tom Coughlin conceded Burress' ankle injury is hurting his production. "I would think that certainly has a lot to do with it," Coughlin said.

 

Burress said he has no intention of sitting out a game.

 

"I don't think it is going to get better," Burress said. "It's just something I have to play with for a little while. I'll be glad when it's all over and I can rest it and get it healthy."

 

DELAYED REACTION: There were a variety of reasons offered for the three delay of game penalties on Sunday. Eli Manning said yesterday he thought the refs called one a little early, and on the other he was changing the protection because of an oncoming blitz and center Shaun O'Hara couldn't hear the call.

 

Coughlin said a big issue was tempo. "It looked like we weren't getting back to the huddle fast enough," he said. ... Coughlin said he believed on Sunday, and still believes after looking at the film, that Tony Romo was not past the line of scrimmage when he threw his first TD pass. That's why the Giants didn't challenge. ... Manning on the criticism he's getting for losing and being outplayed by Romo: "I'm not the one to blame for a loss. You're not going to lose games. That's part of football. It's just about learning from your mistakes."

 

 

[jerseygiantfan]

Giants stay positive, move on after loss to Cowboys

 

BY RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Tuesday, November 13th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

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The NFC East race may be all but over, but the Giants' season isn't. And just because they collapsed in the second half last season, doesn't mean they're going to do it again.

 

That's what the Giants want everyone to remember in the wake of their deflating, 31-20 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. As Eli Manning said twice during his post-game press conference and one more time Monday, the loss to the Cowboys may still sting, but "it's not the end of the world."

 

"It's not like we're done for the season or anything bad has occurred," Manning said. "We're not down about it. We're not sulking. We're not looking back."

 

That's a good idea, because there's another huge game in front of them Sunday when they travel to Detroit to take on the resurgent Lions. Both teams are 6-3 and tied for the two NFC wild-card spots. The winner gets a one-game lead, plus the tiebreaker advantage, while the loser gets dumped into a mediocre pack of teams chasing the final NFC playoff spot.

 

The Lions no longer are pushovers, especially at home, where they are 4-0 and averaging 31 points per game. With Detroit's impressive array of receivers, the Lions will provide yet another test for a Giants defense that was exposed against the Cowboys.

 

The last thing the Giants need is to go in with their confidence shaken, which is why Tom Coughlin's message to the players yesterday morning was: Don't look back, and don't get down.

 

"The thing that I do want to make sure that everyone understands is that at no time during the course of this year in any of the six wins have we ever dwelled on yesterday," Coughlin said. "And I'm not going to dwell on yesterday today, either. We've got to move on. We've got a big game this week to get ready for.

 

"So as I told the players, this will be the last time that we'll talk about and reference (the Cowboys) game. We'll move forward."

 

The truth, though, is that when they did look back at Sunday's game, what they saw wasn't awful. The Giants produced almost as many yards (300) as the Cowboys (323) and they were one controversial holding penalty away from tying the score at 24 early in the fourth quarter. They even nearly prevented Tony Romo's game-sealing, 50-yard touchdown pass to Terrell Owens when rookie safety Michael Johnson had Marion Barber seemingly stopped one play earlier on third-and-1.

 

Johnson missed what Coughlin conceded was "a tough tackle" - a mistake of aggression that Coughlin almost seemed to forgive. "In no way do we ever, in any way, shape or form, take away from the aggressiveness of any player," Coughlin said.

 

What he wants is for his players to learn from their mistakes and figure out how to apply those lessons to future games, and that should be slightly easier to do against the Lions - who were shredded by the Cardinals in Arizona on Sunday. The Giants' pass rush was neutralized against a Cowboys line that has allowed only 13 sacks all season. But Lions quarterback Jon Kitna has been sacked 37 times, which theoretically will put the Giants' four defensive ends back in play.

 

That will help the secondary, which should help the defense look more like the one that played so well during the Giants' six-game winning streak. The Giants' confidence was sky high during that streak. Despite the loss to the Cowboys, they need to get that confidence back up again.

 

"There's no doubt we'll bounce back," said linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka. "There's not a panic mode at all. We've been in his position before. We understand the loss obviously hurts today. We've got to come in here and take our lumps like everybody else. But when the day is over we've got to put it behind us. There's another game coming up, whether we're still thinking about this one or not."

 

[jerseygiantfan]

John Mara: Giants sticking with Eli Manning

 

BY RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Wednesday, November 14th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

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* Read Ralph Vacchiano's The Blue Screen

* Click here to play GIANTS Pick'em

 

 

The debate over Eli Manning has been raging in New York for more than 3-1/2 years, since the day the Giants paid a hefty price to get him. Outside the Giants organization, that price will forever be a part of how he's measured.

 

However, inside the Giants front office, they base their measurement on only one thing.

 

"The only thing we evaluate is 'Can we win with this guy?'" Giants co-owner John Mara said Tuesday. "That's the one thing. When we talk about any player at the end of the season, the No.1 question is 'Will he help us win?' And to take it one step further, 'Can we win a championship with this guy?'"

 

Mara declined to give his answer, or to offer an evaluation of his franchise quarterback yesterday, but the feeling inside the front office has long been that the answer is "Yes." Their feelings have not changed this year, even after watching the former No. 1 pick get outplayed by Tony Romo, a former undrafted free agent, on Sunday.

 

The Giants' 6-3 record is not nearly enough to silence the debate about whether Manning will ever live up to his enormous expectations. The Giants think about that, too. In January, Mara admitted he was so "concerned" about Manning that his development was "a major part of our discussions" about Tom Coughlin's future.

 

A few weeks later, on the day he was hired as the Giants' new GM, Jerry Reese said Manning "is not where we want him to be."

 

So where is he now? Not much better, according to the numbers. His performance in the Giants' 31-20 loss to Dallas - 23-for-34, 236 yards - was only the second time in six games that he threw for more than 200 yards.

 

In his fourth NFL season and his third full season as a starter, Manning is ranked 20th in the NFL with a 78.6 rating. His completion percentage of 59.4 is 27th in the league.

 

His record is 26-22 in 48 starts - the same record his celebrated brother Peyton had at this point in his career - and he might lead the Giants to three straight playoff berths for the first time in 21 years. But when then-GM Ernie Accorsi traded for Manning, he called him "great," "very special" and "a classic prospect." No one else in the organization argued.

 

Doesn't that mean expectations should be higher?

 

That's a question management will have to ponder, because Coughlin's fate and the immediate fate of the franchise may rest on the answer. Manning's contract has only two years remaining (at $17.4 million), which means an extension is likely to be discussed in the near future.

 

Romo just got a six-year, $67.5 million contract. Does anyone think Manning is worth the same?

 

"I think it's kind of unfair for people to be overly critical of him right now," Mara said. "We lost a game. It was a big game, so people are disappointed and players are going to get criticized. But if he goes out and has a good game on Sunday and plays well the rest of the season, people will forget about it.

 

"He's the same guy that helped us win six games in a row."

 

 

[jerseygiantfan]

Eli Manning not fazed by barrage of criticism

BY RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Thursday, November 15th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

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There are two things that should be crystal clear about the Giants by now. First, after a big loss, Eli Manning will get most of the blame, and every part of his game and personality will be torn apart.

 

Second, and most importantly, Manning doesn't care.

 

"E's such an easygoing guy, none of that affects him," Giants running back Brandon Jacobs said yesterday. "Sometimes he can care less what's going on around him. That's the type of guy he is. E has handled all of it well. None of it has really bothered him.

 

"So if people want to stop now they really can, because they're wasting their time."

 

With that, the Giants hope they have put to rest the latest round of one of New York's favorite fall pastimes: Eli-bashing. The Giants' quarterback actually wasn't so bad in a 31-20 loss to the Cowboys on Sunday, completing 23 of 34 passes for 236 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

 

But the fact that Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo was better (20-of-28, 247 yards, four touchdowns, one interception) and that the Giants committed three inexcusable delay of game penalties was enough to turn Manning into the most criticized, analyzed and dissected player in town (non-A-Rod division, of course).

 

"You just have to learn to accept it," the quiet quarterback said yesterday. "It happens after a loss sometimes. You never know when it is going to happen or what is going to cause it or what strikes it up, but it is out there, and you can't let it affect your personality or the way you are in the locker room or your approach.

 

"You have to stay the same and have a good attitude about everything and show everybody that it doesn't bother you."

 

That's apparently easy for the 26-year-old Manning to do because it doesn't bother him - at least not that he or his teammates have been able to see. The latest round of Eli-bashing was so fierce, in fact, that Tom Coughlin decided to talk with his quarterback on Tuesday. But he quickly discovered there was no need for the topic to be addressed.

 

"If I sensed that there was a need, I would perhaps talk to him about that," Coughlin said. "But I don't sense that. It's a game. We know the environment that we're in here. Obviously we'd like it to be different, but it's not.

 

"So the only way that we know to do anything about it is (win) the next game. That's basically the approach he's taken all along. There's no need for extended, eloquent conversations about it. It is what it is and we need to move on."

 

That's especially important this week because the Giants (6-3) face a huge game at Detroit (6-3) on Sunday with major implications in the NFC wild-card chase, the only playoff door still really open to the Giants after their loss to the Cowboys. And the Lions are not only 4-0 at home, they're averaging 31 points there, too.

 

That means the last thing the Giants need right now is for their leaders to be down, and Manning's teammates know that, too. Still, none of them felt the need to try to lift his spirits.

 

The truth is, they never do.

 

"We don't have to go up to him and say 'Look, people are talking, don't worry about it,'" Jacobs said. "We know, he knows and everybody else surrounding him knows that people just talk because he's the quarterback. Of course every time something goes wrong they blame him. He's been around this for four years now. It just rolls off his back."

 

PIERCING: LB Antonio Pierce did not practice yesterday with what the Giants called a "mild concussion." Coughlin said Pierce has been experiencing headaches since Monday. ... WR Steve Smith (shoulder/hamstring) was limited in practice and is not expected to play Sunday....WR Plaxico Burress (ankle) and RB Derrick Ward (ankle/groin) did not practice.

 

[jerseygiantfan]

Kiwanuka has surgery; Jacobs hurt, too

Associated Press, Updated 17 hours ago

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) - For the first time this season, injuries are going to force New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin to juggle his starting lineup at more than one position.

 

Not only was strongside linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka likely lost for the season with a broken left leg in the 16-10 win over the Detroit Lions on Sunday, starting halfback Brandon Jacobs was knocked out with a pulled left hamstring.

 

While the Giants (7-3) have opened a little cushion in the playoff chase, the downside is that it was injuries to Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and Amani Toomer that led to New York's collapse in the second half of last season.

 

Kiwanuka's injury is the first major one for the Giants since the season started. He had surgery to stabilize his leg and ankle on Monday. Coughlin said doctors don't think there is enough time for the second-year pro to recover and play again this season.

 

Reggie Torbor replaced Kiwanuka at the linebacker spot, but Coughlin must replace him in third-down dime package where he played tackle, and in some other scenarios where he played a roving pass rusher.

 

Tackle Fred Robbins got most of the work in the dime package Sunday, but Coughlin plans to consider other options to keep the "joker" (roving rusher) active.

 

The halfback position might be more of a challenge because backup Derrick Ward has missed the last three games with ankle and groin injuries.

 

Ward filled in admirably after the big, bruising Jacobs sprained a knee in the season opener and missed the next three weeks. However, he was banged up during that stint and has been slow to return.

 

With Jacobs and Ward out, veteran Reuben Droughns would start against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, backed up by rookie Ahmad Bradshaw.

 

"It went from a deep, strong position to a position now that has a couple of injuries," Coughlin said. "We are trying to figure out just exactly where Ward is, and it probably would take through tomorrow to figure that out, but it is a definite concern."

 

Droughns had averaged 4.0 yards on 41 carries heading into the game against the Lions, but he was limited to 13 yards on 11 carries after Jacobs was hurt in the third quarter.

 

Coughlin downplayed the lack of production Sunday, noting the Lions had eight players near the line of scrimmage in the fourth quarter, trying to force the Giants to throw the ball.

 

Holding the lead, Coughlin refused to throw and Droughns' statistics paid the price.

 

"Other than that, Reuben has run the ball well when called upon and did a nice job with a screen and so on and so forth," Coughlin said. "He is a proven rusher in this league and we have great confidence in him."

 

Droughns rushed for more than 1,200 yards in 2004 and '05. He had 758 last season in a limited role with Cleveland.

 

Bradshaw has no experience. The seventh-round draft choice from Marshall has not carried the ball from scrimmage and has one reception for 11 yards. His biggest contribution has been 16 kickoff returns, including a season-long 68-yarder Sunday.

 

Bradshaw was in the doghouse earlier this season after fumbling on a kickoff return against the Packers, but he is now back in the good graces.

 

 

"He would be ready," Coughlin said. "We have used him in certain situations even more than you have seen in the game. We have had things ready from a practice standpoint that haven't been used. He is ready and he seems to be very aware of pass protection, as well."

 

The Giants have been healthy this season. On defense, the only starter to miss a game has been safety James Butler, who was sidelined against Miami with ankle and hamstring woes. Jacobs is the only starter on offense to miss a game with an injury. No more than one starter on either side of the ball has missed a game.

 

Wide receiver Plaxico Burress has been plagued by a sprained ankle and barely has practiced, but has not missed a game.

 

 

[jerseygiantfan]

Giant injuries will determine Big Blue's playoff fate

 

Tuesday, November 20th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

In this season of giving thanks, the Giants can be thankful that nearly 40 years ago, when the merger led to realignment, the presence of the Jets in the AFC eliminated them from any consideration of moving out of the NFC instead of the Colts, Steelers or Browns.

 

If the Giants have to get stuck in the wild-card round, the NFC is the place to be and this is the year to do it. The Cowboys and Packers are 9-1 and their game in Dallas in 10 days likely will determine who goes into the playoffs as the NFC's No.1 seed. The loser still will get a bye and a home game in the divisional round.

 

The Giants are 7-3 and have the third-best record in the conference. If things play out the last six weeks as expected, they can expect to visit Seattle or Tampa in the wild-card round the first weekend in January - and go there with a better record than the Seahawks or Buccaneers.

 

So far, the Giants have lost to the Packers and twice to the Cowboys, who are the second-best team in the league. Beating the Lions in Detroit two days ago, even with another unimpressive performance by the offense, at least convinces the Giants there will not be a repeat of last year's second-half collapse.

 

Moving ahead of Detroit by one game and gaining the tiebreaker edge was important, but psychologically the Giants needed the win in Motown to stop all the talk about last year.

 

"I don't know that the players dwelled on it," Tom Coughlin said yesterday. "I think it was a good thing for us as we approached it to be playing in a big game, to try to be a team that didn't hurt ourselves. ... As long as we apply the same formula, which basically is 'talk is cheap, play the game' and put yourself in a position where you give yourself a chance to win, I think some real good can come out of this game."

 

The bad that came out of the game was the return of injuries to crucial players, which wiped out the Giants down the stretch the last two seasons. Linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka is surely gone for the season after breaking his fibula and running back Brandon Jacobs left the game with a hamstring injury and his status for Sunday's game against the Vikings is not yet clear.

 

Kiwanuka's versatility helped turn around the defense. He was a key part of the four-defensive end scheme with Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck that was utilized on passing downs. The Giants can cover up for him at linebacker, but the pressure he helped provide up front will be hard to make up. Jacobs gives the offense attitude as long as he can stay on the field. But his durability already is an issue in his first season as the starter after he missed three games earlier this year with a knee injury. He's carried only 114 times this season. Tiki Barber didn't miss one game over his final five seasons as he carried 1,587 times.

 

How will progress be measured this year for the Giants? In each of the last two years, they've lost in the wild-card round. They have not won a playoff game since their Super Bowl year in 2000. So, if they can make the playoffs for the third year in a row, doing so for the first time since 1984-86, and then can win a playoff game, that should be good enough to get Coughlin more than a one-year contract extension and guarantee stability for the next few years. Since the Giants have not yet committed to Coughlin long-term, it can be interpreted that he still is auditioning for his job.

 

Spinning this forward, the Giants should be the NFC's No.1 wild-card team. The Seahawks will win the weak NFC West by default and the Bucs will win the weak NFC South by default. Seattle and Tampa are each 6-4. Even though the Giants are 0-3 on the road in the playoffs since winning in San Francisco in the 1990 NFC title game, this could be the year the streak ends.

 

They are in prime position to get to the playoffs, but they better hope Sunday's injuries are not the start of a destructive trend.

[jerseygiantfan]

Giants place Kiwanuka on IR, sign Pass

Associated Press, Updated 16 minutes ago

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) - New York Giants linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka was placed on injured reserve Tuesday, two days after he broke his left leg against Detroit.

 

To fill Kiwanuka's roster spot, the Giants signed running back Patrick Pass, a member of three Super Bowl championship teams with the New England Patriots.

 

Kiwanuka, the team's top draft pick in 2006, was injured on the second play of Sunday's game when teammate Osi Umenyiora fell on him while they were pursuing running back Kevin Jones.

 

Reggie Torbor replaced Kiwanuka in the Giants' 16-10 win.

 

The 5-foot-11, 238-pound Pass played in 78 regular-season games with 11 starts for New England. He played in all nine postseason games for the Patriots in 2001, 2003 and 2004 and started at fullback in one Super Bowl.

 

In 2006, Pass played in three games before going on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. He was in training camp with the Houston Texans this summer, but was released on Aug. 28.

[jerseygiantfan]

Eli Manning too calm, Tom Coughlin not

 

Monday, November 26th 2007, 10:14 AM

Appleton/News

 

A frustrated Tom Coughlin wasn't pleased with Eli Manning's performance, and he let the media know it.

 

Eli Manning had just played one of the worst games ever for a Giants quarterback; it was even more embarrassing with big brother Peyton watching from a luxury box. When it finally came to an end after the Vikings nearly chased him right out of the stadium, he displayed no anger, no disgust, no passion.

 

He didn't beat himself up. His coach did it for him.

 

"You know, just disappointed," Manning said.

 

He's got to do better than that. Could we see some fire? Can he at least predict a sleepless night? Kids who lose video games get more upset.

 

Four interceptions. Three returned for touchdowns, which had never happened to the Giants since they started playing in 1925. It was one short of the NFL record. Manning had one pick returned to the Giants' 8-yard line, setting up another touchdown.

 

Tom Coughlin more than made up for Manning's typical emotionless reaction. It's as close as he will come to throwing the QB under the bus, but he also blamed himself, too, for poor preparation. "The interceptions for touchdowns, there is no excuse for it," Coughlin said. "You are not going to be able to win a football game when you give away the points that we did with the three scores and then the ball on the 8-yard line."

 

Manning had another interception overturned by instant replay and the Vikings dropped two more. He threw too many passes right into the dirt. It was the worst he's looked since his zero quarterback rating against the Ravens his rookie year.

 

He deserved the criticism from Coughlin. This is a franchise quarterback? This is a team on a playoff run?

 

"Well, it wasn't good," Manning said. "When you throw four interceptions, it is never a good day. They took advantage of it and scored on three of them. Every one has its own story."

 

All this came against the Vikings, who were ranked No. 32 - that's last - in pass defense.

 

So, what does it mean to lose 41-17 to a team that was 4-6?

 

The Giants have to be worried about Manning again, both for the rest of this season and going forward. These performances are inexcusable. Instead of asserting themselves as the NFC's third best team and taking a big lead for the No. 1 wild-card spot, the Giants bounced themselves right back into the pack and are 1-2 in the second half of the season.

 

As Coughlin said, history repeated itself from two years ago, when another second-level Vikings team came into Giants Stadium and became the first team in NFL history to return an interception, punt and kickoff for touchdowns. They picked off Manning four times in that game, too. Darren Sharper had three of them, one for a touchdown, and he got the Vikings' first defensive touchdown yesterday with a 20-yard return in the first quarter.

Coughlin must have been punishing Manning by making him play until the ugly end. The fans sure wanted him gone. When he came jogging back onto the field early in the fourth quarter after he had thrown two picks returned for scores 42 seconds apart to make it 41-10, the fans tried to boo him back to the sideline or perhaps up to the box to watch the rest of the game with his brother, who threw six picks this season in San Diego.

 

The Giants' day ended with Manning twisting and turning and looking for a passing lane and getting thrown to the turf for a 26-yard loss. Coughlin considered benching Manning in the fourth quarter, but "didn't see the purpose in that. I just don't like that feeling. I wasn't going to do that to him and I wasn't going to do that to me and us. I just don't like that."

 

Manning was not looking for a quick exit. "I didn't want him to pull me," he said. "I wanted to finish the game."

 

Coughlin had nothing to gain by keeping him in except erode his confidence. The game was over.

 

Manning misread the blitz coverage on pick No.1 on a pass intended for Jeremy Shockey. Sharper easily scored. Manning was trying to find Plaxico Burress on the second INT. Free safety Dwight Smith took it back to the 8. When it was 27-10, Smith picked off a pass for Shockey that was tipped at the line. "I was throwing for Shockey for a touchdown," Manning said.

 

Smith took it 93 yards to put the game away. Two plays later, linebacker Chad Greenway went 37 yards for another TD. The Giants never figured out how to handle the Vikings' inside pressure.

 

Was Manning confused? "Yeah, because we did a great job of disguising and moving around late," Sharper said. "I think we did confuse him a little bit."

 

Was Manning frustrated? "A couple of throws, when he had to just throw it in the dirt, I could see he was a little upset," Sharper said.

 

Coughlin told his team he would have liked to have seen "how this game would have played out had we not provided them with a gift-wrapped win."

 

That was clearly another shot at his quarterback. He said his concern with Manning "is how fast he is going to bounce back. We are going to have people that are in shock right now, but he will bounce back. He has bounced back before."

 

The Giants are in Chicago next week. Manning can't throw any more picks that go the other way. And the Giants better not kick the the ball to Devin Hester.

 

gmyers@nydailynews.com

[jerseygiantfan]

Eli Manning stays calm after interception debacle against Vikings

 

BY RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Tuesday, November 27th 2007, 4:00 AM

Appleton/News

 

Eli Manning may have been down on Sunday, but on Monday proves he is never out.

 

The morning after his worst game in nearly three years, Eli Manning stood in front of the media answering questions for more than 30 minutes. He never raised his voice, never got angry and rarely changed his expression.

 

Four years into his career, it should be clear he probably never will.

 

"What do they want him to do, come running (into his press conference) and cuss the world out?" asked Brandon Jacobs. "No. He's a player with more class than that. He won't do that. That's just not the type of guy he is."

 

Of course, in the wake of the Giants' inexcusable 41-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings at Giants Stadium on Sunday - in which Manning threw four interceptions, three of which were returned for touchdowns - the question has been raised again about whether he needs to be that type of guy. In the moments after the loss, most of Manning's teammates expressed shock and anger to anyone who asked.

 

But down the hall, in his postgame press conference, Manning was as calm as ever and his words and tones were typically measured. Even when he was lobbed a softball question, "Does (the loss) leave you embarrassed, angry, shocked or surprised?" Manning would only concede, "You know, just disappointed."

 

Answers like that enrage a legion of embarrassed, angry, shocked and surprised Giants fans.

 

"(Getting angry) is not going to fix anything," Manning said Monday. "If you go in a tantrum it doesn't make anything better. It doesn't correct the last play or the last few that happened. I figure if I start going crazy and getting wild, it is just going to make everybody else go into a tantrum. And I'm trying to keep everybody calm."

 

It's an attitude that has served him well during games when, with some notable exceptions such as Sunday's game, he's managed to keep his head when things are going wrong around him. But it doesn't allow him to project the image fans love - that of a fiery competitor who'd do anything to win and is crushed when he doesn't.

 

That's why the discussion yesterday, on the radio and over the Internet, seemed to be as much about Manning's postgame press conference as it was about his awful performance - a game in which he nearly threw six interceptions against the second-worst pass defense in the league. He even answered about a dozen questions about his postgame demeanor yesterday, which admittedly left Manning amazed.

 

"The postgame press conference isn't the problem," Manning said. "It's what's happening on the field that needs to be corrected. I don't get to watch film on my postgame press conference. I guess I'll start doing that now."

 

Actually, even if he reviewed his uninspiring performance in the interview room, the 26-year-old isn't likely to change his ways. For one thing, like it or not, it's just his personality. For another, it's part of his bigger plan to always "keep a straight face and don't let my players and people see that I'm down or that I'm out.

 

"I'm as hard on myself as anybody is," Manning said. "Yeah, I'm disappointed in the way (Sunday) went. But I can't let that affect what is going to happen to me this week and my attitude. I can't carry that on."

 

Emotional fans may not like that, but Manning's teammates don't care. They've got bigger worries than the postgame expression on their quarterback's face.

 

"All that stuff about the look on his face, 'Why does he look like that?', that's just people trying to find something to pick on him for," Jacobs said.

 

"The one thing you guys have got to understand in this league is you don't have to break yourself down," added center Shaun O'Hara. "There are plenty of people out there to do it for you."

 

In other words, the next time the Giants suffer a gut-wrenching defeat, don't expected to hear the agony in Manning's voice or see the pain on his face.

 

"That's him," Tom Coughlin said. "And that's good enough for me."

[jerseygiantfan]

News talks to experts, gets their prognosis on Eli Manning's career

 

By RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Sunday, December 2nd 2007

 

Long before he got to the WFAN studios on Monday morning, Boomer Esiason knew what was coming. He's spent enough years in the media to know the phone lines would be lit up like Rockefeller Center at Christmas with calls about Eli Manning.

 

He's spent enough years as a quarterback in New York to know none of the calls would be very nice.

 

"They're calling in going 'We're paying this guy how much?'" says Esiason, the former Jets quarterback and new WFAN morning show host. "'He wanted to come here as a first-round pick and we're going to have to owe him $23 million over the next three years? You've got to be kidding me!' They don't get that because they see Ben Roethlisberger, or they watch Tom Brady, or they see Peyton Manning."

 

Fifty starts into an NFL career that began with the promise - and demand - of greatness, it's clear to everyone that Eli Manning is no Roethlisberger or Brady, nor is he the second coming of his older brother, Peyton. Yet determining exactly what he is hasn't been easy for a city that has turned the over-analysis of Eli into a brand new sport.

 

He's too laid-back and doesn't show enough fire. ... Then sometimes, he's calm and cool in tough situations. He's "skittish", as GM Jerry Reese said last week. ... Then sometimes, he has his best games under pressure. He has flashes of brilliance that justify every draft pick the Giants traded for him on Draft Day 2004. ... Then he turns around and has a four-interception stinker like the one he threw at the Minnesota Vikings last week.

 

He's better than Phil Simms was at this point in his career, although not as good as Kerry Collins, and his numbers in his first 50 starts are obliterated by those of the top quarterbacks of his generation. In fact, his numbers (a completion percentage of 55.1, a passer rating of 73.6) even fall below the league-wide average for his four years in the NFL (60.1%, 80.7).

 

That makes him an enigma - hard to explain and impossible to define, which is why he gets put on a wild, psychological carousel that starts spinning every Monday morning. Every pass, every eye-roll, every word he utters, leads to the same two questions: What kind of quarterback is Eli Manning? And is this all there is?

 

"I'll tell you this," Esiason says. "He still has maybe another 150 games in him before you'll fully determine what his career is all about - another 10 years. So I still say the book is still out on him. He's not a bust and he's not been great. He's somewhere in between.""I think he should be better," says Joe Theismann, the former Redskins quarterback and former analyst on Monday Night Football. "If you're a No. 1 pick, I don't care who you are, you're never going to live up to the expectations that have been set for you. Ever. It ain't going to happen.

 

"But at this stage of Eli's career, I would expect him to play better football. And I'm sure he would, too."

 

Clearly Manning needs to be better than the four-interception nightmare he had in a 41-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings last Sunday. But beyond that game, his career has been an inexplicable series of ambiguities. He's won some big games. In fact, he's won 27 of his 50 starts - only one less than his celebrated brother Peyton won in his first 50.

 

He also won a division championship two years ago, and is seemingly on his way to leading the Giants to their third straight playoff berth.

 

But then there is the 55.1% completion rate - well below the league average. There are the 59 career interceptions, many of which have come at the worst possible times. Those are so troubling that the Giants' owners made Manning's development a top priority in their discussions on Tom Coughlin's future last January, leading Coughlin to bring in Chris Palmer as the quarterbacks coach.

 

They bravely set the bar at a 60% completion rate for Manning. But 11 games into the season his percentage stands at 58.5 (217 for 371). The rest of his numbers (2,376 yards, 16 touchdowns, 15 interceptions) are almost identical to this point last year - and he hasn't even begun what seems to be his annual second-half fade.

 

"There are so many (reasons)," says offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride, and an array of scouts and analysts agree with him. "We would be here for five hours trying to describe what it is. Each play is a story unto itself. Sometimes it's him, sometimes it's the play, sometimes it's someone else."

 

Injuries - specifically the midseason losses of left tackle Luke Petitgout and receiver Amani Toomer - ruined Manning's second half last season. This season he's been hampered by the loss of Tiki Barber and the nagging ankle injury that has neutralized Plaxico Burress as a deep threat. It certainly hasn't helped Manning's cause that his receivers rank third in the NFL with 29 drops.

 

But Manning doesn't help his own cause either. He has become notorious for passes that aren't quite on the mark - sometimes just a little bit behind the intended receiver, other times wildly under- or over-thrown. The one fact no one disputes about Manning is that he hasn't been very accurate through the first 50 games of his career.

"I don't believe that improves," says Brian Baldinger, a former NFL offensive lineman and now an analyst on the NFL Network. "I believe either you have that or you don't have that. Ultimately what it comes down to, after everything is said and done, is when he gets a clean pocket and he's got Amani Toomer coming across the middle and he's got a defender on his hip, can he put the ball right where it needs to be?

 

"Ultimately I think that's his flaw."

 

Manning worked hard on that flaw with Palmer this summer, using a drill with small targets on a net designed specifically to improve accuracy. But the results remain erratic - he's been below 60% in all but four games.

 

So if that isn't going to improve, what will the Giants do? Manning's contract runs through the 2009 season, and pays him $5.55 million this year, $8.45 million next year and $8.95 million in '09. By this time next year, Manning and the Giants will likely already be in discussions about a contract extension that could approach $100 million. That's a lot of money for a quarterback they're not sure about.

 

Then again, if you take a look around the NFL, there aren't many alternatives. Manning may be an enigma, but compared to the rest of the league he looks pretty good.

 

"There are 22 teams that would love to have Eli Manning as their quarterback," Esiason says. "Twenty two. Do you want to wake up and have David Carr as your quarterback? Or J.P. Losman? Even Philip Rivers, who looks worse than I've ever seen him look before. There are not a lot of guys out there that you're going to say look better than Eli."

 

"Heck, I put Eli easily in the top 10, top 12," Theismann adds. "That's the top third of the league. So I think to rush to judgment on Eli would be wrong. Where are you going to go? You're not going to get yourself a quarterback who has experience, who has certainly dealt with tough situations from a mental standpoint. So to me, you live with the growing process."

 

That, as it turns out, might be the bottom line on Manning. He's only 26. This is only his third full season as a starter. Maybe the "growing process" won't happen as quickly as everyone thought.

 

"If he were Derek Anderson or Tom Brady when he first started, and they were just afterthoughts - (sixth)-round draft picks - or Tony Romo (an undrafted free agent) for that matter, nobody would say anything," Esiason says. "But when you orchestrate a trade on draft day, you put yourself squarely in the midst of it.

 

"So we've just got to be patient...but you know he's got to show you something, too."

[jerseygiantfan]

Late TD drives send Giants over Bears

Associated Press, Updated 8 hours ago

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CHICAGO (AP) - Eli Manning's second pass landed in Brian Urlacher's hands. There was a fumble that led to a field goal, too, and just when it seemed his day couldn't get much worse, he threw an interception in the end zone.

 

Then, everything turned around.

 

Manning redeemed himself just in time, and the New York Giants dealt the Chicago Bears' playoff hopes another staggering blow.

 

Manning led two late touchdown drives and Reuben Droughns scored on a 2-yard run with 1:33 remaining to lift the Giants to a 21-16 victory over the Bears on Sunday.

 

Manning was awful for most of the game but delivered in the latter stages after throwing four interceptions the previous week in a drubbing by Minnesota.

 

"It's easy to forget bad plays," Manning said. "And to be a quarterback, to be a football player, you have to be able to do that. You have to be able to forget the week before. You have to be able to forget the play before and just move on and work out the next play."

 

The embattled quarterback threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Amani Toomer, which was initially ruled incomplete, with 6:54 left to cap a 75-yard drive and cut the Giants' deficit to 16-14.

 

 

 

"I knew I caught it," Toomer said. "And I knew (the replay) was going to look like I caught it, so it wasn't a problem. I don't know if it hit my arms or hands, but I was underneath it. I didn't even think it was that close."

 

After the Bears (5-7) punted, the Giants launched a 77-yard drive that ended with Droughns running around the right end with 1:33 left. Manning hit David Tyree with a 24-yard pass and threw a 15-yarder to Plaxico Burress that put the ball on the 2.

 

The Bears got the ball with 1:28 remaining and marched from their 41 to the Giants 28, before Rex Grossman threw three incompletions - the last one broken up by James Butler.

 

It was a brutal loss for the defending NFC champions, who looked like they were about to put together back-to-back wins for the first time this season.

 

"We'll continue to play until they tell us we're out of it," Bears coach Lovie Smith said. "Winning out would've pretty much guaranteed us getting in. ... You just have to keep playing and see what happens."

 

Defensive end Alex Brown wasn't ready to quit, either: "We got to play anyway, so let's go play and let's try to win and see what happens."

 

Manning kept at it and made up for the turnovers with a strong finish.

 

He was 16-for-27 with 195 yards with two interceptions and a lost fumble, the turnovers dousing several scoring threats by the Giants (8-4) or putting Chicago in good position. He got intercepted on the game's opening possession by Urlacher, leading to a touchdown, and he fumbled the ball away deep in Chicago territory in the second quarter. That led to a field goal by Robbie Gould.

 

Manning's problems continued in the third period. Trailing 16-7, the Giants drove to the 1, only to see him give it away again. He spun and avoided a sack by Alex Brown and lofted a pass to Burress in the left corner of the end zone that a leaping Charles Tillman intercepted.

 

The crowd erupted, but the Giants celebrated in the end.

 

Derrick Ward ran for 154 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries for New York, but injured his left ankle. He left the stadium on crutches and is scheduled for an MRI on Monday.

 

Although he got sacked six times, Grossman was solid. He completed 25 of 46 passes for a season-high 296 yards and did not throw an interception.

 

After losing Cedric Benson to a season-ending left ankle injury last week, the Bears turned to Adrian Peterson and he ran for 67 yards and caught seven passes for 82. Peterson had been used primarily on third downs this season, after spending most of his five years on special teams.

 

But the offense stalled in the second half. There were no sparks from Devin Hester, either.

 

As expected, the Giants did all they could to avoid Hester and limited him to just three punt returns and one kickoff return for a total of 35 yards.

 

New York's defense tightened up in the second half, holding the Bears to 98 yards after allowing 214 through the first two quarters.

[jerseygiantfan]

Brandon Jacobs knows he's needed, but won't rush back too soon

 

BY RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Thursday, December 6th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

With Derrick Ward out for the season, the weather getting colder and a big game coming up on Sunday in Philadelphia, Brandon Jacobs knows he is urgently needed. And he feels good about his chances of playing against the Eagles.

 

He's just not in any rush.

 

"Why would I rush back when we've got a seven-year veteran that can do the job?" Jacobs said yesterday. "I'm only in my third year. I don't want to risk the rest of my career."

 

Jacobs' career isn't in jeopardy, but the Giants are still going to be careful with their top running back's balky left hamstring, which he strained three weeks ago in Detroit. At 8-4, the Giants are virtually assured of a playoff berth. And with Ward on injured reserve with a broken left leg, the Giants need the 6-4, 264-pound Jacobs to be as healthy as possible if they hope to make an extended postseason run.

 

Yes, as Jacobs said, the Giants could rely on veteran Reuben Droughns, who started two weeks ago against the Vikings when both Ward and Jacobs were sidelined. But Jacobs makes a big difference in the lineup. In the five games he has missed this season, the Giants have averaged only 104.6 rushing yards - and that includes the 175 they had against the Bears last week. In the five games Jacobs has played and lasted all four quarters, the Giants' rushing average is 162.2.

 

That's a big reason why Jacobs said, "I've got to be there for this one. I just hope they clear me. I need to be ready to go."

 

But he was admittedly "very limited" in practice yesterday and likely won't be cleared to play unless he's close to 100%.

 

"He was at a certain point last week (but) it didn't feel like he could go (in the game)," Tom Coughlin said. "The whole thing has to be that the player has to perform without thinking about that injury. We'll see how he practices. If that's the case, he can push beyond it."

 

"If you come back too soon on (a hamstring) you'll just hurt it more and be out for the next four weeks," Jacobs added. "So I'm just trying to take my time and do what I can do."

 

That hasn't been easy for Jacobs, a third-year player in his first season as the replacement for Tiki Barber. He sprained the medial collateral ligament in his right knee in the second quarter on opening night on his sixth carry of the season, which kept him out of the lineup for a month. Then three weeks ago, he strained his left hamstring on his 12th carry late in the third quarter.

 

In between his stints on the inactive list, Jacobs had a five-game stretch in which he averaged 103.8 yards - and that includes the Oct. 15 game in Atlanta, in which he suffered a burner that limited him to just 13 carries (for 86 yards). Until Ward's breakout 154-yard day against the Bears, Jacobs had been the only Giants running back to top 100 yards in a game this season.

 

At 5.2 yards per carry (115 carries, 599 yards), Jacobs has been the Giants' most effective rusher. He just can't stay on the field.

 

"It's luck of the draw," said Jacobs, 25. "I haven't been very lucky this year. I think my year could've been better. The injury bug has been around me quite a lot. It's my first year in the NFL being a starter, a guy that my team can count on. I want to continue to be that guy and I'm going to do my best to stay healthy from here on out."

[jerseygiantfan]

Antonio Pierce, Brandon Jacobs unsure if they will play against Eagles

BY HANK GOLA

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Friday, December 7th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

Antonio Pierce usually downplays injuries with a promise to play.

 

Not Thursday, however, and that puts a worrisome light on things from a Giants perspective.

 

Last week, Pierce (ankle) didn't practice all week but still played. When asked if he might be worse off because of that, he replied, "We'll have to see on Sunday."

 

When asked why he wasn't being optimistic as usual, Pierce said, "Because it is not a quick 'yes.' Hopefully, if I feel better, I will play. If not, I am not going to go out there and embarrass myself or hurt the team."

 

BETTER, BUT ... RB Brandon Jacobs said his hamstring was feeling "better and better every day." But he still was limited at practice yesterday and his status for Sunday is uncertain.

 

"I had a chance to get out a little faster today than yesterday," he said. "I felt good with what I did."

 

Still, he said, he had "no idea" about playing in the game. "I'm practicing, trying to see what I can do and what I can't do," he said.

 

Tom Coughlin sounded a bit more optimistic. He said Jacobs is making "progress, very good progress."

 

GOT CLEATS? Coughlin also has concerns at safety, where he jokingly asked a reporter if he was ready to help out.

 

Neither starter, Gibril Wilson (knee) or James Butler (hamstring), practiced, although Coughlin says he expects Butler will make the game. Rookies Michael Johnson and Craig Dahl are the standbys, with R.W. McQuarters another option. ... The Eagles will conduct RB Duce Staley's retirement ceremony on the field at halftime.

[jerseygiantfan]

Osi Umenyiora doubts he'll get six sacks against Eagles again

 

BY HANK GOLA

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Friday, December 7th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

 

The throng around Osi Umenyiora's locker yesterday wanted to know if the Giants defensive end was planning to hang another six sacks on Donovan McNabb on Sunday in Philadelphia. Wisely, Umenyiora demurred with a laugh.

 

"I don't think they're going to let that happen again," he said. "I mean, if it does, someone's going to lose their job, and I'm not talking about the players; I'm talking about the head coach."

 

It was, after all, a perfect storm that swallowed up McNabb and the Eagles that late September night, with Umenyiora's six sacks just half of the story. McNabb went down 12 times in a 16-3 loss with only 76 net yards passing. It was somewhat to be expected. The Eagles were missing left tackle William Thomas and his replacement, Winston Justice, was overwhelmed by Umenyiora. They didn't have running back Brian Westbrook to keep the defense honest or pick up the blitz, and tight end L.J. Smith, another McNabb outlet, also was sidelined.

 

"That's a different football team," said defensive end Justin Tuck. "They're back intact. We're going to go down there and try to do what we do every week, take the running game out of the picture so we can get after the quarterback. That's what happened the last time. You put teams in a position where they have to pass, with the guys we have on this team rushing the quarterback, it's a feeding frenzy."

 

Unfortunately for the Giants, the only chum in the water might be blue. The Giants' defense is crippled. It definitely will be without safety Gibril Wilson and could be starting two rookies in the secondary if James Butler - who hasn't practiced all week with a hamstring injury - can't go. CB Aaron Ross' return is a must, and he hasn't practiced much, either. Then there is MLB Antonio Pierce, who wasn't sounding all that confident about playing on his injured ankle.

 

The Giants sacked Rex Grossman six times in last week's win in Chicago, but the Bears don't have anybody like Westbrook, who can present huge matchup problems if the Giants aren't healthy. Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo knows Westbrook well from his years with the Eagles and says his blocking ability is an underrated strength. Westbrook, for instance, can chip against the DEs and still get out into the pass pattern for McNabb to locate.

 

"If we had Westbrook in that particular game, who's to say that it wouldn't have been the same?" said McNabb, who returns after a two-week absence with thumb and ankle injuries. "When we have all our guys healthy and out there on the field making plays, we're a much better team."

 

The Eagles have allowed 15 sacks in the eight games since they played the Giants and Thomas has done a particularly good job protecting the blind side.

 

"Yeah, that makes a big difference, having Thomas in there," Michael Strahan said. "They are confident in what he can do against Osi and it is going to be a good test for Osi. After that first game, six sacks, they are definitely going to want to prove a point to him, and I'm glad I'm not him this week."

 

HURTIN: Antonio Pierce usually downplays injuries with a promise to play.

 

Not yesterday, however, and that puts a worrisome light on things from a Giants perspective.

 

Last week, Pierce (ankle) didn't practice all week but still played. When asked if he might be worse off because of that, he replied, "We'll have to see on Sunday."

 

BETTER, BUT ... RB Brandon Jacobs said his hamstring was feeling "better and better every day." But he still was limited at practice yesterday and his status for Sunday is uncertain.

[jerseygiantfan]

Tom Coughlin's painful truth: Play on

 

By RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Wednesday, December 12th 2007, 4:00 AM

 

 

When Tom Coughlin praised Antonio Pierce for his gutty performance in Philadelphia on Sunday, it wasn't just a way to honor one of his captains. It also served as a message to Pierce's injured teammates:

 

Get on the field.

 

It was a not-so-subtle public directive that Coughlin has been delivering privately for weeks. The Giants (9-4) are entering the stretch run, trying to fine-tune themselves for the playoffs. Injuries have decimated the Giants late in each of the last two seasons, and Coughlin doesn't want to go into the playoffs shorthanded again.

 

That's why the coach, who is notoriously impatient with injuries, and once famously called them "a cancer," wants his players to feel pressured to play.

 

"(Pierce) thought he could play (Sunday). He thought he could help our team," Coughlin said. "The huge thing about that is guys look at it and they see, 'OK, he's coming back from an injury and he thinks of himself healthy enough to play in a game realizing that this is pro football and you only have so many people and you're certainly in a position where you're trying like heck to win every game.

 

"Of course you need as many people as you can to win. I think that's a very, very good example."

 

Coughlin will find out soon enough if his increasing list of injured players learned anything from Pierce. Plaxico Burress has been playing through a sprained ankle all season. Running back Brandon Jacobs and cornerback Aaron Ross played through hamstring strains on Sunday. But safety Gibril Wilson (knee), safety James Butler (hamstring) and receiver Steve Smith (hamstring) are still out, and Coughlin would like them back in time for Sunday night, too. Pierce admitted he needed "a lot of special help, a lot of little medicine" just to make it through the game.

 

"We kind of pressured him into playing," said defensive end Justin Tuck. "He really shouldn't have played, but that just shows you what kind of goods he has."

 

Left unsaid was the possibility that Pierce could've hurt himself even worse on a cold day and what one player called a "disgusting" field in Philadelphia.

 

Pierce did not say he felt any pressure from his coach to play, but he clearly felt pressure internally. "It's hard to look your teammates in the eye and tell them you aren't playing," he said. "I play for those 11guys and that's all that matters to me."

 

Coughlin insists medical concerns come first. "The player's not going to play without the sanction of the doctor and the trainer," he said. "He's not going to be put in a position which is not one in which he can defend himself or protect himself. Antonio has had a lingering issue. On Sunday morning he felt a little better. We taped him, he went out and worked, and he pronounced that he thought he could play."

[jerseygiantfan]

Giants earn playoff spot with win

Associated Press

 

 

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Good thing the Giants had a plan to run the ball, something they were criticized for failing to do in a 22-10 loss to the Redskins last week. They rushed for 291 yards, their most since they had 351 on Nov. 29, 1959, against Washington.

 

Jacobs' two scores, including a powerful 43-yard run, rallied the Giants from a 14-0 first-quarter deficit. And when he left the game with a sprained left ankle in the fourth quarter, New York kept running the ball, with backup Ahmad Bradshaw scoring an 88-yard touchdown that put the Giants up 31-21 with 6:12 left.

 

New York's defense did the rest as Kawika Mitchell intercepted Trent Edwards and returned it 20 yards for the go-ahead score early in the fourth quarter. Corey Webster then sealed the victory by scoring on a 34-yard interception return 22 seconds after Bradshaw's touchdown.

 

The Giants (10-5) won their seventh straight road game to establish a single-season franchise record. And they avoided what could've been a must-win finale against the league's top team, the New England Patriots, next weekend.

 

Even quarterback Eli Manning could shrug off a performance in which he went 7-of-15 for 111 yards with two interceptions and two lost fumbles.

 

"We've won some tough games, done a good job, and it's a relief," Manning said. "We all knew we wanted to do it this game."

 

The Bills (7-8) had plenty to play for even though they were eliminated from playoff contention following an 8-0 loss at Cleveland last weekend. That's because of Everett, the tight end who addressed the team before the game in his first visit to Buffalo since sustaining a severe spinal cord injury in the Bills season opener against Denver on Sept. 9.

 

Everett is now walking on his own while continuing his rehab in Houston. It's a remarkable recovery for someone doctors initially feared would never walk again.

 

"There's no way I could deny it, it was certainly an inspiration to see him," coach Dick Jauron said of Everett, who watched the game with friends and family from a suite at midfield.

 

The Bills seemed to ride the emotion of Everett's speech in the first quarter, when Buffalo gained 122 yards and scored on each of its first two possessions. Nothing much else went right after that as the Bills managed 122 yards the rest of the game.

 

The Bills again proved they're incapable of beating a playoff contender. Six of Buffalo's eight losses this year have come against teams that have qualified for the postseason.

 

"It gets disappointing as the year goes on," defensive end Chris Kelsay said. "It's another year we're not going to the postseason. I'm getting frustrated."

 

He was particularly unhappy with Buffalo's run defense.

 

"If you can't stop the run, then they're not going to throw the ball," Kelsay said. "It's our job to get them off the field. And we didn't do that."

 

Edwards finished 9-of-26 for 161 yards, with two touchdowns - a 3-yarder to Michael Gaines and 4-yarder to Lee Evans - and three interceptions. Marshawn Lynch also scored for the Bills.

 

Notes

Jacobs, who returned briefly after hurting his ankle, said the injury isn't major, and he expects to play next week. ... Lynch finished with 70 yards rushing to give him 1,010 this season, becoming the fourth Bills rookie to break the 1,000-yard plateau, and first since Greg Bell had 1,100 in 1984. ... Bills Pro Bowl LT Jason Peters did not return after hurting his groin in the second quarter. Without him, Buffalo allowed three sacks, ending a three-game run without allowing a sack. ... The Giants made the playoffs for the third straight year, tying the team record.

[jerseygiantfan]

Giants give fans a big boo for selling tix

 

BY RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Thursday, December 27th 2007, 4:00 AM

Brandon Jacobs and the Giants went 7-1 on the road, but are only 3-4 at home. Stewart/Getty

 

Brandon Jacobs and the Giants went 7-1 on the road, but are only 3-4 at home.

 

The Giants aren't thrilled that their fans are bailing on them this week, selling out to Patriots fans desperate to witness history.

 

But they aren't surprised.

 

"That's probably one of the reasons why we are better on the road than we are at home," said running back Brandon Jacobs. "If it is that way and they got more fans, then so be it. It could work out to our advantage."

 

It's unclear how many Patriots fans will be able to get their hands on tickets for Saturday night's game, but the Daily News reported Wednesday that there were more than 150 tickets available on StubHub for upwards of $1,000. On Wednesday there were no tickets available on the Giants' online TicketExchange, where season-ticket holders can sell their seats to fans on the waiting list at a controlled price.

 

But there were hundreds of tickets available on eBay, where prices were out of control. Many sellers were asking for more than $1,000. Some were asking for as much as $3,000 per ticket. One seller was asking for $25,000 for four tickets in Section 135 and a parking pass.

 

The average face value for a ticket at Giants Stadium is $83.50.

 

The Patriots are trying to become the first team in NFL history to go 16-0 in the regular season. The skyrocketing prices were probably helped by the fact that the game was only scheduled to be broadcast nationally on the NFL Network, which is still unavailable on most cable systems. But the NFL announced Wednesday that it reached an agreement that will allow the game to be aired in a simulcast on both CBS and NBC.

 

The game is mostly meaningless to the Giants, who have locked up a first-round game against Tampa Bay. And Giants fans traditionally have not come out in force for night games anyway (kickoff against the Patriots is 8:15 p.m.). Giants Stadium was about half full for their last night game - a loss to the Redskins on Dec. 16 - even though the Giants had a chance to clinch a playoff berth with a win.

 

Of course, it's not hard to see why Giants fans would want to skip the game. Their team has a 6-9 home record over the last two seasons. In the same stretch, they have gone 12-4 on the road (7-1 this season). The Giants have lost their last three home games, and seven straight in the second halves of the last two years.

 

Most Giants chose to steer clear of the ticket talk on Wednesday. But none were excited about the prospect of their own stadium being filled with fans of the other team. Defensive end Justin Tuck even pleaded with fans, saying, "Don't sell your tickets."

 

"I don't agree with it," Tuck said. "This is Giants Stadium and I don't want to see a whole lot of Patriots fans at Giants Stadium."

[jerseygiantfan]

Jacobs, Burress practice as Giants prepare for Patriots

 

ESPN.com news services

 

Updated: December 27, 2007, 1:29 PM ET

 

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There's every indication that the New York Giants will meet the New England Patriots' quest for perfection head-on Saturday night and play, or at least start, their starters.

 

Nicked-up players who were expected to rest on Wednesday practiced and said they wanted to play. And coach Tom Coughlin, while leaving himself some wiggle room, said the Giants would prepare for and play the game the same as any other week.

 

The matchup with the Patriots, who are seeking to become the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to complete a regular season undefeated, has divided opinions on what's more important for the playoff-bound Giants: Taking the challenge to stop the Pats' march toward history, or resting starters and avoiding injuries for next weekend's playoff game at Tampa Bay.

 

"Our objective is to win," Coughlin said Wednesday, according to New York-area media reports. "That's what we work for, that's what we prepare for, that's what we practice for. And it will be no different this week."

 

 

Plaxico Burress practiced on a limited basis for only the third time this season and Brandon Jacobs worked out on a sprained ankle Wednesday as the Giants (10-5) got ready for the 15-0 Patriots.

 

"No one in here is screaming 'Let's rest,' I can tell you that," Jacobs said. "Guys want to play. It's the last regular-season game and it's [at] home. Guys won't want to sit down.

 

"Coach Coughlin said we're going to play to win the game," Jacobs said. "Whatever we have to do to do that, that's what we're going to do. No matter what it is, we're going to do it."

 

It was assumed by many that Burress, who has battled a sprained ankle since early in training camp, would be the one player that Coughlin would rest against the Patriots.

 

"I came in yesterday and told the coach I wanted to go out and get a few reps during the week," Burress said. "I'm starting to feel a little better. It had nothing to do with the game this week. I just want to get out and do what I can. We're approaching this game to go out and win."

 

Burress leads the Giants with 66 catches and 10 touchdowns, but his production has slipped in the second half of the season. Eight of his touchdowns came in the first six games. He has only had 14 receptions and one TD in the past four games.

 

As for Coughlin, his comments left the door open for a change in strategy.

 

"I think I have made it clear -- the best interest of our team will be focused on, always," Coughlin said. "But we are going to prepare and play as hard as we can."

 

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

[jerseygiantfan]

Should Giants go for momentum or health?

by Alex Marvez

 

 

But on this hot topic — New York's role in trying to prevent New England from making NFL history — defensive ends Osi Umenyiora and Michael Strahan are worlds apart.

 

Umenyiora said the Giants enter Saturday night's home game carrying the mantle for the league's 30 other franchises. New York is the final hurdle in New England's quest to become the regular season's first 16-0 team.

 

"I'm glad it came down to us," Umenyiora said. "Nobody in the NFL wants to see them go undefeated because it hasn't happened in so long. Everybody always thinks the Patriots are the best thing since sliced bread. If somebody knocked them off, it would be huge.

 

"It's just the sense that if they do go undefeated, they're going to be known as that team that's just that much better than everybody. They've blown everybody out basically except maybe two or three teams. Nobody really wants to see that. I don't want to see that."

 

As for Strahan, he couldn't care less about the spoiler role now that New York is in the playoffs.

 

"I care about winning Super Bowls, man," Strahan told FOXSports.com on Thursday. "If we were in a situation where we had to win the game and it's do-or-die, it's a whole different thing to see those guys do it. But I respect that team. I respect what they've done. I respect the coach.

 

"We're going to play our best to win and try to end that streak, but I can't be upset at those guys. The best team usually wins the game."

 

Usually. But in this case, coaches for both teams must choose how to use their starters and banged-up players with the postseason on the horizon.

 

Because the Patriots are so close to perfection — and have more time off with a first-round bye — New England's Bill Belichick is expected to use his frontline players as long as necessary in trying to win. Tom Coughlin's decision isn't as easy. As Giants right tackle Kareem McKenzie points out, defeating the Patriots would give New York (10-5) incredible momentum heading into their first round playoff game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That is the most compelling argument why Coughlin shouldn't rest his starters.

 

"You don't want to roll into the playoffs on a loss," McKenzie said. "You want to give your best and play a good, solid four quarters of football. You want to go into the playoffs knowing you're hitting on all cylinders and moving in the right direction." But the reward that would come with defeating New England also comes with heavy risk, especially if a key player gets hurt. Should a battered and tired Giants squad suffer its third consecutive first-round playoff loss, Coughlin will be panned for not taking precautions in a game that has no impact on New York's postseason standing.

 

The Giants haven't changed their practice routine or pre-game preparation this week. Still, that doesn't guarantee Coughlin will handle his personnel the same way Saturday.

 

"I have a good handle on our team," Coughlin said. "My interest is all on our team."

 

Umenyiora believes the Giants "match up pretty well" against New England. The big question is whether he and other first-teamers will have the chance to prove that for an entire 60 minutes.

 

"As a competitor, nobody really wants to sit and watch a game like this," said Umenyiora, who is New York's sack leader with 13. "Everybody wants to play. But if it comes down to us sitting down and not getting hurt because we have a very, very important game — a much more important game — next week, then you know I'd rather sit.

 

"I don't think it's going to be a situation like that. We're going to play the whole game and whatever happens, happens."

 

If nothing else, getting to face the Patriots has added spice to what would otherwise be a meaningless season finale.

 

"Guys are focused and very interested in playing in this game," Strahan said. "It's like you've got to prove yourself, and this is the best team to prove yourself against.

 

"You can be on ESPN Classic one of two ways: either beating them or losing to them."

[jerseygiantfan]

A Giant upset? Here's what it will take

by STEVE SERBY, New York Post

Updated: December 29, 2007, 12:42 PM EST 61 comments

 

Here comes Darth Belichick, the spy among us. Here come the 15-0 Patriots, marching toward perfection.

 

Can the Giants upset the Patriots?

 

Definitely not, if they don't play to win — for a second less than 60 minutes.

 

And probably not, if you believe the oddsmakers, even if they do.

 

But should Coughlin and the Giants somehow become seduced by the opportunity, consumed by their competitive drive ... should Brandon Jacobs (ankle) play, and play long enough to soften up the New England defense ... should Plaxico Burress (ankle) catch an early touchdown pass before he sits ... should Giants Stadium start rocking ... here's how Big Blue can shock the world:

 

 

I: Dust off the Super Bowl XXV game plan: Jacobs and/or Reuben Droughns — preferably Jacobs — play the smashmouth part of MVP Ottis Anderson, with Ahmad Bradshaw (calf, questionable) hopefully available as a change of pace. The idea, of course, is to keep Tom Brady and Randy Moss off the field for as long as possible. Ask Jim Kelly and his prolific K-Gun offense how frustrating it was to stand on the sidelines for more than 40 minutes. After Willis McGahee rushed for 138 yards, Rodney Harrison said: "I felt that this was the first time all year that we got bullied.''

 

II: The secret weapon: Help Eli Manning by implementing the checkdown pass to the shifty, dynamic Bradshaw (if not tonight, then certainly against the Bucs).

 

If Bradshaw can't make it, have Manning throw underneath routes to rookie Steve Smith, who easily could fly under the radar.

 

Manning has sorely missed his safety valve dump-off to Tiki Barber, and with tight end Jeremy Shockey gone, he desperately needs another way to move the chains.

 

III: Throw on the graybeards: Remember, there is age on the New England linebacking corps. The Eagles spread the Pats out with three and four wide receivers and used running back Brian Westbrook as an extra receiver. Manning will have to get the ball out of his hand quickly.

 

IV: Be physical with Moss: History tells us that a discouraged Moss is not an all-out Moss. The Eagles jammed the Patriot receivers at the line of scrimmage to disrupt their routes. It was the same tactic Belichick and Bill Parcells liked to use against Jerry Rice. Don't let Moss beat you deep. The poison you pick is letting Wes Welker wreak havoc underneath.

 

V: Touchdowns, not field goals: Until lately, the Patriots' red zone defense has been suspect. The Giants struggled first-and-goal against the Bills; they will have to punch it in against the Patriots.

 

VI: The Brady munch: The Patriots have a formidable offensive line that prides itself on protecting its crown jewel quarterback. The Giants have a fearsome foursome that prides itself on harassing the quarterback. Something has to give. Big Blue needs to understand that it doesn't necessarily have to sack Brady — but hurry him, harass him, hound him, hit him. If defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo hasn't called his mentor Jim Johnson with the Eagles, there's still time.

 

VII: Poise and resiliency: The Patriots will score; don't let it discourage you.

 

VIII: Play the perfect game: A la Villanova versus Georgetown. In this case, it means winning the takeaway battle. It means no center exchange fumbles, Jacobs and Reuben Droughns remembering to hold the ball high and tight, Manning making sure the ball doesn't slip out of his hand as if it were a bar of soap. It means never giving Brady a short field. It means Jeff Feagles pinning Brady inside his 10. It means kick returner Bradshaw giving Manning a short field.

 

Maybe we're playing fantasy football here. The likelihood is Coughlin treating this one more like a tuneup for next week's wild-card playoff game against the Bucs. Play to win — but not at all costs. But he's the only one who knows for sure.

[jerseygiantfan]

Tom Coughlin says Giants' effort against Patriots worth the injuries

 

BY RALPH VACCHIANO

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Monday, December 31st 2007, 4:00 AM

Bello/Getty

 

 

Tom Coughlin has no regrets about playing his starters against New England.

 

One day after the Giants nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets in their history, Tom Coughlin had no regrets about playing his starters for the entire game in the Giants' 38-35 loss to the undefeated New England Patriots Saturday night.

 

Along the way, the Giants lost three starters who might not be available when the playoffs open Sunday at 1 p.m. at Tampa Bay.

 

But even knowing the cost, Coughlin said he'd do it all again.

 

"As far as whether we'd play it any differently?" Coughlin said yesterday. "No."

 

His defiance was due to the momentum the Giants (10-6) gained with their incredible effort that saw them build a 12-point lead in the second half, a lead that was cut to five points entering the fourth quarter.

 

But his excitement was diminished by the losses of center Shaun O'Hara, linebacker Kawika Mitchell, cornerback Sam Madison and safety Craig Dahl.

 

O'Hara (sprained knee), Mitchell (sprained knee) and Madison (abdominal strain) had MRI exams Sunday; their status for Sunday's game isn't clear. Dahl, a rookie reserve safety, hurt the ACL in his left knee and is done for the year.

 

But as Coughlin saw it, he had little choice but to risk his team's health by going for the win in Week 17. And even if he had played it safe and rested some players, none of those four would've sat out the entire game.

 

Mitchell, O'Hara and Dahl were injured in the first half, long before most coaches would've put in the reserves.

 

"I would again challenge you on who you're going to pick out as starters who aren't going to play," he said. "How do you do that?"

 

Coughlin reiterated what he said after the game Saturday night - that the positives from the regular-season finale far outweighed the negatives.

 

The Giants got outstanding play from Eli Manning (22-for-32, 251 yards, four touchdowns, one interception), a huge play on special teams (a 74-yard kickoff return for a touchdown from Domenik Hixon) and a solid effort by a defense that held off the Patriots for most of the first three quarters.

 

If nothing else, the Giants will head to Tampa feeling like they are on a roll.

 

"I thought that we gained momentum from the quality of our play," Coughlin said.

 

"Obviously we're very disappointed that we didn't win. That goes without saying. But we did gain some momentum, I thought, coming out of Buffalo (where they won 38-21) and coming out of (Saturday) night. I don't know that you can move towards the playoffs in a better way than to play against the No. 1 team in the league, a team that's 16-0, and hold your own at least for the majority of the evening."

 

Coughlin said he is "being very hopeful" that O'Hara, Mitchell and Madison won't be out long, even though he seemed pleased with the play of backup center Grey Ruegamer and backup linebacker Gerris Wilkinson, who took over on the weak side. Coughlin said both O'Hara and Mitchell felt a little better yesterday, and Madison was "talking pretty positive." So there's a chance all three can return.

 

"I guarantee you that those guys will play," said linebacker Antonio Pierce. "They'll find a way to play, go into the locker room, put some ice on it, Robitussin, rub it a little bit with magic salt."

 

Even if they can't, apparently their absence won't diminish what the Giants nearly accomplished Saturday night.

 

"I told the team that this would be a positive experience for us and we would gain momentum from the game," Coughlin said. "And we did."

[jerseygiantfan]

DP

[jerseygiantfan]

Giants at Buccaneers (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, FOX): The Giants battled the Patriots long into the night last week, playing for nothing more than a chance to knock them off their undefeated pedestal. It was an inspiring, emotional effort. But was it too emotional? Did the Giants psych themselves up so totally to beat the Patriots that they'll be drained when they face the Buccaneers?

 

Don't bet on it. The Giants were relaxed and happy after their strafing run at history on Saturday night. "I've never seen a locker room kinda so upbeat after a loss," Eli Manning said after playing one of his best games of the year. Antonio Pierce was in a kidding mood when he celebrated his team's close call. "We covered the spread!" he cheered. At least we hope he was kidding.

 

The postgame giddiness won't necessarily translate into a post-Patriots surge. The Eagles and Ravens nearly moved the mountain against the league's resident juggernaut, only to falter against their next opponents. But the Giants aren't just happy because they came close. Saturday night's game was a learning experience. They learned that Manning can be counted on for a solid performance against a good opponent. They learned that they could run the ball against anybody in the league. And they learned that they are in the right mindset to win, as opposed to last season, when they slid into the playoffs in mid-confidence crisis and were promptly ousted.

 

The Giants did pay a steep price on Saturday night: They lost cornerback Sam Madison, center Shaun O'Hara, and linebacker Kawika Mitchell to injuries in an otherwise meaningless game. Mitchell and Madison may be available on Sunday; O'Hara is doubtful. Those are three significant losses, but the Giants match up very well with their Wild Card opponent even when they are shorthanded.

 

That opponent is the Buccaneers, Jon Gruden's unlikely postseason interlopers. Back in August, no one thought that they would win 10 games except Skeets, the Football Outsiders mainframe. Skeets has been known to malfunction (check out his Cowboys prediction sometime), so we wrote off his sanguine prognostication to a burnt fuse. But Skeets knew that the Bucs' schedule would be soft (especially after we programmed in that "dogfighting" variable), that Jeff Garcia would be competent, and that the Bucs would bounce back on defense with the help of youngsters like Gaines Adams and Cato June. And while schedule strength (or lack thereof) was the biggest key to the Bucs' division title, not all of their success came at the expense of the Bobby Petrino's of the world: the Bucs rank sixth in the NFL in DVOA, the Football Outsiders stat which is adjusted for strength of schedule.

 

Sunday's matchup boils down to a simple trench battle: the Bucs offensive line versus the Giants' exceptional defensive line. The Bucs' young blockers have been a pleasant surprise this season. Last year, the team drafted guard Davin Joseph and tackle Jeremy Trueblood, tossed them into the lineup, and watched Julius Peppers use them as yoga mats. The baptism-by-pummeling paid off. This season, Joseph and Trueblood, joined by fellow soph Donald Penn, rookie Aaron Sears and veteran center John Wade, give the Bucs a very good run-blocking offensive line, one that ranks fifth in the league in Adjusted Line Yards.

 

But while the Bucs' youngsters are good run blockers, they aren't great pass protectors; the Bucs rank 24th in Adjusted Sack Rate despite Garcia's ability to escape trouble. Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan, and the Giants' line have a duffel bag full of tricks for Trueblood and company. The Giants will pressure and batter the banged-up Garcia, which will keep the score low and allow Brandon Jacobs and the Giants running game to slug out a win.

 

[jerseygiantfan]

Playbook: Giants at Bucs

 

BY HANK GOLA

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

 

Sunday, January 6th 2008, 4:00 AM

 

THE LINE: Bucs by 3

 

TV: Ch. 5 (Joe Buck, Troy Aikman)

 

RADIO: WFAN-660 AM (Bob Papa, Dick Lynch, Carl Banks), Nationwide on Westwood One Radio (Bill Rosinski, Dan Reeves)

 

FORECAST: Sunny, in the upper 70s with light winds.

 

INJURY IMPACT

 

C Shaun O'Hara (knee) and CB Sam Madison (abdomen) missed the entire week of practice and will be game-time decisions. Grey Ruegamer would replace O'Hara as he did against the Pats. Corey Webster would start for Madison against the dangerous Joey Galloway. It seems as though LB Kawika Mitchell (knee) will be able to play. It's unlikely Bucs LB Cato June will play with a sprained foot. The ex-Colt, a good cover LB and Tampa's third-leading tackler, will be replaced by former starter Ryan Nece with rookie Quincy Black getting significant playing time. LG Arron Sears, a very good run blocker, had an ankle sprain that improved as the week went on.

 

FEATURE MATCHUPS

 

RB Brandon Jacobs vs. Barrett Ruud and the Bucs linebackers: The Bucs still have bruises from their one-sided collisions with Jacobs last year, so they know the importance of executing their philosophy of penetration to stop the bruising back before his shoulders are turned. The Bucs must force runs outside, where their corners are excellent tacklers. Tampa's linebackers can run with anyone, even the venerable Derrick Brooks, a sure tackler. Rookie safety Tanard Jackson will come into the box when the Giants use FB Madison Hedgecock.

 

WR Joey Galloway vs. CB Sam Madison and S James Butler: Will Galloway pick up where Randy Moss left off last week and attack the Giants where they are most vulnerable? At any moment, the Bucs can break out of all those West Coast patterns as Jeff Garcia takes his shots deep to the speedy Galloway. The question with Madison's injury is whether he can be as physical as he needs to be. The veteran has great cover instincts but he'll have to guard against being set up by all those slants, hitches and short outs.

 

SCOUT SAYS

 

"As the Giants have said, the Bucs have been playing a lot less Tampa 2 this year but that is the look that will give Eli (Manning) the most problems, since it tests a quarterback's patience and makes him fit the ball into tight spots. Avoiding the interception against a secondary that is so good at jumping routes will be the biggest factor in the game because by the second half, Jacobs should have this lightweight front pretty well softened up. We will see a lot of Jeff Garcia rolling right, which will help him to run away from Osi Umenyiora's side . . . (Michael) Strahan has been MIA lately."

 

INTANGIBLES

 

Funny how a team that lost two of its last three games and gave up 38 points in its finale can feel it has the momentum going into the playoffs. But it's the perception that counts and after coming close to the perfect Pats, Big Blue is looking for the cigar in Tampa. But Team Giddy had better be careful about feeling too good about itself. The Giants have been much better under the gun this year. The Bucs basically took off the last two weeks of the season. Are they good enough to turn the switch back on? As for Ronde Barber's tough talk ... any decent D should think Eli can be had. Manning was tied for the league lead in INTs (20), wasn't he?

 

PREDICTION

 

Giants, 20-17. Unless the turnovers start coming ... and coming ... and coming.