Enemy Territory: Questions from the Saints

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Here is the set of questions offered up by Saints Blogger Keith Null of FANSIDED.COM and my answers.

1) What are the Giants plans at running back considering that Ahmad Bradshaw and D.J. Ware are both questionable to face the Saints with injury? Any plans to bring up a running back from the practice squad?

The Giants got lucky today when D. J. Ware was a full participant in practice. Da’Rell Scott should see more third down action and also be used more in the passing game if Ware is limited in any way. Of course Scott will probably not be returning kicks this week, so as not to expose him to injury unnecessarily. Brandon Jacobs is still going to be the starter and hopefully a big contributor Monday Night.

2) Last time Eli came to the Superdome the Giants were 5-0 and rolling, but he seemed to struggle with the noise and Williams aggressive blitzing schemes in a blow out loss. How will Manning change his approach to better deal with these two facets of the game?

Well, Eli needs to get to the line quicker to make his adjustments, and get the ball snapped earlier. I think you will see the Giants try and use as much max protect pass, and quick passes as possible to move the ball consistently and hopefully quiet the crowd a little. They will need to either test the Saints deep early to show their willingness to go downfield, or continue to move the chains and be successful on long drives.

3) The Giants defense hasn’t played as well as fans hoped this year. Justin Tuck is having a down year and the pass defense is ranked 18th in the league. Facing such a potent Saints offense is a monumental task. What has Perry Fewell done to prepare his squad to take on Brees and company?

Tuck has been injured all season long. He stated this week that he no longer wants to discuss it, and will just play at whatever level he is capable. The Giants have been brutal in zone coverage this year and need to find a way to get to Brees as early and often as possible. The play of the young linebackers will be tested again this week by the variety of screens and flat passes that are used by N.O. Fewell will hopefully figure out how to find the right matchups against your talended receiving corps. Pressure will be the key to this test and keeping the players in front of them will certainly be part of the plan.

4) Any clue as to who the Giants plan to start at left tackle since Will Beatty had surgery to repair a detached retina?

The choice seems to be moving David Diehl back to LT or to start Stacey Andrews in Beatty’s place. They have the luxury of having a player like Kevin Boothe to step in and play multiple positions.

5) Most analysts have the Saints winning over the Giants with ease. I want to hear what your keys to the game are, and what the Giants need to do to actually pull put a win in New Orleans.

Run the ball. The only way Eli will ever get enough time to hit his talented receiving group is if he can use play action to his advantage, and keep th down and distance favorable. Time of possession, turnovers, and defending the big play will tell the tale on Monday. If the Giants don’t start running with consistency, they really have little to no chance of ever getting a lead that they can expect their defense to hold.