Boley has been an impact player for the last 4 years, and a key player in their run to Super Bowl 46.  His stats for his years with the team are as follows:

He averaged 67 tackles a year with 22 assists.  He averaged one sack a year, although they were usually in big spots and usually were game changers. just ask Aaron Rodgers and Tony Romo.   He also scored two TD’s on 3 fumble returns and 3 interceptions.  A very productive player.  Lat season however he missed all of training camp with an injury, while claiming in every interview that he would be ready for opening night and beyond.  Boley only missed two games in the past three seasons, but was a constant no show at practice.  I’m not sure that put him in the best light with the coaching staff.  We all know there have been times when players have missed multiple days of practice and still managed to make it to the game and participate..the names of Bradshaw, Nicks, and Burress come to mind.  Maybe Michael was pushing it a bit to take a few extra days off, who knows?

Either way it is time to recoup the money, say thanks for everything to a great leader and a big play maker, and release him early enough to send two messages.

1. We appreciate all you have done and want to give you every opportunity to find employment elsewhere.

2. Time for the young LB’s on this team to step up and make an impact similar to the one Michael has made here for the past four years.

Once a Giant, Always a Giant…

Nick Laham / Getty Images

Cornerback Terrell Thomas has re-injured the right ACL, anterior cruciate ligament, that he tore in preseason last year. Thomas visited doctors today where it was confirmed that Thomas re-injured the ACL that was surgically repaired last year. An official statement has not been released but the Giants are not optimistic.

On Sunday, Terrell Thomas fell during practice and then iced his knee for the remainder of practice. Today, Thomas had swelling in his knee and he was sent to the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City for an examination.

This looks to be a major setback for Terrell Thomas and if he has in fact torn his right ACL again, there will be serious questions about his ability to recover and become an effective player again. If Thomas is unable to return it looks like Prince Amukamara would replace him at the starting Cornerback position opposite of Corey Webster.

There was a second high-profile Giants injury today. Linebacker Michael Boley was also sent to the Hospital for Special Surgery to have a hamstring injury examined.

At this point there is not much information available. We will release more information as it becomes available.

Jerry Reese has always been good with these middle round picks, and this only adds to his ammunition in this April’s NFL Draft.  Reese also made a few statements on Monday.  He said at this time the competition for the MLB spot is an open one, and that Greg Jones, Mark Herzlich, and Michael Boley are among the players on the current roster that would be part of the competition.  He also stated that the Giants are “not finished” in Free Agency, although currently they are just 2.5 million under the cap.  That number could change in many different scenarios.

I re-watched the game this morning on television, and was surprised at some of the things Fox missed.  This was a game of key turning points and great game planning on behalf of the Giants.  It was also a game where the aggressiveness of a coach may have cost his team a chance at a win.  Here are the keys as I saw them:

First Quarter:  The tone for this game was set immediately by the Giants defense. (11:43)  On the first possession by the Falcons Justin Tuck gets a big hit on Matt Ryan as he releases the ball.  Many Giants players feel that this early hit sped up the clock in Ryan’s head.

9:49 At this point the Falcons look to get Tony Gonzalez into the game.  The Giants defense however has the answer.  On successive plays both Tuck and JPP line up over Tony.  Ryan takes the snap and looks immediately to his side, except he is lying on the ground.  Tuck and JPP dominated Tony G. all day, pushing him back on running plays, and denying him from running his routes.

5:20 J.P.P. again dominates Tony G. and stops Michael Turner for a loss.

:44 Just before the end of the quarter Tuck again gets a nice hit on Ryan.  Then Snelling goes nowhere on 3rd and 1…and then the first mistake by the Falcons coaching staff.  You need to get points…be the first on the board…show something for your efforts.  Instead the Falcons try to draw the Giants offsides with multiple shifts and hard counts.  The idea is to get the Giants to relax and hang back, not wanting to jump offsides.  When Ryan snaps the ball, the Giants are ready and make the crucial stop.

The second quarter begins with the Giants corners being very physical with the wideouts of Atlanta.  Many times you can see Ryan take a quick step and then hold the ball.  The timing of the Falcons was completely thrown off by the Giants defensive plan.

9:00 The leader of the Giants all year has been Eli Manning, and again today it took a play by him to get things going.  The 14 yard run for a first down energized his team, and the stadium.

8:30 Brandon Jacobs runs over the Falcons safety and again gets the crowd and his teammates fired up.

6:30 Eli makes another heady play avoiding a sack by flipping the ball to Bradshaw.

5:56 A great moment for all Giants television watchers.  As Joe Buck extolls the virtues of the Falcons defensive front, and states: “for all the talk about the Giants defense, it’s been the Falcons front that has dominated so far” At this very moment Brandon Jacobs breaks one for 34 yards.  Timing is everything Joe!

5:10 Bradshaw appears stopped in the backfield, but breaks tackles and runs for 9 yards.

3:37 4th and one. As the ball is handed to Jacobs off tackle, the gentleman standing in front of me at the game says ” I hate this play” and with that Jacobs spins off the linebacker and falls forward for the first down.

2:47 All the running pays off as Eli play actions, and finds Nicks in the end zone for the TD. 6 runs and a play action pass.

Halftime:

I guess Mike Smith made two statements at halftime that were very telling.  He said they are blitzing more than normal, and that the crowd noise is affecting a man they call “Matty Ice” a nickname yet to be earned. (more…)

GIANTS

NYG Ahmad Bradshaw RB Foot:    Out

Derrick Martin S Hamstring:    Out

Will Beatty T Eye:  Out

Michael Boley LB Hamstring:   Doubtful

Michael Clayton WR Knee:   Questionable

Mario Manningham WR Knee:   Questionable

Osi Umenyiora DE Knee:   Probable

Danny Ware RB Concussion:   Probable

Kareem McKenzie T Toe:   Probable

Justin Tuck DE Ankle :  Probable

SAINTS

Turk McBride DE Ankle:   Out

Jonathan Vilma LB Knee:   Questionable

Cameron Jordan DE Hand:   Probable

Patrick Robinson CB Stomach:   Probable

Just like last week against the 49ers, they had us all on the edge of our seats, anticipating another miraculous fourth quarter comeback from Eli Manning and company, and once again, they came up just short. The 17-10 loss to the Eagles means the Giants dropped to 6-4 and 1-2 in division games. They’re now second in the NFC East behind Dallas.

A few observations from the game:

-One of the first things my father taught me about football was that it starts and ends at the line of scrimmage, and tonight’s game against the Eagles showed me how right he was. The Giants offensive and defensive lines alike were outmanned by the Eagles throughout the game. Eli Manning was given very little time to throw and had to scramble most of the night. Brandon Jacobs and DJ Ware had few holes with which to work. And the defensive line got next to no pressure on Vince Young, giving him time to throw and get comfortable. Frankly, I was amazed they even managed the one sack they did get.

Chris Canty did play a good game though.

-Speaking of the defensive line, I have to admit that I was looking forward to see Osi Umenyiora get to suit up against Philadelphia. He traditionally plays well against them (who can forget his glorious six sack game back in 2007?) so to see him as a non-factor all evening was a bit of a disappointment.

-One more thing about the defensive line- has anyone else noticed that almost all of their pressure seems to come from the outside? When they’re effective at getting to the quarterback it’s not that a big deal but if they miss, it leaves the middle open, allowing opposing quaterbacks to either step up and throw or scramble for some yardage. That was definitely evident tonight, especially with Umenyiora being shutdown by the left tackle all game.

-Congratulations to Prince Amukamara on his first career interception! It had be a big confidence-booster for a rookie to get his first pick less than seven minute into his NFL career. I was overall pretty pleased with Amukamara’s first game and it benefits the Giants to have another cornerback in rotation.

-Mark Herzlich was decent overall in his first career start at linebacker. He had a few spectacular plays against the run but his pass coverage needs some work.

-Actually, that statement about Herzlich applies to all the Giants linebackers. Just look at how Kiwanuka got smoked on Steve Smith’s touchdown. As they did last week, the Giants did a great job of shutting down the run but the linebackers kept leaving guys open. That’s the one area where they really miss Michael Boley.

-The poor play of the offensive line was partially to blame for the poor run game, but how much do the Giants miss Ahmad Bradshaw?

-The Giants now have a defensive takeaway in 23 straight games, dating back to last season.

-I guess Jake Ballard is human after all. He had three pretty significant drops that could’ve been difference-makers. But it’s hard to complain after what he’s done for them at tight end this year and he came back and had a big catch after leaving the game to get his elbow examined. (Thankfully the x-rays came back negative.)

-On the bright side, I think it’s become more evident each week that Victor Cruz is the real deal and not just a fluke. He still needs a little work when it comes to dropping passes but he’s been extremely clutch for New York all season and helped the Giants set up another potential comeback. New York’s depth at wide receiver is astonishing.

-While we’re on the topic of Cruz, am I the only one who gets nervous when I see him returning punts over Aaron Ross? I just keep thinking about how Domenik Hixon’s back-to-back season ending injuries came from returning punts and I’d hate to see the Giants lose Cruz that way too.

-When DeSean Jackson negated his own 50 yard reception by taunting defensive coordinator Perry Fewell, I found myself wondering how he can expect the Eagles to pay him the big bucks when he keeps pulling stunts like that.

-The Giants continue to struggle on third downs. Once again, they had trouble converting third downs on offense and the defense gave up six third downs on the Eagles game-winning drive. That’s one problem that definitely needs addressing.

Boley and Bradshaw have been ruled out of the game. Prince will still be a game time decision.

@NotoriousOHMOhm Youngmisuk

Amukamara active. The Prince is cleared to make his debut tonight.

51 seconds ago via webFavoriteUndo RetweetReply

MetLife Stadium, Time to make good memories

history to fortify that abhorrence. No, I think a dispensing with all the statistics is in order, for this game will come down to who makes fewer mistakes and imposes their will over the other. Let’s try to isolate some of the questions regarding this game.

The Eagles run the ball better than anyone else, gaining almost 173 yards on the ground. Simply because Michael Vick is not expected to play does not negate the Eagles ability to move the ball on the ground. Vince Young is a capable runner and poses a physical presence. LeSean McCoy is one of the most exciting running backs in football. He runs with a style reminiscent of Barry Sanders which raises big red flags when imagining the challenge the Giants will have in stopping him. Couple McCoy’s outstanding running ability with the undermanned linebacker unit and it is time to pour a double for yourself. It will be interesting to see if Mark Herzlich is ready for prime time, for the speed of the game may be more than he is currently able to match. I remember watching A.J. Hawk and Clay Matthews in their first few games some years ago and they struggled. They also were not coming off a life threatening disease that robbed their bodies of muscle and substance. So in view of these facts I invoke the Michel Jordan Doctrine: You can’t stop him you can only hope to contain him. And containing McCoy will be key if the Giants are to ostensibly end the season for these dirty birds from 90 miles down the turnpike.

The offense:  Michael Vick appears to be out for the game tomorrow night, as does WR Jeremy Maclin.  In steps Vince Young who has thrown a total of one pass this season, and that was intercepted.  Which Vince Young do you get?  The one that can break open a game at any moment with his strength and speed?  The one that doesn’t go down so easy when hit?  Or the depressed, once great, washed up, indecisive Qb that was shipped out of Tennessee?  I believe the Giants will see both Vince Young and Mike Kafka tomorrow night if Vick indeed is inactive.  That leaves LeSean McCoy as the main weapon for the Eagles, and he is a formidable one.  On a team with Vick, DeSean Jackson, Maclin, Avant, and Celek, McCoy has managed to rush for 900 yards and 10 TD’s.  The Eagles LEAD the league in rushing averaging over 170 yards per game.  The Eagles are 3rd in total yards, but only 11th in scoring with a Net Point Differential of only 17. (more…)

“We’re going to have to take some extraordinary means to try to solve that issue. The fact of the matter is that has to stop We talked about that this morning. We talked about it last night. We’ve got to sure this thing up and deny that part of the game.”

And here is Michael Boley on the importance of finishing this season:

“We didn’t do a good job of [finishing] last year so that was a big emphasis for us going into this year…. It is just a matter of ‘want to.’ I think we have a different mentality to finishing games now. I think at times last year, we got kind of lackadaisical at times. We got away from the things we did earlier in the game as far as keeping the pressure on. This year it is a different mentality as a team. Our whole mentality is to keep the pressure on and don’t let up, even during the times late in the game when we are behind like yesterday. It was kind of like don’t lose hope because there is always time.”

[via ESPN]

What did surprise some was Clint Sintim as a starting linebacker over Kiwanuka. Obviously this will not be the case as Kiwi has been on the 1st team defense all training camp. Along with Kiwi is Michael Boley and Jonathan Goff. I wouldn’t exactly call these two the most “beloved” Giants, but still important players to say the least.

But the question still remains: Can the Giants compete with their current Linebackers?

The Answer: Yes. Goff did not have a complete breakout year, but proved he could be a sufficient option in the middle. Boley had a very safe and sound year, and provided stability to an already shaky core.

But, and there is always a but, can the Giants improve their linebackers with a free agent? Absolutely.

There are 2 names out on the market that could jump in and make an impact immediately.

The first is Kirk Morrison. Entering his 7th year, Kirk Morrison has started 16 games every year besides his rookie season when he started 15 out of 16. A sign of stability to say the least. Last year was considered a down year for Morrison because he had under 100 tackles, but nonetheless he would be a solid option for the Giants D.

Next is Lofa Tatupu. A relatively familiar name for NFL fans. After tearing his pectoral muscle in 2009, he was never quite the same. He was still a force for the Seahawks down the stretch, but was not worthy of being one of the highest paid linebackers in the game. For a reasonable price, he could have a bounce back season to bring up his value. The Giants would be a perfect place for this while they groom their rookies.

Will the Giants make a splash? That remains to be seen, but the way things are shaping up they are going to have to do something to counteract all the other moves in the NFC. (The Eagles haven’t signed anyone this offseason, have they?)

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