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Finally: A Football Thanksgiving Worth Watching….We Hope

Joe Tufaro — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 10:49:35 +0000

On Thanksgiving Days of the past I remember trying to enjoy this great day of football. However, the great games have been few and far between these past few years. When the Cowboys entered the mix they made a deal with the NFL that they would host the game every year, as long as they were also home the week before. So we have had the endless trek of teams traveling in a short week to Dallas and most getting trounced much to the delight of the Texas crowd, but doing nothing for ratings or interest from other fans. The Detroit Lions have been….well….The Detroit Lions. This year it looks like all this might change. Here’s the lineup for today.

Green Bay Packers (10-0) vs Detroit Lions (7-3) Thursday 12:30 EDT on Fox. The Lions finally bring a team to the Thanksgiving Day game. Not since the days of Barry Sanders have the Lions looked so capable, and they found a running game last week which will certainly serve them well. Green Bay, of course, is now in the position of chasing history. The ever elusive undefeated season on the line every week from now till February 5th in Indianapolis. Aaron Rodgers is the best QB in the game currently, and should provide some pre meal entertainment for all.

Miami Dolphins (3-7) vs Dallas Cowboys (6-4) Thursday 4:15 EDT on CBS. This game just a month ago looked like it would be the worst game ever played on Thanksgiving Day. With the Cowboys struggling with injuries and the lack of a running game, and Tony Romo being inconsistent the Cowboys were going nowhere. In walks DeMarco Murray and suddenly the Cowboy offense works again. The Cowboys now lead the NFC East. The Dolphins on the other hand were a defeated team, had a coach that was about to be fired, and couldn’t win a game even when leading by 15 with 2 minutes to go. What’s changed? The last three weeks the Dolphin defense has allowed 3, 9, and 8 points respectively while scoring 31, 20, and 35. As a wise man once said….It’s not who you play, but when you play them. This game could rival the famous snow game between these two teams……or it could be another waste of three hours of advertising. We will see.

San Francisco 49ers (9-1) vs Baltimore Ravens (7-3) Thursday 8:20 EDT on NFL Network. In a game many won’t see, if you don’t get the NFL Network, the brothers Harbaugh clash in this Prime Time affair, The Surprising 9ers travel to Baltimore with their young QB Alex Smith, and a pretty good running game. The Ravens have a pretty good running game themselves and a struggling young Qb in Joe Flacco. The Ravens are showing some age on their great defense and the offense has just been too inconsistent, but they have been finding ways to win. This game will be all about hard hitting defense, and probably some trickery thrown in somewhere. This contest will without a doubt come down to Special Teams, Turnovers, and who has the nerve to pull out the big play. Look for these two brothers to have their guys ready to play, and a few tricks up their sleeves from the backyard as well.

So while their are no guarantees……except that we will all be stuffed by the end of the day…….this Thanksgiving Day at least gives hope to the prospect of three good football games to enjoy before, during, and after dinner.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone form the staff of GMENHQ.COM and thank you for your support!

Pre-Season or Super Bowl?

Joe Tufaro — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 17:10:51 +0000

With all the hype about this weeks game between the New York Football Giants and jets at Giants Stadium you would think it actually counted for something. While the game is a key proving ground, and maybe even a last effort at making the roster, it is still a pre-season contest. The Giants are at a huge disadvantage having played Monday night, practiced for three days, with a Union Break in between, and now are scheduled for an early afternoon contest. What makes it worse is the team on the other side thinks it’s February and that winning this game gives them some sort of crown. Again I invite them all across the parking lot to the Timex Center to see what Three Super Bowl Trophies look like. Although Rex Ryan has guaranteed victory in the last two years, and of course again this year, these are actual Super Bowl Trophies given out by the league. The Jets will blitz all night, they will throw many, many passes to their fragile wideout Plaxico Burress, and they will do anything to secure a victory in this pre-season meaningless game. But worry not Jets fans, if you don’t win, like last year, you can find some reason to celebrate. You always do.

For the Giants this is a good place to practice the running game, work on blitz pick-up, and look at some options for nickel back, and third down receiver. With all the blitzing the Jets will do, the receivers will need to know their reads, and the backs will need to know their protection along with the Offensive line. It really will be a good test on that front considering the Cowboys, Redskins, and Eagles will seek to employ the same tactics on defense once the season begins. The key here is to get some work in, see some players for the past time, and as always get out healthy.

The game has been moved to 2p.m. as previously published here at http://gmenhq.com, and now will be aired live on the NFL Network. Enjoy the game!

NFL Network’s top 100 for 2011: Giants edition

Mon, 09 May 2011 23:09:34 +0000

Snee and Manning

Unless you’re a fan of the NBA or NHL playoffs, or even MLB, this time of year is tough for football fans. While everyone was watching the Chicago Bulls vs. Atlanta Hawks game Sunday night (happy belated Mothers day), I was checking out the NFL Network’s top 100 for 2011, as voted on by the players. So far they’ve gone through the 80-100 ranked players, with no Giants yet to break the countdown. Some names that have come off the board so far are the likes of McNabb, TO, Josh Freeman and Darren McFadden. I wanted to put together a list of the Giants that SHOULD make the countdown:

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