The New York Giants are no longer the defending champions in the NFL. After the Baltimore Ravens won Super Bowl 47, the Giants are no different than the 30 other teams in the NFL that came up short in pursuit of the Lombardi Trophy.

After a disappointing season came to an end with no entry into the playoffs, Jerry Reese and the rest of New York’s front office have a lengthy list of “to-do’s”. In this off-season segment, we’ll be addressing position by position on the Giants roster, analyzing free agents, potential salary cap casualties and possible replacements.

If Giant fans had their way, 85% of the roster would be cut, but lets be realistic that’s not an option nor would it guarantee a better result.  Reese has proven to be pretty good at his job. Both in the draft and in free agency, he doesn’t tend to overspend or reach on picks.

Where the Giants sit right now, it appears they will be roughly 4-5 million over the cap.

In this edition, we’ll break down the Quarterback position. Cue the QB controversy…not.

Eli Manning coming off his second Super Bowl MVP, did not have the season anyone anticipated. While statistically it wasn’t too bad of a year, he was inconsistent in the middle of the season, and had some sub-par games in big spots. There’s no question a healthy Hakeem Nicks could have had a dramatic impact on the offense’s success. Eli did find himself on the turf a bit more this year than in previous, obviously protection needs to be improved and will be a point of emphasis heading into free agency and the draft, especially with two starters that are unrestricted free agents in Beatty and Boothe, and two other starters who are near the ends of their career in Snee (also having hip surgery) and Diehl. That being said, look for Eli to bounce back in 2013 and to continue to give the Giants a shot, no matter what game, score or other circumstance. As long as #10 is under center the Giants will be competitive. It is likely the Giants will ask Manning to re-construct his deal a bit to free up some cap space, a deal Eli has done in the past. This is the obvious choice as he is slated to make the most money. This doesn’t mean Eli is taking a pay cut, but rather changes the timetable as to when he gets his money.

The Giants only had one other QB on the active roster throughout last year, David Carr. Carr initially signed with the Giants the season following their Super Bowl 42 victory. After two years with New York, Carr signed a deal with the 49’ers, only to resign a year later with the Giants. It seems unlikely that Carr will be anywhere other than with the Giants in 2013. There won’t be any opportunity for him to compete for a starting job in the NFL and he’s been quoted that he enjoys being the Giants and working with Manning. However, with a influx of mobile QB’s, the price tag on back-up QB’s could start to climb which could spell trouble for New York.

The Giants did sign Curtis Painter to “future-contract” deal. Its unlikely that he will wind up on the active roster.

This position, obviously, is the most stable position on the roster, look for little to no movement.

Next week I’ll be starting to break down the offensive line, make sure you check back.

In any event, please tell me that William Beatty is taking up residence in the weight room, Jay Alford is continuing to strengthen his knee, Justin Tuck’s weight room exercises are not affected by his shoulder, and Brandon Jacobs’ knee feels good already (though Jacobs may miss a few days as he is welcoming a little Giant baby boy any day, congratulations to Brandon and his family).

On another note, who will be opening the brand new stadium has become a bit of a story. Apparently, the Jets are telling anyone who will listen that a coin flip will determine whether the Giants or Jets open up shop this fall at the new stadium. Interesting, because the New York Daily News has reported that the schedule has not yet been determined and that League Commissioner Roger Goodell will ultimately make that call.

Of course I am biased, but reasonable minds should think along these lines: the Jets closed out the old Giants stadium in 2009, the Giants should open the new stadium in 2010. Could the draw of a loud mouth coach, an over-rated young quarterback, and the addition of a washed-up hall of fame running back give Goodell what he needs to give the honor to the Jets? I surely hope not.

Fill out your brackets as tournament time is upon us, (when did Syracuse get so good this year and why did the committee reward, i.e., punish San Diego State in the first round with a nice little trip of about 3,000 miles or so for their matchup against Tennessee?) Either way, we can not wait for tip off, stay blue!

Thursday, February 11:
Teams can begin to assign the franchise tag or transition tag to a player. Due to the uncapped year, teams may assign both a franchise and transition player, or two transition players.

Wednesday, February 24 – Tuesday, March 2: NFL Combine:
Yes, we are treated to more than a week of non-stop coverage from the NFL Network, showcasing most of the NFL prospects, clad in their under-armour gear, running cone drills and participating in the true marker for all NFL players, the 40 yard dash, note to readers, I hope you have recognized my sarcasm in referencing the 40 yard dash). Though some folks, by some I mean only Al Davis, may disagree with me as to the importance of the 40 yard dash.

Thursday, February 25:
Deadline for teams to assign franchise/transition tags. This date has an even greater significance this year as the NFL and the NFLPA are as likely to confirm a new labor deal as I am to avoid the dreaded “Graziano hair-line curse.” In other words, expect the urban legend of an “un-capped year” to occur which will trigger provisions in the current Collective Bargaining Agreement allowing teams to assign both a franchise and transition tag, or two transition tags. Fancy language which simply means that player movement through unrestricted free agency may lead to fewer big name signings. Thus, this year’s NFL draft, which is being touted as one of the deepest drafts in years, becomes even more important as teams will not have a ton of options through free agency to upgrade their rosters.

Thursday, March 4:
Deadline for teams to extend a qualifying offer to restricted free agents; if they do not, these players become unrestricted free agents. Giants fans, it will be interesting to see what the tender will be, if any, for the likes of Barry Cofield and Domenik Hixon; my guess is the G-men will give a high enough tender to both to ensure their return for the 2010 season.

Friday, March 5:
The beginning of free agent signing period. While I am anticipating this date to be somewhat anti-climatic, due to the un-capped year, expect a flurry of activity as the few big-named free agents will likely sign deals hours into free agency (yes, this is where the wink-wink agent to general manager conversations occur before midnight and we will be treated to miraculously quick free agent deals which I am sure are negotiated after the free agency period begins, and not one minute before. This is also the date in which teams can make trades. Traditionally, we do not see a large amount of trade activity, but this may change a bit this year with player movement restricted as mentioned above.

Thursday, April 22 – Saturday, April 24: 2010 NFL Draft
The NFL Draft has finally arrived in prime-time, with the 1st round televised on Thursday evening, starting at *4:30 p.m., and continuing Friday at *3:30 p.m.(Rounds 2-3), and finishing Saturday at *7:00 a.m. (with Rounds 4-7). Wives everywhere can be heard rejoicing as this new schedule will free up most of Saturday and all day Sunday for quality Bed Bath & Beyond time.

*Eastern Time Zone*

P.S.
One more Super Bowl thought: Party Girl was right, she took the Saints and both the Saints and party girl continue to celebrate; Saints because they won the big game, Party Girl, because that is what she does. Oh man.