- The Redskins’ first touchdown came off of an amazing stroke of luck/horror (depending on your rooting interest) when RG3 fumbled the ball into Josh Morgan’s hands, who subsequently ran it in for the score. There’s not a whole lot the defense can do about a play like that, but it was good to see they were going after the ball, as a fumble by Alfred Morris bounced the Giants’ way later in the game. I don’t know what Griffin did in his past life to amass his unbelievable karma. He’s like Mark Sanchez, only the exact opposite.

- Ahmad Bradshaw was amazing. He carried the ball 24 times (his third-highest total of the season) for 103 hard-earned yards, and converted every big third-and-short against a Redskins running defense that only allowed 89.2 yards/game coming in (3rd-best in the NFL). We’re going to need more performances like that out of Bradshaw with Brown likely out for the season, and he appears to be up to the challenge.

- Sean Locklear went out with a gruesome knee injury in the fourth quarter. I assume it was gruesome because that’s what everyone’s calling it, but I’ve learned not to look at football replays that are described that way anymore so I never actually saw it. I did see that the Giants’ pass protection, which was pretty good up to that point, really suffered after he was replaced by David Diehl. If Locklear is out for an extended period (and it sounds likely), this will continue to be a problem.

- Eli Manning looked good for most of the night. The Giants offense started out really agressive, going for a couple passes deep down the field to Nicks and Cruz that juuuuuuuuust missed, and a ton of connections to Martellus Bennett. Eli finally hit Cruz on a big 49-yarder in the second half, but barely went down the field after that. As soon as the Redskins took the lead, Bradshaw started getting carry after carry, whether called by the sideline or checked to by Manning at the line. Considering they were going against the 3rd-ranked rushing D and the 29th-ranked passing D, I thought this was somewhat quizzical.

- The Giants’ run defense had a tough night, but I find it pretty hard to blame them. ESPN highlighted a bunch of plays where the defensive ends got caught guessing wrong on the Redskins’ pistol option plays. I was watching at home and trying to guess where the ball was going on those plays, and I did NOT do well. Hard to expect our lineman to do much better in the heat of the game.

- The red zone: our old nemesis. The Giants came into the game scoring touchdowns on about 49% of their red zone possessions, which isn’t gonna get it done. I was hoping that these concerns were behind us after that number jumped to 83% last week against the Packers, but alas, no such luck. Despite moving the ball well through the first 3 quarters, the Giants could only muster 16 points due to 3 promising drives that stalled out, leading to Lawrence Tynes field goal attempts. The second try saw the usually-automatic Tynes miss from 43-yards away, which turned out to be sorta important.

- The Giants came in to this game as the second-least penalized team in the NFL, averaging only 4.4/game. Well, that average is gonna go up a bit. They were called for 9 penalties, two of which put the Giants in tough field position coming off kickoffs and one that wiped out a first down on what ended up being the Giants’ final offensive possession. I suspect Coughlin may mention this in practice before the next game.

Despite all that, the Giants had the ball with 5 minutes to go, down only one with a chance to take the lead. With Eli at the helm, we usually do pretty well in those circumstances, but a win last night would have put the Giants in a great position to coast into the playoffs without much stress over these last 4 games, so obviously they could have none of that. Part of the beauty of being a Giants fan is their knack for putting together dramatic victories, but part of the horror is the anxiety they induce along the way. Next Sunday, an afternoon home game looms against the Saints. The Giants must win that one to ensure they maintain their lead in the division.

What, you thought it would be easy?

Thomas, who made two huge Special Teams plays during the NFC Championship game in San Francisco, was a player who had put his ego aside and played to the best of his abilities for Coach Coughlin and the New York Giants.  He never whined about wanting more playing time, or having his role reduced to a special teams player.  He played hard every play, and was a major contributor to the Giants Super Bowl run.  He says now that his goal was to win a championship, and he did, so off to do something else he goes.

Those of us who were at the Giants Redskins game last December will also remember a very frightening moment that probably has a lot to do with Devin’s decision.  On the final play of the first half Devin was hit in the head and lay on the turf, motionless for most of the time.  The band that was scheduled to play at halftime was kept on the sideline, and then sent back to the locker room as Devin remained on the turf.  He was carted off the field as the players began to return for the second half kickoff.

Thankfully Devin was cleared to play and seemed to suffer no physical diabilities, but mentally it had to weigh on his mind.

We thank Devin for all his contributions and hard work…and as always welcome him into the Giants Family for Life.

1. Beck finished last season with 80 completions out of 132 attempts, 858 yards, two passing touchdowns and four interceptions.
2. The Redskins just drafted two QBs, No. 2 overall pick Robert Griffin III, and Kirk Cousins from Michigan State.

The Skins are obviously looking for a fresh start and considering all the QB issues they’ve had over the past few seasons I think it is a good idea. Some people are saying that since Cousins won 27 games as a starter for three years at Michigan State that drafting him as the backup QB could be setting the stage for another QB controversy. I get the sense that the Redskins front office, and the fans, are ready to stick with one talented QB, Robert Griffin III, and watch him develop over several years.  I would say that RG3 would need to have a really terrible first year to bring on a QB controversy.

This tells me the Eagles are in love with Fletcher Cox, DT out of Mississippi State who is a Top 10 projection. Worst case scenario for the Eagles is they stay at 16th loose Barron (to Cowboys) and Cox and draft Michael Brockers, DT out of LSU which really is not that bad of a choice. Now if the Cowboys do not get Barron (whether he is drafted higher or the Eagles make a move for him) well they have a lot of other needs on Defense with emphasis on the D-line. Courtney Upshaw, DE out of Alabama may still be available. So could Nick Perry, DE out of USC or South Carolina’s OLB Melvin Ingram who can cause some chaos in Rob Ryan’s blitz happy scheme.

Now the Giants, holding the last pick and a team that sticks to the philosophy of best available player. Okay I am going to get opinionated here; to all those Coby Fleener TE from Stanford supporters, not happening. The Giants signed Martellus Bennett, Jerry Reese and Tom Coughlin saw something in this TE that made them believers (maybe to a degree). That being said I can see the Giants drafting a TE like Ladarius Green from Louisiana-Lafayette, Deangelo Peterson, TE, LSU or Michael Egnew, TE, Missouri in Rounds 3 or 4. As for the OT Mike Adams (Ohio State) believers, not happening either. The G-Men have not drafted a OT since 1999 and are staunch believers they can find a good OL in the later rounds and develop him within the organization. Now add to this the rumors of Adams being a “work hard when he feels like it guy”. Does that sound like someone Coughlin would put up with?

So who should it be? The Mel Kipers and Todd McShays of the Draft World will never be able to predict how a draft will go and who will move up or down. Now if Kendall Wright, WR from Baylor happens to move down to 32 grab him. He will open the Giants Offense even more and make Cruz and Nicks look that much better. Now I have been a supporter of RB Doug Martin (Boise State) he is a good runner between the lines and is great in pass protection, receiving and YAC (yards after catch). But we don’t know who will be there at 32, we don’t have that crystal ball. One thing we do know if there is a highly rated DE at 32, well enough said.

1) We know the division will be better:  The Eagles can’t possibly be worse than they were last year.  Although Andy Reid decided to stay with his embattled defensive coordinator and his odd scheme, they have already strengthened the linebacking corps in free agency.  This was truly their biggest weakness, and they had a terrible draft class last season while trying to address it.  I imagine they might be a bit better than 8-8 this season, if and this is the question surrounding the Eagles, if Mike Vick can last.

The Redskins will be improved also, but not as much as people are saying I believe.  A young top QB is a great thing to have, but not always so great in their first year with questionable weapons surrounding them.  The Redskins did make some moves to improve on offense, but it is still a work in progress and not sure it is going to yield fast results.  Of course they beat us twice last year with no QB, so these games will be critical to our success this year.

2) The AFC North is tough: Baltimore still has a good defense if not great.  They have a very good running attack. They also have an embattled QB that needs to prove he is the man for the job.  The Giants don’t get them until late in the season, so the jury should be in on Joe Flacco by then.  Pittsburgh, although aging, is always tough, and they have a top notch QB.  Cincy is the improving team, and they could get a lot better with some good draft picks this year.  We will need to see how they grow together.

3) Road Trips: In San Fran, In Carolina on three days rest, and that is really it.  The Giants really caught a break this year with their home and road distribution. One trip west of Dallas all year, 5 games at home and 5 on the road before the BYE in week 11, which of course means 3 and 3 after the BYE. Finishing the season at home, maybe in primetime, maybe in another NFC East Championship game….all good things!

A prediction you say? Well before the draft is always a tough time to make a prediction, but at first glance I said 10-6.

Here now is the remainder of the GIANTS 2012 NFL Schedule:

Week One: vs Dallas September 5th (WEDNESDAY NIGHT) 8:30 P.M. (NBC)

Week Two: vs Tampa Bay September 16th 1:00 P.M. (FOX)

Week Three: At Carolina September 20th (THURSDAY NIGHT) 8:20 P.M. (NFLN)

Week Four: At Philadelphia September 30th (SUNDAY NIGHT) 8:20 P.M. (NBC)

Week 5: vs. Cleveland October 7th 1:00 P.M. (CBS)

Week 6: At San Francisco October 14th 4:15 (FOX)

Week 7: vs Washington October 21st 1:00 P.M. (FOX)

Week 8: At Dallas October 28th 4:15 P.M. (FOX)

Week 9: vs Pittsburgh November 4th 4:15 P.M. (CBS)

Week 10: At Cincinnati November 11th 1:00 P.M. (FOX)

Week 11: BYE (Nov 18th) November 18th

Week 12: vs Green Bay November 25th (SUNDAY NIGHT) 8:20 P.M. (NBC)

Week 13: At Washington December 3rd (MONDAY NIGHT) 8:30 P.M. (ESPN)

Week 14: vs. New Orleans December 9th 4:15 (FOX)

Week 15: At Atlanta December 16th 1:00 P.M. (FOX)

Week 16: At Baltimore December 23rd 1:00 P.M. (FOX)

Week 17: vs. Philadelphia December 30th (SUNDAY NIGHT) 8:00 P.M. (NBC) FLEX GAME PREDICTION

Details on days and times to follow, but as you can see a late BYE week, two sets of back to back road games, and a late season schedule of Division Rivals and Playoff Teams from last year, actually after Week 5 they play either a division rival or a playoff contender from 2011…..Here is the link to the entire NFL 2012 Schedule

Horton did not play in the NFL last season. He spent his first three seasons with the division rival Washington Redskins, but missed half of each of his last two seasons with injuries. The UCLA product made a total of 15 starts for the Redskins and had 122 tackles and three interceptions. He was released by Washington before the start of the 2011 season.

Horton listed at 6’1″ 216 lbs was originally drafted in the 7th round by the Redskins, and had a pretty solid first year, starting in week two and being named Defensive Player of the Week.  The potential is there, now let’s see if the injury bug has left him, and he can restart what looked like a very promising career.

The New York Football Giants of 1986 hosted the NFC Championship game at Giants Stadium 25 years ago this week.  It was a familiar match-up with the Division rival Washington Redskins.  It was also a contest against mother nature.

With winds whipping upwards of 30 miles an hour, the Giants and Redskins battled the elements all day.  Harry Carson, as the lone captain for the coin toss, called tails as always and wins the toss.  The words “We’ll take the wind” are now a part of Giants lore.  The Giants scored 10 first quarter points, and held Washington to just 2 first downs.  The Redskins punted three times in the first quarter and netted 23, 27, and 24 yards.  Behind 10-0, the Redskins mounted a drive in the 2nd quarter, only to have a botched snap on a field goal try of 51 yards.  The Redskins were doomed.  Jay Schroeder was forced to pass 50 times in this game, many of them futilely into the strong and gusting winds.  He finished the game 20-50 with a 3.8 yard average per pass.

After the 17-0 halftime lead, the Giants defense took over and made that the final score.  At the conclusion of the game, John Madden remarked “Last year, I thought the Bears had the best defense I had ever seen. But in the last two weeks, I feel these Giants have as good a defense as has ever played in this league.”  He was right.  They had now given up a total of 3 points in two playoff games.

The Giants, and their faithful fans, now started planning their trip to sunny Pasadena for a re-match with the John Elway led Denver Broncos.  Those of you who have been following this series of stories know that we already had plane tickets in hand, purchased the day after the Giants defeated the Broncos back in November.  It was quite a trip…stay tuned

According to Antrel Rolle, if the Giants and the Redskins played 100 times the Giants would win 99 of them They played each other twice in 2011, and the Redskins won both, so the law of averages was defied.

Quite honestly, this was an ugly effort. The Giants reverted to the ghost of seasons past, with dropped balls by wide open receivers, failure to protect the QB, interceptions be Eli Manning, and nothing in the way of a defensive effort. Playing against a Redskins line that was missing its two starting OT’s, the Giants defense registered 1 sack and allowed the ‘Skins 35 minutes of possession. The Giants number 1 draft choice wound up getting benched. The team managed to accumulate 8 penalties and showed no sense of urgency. The coaching staff didn’t appear to have put in an effective game plan, and what was installed wasn’t executed. If there was a bright spot for the G-Men, it was their special teams, which performed adequately.

Incredibly, the Giants still control their own destiny, and if they win out they go to the playoffs. If the Giants can play with fire and passion, they might get to the post season. If my aunt was a man she’d be my uncle. The odds makers have installed the Jets as three point favorites. Right now, I think that’s being charitable.

On Friday I wrote my post about what to look for in the game Sunday when the Giants met the Redskins in New Jersey. I stated that the Redskins would pull out all the tricks and gadgets and try to mis-direction the Giants all day. I was shocked when the very first play was a flea-flicker (into the wind)that was intercepted by Corey Webster. The Giants D had passed their first test. However, after three straight incompletions by Eli, and his drop happy receivers, back on the field came the defense. Washington continued their tries at trickery until they seemed to realize, there was no need. The Giants couldn’t stop the straight ahead run, and to complete short passes against the Giants theses days is child’s play. A myriad of third and one, third and two, or three were converted with ease. The players continue to implore the crowd on every third down to get up and cheer, but the stops just seem to never come anymore. The fan in front of me finally yelled “Stop asking us to make the play.. Make a stop!”. (more…)

While the rest of the football world looks towards the Tebow Brady match-up, The Giants take on the Washington Redskins (4-9) in New Jersey tomorrow at 1:00 Eastern.  The Redskins have struggled this year after a good start due mainly to injuries.  No Giants fan wants to hear about how injuries have affected another team, but the losses by the offensive side of the ball have prevented the Redskins from finding much success this year.

Offense:  The Losses of  WR Santana Moss for a large portion of the season, RB Tim Hightower, and TE Chris Cooley, among others has taken away all the balance of this offense.  When your choices at QB are John Beck and Rex Grossman, losing weapons like the above mentioned names is a killer.  The ‘Skins average only 17.5 points per game and are last in rushing yards at 94.  Rookie Roy Helu has stepped in and done an admirable job replacing HIghtower, and the Giants must concentrate on stopping him both in running situations and out of the backfield.  The Redskins showed last week a myriad of trick plays and mis-directions that will test the discipline of the Giants.  Half back passes, wide receiver passes, throw back screens, and double reverses will all be utilized tomorrow to somehow score enough points to be competitive.

Defense: The strength of this Redskin team is up front on defense.  They have drafted and signed well in this area.  They play a three four with both outside linebackers being very active in the pass rush recording 34 sacks as a team.  The Giants will need to continue their strong work up front and give Eli time to find his receivers downfield.  The ‘Skins placed Safety LaRon Landry on IR this week.  LaRon, who regularly gets flattened by Brandon Jacobs, is their best run stopper from the secondary. The secondary has 9 interceptions on the year and the team has an abysmal -14 turnover ratio.

The Giants will need to play well on offense as has been the norm the past few weeks.  Getting off to a fast start and converting early will go along way in this game.  The defense will need to stay disciplined, stop the run, and let Rex Grossman deal with the pressure from the front four.  These last three games are all extremely important to the Giants, but the two division games against these Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys are MUST wins.  I see Eli continuing his good play and the Giants getting a win here.

After most analysts were against the Giants last week, they have learned their lesson to not count this team out just yet. They proved it by almost unanimously naming the Giants winners over the division-rival Redskins. There is one holdout, but we aren’t going to worry about him. (more…)

Here is the early early look at the Giants and Redskins injuries for the week according to NFL.COM.  Good news for Giants fans is the participation of Kenny Phillips even on a limited basis.

Washington Redskins  at  New York Giants
Name	Position	Injury	Practice Status	Game Status
WAS
Jammal Brown	T	Groin	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
LaRon Landry	S	Groin	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Mike Sellers	RB	Elbow	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Donte’ Stallworth	WR	Illness	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Stephen Bowen	DE	Knee	Limited Participation in Practice	–
Reed Doughty	S	Rib	Limited Participation in Practice	–
London Fletcher	LB	Ankle	Limited Participation in Practice	–
Saverio Rocca	P	left Ankle	Limited Participation in Practice	–
NYG
David Baas	C	Neck	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Travis Beckum	TE	Chest	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Ahmad Bradshaw	RB	Foot	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Mark Herzlich	LB	Ankle	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Derrick Martin	S	Back	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Justin Tuck	DE	Toe	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Osi Umenyiora	DE	Ankle	Did Not Participate In Practice	–
Spencer Paysinger	LB	Hamstring	Limited Participation in Practice	–
Kenny Phillips	S	Knee	Limited Participation in Practice	–

The Giants Across the Board

Fox Sports: 14(14)

The Giants couldn’t cover any of Saints receiver on Monday night and the pass rush didn’t help them at all. This is a team that is built to pressure the quarterback, and didn’t sack Drew Brees even once. On offense, the Giants need to find a running game to complement Manning and the passing game. Brandon Jacobs doesn’t have the skill set to be the feature running back in this offense. They need Ahmad Bradshaw back in a hurry.

I like to think that having AB44 back would make a big difference for the offense, but I have very little faith in that offensive line and their ability to make lanes for any runner. True, they are good at protecting Eli, but that’s not going to be enough down the stretch.

CBS Sports: 14(12)

They were terrible against the Saints on Monday night and now have a short week to turn it around against Green Bay. The way that secondary played against Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers probably can’t wait.

Really, what quarterback would not want to face the Giants right now? Rodgers is having an incredible season, I hate to think about the numbers he could put up this weekend.

NFL Mocks: 16

This team is not that far away from being a really good team, but there are things that hold them back like their inconsistency and their inability to win late season games. They have a franchise (dare I say Elite) quarterback, talented WR, a great pass rush, and a lot of talent in the secondary (Amukamara, Rolle, Webster, Thomas, Phillips, Ross are all 1st or second round picks). What is the missing ingredient? Offensive line this year. Coaching? I’m not sure, they need to figure it out though.

It’s always the little things that separate the good from the great. Unfortunately there are a lot of little things that need to be fixed here. The worst part is not all of it is fixable, because there have been just too many injuries suffered by this team, and it feels never-ending. (more…)

If you’re like me and kicking yourself for not picking up Kevin Smith last week, who went on to score 3 touchdowns, then take a look at the following players who should be available in your league to help you out for the playoffs

(more…)

It’s a little late this week due to my travelling back from the west coast, missing the game, having to re-watch it and being delayed a day — so just know that usually this post will come out Wednesdays after our initial gut checks have taken place, no matter if the Giants win or lose. The point is the NY Giants are always one of those teams that seem to be criticized by a stat line — with little to no analysis as to what’s going on behind the numbers. Here, we’ll always try to acknowledge that some stats speak for themselves, others have to be unpacked a bit more to tell the whole story. Here’s where we strive to get to the quantitative AND the qualitative meanings behind the stats for of each and every Giants game. So without further ado, here we go!

(more…)

Clipped from: nflmocks.com (share this clip)

Here’s a snippet dealing with the Giants biggest needs right now – Cornerback:

The biggest defensive need for me for the 2012 NFL Draft as it stood entering the season was cornerback. And that remains the same. The Giants still have no depth at cornerback and this will not change until Prince Amukamara comes back AND there is good news on the Terrell Thomas front. Thomas can be a free agent after this season if he’s not resigned by the new York Giants. Aaron Ross had an o.k. game, but he is also a free agent after this season. If you’re a Giants fan keep a lookout for round 1 and two cornerback prospects. Those who are against grabbing cornerbacks back to back in the first round are stubborn. Cornerback is always a need, the problem is it’s a major need for the Giants and it needs to addressed.

Be sure to check back each week at NFL Mocks for more mock draft coverage, and we’ll be linking to each story referencing the Giants for you as well here at GMEN HQ.

Clipped from: nflmocks.com (share this clip)

Here’s a snippet on MLB Greg Jones who unexpectedly played his first start for the Giants in place of Jon Goff who is out for the season with a torn ACL:

Jones was just getting his feet wet on Sunday and did a pretty good job. Jones biggest responsibility this year is going to be in run support and the Giants will use other players (they used another rookie a lot) for pass support. Jones has to stick his nose in the run game, and try to blow up plays. He had four tackles in the game and was used a lot more early than he was late when the Giants used more three safeties. Jones didn’t make any tackles for loss or deliver any impressive blows, but played admiarbly. He clearly has natural instincts though he was a touch late on Tim Hightowers’ touchdown run. Solid outing. He has a lot of room for improvement though.

Be sure to check back each week at NFL Mocks for more rookie news, and we’ll be linking to each story referencing the Giants for you as well here at GMEN HQ.