There were three high-profile injuries in the preseason openers last night:

1. QB Michael Vick  – In the first quarter of the Philadelphia Eagles’ preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Micheal Vick hit his hand on the helmet of lineman Jason Kelce while throwing a pass. X-rays were negative and Vick is scheduled for an MRI today. Stay tuned to GmenHQ.com for details as they are released.
2. RB Ryan Matthews – In his first carry of the game, San Diego Charger running back Ryan Matthews broke his collarbone. He is undergoing surgery Friday morning and is expected to be out 4-6 weeks. Ryan missed four games in 2010 and two games in 2011. Ronnie Brown is expected to step into the starting roll until Matthews is healthy again.
3. LB Dane Fletcher – New England Patriots linebacker Dane Fletcher tore an ACL in the first quarter while running down the field covering a punt. He will not return this season. In the game, Fletcher was replaced by Dont’a Hightower and it is not clear who will play that position when the regular season begins.

Ben Roethlisberger (Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

Today, Ben Roethlisberger told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette he has a “little torn rotator cuff”. It seems that the injury occurred last season against the Baltimore Ravens on November 6, 2011.

“I’m good. It’s OK, just sore,” he stated to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette. “I have a little torn rotator cuff. That doesn’t heal. We just have to hope it doesn’t tear the rest of the way, according to Doc.”

The 30 year old Roethlisberger claims this is just part of getting older. The Steelers’, and Roethlisberger’s, current solution to the problem is do less throwing during walk-throughs and hope that the tear doesn’t worsen. Good luck with that, Ben.

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.

On Offense: Tom Brady……I could stop there, but they do rush for 112 a game over and above the absurd number of 325, which is what Brady averages a game, to go along with 28 points.  They have two players that they call tight ends.  They are nothing more than big, fast receivers.  The just line up a little differently.  The Giants might have an edge on other teams though, since they routinely play three safeties and don’t rely on line backers to cover tight ends that much.  The right side of their offensive line has been rebuilt, but old friends Mankins and Light remain on the left.  The same left side Justin Tuck and Michael Strahan had so much success against in the Super Bowl.

On Defense: Here’s the good news for Giants fans.  The Patriots and Bill Belichick actually rank last in passing yards and total yards allowed.  They yield 23 points a game.  They have made some adjustments going forward, but Eli should be able to continue at his high level of performance he has shown this year.  The short to intermediate passing game is key to keep the chains moving, the clock running, and the Patriots offense off the field.

 Key Injuries:  As of this writing their were some significant injuries on both sides.  Wes Welker has continued to miss practices and might be limited on the game.  The Patriots injury list as most people know is a joke.  They list everyone who has ever had an injury basically because Belichick doesn’t believe it’s his job to inform the other teams of the status of his players.

On the Giants side, Hakeem Nicks and Ahmad Bradshaw are questionable.  Without them look for names like D. J. Ware, Da’Rell Scott, Ramses Barden, Devin Thomas, Michael Clayton and ,oh yeah, some guy named Jacobs to play roles in this Sundays contest.

The Giants as we all know face opponents with a record of 39-25 the rest of the way.  What really matters is that no one, except Green Bay, has a better record than the Giants themselves.  Keep fighting, play smart, get healthy, and FINISH.

The Giants finished fourth under the ownership of the Mara and Tisch families. They topped the longevity rank among the teams ranked and  finished third in championships. Not only did the Gmen and their respective ownership end up fourth, they were the highest ranking NFL team on the list, topping another venerable football family, the Rooneys who own the Steelers, by one position. The list was heavily populated by NFL teams, with six of the top 10 teams all part of the league. Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys squeaked onto the list in ninth place.