Tom Brady has not missed a beat in the regular season but the postseason has not been so kind. Brady is 7-7 in his last 14 postseason games; he was 10-0 in his first 10 postseason games. His supporting cast also seems to not bring it in the postseason like they do in the regular season.

The recent Patriot teams do not have that attitude the team once had in the early 2000s that won the Super Bowl 3 times in 4 years. The comments that Tom Brady’s wife made after the Super Bowl last year were pretty accurate, Brady can’t throw the ball and catch it too.

Nevertheless, Brady did not command the second half of Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens. Brady was a perfect 67-0 in his career when leading at halftime at home. Each time they had the ball, you were expecting a takeover, but it never happened. Tom Brady had his worst 2nd-half QBR (22.6) in last 4 postseasons on Sunday against Baltimore. New England is 0-4 when Brady’s 2nd-half QBR is less than 50 in that span.

Not taking away anything from the Ravens, they certainly outplayed the Patriots in the second half. The defense, led by Ray Lewis, did not budge and gave up 0 points. Joe Flacco stepped up and threw for 240 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Ravens improved to 13-7 all-time in the playoffs, the best postseason record in NFL history. This team is showing the same unity that last year’s New York Giants team had in their late run to a Super Bowl Championship.

Eli, putting the E L I into elite?

As the season draws closer and the experts begin to prognosticate, the talk of the elite QB’s is always a hot topic. This year, unlike last year, there will be a new member in that class. We may have known this as Giant fans, but even some of us had to be convinced. Well, no more. We all know exactly where our field general sits this year.  Now the rest of the NFL needs to stop underrating Eli and give him the respect he has earned. I believe Eric Allen(but I could be wrong on that) didn’t even rank him top 15 last year. Come on man!

With two Superbowl titles on his resume, finishing with almost 5000 yards passing last year, and for most of the season pretty much carrying the GMen on his back he deserves to be top 10 at the very least. And with the other Manning’s career possibly over you can argue for Eli to be top 5. I will concede Rodgers, Brady and Brees as 1,2,3. But after that, you need to put Eli. He may be the toughest QB in the league too. His aw schucks demeanor that everyone pointed out early is now one of his best qualities. He is unflappable. He proved that in the NFC championship game against the 49er’s. You cannot rattle him or get in his head. The media does not bother him, and the boo’s never bothered him. If you want to point out his interceptions, you can. But than I don’t think you know a lot about the game for this reason. The Giants allow their receivers to run routs depending on coverage. There isn’t always an out rout. The receiver chooses if he is going to break his rout in or out depending on the coverage and position of the DB. So with young receivers, they may not have always been on the same page with Eli or making the proper read. Btw. The Saints also have their receivers do the same thing. And Brees usually has high int totals too. Lets give Eli the credit he deserves and put him in the proper place in the QB rankings this year, Cause as we all heard Deon Sanders preach last year…..”I believe in Eli” and I personally always have.

 Cat: I see you’ve been busy these last couple of days – I even saw you on the morning news earlier today. You must be exhausted!

 JPP: Definitely, but I think I’ve been doing a great job

 Cat:  It’s an honor to be interviewing you, I’m a Giants fan and obviously have become a huge fan of yours over the last couple of years.

JPP: That’s what’s up.

Cat: So here we are on the eve of the draft, could you tell our readers a little about your draft day experience?

JPP: Let me take you back. First of all, I didn’t know where I was going. It didn’t really matter if it was the first round or second round, either way I would’ve been the player I am today. The Giants picked me at the 15th pick and they made a great pick, and I am happy to be here today. Honestly, draft day is crazy, but I wasn’t nervous at all.

 Cat: Well, you knew you were getting drafted early didn’t you?

JPP: Nah I didn’t. I didn’t know if I was going first round or second round. I didn’t really care—like I said I still would’ve been the player I am today. Once they put me out there I was going to do what I had to do.

Cat: How has New York been to you so far?

 JPP: It’s been great. New York is a crazy place to stay, a lot of people walking around, I love it. I like the fans too, they’re crazy. I’ll tell you one thing though, once you do something wrong they will let you know, they will boo you. Otherwise the fans are great here you’ve got to love them.

 Cat: I was actually at the parade this year. How was that experience for you?

JPP: That was a hell of a parade. I thought it was never going to end. It was a long parade I actually jumped down and went into the stands. It was fun, I hope we have one this year.

Cat: How does it feel to have contributed so much, not only to the Giants but to the NFL, this early in your career? You made the Pro Bowl, you have a Super Bowl ring, what’s next for JPP?

JPP: What’s next for me? Keep hitting it. I want to get better and better—if you think I was good this year than wait until next year. I want to see more 90 jerseys in the stands – you know how that goes, you don’t want to buy a jersey until you see what that player can do.

Cat: Has there been a player that has been like a mentor to you?

 JPP: I’d say all the guys have been mentors to me, I’m not even going to lie.  Especially in the D-line room, we know we’re the heart of the defense so we talk a lot. So, one mentor, no, we all talk a lot and we help out each other and go out and play hard every week.

Cat: Given the rumors flying, do you think by this time next week Osi will still be a Giant? 

The Worst: Too easy here, The New Orleans Saints in 1999 traded away every pick they had in this draft and a 1st and 3rd rounder the following year to acquire Ricky Williams at #5 overall.  This is not an indictment of Williams, but to trade away that amount of picks for one player that never won you a championship must be considered a bust.  Maybe the only saving grace for the Saints was that Washington, although getting such players as Champ Bailey, Jon Jansen, and LaVar Arrington, and winning the division title in 1999, didn’t return to the playoffs until 2005.  This is quite clearly the worst overall draft in history.

The Best: 2007 New York Giants.  Jerry Reese in his first draft as a G.M. had 8 picks in 2007, and here are the names: Aaron Ross. Steve Smith, Jay Alford, Zac DeOssie, Kevin Boss, Adam Koets, Michael Johnson, and Ahmad Bradhsaw.

I know I will here about the fact that only two of these players are still on the team 5 years later, but the contributions of all these men were instrumental in a very improbable Super Bowl Championship.  In the age of hold-outs, and free agency just getting everyone signed and on the roster is an accomplishment.  All 8 players played for the Giants that season and I’m sure we can all recite the impact they had on the magical 2007 season.  Kevin Boss stepping in for the injured Jeremy Shockey and making big catches against Dallas and New England, Steve Smith making third down catches and being left alone by the Patriot secondary on the final drive of the Super Bowl, Aaron Ross playing in the Dallas game with an injured shoulder, but still making big tackles to finish the game, and of course the sack by Jay Alford of Tom Brady in the Super Bowl.  Ahmad Bradshaw almost single handedly got the Giants into the playoffs with his performance in Buffalo the final week of the season, and of course Zac and Michael Johnson contributed greatly and are still with the team.

Those are my picks…What do you have as the best and worst full drafts?

NFL Predictions Week 11 – The tides are definitely turning in the NFL. The results from last week are, as they say, the pudding to which the proof resides. If predicting the weekly winners of the NFL were the stock market, this thing crashed BIG time last week!

We’ll take a look at how the panel at ESPN did last week, along with myself, and we will look into the future to determine who are the teams to beat this week. Sit back, grab a cup o’ joe and check out who we think are the bee’s knees of Week 11.
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Are you ready for the second half of the 2011 NFL season? Do you think you can handle the adrenaline rush from the multitude of clutch comebacks? Or, for that matter, the overwhelming depression of staggering defeats?

If you answered, “Yes!” to these questions, then you are a true BLUE football fan! Let’s get it started! Week 10, or weak 10 for some teams around the league, finds us on our continuing mission to deliver you the winners of every NFL game, alongside the pigskin picking’ panel at ESPN. Who have we picked this week? Who won the battle of the predictions last week? You might be surprised at the results. read on…if you dare!
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They were without their leading receiver. Their starting running back, full back and center all missed the game due to injury. Their 1st pick overall in the 2011 NFL Draft made the trip, but did not play.

Of the six categories (ten positions within each slot), not one…NOT ONE single member of the New York Giants earned themselves a slot in the NFL Weekly leader board. They were shutdown for the entire first half. Just how did Big Blue pull off their biggest upset of the season? We’ve got answers. Join me on this incredibly inspiring fact finding recap.
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With tomorrow’s game against the New England Patriots, the week in NY Sports Media has been spent reliving that very play. Earlier this week, David Tryee was on WFAN, you can listen to that interview here. There is also a great write up about David Tryee, the play, and where his life has taken him. You can read that write up here.

David Tryee also wrote a book (with a forward from Eli Manning). In the book, which I recently finished, David explains that life is much more than the catch. He talks about his wife, his kids, his drugs problems, his religion, and the faithful catch. It is an excellent book which I recommend everyone reads, you can buy a copy of the book by clicking here.

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OK fans, let’s get this out of the way right now. The Rams?! Really? The Rams beat the Saints. My head is still spinning on its neck like Linda Blair in The Exorcist. What can you say? Any given Sunday. Well, we’ve got another Sunday (and Monday) right around the corner and our picks are fresh out of the oven.

ESPN has baked up a tasty little batch of predictions for the upcoming week, as did I. Each week I go head to head with the experts and their two fortune telling robots. The race is pretty close and is still anyones game. Read on to see how they did, how I did and what teams we’re labeling as the easy wins, the fights to the finish and the upsets of the week. Check it out!
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For the second consecutive meeting at the University Of Phoenix Stadium, the New York Giants defeated the Arizona Cardinals. Prior to these last two games, the Cardinals had a 7 game winning streak, in Arizona, against the Giants. While the numbers were high for Larry Fitzgerald and company, the points on the scoreboard were not high enough.
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After a long, grueling offseason, the NFL kicked off its season opener…and what an opener it was. We witnessed the impossible, the improbable and the impartible. Yes, football season is upon us folks. That means that the guys over at ESPN are knee deep in their predictions once again. That also means that, so am I.

How did I match up against the pigskin parliamentarians last week? Was my Magic 8 Ball working as good or better than the big guys’? I bet you’ll be surprised at the results. Click the link below to find out the W/L ratios, my predictions for this coming week and the analysis of each game.
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Belichik will not be the only ex-Giants coach turned Patriot on hand. Bill Parcells will also be in attendance along with the entire coaching staff and a list of players from the ’86 team the length of a linesman’s arm. It will definitely be an affair to remember. But the question is, will the tension in the air be thick enough to cut with a knife?
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On Wednesday, April 20, 2011 at 1pm ET, TXN Sports and Big Lead Sports organized a conference call with NFL Analysts, Chris Collinsworth, Howie Long and Boomer Esiason. A select group of reporters were invited to join, myself included, to discuss the upcoming NFL Draft that will take place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City from April 28-30 2011.

The call was also organized to promote TXN, a newly formed website (txnsports.com) that will launch this coming Tuesday. TXN, “The Experts Network” will introduce a new way to interact with analysts such as the panel above and the launch of their site is highly anticipated. It was a round robin type of discussion with no shortage of Q & A from the media and experts alike. Click below for transcription of the key topics that we discussed.
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The glory of the Lombardi Trophy is a mere two wins away. Men put their life and limb on the line just for an opportunity to hold it in their hand. The road is long for some, longer still for others. Four teams will have to endure 60 minutes of regulated football time and the elements of a cold, hard winter. The Super Bowl is upon us and the ESPN panel of fortune tellers verdicts are in.

I should note that last week, after my prediction article was published, Ron Jaworski and Chris Mortensen changed two of their picks. Both had originally picked the Jets to win over the New England Patriots. I am sure the trash talk of the New York Jets had something to do with it. Changing their picks was a mistake on their part nonetheless. Only one expert went 4-0 last week and you are reading his article right now. Thank you very much. Who am I picking this weekend and why? Read on for my breakdown and analysis!
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Round 2. The Divisional Playoff Game. Bring it or spend the next eight months wondering, “what if.” This weekend, many a fan will find themselves left without a voice but filled with another week of hope and team pride. Others will find themselves bewildered and in a state of despair. These are the NFL playoffs folks, ain’t nothing like ‘em!

We witnessed a WILD, Wildcard Weekend and as you can see, even the necromancers of ESPN got their crystal ball visions crossed. Can they make a comeback? There are no unanimous decisions this week. It’s anybody’s guess! Who am I going with? Did I fall flat on my face or rise to the challenge last week? Click on the link below to check out my predictions and game analysis.
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He led his team to victory in what was arguably the greatest game ever played. He was the MVP of Super Bowl XLII. This season, he moved up one slot, overtaking Charlie Conerly, to become #2 on the New York Giants‘ Top Ten Passers list. Why then were so many fans calling for the head of Eli Manning at season’s end?

An abundance of interceptions can easily stir up the “angry mob” mentality amongst football fans. Manning led the league in interceptions this season and told the media, the day after the New York Giants’ disappointing season finale, ”

I am not a 25 interception quarterback.”

That is the exact number of times he threw the ball into the opposition’s hands, however. Manning went on to say,

“I think obviously that’s got to be fixed. We have to fix that. That’s on me, the receivers, and everybody doing that, but most of it’s on me.”

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The team over at ESPN have once again gazed into their crystal balls to determine who will be this week’s winners in the NFL. It’s a split decision where the Giants game is concerned and rightly so.

Sunday’s Giants game is going to be a battle from start to finish. Whichever team lets their guard down, for even a second, will pay the price for it. It’s the biggest and most significant game of the season folks. Get ready! The ESPN crew have made some interesting picks this week. You can read more about my picks and thoughts on those games by clicking the link below.
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