Memorial Day Smack Talk

I don't know if it's the third glass of Jameson I'm drinking, or just a desire to liven things up, but I think it's time for some trash talk.  Early this week Brandon Jacobs took a little shot at the Jets.  Now Jacobs' incessant trash talk--while his production drops like a Manning pass in the wind--has grown tiresome.  But frankly, I think he hit the nail on the head here.

Here's the deal Jets fans.  You're a joke.  You are now, and always have been second class citizens.  Sorry, it's just the way it is.  No matter how you measure it, the Giants come out on top.  The Giants have more fans, more titles, more recent success (sorry going 9-7 and winning 2 playoff games doesn't trump the last 5 years for the Giants where they've made the playoffs 4 times, have 2 division titles, 1 NFC title, and won their 3rd Vince Lombardi trophy).  You hang your hats on a dumb luck guarantee some loose lipped overrated QB made in 1969.  I mean really, the guy threw 220 INTs to 173 TD's, completed only 50.1% of his passes, had a career passer rating of 65.5, and--this is the kicker--had a career record of 77 wins and 108 loses.  That's right, you're hero, like you, was a loser.

Now, you've got a nice team.  You should be excited about their potential.  But really, stop acting like you're the New England Patriots.  You haven't won anything yet.  I know you say all the time "we ain't got to apologize for who we beat," but the fact remains that you only got into the playoffs last year because the Colts let you.  Did I mention you were 9-7?  At least now you have Ladanian Tomlinson.  He'll fit right in, he talks a big game but hasn't done anything in years.

Ahhhh....now that I've got that out of my system.....   I'm headed to the wonderful Jersey shore for Memorial Day weekend.  I'm bringing along Tom Callahan's "The GM" (about Ernie Accorsi's last season with the Giants) to read on the beach.  I've been meaning to read it for years, I'll let you know how it goes.  Enjoy the weekend!

Clowns to the Left of Me, Jokers to the Right....

We've looked inside, so now we'll take a look at the guys on the outside as we continue our position previews.  While Tom Coughlin will continue to say that no one is guaranteed a position, there is far less competition for the Sam and Wil spots then there is in the middle.  However, that's not necessarily a good thing, especially when the two expected starters are completely unproven.

Right now, you can pencil in Clint Sintim and Michael Boley to fill the two outside positions.  Both players arrived a year ago, Sintim as a second round draft choice and Boley as a free agent from Atlanta.  Neither was able to have the type of season they hoped for.  Both were slowed by injuries, and Sintim had a little trouble making the transition from the 3-4 he played in college to the Giants' 4-3 scheme.  It's hard to judge players based solely on last year's performance because everyone looked awful.  Whether it was a scheme the players didn't understand or didn't buy into, or whether it was just a lack of trust in the secondary, most of the front 7 looked dazed and confused in '09.  Boley and Sintim were no exceptions.

In my opinion, Boley did show a few flashes when healthy.  He has good speed and showed good pursuit, especially sideline to sideline.  However, he failed to make any plays that could catch the eye of the average half-drunk (maybe full drunk during that grueling second half of the year) Giants fan, and missed a lot of tackles.  I think he is an adequate weakside linebacker--fortunately, that is really all you need.  Behind Boley on the depth chart are probably Bryan Kehl and Chase Blackburn, both serviceable back-ups.  As we discussed in the previous article, Blackburn is probably a career back-up, but Kehl has enough upside at his age to potentially get a look as a starter if Boley struggles.

On the strongside, Sintim is a raw product, and very tough to evaluate.  He played sparingly last year behind the old and slow Danny Clark (the Giants best off-season cast off in my opinion).  Mid-season it looked like Sintim might get his shot to start, but his lack of understanding of the defense (along with a few injuries)  kept him out of the lineup.  He's got that Giants' pass rusher look to him--in the mold of Tuck and Osi--and everyone seems to agree he has the physical tools to play in the NFL.  The question is can he bring it all together?  Honestly, I think he will, and I think by season's end he'll be the team's best linebacker

If I'm wrong and he can't put it together, or if he finds himself injured, the Giants might have a major problem as they lack depth on the strongside.  Looking over their roster, I'm not even sure who the back up SAM will be.  Chase Blackburn can play all 3 linebacker positions, but is better suited as a Mike or Wil.  Same I guess could be said for Wilkinson--if he doesn't stub his toe between now and then.  The only other true SAM on the roster is 6th round pick Adrian Tracey.  Tracey hails from FCS (formerly known as 1AA) William and Mary and was a DE in college, so he appears to be more of a developmental project than a guy you want to be an injury away from your starting linebacker.  There is also last year's rookie free agent Kenny Ingram, who is a converted safety out of Florida State.  He has the size (6-5; 239) but I'm not sure what linebacker spot they are even working him into, nevermind whether or not he can play in the NFL.  It makes you wonder if the Giants might not give Mathias Kiwanuka a few snaps there (again) just in case.

So if I'm right (and despite what my wife says I think I sometimes am) the week 1 backers will be Sintim, Goff, and Boley.  They may be a  far cry from the Lawrence Taylor, Carl Banks, and Harry Carson days--hell they are a far cry from the Reggie Torbor, Antonio Pierce, and Kawika Mitchell days--but they are what we got, and they will be better than what we saw on the field at the end of last year.

Where Have You Gone Harry Carson?

The inspiration for this blog came in the form of a simple question: "Who the hell is going to be the Giants' middle linebacker?" I was asked this in an email from a friend, and it is the question that is on the mind of every Giants fan. How could it not be? I mean, we don't exactly have a Harry Carson on the roster right now. The OLB's seem set with Michael Boley and Clint Sintim apparent shoe-ins to be the starting WLB, and SLB, respectively (we'll get to how I feel about them in a later entry). But the middle is an open competition.

Reports from OTA's are that Jonathan Goff is taking most of the snaps with the first team defense. As the incumbent, Goff has got to be the favorite to start week 1. Not sure how to feel about that since Goff did not exactly wow anyone last year--in fact, he seemed to disappear most of the time. Still, the Giants organization have expressed some faith in him, claiming the poor play of the defense in general, especially the defensive tackles last year hampered the young linebacker's progression. And, let's face it, everyone looked confused and pathetic under Bill Sheridan's defensive tutelage. New defensive coordinator Perry Fewell is known as a Tampa-2 guy, which generally requires an athletic backer in the middle who can cover. This is not Goff's strength. However, according to some reports, Fewell is very open to adapting his system to fit the personnel, and is not averse to playing a more aggressive (i.e. blitzing) defense. Be that as it may, I have to imagine he isn't going to abandon running the defense that got him this job, and the NFC east is loaded with good pass catching TE's and RB's, so I have to question Goff's ability to hold onto the starting job long-term. The Giants also made no secret of the fact that they were targeting Rolando McClain in the draft, so no matter what they say now, it's clear they must have some questions about Goff's ability to be anything more than a short term stop-gap. The problem is, who else can do it? Here's a look at the other options:

Philip Dillard -- I think the Giants do believe Dillard has a chance to be a long-term solution at MLB, and he seems to be a Fewell type of player, but I can't believe a 4th-round draft choice will be in line to start early in the season. However, I wouldn't be shocked if he starts to push Goff for playing time late in the year.

Gerris Wilkinson -- Wilkinson supposedly has the talent, but who the hell would know it? A stiff breeze knocks this guy out for a month--my bet is he is not even on the roster come week 1.

Bryan Kehl -- I think Kehl is the dark horse in this race. He's probably a better fit as a WLB, but he seems to be athletic enough to have a shot at playing the middle in a Tampa-2. If he can't make it as a 3-down MLB, I could see him replacing Goff on 3rd downs.

Chase Blackburn -- Oh Chase. Who doesn't love this guy? Unfortunately, he's just not that good, and is nothing more than a solid back-up/special teamer.

Michael Boley -- Some have speculated Boley may move inside, with presumably Kehl taking his place on the weakside. I don't buy this for a second, if either of these two end up in the middle it will be Kehl not Boley.

Zak Deossie -- I think Deossie is special--as in nothing more than a special teamer.

Lee Campbell and Micah Johnson -- These two undrafted free agent signings likely have no chance of starting this year, but the fact the Giants went out and actively signed two MLB's after the draft concerns me a bit. This is not a team that is comfortable with that position right now.

If I were writing this article a year ago, I could have written the same piece about the Giants' WR corps. Just like this year, Jerry Reese and Tom Coughlin were saying "we have guys on the roster that we expect to step in and perform," and just like this year, no one was believing them. Well, as it turned out, they were right and we were wrong then--could it be again? I sure hope so, but right now it's hard to be encouraged. Maybe the reason the Giants haven't gotten around to retiring Harry Carson's number yet is because they are hoping he'll come back and play MLB for them this year.

Sunny New Jersey Set to Host Superbowl XLVIII

It was closer than expected, and it took 4 rounds of voting, but it’s finally a done deal. The 2014 Superbowl will be hosted in the greatest state in the union—yeah, yeah I know, insert lame “armpit of America” joke here. New York City will get all the credit, and host all of the pre-game hoopla, but the game will be played in the "wetlands" (euphemism for swamps) of East Rutherford. The debate over whether or not weather should affect a game as “important” as the Superbowl has raged on in talk radio stations since this bid was announced, and frankly I’m bored with the discussion. You always run the risk of there being bad weather if you play the game outside (see Superbowl XLI). New Jersey (particularly Northeastern Jersey) is not exactly Minnesota. In all likelihood there will be no snow. There might be rain, it will be cold, and there will probably be wind, but get over it. Really, get over it. Life isn't fair. Isn't it an advantage for a dome team to play a Superbowl indoors? In my opinion, fairness is overrated.

And let’s stop the “slippery slope” nonsense while we’re at it. New York City is a special place, and that’s the only reason why the new Meadowlands Stadium (by the way, smart move not naming the stadium yet, the cost of the naming rights probably just doubled) was considered for this. The day the NFL agrees to play the Superbowl in Cleveland will be the day Tom Coughlin puts on a clown suit and does the Macarena at midfield during the halftime show (speaking of half-time shows, I know he just played Superbowl XLIII, but is there anyway Bruce Springsteen doesn’t make an appearance?). The only other city I could possibly see getting a shot as a result of this would be Washington, DC with its milder climate and “Nation’s Capital” angle. Dan Snyder might just build another new stadium to help make that happen. I've heard grumbles of Green Bay, but I'm not buying that just yet (Wisconsin is heck of a lot colder than NJ and I can't see the usual Superbowl crowd sitting in bleachers).

Roger Goodell, for all his faults (see his sputtering opening remarks at the 2010 draft), has shown that he is not afraid to try new things (see that same draft’s format). The old saying is “if you ain’t growing, you’re dying” and the NFL under Goodell has taken that approach. A Superbowl in the shadow of the New York City skyline will be one heck of spectacle, and I for one can't wait.

Welcome!

There is nothing worse than a fat know it all, but, unfortunately for all of you, that's exactly what I am. I'm a fat greasy Italian from North Jersey, and I love the New York Giants. This blog will be depot for me to unload all of my fat aggression, praise, irrational declarations, biased opinions, predictions, and whatever the hell else I feel like talking about that is in anyway related to the New York Football Giants.

Check back often, as I hope to have things up and running soon!