Probably the greatest enigma of last season was the lack of production from the Giants' defensive ends. That was the one position that the Giants were set at, had plenty of depth, could rotate 3 or 4 guys all day and keep the pressure on opposing quarterbacks..... What the hell happened? Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyora, Mathias Kiwanuka, and Dave Tollefson combined for a pedestrian 16 sacks last season. And it wasn't exactly like they were freeing up other players, as the entire team managed a below league average 32 sacks for the season. Well, injuries certainly played a part. Coming off the knee injury in '08, Umenyora was never 100%, and Tuck was not the same following the shoulder injury he suffered when he was tripped by that dirty fat waste-of-space Flozell Adams. Poor DT play didn't help matters any either, as QB's were able to step up in the pocket without any fear of an inside rush. All that being said, I think the Giants' DE's have gotten complacent, still living off the glory of the Super Bowl XLII and the beating they put on Brady. Worse, I think they're completely overrated. Osi has certainly caught the ire of fans (more on that later), and has often been labeled "overrated." But I'm going to blaspheme for a minute and say that Tuck and Kiwanuka are overrated as well. Bottom line, Justin Tuck has 29 career sacks. Not bad, not great either. Kiwanuka has only 19.5 career sacks. Disappointing I'd say for a first round pick. I'm not saying that Tuck and Kiwanuka--or Osi for that matter--are bad players. But none of them are the dominant players fans like to make them out to be. In retrospect, perhaps 2009 wasn't much of an enigma after all.
Enter Jason Pierre-Paul. The Giants' first round pick was certainly controversial, but that's only because most people are not very bright. The guy is an absolute freak of nature (just look at that picture). Forget about the back-flips, watch actual football video of this guy. He's incredible. Does he look bad at times? No, actually he looks awful at times. But man, when he is on, it is unbelievable. He looks like LT in the original Tecmo Bowl Game. He has absolutely no technique, he doesn't know how to use his hands, and gets too high at times and a result he can be made to look bad when an experienced lineman gets leverage on him. But his motor is out of control, and when he does things right, he is un-blockable. What gets overlooked, is his ability to play the run. He's surprisingly very good at it--something Jerry Reese really emphasized following the selection. Importantly, that means he can play the right side, giving Tuck a reasonable back-up this year and competition in the coming years. Last year, Tollefson was really the only back-up Tuck had--and by seasons end Tuck was clearly worn out. It's going to be a slow road for JPP, but the Giants didn't draft him to be a back-up DE forever. If he lives up to his potentially, he could be the dominant defensive player the Giants have lacked. In addition, I think the Giants are hoping the young freak will motivate the veterans--if for nothing else, just to keep their jobs.
That brings us to the Giants' major off-season headache: Osi Umenyora. Suprisingly, he did lead the Giants' in sacks last season with 7 (yes, that's right the Giants' sack leader only had 7 sacks). But he really, really, really needs to shut up now. He isn't half the player he thinks he is. The drafting of JPP means Osi has no chips left to play his little game. He either earns a starting job or doesn't. He can either like it or not. I hope he steps up. In fact, I hope everyone I just called out steps up. I also hope they never find out who I am and come kick the crap out of me.
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