A Fitting End

The Sports Guy calls it a "stomach punch" game. That is exactly how I felt after the Giants game. Not only did i feel it in my stomach though, my legs were wobbly and I was light headed. No matter how you felt about the Giants going into the game, if you were a Giant fan you had to be pumped with 5:04 to go and Plaxico catching a touchdown pass to tie it. Following that, an all too familiar scene ensued. The Giants defense failed to make a big stop and the Eagles marched down the field with ease to kick a game-winning field goal as time ran out.

As I pointed out prior to the game, this was a weird situation for Giant fans. Many dislike the coach, are frustrated with the QB, and are disenchanted with the attitude of many veteran players. This game did not help Giant fans. Not only did they lose, but it was in typical fashion. The Giants continued to battle, shoot themselves in the foot, and keep you on the edge of your seat. In the end though, they once again, lost in devastating fashion, this time to end this tumultuous season.

The first question that people will ask is what will happen with the head coach? Many people feel that Coughlin should be fired. In my mind there are three main reasons for this. First of all is team discipline. He came in three years ago preaching it, yet his players have continued to make dumb penalties/plays, and run their mouths off the field. Secondly is the play of the QB. Coughlin (and the GM) will forever be linked with this QB, being that they traded so much for him. Whether it is the QBs' fault, or the coaches fault, he has not developed as rapidly as the team or fans would have liked. This lack of improvement is a reflection on both the coahc and the QB. Lastly, his overall persona towards the media is a problem. He has not made any friends with how he has acted and because of that he has made himself into a martyr. That is not what you want to be in this town. Rarely can one man win a battle against the media in New York. When you combine the first two issues with the third, he has a major problem.

I do not know what I want though. I am definitely not happy with Coughlin right now. No matter what kind of injuries the Giants had this season, I thought that the Giants should have been at least 10-6 this season. I have not given up on him though. There is a part of me that believes that this season might be the best thing for this franchise. By the end of this season I felt that the team had been humbled, by both its record and its beatdown by the fans/media. It had hung together and fought its brains out in Washington and Philly these past two weeks. The thought of bringing in a new coach and starting from scratch really scares me. The Jets made it look easy this season with Mangini, but it often does not go like that. Change often does not go smoothly. At this moment I still believe, even with all the problems, that if Coughlin is back and they make the proper adjustments in the offseason (plus the QB shows improvement), that the Giants can be in the Super Bowl hunt.

While I am not trying to make Mangini into some sort of Messiah, there is one thing that I have heard him say through out the season. Finish. Finish blocks, finish tackles, finish games, finish seasons. What bothers me most about the 2006 Giants is that they did not finish. They were 6-2 in the first half and 2-6 in the second half. Today they tied the game in the fourth and then the defense rolled over when it mattered. They did not finish the way I would have like them to. This feeling is what makes me so torn on the coach. This is definitely another reflection on him, yet I do not want to have to go through another offseason of radical change. While I am not enamored with Coughlin, I still believe he has what it takes to win. I also believe that through these tough times, the team has rallied around him. In the upcoming days we will hear players thoughts, and the owners will make a decision, but right now the loss really hurts, as does the cloudy prospects for the future. In addition part of me is realizing that if Coughlin is brought back, the media will be licking their chops even more. Whatever.

As far as the game itself goes, it was tough. Eli did not play very well, but he did make a couple big plays. His stats actually look better than he looked. The D-Line got barely any push, and rarely pressured Garcia. Westbrook ran well, and made the big play that I feared. Tiki played well, as did Plaxico. Shockey gutted one out, but the offensive line penalties were killers. In the end though, I will remember this game as one more example in the long line of Giant losses in the Fassell/Coughlin era where the defense can not make a big stop at the end of the game. It has happened time and time again going back to the 1997 playoff loss at home to the Vikings. They need something to happen on that defense. That basically all I can say on that.

In the end the Giants lost the way it seems they were meant to all along. There are no clear solutions to the problems they endured all year. They battled, both against the Eagles and within themselves. It is probably a 50-50 call on whether the coach will stay and the QB is still a major question mark. I just hope that this ownership group can show the class and patience of their fathers. With Wellington Mara and Bob Tisch I always knew that even if the decision they made was wrong, they would go about their business the right way. This is the first major obstacle of their sons. I am looking forward to seeing how they respond, and how the Giants rebound.

Jets

Sorry Jet fans that I can not go into detail on them. The Giants sapped the life out of me. All I know is that you should be proud of two things. The team played hard from the first preseason game to the playoffs. While the score is the more lopsided loss in jet history, anyone watching that game knows how close it really was. Secondly, your future is in good hands with Mangini/Tannenbaum/Schottenheimer. The offense will only get better with a running game, and you know the hole they need to fill on defense. From a Giants fan perspective that is the one aspect I envy most of the Jets. You know where you are where where you want to go. The Giants are still trying to figure out where the franchise is before it moves forward.

As far as your game goes, besides the fact that the Jets could not atop the Pats from moving the ball all day, I felt the game changed on two plays. Third and goal on the Jets two yard line with 14 seconds remaining and no timeouts, Tom Brady threw a TD. If the jets force a FG their they have some momentum going into the half. The other was the lateral that Pennington threw that was knocked down, but no Jet player realized the ball was still live. The pats were up seven at the time, and went in to kick a FG to make it a two score game. The Jets knew they could not stop the Pats offense, so they needed to stay within one score. They ended up cutting it to a one score game again, but the Pats marched back down for a TD. The biggest overall problem for the Jets (besides overall defense) was their red zone offense. This is where their lack of a running game really showed up. If you can't run the ball in the red zone, then you are going to suffer. The Jets battled to the end though, and you could tell from the players reactions after the game that they truly thought they would win.

I would enjoy thoughts of any legit Giants or Jets fans on what happened on this potential legendary New York football day, which turned into the opposite.

Morning After...

It is now 8:25 AM the next morning. I just want to make a couple more points about the NFL/Giants...

• Something I meant to mention about Coughlin that I didn't was the manner in which he fired his offensive coordinator. I have no problem with him firing the man. I do have an issue with not taking the play calling responsibilities over himself. He was trying to change the offense before a must win game and he put the play calling in the hands of someone else and not in himself. I do not like that. If you are going to go down, don't you think you want to have control in your own hands (ie Fassel in 2002, Billick this season, etc).
• Another point on the Giant QB. Something that has never been brought up that I feel could be affecting his development is the addition of Plaxico Burress. No one dispute that Plaxico is a great receiver and can make catches in tight spots, but the fact is he has potentially effected the QB in a negative way. Plaxico rarely gets separation from the defender, but when he is defended one on one, Eli will throw high and Plaxico is in good position to catch the ball. The reason I say this could be having a negative influence on Eli is that now he is in the habit of throwing high and his mechanics are falling apart. In addition, he has fallen in love with Plaxico when he is one on one, and he fails to get into a rhythm with his other receivers. Look at a guy like Tom Brady. He is the exact opposite of this. The coaches need to drill that he needs to spread the ball around.
• Last thing on Peytons' little brother. He had a disappointing season, but you have to understand that he will be the starting QB next season. If you rank all the QBs in the league he is probably between 18-20 of 32. Next season is it for his Giants career.
• Giant needs, of the top of my head. Another reliable receiver (Moss could step up or Toomer could recover), a playmaking linebacker, veteran back-up QB, secondary help.
• For all the KC Chief fans out there, Saturday was the epitome of a herm Edwards team. He says before the game that Trent Green will have a short leash. The offense proceeds to not only be shutout in the first half, but have ZERO first downs!! What kind of a "long leash" is that??? He sticks with Green while his defense is keeping his team in the game. You have Peyton Manning doing his annual playoff turnover special, but if your team can't score at some Manning will get it together. That's' exactly what happened, and a game the Chiefs could have won, was lost because the coach showed no balls.
• Congrats to Rambone. It'll be tough going into NOLA next weekend, but beating a division rival is sweet enough, especially after this tough season.
• Another thing on the Jets. It will be interesting to see how they respond next season. They were one of the healthiest teams in the NFL this year, and had an easy schedule. Next season that is unlikely to happen, plus teams will be gunning for them. Mangini used the underdog role a lot this season. It will be fun to see the adjustments they make next year.
• Lastly on the NFC East. Giant fans need to recognize that the other teams in the division will be experiencing crazy offseasons as well. The Cowboys and Redskins are self-explanatory. The Eagles meanwhile (assuming they lose in NOLA) have an interesting QB situation with McNabb coming off of an ACL injury. Garcia will probably be let go, but at age 30, McNabb may never be the same mobility wise.
• I have said it all along...I will be the first to say it now that they are matched up. The Patriots will go into San Diego and beat the Chargers. Who would you rather have, Schottenheimer/Rivers or Bellichuk/Brady? Enough said...
• I had a dream last night that it was spring training already....

STKAFI