Super Mario Manningham Shows the New York Giants He Has Serious Game

Had Mario Manningham stayed at the University of Michigan for his senior year, there is little doubt that he would have been taken in the first or second round of this year’s NFL Draft.

Instead, Manningham left Michigan after head coach Lloyd Carr retired in 2007, choosing to forego his final year of eligibility and try his luck in the NFL.

The New York Giants were looking for a young receiver to backfill the potential void that would be left by Amani Toomer, also a former Wolverine, who they did not plan to re-sign after the 2008 season.

Manningham fit the mold perfectly. After seeing him grab 72 receptions for 1,174 yards and 12 touchdowns as a junior in 2007, the Giants selected Manningham in the third round of the 2008 draft, but soon would realize that the college wunderkind was still a bit green.

Before the draft, scouts had downgraded Manningham because he had failed several drug tests for marijuana and his reported Wonderlic score was 6 out 50. But in all actuality, he was just another kid and neither of those things kept the Giants from drafting him. He has been nothing but a hard worker and a team player since he arrived here.

The truth about the rookie wideout was that the explosiveness was there but his frame was slight and he could not tangle with with pro defensive backs the way he did on the collegiate level. He got touched up in training camp, which sent him to the bottom of the team’s depth chart.

The Giants didn’t really need Manningham to produce right out of the box. Toomer was still in front of him as was Plaxico Burress, Steve Smith and Sinorice Moss.

He was at least a year away.

That year is here. Manningham has become a favorite target of QB Eli Manning, working from the slot as well as the outside. The electricity he had in Ann Arbor is now being displayed in East Rutherford.

Yesterday, Super Mario was one of seven receivers that caught passes for the Giants, but it was his elusive 30-yard tap dance down the sideline for the team’s only offensive touchdown that had people talking.

The usually grounded Manning seemed excited about his newest weapon. “Mario did some real good things today. He’s got a lot of ability. That touchdown pass was all him. That’s what we need…our receivers to makes some plays, make guys miss and get some yards after the catch.”

Manningham downplayed his efforts. “I was trying not to run out of bounds. We work on that in practice. I’m just one receiver in our receiver corp. We all can make plays.”

Not like that. His moves may just be a preview to a long and productive career for the New York Football Giants.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Fatty’s Iron-Clad NFL Picks for Week 1

Yes, the ultimate guru is back!

The paunchy prognosticator is in the house to provide his followers with his uncanny ability to pick football games.

Last year, the obese oracle went 41-10 in the regular season, and an incredible 10-1 in the post-season. When he speaks (usually with his mouth full), you should pay attention.

Week One’s Three Best Bets

SAINTS (-13) over Lions

The Lions didn’t win a game last season. Odds are they’ll win a few this year. This ain’t one of them. The Saints and Drew Brees can score loads of points on anyone, period. Detroit’s quest for a win will have to wait.

New Orleans will empty their guns on the improved Lions, who are starting a rookie at QB. This is a layup. If this were a boxing match, it would be like a heavyweight fighting a lightweight. Ugly. Lay that lumber.

Bears (+4) over PACKERS

Regardless of personnel, never lay more than three points in this rivalry. That being said, I am going to make a habit of taking points with Jay Cutler.

The Bears steamrolled the Giants‘ first-string defense in the pre-season. If they could do that, what are they going to do to Green Bay?

The Packers will need to score 30 points in this game to win. If you think they can do that, good for you. Hand over your money right now. This game is a take all the way.

BROWNS (+4) over Vikings

Everyone’s taking the Vikings, which is good. Maybe the spread will climb to five. Under Brad Childress, the Twin City chokers have gone 4-7 in the month of September.

Now they go to Cleveland, outdoors on grass—not their best venue—going only 4-11 over the past three seasons on natural turf.

Still wanna lay the points? Go ahead. They may win, but not by four…

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

How Technology Has Changed the NFL Experience

Let me premise this piece by stating that I am considered “old-school” when it comes to the NFL. Let me also state that I possess a 21st century B.A. in media studies. I know a few things about a few things…

I loved the way the NFL used to taste, smell, feel, and sound. I loved the sound of voices such as Pat Summerall, Marty Glickman, Ray Scott, Charlie Jones, and Curt Gowdy. I loved the way the game was played over makeshift fields in baseball stadiums.

I loved the smell of the cigars and stale beer in the old Yankee Stadium. A time when the Rams wore blue and white, the Cardinals were in St. Louis, and coaches had names like Landry, Lombardi, Brown, Ewbank, Grant, Shula, and Allen.

Those days are long gone, distant memories of my boyhood. The league has come a long way since then and brought technology along for the ride. Some people my age (49) have ridden it out. Others cherry-pick what they can still relate to and follow the game in a tertiary manner.

Technology has affected the NFL just as it has the other aspects of American life. No longer do we need to be present to be accounted for. We can all meet in McLuhan’s “global village,” the barber shop and corner bar of the new millennium. You know it as the Internet.

I am one of the few from my generation that has navigated through the changes, mainly because I saw most of them coming. In fact, I was one of the drivers of that change. I have a Shelley-esque sentiment about that. The monster I help create is now roaming through the countryside and its taking no prisoners.

Here’s a short list of items that many of you take for granted or do not even realize that they have occurred or are occurring:

1. Fantasy Football

In the beginning, it was pockets of a dozen guys or so in garages, conference rooms, backrooms of bars, Joe’s basement, etc. Now it’s a massive online enterprise with collective revenues in the hundreds of millions.

Everyone’s got a team or a part of a team. Many are learning about football through fantasy leagues or other gambling-type games. The fantasy mentality has crept into the mainstream football train of thought. Football “experts” these days are nothing but stat regurgitators—fantasy players who hold yards and points in a higher regard than a team’s victories.

That’s dangerous. Although I was integral in popularizing fantasy football and defining its rules, I never mistook it for the actual game itself. Football is still a game of big, strong, fast men colliding with each other at high speeds. Fantasy players tend to forget this “hat-on-hat” aspect of the game.

That is why when “unsexy” teams such as the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants win the Super Bowl, fantasy fanatics are shocked. They wonder how those teams were able to beat statistical darlings such as Tom Brady, Randy Moss, Kurt Warner, and Larry Fitzgerald.

2. Blogs

No one has been contributing to as many blogs as I have been for the past decade, especially when it comes to the Giants. In culling the major blogs around the net, I uncovered a startling fact. Many Giants bloggers are not in the NY-Metro area. Some of them have never even been to a Giants home game.

That is outrageous. Its like an astronaut who’s never been to the moon telling you what it’s like to walk on the moon. Yet, their “opinion” is lumped in with mine, a lifelong New Yorker who has attended hundreds of Giants games in four stadiums in three states over the past 43 years.

There is no way their articles come from the same passion, knowledge, or genesis that mine do. Many of them are just repeating the words of myself and others who have had our tents up here for years. But readers on the Internet don’t know that. They think all Giants bloggers are in New York.

This is not just happening in New York. It’s everywhere. Blogs are a good source for stories, op-eds, and sometimes even facts. I try to stick to the facts while others practice yellow with sensational headlines and ridiculous accusations.

3. Online Ticket Brokers

There was a time when only the vigilant would go to the games. They had to be vigilant just to score tickets. Season tickets, before they became outrageously priced, were the hardest things to get here in New York for the past several decades.

Now with the new stadium on the horizon, many of those season ticket holders have been priced out. You can go to any game you want here, providing you have the scratch.

But it’s the current state of football tickets that is an even more interesting story.

Season ticket holders are being permitted to resell their tickets through secondary markets on the Internet. This is a great opportunity for non-ticket holders to finally get to go to some games.

All of this takes place on the Internet. Season ticket holders put their tickets up for sale in an online auction, hoping to recoup some of the high costs they inherently incur for maintaining the privilege of having an account with the team.

The downside is simple. Anyone can buy the tickets. Last year, many cash-strapped Giants fans re-marketed their tickets for the playoff game vs Philadelphia. The result? Thousands of Eagles fans scarfed them up, changing the dynamic of the stadium.

That is happening everywhere. The dyed-in-the-wool fans are not going to the games anymore. Instead, they sell their tickets to the highest bidders, who are usually fans of the opponent or business-types from out of town.

 

4. Cable/Satellite Television and Radio

When is enough enough? I say that every day when I turn on my TV. There is just too much of everything on television these days. Now, if you miss a program, you can retrieve it through either DVR, VOD, or TiVO.

One of the genres that has gotten supersaturated through the excessive medium of television is sports. Almost every college basketball and football game is televised these days. Every NFL game can be had for a price as well.

Not only are all the games accessible, but so is all the conjecture, analysis, prognostication, etc.

It’s simply overkill. There comes a point where it just gets to be too much. Brett Favre, Michael Vick, Plaxico Burress. It’s overboard. I’m sure the guy who cures AIDS or cancer won’t get this much exposure. It’s no wonder the Chinese are beating us to everything that matters these days…

John Fennelly is the founder of blogNYG.com, the fastest-growing blog in the NFL.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Giants Poised To Surprise Opponents Through the Air

“Fasten Your Seatbelt” Sign Officially On

The biggest question going into this season was “Can the Giants‘ put some mojo back in to their passing attack?” That question, of course, was prompted by the glaring hole left in the offense by the untimely departure of Plaxico Burress.

The last time we saw the Giants’ passing game in action, they looked feeble, small and weak. QB Eli Manning looked lost. The powerful Giants, who were on their way back to the Super Bowl, were sent packing by the Eagles who played full tilt in the absence of Burress, who they could never solve.

The mismatches that made the Giants so difficult for the Eagles to prepare for were no longer. TE Jeremy Shockey, who played Moby Dick to Eagle safety Brian Dawkins‘ Ahab, had been traded before the season. Burress’ “accident” got him suspended and subsequently jailed. He regularly roamed through the Eagles’ height-challenged secondary with impunity.

Teams had to make a choice on who they wanted to cover: Shockey, Burress or the ground game. By last January, those choices were down to one, and it was the easiest of the three for Philadelphia to handle. The Giants crashed back to Earth.

In the offseason, GM Jerry Reese fended off the temptation of trading for an established No. 1 wideout, even though it would have been a welcome move. The price for such players as Braylon Edwards, Anquan Boldin and Brandon Marshall was simply too high for the fiduciary-minded Reese.

“There are other ways to win games.” he said in grounded fashion.

Instead, he rolled the dice in the NFL Draft and took three very interesting and intriguing athletes to augment the passing attack.

The first round pick was a no-brainer. North Carolina WR Hakeem Nicks is an acrobatic receiver with tons of potential. He reminds viewers of former Dallas Cowboys great Michael Irvin. Reese snatched him up with the 29th overall selection.

Later on, in Round Three, he grabbed Cal Poly‘s 6’6″ Ramses Barden and Wisconsin TE Travis Beckum. Barden would hopefully fill in some of the void left by Burress while Beckum would add another big, versatile body to send into enemy territory.

So far, Reese’s vigilance is paying off. Nicks led the NFL in receiving yards this preseason. He also showed the propensity to make big plays with his steely concentration and sticky hands.

Beckum and Barden are still finding their way around the Giants’ offense. Barden is physically imposing, but has yet to translate that size to his advantage in an actual game. It will come. Beckum is foolishly being tinkered with at the H-back position, a formation the club did not have in its playbook before drafting him.

It’s only a matter of time before these two join Nicks as playmakers.

These three join five returning players (Steve Smith, Domenik Hixon, Mario Manningham, Sinorice Moss and Derek Hagen) to form a unit that no one is harboring any respect for.

The starters, for now, are Hixon and Smith, with Kevin Boss as the tight end. They are starting because that is where the club left off in January. By this January, the picture promises to be much different.

Nicks will be a starter, and soon, the way he is progressing. Moss can get deep much like his famous sibling, Santana, the Redskins’ Pro-Bowler. Manningham has been getting a lot of first-looks from QB Eli Manning. Smith is a reliable player with excellent field sense. Hixon and Hagen are on the roster mainly because they showed grit on special teams. Don’t be fooled—they can catch passes, too.

This diverse group may just be the best receiving unit the Giants have had in the past half-century. Teams that underestimate them may find themselves down by two or three touchdowns in the first half. It’s very possible.

The Eagles, the team that usually vexes the Giants in big games, will once again stack the box with nine players, throttling the run and daring Manning to beat them with his new crop of receivers.

This time, we’re betting he will.

John Fennelly is the founder/publisher of blogNYG.com, the largest fan-based Giants’ blog on the Internet.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

NY Giants Get Down to 53: Cuts Include Super Bowl XLII Hero David Tyree

Super Bowl XLII hero David Tyree’s greatest game as a Giant turned out to be his last.

The 29-year-old former Pro Bowler was released by the Giants today as they cut their roster down to the mandatory 53 players. Tyree will always be remembered for his legendary catch in the Super Bowl and his tenacious special teams play.

It is being reported that there are multiple teams seeking Tyree’s services, even though he hasn’t played much this summer due to a sore hamstring. Tyree spent all of 2008 season on injured reserve with a knee injury.

The team shed themselves of a total of 20 players today. One of the 20 players waived was surprisingly reported to be TE Michael Matthews.

Matthews had been considered a lock to make the roster as the third TE behind Kevin Boss and rookie Travis Beckum. Instead, the Giants kept Darcy Johnson, who has more upside as a receiver.

The Giants sensing Mathews was too good to cut, decided to trade him instead – to New England for a conditional draft pick.

The other players waived were: QBs Andre’ Woodson and Rhett Bomar, DE Maurice Evans, CB DeAndre Wright, OL Cliff Louis, LB Kenny Ingram, DT Jeremy Clark, S Travonti Johnson, S Sha’reff Rashad, DE Robert Henderson, DT Orrin Thompson, S Vince Anderson, DT Anthony Bryant, WR Shaun Bodiford, DL Tommie Hill, RB Allen Patrick, OL Terrance Pennington, and FB Dwayne Wright.

Some of the players that were waived could get re-signed to the practice squad, providing they clear waivers.

For the first time, the Giants have cut players drafted by GM Jerry Reese. Interestingly enough, all eight players he selected in the 2007 draft are still on the roster. Five of the seven he drafted in 2008 are still here as well.

The final three selections in this draft (Rhett Bomar, DeAndre Wright, and Stoney Woodson) were all cut, but that doesn’t mean Reese didn’t have any “finds.”

The Giants will start the season with six rookies rookies on their roster: WRs Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden; LB Clint Sintim, TE Travis Beckum, OT Will Beatty, and undrafted free agent CB Bruce Johnson.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Eagles May Have Unplanned QB Controversy On Their Hands

Porch is Only Big Enough For One Dog

From the day the announcement was made by the Philadelphia Eagles that they had signed Michael Vick, I smelled smoke.  The smoke of a slow-burning fire that may end up spreading out of control.

Whether the Eagles or their fans want to believe it or not, they have awakened the proverbial sleeping dog (pun intended).

They have a QB controversy in the making. Andy Reid tells us that Vick and Donovan McNabb will both see action.  He claims that Vick opens up his offense to all types of possibilities.

Reid also tells us that McNabb is his starter and there is no room for negotiation on the issue.

He’s right in both cases.  Vick does bring an unquantifiable dimension to his club and McNabb is a franchise quarterback with a long record of successes.

But what Reid is not letting the public know is that he is walking on ice in this situation. This isn’t Montana-Young or Bledsoe-Brady.  These are two proud players in their primes.

McNabb was booed during last night’s preseason game vs the Jaguars, a regular occurence since he became an Eagle in 1999.  Vick came in the game and gave the crowd a glimpse of what he could still do on the football field.

Immediately, the synapses snapped into place.  I asked myself, “What happens if McNabb lays an egg?  Will Reid go to Vick right away?” Then I wondered, “How long before the controversy starts?”

Answer: it started already.

I knew once Vick got blood in his mouth again, he’d want more.  He’s a former superstar who once had the game’s biggest contract. He’s not going to be content on the sidelines for very long.

McNabb has a tendency to have some really bad games; some inconsistent games.  Philly fans do not have the patience for that any longer.  They will call for Vick and they will call for him loudly.

You can have running backs by committee, defensive line rotations, etc., but quarterback is not a platoon-able position on a football team.  The Eagles are under the illusion that it is.

Andy Reid is about to fall through the ice.

 

Giants Football Reporter Becomes Latest Casualty Of Media Convergence

Ernie Palladino Is Without A Home After 33 Years

Those of us who have joined the sports reporting arena in the last decade saw the writing on the wall.  Others, who worked in the print media were slow to adapt to the transition of media forms from hard copy to electronic.

I’m not saying Ernie was one of them. He did have a blog and he did use Twitter. His employer, The Journal News – a fixture in the Lower Hudson Valley, is experiencing what many print-centric news providers (newspapers) are these days: dwindling circulation, reduced advertising revenue and massive layoffs.

Ernie was let go by the Journal News this week. That means he won’t be at Giants Stadium this year and he won’t be providing that veteran insight that we have all come to know and love.

Perhaps he will catch on somewhere else.  Maybe some of these excessed sportswriters can work for Bleacher Report in some capacity.  Then again, maybe its time for sports journalism to keep moving forward.

That’s too bad  – for everyone.

As one of the internet’s senior blog/writers, I find that the old-school reporters are still the best.  They know how to get the story, get it straight, frame it and produce it in a matter of minutes.  

Most web ‘journalists’ simply don’t have the background. Everything is done remotely and the stories are usually second-hand accounts.  Sure there are reporters who work strictly for the web, but there are few readers who have the ability to separate the  seasoned reporters from the 13-year-old bloggers anymore.

You can thank social media and open-source for that. It has its positives but its negatives are far worse.

The internet reader is more likely to read a piece based on conjecture then they are to read one based in fact.  Its the just the lay of the land.

I would like to see more veterans on sites like Bleacher Report to help raise the bar on web reporting.

John Fennelly is the founder/publisher of blogNYG.com, New York’s fastest-growing fan-based blog.

For a Team as Good as the New York Giants, Only the Bad News Makes Headlines

For teams as talented as the Giants, the only news that can make headlines is bad news.

It is only natural for the media to try to expose the negatives of something publicly deemed as positive. In the Giants’ case, every injury, every dropped pass, every little failure has been exemplified and magnified to the 10th power.

Blogs, talking heads, pundits and beat reporters are all looking for an angle. It’s a very competitive business.

We realize that we cannot shut our eyes to the fact that the Giants’ corps of young receivers has not distinguished themselves. We are also under no illusions that injuries have not, and will not hurt this team.

That being said, the Giants are still a powerhouse in the NFC. They were 12-4 in 2008 and this year’s roster is definitely deeper.

Their offensive line is still one of the best. Their running attack, tops in the league in 2008, may be better than ever.

They have Eli Manning, who despite his detractors, IS a franchise quarterback. They also have Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, Antonio Pierce, Chris Snee, Shaun O’Hara, and Jeff Feagles. All Pro Bowlers.

They have young bucks coming up through the ranks who show enormous promise: Kenny Phillips, Mathias Kiwanuka, Mario Manningham, Clint Sintim, and Bryan Kehl.

They have Kevin Boss.

So, they have a few injuries, big deal. Didn’t they win the Super Bowl without Tiki Barber and Jeremy Shockey?

Don’t read too much into the negatives, Giant fans. The positives are too great to ignore.

New York Giants: Tuesday Morning News and Notes

Are The Giants Leaving U Albany?

The Giants will break camp today in Albany. Although they set a single-summer attendance record, they may opt not to return.

One of the possibilities is the new Timex Performance Center across from Giants’ Stadium, but co-owner John Mara did not rule out a return to Albany or perhaps “another destination.”

The Giants have held their training camp at the University of Albany for the past 14 summers.

 

Carr Falling Into Old Habits

QB coach Chris Palmer and Head Coach Tom Coughlin are concerned that David Carr is regressing back to his old form. You remember, the one that made him skittish and ineffective in his days in Houston? Palmer used a horse analogy when describing the action plan.

“We’re in the process of retraining him” said Palmer.

 

Injury News

DT Chris Canty is in New York to have his torn hamstring evaluated. He could be headed to IR.

CB Aaron Ross practiced lightly. He has missed both preseason games thus far with a sore hamstring.

DT Jay Alford is on a two-week medical watch. Doctors have stabilized his knee in hopes of saving him from the knife. No decision on his status will be made until the brace is removed.

OGs Chris Snee and Rich Seubert both practiced and may see action vs the Jets.

OLB Michael Boley (hip) is still relegated to individual workouts, but his progress has seemed to please Coughlin (”He’s looking better”).

John Fennelly is the founder / publisher of blogNYG.com, the fastest-growing blog in NY sports.

Tom Coughlin Warns Giants To Ignore the Hype

Tom Coughlin stood before the media yesterday reminding us that regardless of what is written and said, his team has yet to prove themselves on the field.

He was referring to the depth of the defensive line, of course, the unit that has been receiving a boatload of praise this summer. The same unit that was steamrolled by the Chicago Bears Saturday night.

“I don’t know what you’re watching,” said Coughlin. “The players who are supposed to be the depth haven’t even practiced yet. You’re talking about something that looks good but hasn’t really materialized.”

The defensive line has taken some injury hits and had not gotten a chance to show it’s full potential. It has been revealed that Chris Canty is recovering from a torn hamstring and Jay Alford’s season could be over with a double tear in his knee. Rocky Bernard and Fred Robbins just returned to action this week.

Coughlin also seemed frustrated with the lack of statistical data needed to properly gauge the progress of the wide receivers. Injuries to the offensive line have led the quarterbacks to dump the ball off to the backs rather than look downfield for the wide outs. The starting guards, Chris Snee and Rich Seubert should both be available for Saturday’s game against the Jets.

Through all of the uncertainty the constant of the Giants’ running game continued to stand out. The combination of Brandon Jacobs, Danny Ware and Ahmad Bradshaw racked up 115 yards on 21 carries and another 46 yards on seven receptions.

The unit has been been a strong one since the day Coughlin and RB coach Jerald Ingram took the reins in 2004. Even in defeat, the rushing attack remains successful.

John Fennelly is an accredited member of the media covering the Giants for several major news outlets.

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