David Tyree Will Not Make The New York Giants in 2009

Think back to February 3rd, 2008. Any Giants fan can tell you their exact reaction to David Tyree’s fourth quarter performance and more specifically, what some call the greatest play in Super Bowl history. If you were to ask Giants fans if you thought that the last catch he would ever make as a Giant would be the one in which he fought the ball away from Rodney Harrison and pinned the ball up against his helmet, they would say “you’re crazy”.

But the reality is setting in, and David Tyree (the elder statesman of the Giants receiving corps in camp) will simply not be making this team.

The Giants, though they don’t have a No. 1 type of WR, certainly have a deep group of young and exciting receivers. Thus far in camp, Big Blue has also seen Derek Hagan look impressive. Hagan wasn’t even with the Giants until he signed as a free agent this offseason. 

Depending on if Jerry Reese decides to keep five or six players, the receiving brigade should include Steve Smith, Domenik Hixon, Hakeem Nicks, Ramses Barden, Sinorice Moss, and Mario Manningham. Of those players, one of those will have to contribute on special teams to fill David Tyree’s void.

Ultimately, David Tyree is eighth on the depth chart right now, which is unfortunate for a fan favorite, but football is a hard business. What the Giants can do, though, is release him and potentially bring him back in a role with management or community relations if he can’t find another team.

That would be the classy thing to do for an organization that has always acted with class.

The Giants Have a Decision to Make About Eli Manning’s New Contract

I respect the opinion of those who think Eli Manning deserves every penny that he will be paid with his new contract. While he does have a title and a Super Bowl MVP, ultimately the Giants will be bidding against themselves. Around the NFL, he is viewed as a Quarterback who has been blessed with an excellent team around him and a clutch QB. While most people though only look at the latter, Manning at times in inconsistent and the Giants will win games inspite of him rather than because of him.

There aren’t going to be many teams (if any) that will sign Manning if he hits the open market after the 2009 season.  To pay a Quarterback the kind of money that Eli Manning will try to get, is a lot of money for someone who isn’t asked to perform at an excellent level throughout the entire game. 

For the Giants though, he fits in well within their system and is the type of leader that the organization has been coveting since Phil Simms retired.  Manning is worth the money to the Giants, because he has won them a Super Bowl in addition to three other post-season appearances as well as a Pro Bowl. The Giants would be paying him for his past accomplishments.

The NFL is a business, whether anyone wants to admit it or not and if I were anyone making the decisions, I would open up negotiations at a very low number (maybe seven years, $80 Million) while obviously this is a lot of money, it is nowhere near the $120 Million that he is seeking, to make him the highest paid player in NFL history.

The bottom line is that Eli Manning needs to prove himself this year, that without Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer, he can be an effective QB.  If he is able to have a successful season and make some type of playoff run, he will prove that the 2007 championship was not a fluke. If he does all of that, than pay him the money that he deserves. If the Giants are able to capture Super Bowl XLIV than the Giants should hand him a blank check. If not the Giants should try and sign him, but make sure they have enough money to bring in other players to help get them back to the promised land.

Brandon Jacobs: Get the Ball to Him Early and Often

With the Giants’ 2008 season ending unceremoniously with a home playoff loss to the rival Philadelphia Eagles, the Giants will need to find new ways to move the football for 2009. After Plaxico Burress was suspended, the Giants’ offense struggled.

My solution to this? Give the football to Brandon Jacobs early, and give it to him often. 

With Jacobs, it’s not about the yards per carry (even though that number has consistently been around 5.0 for his career), but rather about him tiring out opposing defenses.

Everyone has seen Jacob’s size enable him to fall forward for three yards, and make a positive gain out of a seemingly dead play.

When December came around (think Week 16 against Carolina) no one wanted to tackle Brandon Jacobs, which helped pave way for Derrick Ward to rush for 216 yards on only 15 carries. 

With Jacobs bull-dozing would-be tacklers, opposing teams will have to try and stack eight defenders in the box. This will then open up the deep ball for Eli Manning to the WR playing on the perimeter.

Ultimately, the Giants will be able to make morebig plays down the football field, and teams will respect Eli Manning a little more.

If the Giants are able to get consistent production out of Jacobs, it would help their time of possession. This means that other teams will have to try and throw the ball a lot to get quick scores.

When the Giants’ defense can single in on a passing game, the pass rush will be relentless by sending Justin Tuck, Osi Umeyiora and Mathias Kiwianuka.

The point being, giving the ball to Brandon Jacobs early and often will bring about great success for New York in 2009.

New York Giants Quick Hits

Sinorice Moss has been unable to stay on the field in his short career. 

Moss who was drafted in the Second Round of the 2006 Draft, has shown glimpses that he can play in the NFL; specifically against Seattle this past season when he caught two touchdowns.

Being able to look good in shorts without pads though doesn’t really matter. Without full contact drills, teams are only able to practice running routes and the logistics of the playbook.

In 2007 Plaxico Burress rarely ever practiced, but yet every Sunday he performed and was able to dominate the opposing defense. The point here is simply, it doesn’t matter what someone is able to do in shorts, but rather wait until Moss puts on the pads on Sunday and let’s see what he is able to do.

The Giants and the Jets in 2009 will try and fair better in the last season in their stadium as opposed to how the Yankees and Mets unceremoniously closed their stadiums, missing the playoffs. Although the new stadium should be nicer, it will take a while to accumulate the many great memories like the ones the Giants had in Giants Stadium.

In order to be successful this season, the Giants need to get back to basics, which should be running the ball, sacking the QB not putting the football in harms ways and not committing penalties. If the Giants are able to do this then they can have the type of success that they had during their magical 2007 playoff run.

Chalk Talk: Why The Giants Shouldn’t Run Brandon Jacobs Outside As Much

Brandon Jacobs is a 6’4″, 260-pound feature back who over the past couple of years has shown he can run anywhere.  Conventional wisdom, though, would say that he should try sticking between the tackles, and bull linebackers and other second and third level tacklers.

For Jacobs to succeed running the ball inside, the interior linemen Shaun O’Hara, Chris Snee and Rich Seubert need to dominate the guy in front (a DT or LB) of them in order for Jacobs to run in the 0-4 holes.  When Jacobs runs to the outside (holes 5-8) it takes him a longer time to move right and left than rather going north and south. 

Giving the ball to him on a toss doesn’t make much sense because of his speed, but that’s the solution.  The tackle to the play side is isolated to hook the outermost in the front seven whether it be a 4-3 DE in a loose nine technique or an OLB in a 3-4.  I like running up the middle with Jacobs because the play deals with more team- or zone-oriented blocking schemes than a critical one-on-one match up on the outside. The reason the Giants OL is so great is because their work as a team and running a toss play hurts the oppositions’ strengths.

In a toss play the opposite tackle essentially has a role of getting a second or third level tackler, which once again takes away from the strength of the OL working as a team.  If the Giants are going to run a toss play with Jacobs, they should consider pulling the offside guard to chip on the DE or LB before getting a second level defender.  This will try and help with the one-on-one match up on the outside.

In the Giants’ own division, there are two elite edge players in OLB—Demarcus Ware of the Cowboys and DE Trent Cole of the Eagles.  These guys aren’t one-dimensional pass rushers, but rather explosive third-down play makers.  So running at them four times per season is no easy task. 

Basically, leave the outside plays for Ahmad Bradshaw, a player with excellent speed and the ability to turn the corner much better than Jacobs and runs better with space.

Breaking Down the New York Giants Quarterbacks

The Giants come into camp with three QBs behind starter Eli Manning in 2002: No. 1 overall pick David Carr, 2008 sixth rounder Andre Woodson and 2009 fifth round selection Rhett Bomar. Carr played only sparingly last year, but is seen as an improvement to former beloved backup Jared Lorenzen. Here is my breakdown of each player.

Starter: Eli Manning

In 2004 when the Giants traded Phillip Rivers, along with the draft picks that netted the Chargers LB Shawn Merriman and K Nate Kaeding, some thought that the Giants had given up too much just to have the name “Manning.”

Eli has not quite played up to the expectations of his surname, but since being named the starting QB for a full season in 2005, the Giants have made the playoffs every year, something that only his brother Peyton can say over that same span.

Manning has yet to miss a start even after injuring his shoulder in Week One of 2007, where he was thought to miss a month. While his numbers don’t jump off the screen to impress you, he has played his best when the pressure had been at its highest.

He has delivered the Giants a Super Bowl title, in which he was a part of arguably the greatest play in sports history. Overall, a 76.1 career QB rating ultimately is mediocre at best.

This season will be a true test for Manning without 6’5″ WR Plaxico Burress, who shot down his (literally) and the team’s chances of winning a second Super Bowl in a row last year. This year, he will also be without the club’s all-time leading receiver in Amani Toomer. Manning will have to make due with Domenick Hixon, Steve Smith, and 2009 first rounder Hakeem Nicks.

The big positive for Manning, though, is that he has the big game experience and has never missed a start. The Giants know who their field general will be game after game. Eli Manning is also not a celebrity QB like Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys. Manning also cut his interceptions down from 20 in 2007 to 10 in 2008, but with that led to decreasing TD numbers from 23 to 21.

After this season, the Giants will have to re-sign Manning to a big deal, which I’m not so sure he deserves based on his numbers. No matter what he does the rest of his career, he will ultimately live in big bro Peyton’s shadows, and he will always be remembered for the 2:07, 83-yard drive in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLII.

Backup: David Carr

David Carr came into the league in 2002 to be the face of a new franchise when he was taken with the No. 1 overall pick. He failed to do that, mostly because of a poor offensive line in front of him.

Carr showed last year against the Vikings, a team that was playing to get into the playoffs, that can be a more than ample backup. Carr, who could go elsewhere to compete for a starting job, chose to re-sign with the Giants and backup starter Eli Manning.

If Manning were to miss his first start ever, Giants fans shouldn’t worry about Carr stepping in.

Andre Woodson

When Woodson was drafted by the Giants in 2008, they were coming off of a Super Bowl win, and this pick was puzzling to Giants fans. GM Jerry Reese said that he was the best player on the board, and he threw for 40 TD his senior year while playing in the ultra competitive SEC while at the University of Kentucky.

Woodson spent the entire 2008 season on the practice squad. He has only attempted nine passes in two preseason games, making it really tough to tell what he will develop into.

Rhett Bomar

He was once a top recruit at the University of Oklahoma, until he was expelled from school for getting paid at a local car dealership without actually showing up for work.

Bomar has talent, though, and if the Giants can develop him, he could become a backup to Manning, or eventually he could start somewhere else.

This season, he will compete with Andre Woodson for the job on the practice squad.

 

from blognyg.com

Chalk Talk: The Giants Passing Game Without Plaxico Burress

Last year, the Giants offense looked lost without Plaxico Burress when Eli Manning was asked to try and carry the unit. I want to be a football coach one day, so I am going to give my opinion of how to operate the passing game without a true No. 1 WR.

The Giants need to come out in a Spread Shotgun, with TE Kevin Boss lined up either in a three point stance or standing up acting as the “Y” WR while being on the line.

To that same side, should be “Z” receiver Hakeem Nicks. The key to this right side needs to spread out the distance between Boss and Nicks. Also the Giants can use rookie TE Travis Beckum as the “Y” receiver, because of his ability to stretch the field. If the Giants have a TE who can stretch the field it can open up routes such as slants and posts for the “Z” receiver.

On the other side, the Giants should use Domenick Hixon split out, on the line of scrimmage with WR Steve Smith lined up in the slot. The Giants can then try and run short to intermediate routes, with Smith on intermediate to deep routes with Hixon.

The idea of using three WR and a receiving TE can spread opposing defenses out so they can’t key in on one WR without leaving others open. With Plaxico Burress in the line up, teams would double him regardless, thus opening up the middle of the field for Steve Smith.

This idea will allow the passing game to thrive, but if the passing game is established with this formation, draw plays and screens can start to open up.

The running back (whether it be Jacobs, Bradshaw, or Ware) should be lined up to the strong side (in this case, with a balanced formation, to the throwing arm side of the QB). The draw play can open up if teams have to commit extra defensive backs to try and cover all four receivers.

If none of this works, the Giants can go back to their bread and butter, which is following Brandon Jacobs and the dominant OL up the middle and trying to out-muscle the opposing defenses.

I hope some of these thoughts make sense.

Originally posted at blognyg.com

2009 Draft Evaluation: New York Giants

The 2009 draft for the New York Giants seemed to satisfy one obvious need in getting WR Hakeem Nicks in the first round, as well as WR Ramses Barden in the third round.

At pick No. 29, the Giants found the best player on the board as well as WR who can fill a need. 

My biggest question about this pick, though, is the Giants are now dealing with a receiving corps with no one has who has proven anything in the NFL level.

QB Eli Manning misses high a lot with his throw and Nicks is only 6’0 3/4 inches, so while people are anointing him the replacement of Plaxico Burress, they have to realize the height disparity between the two players. 

His lack of height, though, doesn’t mean he can’t become a dominant WR in the league for the next 10 years.  Steve Smith of the Carolina Panthers stands at only 5’9 and there is no one around the NFL that thinks his height is an issue.

My issue with the draft has nothing to do with either of the two WR selected, but simply that Jerry Reese wouldn’t part with a second-round pick and a player to get Anquan Boldin, a player who Hakeem Nicks could potentially turn into. 

The Giants need to sign a veteran WR such as Marvin Harrison in order to help these rookie WR develop.

Clint Sintim is going to be a Linebacker that could potentiall back up the aging Antonio Pierce at MLB or also step in at OLB.

This versatility to play multiple positions in multiple schemes is something that a GM in today’s NFL covets. Recent linebackers drafted by the Giants have all made a contribution on Defense or Special Teams in their rookie year.

William Beatty is a smart pick for the Giants because they desperately needed to address the lack of Offensive Line depth.  While the Giants have a dominant line right now, but when LT David Diehl left the game against Dallas in Week 15, Kevin Boothe looked like he had never played OL in his life.

  Now David Diehl could eventually move back to his natural position of Guard and have Beatty develop into Eli Manning’s blind side protector.

Ramses Barden will be a project but you have to love his dimensions (6’6, 229 lb).  In his rooke year he will probably be integrated into “The Green Zone” as Coach Coughlin refers to it.  The reason that K John Carney made the Pro Bowl last year was because the Giants often missed opportunities to score touchdowns and had to settle for field goals.  Giving Eli Manning a 6’6 WR makes it easy for him and Barden to play jump ball on a 5’10 cornerback. 

Travis Beckum who was taken with the 100th overall pick will be able to give Eli Manning a vertical target which will enable the big play offense.  Despite his poor blocking skills this will help the run game because opposing defenses will not always be able to place a safety in the box to stop the running game.

Andre Brown is a pick that was made because of the loss of RB Derek Ward to free agency.  Hopefully Brown can contribute as either the third RB or on special teams.

The pick of Rhett Bomar really is a head-scratcher.  The Giants have an able back up in David Carr who showed in Week 17 with the Vikings playing for a playoff spot that he is able to run the offense and distribute the ball. 

The Giants had also been grooming Andre Woodson who was a 6th round pick last year.  Taking another QB especially in the fifth round, in which the Giants have found players such as Kevin Boss in 2007 who can contribute right away doesn’t come across as a smart move. 

Bomar was a top recruit when he entered Oklahoma for his freshman year, so the logic is that Jerry Reese took the best player on the board.

Deandre Wright was the only player of the draft picks that I have seen play live.  As a junior in 2007 he came to Arizona Stadium and defeated the Wildcats in a game in which he defended future 2009 fourth-round WR Mike Thomas as well as NFL prospect TE Rob Gronkowski. 

He should be able to compete for a roster spot as a special teamer and could be a work in progress.

Stoney Woodson is another pick that the only justification that I can make would be him being the best player on the board. 

The Giants are loaded with young talent at CB with Aaron Ross, Corey Webster and Terrell Thomas as well as Deandre Wright. 

The bottom line is that you can’t evaluate a draft class as a whole for another 3-4 years to see how these players play at the NFL level.

Originally posted from blognyg.com

NFL Sport Channel Latest

• Just How Far Would You Go?
• Sorry Rex, But It Isn’t Happening
• Super Bowl Predictions: Five Stat-Free Reasons Why the Eagles Will Reach The Super Bowl
• Seahawks Attempt to Turn Corner With Heavy Pursuit of Pete Carroll
• Bill Cowher Unlikely to Coach in 2010