Week 9 of the NFL season features several big games, none bigger than the battle for supremacy of the NFC East. With the Giants playing like they can’t get lined up correctly or handle their opponents’ pressure packages or play a game without mental mistakes, the Eagles and Cowboys seem to have the inside track in the East. The problem with the Giants is that they’re just not executing with their normal precision, nor are they playing like they know what they’re doing once they hit the field. Mental mistakes, combined with some backup players not playing well, have made the G-Men vulnerable. They have much to prove in the coming weeks if they expect to contend for the NFC East title. They must improve their game before they worry about anything else.
APThe season-ending injury to Kenny Phillips was a big blow to the Giants' secondary.
I’ve spent most of this week analyzing and answering questions about what’s wrong with the G-Men. And based on the tape I’ve watched, they look nothing like the Giants of old. Yes, they look slower at linebacker, and when the Birds made them defend the field from a horizontal perspective, it showed their lack of ability to close from the backer spot. One of the dangers of being a size/speed team like the Giants is that you have linebackers who time fast in the 40 but don’t play the game with explosive quickness. The Giants have size at backer, but they lack someone who can close it down on nickel downs, and when you play the Eagles, every down is a nickel down. They miss too many tackles in their secondary, and losing Kenny Phillips has crippled them because C.C. Brown can’t make plays in space. And guess what? All the plays against the Eagles are space plays.
And Eli Manning is not the same player he once was. He may claim his foot isn’t bothering him, but to me, he’s throwing the ball off his toes and doesn’t look to be able to spin it smoothly, which is causing him accuracy problems. Plus, playing so many different receivers makes their offense look a hockey team learning how to play with new players on their line shifts. They’re not in sync. The Giants have so many players on offense who have plays that make them effective, they seem to be losing their identity. The Giants need a bye week to decide what they want to be as an offense.
As for the Cowboys, they won’t need any more motivation than to put on last year’s game and watch how horribly they played. In the final game of the season, they gave the wild card to the Birds. Their level of play that day was shameful, and all head coach Wade Phillips has to do is show the tape – that should get 53 very angry players ready to play Sunday.
The Cowboys’ first nine possessions of the game ended with three punts, four fumbles (in a row) an interception and a field goal. That has to be a very painful tape to watch this week. And you know what? They need to watch it because it’s the only relevant tape to study. It only matters how the Eagles attack the Cowboys, not how the Eagles attacked other teams. Because of their familiarity with each other, the battles between them are crucial for game planning.
APWill DeMarcus Ware be able to get past Jason Peters on Sunday night in Philly?
Both teams are playing well now after enduring some minor bumps in their seasons. But which team is playing the best? For me, the Eagles were so impressive in their ability to play fast on offense. Their offense is much quicker and more explosive than the Giants. And that offense can be a matchup problem for the Cowboys, especially if Eagles left tackle Jason Peters plays at a very high level.
Peters has been very inconsistent all season, and last week he had moments of brilliance mixed with moments of despair. He must have his best game against DeMarcus Ware for the Birds to win.
More on this game as the week progresses.
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pickleops your last point there- about the zone blitz is a good one in my opinion. Now I havent watched them enough this year to know if they are zone blitzing or not but watching the giants over the last two years, it seemed like some of their most effective blitzes were zone blitzes where they would drop either tuck or osi into shallow coverage. teams always assign an extra guy or two to those guys so when they are expecting them to rush and commit two guys to one of them and then they end up dropping, it was difficult for teams to adjust on the fly to them all of a sudden not coming unexpectedly. This usually freed up others for heavy pressure and sometimes quick picks for those two as quarterbacks would try to go to hot routes.
The problem with the Giants' D starts up front. On just about every pass play the last 3 games, the opposing quarterback has had a picture perfect pocket to throw from. If you just watch the line, Tuck and Osi run right up the field, and the is no penetration from the interior linemen. When the Giants D was wreacking havoc on the Patriots in the Superbowl, they got constant pressure up the middle from guys like Fred Robbins, Barry Cofield, and occassionally Tuck. That interior pressure is non existent now, and unless Canty can provide a push inside when he comes back, their defense is in trouble. And even though CC isnt helping their cause, some one has to atleast pressure the QB a little bit.
Tuck was a mismatch for anyone from the three technique on the interior, outside he can have teams plan for him on the outside as they normally do most teams with speed rushers.
Still, it is the fact of injuries in the secondary that decides this issue. Teams know the Giants have to get spongy on the back of coverage, so huge holes can develop in zones. Holes that force defenders to give up their assignments at times when they see people that open in front of them.
Injury issues result in chemistry issues at this time.
When did the ball ever spin out of Eli's hand correctly? He has always thrown a wobbly ball, always.
The Giant offense doesn't scare good teams. Along with the fact that they have had too much flux in the WR corps, they are all JAGs. You don't need to game plan for Smith, Nicks, Manningham. Say what you will about Plax off the field and in the locker room but he was a game changer on it who created matchup problems and required scheming. Also, Jacobs looks a step slower, and without big leads (vs. the good teams) the Gmen cant just pound the ball and wear down d-lines.
As an objective party who is NOT a Giants fan once your PASS DEFENSE awakens from it's COMA, then everything will start to click... Your offense is banged up and may not be it's old self until the playoff's (but they have to get in , first)...
The New York Football Giants will be themselves again, WITHOUT a doubt... Probably this season sometime, but maybe not until next season.
As an objective party who is NOT a Giants fan once your PASS DEFENSE awakens from it's COMA, then everything will start to click... Your offense is banged up and may not be it's old self until the playoff's (but they have to get in , first)...
The New York Football Giants will be themselves again, WITHOUT a doubt... Probably this season sometime, but maybe not until next season.
Wow, has your tune changed on the Eagles and Giants. For the last 18 monts on this website you have consistantly criticized Andy Reid and the Eagles and promoted the Giants and their size and physicality. This whole off-season was about how great the additional defensive line signings for the Giants was going to make them unstoppable vs. the Eagles questionable offensive line. Wasn't there an article on how Jim Johnson carried Andy Ried to all his success?
Even last year, I don't think you ever gave credit to the Eagles for winning vs. the Giants, but rather just notched it up to familiarity and Eli not being able to play in the wind of the Meadowlands.
Maybe, just maybe, you evaluated these teams a bit wrong.
I'm not fan of the Eagles. I can't forgive them for signing Vick and that's my own personal issue with them as a franchise. But I never have understood how you seem so biased for all things Giants and against all things Eagles when historically, the Eagles have actually out-performed them over the last decade (both head-to-head and with equal playoff success except for the Ring).
Philly had to line things for the O line, and develop better chemistry with new wideouts and packages. Keep the ball in McNabb's hands now and let him get really hot throwing.
Westbrook is an item though, are the younger backs stepping it up? That tells you how far along the line is coming, with their top back far below top form.
Eagles fans at the NFP noted the emergence of certain Philly linemen on offense, most notably a guard. Their new found consistency and Peters reassertion to top form intersect and with the line beginning to play its potential, the season is turning around.
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Nov 04, 2009
06:12 PM
I'm hoping for improvement by the Giants after Canty, Boley, and Ross return (to play or form) in Week 11 after the bye.
Does Can't.Cover. Brown have ANY value in the NFL? Should not the Giants play Corey Webster & Kevin Dockery as starting Corners and move Terrell Thomas to Free Safety (with Michael Johnson at Strong)? Then Bruce Johnson would be the Nickel Corner and Stoney Woodson the Dime Corner. The tiny marginal loss in safety-run support would be amply overshadowed by the increased pass-coverage. Our healthy linebackers are better against the run than the pass as it is.
Finally, Bill Sheridan made it clear in the preseason that he would abandon zone-blitzes with lineman dropping into coverage. That seems heavy-handed. If any defensive ends in the NFL are appropriate for shallow zone responsibilities it would be Umenyiora, Tuck, and Kiwanuka.
Thoughts Michael? Commenters?