Here I am, the total New York Giants fan. I have sat through fifteen weeks of wins, losses, good performances and bad ones. I have sat through injuries, from Derrick Ward to Sinorice Moss to Michael Strahan. In vain, I have watched Tim Lewis set up a zone defense, one in which the middle of the field is exposed. Here I am, I have seen Eli Manning make mistakes, throw his arms up in the air, and look like a wounded puppy all at the same time. Yes, I have seen the worst tackle and best hug of all time, courtesy of Mathias Kiwanuka to Vince Young. I saw Martin Gramatica, out of the NFL for 2 years (prior to 2006) kick that game-winning field goal, in our house. Please, on behalf of all of us- it is time for a total overhaul.Who is Responsible?
TOM COUGHLIN, DISCIPLE OF DISCIPLINE- I have never seen a team turn on a coach like what the Giants have done to Tom Coughlin. This guy was supposed to be the discipline guru of the NFL, yet, here is what he has done. Coughlin has had to deal with media tirades from Jeremy Shockey, Michael Strahan, Tiki Barber, and Plaxico Burress. In the world of Eric Mangini, you do not speak to the media- you talk to him first.
In addition to this, I have never seen a team do so much talking off the field and so little playing on it. You have to practice what you preach, and this statement goes to all. The team is undisciplined. They make ludicrously dumb penalties (false start, personal fouls, unsportsmanlike conduct etc.). Just look at what left tackle Bob Whitfield said (he has two head-butting flags this year) “Their Pro Bowl defensive end (Will Smith) took a cheap shot. I’ve been playing 15 years and I’ve never had somebody take a groin shot on me. So I’m looking for ways to hit him… “We ain’t playing hopscotch. This ain’t jacks, Parcheesi, or Gin Rummy. We tape our hands up to go battle. We hit people…
“People break their hands in this game, break their necks in this game, so I ain’t going to go out there tiddly-winking or half-stepping. I’ll hit him again. I’ll hit him every time.” Maybe the Giants should listen to Bob Whitfield, but they should refrain from the stupid penalties. They got smacked with seven on Sunday.
TIM LEWIS- The former Steelers defensive coordinator, known for his creativity in disguising blitzes, has failed to live up to that reputation. They have lacked penetration from the defensive end position all year with fast ends like Mathias Kiwanuka and Osi Umenyiora. The safeties and defensive backs have been burned on countless pass plays. Antonio Pierce has been beat by average tight ends. The middle of the field is wide open, and the truth is, that the Giants do not care. Neither does Tim Lewis. He blames injuries. I blame him. Why? Well, injuries should not break a team. You cannot blame the guys that are hurt, you have to praise or criticize those on the field. Allowing 334 points (season), 359 net yards, 86 plays, 22 first downs, and 236 net yards rushing to the New Orleans Saints is uncalled for.
JOHN HUFNAGEL, TOM COUGHLIN, and KEVIN GILBRIDE- Hufnagel, the offensive coordinator, has failed to mix the run and pass. The Giants have not called a flea-flicker, half-back pass, or gadget running play in a very long time (the last time I saw one was 2003). This is the fault of the coordinator, John Hufnagel. Why does he still have a job? I have no idea, but a reasonable guess would be that he is the lowest-paid offensive coordinator in the league.
I blame Coughlin because he calls the plays. How many times have you seen Brandon Jacobs come in on a short-yardage situation, for one play, fail, and then see Coughlin in disgust? Believe it or not, Coughlin, I can call the plays from my couch. Imagine what the other team knows. There, when Jacobs comes in, eight guys key in on him. One versus eight- who is going to win? Football is not like the game show 1 vs. 100.
Kevin Gilbride is the quarterback coach of the New York Giants. I put him at fault, partially, because of the way he has handled Eli Manning. Eli is hated and berated by his fellow teammates, regardless of what the media says, and he also has no poise, leadership, or technique. Tell me if I am wrong, but is the job of the quarterback coach to help the quarterback play better?
ME-FIRST- I am a firm believer in the cliche “There is no ‘I’ in team, but there is one in ‘quit’. Anytime I have been team captain in sports, I have said this. Jeremy Shockey says it all, right in his name, as the pronunciation is “Jer-ih-MEE”. He hates losing. He wants the ball. Everytime the ball is not thrown his way, Shockey throws a fit. Guess what, you should shut up because you had -3 yards receiving on Sunday. Also, you dropped a key pass on a fourth and two. A catch would have kept the drive going. Unfortunately, he still hates Eli, why do you think he and Burress work out in Miami?
Speaking of Burress, he should shut his big yap, too. Not everybody hates you, Plax, but when you shoot your arrogant mouth off for the whole world to hear you, certainly, you will not exactly be loved. Who cares about the Pro Bowl? You have enough money, go to Hawaii yourself. The Pro Bowl is another All-Star game, but it does not have a lot of meaning behind it. The last Pro Bowl I watched was, well, never.
Michael Strahan- shut it. You cheated on your wife and recorded nude photos of your sister-in-law. Maybe, Dr. Lisfranc is biting you in the foot. This is the law of karma. A friendly piece of advice from a friend: If you cannot back up your words on the field, do not say anything at all. It is time to be quiet.
INJURIES- This team has had a lot, and I will never call their injury treatment and prevention program. The Giants have had numerous injuries, including, but not limited to LaVar Arrington (achillies), Chad Morton (ACL), Sinorice Moss (quadriceps), Justin Tuck (foot), Michael Strahan (foot), Sam Madison (hamstring), Corey Webster (turf toe), Carlos Emmons (pectoral), Jay Feely (foot), Derrick Ward (knee), Luke Petitgout (fibula), Shaun O’Hara (ankle), Brandon Short (quadriceps) and Rich Seubert (shin). The team’s strength and conditioning program has been poor, too. In prior years, like 2004, for instance, the Giants ran out of transactions due to injuries, and could only dress the minimum 45 players for their season finale against Dallas. Note how many guys have had burners in recent years, most notably, Gibril Wilson. Even Ironman Kerry Collins got hurt in 2003.
DO NOT LET 4-0 FOOL YOU- Their record in preseason was 4-0, another reason why preseason is meaningless. Notice that in each and every game, the first string players were getting beat, in some cases by the other team’s third-stringers. Never let the preseason get your hopes up, regardless of what ESPN’s Mike Hill said, “The last time the Giants went 4-0 in the preseason was 1990, a year in which they won the Super Bowl”.
Settle down, New York. Settle down, Giants fans. Settle down, Giants locker room. From a middle-of-the-road point of view, I will attempt to dissect the offense, defense, and special teams, yet, propose solutions that would work well.
4 replies on “Mbarone the GM: Fixing the Giants- Part One (Problem Identification)”
just imagine if the giants sneak into the playoffs how dangerous they could be… they are obviously better then how they have been playing because we saw it early in the year. but, now cough insterts the play-calling change and strahan goes on the IR there are still plenty of question marks surrounding the team.
i’m telling you right now, if the giants make the playoffs, the will be a dangerous team in january. dont let the door open a crack is all i would have to say to any team not named the giants right now because if they do, big blue will make them pay.
or eli could just simply shit the bed again and none of this talk will even be relevent. how could any of the blame be placed on anyone but eli manning? i cant think of any other reason. he is NOT a leader and he is lost in his brothers shadow, as simple as that. there are numerous events that happen in the giants locker room where you never see eli manning. remember that whole blowup they had a few weeks back with stahan and plaxico, where was eli, where was the leader? during the off-season, as much as shockey may scare him, he needed to call out shockey and get him and plaxico to work with HIM, not let them go back to miami and work o ntheir own… how does that help the team?
i want him to succeed in ny i really do, but everytime they show him on the tv it always looks as if he is on the verge of a major breakdown. eli should read that book pete carrol had his player read titled, “the inner game of tennis”
anything to help that man right now, i dont care how lame that may sound.
what part of the last 4 games gives you any indication that the Giants can turn it around? They are godawful and don’t even try anymore. Strahan gave them a little lift then got hurt again. That defense plays with no fire.
Tiki also sounds like he has fully quit on the team.
yea what happend to him? i thought initially the whole retirment thing could help spark the club like what happend to the steelers last yr, but i guess now it just gives him more of a reaosn not to do anything.
nice game by barber haha he showed us.