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NEWS, NOTES, RUMORS, AND GOSSIP: FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012 - 4:10 P.M.
Last post 01-21-2012, 8:29 AM by RoanokeFan. 6 replies.
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 01-20-2012, 9:01 AM |
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RoanokeFan
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WELLINGTON MARA
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NEWS, NOTES, RUMORS, AND GOSSIP: FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012 - 4:10 P.M.
HERE NOW THE NEWS
THE DATA WILL UPDATE THROUGHOUT THE DAY AND SHOW THE UPDATE TIME IN THE HEADER.
NFC EAST DIVISION CHAMPIONS
PLAYOFFS 2 - 0: ON TO THE OTHER BAY!
NEWARK STAR LEDGER
GIANTS-49ERS GAME PREVIEW: A LOOK AHEAD TO THE N FC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME"This has been the longest week of Jason Pierre-Paul’s NFL career.
At least that’s the way it sounds.
“It felt like a long week,” the Giants’ defensive end said today of the
buildup to Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the 49ers. “We came in and we
were ready to go. After Green Bay, we were ready to go. It just feels like it’s
been a long wait and tomorrow’s Saturday, get on a plane and head out
there.”
If he thinks this was a long wait and some serious buildup, wait’ll he sees
what it’s like if they win this game and spend the next two weeks talking about
the Super Bowl.
“Yeah, we’re going to be ready for that,” he said with a laugh. “It’s a great
thing. We’re just ready to go out and play great football. I’m excited, the
whole team is excited, just ready to get on the plane. If we could get on the
plane now we would. We just gotta wait.”
It was pointed out to Pierre-Paul a victory on Sunday could cost him a trip
to the Pro Bowl.
He doesn’t care.
“Nah, I’m not thinking about Hawaii,” he said. “I’m thinking about the Super
Bowl right now and just going to take care of this team.”
* * * *
SUNDAY’S GAME: at San Francisco 49ers, Candlestick Park, NFC
Championship Game, 6:30 p.m., Fox
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Offense: Again, we’ve broken this thing down every which way
possible, so just a brief rundown here to tie up some loose ends.
Offensively, I was wondering what kind of coverage the Giants expect to see
from the Niners. TE Travis Beckum, talking today, said he’s
anticipating man looks from San Fran.
“A lot of man coverage,” Beckum said. “Last week, they manned up (LB)
Patrick Willis with Jimmy Graham. So it looks like it’s going
to be a lot of man coverage, as far as what they did last week.”
The Giants don’t have a Graham. They
barely have Jake Ballard at this point. But they do have a very good slot
presence in WR Victor Cruz. Much as CB Carlos
Rogers did
the salsa after his interception, I thought Cruz did a fine job that day,
especially in his releases off the line. If the Niners play man coverage, they’d
better do it in spurts because if Cruz gets enough chances, he’ll beat Rogers
again. I’m wondering if the Niners throw more zone coverage at the Giants than
they expect right now.
Defense: The other day we
wrote about the rain and what it would to do the passing games and running
games. Well, it’ll also have an effect on the pass rushers, specifically the
Giants’ speed rushers.
DE Osi Umenyiora likes to take that edge on the speed rush,
so it’ll be interesting to see how he handles things against Niners LT
Joe Staley should the field be slick. (Current forecasts
indicate rain on and off for the next few days, with a 40 percent chance of
showers on Sunday.)
“You gotta hold your balance, plant right,” Pierre-Paul said of dealing with
the slick grass. “It’s frustrating but you still have to play the game of
football, no matter how it feels.”
THE LINE: 49ers by 2½. Over-under 42.
THE PICK: As you’ll see in the vid, I’m going Giants 21,
Niners 20.
ONE MORE THING: That Niners running game attempts to go
right down your throat at times but DT Chris Canty says to watch the edges as
well.
“They can run it inside, no question about it, but you’d be surprised, there
is a lot of yardage on the perimeter with their offensive running game,” Canty
said. “So you have to be cognizant of that, pursuit angles, guys pursuing,
getting to the football, beating blocks and getting to the football and making
sure we leverage the football so we can make the proper tackles. There is a lot
of yards they gain on the perimeter.”
REX RYAN PREDICTS GIANTS-RAVENS SUPER BOWLExcerpt: "Rex Ryan isn't exactly batting 1.000 in his predictions for New York-area
sports teams. But the J ets coach — for
what it's worth — believes the Giants
and Baltimore Ravens will advance to the Super Bowl this year, a rematch of
Super Bowl XXXV.
"I can tell you this: There isn’t one Giants fan that wants me to say the
Giants are going to win this game," Ryan, who has annually guaranteed Super
Bowls for his Jets team but has not yet delivered, said on WFAN radio today.
Ryan favors the Giants over the San Francisco 49ers in Sunday's NFC
Championship Game, particularly because of how the Giants defense is playing.
Despite being ranked 27th in the regular season, the Giants defense has found a
groove over the past several weeks, helped by a healthy Osi Umenyiora.
"I think San Francisco is playing great defensively. (49ers defensive
coordinator) Vic Fangio is a guy that worked with me for two years in Baltimore;
he's done a great job with that defense," Ryan said. "But I think when you look
at them ... the Giants can throw the football, can move the football better
against San Francisco than San Francisco is going to be able to move it against
the Giants."
Ryan added: "(Umenyiora healthy) makes a huge difference. I just think that
pass rush -- when you watched the 49ers play the Ravens, that pass rush of the
Ravens ate San Francisco alive. I think the giants are going to take this game.
I think Eli (Manning) is hot, I like the fact that both their running backs are
healthy. So it’s going to be interesting, but I think you could be looking at
the Giants and Ravens rematch."
The Ravens won that Super Bowl in the 2000 season, and Ryan won a ring as the
team's defensive line coach. He admitted he is rooting for his former team in
the AFC Championship Game against the Jets' rival New England Patriots." Read more...
TOM COUGHLIN "MISSES" RICH SEUBERT, WHO WILL BE AN HONORARY CAPTAIN ON SUNDAY"Tom Coughlin was in rare form with the media today, offering stories and
jokes without hesitation. One such time was when he was asked about Rich
Seubert, the former Giants guard who was cut during the offseason, being one of
three honorary Giants captains at Sunday's game in San Francisco.
"Last year he takes a picture, writes ‘Happy Holidays to me’," Coughlin
narrated. "So he gives me a picture and I’m thinking, 'What am I gonna do with
this thing?' And he writes it in red pen. So I put it in my locker and I forgot
about it. Right around Christmas time I find this picture so I said, ‘Son of a
gun.’ I got this picture sitting right in front of me, it’s been there for like
a month and a half so I can look right at Richie, ‘Happy Holidays.’
He also reminisced about his seven seasons with Seubert.
"Feisty. Loves to play. Loves to be a part of this team. Loves the New York
Giants. Plays with every ounce of fiber that he has," Coughlin said. "Gives it
all, shares it all. Not afraid to get on teammates, not afraid to be the
rambunctious one in the locker room, he stirs it up better than anybody that I
have probably ever been around. Sometimes to the point you have to step in
between.
"But we love this guy. And we miss him. I miss him."
Eli Manning also recalled his years with Seubert, who went undrafted out of
Western Illinois two years before Manning arrived in 2001 and spent 10 seasons
with the Giants.
"I’m just excited to see Richie out on the field with us. He was a great
teammate," Manning said. "A guy that when I first came in my rookie year, he was
around, he was injured. I thought he was 35 years old when I first got here. I
thought the guy had been here forever but he had only been here a couple years.
It was an honor to play with him. He was a great leader, a great teammate. A
great guy around the locker room so I’m excited that he’ll be a part of the game
on Sunday.
Seubert has moved with his family to California and has said he looks to
continue his NFL career next season. He will be joined by Michael Strahan and
Mark Bavaro as the Giants' honorary captains on Sunday." GIANTS' HAKEEM NICKS ADDED TO THE INJURY LIST AS PROBABLE AFTER ROLLING ANKLE"The surprises on the Giants’ injury
front didn’t stop with
the portion of practice open to the media.
Afterward, wide receiver Hakeem Nicks was added to the report after rolling
his ankle. The team listed him as limited today but he’s down as probable for
Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the 49ers.
“Rolled it a little bit,” Nicks said. “Same one. Same one I rolled earlier in
the season. Same one I always roll.”
Tom Coughlin called it “basketball ankle.” Nicks said he’s been dealing with
it for a few years now and rolls it twice per season. He said it happened while
running an in cut today.
Still, Nicks isn’t concerned.
“No, got no reason to be concerned about it. It’s an important game,” he
said. “I’ll put it out of my mind and won’t think about it.”
Asked about dealing with the ankle on a potentially slick field, Nicks
replied, “Just tape it up, wrap it up real good. I’ll be all right.”
At least it's not a new injury for Nicks.
"Yeah that’s the good thing about it," he said. "Same one I’m used to dealing
with. Nothing new."
* * * *
TE Jake Ballard (knee) is listed as questionable after undergoing what
Coughlin termed a “procedure” on Thursday.
Coughlin wouldn’t say what was done to Ballard except to clarify it wasn’t
surgery. It’s likely he received a shot or had fluid drained. Ballard said the
procedure took only a few minutes.
Asked if the team knew the “procedure” would make Ballard feel worse in the
short term, Coughlin replied sarcastically, “We actually thought it wouldn’t.
Naturally, we did. What do you think those people do in there? Play cards.”
* * * *
Don’t read that last quote the wrong way. Coughlin wasn’t being nasty. He was
actually on a roll today in what was one of his most humorous press conferences
of all time.
He was really on fire when asked if precautions were being taken to stop the
stomach bug that’s now hit C David Baas, who missed practice today but is listed
as probable.
“Like what? Everybody’s wearing masks, everybody’s washing their hands,
everybody’s doing everything they can,” Coughlin said. “Like when your sister
came home with whatever and you got it. So there’s where we are.”
* * * *
Baas is struggling but QB Eli Manning (illness) is fine. He’s listed as
probable after practicing fully.
Also probable: DEs Justin Tuck (shouler) and Osi Umenyiora (ankle/knee), RB
Ahmad Bradshaw (foot), CB Corey Webster (hamstring) and LB Mark Herzlich
(ankle). All were limited today." GIANTS' TE JAKE BALLARD SAYS HE'LL "BE READY TO GO" AFTER MISSING PRACTICE FOLLOWING PROCEDURE ON LEFT KNEE Excerpt: "Once again, Jake Ballard's right knee is a source of concern for the
Giants.
The tight end was held out of Friday's practice after having a brief
procedure done on his knee Thursday night. Ballard told reporters that the
procedure took "a couple of minutes."
While both Ballard and head coach Tom Coughlin refused to go into further
details, neither anticipated it being an issue for Sunday's NFC Championship
Game against the San Francisco 49ers. "Not at all," Ballard said when asked if the knee would be a problem. "I mean,
they told me they didn't want to go into detail. They just did a little
something and the knee was a little sore today, so I should be ready to go for
the game." Read more... ## GIANTS' DEON GRANT LEARNS FIRST HAND HOW NFL'S CONCUSSION TESTS PUT SAFETY AHEAD OF WINNING"Giants' DB Deon Grant lowered his aiming point as Ryan Grant leaped to catch a short
check-down pass and began to spin around. He didn't want to make
helmet-to-helmet contact on this Grant-on-Grant hit.
It only served to mush Deon's helmet into the top of his nose as Ryan's
midsection came down on him, thus dazing the Giants safety and causing momentarily
blurred vision.
Minutes later, Grant was back in the visiting locker room at Lambeau Field,
begging the Giants' doctors to hurry through the concussion test so he could
help finish off the upset of the defending champion Green Bay Packers.
"I kept on saying, 'Let's go. Come on, we've got to get the defense back,' "
Grant recalled this week after a practice in preparation for Sunday's NFC
Championship Game against the 49ers. "And they're like, 'No, you're not going
back in the game. They're going to be all right.'
"They would not let me go back out there until they took me through the whole
test."
There were days earlier in Grant's 12-year career when a player could win
such arguments, especially at this time of the year. The former Seattle Seahawk,
Carolina Panther and Jacksonville Jaguar recalls when "if you said you could go,
you could go."
Not so in today's NFL.
In response to research about the effects of repeat concussions, the league
has taken steps to diagnose in-game head injuries by putting players through
comprehensive tests before they're cleared to return to the game and recently
installing sideline monitors to review footage of players who might've sustained
a concussion.
So far this postseason, the Giants have put three players through concussion
tests: Grant, Aaron Ross and D.J. Ware. Despite the elevated stakes and the
short-handed secondary, they followed proper protocol and held Ross out of the
game against the Falcons when they were uncertain he had even suffered a
concussion.
Grant eventually got back in the game and recorded an interception to help
seal the upset -- but not before proving without a doubt he was only temporarily
dinged. "At the Giants," senior vice president of communications Pat Hanlon said, "if
there's doubt, they are pulled."
This Sunday, in what's expected to be a physical matchup in San Francisco to
determine which team goes to Super Bowl XLVI, the Giants' players can expect the
medical staff to be just as cautious.
"I wanted to go in as soon as I came to the sideline but they made me go
inside for the tests," Ross said. "They said they still didn't know; I said I
didn't have a concussion because I could remember everything.
"But it's somebody's life so they really have to take those kinds of
precautions."
This past offseason, after the Eagles' Stewart Bradley stumbled off the field
and then returned to the game, the NFL introduced a standardized test to be
conducted in all cases where a concussion is suspected. The test includes:
• A rundown of physical symptoms visible to the medical staff, as well as
those only the player can detect, such as double vision or nausea.
• A series of questions to check orientation ("What month is it?" "What is
the day of the week?") plus Maddocks' Questions, developed by physician D.L.
Maddocks, which apply to the sport being played ("What quarter is it right now?"
"Who scored last in the game?").
• Word recall of a list of five words, three trials of the same words. Then,
two concentration tests: repeating strings of numbers (from three to six) and
the months of the year -- both backward.
• Balance testing inside the locker room, with motions performed while
standing with feet together, on one (non-dominant) foot and in a tandem stance
(with the non-dominant foot in the back).
• The final score is calculated and compared to a "baseline" score conducted
in training camp. If it doesn't match up, the player is held out.
It all sounds simple, which is why these finely tuned athletes are sometimes
overcome when they realize their brain isn't operating properly. "That's the scary part and that's why some guys get emotional. At the time, I
did, too," said guard Chris Snee, who left the Week 5 game against the Seahawks
with a concussion that sent him to the hospital and kept him out the following
week. "When you can't think of something, it's scary."
A 300-pound lineman who is arguably the strongest player in the Giants'
locker room wasn't shy to admit he cried after failing the test.
"Yeah," Snee
said, "I lost it a little bit."
Snee fell onto an official that day and told him, "Get me off the field." Two
weeks ago, umpire Undrey Walsh saw Ware fall over as he tried getting up and
then lean to the left while walking.
"Come on, son," Ware recalls Walsh saying. "You gotta go."
Ware tried to convince the medical staff he had merely gotten his "bell
rung," but they saw the footage. Plus, he failed the computerized ImPACT test
later in the week because his reaction time was slow.
Despite the importance of the game, and the fact rookie Prince Amukamara had
to go in for Ross, the Giants took no chances with either Ross or Ware. Just
like earlier in the season when they hid long snapper Zak DeOssie's helmet so he
couldn't run back into the game.
"They're smart about it," DeOssie said.
And the test is a smart one that can't be beat. Grant said after Sunday's
game, "I'll pass that test every time." That seemed to suggest he knows ways to
get around it, but he clarified later in the week he was an engineering major
who's good in recalling numbers.
Which is why the baseline test is vital, unless a player intentionally
botches it.
"We always joke about that, but we know how serious it is. No one throws it,"
DeOssie said. "You're risking too much."
It's all still a bit of science on the fly with an injury that's tougher to
quantify than, say, a broken bone. But unlike the early stages of Grant's
career, they're getting closer to doing so.
"The good thing is now I know what it feels like," Snee said. "Everyone
always asked me if I ever had (a concussion) and I said, 'I don't think so.' And
now I can confirm, this is what I went through.
"I've had my bell rung, I've seen stars. I think that's normal. But this is
different." D'ALESSSANDRO: GIANTS' OSI UMENYIORA PUTS ASIDE CONTRACT TALK TO ENJOY PLAYOFF EXPERIENCEExcerpt: "Time flies, eh? And sometimes, cogent football opinions also sprout wings and
flee for cover like frightened fruit bats.
Here’s one example: It was just five months ago that some geniuses (hello)
were suggesting that Osi Umenyiora might be a distraction this season, while
other geniuses (hello again) suggested that the Giants would be wise to give the player’s
agent enough leash to broker a deal for draft picks.
Yep, it’s Mea Culpa Week around here — headquarters of the crack Lucky To Go
8-8 Committee — and the livin’ ain’t easy. We thought it would be a good time to
give Osi the opportunity to address the (ahem) outstanding football intellects
about their keen August judgment, but the primary ground rules were quickly laid
out Thursday:
No contract
talk.
Forward, march.
Because nothing will detract from the visible joy this defensive end gets
from this experience, or keep him from his appointed rounds, which we’ll guess
is located somewhere north of Alex Smith’s solar plexus.
“Whatever happens at the end of this year happens,” Umenyiora said in front
of his locker, surrounded by a four-deep horde. “I’m just focused on playing
football — this is pleasure, and you don’t want to mix business with pleasure.
It’s fun for me, I’m enjoying it. The business part of it will be taken care of
later.” Read more...
GIANTS' TOM COUGHLIN, PERRY FEWELL NOT FAZED BY PUBLIC OPINION"It seemed like it was yesterday when Tom Coughlin and Perry Fewell were being
run out of town — again. What a difference a four-game winning streak and a trip
to the NFC Championship Game make.
Today, the Giants head coach is being
discussed as a Hall of Fame candidate and his defensive coordinator Fewell could
again become a leading head coaching candidate.
Less than a month ago, before the Giants’ win over the Jets on Christmas Eve, the news media called
for Coughlin’s head for the umpteenth time as the Giants seemed to be on their
way to missing the postseason for the third straight year.
Coughlin understands the fluctuating state that is the court of public
opinion comes with the territory.
“I just keep the blinders on and go straight ahead,” Coughlin said. “I don’t
have anything to do with what is being said on the outside. The priority and
what I think about it, I don’t let it affect me in any way. I do believe in the
John Wooden statement: We like praise, we don’t like criticism but if you let
either one affect your preparation, you have a problem.
If there’s anyone who can relate with Coughlin about the constantly shifting
of public opinion in a league focused on recent results it’s his defensive
coordinator. This time last year, the Giants had missed the playoffs despite finishing
with 10 wins and the NFL’s seventh-ranked defense. The unit’s success made
Fewell, who took over as the Bills’ interim head coach during the 2009 season, a
hot head coaching candidate and he made his rounds around the league for
interviews.
And though his defense is now arguably playing better than ever, its notable
struggles during the regular season may have scared franchises with head
coaching vacancies away from making him a top candidate. But that’s the last
thing on Fewell’s mind right now.
“I’m just trying to keep the job I have,” said Fewell, who is in his second
year as the Giants’ defensive coordinator. “I’m happy not to see my name in
print sometimes, so I don’t know. I’ve been focusing on the job at hand and that
hasn’t been a concern for me.” 49ERS OWNER SAYS MORE SECURITY IN PLACE FOR GIANTS' GAME AFTER 23 ARREST LAST SUNDAY Excerpt: "San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York promised a safe environment for fans on
Sunday following what appeared to be a rowdy and hostile 49er base after an
upset victory over the New Orleans Saints last Sunday.
According to The San Jose Mercury News, there were 23 arrests made, including
one for felony battery where the victim broke their nose. Another fan told the
paper that they were showered in broken peanut shells after they asked a group
of drunk 49ers fans to stop shouting so loudly near them.
York said that there is an increase in undercover police planned, who can
work to neutralize such incidents.
"I think that was a very small segment from Saints fans and I apologize for
any rudeness that happened," York said. "We didn't see a spike in incidents, I
think you saw a lot of 49er fans that were excited to be hosting a playoff game
for the first time in a long time.
"We have some messaging going out to season-ticket holders and we want to
make sure that folks understand that that type of behavior is not tolerated. We
will definitely have more undercover PD in the stadium this week so if they do
see that -- we obviously don't want to kick any of our fans out but that's
what's going to happen if that's the behavior the undercover PD see." Read more...
49ERS DAVID AKERS CREDITS HIS RECORD YEAR TO THE POWER OF HIS FAITH IN THE WAKE OF PERSONAL STRIFEExcerpt: "When the San Francisco 49ers head into the locker room after pregame warm-ups
every Sunday, they huddle together, quiet down and allow their spiritual leader
to take the lectern.
David Akers knows heartbreak — shortly before a wild-card game last season,
then with the Philadelphia Eagles, he found out that his 6-year-old daughter,
Halley, had a tumor on her ovary. He missed two field goals amid the
distractions, and the Eagles lost by 5.
Akers knows that life can be unfair — a trusted business partner and friend
nearly bankrupted his family when the man swindled them out of $3.7 million in a
Ponzi scheme between 2007 and ’09. Akers was in court during the preseason,
testifying in front of a federal jury.
And so Akers knows the unwavering power of faith, which is why his teammates
listen in silence and allow him to set the floor for head coach Jim Harbaugh’s
speech that comes shortly after." Read more...
GIANTS' HOT TOPIC: VICTOR CRUZ'S INCREDIBLE EMERGENCE"Victor Cruz had 82 catches, 1,536 yards and nine touchdowns in his first real
season of meaningful action with the Giants. He now owns the team's all-time
single-season receiving record for yards, and his year was often defined by huge
plays -- catching a 99-yard touchdown, beating Nnamdi Asomugha for touchdowns,
making juggling catches and plenty more.
Oh, and his
salsa dance has become known throughout the league and metropolitan area,
and even got him an invite to "Dancing with the Stars."
Whether it has been feature stories, columns or game-day stories, plenty has
been written about him, as his success and emergence have been well-documented
by The Star-Ledger.
So now, we thought we'd go back in time to give you a sense of just how the
second-year receiver from Paterson has evolved this season. Check out some of
the articles written about him and then drop down to the comments
section to talk about Cruz. What we want to know, Giants fans, besides your
thoughts on Cruz, is if you can think of an undrafted, possible sparkle to
record-setting star in such little time like Cruz has?
• Aug. 17, 2010 (preseason): Rookie
Victor Cruz living a dream after catching three touchdowns against Jets
• Oct. 30, 2010: Victor
Cruz staying positive despite season-ending hamstring injury
• May 10, 2011: Victor
Cruz joins Eli Manning as QB hosts second week of workouts at Hoboken High
School
• Aug. 13: Victor
Cruz is ready to shine at receiver with Steve Smith gone
• Aug. 26: Victor
Cruz aiming to make progress in critical role at wide receiver
• Sept. 21: Victor
Cruz learning to get Eli Manning out of 'hot' water
• Sept. 25: Politi:
With two touchdowns, Victor Cruz energizes Giants, stuns 'Dream Team'
• Sept. 27: Victor
Cruz makes waves with big plays against Eagles
• Oct. 10: D'Alessandro:
Big plays, both good and bad, continue to define Giants wideout Victor Cruz's
play
• Oct. 16: D'Alessandro:
Victor Cruz has risen from Paterson to the NFL, driven by his father's memory
and mother's strength
• Nov. 8: Victor
Cruz, Jake Ballard developing into key players on offense
• Nov. 16: Victor
Cruz learns from night-club shooting he's far from anonymous
• Dec. 14: Victor
Cruz becomes household name as he nears single-season receiving record
• Dec. 25: Victor
Cruz's 99-yard TD vs. Jets gives Giants momentum
• Dec. 25: Jets
know all about Victor Cruz after loss
• Dec. 28: Victor
Cruz doesn't think he's a Pro Bowl snub
• Jan. 1, 2012: As
Giants prep for Cowboys, Victor Cruz draws unprecedented attention
• Jan 2: Victor
Cruz torches Dallas Cowboys' secondary
• Jan. 3: D'Alessandro:
Victor Cruz puts Giants one step closer to their goal with his astonishing
play
• Jan. 4: Falcons
WR Roddy White says Victor Cruz is in for 'rude awakening' and 'good pay day'
next year
• Jan. 5: Victor
Cruz's breakout season doesn't surprise Giants
• Jan. 6: Victor
Cruz turns down 'Dancing With The Stars' offer, says maybe in the future
• Jan. 8: Victor
Cruz, Tony Gonzalez highlight growth of Hispanic players in NFL
• Jan. 8: Politi:
Giants' Victor Cruz is a walking, breathing 'message of hope' for
Paterson
• Jan. 16: Victor
Cruz eager for another dance with San Francisco's Carlos Rogers
We posed the question earlier, and we'll ask it again: Can you think of
another player who has gone from undrafted, possible sparkle to record-setting
star in such little time? ELI MANNING RETURNS TO PRACTICE"Tom Coughlin said he hoped it was just a 24-hour bug and Victor Cruz
dismissed any concern about it. All in all, the Giants weren't worried when
their Eli Manning couldn't finish yesterday's practice because of a stomach
illness and for good reason. Manning was back out on the field today during the
portion of practice open to the media and looked fine, doing his normal routine.
For the second day in a row, Ahmad Bradshaw is the only Giant not practicing.
Bradshaw, who has not practiced more than once a week since his return from a
foot injury, is expected to participate tomorrow.
The other five players on yesterday's injury report -- LB Mark Herzlich
(ankle), Justin Tuck (shoulder), Osi Umenyiora (ankle/knee) and Corey Webster
(hamstring) -- are practicing today after being limited yesterday." 49ERS VS. GIANTS IS MATCHUP STEEPED IN HISTORY AND SUPER BOWL IMPLICATIONS" Don
Banks, SI.com: If you had wagered Nov. 13 that the matchup between the
Giants and San Francisco 49ers would be a dress rehearsal for the NFC
Championship Game, your recollection is strong. No teams have met more in the
postseason -- Sunday's game with tie an NFL record with the eighth meeting
between the teams, all since 1981. T he
matchups have produced agony and ecstasy for both sides -- and success in
the Super Bowl. Between 1981 and 1990, four times the winner of the postseason
brawl between the clubs lifted the Lombardi Trophy. "There are a lot of memories
[of this rivalry], and they went from maybe the great, to the greatest, to the
worst," former Giants quarterback Phil Simms told SI.com. "I remember our
playoff victories in our stadium, and of course, I remember the playoff losses
out there, too. The games were awesome, and there was something very good about
it. We always knew somewhere along the line, it was going to be about us and
them there in the mid-to-late '80s.''
SI.com:
As an accompaniment to its Giants-49ers coverage, Sports Illustrated put
together a photo gallery depicting the postseason matchups between the teams
since 1981. A retrospective was also posted
earlier this week on NJ.com.
Jerry McDonald, San
Jose Mercury News: The 49ers secondary has received praise all week. The
unit leads the 49ers' determined defense from the back, with assured coverage
and a knack for creating turnovers. The unit will be tested by Eli Manning
Sunday, and safety Dashon Goldson will be hobbled. He sat
out Wednesday's practice with an ankle injury.
Matt
Maiocco, CSNBayArea.com: Delanie Walker, a valued blocker from the tight end
position, returned to practice Wednesday in a limited capacity. Walker
is wearing special padding to help protect his jaw, which he broke in two
places on Christmas Eve. Ted Ginn, who has an injured knee, and Jonathan
Goodwin, who has an injured left leg, sat out.
Mark Purdy, San
Jose Mercury News: Alex Smith, the 49ers quarterback who led his team down
the field twice in the fourth quarter to beat the New Orleans Saints last
weekend, has been profiled ad nauseum. The Mercury News quotes former 49ers
quarterback Steve Young outlining Smith's progress. The San Francisco Chronicle
presents Smith through
the analysis of former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman, like Young a
Hall of Famer.
Eric
Branch, San Francisco Chronicle: Smith and Manning are both former No. 1
overall draft picks, and Sunday's game will mark only the second time
quarterback's picked No. 1 will face off in a conference title game. Smith said,
though, that Manning faced a set of unique circumstances that he did not even
though they share a draft slot.
Mike Taugher, San Jose
Mercury News: Since a power outage cut the lights at Candlestick Park during
a Monday Night Football game between the 49ers and Pittsburgh Steelers a month
ago, the city and PG&E, the local power provider, have spent nearly a
million dollars to assure the incident will not be replicated.
CSNBayArea.com:
In his press conference Wednesday, Jim Harbaugh gave this assessment of his
opponents Sunday: "Class, class team that also is a cruel team. They don't give
you things. They don't let you have what you want."
GIANTS-49ERS HOT TOPIC: GIVE US THREE REASONS BIG BLUE WILL WIN SUNDAY"Star-Ledger writers have been breaking down the X's and O's of this Giants-49ers matchup all week and will
continue to do so leading up to Sunday's NFC Championship. So you know about key
players and battles on both teams, but that doesn't always cover all of the
possible intangibles you might be thinking about: the
weather, the Giants' road-warrior mindset; the revenge tour, etc.
So taking all things into consideration, it's time to get the good vibes
going, Giants fans. Here's your chance to turn the non-believers into believers.
It's simple: Tell us your top three reasons why the Giants will beat the
49ers on Sunday. Could be related to X's and O's; could be a trend; could
something involving a superstition; could be because NJ.com user Carbo will pick the
Niners! Point is, it could be anything. Drop down to the comments
section and start talkin'." GIANTS VS. 49ERS: DAVID AKERS, ANDY LEE GIVE 49ERS A SPECIAL EDGE ON THE FIELDExcerpt: "Spencer Paysinger had a hunch the kick was coming their way and let Victor
Cruz, standing behind him as part of the hands team on kick return, know right
away.
“I told him, ‘Vic, it’s coming our way, I’m 100 percent sure,’ ” the Giants rookie linebacker recalled of the
play in Sunday’s divisional-round game against the Green Bay Packers. “He was
like, ‘Are you serious?’ And I said, ‘I can bet you right now it’s going our
way.’ ”
Sure enough, although Green Bay lined up one more player on the opposite
side, Mason Crosby shifted the direction of his on-side kick to Paysinger at the
last second.
The ball rolled through Paysinger’s legs, but Cruz pounced on it with the
Giants leading 30-20 and 4:46 remaining. The Giants then used the short field to
seal the 37-20 win with a 14-yard Brandon Jacobs touchdown run.
It was the second on-side kick the Giants recovered Sunday — the first was a
surprise attempt to steal a possession early in the second quarter when, again,
the Giants weren’t fooled.
But the Giants weren’t foolproof in a similar situation against the 49ers
back in Week 10 of the regular season, when David
Akers caught the Giants napping late in the first half, perfectly chipping
an on-side kick to his left where Paysinger and wide receiver Ramses Barden were
lined up. Both players were caught off guard, taking three steps back before
realizing Akers’ trickery." Read more...
http://www.nj.com/giants/
NY DAILY NEWS
STOPPING FRANK GORE AND NOT WAITING FOR ELI MANNING TO BAIL THE TEAM OUT AMONG WAYS GIANTS CAN TOP 49ERSExcerpt: "No one thought much of the Giants’ loss in San Francisco on Nov. 13. It was
dismissed by most as nothing more than the start of another Big Blue second-half
collapse.
But the Giants knew better. They knew everyone was underrating
the 49ers. They knew how tough the Niners really were. That’s why Brandon Jacobs
promised, “We will see them again.” Tom Coughlin refused
to accept that it was a bad loss.
“This is a game against a team that was
7-1 in the NFC,” Coughlin said after the 49ers beat the Giants, 27-20. “It’s not
that we played poorly. We didn’t play well enough to win. That’s
it.”
That really sums it up. The Giants played a good game against a team
that would prove to be one of the best in the NFL this season. It went down to
the final seconds, when a potential game-tying pass from Eli Manning — in the
direction of a possibly open Victor Cruz — was
batted down at the line of scrimmage by 49ers DT Justin
Smith.
“We understand that game came down to the wire and we were one
play away from potentially winning that ballgame,” said Cruz. “It’s a little
sweet to go out there and play a team that we’ve already played and know that
we’ve fought tooth-and-nail.”
Added safety Antrel Rolle: “I think
we played a pretty good game all around. But I think it could definitely get
better.”
That’s the good news for the Giants, as they head into their
rematch in the NFC Championship Game at Candlestick Park on Sunday night — there
is definite room for improvement. Manning threw for 311 yards in the first game,
nearly led a spectacular fourth-quarter comeback, and was backed by a battered
defense that yielded only 305 yards, but there were still plenty of things that
went wrong.
Here are five of those problems that the Giants need to avoid
in the rematch. If they do, their next stop could be Super Bowl XLVI:
MISSED OPPORTUNITIES
The 49ers don’t make a lot of
mistakes, which is a big reason they’ve been so successful with Alex Smith
at quarterback this season. They are a plus-28 in turnover ratio, “which is
amazing,” Tom Coughlin said, and they play strong defense. That means their
opponents won’t get many opportunities to score, so they have to take advantage
when they do.
In the first meeting, the Giants’ didn’t. There was Mario Manningham’s
drop of a potential, game-tying, 42-yard touchdown catch on the final drive.
Late in the first half there was an even worse drop by Victor Cruz, one play
before Manning threw an interception.
Here was the worst, though: The
Giants’ first two drives got them inside the 49ers’ 10, and both times they left
with field goals. They compounded that on their final drive when they had three
shots from the 49ers’ 2 and came away with nothing.
In all, they ran 15
plays on four trips into the red zone, took only two shots at the end zone and
came away with 13 points. In a game where points will be at a premium, that
simply won’t do.
STOPPING THE RUN
The Giants knew going into that first
meeting that they had to stop Frank Gore, arguably the
best running back they faced all season. They had help, though, because he hurt
his ankle a week earlier and wasn’t 100% healthy. He tried, but the Giants
stoned him. He carried six times for zero yards.
Then Gore reinjured his
ankle and left the game. His backup, Kendall Hunter, came
in and averaged 6.7 yards per carry.
It’s hard not to wonder how much
damage Gore (1,211 yards this season) could’ve done considering Hunter gained 40
yards on just six touches — all in the second half. Hunter’s first carry went
for 11 yards and he later added a 17-yard touchdown on a play where he should’ve
been stopped at the line of scrimmage.
The Giants have been much better
against the run lately, giving up only 194 rushing yards total over the last
three games, if you take away the 66 gained by Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Smith
can run a little, however, and he had 27 yards on six carries against the
Giants.
Regardless, with Gore healthy, the Giants’ task is tough. “We
expect to see a healthy Frank Gore,” said Justin Tuck. “Obviously
it’s going to be a huge challenge for us.”
BLOWN ASSIGNMENTS
That big touchdown run by Hunter was
the second of two alarmingly bad miscues that took place over the course of 65
seconds early in the fourth quarter. Rookie linebacker Greg Jones
was right in the middle of both of them.
Jones was forced into unfamiliar
situations because veteran Michael Boley
suffered a hamstring injury at the end of the first half, which, as safety
Deon Grant explained, threw the entire defense off. “Guys were just out
there guessing, just switching around,” Grant said. “Guys were getting more
playing time than they expected.”
That was first evident on tight
end Vernon Davis’ go-ahead, 31-yard touchdown catch on a simple crossing
route. It was easy to defend, but a confused Jones let Davis run by unabated.
Jones also appeared to be the one late to the hole at the line of scrimmage a
minute or so later, when Hunter cut through the opening for his 17-yard
touchdown run.
What the Giants learned there is that though the 49ers’
offense is underwhelming, they have the talent to make you pay for mistakes.
That’s especially true of Davis, who must be constantly watched.
“He’s
very explosive, a deep threat,” said Rolle. “Once he gets the ball he can get up
field. He can make defenders miss. I think that’s what makes him pretty special
at his position.”
NO PRESSURE
Linval Joseph had a
sack in the second quarter, and Osi Umenyiora had a
big fourth-quarter sack that allowed the Giants to get the ball back with 6:35
remaining. But for the most part, the pressure on Smith was inconsistent, if not
non-existent. There might not have been a game all season in which Jason Pierre-Paul
had less of an impact, and he was more of a factor than the hobbled Justin
Tuck.
The result was that Smith, a quarterback that nobody was sure of at
that point in the season, was allowed to complete 19 of 30 passes for 242 yards
and threw only one interception. In other words, he wasn’t rushed into many
mistakes. The Giants were just beginning a terrible stretch in which they
recorded only 11 sacks in a seven games.
They’ve had 17 in their last
four games, meaning the pressure is likely to be turned up a lot more on Sunday
night." Read more...
Excerpt: "It’s raining already in San Francisco, and the forecast says it won’t stop
until Monday. That means the notoriously bad field at Candlestick Park has the
potential to be a big bowl of mud.
Not that the Giants care — especially on defense. It won’t affect their game
plan one bit.
“Not in this game,” said defensive coordinator Perry Fewell. “Doesn’t
matter. This is the championship game. It doesn’t matter. You fight all year to
get here. It can snow, it can hail, it can rain, whatever it wants to do. We’re
going to be there to play.”
“Any weather,” added defensive end Osi Umenyiora. “It
doesn’t really matter whether it is cold, rainy, snow or sunshine, it is going
to be a good game regardless.”
TOM TALKS TURKEY
There has never been a middle ground
with Tom Coughlin, and he’s
well-aware of that. A month ago some in the media were calling for him to be
fired. In the Daily News on Wednesday there was a story about the possibility of
him eventually being elected to the Hall of Fame.
How does Coughlin deal with the seemingly constant reversals of his
fortune?
“I just keep the blinders on and go straight ahead,” he said. “I don’t have
anything to do with what is being said on the outside.
“The priorities and the way that I think about it, I don’t let it affect me
in any way.
“I do believe in the John Wooden statement:
We like praise. We don’t like criticism. But if you let either one of those
things affect your preparation then you’ve got a problem.”
GIANT REMINDERS
Mark Bavaro, Michael Strahan and
Rich Seubert, all of
whom appeared in NFC title games with the Giants, will serve as honorary
captains for their old team on Sunday night." Read more...
GIANTS HOPE TO KEEP ROLLING ON ROAD AS THEY FACE THE 49ERS IN NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME"The Giants will get on their charter flight to San Francisco on Saturday and
immediately transform into their alter ego: The Big Blue Road Warriors.
If home is where the heart is, the road is where the victories are for the
Giants. They don’t plan to leave their season in San Francisco during Sunday’s
NFC Championship Game against the 49ers at Candlestick Park.
Tom
Coughlin will take his customary seat in coach and leave first class to the
veterans and the big guys who need the extra leg room. It’s a business trip —
the standard cliché for coaches — and Coughlin sets the tone by requiring suits
and ties on the road.
His rules may be a bit suffocating, but they
clearly send the right message: Road trips are a bonding experience. They are a
team and it takes a team to get to the Super Bowl.
The Giants won three
playoff games on the road on the way to their Super Bowl XLII victory over the
Patriots four years ago. They were a wild-card team and beat the NFC South
champion Bucs in Tampa in the first round. Then they went into Dallas and
eliminated the Cowboys, the No. 1 seed. Then it was on to Green Bay, where they
beat the Packers, the No. 2 seed. That Giants team also won its last seven
regular-season road games.
This year, as the NFC East champs, the Giants
had a first-round home game against the Falcons. They beat them, 24-2. Then they
went back to Green Bay and beat the Packers, 37-20, again taking out the No. 1
seed in the divisional round. Now it’s on to San Francisco, where the 49ers are
the No. 2 seed.
Symmetry? Perhaps. The same results? We’ll
see.
Coughlin has six road playoff victories in his NFL head coaching
career. One more and he ties Tom Landry for the most
ever.
Eli Manning is tied for
the most road playoff victories, at four, with a group of quarterbacks. One more
and Manning will be first in NFL history.
“This guy on the road — he’s
phenomenal,” an NFL source said.
Manning has a laid-back personality and
doesn’t get rattled. That helps when 70,000 people are screaming.
“Eli is
tough. He’s sober in a storm. He gets it,” the source said. “The things that he
has, like his brother, is he breeds confidence to his teammates. When he’s under
center, they think they can win. It’s a very difficult dynamic for a quarterback
to have. It’s not just about him believing in himself, it’s about teammates
believing in him. It’s rare. All the great ones have it.”
So, what is it
about the road that brings about the best in the Giants?
“It’s just the
concept of us against the world, I guess. You don’t have anything else to fall
back on except your teammates,” Justin Tuck said. “I
think that goes a long way with building trust, with building that belief in the
fact that, regardless of who we go face, if we just take that corps of guys,
those 53 guys and the coaching staff and owners on that plane going to wherever
we go, we can come out victorious. That’s just a mind-set that has been
instilled in us ever since Coach Coughlin has been here.”
The Jets found
out the last two years just how tough it is to win three road playoff games. But
it can be done. The Giants did it four years ago. The Packers did it last year,
winning in Philly, Atlanta and Chicago. The Steelers did it in 2005, going
through Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Denver.
The Giants made things just
a bit easier for themselves this season by winning the NFC East and reducing by
one the number of road playoff victories they needed to get to Super Bowl XLVI
in Indianapolis.
Teams either shrink with the pressure created by a
hostile environment or they create an us-against-the-world mentality and use it
as a unifying force. In the Super Bowl era, the Giants have never lost an NFC
Championship Game. They beat the Redskins (1986) and Vikings (2000) at home and
the 49ers (1990) and Packers (2007) on the road.
The game 21 years ago
against the Niners is something Coughlin will use in his pregame preparation. He
was on Bill Parcells’ staff
as the wide receivers coach. The 49ers had won back-to-back Super Bowls and were
attempting to become the first team to three-peat. They had defeated the Giants,
7-3, at Candlestick during the regular season.
The Giants survived that
NFC title game, 15-13, without scoring a touchdown. They won on Matt
Bahr’s 42-yard field goal on the final play. The 49ers, who had lost Joe
Montana on the previous series when he was crushed by Leonard Marshall,
had a first down at the Giants’ 40-yard line and were trying to run out the
clock with Steve Young
at quarterback.
Young handed to Roger Craig,
who was hit by Erik Howard, with Lawrence Taylor
recovering the ball at the Giants’ 43. There was 2:36 left. The Giants moved 31
yards in six plays to position themselves for Bahr’s field goal.
Coughlin
knows there are lessons his team can learn by hearing about that game.
“I
have thought about that and we will talk about some of the things that occurred
there, but only from the standpoint of the history and the tradition and what a
great event that was at that particular time,” he said. “That was a long time
ago and I think some of our players, because they are historians, will know a
little about that game and the great players that played in that
game.”
It was the game when the Giants first turned into road warriors.
Two decades later, they are back where that mentality started and trying to do
it again." FINALLY HEALTHY, MATHIAS KIWANUKA ENJOYING SECOND SHOT AT SUPER BOWL BERTH AGAINST 49ERS Excerpt: "The
last time the Giants made an incredible, improbable Super Bowl run in 2007, Mathias Kiwanuka
was on the team, but he wasn’t running with it.
Kiwanuka was on injured
reserve with a fractured left fibula – an injury that occurred just as the
Giants were gathering steam for the stretch run. And just a season ago Kiwanuka
wasn’t even sure he would ever play football again after suffering a herniated
cervical disk three games into the season.
As the Giants prepare for the
NFC Championship Game at San Francisco on Sunday, it has been hard to find a
happier player in the Giants locker room this week than Kiwanuka. He is one step
away from playing in his first Super Bowl.
“It’s huge. There’s no place that
I’d rather be right now than right here with these guys,’’ Kiwanuka said at the
Giants’ training facility on Thursday afternoon.
There is nothing that
makes a player appreciate the kind of run that the Giants are on now than a
player who missed it the first time with an injury and who suffered another
injury that had him contemplating not just his career, but his life.
A
victory over the 49ers will give Kiwanuka the opportunity to play in a Super
Bowl in his hometown of Indianapolis.
“It’s been brought up a lot.
Obviously I can’t get around it,’’ said Kiwanuka, who played tight end and
linebacker at Cathedral High School in Indianapolis. “That would be awesome, but
right now we have to focus on getting this game (against the Niners) and make
sure that we accomplish our goal.’’
It has been a winding and bumpy road
for Kiwanuka to get to this point. He has had two major injuries and a position
change that would have derailed less determined football players.
The
broken leg was not a major hurdle because Kiwanuka was given a time frame on
when he would return. But the herniated disk in his neck brought a different set
of questions.
Kiwanuka was around the team during the run that led to
Super Bowl XLII. He had mixed emotions as he saw it beat the odds all the way to
the championship.
“It was exciting. It was fun. Knowing that you were a
part of the team, there was a big part of you was still involved,’’ Kiwanuka
said. “It’s emotional because you want to be out there so bad. There’s not a lot
you can do or say. It’s a tough situation to be in.’’
Kiwanuka went to
Las Vegas when the Giants were playing the Packers in the NFC Championship Game
at Green Bay. He said he was in Vegas watching, but he made the trip to Phoenix
for the Super Bowl.
“I stayed on the sidelines. They tried to get me
upstairs, but there was no way I was leaving the sideline,’’ he
said." Read more...
DAILY NEWS STAFF PICKS: AFC AND NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES"The New York Giants will take on the San Francisco 49ers for the NFC
Championship while the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens will clash for
the AFC crown this Sunday.
Super Bowl spots are on the line for everyone involved, but our Daily News
experts tell you how it will all shake out this weekend in this week's staff
picks:
HANK GOLA
Giants 27-20: They're just on
too big of a roll now. It's 2007 all over again, which means Eli manning will
play the hero.
Ravens 27, Patriots 24: Defense has been winning a lot of
playoff games.
BEST BET: Giants
LAST WEEK: 1-3
SEASON:
115-137-12
BEST BETS: 9-10
KEVIN
ARMSTRONG
Giants 27-23: The defense does it again, unsettling Niners
QB Alex
Smith and smoothing the path to Indy.
Patriots 30-14: Brady's blazing
of late, and New England's defense can hold the Ravens down.
BEST BET:
Giants
LAST WEEK: 2-2
SEASON: 122-130-12
BEST BETS: 10-9
JIM RICH
Giants 31, 49ers 10: Look close and you
see that San Fran's vaunted defense is ranked only 16th against the pass. Expect
Eli
Manning to have another big day.
Patriots 28, Ravens 17: Baltimore
should be able to hold Tom Brady to four TD
passes, but that should be more than enough to outscore the anemic
Ravens.
BEST BET: Giants
LAST WEEK: 4-0
SEASON: 123-129-12
BEST
BETS: 12-7
SEAN BRENNAN
Giants 20, 49ers 17: The Giants are 4-0
all-time in NFC Championship Games. Who am I to quibble with success like
that?
Ravens 24, Patriots 21: At least when the Patriots sink, Brady goes
down with the ship - unlike that Italian captain.
BEST BET: Giants
LAST WEEK: 2-2
SEASON: 124-128-12
BEST BETS:
10-9
Over/Unders: 136-127-1
RALPH
VACCHIANO
Giants 27, 49ers 17: If Aaron Rodgers and the
Packers didn't stop this train, Alex Smith and the Niners surely won't do
it.
Patriots 31, Ravens 27: Remember when the Patriots dynasty was over?
Yeah, those were a fun few minutes.
BEST BET: Giants
LAST WEEK: 1-3
SEASON: 124-128-12
BEST BETS:
9-9-1
GARY MYERS
Giants 24, 49ers 17: Eli hits Cruz in the
back of end zone with 51 seconds left in revenge of "The Catch."
Patriots
30, Ravens 13: Ed Reed would probably
rather have Tom Brady as his QB.
BEST BET: Patriots
LAST WEEK:
0-4
SEASON: 118-134-12
BEST BETS: 9-10
MANISH
MEHTA
49ers 20, Giants 17 OT: The Niners' opportunistic defense
will win the turnover battle to help punch their ticket to
Indianapolis.
Patriots 30, Ravens 20: Tom Brady will exact revenge after
the Ravens embarrassed him in the playoffs two years ago in Foxborough.
BEST BET: Patriots
LAST WEEK: 2-2
SEASON: 120-132-12
BEST BETS:
7-11-1
EBENEZER SAMUEL
Giants 27, Niners 20: The
Giants' run won't end, but feisty San Fran will put up more of a fight than you
expect.
Patriots 35, Ravens 21: Baltimore has no answer for Pats TEs
Gronkowski and Hernandez.
BEST BET: Patriots
LAST WEEK: 3-1
SEASON: 132-120-12
BEST BETS:
9-10
MIGHTY QUINN
Giants 15, 49ers 13: I (finally) believe
in the Giants.
Patriots 35, Ravens 10: Harbaugh brothers 0-2 for the
day.
BEST BET: Giants
LAST WEEK: 1-3
SEASON: 124-128-12
BEST
BETS: 12-7"
THE OTHER MANN: MARIO MANNINGHAM HOPING FOR SUPER BOUNCE BACK AGAINST 49ERSExcerpt: "
He does not dance the salsa after each touchdown. He has not been offered a
spot on "Dancing With the Stars." He does not have king-sized hands that make
impossible catches, or a big frame to shrug of cornerbacks with ease.
It is no wonder Mario Manningham
gets lost easily in the Giants wide receiving corps when so few things about the
25-year-old receiver stand out — especially when he is compared to Victor
Cruz and Hakeem Nicks.
The oft-forgotten wideout — whose drop in the end zone in Week 10 helped sink
the Giants against the Niners — could play a key role on in Sunday's NFC
Championship Game. As Nicks and Cruz have drawn increased attention from
opposing defenses, Manningham has quietly reemerged with three TD catches in the
last five games. His four-yard TD catch with 6:48 left in last week helped seal
the Giants' upset over the Packers.
"Mario has done a
great job (lately)," says Giants wide receivers coach Sean Ryan. "He's made
some huge plays on the outside."
That's partly because Manningham's more celebrated teammates are drawing
consistent double-coverage, and partly because he is finally healthy and playing
to his potential.
Now in his fourth year, Manningham opened the season as the starter opposite
Hakeem Nicks, seeking to solidify his standing as one of the league's top deep
threats, and possibly earn a big payday. His contract expires after this season,
and while he rarely talks about his future, he understands that suitors are
watching.
"I need to make plays," he said last month. "I know that."
But the gamebreaking plays that Manningham made last season — when he
accumulated 944 receiving yards and nine TDs — have come sporadically during an
injury-plagued 2011. In the second game of the season, a win over the Rams, he
suffered a concussion, an injury that caused him to miss a pivotal win over the
Eagles — and paved the way for Cruz's two-touchdown breakout in
Philadelphia.
Manningham returned a week later against the Arizona Cardinals, but he has
spent much of the rest of the year battling a painful right knee injury on his
way to a disappointing, 39-catch, 523-yard regular season. The injury forced
Manningham to miss four games as he slowly rehabbed and strengthened the knee;
he finally returned and felt close to 100% in the season finale against the
Dallas Cowboys.
His performance in November's 27-20 loss in San Francisco was a microcosm of
all that inconsistency. Statistically, it was his finest afternoon of the year —
six catches, 77 yards and a TD. But he wasn't even sure he could play until he
tested his balky knee before the game." Read more...
HISTORY OF VIOLENCE: GIANTS VS. 49ERS Excerpt: " Bart Oates had been on
one side of one of the biggest rivalries in the NFL and he wasn’t going to cross
over without a little initiation from his former foes and new teammates.
“I was treated pretty good because any time they started busting my chops I’d
say, ‘Do you remember a game back in January of ’‘91?’ ” Oates said, who joined
San Francisco in 1994 after spending nine seasons with the Giants. “It was the
’94 season but it was amazing, four or five years later, it stung like it
happened a month ago.”
From 1981 to 1994, the teams split their six
playoff meetings, with the Niners pulling ahead in the all-time playoff series
with a victory in 2003.
“Playing the 49ers was like getting the girl you
wanted to be with for the last 20 years of your life,” said Giants DE Leonard
Marshall. “You were going to get the chance to prove yourself. The way we
took it, we couldn’t wait to get on the field.”
Here’s a look at each
game:
1981 Divisional playoff: 49ers 38, Giants 24
“I
guess I’ve become a little popular,” Joe Montana said after
his first NFL playoff game.
The Giants were in the playoffs for the first
time since 1963 and had just upset the defending NFC champion Eagles in the
wild-card round at the Vet. But they were about to become the first victim of
the Montana dynasty in the Niners’ first playoff game since ’72. Little did
anyone anticipate the rivalry that would come to pass over the next
decade.
The Giants dared Montana to throw deep. He did. The 49ers dared
rookie Lawrence Taylor to
beat offensive guard John Ayers. He
couldn’t.
The 49ers’ task got easier when safety Beasley Reece
couldn’t play with an injury. They shot out to a 24-7 lead and while the Giants
fought back, turnovers eventually did them in. Rookie safety Ronnie
Lott had two interceptions of Scott Brunner, who
had replaced the injured Phil Simms late in the
regular season.
1984 Divisional playoff: 49ers 21, Giants
10
The ’84 Niners rolled to a then-unprecedented 15-1 regular-season
record and closed the year as one of the most under-appreciated Super Bowl
champs of all time. The Giants, 9-7, during the year, began the postseason by
beating the Rams in Anaheim, but after spending Christmas practicing in Fresno,
they met their match.
Montana threw for 309 yards and three TDs. Dwight Clark burned
the Giants for nine catches, 112 yards and a touchdown. Gary Reasons
intercepted Montana twice and Carson had a pick-six, the Giants’ only TD of the
game as their offense never got rolling
“We knew the price you had to
pay to win, but they were just at another level,” Marshall said. “I just felt
that once we graduated football school, we could compete with these guys. That
butt-whipping in ’84 would be the push that we needed as a team to grow
up.” Read more...
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/giants
GIANTS VS. 49ERS: MATCHUPS
"These teams got here in vastly different ways, the 49ers dominating their
division and coasting into the playoffs, and the Giants staving off a
late-season meltdown to catch fire at just the right time. For months, the
Giants were carried by their explosive offense. For months, the 49ers were
winning with their sledgehammer defense.
It should make for an intriguing NFC Championship at Candlestick Park. If the
Giants make this game about the quarterbacks, figure they have the advantage
with Eli Manning over Alex Smith. If the 49ers turn this into a run-the-ball
referendum, they have the edge. The field could be wet and the rain might be
falling, but these teams will go at each other as long as necessary to claim the
prize of conference champs headed to Super Bowl XLVI in
Indianapolis.
Look inside the matchups:
GIANTS PASS OFFENSE vs. 49ers PASS DEFENSE
Manning knows all about Carlos Rogers, the former Redskins DB who made his
first Pro Bowl in his first season with the 49ers. The first two-interception
game in Rogers’ career came earlier this season vs. Manning. Only area on
defense Niners do not excel is in pass coverage, but SS Donte Whitner is a
hitter who will jar the ball loose. Manning-to-Hakeem Nicks has been a
post-season dream: 13 receptions, 280 yards, four touchdowns in two games. Mario
Manningham has also stepped up his game, and Victor Cruz hasn’t broken out yet,
but he’s kept the chains moving. If Manning could get TE Jake Ballard (still
slowed with knee issue) going, the attack might really take off. Of course,
nothing gets done unless OTs David Diehl and Kareem McKenzie can control the
edges against sackers Justin Smith and rookie Aldon Smith. Edge:
Giants.
GIANTS RUN OFFENSE vs. 49ers RUN DEFENSE
Might as well slam your head against the wall. Niners allowed an NFL-low 77.3
rushing yards per game and the Saints got 37 last week. Their longest run
allowed all year was 34 yards and they gave up three rushing TDs in 17 games.
Inside LBs Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman are as good as it gets — tackling
machines that get clear lanes to the ball-carrier. Brandon Jacobs 18 carries, 55
yards did not do much the first time around against this terrific front and
Giants have to hope Ahmad Bradshaw fares better. Still too many (10) runs for
zero, one or negative yards last week in Green Bay, and unless Manning is able
to loosen things up through the air, former 49ers center David Baas and the rest
of the offensive line is going to have all sorts of trouble getting a push up
front. Edge: 49ers. 49ers PASS OFFENSE vs. GIANTS PASS DEFENSE
After facing the Cowboys, Falcons and Packers’ top-flight receivers in
successive weeks, this is a comedown. In fact, the main threat here is TE Vernon
Davis, who shredded the Saints last week with 180 receiving yards and two TDs.
Mr. Davis, meet Mr. Michael Boley, who is back in form, a huge plus. Michael
Crabtree is a decent possession receiver and Ted Ginn is strictly a speed
threat, although he is hurting with a right knee problem. RB Kendall Hunter gets
the ball out of the backfield as well. Alex Smith is considered a mid-level
quarterback but he doesn’t make many mistakes (five INTs) and was splendid last
week with his arm and his legs. He can, and will, scramble and there are gaps in
the defense — ask Aaron Rodgers. There is nothing here Corey Webster, Aaron Ross
and safeties Antrel Rolle and Kenny Phillips haven’t seen or can’t handle. This
is not a deep-threat attack, as long as there are no busted coverages like there
were against Davis the last time these teams met. Edge: Giants." SUPER OUTLOOK FOR GIANTS' ELI MANNING
"This is when you separate the Mann from the boys. Win one game. Win this
game. The hope and dreams of a storied franchise, of a city thirsting for
another championship, heaped on one Mann’s shoulders.
The Right Mann. The Only Mann Giants fans want for the job.
Everyone can see the focus in his eyes, now and forever. He sees 49ers
directly in front of him, and that Lombardi Trophy he craves to hoist again in
the not-so-distant future. And he knows what it takes to carry his team and his town over these last,
furious 60 Minutes on the Golden Gateway to Glory.
Eli Manning beat Brett Favre in the bone-chilling cold of Lambeau Field four
years ago and he will beat Alex Smith whether rain and mud try to stop him or
not Sunday at Candlestick Park.
Strip away other key elements of this NFC title game bloodbath: Frank Gore
trying to run the ball on Big Blue; Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs trying to
run the ball on the Niners; Jason Pierre-Paul, Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck
trying to unleash hell on Smith; Justin Smith and Aldon Smith trying to rattle
Manning (good luck); a hostile crowd trying to will the home team to the finish
line past the self-proclaimed Road Warriors.
The singular difference in this game is the advantage the Giants have at the
most important position on the field.
Manning stood at the podium yesterday, pronounced himself “100 percent”
following the 24-hour stomach bug that compromised his Wednesday practice, and
now he is ready to sic the 49ers.
“The arm felt good today, it felt fresh, and it was coming out good,” Manning
said.
Bill Parcells used to treasure Phil Simms because he was a battlefield
commander, and that is the Eli Manning who stands at the precipice of history
now — first Giants quarterback to lead his team to two Super Bowls, because it
was Jeff Hostetler who finished the job when Simms went down before the 1990
playoffs began.
Manning has been there, won that, and the men who trust and revere him so,
from the owners to GM Jerry Reese to head coach Tom Coughlin and offensive
coordinator Kevin Gilbride to every one of his teammates, would not want to
follow anyone else onto the battlefield than him.
“He has that quiet ... it’s not swagger . . . but it is swagger,” Reese said.
“But it’s a quiet ‘I know what I’m doing. I’m gonna be there for ya. I’m gonna
make the plays for ya. I’m giving this team a great opportunity to win the
game.’
“You love that about the guy. You come to the stadium, you got this guy as
your quarterback. Every time you come to the stadium you say, ‘We’re gonna have
a chance to win, ’cause we got this guy as our trigger guy,’ and that’s a good
feeling to have.”
He is the franchise’s unflappable Ice Man as well as its Iron Man who has
never missed a start since Coughlin anointed him the starter nine games into the
2004 season. So when Reese learned that Manning had to leave practice Wednesday,
he rushed from his office to the field to see for himself.
“Somebody said he was out back puking, ’cause I didn’t even see him when I
walked out there,” Reese said, “and he looked pretty green from where I was
standing.”
Manning made Tom Brady sick in Super Bowl XLII and he made Aaron Rodgers sick
last week.
“He never seems like the moment is too big for him, whether it went well or
didn’t go well,” Gilbride said.
When it didn’t go well for Manning as a rookie against the Ravens, it
uncharacteristically shook him. Now it’s as if he wrote the entire offensive
playbook.
“I’ve seen him upset many times. I think he does a great job of masking and
camouflaging and not allowing people to see that he’s disappointed in
something,” Gilbride said. “It would take a lot to unnerve him now.”
It won’t be the conditions.
“It’s not something I worry about,” Manning said. “I’ve had success throwing
it in rain games. If it’s going to be a wet game, I always felt the offense has
an advantage throwing the ball. We shouldn’t be the ones slipping, it’s usually
the defensive side that slips.”
They call him Easy, from the Big Easy.
“Is it the NFC Championship, or is it preseason? You can’t tell ‘cause of his
poker face,” defensive end Dave Tollefson said. “Maybe he should do the World
Series of Poker. I’ll sponsor him.”
They all would. “He’s as good as they come,” Jacobs said.
And here he comes again.
Manning is asked to describe his mindset 60 Minutes from the Super Bowl.
“I think the mindset,” he said, “ is we have to go out and play a great
game.”
Today Mann Francisco, tomorrow the world."
SERBY'S NFC CHAMPIONSHIP SPECIAL Q&A - - MICHAEL BOLEY"Giants linebacker Michael Boley, as he prepares for the NFC Championship
against he 49ers, took a blitz of questions from Post columnist Steve Serby.
Q: When you visualize the game Sunday, tell me what you see.
A: I see us walking off that field with a victory. I see us as a collective
unit sitting in the locker room celebrating ... guys screaming, hi-fiving,
hugging. ... To go from where we were a month-and-a-half ago to where we are
now, it’s been a big turnaround. It just shows that this team has a lot of fight
... determination that ... we won’t be stopped.
Q: You see no scenario where you will walk off the field as
losers?
A: No.
Q: And how many guys in that locker room feel the same way?
A: All of ’em. Q: Message for Giants fans?
A: Stay tuned. It’s gonna be a big show.
Q: Anything you want to tell them about what the final result’s gonna
be?
A: It’s gonna be a win. We plan on bringing another championship back to New
York.
Q: Tell me what it’s like being 60 minutes from the Super
Bowl.
A: There’s no feeling like it. It’s the closest I’ve been to it. I try to
explain to some of the younger guys that, you know, take advantage of this time,
because even just making it to the playoffs, it don’t come that often. It’s
rare. I’m in my seventh year, it’s only my second time being in the
playoffs.
Q: What will it be like for you standing in the tunnel
Sunday?
A: Very emotional. ... To actually being that close ... just 60 minutes away
from being to a place that you always dreamed about ... it’s gonna be a lot of
emotion flowing. ... I think not just myself, I think a lot of guys are gonna be
like that.
Q: When you say emotion, you don’t mean tears...
A: Like that fire just ready to boil over.
Q: You dreamed about playing in the Super Bowl?
A: From the time I was 7.
Q: Tell me about the dream.
A: I started playing football ’cause my brother was playing, he was a year
older than me, and once I started playing I just kinda fell in love with it. I
used to sit around and I used to have little toy figurines. ... I always
envisioned myself playing in the Super Bowl. Back then, I played offense though
(laugh). I was a running back then. I used to always dream about scoring a
touchdown in the Super Bowl. ... That dream of offense kinda went away when I
got to college (laugh).
Q: Which running backs did you like?
A: Barry Sanders.
Q: You were converted to linebacker your freshman year at Southern
Mississippi.
A: I always loved LT and Carl Banks. They were two monsters on those
edges.
Q: What's your on-field mentality?
A: It’s like a switch that clicks on. I’m always quiet off the field, but
once you get on, it’s like you’re walking into a ring and you’re about to get
ready to fight.
Michael Boley scouting report.I see myself as a linebacker who does a little
bit of everything. There’s not just one thing that I do well. I do a lot of
things well. I can rush, I can cover, I can step up in the run game. ... It’s
not much that I’m not really doing well right now.
Q: Was your best game as a Giant last week?
A: The best is yet to come.
Q: Are you expecting another big game this Sunday.
A: No doubt.
Q: Do you feel like you got a big game in you?
A: I expect big games from here on out.
Q: Is your confidence as high as it’s been, and why do you expect big
games from here on out?
A: They say big-time players, they step up on big-time stages. And so, for me
this is as big as it gets — one step closer to the ultimate goal.
Q: Do you expect to make a game-changing play Sunday?
A: Of course. A couple of ’em.
Q: Define swag for me.
A: Swag is just something you have. ... When you have that certain aura about
you, that it kinda says, you know what? He’s on his game.
Q: Does Michael Boley have swag on the football field?
A: Oh yeah. A lot of it (chuckle).
Q: Give me your All-Swag Giants Team.
A: How many people you want on the team?
Q: As many as you want.
A: I’d have to put all my DBs, they all got swag. . .except Prince
[Amukamara]. We’re still trying to work on his swag a little bit. He’s learning
though, he’s learning (smile).
Q: OK, who else?
A: Kiwi, Kiwi [Mathias Kiwanuka] has swag ... JPP [Justin Pierre-Paul] ...
[Justin] Tuck’s got some swag ... Osi [Umenyiora] might be the most swagged-out
defensive lineman.
Q: In what way?
A: His demeanor. His whole approach to him playing end — “I’m gonna be the
best end right here on this play. Every play.”
Q: Any others?
A: Ahmad [Bradshaw] has swag, him and BJ [Brandon Jacobs] both. ... [Victor]
Cruz has swag ... Hakeem [Nicks] ... Mario [Manningham] ... I can’t really put
Eli in the swag area.
Q: Why not?
A: Eli’s Eli. He’s different. He’s in a class of his own. ... He has Eli
swag.
Q: How would you define Eli swag?
A: He’s so mild-mannered both on and off the field, like it seems like
nothing ever fazes him.
Q: I don’t want you to leave anybody out and hurt anybody’s feelings.
. .
A: I’m sure I’m probably leaving someone out, but they’ll understand.
Q: Tom Coughlin?
A: He’s a tough, hard-nosed coach that knows how to win. He knows exactly
what it takes from a team to get the job done.
Q: Swag, or no?
A: He has TC swag (laugh).
Q: What's the one teammate you’d pick to be on your side in a bar
room brawl?
A: Kareem McKenzie. He’s a brawler, man. Either him or I’d take Antrel
[Rolle].
Q : How would you describe Antrel’s
mentality?
A: Tenacious. He has that never-quit attitude. He is balls-to-the-wall every
play.
Q: Who was your biggest influence growing up?
A: My brother (K.J.). For one, he was the one who got me started with
football. I had to go with my mom to watch him in football practice, every day
they would run sprints after practice, and I was always small. And so I would
line up 10 yards in front of everybody when they’d run sprints and I’d be on the
side and I’d start running. And one day the coach told me, “Look, if you can
line up on the line with everybody, if you come in first place, I’ll let you
play.” And, I won. They let me play.
Q: What's the biggest obstacle you had to overcome?
A: I’d have to say pretty much just making it out of a small town (Gasdsen,
Ala.).
Q: How small was your town?
A: Our whole school was K through 12. I was probably about maybe ... 60
people in my graduating class (chuckle).
Q: What was there to do?
A: Hang out at people’s houses ... rolling yards ...
Q: What?
A: Toilet papering people’s houses (laugh). . .in people’s trees. Some people
call it TPing.
Q: Your mom?
A: From high school up until probably about a year or so ago, didn’t miss a
game. Home or away.
Q: How did she get injured?
A: She was a trauma nurse, and she fractured her back a couple of years ago
lifting a patient.
Q: Do you speak to her before games?
A: Before every game.
Q: What does she tell you?
A: She’s always trying to get me motivated. She’ll call me and she’ll say,
“All right, this week, I need ... between 10 and 12."
GIANTS' GM REESE MADE ALL THE RIGHT MOVES"Jerry Reese believed before anyone else believed. The Giants didn’t have the
Dream Team; the Eagles did, remember? His own fans wondered whether the GM was
asleep at the switch.
But now that the Giants are 60 minutes from the Super Bowl, Reese does not
have vindication on his mind.
“No, it’s not vindication,” the Giants general manager said yesterday in his
office, prior to Sunday's NFC Championship against he 49ers. “We try to do
what’s best for the New York Giants organization, for our football team. It’s
all about trying to do what’s best, trying to get the best players available
with the amount of money that we have. ... You know, it’s this thing called the
salary cap you have to adhere to. It’s not like fantasy football where you can
just get any kind of guy.
“But I understand why fans would be concerned, because fans like splash, and
they like sexy, big moves. But that’s not necessarily the right moves for you.
And you see teams that do that sometimes it doesn’t work out for.”
Several free-agent moves Reese made over the past three years are paying off
in spades now.
Chris Canty: “You get run over if you don’t have big people,” Reese said.
Michael Boley: “We saw him as a cover linebacker [so you] didn’t have to use
a safety on the [Jason] Wittens of the world, or [Dustin] Keller. ... Those
receiving tight ends, you could put this linebacker on them and he could hold
his own against those kind of guys. And a guy that if you wanted to blitz him,
he’s fast, and can get there on the blitz.”
Antrel Rolle: “We wanted a veteran safety and we thought he was the best
safety on the market at the time. ... He’s very confident in himself, and he
wants his teammates to be confident. We don’t think anything is wrong with that,
but you have to let your play do the talking though more than anything
else.”
No one could have imagined Victor Cruz, the free agent from Paterson, N.J.,
replacing Steve Smith and celebrating touchdowns with a salsa dance.
“I’m not big on dances period, but it looks like he’s done a pretty good job
of it,” Reese said.
No one could have expected a free agent named Jake Ballard to replace Kevin
Boss at tight end.
“He looked like a blocking tight end ... not an accomplished blocker yet,”
Reese said. “ But he does have soft hands when he gets an opportunity.”
David Baas was this year’s big free-agent prize. “Big, tough, smart,” Reese
said.
Then there is coach Tom Coughlin.
“Terrific head coach, focused. [I would] put his record up against
anybody’s,” Reese said, “I think the players like to play for him, and players
like for you to tell them the truth. They may not like the truth when you tell
them sometimes, but at the end of the day, they like for you to tell them the
truth, and that guy tells them the truth.”
Reese also has struck gold with first-round picks Hakeem Nicks and Jason
Pierre-Paul.
On Pierre-Paul: “That was one of the easiest picks we’ve made around here,”
Reese said. “We talked about this guy has the highest upside of any player in
the draft.”
The Dream Team might be his team now.
“I don’t have any comments about that,” Reese said. “Everybody does what’s
best for their organization. ... Sometimes you get it right. Sometimes you get
it wrong. That’s just the way it is in the National Football League.”
Reese is asked if this is a better team than the Super Bowl XLII Giants.
“I think it’s a comparable team,” Reese said. “If we win it, we could say,
–well this is a better team but the other team won it. This team hasn’t won it,”
Reese said. “This team hasn’t even gone to the Super Bowl.”
A message for Giants fans?
“We’re going to try to go out there and get a win for them, and hopefully we
can get them back in the Super Bowl and make our fans proud,” Reese said.
Dream Team with a Dream GM, who won his first ring as a rookie.
“I’m most proud for the Giants organization, and for our coaches and for our
players,” Reese said. “The Maras and the Tisches have given us all the resources
to make this a great product.
“I take a lot of heat sometimes from fans and from media, but it’s a
privilege to do that, just because I work for the New York Giants,” he said.
“It’s a privilege for me to take that heat. ... I think about when the lockout
happened the entire time the New York Giants didn’t lay one person off. Not one
person. That’s the organization we work for here, man. It’s a privilege to be
here.”
GIANTS' PLAYOFF EXPERIENCE SHOULD SERVE THEM WELL VS. 49ERS "Sunday’s NFC Championship was supposed to be an offensive shootout between
the Packers and Saints.
But the 49ers and Giants ruined that with a pair of stunning upsets last
weekend. Both played remarkable football, but only one is capable of replicating
that for another week, says Giants radio postgame analyst Roman Oben.
“They played as good a game as they could have on Saturday, but I don’t think
they can do that two weeks in a row,” Oben said of the 49ers’ 36-32 win over the
Saints, which featured four touchdowns (two by each team) in the frantic final
four minutes.
“Sometimes, you come back from the high of playing that well in one game and
in trying to do it again you look for the guys that are leaders that can help
you get through it but I don’t think there are a lot of guys on the team like
that. I think the guys on that team haven’t done it enough, so there really
isn’t anything to lean on in that locker room.”
The 49ers have two players on their roster that have won a Super Bowl,
starting center Jonathan Goodwin and backup receiver Brett Swain. Goodwin
started for the Saints in Super Bowl XLIV when they beat the Colts, and Swain
didn’t have a catch for Green Bay when they beat Pittsburgh last year.
That’s compared to 15 Giants who remain from the Super Bowl team that beat
the Patriots four years ago.
But Oben, who was drafted by the Giants in 1996 and played four seasons with
the team, said it is more than that. The Giants also have a handful of veterans
they have signed the past few years, who have valuable postseason
experience.
“That’s a third of the team,” Oben said of the Super Bowl holdovers.
“Some of those veterans like [Antrel] Rolle, [Michael] Boley, [Deon] Grant,
[Rocky] Bernard, [Chris] Canty, they’ve all been down this road. . . Then you
have the leadership of [coach] Tom Coughlin, who does a great job of keeping
things in perspective week to week. That’s what’s going to carry those younger
players who have not been in this position before.”
Oben joined the Giants’ radio team in 2008, after the offensive lineman
retired from the NFL. He watched those 2008 Giants race off to an 11-1 start
before losing three of their final four games, and then getting beaten by the
Eagles in the playoffs. The Giants were favorites to win the Super Bowl that
year. This Sunday, they are underdogs for the second straight week.
“If you look at what the Giants did in 2008 when they were 11-1 and Plaxico
(Burress) did what he did,” Oben said, referring to Burress shooting himself in
the leg during a nightclub visit. “I just think this team is just better when
their back is against the wall. I think Eli Manning responded when his back was
against the wall, the defense responded. The coaches like it better that way
because they don’t want the players to get too confident.” GIANTS AIM TO SET TONE WITH EARLY HITS VS. 49ERS
Excerpt: "Deon Grant says he could tell as the game wore on last week that the Packers
receivers were thinking more self-protection than ball security.
“We were physical with them boys,’’ the veteran safety said yesterday. “Every
time we had a chance to get our hands on ’em, we definitely took advantage of
it. Every time I had a chance to hit somebody, I was trying to take their head
off. They knew that.’’
It’s called setting a tone.
UPDATES FROM
OUR GIANTS BLOG
COMPLETE GIANTS
COVERAGE
Brandon Jacobs saw how 49ers safety Donte Whitner forced Saints running back
Pierre Thomas out of the game last week with a blow to the head that was as
vicious as it was damage-inducing. Jacobs wants some of that this
weekend.
“To get knocked out that means they’re hitting you in the head,’’ Jacobs
said. “I wish like hell one of them tries to hit me in my head, that means
they’re staying up, they’re not hitting me in the legs. That was a
helmet-to-helmet hit. I want one of those. Because that means they’re staying
high, they’re not digging in the ground and trying to make tackles at your
shoestring.’’
It’s called setting a tone.
Hit or be hit. The Giants believe they sent the 15-1, defending Super Bowl
champion Packers an early message last week that this was going to be a
60-minute slugfest. The result was a shocking 37-20 victory at Lambeau Field.
The 49ers unquestionably delivered the initial blows in their 36-32 upset of
the Saints, causing turnovers and surging to a 17-0 lead that revved up the home
crowd at Candlestick Park and forced the Saints to play from behind most of the
day.
What happens at the start of Sunday’s NFC Championship Game will not
automatically determine what the result is at the end, but there is no doubt the
Giants are looking to do what they’ve done in the playoffs: Start fast, finish
faster. They did not do that the first time around back on Nov. 13, waiting
until late in the third quarter to score their first touchdown in a 27-20 loss
in San Francisco.
Osi Umenyiora took a look at how the 49ers smacked around the Saints and was
impressed.
“From what I saw against New Orleans, they’re just so hungry. You know what I
mean?’’ Umenyiora said. “They think it’s their year, and so far it’s been their
year. They’ve beaten most of the people who’ve been put in front of them. We’re
just as hungry if not hungrier than them, so it’s gonna be a great game.’’
The Giants want to satiate their hunger with an immediate feeding frenzy. The
Packers talented receivers last week dropped passes they normally inhale with
ease. It wasn’t stage fright or cold hands, the Giants maintain. It was the
cumulative effect of the constant pounding by defensive backs and linebackers
from the outset.
“You all watch film, it’s not like they’re wide open every time and they’re
just dropping passes,’’ Grant said. “Sometimes they drop a pass and they have a
safety or DB right in their face or a linebacker right in their face. Even if
you might not have anybody in their face, there might be plays before then when
we hit ’em and they might be thinking about that.’’ Read more... GIANTS BRACE FOR PHYSICAL 49ERS
"They knocked heads earlier this season and this week studied enough film to
see the carnage and almost feel the damage. No one ever said the 49ers cannot be
beat, but the Giants understand the physical challenge before them is unlike any
they have faced thus far in their exhilarating postseason run.
The 49ers leave nuance to others. The singular characteristic of how they go
about their business is one of sheer force.
“They’re a tough team, very solid and disciplined in what they do,’’ fullback
Henry Hynoski said, “But you know what? So are we. We’re ready for it. It’s
gonna be a dogfight.’’
That description of Sunday’s NFC Championship game at what likely will be a
wet Candlestick Park might be tame. From the sound of it, the Giants are
preparing more for a steel-cage match than a football game to decide which team
gets to represent the conference in Super Bowl XLVI.
“This is not going to be a cute football game,’’ defensive tackle Chris Canty
said. “It’s not going to be for the meek and mild. This is going to be a
bloodbath. That’s what it’s going to be. They do not try to make it a secret
that they try to beat you up. We pride ourselves on being a physical football
team. Something’s got to give on Sunday. Something’s got to give.’’
The Giants did the giving on Nov. 13, losing in San Francisco 27-20 in a game
at the time they swore they should have won. Still, they came away impressed
that all of the talk about the punch the 49ers pack was legitimate.
“After the last time we played them, we walked away saying that’s a very
physical team and the only way to beat them is to out-physical them,’’ Snee
said.
There’s no doubt the 49ers were the tougher, rougher outfit in last week’s
36-32 Divisional win over the Saints. Safety Donte Whitner, with a legal
helmet-to-helmet blow, knocked running back Pierre Thomas out of the game in the
first quarter. Thomas became the seventh running back unable to finish a game
against the 49ers defense, a knockout record to make Mike Tyson proud.
Former Giants quarterback and current CBS lead analyst Phil Simms said the
49ers might be the NFL’s most impressive-looking team coming off the bus. In
this case, appearance is not deceiving. Their defensive front is fierce, and
inside linebackers Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman are swift and strong
magnets with their attraction to the ball.
“They just have great players,’’ Snee said. “On the defensive line, All Pro
Justin Smith, the rookie Aldon Smith, the tackle, Ray McDonald, they’re all
great,” Giants left guard Kevin Boothe said. “And then the two inside
linebackers I feel are probably the best in the NFL.” http://www.nypost.com/sports/giants
THE BERGEN RECORDCHAPLAIN HELP GIANTS KEEP FAITH ON THE FOOTBALL FIELD"Before Big Blue takes the field Sunday to battle the San Francisco 49ers in
their quest for NFC Championship glory, they will take a knee, lock hands and
pray. Leading them in the Lord’s Prayer will be team chaplain the Rev. William
Dowd, former pastor at St. Luke’s Parish in Ho-Ho-Kus
and a longtime Giants fan.
After the game, no matter the outcome, they’ll gather again.
“For some bitter losses, it’s tough to say the ‘Our Father,’ but we do,” said
Dowd, a man of the cloth for close to 45 years. “We never fail. People don’t
know that these guys are holding hands, on one knee, praying. That’s every game,
everywhere we go. I admire that. It’s quite a thing.”
Hours before that pre-game prayer, some of those same players and coaches
will attend a Mass offered by Dowd.
“Since and including [the game against] the Jets, we’ve really been on a roll
and the team has really come together and I think they’re really ready
to go out to California and give them a good football game,” Dowd said,
before offering a preview of Sunday’s Mass.
“Coach [Tom] Coughlin is my Eucharistic minister at all the Masses, and
[offensive assistant] Kevin Gilbride Jr. is my lector,” a position held by Phil
Simms during the 1990s, Dowd said. “And I will end things by saying, ‘Go now in
peace — and beat the 49ers!’Ÿ”
Dowd — a former chaplain at several Bergen County
institutions, including Bergen Regional Medical Center, began working full time
as the Giants’ team chaplain during the 1990s, taking over for the Rev. Ken
Moore.
Taking some time off in the early 2000s, Dowd returned to the team for the
2006-07 season — “just in time to get that Super Bowl ring,” Dowd said.
Yes, Dowd has a Super Bowl ring. He also travels with the team and stands on
the sidelines for every game. He is a constant presence, always available to
listen and offer counsel to the players.
“Most owners see chaplaincy as a way in which to enhance their investment,”
said Dowd, who also hosts a Bible study for the Giants on Tuesdays. “If their
investment goes bad — if someone isn’t rooted in real life — then everybody
loses.
“You’ve got young fellas with a heck of a lot of road temptations and things
going on, and money temptations and all kinds of things. You can lose your head;
you can start thinking you can do no wrong, that you’re above the law.”
Keep them grounded
Dowd said his purpose is to ground the players.
“I help them realize that they’re no different than anyone else. We all need
to serve the Lord and keep our lives in line,” Dowd said. “It doesn’t matter how
much money we make or how many gifts we’re blessed with, we all have
accountability.”
The priest has performed baptisms and weddings for players over the years. He
has also officiated at funerals for coaches. Ultimately, he is the official
priest of the Giants staff, even working with folks in the franchise’s business
offices.
“I make myself available to them,” Dowd said. “I offer whatever wisdom or
life experience I can share, or advice I can give in trying to guide them.”
But his duties as chaplain never come before his role as a Giants fan.
“[Co-owner] Bob Tisch would come out at the half if we were down and say to
me, ‘You know, Father, I got a rabbi in the wings who could do this job,’Ÿ” Dowd
said. “I’d say, ‘Bob, if you’ve got a rabbi in the wings that can do this job,
know this — I’m a Giants fan first and a chaplain second, so bring the rabbi
out.’Ÿ”
On the one hand, Dowd is on the field, in all manner of weather, showing the
players he supports them and “that I am praying for them not to be injured
seriously, to give their best, and use their talents to the best of their
ability, and give glory to God.”
But on the other hand, “I am there as a fan. I will shout with the best of
them. I come away kind of hoarse when I’m all done. When it gets exciting, I
start slapping them on the back. Normally, I try to hold it back. But there’s
games where you just can’t.”
Dowd is proud of the Giants, for “blending every talent they’ve got for the
common purpose of a team win,” and said it has been a joy watching Victor Cruz,
Hakeem Nicks, Eli Manning, Ahmad Bradshaw, Brandon Jacobs, Henry Hynoski and
Bear Pascoe excel on the field this season.
“Coach Coughlin has a great sense for the players, and Victor Cruz has been a
gift and a blessing,” Dowd reflected. “I started buying tickets in the ’70s in
Section 321.
“Little did I ever think I would be involved on an intimate level with them
as chaplain, and working with them. I never would have thought I’d ever come
down from Section 321. GIANTS' NOTES: ELI MANNING READY"His pale face told one story.
His words stated another.
Eli Manning returned to Giants practice Thursday, one day after leaving the
team workout early due to a stomach illness. But the quarterback was listed as a
full participant and declared himself "100 percent."
"I had a full practice, did everything, took every rep," he said. "I feel
good."
Manning said the lost time will not be a factor Sunday when the Giants face
the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.
Just don’t tell him he looks pale.
"He took great offense when I said he still looked pale to me," offensive
coordinator Kevin Gilbride said. "He said, ‘It’s the winter, Coach, of course I
look pale.’ But he did look a little pale."
Manning — having a career season with 4,933 passing yards and 29 touchdowns —
has played in 128 consecutive games for the longest active streak among
quarterbacks. He has thrown six touchdowns in the Giants’ two playoff games.
Manning woke up Wednesday with the "24-hour bug." He tried to "tough it out"
and made it through meetings, but once he got on the practice field, his body
wouldn’t cooperate.
But teammates have no concerns about Manning’s preparation for this
weekend.
"We’re sure he was breaking down film as he was laying there resting," left
tackle David Diehl said.
No one was happier to see Manning return than Brandon Jacobs.
"There’s nothing to say about Eli," he said. "He’s as good as they come. It’s
an honor to be on his team."
NO MIXING BIZ, PLEASURE: Osi Umenyiora has been dropping hints for weeks that
this playoff run could be his last with the Giants — despite having one year
remaining on his contract.
When asked about his future with the team, Umenyiora passed.
"I can’t really discuss that right now," he said. "I’m just focused on
playing football. This is pleasure. You don’t want to mix business with
pleasure."
NOT RAIN, NOT HAIL ... The forecast calls for rain in San Francisco this
weekend, which could turn Candlestick Park into a quagmire.
Defensive coordinator Perry Fewell thinks it "doesn’t matter. Not in this
game."
"Because it’s the championship game. It doesn’t matter," he said. "You fight
all year to get here. It can snow. It can hail. It can rain.
"It can do whatever it wants to do. We’re going to be there, and we’re going
to be ready to play."
BRIEFS: Former Giants Mark Bavaro, Rich Seubert and Michael Strahan will
serve as honorary captains Sunday. ... Former RB Tiki Barber will work SNY’s
postgame show, "Big Blue Live," airing after the NFC Championship. ... Super
Bowl XLII hero David Tyree will light the Empire State Building blue today in
honor of the playoff run. ... 49ers LB Patrick Willis (knee) did not
practice." VINNY DITRANI'S PIUCKS FOR THE AFC AND NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAMESExcerpt: "The NFL conference title games Sunday could provide some interesting story
lines heading into Super Bowl XLVI.
If the Giants and Patriots are victorious, we will see a rematch of the
classic Super Bowl XLII battle which saw New England's hopes of being the first
19-0 team destroyed. There might be a bad omen for these Giants. In 2007, the
two teams played in the regular season and the Pats won. This year the Giants
won the regular-season meeting.
If the 49ers and Ravens win, the Harbaugh brothers will go head to head for
the crown. Baltimore's John and San Francisco's Jim became the first siblings to
coach against one another in an NFL game on Thanksgiving night, when the Ravens
sacked 49ers quarterback Alex Smith nine times en route to a 16-6 win.
If it's the Giants and Ravens, we will get a rematch of that lopsided Super
Bowl XXXV. Baltimore's defense shut out a Giants offense that had put up 41
points against Minnesota in the NFC title game in scoring a 34-7 victory.
The only matchup without historical cache is the one the oddsmakers expect to
be made after Sunday's game. The two teams have met just 11 times, with the
49ers winning seven, but the Pats taking the last encounter, 30-21, in October
2008. The two will meet in Foxboro next season, and the game certainly will be
the Thursday night opener if it is — as Las Vegas predicts — a Super Bowl
rematch.
NFC Championship Game
Giants over 49ers, getting 2 1/2 — Eli Manning had all day to throw last week
against Green Bay's feeble pass rush. That won't be the case Sunday, however.
Justin Smith is a beast on the San Francisco front while rookie Alden Smith has
15 1/2 sacks coming off the edge. They are just two parts of an exceptional
49ers defense.
The Giants will need to run the ball more consistently to allow Manning to
use his play-action magic to slow down the 49ers' rush. Keeping the down and
distance manageable should allow Manning some time to get the ball to his
talented receivers, if they are able to navigate what could be a wet and
slippery field.
On the other side, 49ers quarterback Alex Smith won't have it as easy as he
did last week against New Orleans and overrated defensive coordinator Gregg
Williams. Perry Fewell will not take as many chances and potentially open up the
big plays like the quarterback found against the Saints.
The Giants, however, will have to find a way to double tight end Vernon Davis
without compromising the run defense against Frank Gore. The predicted rain also
could slow down the pass rush on each side. The Giants have a more
playoff-tested roster and that will make the difference.
*Home team
Better bet: Patriots
Last week: 2-2
Postseason: 5-3
Best bets: 2-0" GIANTS IN FOR A PHYSICAL BATTLE Excerpt: "The eruption never came.
Jerry Rice had called Brandon Jacobs "a little bit soft." He had questioned
the running back’s toughness on ESPN, saying it "upsets" him to see the
6-foot-4, 264-pounder get tackled by much smaller players.
But the sometimes combustible Jacobs responded with kindness, one day after
the retired 49er legend’s comments.
"I grew up a San Francisco 49ers fan," he said. "I loved Jerry Rice. I still
love Jerry Rice. I give him a lot of credit for the game being the way it is
today. I have nothing negative to say about Jerry."
But then Jacobs added one more thing.
"I bet you he won’t tackle me," he said before walking off the stage.
Rice won’t, but Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw face an imposing, physical 49ers
defense that will Sunday in the NFC Championship Game.
San Francisco (14-3) led the NFL in rushing defense in the regular season,
yielding a mere 77.2 yards per game — 15.4 yards fewer than the next best team,
the Ravens.
And establishing the run has been an issue for the Giants (11-7), who ranked
last in the league in yards per game (89.2).
Their rushing attack has its doubters. CBS NFL analyst and former Giant Phil
Simms said earlier this week that it would be "crazy" for the Giants to try to
run on San Francisco." Read more...
"Osi Umenyiora has been dropping hints for weeks about how - despite having one
year remaining on his contract with the Giants - the former All-Pro defensive
end is cherishing this playoff run as if it could be his last.
Well, when asked about his contract status Thursday, Umenyiora took a
slightly different approach to answering the question regarding his future that
has been lingering since training camp, mostly thanks to his own doing.
“I can’t really discuss that right now. Whatever happens at the end of this
year happens,” Umenyiora said. “Right now I’m just focused on playing football.
This is pleasure. You don’t want to mix business with pleasure. This is fun for
me. I’m enjoying it and the business part of it will be taken care of
later.”
Umenyiora also called the 49ers a hungry team and came away impressed with
the way they fought back against the Saints to win on TE Vernon Davis’ thrilling
touchdown catch. He said talk of Super Bowl is premature, considering the kind
of challenge that awaits in San Francisco.
Don’t think for a second that means Umenyiora and the Giants are ready to
concede anything, however.
“From what I saw against New Orleans, they’re just so hungry,” Umenyiora
said.
“All our focus is basically on them right now. You can’t think about the
Super Bowl because we don’t even know who we’re playing if we were to make it to
the Super Bowl. They think it’s their year, and you know so far it’s been their
year.
“They’ve beaten most of the people who’ve been put in front of them. But
we’re just as hungry if not hungrier than them, so it’s going to be a great
game.” LOOKING HEALTHY, ELI RETURNS TO PRACTICE"Crisis averted.
Eli Manning returned to Giants practice today looking healthy and normal
after leaving the team workout early on Wednesday due to a stomach illness.
The quarterback ran, took first-team snaps and looked like his old self.
The Giants did not seem concerned Wednesday. But any illness concerning the
franchise quarterback the week of the NFC Championship Game is an obvious
concern.
Meanwhile, the Giants apparently remain a healthy bunch. The only player not
practicing was again RB Ahmad Bradshaw (foot), who normally practices only on
Fridays since returning from a stress fracture.
Safety Deon Grant — although not listed on the injury report after
Wednesday’s practice — wore a large brace on his left arm.
And LB Mark Herzlich (ankle) may have been limited in practice. He returned
to practice Wednesday for the first time since spraining his ankle in the Nov.
28 loss to the Saints. http://www.northjersey.com/sports/pro_sports/football/THE NEW YORK TIMES MARK BAVARO, RICH SEUBERT, AND MICHAEL STRAHAN TO BE HONORARY CAPTAINS ON SUNDAY"When the New York
Giants take on the San
Francisco 49ers this Sunday in the NFC Championship game, they'll do so with
a little historical flavor. And some tough historical flavor at that.
New York Giants lineman Rich
Seubert (69) and David Diehl (R) keep Chicago Bears defenders Matt Toeaina
(75) and Israel Idonije (71) away from quarterback Eli Manning (rear) as he
throws a pass in the third quarter of their NFL game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, October 3, 2010.
REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)
Pat Hanlon, the Giants' Vice President of Communications, revealed on
Thursday that Mark
Bavaro, Rich
Seubert and Michael
Strahan will act as Big Blue's honorary captains.
"Giants honorary captains for Sunday's NFC Champ Game in Candlestick Park: Mark
Bavaro, Rich
Seubert and Michael
Strahan," Hanlon tweeted.
Of course, all three have a lengthy history with the Giants and against the
49ers, with Seubert specifically having been robbed back in 2003 when the
referees failed to call a pass interference on a botched field goal attempt,
sending Big Blue to a devastating loss. The team received an "our bad" letter
later that week, but the damage had already been done.
Bavaro, on the other hand, is perhaps most well known for dragging Ronnie
Lott through a series of his 49ers teammates for 32 yards before a whole host of
them finally brought him on down.
The Giants couldn't ask for three better leaders and three tougher men to
join them on the sidelines, so if they didn't have the motivation and focus
before, they certainly will now." GIANTS' PUNTER STEVE WEATHERFORD WOULD RATHER WATCH FRO HOME THAN LOSE "For New York
Giants punter Steve
Weatherford, this will be his 4th conference championship game.
All three of his previous visits ended in defeat.
Its a feeling that he, as well as the rest of the team would prefer not to experience.
"I would just as soon watch this game at home if I'm not going to win it all
and I think every single person in this locker room feels the same way. We’re
not happy with going to the NFC Championship. We want it all."
At a point, the feeling that your "playing with the house's money" ends and
the players are hit with the inescapable fact that they have a great opportunity
before them.
No one thought they could knock off the Green Bay Packers in Green Bay and
few seem to think they can win in San
Francisco.
The Giants are focused on the task at hand, which is winning the NFC
Championship game.
Sunday at 6:30 the world will learn just how much they would rather win."
GIANTS VS. 49ERS: OBSERVATIONS FROM THE WEEK 10 GAME"Last week we took an in-depth look at the week 13 matchup between the New York
Giants and Green Bay Packers going into their rematch in the divisional
round, looking at some of the things the Giants were able to find success with
and where the Packers found success against them in that game. This week it's a lot more tricky, as the Giants have changed a bit
defensively in their approach since the San Francisco 49ers game in week 10, and
have had several changes to the back seven on defense with guys getting healthy
and taking control of positions on the depth chart.
That said, there is likely still a lot there on the game tape that the Giants
can look at and take notice of going into this game, particularly in terms of
matchups and the tendencies of the 49ers three units. Today, we're going to take
a look at the things that jump out on game recording.
- One thing you see that the 49ers like to do to disrupt the quarterback,
particularly on third down – is they'll send an initial blitzer at the snap of
the football,
forcing the running back to come up and make his blitz pickup, and then send a
delayed rusher from the linebacker level who finds himself with a free lane to
the quarterback. This led to a couple of timely hits of Eli Manning in the football
game.
- Victor
Cruz has a clear speed and acceleration advantage over Carlos
Rogers. Look for the Giants to really work this matchup in this game
whenever Rogers isn't getting safety help over the top, as there should really
be opportunities to make plays vertically with this matchup. Cruz really gave
Rogers a ton of trouble out of his breaks and showed the ability to create
substantial separation between he and Rogers on the vertical patterns.
- The delayed handoff out of the shotgun is certainly a play you see as one
of the staples of the Giants offense, and it was one of two running plays that
the Giants were able to hit on for positive yardage several times in the
previous meeting between these two teams. Now at times the Giants tried to
stretch the shotgun handoff outside with Jacobs and Ware, and it was stopped for
a loss, but otherwise – it brought consistent positive yardage against this
49ers front. The other running play that found strong yardage for New York
was pulling guard Chris
Snee to the left side and running to the outside.
- The 49ers passing game has a very simple approach to it. There are a lot of
crossing patterns and underneath patterns, as well as swing plays out of the
backfield and throws out into the flats, allowing Alex
Smith to get the ball out of his hands quickly and letting the
playmakers get yardage. It's going to be very important for the Giants to tackle
well and be alert to the running backs out of the backfield as pass catchers in
this game.
- Of all eighteen games the New York
Giants have played to this point this season, this game may have been filled
with the most self-inflicted wounds. A couple of costly special teams mistakes
including penalties on Derrick Martin and a 29-yard punt from Steve Weatherford,
two interceptions, and a missed connection on an easy opportunity for a third
down conversion between Eli Manning and Hakeem
Nicks, as well as a blown assignment on a crossing pattern that led to an
easy touchdown for 49ers tight end Vernon
Davis.
- Mario Manningham saw some very favorable matchups in this game. Chris
Culliver struggled with Manningham's speed, and he resorted to a lot of holding
and contact down the football field. Manningham also found himself matched up
with safety Donte Whitner – something the Giants can certainly take advantage of
in the vertical passing game with the 49ers defense so keyed in on containing a
now healthy Hakeem
Nicks, as well as Victor
Cruz." http://www.giants101.com/
BIG BLUE VIEW GIANTS' INJURY REPORT " New York Giants
center David Baas and
tight end Jake Ballard
were both late additions to the injury report after missing practice on Friday,
but running back Ahmad
Bradshaw returned to the field and is expected to play in Sunday's NFC
Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers.
Baas was held out of practice due to illness and is probable for Sunday.
Ballard was bothered by a knee injury and is the only Giant listed as
doubtful.
Bradshaw (ankle), linebacker Mark
Herzlich (ankle), wide receiver Hakeem Nicks
(ankle), defensive end Justin Tuck
(shoulder), defensive end Osi Umenyiora
(ankle/knee) and cornerback Corey Webster
(hamstring) were all probable after being limited during the session.
Quarterback Eli Manning
(illness) participated fully and is also probable. Nicks was another late
addition to the injury report after practicing fully on Wednesday and
Thursday."
## NY GIANTS' NEWS AND NOTES: NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME FACE EDITIONExcerpt: "Good morning fellow Giants fans. So here we are, about 55 hours from kickoff
of the NFC title game, and our Giants are playing for the chance to once again
reach the NFL's highest pinnacle--the Super Bowl. However, no game of this
magnitude is ever easy, and Big Blue is running into a Big Red chainsaw of a
defense on Sunday. It will be difficult to run, it will be difficult to throw,
and it will be difficult to catch knowing you're going to get smacked as soon as
you do. But it can be done, because the Giants came from one batted down fourth
down pass away from tying the Niners in a Week 10 match up at Candlestick. And
because the Giants' D is playing lights out as well, with logic being if they
can stop Aaron Rodgers,
they can surely stop Alex Smith. But again, we must throw logic out the window.
Smith played masterfully against the Saints last week and there is no reason to
believe he won't be on his game again. So there you have it. Do you have your
popcorn ready? Here are a few items of note on the Friday before the Sunday of
the NFC championship game:" Read more... NY GIANTS EVENING NEWS AND NOTES: BONUS EDITION"There is so much going on with this being NFC Championship Week and so many
players and coaches available to the media each day that -- nice guy that I am
-- I have put together a bonus evening notebook for you.
Great stuff today from Eli Manning
regarding his relationship with often-criticized offensive coordinator Kevin
Gilbride. Love Gilbride or hate him, I think you have to realize that the
fact that Gilbride has been with Manning since the day his professional career
began has been a huge bonus for the Giants quarterback.
Just ask San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith how difficult it can be to go
through new coordinators virtually every season -- not to mention a bunch of new
head coaches.
Anyway, here is the portion of Manning's press conference where he spoke
about Gilbride:
Q: Talk about the impact Kevin Gilbride has had on your career.
A: Coach Gilbride and I have a very close relationship. When I first got
here, he was the quarterbacks coach, so I sat in all the meetings with him. A
lot of the plays we were running then, even though he wasn't the offensive
coordinator, were his plays and stuff he knew very well. So I got to kind of
learn from him, and hearing him directly and watching old film of the Oilers and
different things when they were running it. It's the only offense I've been in,
it's what I know. We think the same way on a lot of things and certain looks. A
lot of times he doesn't even need to finish his sentence, because I'm already on
the same page. I feel very comfortable with him and telling him my thoughts and
listening to him. It's a great relationship and we work well together.
Q: What's the best thing you like about his play calls?
A: I think with Coach Gilbride, he wants to throw the ball, I think. He has a
quarterback mentality. He also knows, he's going to be smart and if we're
running it, we're going to continue to run it. It's kind of whatever is working.
On Sundays if we're not running it really well and we're throwing it well, I'll
just go up to him and say, ‘Hey, they can't stop us throwing it, let's just keep
throwing it.' And he kind of gets a smile, I think that's what he likes to hear.
He wants to throw it and he wants to be consistent and find completions, but he
likes to get the ball downfield and hit some big plays.
Gilbride was asked if he thought this was the best job he has ever done as an
offensive coordinator. He launched into an answer that was complementary to his
players, and revealed some of how complicated the Giants offense is.
"Let me just say that I'm very proud of the guys that I work with. There's no
question. We started with five new guys and then we had all of the injuries and
the youth and the guys who haven't played and some of the things that we ask
them to do. You don't just - in our offense - go out and run a 12-yard curl or a
10-yard in-cut. We ask them to read a lot of things. We put a lot of pressure on
receivers to see things as a quarterback would," Gilbride said. "It's very
difficult as a coach to get those things coordinated. So to see them grow like
that - obviously what are you? You're a teacher. When you're a teacher and you
can see your pupils getting better and feel like you contributed you're very
proud of their growth and development, so you feel, ‘Maybe I helped them a
little bit.' So yeah, I'm very proud of the job our coaching staff has
done."
Defensive coordinator Perry Fewell spoke about the team's pass rush.
"That's where our energy comes from, that's where our confidence comes from,
that's where our swagger comes from. Those guys, unlike most teams that you
associate with, they set the tone for us, they are the catalysts for what we do
and how we do it. So, it sets the whole mindset for our defensive football
team."
Some of you might wonder what took Fewell so long to figure that out. I would
say just be thankful that he did figure it out.
More Transcripts
- Tom Coughlin
- Mathias Kiwanuka
- Corey Webster
- Brandon Jacobs
- Osi Umenyiora" CARL BANKS TALKS GIANTS - 49ERS"Carl Banks spent some time talking New York Giants- San Francisco
49ers with a Sacramento radio station this week. He echoed Tom
Coughlin's sentiment that the Giants are "a very dangerous football team."
Banks, the former great Giants linebacker who currently broadcasts games on
WFAN with Bob Papa played in several big Giants-49ers games over the years, and
said with the teams meeting on Sunday that "all is right with the world."
Banks said not making the playoffs would have been a "great disappointment"
for the Giants because "it would have been a complete waste of talent."
Banks was asked what led to the Giants turnaround late this season,
especially on defense.
"At a certain point good players are tired of being mediocre and doing stupid
things. The other part of it is they got healthy, which helps. They also on the
defensive side of the football started to get everyone on the same page.
"Whatever it is they are playing as a complete unit and its playing
dividends."
Banks said the Giants are "very close" to what they were four years ago when
they won the Super Bowl and opined that they will have to be Sunday against the
49ers.
"They're going to face a team that is so buttoned up and mentally tough.
they're not going to make a lot of mistakes," Banks said. "They play a very
disciplined brand of football." MIKEY'S CRYSTAL BALL: CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK EDITION Excerpt: "Last week: 4-0
Playoff record: 8-0
Season record: 173-91
So here we are with just three games of significance left in the regular
season. Conference championship weekend is always great, but it's even better
when your team is in it like ours is this weekend. Four teams remain with the
right to move on to Super Bowl 46. Meanwhile, the blind squirrel who found an
acorn two weekends ago by picking Tebow's Broncos finds
himself regaining some of his vision as he sits at 8-0 with these picks heading
into the NFL's Final Four. So with that, let's get to the picks, and the G-man
will have his picks in an hour or so:
NY Giants at San
Francisco--I told someone at some point that I hoped the Giants would pull
off the upset in Green Bay so that we'd have a rematch of the 1991 game at
Candlestick in which the Giants won 15-13 on five Matt Bahr field goals. And we
have that rematch, though we're a long time removed from 1991. We're even a long
time removed from when the Giants and 49ers met in
the wild card round in 2003. Instead, it's a rematch of Week 10 when the G-men
lost to the Niners 27-20, but came extremely close to tying the game in the
final minute. San Fran has had a wild ride this year, but the Giants just have
this weird destiny thing going on right now. Giants 24, Niners 23
Bonus prediction: When Jim Harbaugh and Tom Coughlin meet at midfield
after the game, TC will shake Harbaugh's hand vigorously and then slap him on
the back so hard that Harbaugh falls down. After which, Harbaugh will shout out,
(this is for all of you guys who like to quote Seinfeld), "Jimmy Down!"
Let's go G-men!" Read more... THE GMAN PICKETH: NFL CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP EIDTION Excerpt: "Last Week 2-2
Regular Season Record: 170-86
Postseason Record: 5-3
The NFC/AFC Championship Game - one step closer to Super Bowl XLVI. The fates
of the remaining four teams hang in the balance, awaiting the judgement of the
whistle and clock. For two teams, their season will be validated, extended and
they will have an opportunity to achieve the ultimate football glory. For the
other two teams, a long, hard journey home followed by a grueling offseason of
"what ifs."
Mike Farley and his crystal ball have been very in tune with the postseason
football gods. You read his predictions piece earlier today. Now, I present to
you, my own. Ed is sitting high above in the BBV throne, looking down upon us
and enjoying the cross picking carnage. If only he harnessed his powers for
good. Let's get to it.
New York at San Francisco: Defense, defense, defense. That has been San
Fran's prize pig all season long - except in the postseason. The 49ers gave up
472 yards of total offense last week against the New Orleans Saints. They also
gave up thirty-two points. Yes, they beat the Saints. Nawlins, however, does not
have much of a pass defense to speak of. Actually, they finished third from last
in the regular season. So, yes - scoring some points against the Saints was
inevitable.
The Giants took on the
Niners earlier in the year and almost had them beat, in San Francisco no less.
The G-Men didn't have much of a pass defense to speak of either in the regular
season, for the most part. They came on strong in the final few weeks of the
season and have been performing as a cohesive unit all throughout the playoffs.
Their secondary did a tremendous job of taking away Aaron Rodgers'
targets last week. His targets certainly helped take themselves out, too. What
they have done in these last two playoff games has shocked most of the
free-footballing world. We don't even have to point out how incredible Eli Manning and
his offense has been. It is well known by now. The Niners just don't have the
defense or offense to defeat what Chris Collinsworth has called, "the most
well-balanced team in the playoffs." Giants 27, 49ers 17.
If my predictions come into fruition that will mean a rematch of Super Bowl
XLII in Peyton
Manning's house. That being the case, it might as well be a home game in
Giants Stadium…er…MetLife Stadium. Let me stop there and leave something for my
last prediction piece. There you have it." Read more... INSIDE FOOTBALLTHE FRIDAY FIVE" It’s time for another edition of “The Friday Five” with Big Blue View’s
senior Editor, Ed Valentine. Below are Ed’s responses to my questions. You can
see what Ed asked me by visiting Big Blue
View.
1. What is it about the 49ers that you think might create the
biggest headaches for the Giants this weekend?
Well, defensively I think there is serious
potential for the 49ers to make the Giants one-dimensional and force Eli Manning
to win the game by throwing it 45-50 times. Offensively, I’m worried about
containing Frank Gore.
2. My biggest key to the game from the defensive perspective is
Michael Boley. Agree or disagree and why?
Boley is a key player, but I can’t agree that he
is the biggest key defensively. For me it is all about controlling the line of
scrimmage — which means it really is about the front four, and maybe the entire
front six or seven. The Giants would like to take Alex Smith out of his comfort
zone and to do that they have to slow the running game and force long yardage
situations.
3. You mentioned the weather as a possible concern. Let me give you
my concern and then you comment on it. I’m concerned about the Giants flying
west the day before and not having enough time to acclimate themselves to west
coast time. In researching this, they’re 3-3 under TC, who usually flies them
out the day before. Do you also share that concern?
Well, going to the West Coast is never easy so
that is always something to think about. I think playing a game at 6:30 ET
shouldn’t be that big of a deal, though. I’m still more concerned about the
playing conditions — especially since the Giants are the big-play offense.
4. Give me the one player on the 49ers defense that you could see
potentially creating the most headaches for the Giants.
I don’t know that it’s just one. They have two
All-Pro linebackers in Navorro Bowman and Patrick Willis, and a third LB who led
them in sacks with 14 (Aldon Smith). That entire level of their defense is a
huge concern.
5. Turning to the AFC for a minute, which team would you like to see
emerge as the winner and should the giants advance, which team would be the best
matchup for New York?
Well, I think everyone is tired of the Patriots.
So, purely from that perspective I guess it would be nice to see Joe Flacco and
the Ravens finally get there. That said, Pats-Giants is the ‘sexy’ matchup and
the one that would be the most fun to see. As for ‘better’ matchup I would take
the Ravens. I’d rather face Flacco than Tom Brady any day.
Bonus: Give me your prediction.
I got killed last week for going against the
Giants. This week I’m going with them. 27-24, New York. "
FEWELL LIKES HOW GIANTS' DEFENSE HAS EVOLVED"Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell knew it was only a
mater of time before his defense would come together as a well-oiled
machine.
The Giants defense, which was disrupted by injuries and the need to get
younger players on the field, despite the fact that they had no off-season to
learn the defensive schemes, has seen its effectiveness increase down the
stretch and into the postseason.
Fewell said that the defensive turnaround is largely due to the players he
ended up with being able to work together week in and week out toward
establishing consistency.
“We had a lot of interchangeable parts and I think I spoke throughout the
season that we were not able to play together as a front, as a secondary, and as
a linebacking corps,” he said. “So over the last four or five weeks we’ve been
able to play together.”
Fewell cited an example from earlier in the season when he spoke about the
importance of the defensive pass coverage needing to have a “feel” for the flow
of the game and in the players needing to “known where people are and trust” as
a big reason why the Giants have been so effective against the pass down the
stretch.
“We’ve been able to feel and trust each other now because we’ve played
together as a unit. Defensive line, linebackers, and secondary. The parts have
all come together and now I don’t have to substitute a guy in and substitute guy
in and change the coverage and say this guy has a weakness so I have to do
something different. We’ve come together and we’ve been able to play together,
so everyone is a lot more comfortable in their roles.”
Another key for the Giants defense was that despite the early season
frustration, the players never ceased communicating with one another.
“We knew we could get it together and we would get it together,” Fewell said.
“It was just a matter of when. Obviously, there was frustration. This is the era
of instant gratification, so we wanted it to happen right now. But we just kept
talking to each other, we kept communicating with each other, we kept believing
in each other.”
As a result, Fewell said he’s starting to see the defense take a significant
leap from last year, their first in Fewell’s system, to this year.
“I’m seeing the benefit now. I didn’t think I was seeing it early because of
the lockout and injuries and trying to put new players into the system and them
learning the system,” he said.
“But I see it now, bringing a Chase Blackburn back, who
understood our system, who had knowledge of our system, and can go in and within
in a matter of weeks get caught up to speed. So, yes, now I do see the
benefits.” http://www.insidefootball.com/GIANTS GAB
http://www.giantsgab.com/
YARDBARKER
http://www.yardbarker.com/nfl/teams/new_york_giants/56
SPORTING NEWS
http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/stories
NYG REPORTER
http://nygreporter.com/
NFL.COMGIANTS' TE JAKE BALLARD QUESTIONABLE WITH KNEE INJURY, BAAS SICK" New York running back Ahmad Bradshaw returned to practice Friday, but the Giants unexpectedly were short two other players on offense during their final practice before departing for Sunday's NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers.
Giants tight end Jake Ballard and center David Baas did not participate during the portion of Friday's practice that members of the media could observe. Ballard eventually was listed as questionable after it was revealed a medical procedure had been performed on his knee. Coach Tom Coughlin told reporters following practice about the procedure. Ballard's sore knee sidelined him for the final two games of the regular season. Ballard did not undergo surgery, Coughlin said via NFL Network's Albert Breer, but he did experience some swelling. Baas was listed as probable and apparently caught the same stomach bug that caused quarterback Eli Manning to miss part of Wednesday's practice. Baas has not appeared on the Giants' injury report since healing from a neck injury that bothered him late in the season. Baas' most recent injury listing came before the Giants' Week 16 win over the New York Jets, according to The Star-Ledger. Bradshaw has consistently missed Wednesday and Thursday practices since returning from a mid-season foot injury, but tends to get back on the field by Friday." http://www.nfl.com/teams/newyorkgiants/profile?team=NYG
YAHOOSPORTS
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl
FOX SPORTSAFC-NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES KEY MATCHUPSExcerpt: "With the Championship Games on tap Sunday, here are the most compelling
matchups within the games that figure to make the difference.
Quarterback play: Eli Manning is continuing his quest to
become one of the elite NFL quarterbacks. On the flip side, Alex Smith is proving all his doubters
wrong by showing that he deserves to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. As
quarterbacks always do, both Manning and Smith will play critical roles in
Sunday’s matchup, but they will go about it in different ways.
For Manning, he has found a natural fit with Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz. What is often lost in the
art of completing a pass is the trust a quarterback must have in his receivers.
For example, Manning must trust that either Nicks or Cruz will read the defense
in the same way he sees it and either throttle down in zone coverage or run past
man coverage. The Giants have mastered this art and rarely will you see Manning
and his receivers on a different page.
For the 49ers, they will also rely on the passing game, but in a much more
controlled fashion. The Niners will create confusion in the play-action game or
set up mismatches with pre-snap alignments and motions. Last week we saw them
isolating Vernon Davis on either a
linebacker of a safety by using a 3x1 formation. With trips to one side, Smith
is able to read just that side of the field rather than having to scan sideline
to sideline. If the safety is pulled out by the outside two receivers, he can
find Davis in a one-on-one matchup in the deep middle of the field.
Defensive line: The 49ers' defense has been praised all
season, but the Giants’ defense is finally healthy and playing at its highest
level of the season. For both, the defensive lines play an integral part in both
stopping the run and applying pressure on the opposing quarterback.
Now fully healthy, the Giants are able to benefit from the front four
rotation that has been so successful for them in years past. Cycling in fresh
players to apply continuous pressure with only four down lineman allows them to
drop seven into coverage, which is a nightmare combination for opposing
quarterbacks. In Sunday’s game they will want to do the same thing, but can’t be
compromised in the trap running game of the 49ers. The Niners do an excellent
job of cracking down on the last man on the line of scrimmage, or in some
alignments, the edge rush defender at the second level, and then pull around an
offensive tackle to kick out the next defender that shows. This is a simple
off-tackle running play, but the crack-back and kick-out blocks create leverage
for the offense, especially against a team that likes to rush up-field
quickly.
The 49ers' defense is similar to the Giants in strategy, but they utilize a
3-4 defensive front and often can create pressure with only three rushers. We
saw that last week with Justin
Smith completely dominating the Saints' offensive line. The 49ers know that
Smith will be the key, and he will most likely shift all over the line of
scrimmage and line up anywhere from the A gap all the way to a 7-technique
defensive end. With that versatility, it will be hard for the Giants to draw up
a blocking scheme that can anticipate where they will double-team Smith.
Conversely, the 49ers often use Smith to pull the offensive line one way and
then stunt on the backside rush to free-up Aldon Smith on the other side. Keep
an eye out for this chess match as the game plays out on Sunday.
Travel: The Giants’ win over the Packers last week at
Lambeau Field has been the only road victory in this postseason. They have
inadvertently taken on the persona of the “road dogs” that play with an
us-against-the-world mentality, but, as always, traveling from the East Coast to
the West Coast is difficult in the NFL. Since 1980, the Giants are only 3-11
against San Francisco. With the Giants having already played an extra game and
are coming off an emotionally draining regular season, it will be interesting to
see how they come out in the first quarter of this game." Read more...
A PICK SIX OF TOP AFC, NFC TITLE GAMES WITH A TWIST "From the Ice Bowl to The Grab, NFL lore is filled with nicknames for its
classic playoff games.
In between the Packers'
frigid 21-17 NFL championship win over the Cowboys in 1967 and Vernon Davis' 14-yard TD grab with 9
seconds left in the 49ers'
36-32 thriller over the Saints last weekend, there's been The Catch, The Drive,
The Fumble and a slew of other games characterized by much more than the
score.
For this playoff Pick 6, we're looking at AFC and NFC championship games with
a timely take. Only games played involving teams - or a coach, in one case -
involved in Sunday's conference title games are eligible. That reduces the field
to the Giants, 49ers, Patriots and Ravens, plus 49ers coach Jim
Harbaugh.
Of course, two AFC title game gems don't make this list. The first is The
Drive, when John Elway led the Broncos 98 yards in 5:02 to tie the
game at Cleveland with 37 seconds left, and Denver won 23-20 in overtime. The
second came a year later, in 1987, when the Browns' Earnest Byner fumbled at the
Broncos 2 with 1:12 left while on his way for a score, and Denver won again,
38-33.
And let us not forget the Vikings' misfortunes in the NFC
title games of 1998 and 2009. The Falcons beat them 30-27 in overtime in `98. In
the fourth quarter, Minnesota's Gary Anderson missed his first field goal all
season. And the Saints won 31-28 in OT in `09 after Brett Favre's ill-advised pass over the
middle was intercepted with the Vikings in range for a winning field goal at the
end of regulation.
Herewith, our list of Giants, 49ers, Patriots, Ravens-centric classic
conference clashes:
- 49ers 28, Cowboys 27 (Jan. 10, 1982): The Catch. Need more? OK. Trailing
27-21 and at their 11, the 49ers and Joe Montana reached the Cowboys 6 with 58
seconds left. Montana took the third-down snap, backpedaled to avoid a ferocious
rush, and then, after a pump fake, threw a high pass that was snagged by a
leaping Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone for the winning TD. Almost
forgotten was what occurred when Dallas got the ball back. Danny White hit Drew
Pearson with about 40 seconds left, and just before the receiver was set to
break away, the 49ers Eric Wright grabbed the back of his neck and dragged him
down. White fumbled on the next play.
- Giants 15, 49ers 13 (Jan. 20, 1991): With Hall of Famers galore on both
teams, it was the 49ers going for a third straight NFL title. They led 13-9
early in the fourth quarter. Then it all came apart: Leonard Marshall knocked
Joe Montana out of the game with a crushing hit from behind; Gary Reasons ran 30
yards on a fake punt to set up a field goal; Erik Howard's helmet jarred the
ball loose from Roger Craig and Lawrence Taylor recovered with 2:36 to go; and
seven plays later, Matt Bahr kicked a 43-yard field goal as time expired. Call
it the end of an era.
- Steelers 20, Colts 16 (Jan. 14, 1996): In what
appeared to be a mismatch, the Steelers had their hands full with the underdog
Colts, led by quarterback/now 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh. It all came down to a
final play: Colts ball on the Steelers 29 on third-and-1, and Harbaugh's heave
went through the hands of Aaron Bailey in the end zone.
- Ravens 16, Raiders 3 (Jan. 14, 2001): It was the Ravens' stingy defense
(five turnovers) - and Trent Dilfer to Shannon Sharpe on a 96-yard catch and run
for a score - that led Baltimore to its only AFC title. The win was perhaps
sweetest for owner Art Modell, whose Browns lost three AFC title games to the
Broncos before he moved the team from Cleveland to Baltimore after the 1995
season.
- Colts 38, Patriots 34 (Jan. 21, 2007): One of the best NFL rivalries during
the mid-2000s, and this time Peyton
Manning came out on top after Tom
Brady and the Patriots beat the Colts the previous three years in the
playoffs. Although the Patriots led 21-3, Manning led the Colts to 32 points in
the second half for the largest comeback in a conference title game.
- Giants 23, Packers 20, OT (Jan. 20, 2008): Lawrence Tynes followed in Bahr's
kicking shoes when he booted a 47-yard field goal in overtime on another frigid
day at Lambeau Field. The game could have ended in the Giants' favor in
regulation. With the score 20-20, Ahmad Bradshaw ran 48 yards for an
apparent TD with 2:15 left, but Chris
Snee was called for holding and the play was nullified. The Giants drove to
the Packers 18, but Tynes was wide left with a 36-yard field goal attempt with 4
seconds left. In OT, Favre and the Pack got the ball first, but Favre was picked
off by Corey Webster on the
second play. After the Giants gained 5 yards on three plays, Tynes delivered his
winner. It came 17 years to the day after Bahr won the 1990 NFC title game with
his field goal."
## http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/team/new-york-giants/67056
NBCSPORTS http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/3032875/ns/sports-nflCBSSPORTSGhttp://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/page/NYG/new-york-giantsSI.COM
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/nfl/teams/new-york-giants/?eref=sinav
ESPN.COMNFC CHAMPIONSHIP PREDICTORBRUSCHI'S SUPER BOWL PICKS - VIDEO STEPHEN A. STATE OF MIND - VIDEO TYNES: SF KICK RETURNS NOT THAT DANGEROUSExcerpt: "Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes isn't afraid. As the
Giants take on the 49ers on Sunday, and face San Francisco's vaunted special
teams until that includes a stout kickoff return game, the Giants' kicker said
he does not believe that the 49ers' kick return game is that dangerous.
"We did a good job against them last time. If Ted Ginn
is back there or ( Kyle Williams), I think we do a pretty good
job covering," Tynes said when asked how dangerous San Francisco's kick return
game is. "It's not us against individuals, it's our whole team." For the
year, the 49ers were first in the NFL with 27.2 yards per return, and had the
highest percentage of 20-plus yard returns on the season at 84.6 percent. They
were one of the top five teams in the league in terms of starting field position
after kickoffs. A big part of that was Ginn, who was second in the NFC
and third in the NFL with an average of 27.6 yards per return. He is
questionable for Sunday's game with a knee injury. If he can't go, Williams, who
averaged 26 yards per return, and Kendall Hunter will likely
get the call. Williams and Hunter returned kicks against the Saints, while Ginn
was limited to punt returns." Read more... 2012 NFL PLAYOFFS: INSIDE THE BRAIN OF GIANTS' ANTREL ROLLE - VIDEO " Antrel Rolle can still remember the popping
sound of nails being sucked out of the walls as the home he grew up in was
disintegrating all around him. On Aug. 24, 1992, Hurricane Andrew and its unforgiving 145-mph winds
flattened and shredded seemingly everything in its path in small cities south of
Miami, including Rolle's hometown of Homestead, Fla.
Rolle and his family were in their 1,500-square-foot home when Andrew hit. A
then nine-year-old Rolle remembers darting from room to room with his father,
mother, older brother and sister until they found themselves huddled in the last
room still standing in the house.
"You didn't know what to expect, running room to room to room never knowing
if this was going to be the last room," Rolle recalled. "There was only one room
left standing.
"Then we ran out to the rest of the house and there was no rest of the house.
It was gone."
The roof had been ripped off, and the Rolle home was one of 126,000 homes
Andrew destroyed.
"It seemed like forever," Rolle said of the terror he and his family
experienced. "But it was probably only maybe 5-10 minutes. Everything was gone.
I think our lawnmower was maybe five blocks away. It was crazy."
This was Rolle's first memory of survival, and the importance of teamwork. He
and his family were forced to live in a two-bedroom trailer in their backyard
for a year and a half until their home was rebuilt. But the Rolles and their
neighbors made the best out of a horrendous situation and helped rebuild their
neighborhood.
"We made it work," Rolle said. "That was our family motto. We could make
anything work. You want to come home after school and play but your play time
was actually nailing down wood."
Nearly two decades later, Rolle still applies that family motto to everything
he does, and he's been working hard at building a successful foundation for
himself with the New York
Giants.
The outspoken safety has played a major role in helping the Giants reach this
year's NFC Championship Game. He has been praised by teammates and former Giants
leaders like Antonio Pierce and Michael Strahan for helping the team turn
the season around with his actions on and off the field.
After mentally accepting his primary role of being the team's nickel back to
cover slot receivers this season, Rolle has played his best football as a Giant
during the team's current four-game winning streak. He also helped spark the
Giants' run to the conference title game with his plea for teammates to put
aches and pains aside, practice and give everything they had prior to the game
against the Jets on Christmas Eve. The Giants haven't lost since, and are headed
to San Francisco one win away from the Super Bowl.
After a first season with the Giants and coach Tom Coughlin that Rolle admits
was frustrating and full of adjustments, Rolle has matured, become a Coughlin
convert, and is settling into the role of being a vocal leader.
"He is the [vocal] guy," said Pierce, the team's former defensive captain,
now an ESPN analyst. "The thing I like about him is he has swagger. His
confidence oozes on to other players. Back in the secondary, the one guy that is
constantly getting them going is Antrel Rolle."
"THE NEW YORK VERSION"
While sitting in his New Jersey living room Thursday night, in front of a
balcony that features a stunning ninth-floor view of the Hudson River and the
Manhattan skyline, Rolle flipped on his flat-screen television and tried to find
the Lakers-Heat game.
He was rooting for his hometown Heat, but chuckled when told how his mother,
Armelia, refers to him as "the New York version of Antrel" now.
"I am shocked to see him as this outspoken person because he has never done
this before," Armelia said via phone on Thursday. "Never. He would run from the
media and you know there is just a fraction of [the amount of New York media] in
Arizona. I think some of it now comes with maturity."
Since signing a five-year, $37 million deal in 2010, Rolle has created his
share of back-page headlines with his comments.
Whether it be suggesting Coughlin could lighten up and create a more fun
atmosphere early in his New York tenure, or boasting that the Giants could beat
the Redskins 99 out of 100 times, Rolle doesn't hold his tongue often.
The safety has become the most vocal Giant because he'd rather say something
and have nothing left unsaid if it helps the team win. It's something Pierce
thinks the Giants sorely needed when things were going bad.
"A lot of times people may have this perception of me, Antrel, he's a big
mouth, he is always talking," Rolle said. "If you go back and you listen to some
of the things I say, it is never me just talking. Everything I say, it
definitely has some meaning behind it. And nothing I say is to ever ruin or
cause any kind of controversy or anything of that sort within the Giants
organization."
"THE HUXTABLES"
Armelia says Rolle, the youngest, isn't even the most talkative Rolle in the
family. That honor belongs to his older sister, Alexia.
Rolle, 29, comes from a family that believes in speaking the truth at all
times.
"We don't say that much but when somebody asks us something, we give them the
truth and they may not like it but they respect our opinion," said Al Rolle, the
safety's father. "We are not going to sugarcoat anything. We are not trying to
hurt anyone's feelings."
Al is the first African-American police chief in Homestead's history, and has
been in the position since 1998. Armelia, who is a career counselor at Homestead
Senior High School, remembers how some business and city leaders said her
husband wouldn't last very long in his position.
"They went behind his back [saying] we'll give him six months," she said.
"That was 1998. [Antrel] witnessed his father going through that type of
criticism and not only that but still establish a rapport with people down
here.
"What made him is ... the five of us in this home, he has never ever seen us
lay down."
Rolle's older brother, Antuan, and half-brother, Alexander III, are also
police officers in Homestead. Alexia is a counselor like her mother.
When the Rolle kids were all younger and playing sports -- Rolle started
playing football at six with another future star safety, the late Sean Taylor -- Al and Armelia attended every
game and practice that they could. They worked hard to provide for their
children and made education the greatest priority.
"We grew up in a predominantly white neighborhood," Rolle said. "I spent most
of my time in a predominantly black neighborhood where my grandmother lives in
Florida City. We weren't dirt poor but we weren't rich either. My family
definitely had their fair share of struggles, more so before I was born."
"[But] a lot of times we got looked at as The Huxtables," he added, referring
to the name of the affluent African-American family on "The Cosby Show." "There
were times I wanted to do things that other kids did but my parents wouldn't
allow it. We had to go home and get homework done. It wasn't a strict household
but it was very well-disciplined. My family is a family of fighters. I picked up
on those traits."
ROLLE'S REVELATIONS
Rolle leaned on his family and friends this past summer, when he did some
soul searching after his first season with the Giants. While saying he's always
had a great relationship with Coughlin, Rolle admits he had to go through an
adjustment period regarding the old-school coach's methods, much the same way
Strahan and others had to do.
He realized his frustrations were "very minor" compared to the big picture.
Like Strahan years before, Rolle began to see eye-to-eye with Coughlin, to the
point where the safety said a major source of motivation was playing for the
head coach's job.
"My relationship with Antrel is very good," Coughlin said. "We have always
been straight up and up front with each other. I am very pleased with his
attitude. He is a very bubbly, smiley guy and he has really fit very well with
our other players."
After the Giants' stunning 23-10 loss to the Redskins on Dec. 18, dropping
their record to 7-7, Coughlin and the Giants were in danger of missing the
playoffs for a third straight season.
A frustrated Rolle said players had to put aside injuries and focus
everything on the last two games of the season. He said he wasn't calling
anybody in particular out. That Wednesday, the first day of practice of the
week, several nicked-up Giants worked.
"As crazy as it may sound, my ultimate reason was Coach Coughlin," Rolle said
of his motivation to help the Giants turn things around. "I don't like hearing
the speculation about, 'Do you think your coach will be here next year?'"
Defensive end Justin Tuck, who battled injuries all
season, said Rolle's comments "struck a chord" in the locker room, and he had
two sacks in the next two games. Thus began the Giants' winning streak.
"Everything that 'Trel has said has been something that he thought was to the
benefit for the team," said safety Deon Grant. "A lot of people looked at it
that he was making selfish statements. He was really making statements that the
team thought but was scared to say. He was making statements that he felt the
team would appreciate."
But Rolle also needed his own spark, and it came from Grant, who called Rolle
and had a 15-minute heart-to-heart with him on the Tuesday before the Jets game.
He told Rolle that he had been trying too hard to fix the Giants, who had lost
five of six after starting 6-2.
Rolle was so consumed with trying to clean up the defense's breakdowns that
he would often open up his laptop, even on Sunday mornings before games, and
show defensive teammates specific things to look for against that week's
opponent, for any added advantage the Giants could gain. Rolle also wanted to be
a good leader, talking to guys like Piercem and studying Eli Manning's fourth-quarter makeup as well,
wondering, "What is going through his mind? I try to steal bits and pieces of
things like that."
"He was overloading himself with trying to make everything right with
everybody else," Grant said. "So I had to stop him and tell him, 'Don't kill
yourself trying to make something that you can't control work.'"
Immediately after that talk, Rolle sat in his car in the driveway of his
home, contemplating Grant's advice to concentrate on himself.
Since then, Rolle has averaged eight tackles in the Giants' four straight
victories, plus an interception.
He had eight tackles, knocked down a pass, and had a fumble recovery during
the Giants' 37-20 upset over the Packers last Sunday, his best game of the
season. Rolle is one win away from returning to the Super Bowl for the second time in
his career, but he has a greater appreciation this time around.
"We have seen Antrel participate in the national championship with the
University of Miami, we've seen him be a part of an NFC championship with the Arizona
Cardinals and we saw him at the Super Bowl and two Pro Bowls," Armelia said.
"We have never seen him celebrate the way he celebrated the other night after
they beat the Green Bay
Packers."
Rolle has also noticed how much Coughlin is enjoying this.
"His approach is so relaxed," Rolle said. "You would probably think of him to
be an uptight guy during the postseason but he has actually been more calm and
more relaxed than ever. He is trusting us that we will get the job done. He says
it and we do it."
Like his family's home that has been rebuilt in Homestead, Rolle is looking
forward to building something long-lasting here in New York.
"I definitely want to retire as a Giant," he said. "I don't want to go
anywhere else. No matter what I have gone through or what has been said, I would
really love to stay in New York." WHO WINS THE NFC CHAMPIONSHIP? - VIDEO ## FIVE GOOD MINUTES WITH TROY AIKMAN - VIDEO KIWI THRILLED TO BE ON THE FIELD THIS TIME AROUND"When the Giants made their last run to the Super Bowl in 2007, linebacker
Mathias Kiwanuka was on injured reserve, after breaking his
left leg in a game against the Lions that November. He didn't make the
trip to Green Bay for the NFC Championship Game, but was at least on the
sideline for Super Bowl XLVII in Arizona. "It’s emotional because you
want to be out there so bad, but there’s not a whole lot that you can do or
say," Kiwanuka said Thursday, recalling his experience four years ago. "It’s a
tough situation to be in." Kiwanuka also missed most of last season with
a serious neck injury, but played in all 16 games this year. When asked what it
means to him that he'll be out on the field Sunday in San Francisco, he said,
"It’s huge. This entire season has kind of been up and down, but there’s no
place I’d rather be than out here right now with these guys." The
converted defensive end had a career-high 84 tackles and 3.5 sacks during the
regular season. A reporter asked him Thursday if, in his heart, he feels he is a
defensive end or a linebacker. "I’m a football player," Kiwanuka said.
"I always say just put me on the field and I’ll make plays. "Going back
to my college days when I was a captain and young guys would come and ask me
questions and all I would tell them is you have to make plays. If you make
enough plays in practice, they will put you on the field. If you make enough
plays on the field, you’ll stay on the field." If Kiwanuka and his
teammates make enough plays on Sunday, they'll be headed to Super Bowl XLVI in
Indianapolis -- which just so happens to be Kiwanuka's hometown. "It’s
been brought up a lot, obviously I can’t get around it, but we have to take one
game at a time," Kiwanuka said. "We don’t want any letdowns at all, and I don’t
want one. So yeah, that would be awesome but for right now let’s just focus on
getting this game and making sure we accomplish our goal." FEWELL SAYS FRONT FOUR IS THE KEY"Everyone has been talking about the Giants' defensive line, and how much impact
it's had during this current run to the NFC Championship Game. On
Thursday, defensive coordinator Perry Fewell called his front
four the key to his defense and its success. "That's where our energy
comes from, that’s where our confidence comes from, that's where our swagger
comes from," Fewell said. "Those guys, unlike most teams that you are associated
with, they set the tone for us. They are the catalysts for what we do and how we
do it. It sets the whole mindset for our defensive football team." When
asked to elaborate on why this is unusual, Fewell said: "On our team, on
the New York Giants, you have three or four defensive ends, and then two tackles
-- the two tackles really set the tone in the middle for you, but you have three
or four defensive ends that can change the complexion of the ballgame on any
given play. "A lot of teams that I've been associated with in the past,
you may have one, possibly two -- when you had two, you felt like, 'Man, we are
great up front.' But if you have three or four, at any point in time one of
those guys can make a game-changing play like Osi [Umenyiora]
did last week." Who will make the big play this Sunday? Justin
Tuck? Jason Pierre-Paul? Umenyiora again? The
Giants will likely need a game-changer from one of those three to vanquish the
49ers." http://espn.go.com/nfl/team/_/name/nyg/new-york-giantsFOOTBALL OUTSIDERS
http://www.footballoutsiders.com/
PRO FOOTBALL WEEKLY
GIANTS' ROAD TO THE NFC TITLE GAME"As New York prepares for its rematch with the 49ers, PFW takes a look back at
how the Giants ended up in the NFC championship game by looking at their
week-by-week results.
Week One
Redskins 28, Giants 14
New Redskins
starting QB Rex Grossman threw for 305 yards and two touchdowns as the Giants
were stunned at FedEx Field on the 10th anniversary of 9/11. Eli Manning and
Hakeem Nicks hooked up for several big pass plays, but the Giants were uneven on
both sides of the ball.
Week Two
Giants 28, Rams 16
The Giants handed
a defeat to Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo, their beloved defensive coordinator
in their title-winning season, on "Monday Night Football." Manning threw for two
touchdown passes, and LB Michael Boley scored on a 65-yard fumble return in what
was a fairly ugly game.
Week Three
Giants 29, Eagles 16
In an early
statement game for the divisional race, the Giants stormed out to a lead and
prevented an Eagles comeback. Manning threw for four TD passes (two to Victor
Cruz, who broke out his "Salsa Dance" in this game), and Michael Vick suffered a
broken hand a week after suffering a concussion. The victory ended a six-game
losing streak against the Eagles that dated back to 2008. Ahmad Bradshaw had 139
yards from scrimmage.
Week Four
Giants 31, Cardinals 27
The
Cardinals appeared to take control of the game late, going up 27-17 on RB Beanie
Wells' third rushing touchdown of the afternoon. But the Giants stormed back
with two late TD passes in a 58-second span: a two-yarder to TE Jake Ballard
followed by a 29-yarder to Nicks. One play prior to the Nicks TD, the Giants
kept the ball on a controversial non-fumble, a play on which Cruz "gave himself
up" in the open field without being touched by a defender.
Week Five
Seahawks 36, Giants 25
Backup
Seahawks QB Charlie Whitehurst replaced an injured Tarvaris Jackson to lead the
visiting team to a stunning win. Whitehurst led the team on an 80-yard TD drive
to take the lead but the Giants appeared in position to stage their third
straight fourth-quarter comeback. Instead, Manning's pass to Cruz bounced off
the wide receiver's hands at the 6-yard line and was run back the distance by
Seahawks CB Brandon Browner for the game-clinching score.
Week Six
Giants 27, Bills 24
Bradshaw scored
a career-high three rushing touchdowns, all from a yard out, and Lawrence Tynes
kicked the game-winning field goal in the final minutes. Corey Webster picked
off two Ryan Fitzpatrick passes as the Giants held the Bills to seven
second-half points.
Week Eight
Giants 20, Dolphins 17
The Giants
handed the Dolphins their seventh consecutive loss of the season, but it was not
easy. The Dolphins jumped out to a 14-3 lead, and Manning had to bail the Giants
out with a big passing game (349 yards, two TDs). The defense picked up the
slack late, sacking Dolphins QB Matt Moore four times in the final two drives
and Webster picked him off to seal the game.
Week Nine
Giants 24, Patriots 20
In their
biggest win of the season to date, the Giants went into Foxborough and pulled
off a comeback that gave New England natives nightmare refreshers of Super Bowl
XLII. As in the Super Bowl, Manning threw for a last-minute touchdown to beat
the Patriots — this time hitting Jake Ballard with 15 seconds remaining.
Week 10
49ers 27, Giants 20
No one knew it
would be a preview of the NFC championship game at the time, but the level of
play was high as the Niners rode a 15-point blitz in the fourth quarter to
eliminate a 13-12 Giants lead. Justin Smith batted down Manning's fourth-down
pass from the Niners' 10-yard line in the final minute to thwart the Giants'
late comeback attempt in what was a pretty good defensive game on both
sides.
Week 11
Eagles 17, Giants 10
The desperate
Eagles received just enough from backup QB Vince Young, including his go-ahead
TD pass with 2:45 remaining, as they beat the Giants in what was a must-win game
for the one-time Dream Team. The Giants were completely shut down in the run
game, and Manning misfired on 17 of his 35 pass attempts.
Week 12
Saints 49, Giants 24
The Giants were
no match for Drew Brees and the Saints' explosive passing attack, dropping their
third straight, this time in the Superdome. Brees threw for four touchdowns (two
apiece to Jimmy Graham and Lance Moore) and ran for another. Manning and Cruz
put up huge numbers in the loss, but the Giants fell a game behind the Cowboys
in the NFC East race.
Week 13
Packers 38, Giants 35
The Giants'
fourth consecutive defeat was their most frustrating of the stretch, knowing
they had their chances to end the undefeated Packers' run. Manning, Cruz and
Nicks all had big afternoons, and a two-point conversion tied the game at 35-all
late. But Aaron Rodgers showed his chops with four straight completions on a
final-minute drive that led to a Mason Crosby field goal for the win.
Week 14
Giants 37, Cowboys 34
The Giants got
back in the win column as Manning threw for 400 yards and led two late TD
drives, thus helping New York join Dallas atop the division. The Cowboys
appeared to tie the game at 37-all, but PK Dan Bailey's second attempt (after a
timeout) was blocked by Jason Pierre-Paul, who had a safety earlier in the game
and dominated throughout.
Week 15
Redskins 23, Giants 10
The Redskins
finished their improbable season sweep of the Giants, winning only their second
game in 10 contests, with Grossman again leading the way. Manning had his worst
game of the season with three interceptions.
Week 16
Giants 29, Jets 14
In this battle of
the Big Apple, the Giants beat down the trash-talking Jets and put themselves in
position to take the NFC East with a victory the following week. Manning only
completed nine passes in the game, but three were to Cruz, who hauled in a
99-yard TD and set the Giants record for receiving yards in a season.
Week 17
Giants 31, Cowboys 14
In a
win-or-go-home game for both teams, the Giants outclassed the Cowboys in every
way possible. Manning threw for three TD passes, including one apiece to Cruz
(178 yards receiving) and Nicks. The Cowboys made a brief rally early in the
fourth quarter, cutting a 21-0 lead to seven points, before the Giants pulled
away.
Wild-card round
Giants 24, Falcons 2
In a
defensive masterpiece, the Giants shut down the Falcons' passing and running
games and only allowed them a safety on the scoreboard. The Giants' run game
reemerged with the team totalling 172 yards on the ground, and Manning and Nicks
(two TDs) haunted the Falcons' secondary all afternoon.
Divisional
round
Giants 37, Packers 20
The Giants avenged their
earlier loss to the Packers and ended their 15-1 season with a thud. The sloppy
Packers didn't help themselves with drops, fumbles and misfired passes, but the
Giants came to play on both sides of the ball. Manning's three TD passes
included two to Nicks, who broke a tackle for a 66-yard touchdown in the first
quarter and then ended the first half with a Hail Mary catch in the endzone as
time expired." ## THE CONFERENCE CONFLUENCEExcerpt: "Tom Danyluk has some thoughts on last weekend's divisional round and picks
the winners in this weekend's conference championship games.
NFC
What I saw in Saints at 49ers
Had it been 17-0 Saints in the first quarter, I might have proclaimed the
49ers and their joyous little season as dead. But New Orleans was the team in
the hole, and with three full quarters of football still remaining I never
thought Brees and that offense were anywhere near kaput.
The 49ers had clamped down on mighty mite Darren Sproles and his dump-off
plays — speed chasing speed — but Brees was finally able to locate his wide men,
Devry Henderson and Marcus Colston and Jimmy Grahamkowski on the deeper items
and pulled it to 17-14 by half. (Yes, it's Graham … the New Orleans Gronk.)
The third quarter was spastic, where neither team could muster any flow to
its offense, and the only points (a 49er FG) came after a Sproles fumble, his
second and the Saints' fifth turnover of the day.
Then the Niners switched back to their ground game, and on a 2nd-and-6 they
sent in two defensive starters, Justin Smith and Isaac Sopoaga, for extra
thrust, extra power blocking. And Fox's Tony Siragusa made a helluva sharp
observation about snap counts when you see those situations.
"You know, as a defensive lineman, when you see a defensive tackle or end on
the other side playing offense, you know they're going to go on one," he said,
"because as soon as he hears that snap count he is firing off. You're never
going to get that hard count … or that hut-two or three. They're going to go on
one every single time."
Which the Niners did — on one. And the Saints slammed it. Atta boy, Goose!
Tres bien!!
Then, of course, the drama of the final volley, four touchdowns scored in the
last 4:02 of game clock. You could almost hear the orchestra … Tchaikovsky, the
dizzying 1812 Overture … singing along in accompaniment as the cannons fired to
life.
There's an old Sports Illustrated headline — "The Game No One Should
Have Lost." It was the story of the Chargers-Dolphins playoff game from 1981.
Shula and Fouts and Coryell. One of the all-timers.
Saints-Niners had that feel to it. The 2012 Overture.
What I saw in Giants at Packers
The rare capsizing of a 15-1 team in its opening playoff game. Watching Green
Bay go to pieces brought back memories of another historic playoff collapse, San
Francisco in 1987, when Bill Walsh captained the No. 1 defense and the No. 1
offense and the Vikings came in and blasted him out of his own ballpark.
"Without question, the toughest loss I ever experienced," Walsh once told me.
"Everything seemed to go wrong for us that day. No matter what we tried, we
couldn't get back on track … I even pulled Joe Montana for Steve Young."
Nope, the Packers couldn't get back on track, either. All those drops, the
turnovers, even the Hail Mary act at the end of the first half — Manning to
Nicks — and still it was just a 20-13 game heading into the fourth, Packers ball
in Giants territory.
Then Aaron Rodgers missed TE Jermichael Finley on the shallow crossing route.
Nobody near him, just a … miss.
Packers go for it on fourth down, the first embers of desperation. Sack,
Rodgers crumbles in a heap on a blitz from Michael Boley, and from there it just
spilled away from the home team.
You sift through the Packers' postgame quotes, just out of curiosity, trying
to find the "Everything seemed to go wrong …" explanation to match Walsh's. And
there it was, Charles Woodson, the cornerback, with his version of 'you've had a
bad day.'
"Everything happened to us today," Woodson said. "Anything that you've seen
through the regular season happened to us today — missed tackles, assignments,
not getting to the quarterback." He left out his offense's drops, the
turnovers.
I had an old teacher that used to say, "Sometimes you get the bear, sometimes
the bear gets you." He stole it from Preacher Roe, his little way of explaining
the breaks in life. Country wisdom.
On Sunday, the bear, not the Giants, got the Packers.
What lies ahead in the NFC championship game
Some writers have tried to sell this as a huge historical reenactment, but
the only nod to the big SF-NY rivalry years (1981-93) are the costumes. In fact,
the roles have switched. New York counts on the pass and the sacking/pressure of
its front four and the occasional blitz. The 49ers' return has been cooked from
the basics — killer defense and inside bursts of Frank Gore. And fine tackling,
Lord, don't forget that. Parcells looks to the west and smiles.
The definition of a hot team is one that's getting the right matchups and
avoiding screw-ups, and the Giants are humming. A 7-7 team finally finds its
gear. Eli Manning is in another one of his zones, where his options seem very
clear, and it has been more than enough to lift them to a pair of honest playoff
wins.
I think the Niners' defense will ultimately settle this one. Right now, that
group is running wild. My, the hitters they've accumulated. Watching them drill
people and prying balls loose and making their own breaks … like a jacked-up
college team. Go back to the tape of the '84 Orange Bowl, Miami swarming all
over Nebraska, guys you never heard of drilling into first-team All-Americans.
That kind of energy.
Accu-weather is calling for a thick, soaking field Sunday, which could put
heavier legs on Eli's big targets — Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz. The Giants'
run game of Jacobs and Bradshaw isn't enough to make up the difference. I see
San Francisco leaping ahead quickly, like it did against the Saints, then once
again holding on at the end. 49ers 20, Giants 16" Read more...
http://stats.profootballweekly.com/team/giants/
PRO FOOTBALL FOCUS
http://www.profootballfocus.com/
MISCELLANEOUS
2012 FREE AGENT TRACKER49ERS ROAD TO THE NFC TITLE GAMEJETS' OWNER BACKS SANCHEZ, DOESN'T RULE OUT PEYTON MANNING
 Never argue with an idiot; they'll drag you down to their level, and beat you with experience.
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| 01-20-2012, 11:52 AM |
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| 01-20-2012, 12:32 PM |
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| 01-20-2012, 12:37 PM |
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GameTime
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Joined on 08-11-2005
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Re: NEWS, NOTES, RUMORS, AND GOSSIP: FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012 - 10:00 A.M.
thanks Ro...
the anxiety is starting to build....:)
Measure twice......cut once.
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| 01-20-2012, 1:21 PM |
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RoanokeFan
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WELLINGTON MARA
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Re: NEWS, NOTES, RUMORS, AND GOSSIP: FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012 - 10:00 A.M.
 GameTime:thanks Ro...
the anxiety is starting to build....:)
Can't wait for the game to start
Never argue with an idiot; they'll drag you down to their level, and beat you with experience.
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| 01-20-2012, 11:42 PM |
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BigBlue1971
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GO GIANTS! KEEP THE PRESSURE ON!
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Re: NEWS, NOTES, RUMORS, AND GOSSIP: FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012 - 10:00 A.M.
thanks Roanoke! ![Beer [B]](/emoticons/emotion-22.gif)
we are almost there! all we need is a chance!
Tom Coughlin on David Wilson, Rueben Randle and Jayron Hosley "We got some more firepower". Go Giants!
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| 01-21-2012, 8:29 AM |
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RoanokeFan
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WELLINGTON MARA
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Re: NEWS, NOTES, RUMORS, AND GOSSIP: FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012 - 10:00 A.M.
BigBlue1971: thanks Roanoke!
we are almost there! all we need is a chance!
We are reaching the mountain top, one game at a time.
Never argue with an idiot; they'll drag you down to their level, and beat you with experience.
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