The Giants swept the Dallas Cowboys and took the NFC East!  And more importantly, we saw Coughlin's Coordinators use more fundamentally solid gameplans in setting up the win.  We do not want to get TOO excited just yet, but there is something here to be very positive about with respect to the Giants' playoff chances.

Generally we use a format of the Good/Bad/Ugly, but for this game which ends the regular season, we have to separate the discussion into Part 1 for the Dallas win and Part 2 for the State of the NY Giants going into this playoff game vs the Atlanta Falcons.

Part 1

If my wife and I were going to have another child (we're not), I'd give serious consideration to naming it Victor/ia.  The guy is simply all-world.  I cannot imagine what 2012 will be like with Nicks healthy, because Cris Collinsworth and all of us are running out of superlatives for Cruz.  Last week he eclipsed Amani Toomer's single season receiving yard record for the Giants, and this week he shattered the record by racking up another 178 yards on 6 catches.  1536 yards in a single season!  Folks, those are Jerry Rice-type of numbers.  Granted he did this vs a poor secondary, but last week he did it against a good one and his consistency is tremendous.  At this point I have to once again remind myself and everyone else- he has done this with SEVEN STARTS and is still learning in what is effectively his rookie year.  Of course it helps that he has a Pro Bowl QB in Eli Manning, who is also playing at all-world level.  One surpasses the other inside of a single play, where Eli has eyes behind his head (his pocket presence has leaped to otherworldly), escapes sideways and finds Cruz for a great reception to the 9 yard line for the dagger.  Pete raved about him in August of 2010, but even then none of us could have imagined this kind of player.  He has now blown open two games singlehandedly with his YAC.  We noted yesterday how Coughlin remarked that "when a defender takes the wrong angle on Cruz, he makes them pay." Amen to that.  And the Giants collect.  Let's take a moment to finally thank Brandon Stokley for something- the word is that when they brought this guy in, it awoke Cruz to the need to play at a higher level.  And has he ever!

The entire team played well in this effort.  I must give props to Defensive Coordinator Perry Fewell and Offensive Coordinator Kevin Gilbride for doing some of the things we have asked of them.  Those schemes paid off handsomely last night, and we'll talk more about them in Part 2.

Let's rattle off some of the good things to acknowledge how great this win was: Pascoe hurdle, Kiwi's energy everywhere, Boley's flying circus stop on 4th and 1, Ross and Webster in man coverage, Williams and the Safeties vs Witten, Cruz and Manning again because it will never be enough, Manning's hard count offsides successes, Manning's SLIDES after running (hooray!), JPPJPPJPPJPPJPPJPP, the Osi stunt sack, Hynoski hurdle with a total of 4 receptions on top of good blocking, Rolle INT, solid run defense, Fewell's changing pass rush looks (many of which are afforded by a healthy Osi and healthier Tuck).

Part 2

This was a fantastic win.  I admit it- I bitched and moaned about how the Giants were disgraceful and embarrassing vs Washington two weeks ago.  Collinsworth conveniently forgets about that game in his praise of the Giants.  (Yep, nice when it doesn't matter, until it does matter.)  How could a team that could dump a game like this be viable in the playoffs, I asked?  Well, THIS IS HOW> YOUR COORDINATORS START SCHEMING PROPERLY.  What we saw vs Dallas by Gilbride was much more small ball- the dumpoffs/flares to RBs, FBs, TEs that give Eli the rhythm that we have been BEGGING FOR for literally years now.  What we saw vs the Jets and Dallas was much more man coverage and more press coverage too.  So when Collinsworth praises Fewell for turning the corner, that is what it is about.  We tweeted early in the game that giving up 10 yards to Bryant is FINE.  And yes, you can help your pressing corner over the top too.  But when you are playing more press and more man, at least you make the QB earn it.  Gone are the wide open WRs off of free releases and zone sit-downs.  Instead, they'll get their completions from beautifully thrown balls that are threaded perfectly.  THEY'LL GET THEIRS.  But here is the point: WE'LL GET OURS TOO.  We scripted the only way to win it all this season after the NE and SF games... that our offense simply has to outscore the opponent's offense.  The Giants offense can score like mad IF they play enough small ball to keep the defense off the field and let Cruz et al work their wonders.  As long as Fewell attacks with man and press and Gilbride plays small ball the Giants DO have a shot. 

Is this the Gilbride strobe or is it going to become a staple?  Is Fewell going to revert to lots of zone which shreds us to pieces or is he going to abandon that base defense?  IF, BIG IF, but if the light bulb has gone off and they are willing to stick with these schemes, then the Giants can be very VERY competitive throughout the playoffs.  After Washington, I gave the Giants a 0% chance of doing anything in the playoffs.  That was incorrect.  The Giants are still going to have a difficult time with Rodgers or Brees, but at least they can be competitive and let the chips fall where they will.  As long as Gilbride and Fewell are going to gameplan like they did vs Dallas, we have a shot in ANY playoff game.

Before we get too giddy, let's remember who the Giants beat these last 4 games: Dallas and the NY Jets.  Romo was impaired last night.  Let's also remember that Victor Cruz rescued us on a number of occasions- the 3rd and 7 bomb, if incomplete, gives Dallas the ball down 21-14.  Let's remember that Gonzalez and Finley and Graham are much better right now than a hobbled Witten.  MUCH BETTER.  Let's also remember that the Giants got some incredibly fortunate bounces on some horribly ugly plays (Ware fumble on hard count penalty vs Dallas, Jacobs fumble recovered by Eli, muffed Blackmon punt).  The Giants sh*t smells like perfume but if those bounces go the other way everyone is screaming bloody murder.  The point is that winning is the best deodorant and right now, the Giants smell pretty good at 0-0 in the second season.

Summary

SMALL BALL PASSING (10 combined catches to Hynoski, Pascoe, Ware, Bradshaw... and would have been 11 if Jacobs doesn't drop one)

PRESS COVERAGE 75%+ of the time

MAN COVERAGE 85% of the time

MIXED LOOKS FROM DL ON PASS RUSH

HEALTHY TUCK AND OSI for the 5-headed monster

BALLARD BACK??!!

THE POISE OF ELI IN THE PLAYOFFS

We've been very tough on Fewell this season.  The power he holds over the pathway for the Giants is tremendous.  If his adjustments are real and the days of the passive Tampa 2 are behind us, anything is possible.  If you give the opponent a lot of pressure in press, man and (mixed up looks in) pass rush, you are essentially getting a 2007-2008 scheme.  And we know that in 2007 and 2008 anything was possible.  Is this 2007? No it is not.  The Giants still lack the leadership of a Strahan.  But in 2007 the Giants did not have a QB that was half as good as Eli is right now. (In 2011, he has had 10% more attempts and has passed for 4933 yds vs 3336 yds.)  And in 2011, the Giants have a WR that is playing off the charts.  Collinsworth is becoming enamored with the Giants OL.  I am not sold at all- this running attack still smells at times.  But the pass blocking is good and Eli's pocket presence is the stuff that can build 'destiny' runs.  So let's see if there is some January magic.       

Happy New Year, Giants fans.  Please pay particular attention to Coughlin's remarks in #5, #6 and #7. 

Part 1- Coughlin

The NFL Now replayed the interview with Tom Coughlin which aired on Friday.  There were three comments (5, 6, 7) that jumped out, saved for last.

1) Tuck was more like his old self.  Played hard, played a lot of snaps.

2) Optimistic about Osi "being ready to go."

3) When a defender takes the wrong angle on Cruz, he makes them pay.  He was quiet in August.  Took off in Philadelphia.

4) Kevin Boothe has played well in multiple positions.  OL is solidified up front.

5) Coughlin: "We covered very tightly last week."

6) Francesa: How do you respond to the observation that you have strong starts to seasons, but weak finishes?

Coughlin:  "Pick a year and you can say that, pick another year and you can't say that.  That's what I say.  Pick '07, pick '08.  We had a pretty good football team in '08."

7) Coughlin: "You are not going to get to where you want to go without playing against the best teams in the league. Playing the best teams in the league is a good thing."

UltimateNYG here.  Comments made in 5, 6 and 7 are vital to understanding everything we talk about on this NY Giants blog.  Let's talk about each one. 

With regards to #7, we absolutely agree, this is the way to get measured and to learn how to make the necessary adjustments so that when you get to the playoffs you can win a title.  The best thing that happened to the NY Giants in '07 was playing the Patriots in Week 17.  The best thing that happened to the Giants in '08 was playing the Eagles in Week 14.  Both contests provided valuable information for them to use to win each year in the playoffs.  Unfortunately the information was not used in '08, but at least they had the reconnaissance.

Re #5, yes, the Giants did play a lot more press and man coverage on the outside, and it showed.  This is a positive.  Can Fewell AND COUGHLIN see to it that the Giants play more of that tight press and man coverage so that they make opposing offenses EARN it?  Otherwise, with passive off coverage and zone coverage, why bother?!  Hello Tom, it is not too late to make those adjustments and go with more of these schemes.

Re #6, this is EXACTLY what we have been saying on this NY Giants blog for YEARS, and Tom Coughlin proved our point for us!  The only time the Giants did not have these second half collapses was when?  When?  IN '07 and '08!  In '07 and '08, WHEN STEVE SPAGNUOLO WAS THERE!  His words, not ours.  Do you think it was a coincidence?  Now granted, this year the schedule was harder in the second half.  But did anyone ask for Tom to cheese doodle it versus Vince Young in his 1st franchise start for the Eagles?  Did anyone ask for the Giants to get chumped vs Washington's Rex Grossman at home?  Yes, Tom, keep pointing to '07 and '08, keep making our point that you are as good and as bad as the coordinators underneath you.  MAKE THEM BETTER, THAT IS YOUR JOB.  MAKE GILBRIDE BETTER WITH MORE SMALL BALL TO KEEP ELI AND THE OFFENSE IN RHYTHM.  MAKE FEWELL BETTER BY DEMANDING HE USE ROSS AND WEBSTER IN MUCH MORE PRESS AND MAN.

Part 2- Phil Simms on the NFL Now

1) NYG-DAL.  Last time they played, it was there for the Cowboys.  Eli Manning threw the ball away when the Dallas blitz could not be picked up.  Rob Ryan had the defenders in the right position, but the personnel could not execute vs Manning and the Giants WRs.  Dallas secondary is a step down when compared to what they saw w Revis and Cromartie.  Why did the Giants throw at Darrelle Revis?  Stupid.  The Giants could have lost the game with one or two more throws that way.  Romo's condition WILL be an issue, because you need the practice.  His hand/throwing condition will be a factor.  Dallas keeps a defense (and its pass rush) off-balance with screens and draws.  Dallas will need that vs the Giants pass rush.

2) NYJ review.  Sanchez.  He missed a couple of passes, McKnight in particular, although not many.  Sanchez needs two hands on the ball.  Easily corrected.  You suffer with it for about one week and then you have two hands on the ball the rest of your life.  It will stop you from fumbling the ball when you are hit.  The Jets went to a passing game early in the year.  It worked, then it slowed.  Then they went to the run-based offense of the last couple of years.  That worked at times, but it fit them better.    

3) The best team in the AFC?  At the moment, it is the Patriots, who will have the bye and the home field.  The team is built around its offense, they attack in Q4 with a lead.

4) CIN-BAL.  Big game.  BAL falls to a 5 seed from the 2 seed if they lose.  CIN is fighting for a playoff spot.

Besides stopping the Cowboys rushing attack, the Giants must pressure and contain Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo.  Romo, an elusive quarterback, is able to improvise on any given play.   When pressured, he has a knack for evading the pass rush.  When flushed out of the pocket, Romo makes plays.  Here are a few videos showing his out-of-pocket prowess against the Giants: 

In their match up earlier this year, Romo threw FOUR touchdowns.  And guess what?  All four touchdowns were a result of him being out of the pocket.  Furthermore, according to ESPN's Next Level, Romo's numbers outside of the pocket is outstanding.   Against Tampa Bay, all 3 of Romo's touchdown passes Saturday were thrown outside of the pocket.  Romo  entered the game completing 61 percent of his passes outside of the  pocket, third in the league am long qualified quarterbacks. Romo now leads  the league with 10 touchdown passes outside the pocket, along with no interceptions.  It is paramount the Giants do not allow him to scramble.  What can the Giants do differently?

With DE Osi Umenyiora expected to return for the Giants, this is a tremendous uptick.  Umenyiora's strength is his ability to rush off the edge.  In other words, Osi is a fantastic speed rusher.  Since Osi will be playing, this will allow embattled Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell to leverage his talent.  According to NFL Films' All 22 tape guru Greg Cosell,  Fewell made defensive modifications against the Jets.  

1.  Giants showed Tuck and Pierre-Paul inside in 2 point stances with LB Williams and Boley outside, Different alignment with a lot of pressure and coverage possibilities  

2. Pierre-Paul now a movable chess piece; Aligned at DE, at DT, in a 2 point stance in the middle  


Keep in mind, Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez is very limited.  As Cosell noted,  "Jets had no intermediate or downfield passing game, Receivers did not win v. predominant man coverage and Sanchez is not a tight window thrower."  Unlike Sanchez,  Romo can make accurate throws outside the numbers.  The Cowboys have a downfield passing game, as compared to the Jets.
   
Indeed, Fewell believes the Giants have to get interior pressure. “I think our tackles are really the key – the guys like Chris Canty and Linval Joseph getting that push in the middle. I think that’s really the key. And then for us not just running up the field on the guy so that we create running lanes for him because he is a good scrambler also. But I think the inside push is really what we need.”  Although Fewell talked about Canty and Joseph getting a push, JPP is going to be the focal point.  On obvious passing downs, Fewell can slide JPP to defensive tackle.  Having JPP at defensive tackle will enable the Giants to get an interior push.  Why is interior pressure critical?  Giants back up quarterback David Carr elaborates: "that’s very difficult for a quarterback, it’s very disconcerting because a lot of times it can get you off your read,’’ Carr said. “You see color [defender], you feel something in front of you, the natural tendency is to step up as a quarterback and when there’s nothing to step up into, that’s a tough spot for us."  Given that JPP is so athletic, if he can not get to Romo, getting his arms up will hinder Romo's throwing lanes. 

Osi, Tuck, and JPP on the field at the same time, without question, will create favorable mismatch problems for the Giants.  Will the Cowboys use max protect formations?  If they go ahead with max protect, fewer receivers will be involved in running routes.  This would be an advantage for the Giants.  But as we are all aware, the Giants have had coverage problems all season long.  To be more blunt, they have allowed receivers to find wide open areas in their defense.  Because of these miscues in coverage, currently, the Giants are 27th against the pass: allowing an average of 255 yards per game.  Ouch!  Here at UltimateNYG, we have vilified Fewell for using too much soft zone coverage. In other words, by doing so, Fewell is not leveraging his players' talents.  We do not have access to the official All 22 tape, but seeing too many blown coverages is unacceptable.  And it is important to repeat James Allen's observation.  James, a commenter here at UlimtateNYG who also attends Giants' games, opined: "...for all the pressure the Giants put on Sanchez, there were plenty of open  receivers down the field as a result of a zone that is so soft it's  stunning (and you can only really see how much from being at the game)."   

Therefore, the defensive keys for this important game are the following:

1. Stop the run.

2.  Get pressure and contain Romo.  Make him throw from the pocket.  And make the pocket "noisy".  ie a term Greg Cosell uses.  A "noisy" pocket is when a quarterback is surrounded by offensive and defensive players.

3. Play aggressive coverage.  Indeed, defenses have evolved over the years.  Teams do not play just zone or man to man.  In some cases, defenses will play man to man on the outside while playing a zone in the middle of the field.  Or defenses may play man to man on one side of the field.  While playing a zone on the other side.  Memo to Fewell:  Play more press man vs the Cowboys. 

4.  Speaking of coverage, the Giants have to minimize blown coverages.  Seeing another play in which Dez Bryant is backpedalling into the end zone with no Giants' defender within 20 yards is uncalled for.

You never thought anyone would find a way to use 'Brandon Jacobs' and 'quietly' in the same sentence. I say quietly because he is amidst a stretch of pretty good football that has been overshadowed by some of his, to put it kindly, "moments."

Most of us also never thought we’d see the day where the Giants featured one of the league’s most incompetent rushing attacks. We had become accustomed to each season ending with the G-Men right near the top of the league’s rushing totals (the Giants finished in the top six in rushing yardage in 2007, 2008 and 2010).  But in 2011, the Giants are dead last in rushing at 3.5 yards/carry, and dead last in rushing yards from scrimmage as well.

So take this praise with a grain of salt.

Over the last several weeks, the running game has taken some steps in the right direction.  When you are at the bottom, the only place to go is up, so we are not getting carried away either.  Rushing for over 110 yards against both the Cowboys and the Jets, that rate would put them at 19th out of 32 teams. So do not get us wrong... overall, they haven’t been impressive by almost any measure.

Bradshaw may finally feel comfortable. Two touchdowns against the Jets had to give him confidence as he slowly recovers from his injury.  Running over Pool was a statement about the need to be physical.

Brandon Jacobs, who has been a target of fans, has actually played very well in the last four weeks despite a limited number of carries. While Ahmad Bradshaw has shown flashes of his old self, especially in the second half of the Jets game, No. 27 is currently the best back at the Giants disposal, despite what the boo birds will tell you.

Jacobs has rushed for 235 yards on just 42 carries in his last four games, good for 5.6 yards per attempt. He also has three touchdowns during this stretch. Although 42 carries over four games is certainly a limited sample, the Giants would be wise to feed the ball to the guy picking up nearly six yards a clip.

This includes Jacobs’ performance against Dallas.  The Cowboys always brings out the best in Jacobs; he had 101 yards on 19 carries and found the end zone twice. Jacobs is a hard worker and a proud Giant, despite the regular bonehead comments that seem to provide sound bites to the media.

We cannot overlook the role of the OL in this discussion.  When Beatty and Baas went out, replaced by Boothe and Petrus, the OL saw some life.  Baas has been fighting through injuries all year, and generally speaking he has not been able to get surge to the second level.

Forecasts call for winds to be around 15 mph so both teams will have to rely on the ground game. Jacobs, who still may be steaming from last week’s game, needs no extra motivation for facing Dallas, the team he hates the most.

Is he the ideal back? No. There are far too many games where his dancing at the line makes him a non-factor. But lately we have been seeing less tiptoeing and more North-South running.  His first few carries are generally slow but by his 3rd of fourth carry he seems to be running harder.  Could the team improve its running back situation in the off-season? Sure. A hard downhill runner like Ben Tate would be the perfect compliment to a back like Bradshaw. But you work with what you have and right now Jacobs is what the Giants have.

If 27 keeps running with passion and 44 can build off of H2 last week (with that leg drive that we all have come to love), then maybe, just maybe, we can take the Giants sad ground game off of life support.

It’s going to take GIANTS FOOTBALL to win this one on Sunday. Here’s to hoping that they have it in them. I think they find a way and I think Jacobs plays a big part in it.

A couple of site notes:

1) I heard on ESPN during lunch today that some tickets for this Sunday night's game went for ~$2,200.  When I checked with our ticket sponsor's site, TiqIq, they were going for far less.  (Seats were offered for as low as $191+.  You can use that link, but remember that they have a permanent link on the right sidebar also.)  You should always use TiqIQ as a good resource for pricing.  They also give you an ability to dial in to get any tickets at any particular part of the stadium.  We may not like the idea of management selling PSLs, but at least it gives you a better opportunity to go to any ONE particular game without having to pay for the license, the season's tickets, or the preseason games.   

2) Speaking of the right sidebar,  take a look below on the right.  I finally got around to updating the 2011 Draft Project's links for Wonder, Pete, Draft Daddy and Anthony Carillo.  Now that we have two years of drafts in the books, all we will need is one more year, and then we will finally be able to begin grading how these analysts have done.  Verfication is key.  You take the good with the bad, the great calls and the ones that missed.  Together we are going to get concrete understanding of just how good (or not) these analysts do versus the NFL General Managers.  We are only 1 year away from beginning to grade these guys.  All of them deserve a lot of credit for the work they put in and their willingness to do what no one else is willing to do- get verified.