Die Hard Sports Fan

The best part of yesterday’s game between the Giants and the Bengals was the simply the fact that the G-MEN won by a score of 26-23 in overtime. The Road Warriors won their second home game in as many games in the early 2008 season. These are the Road Warriors that could barely win at home in ‘07.

Offense

Eli Manning did not have a good game statistically. He went 26/43 which is a 60.47% completion percentage and threw for 289 yards and 1 TD. Even though Eli may not have helped out your fantasy team, he was able to counter every scoring drive that the Bengals had. If not with touch downs then with field goals. The Bengals played a much better game then I thought they were going to play, but I guess that’s how NFL teams are going to come to play the Champs. The Giants did not score on their opening drive in OT, but they did not go 3-and-out either. Manning was able to move the chains a bit before they were forced to punt. Eli also marched the Giants down the field when it mattered most during their second possession in overtime which set up the game winning field goal. Steve Smith and Amani Toomer both were key contributors in the Giants aerial attack as they combined for over 120 receiving yards. Manning hooked up with Kevin Boss for a TD to give the Giants the lead before the Bengals tied the game at the end of regulation. In OT, Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer made huge catches for gains of 30+ yards which allowed the Giants to attempt the game winning field goal. Earth, Wind, and Fire had a decent outing as they combined for 115. Derrick Ward had 80 yards on only 9 carries. The Giants’ offense put up 14 of the 26 points.

Defense

Big Blue was able to apply pressure on Carson Palmer all day, but Palmer kept on fighting to get the Bengals points and stay in the game. Fred Robbins was the beast of the day and finished the day with 3 Tackles, 2 Sacks, and a few batted balls at the line of scrimmage. Corey Webster, Barry Cofield, Mathias Kiwanuka, and Dave Tollefson were all able to get to Palmer as well. The Giants defense had 6 sacks for the second game in a row which is sweet. Antonio Pierce was all over the place as he ended up with 10 tackles. Even though the Giants were able to get to Carson all game, the Bengals were able to put up a bunch of points. Palmer took the hits and kept on going kind of like Tom Brady in Super Bowl XLII. The Big Blue Wrecking Crew were able to make some keys stops at the right time which made it easier for the Giants’ offense to keep pace with the Bengals. The Giants did not allow the Bengals to score in the 3rd Quarter, but you can see how hard they were trying to force the Bengals to punt. The Giants’ defense put up 0 of the 26 points.

Special Teams

John Carney was 4/4 in Field Goal Attempts. Reuben Droughns was effective on kickoff and punt coverage. Domenik Hixon was solid returning Kickoffs and Punts. The Giants’ special teams put up 12 of the 26 points.

So the Giants won their first three games. The last time the Giants went 3-0 was in 2000 when they lost Super Bowl XXXV to the Ravens. Do you remember last year when nobody knew if the Patriots got the good Randy Moss or the bad Randy Moss? After the Pats went 3-0, all of that undefeated chatter began. I haven’t seen a Sports Illustrated cover stating that the Giants are going undefeated. Our boys in blue get less respect than Rodney Dangerfield. This game was a back-and-forth offensive showdown that Big Blue was able to pull out in overtime. The Giants have a Bye Week in Week 4 so next on the schedule are the Seattle Seahawks.

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The Giants and the Bengals went back-and-forth all game until time ran out in regulation which forced the game into overtime where the Giants won on a game winning field goal giving Big Blue their third win of the 2008 Regular Season.

1st Quarter

Mathias Kiwanuka, Fred Robbins, and Barry Cofield sacked Carson Palmer on the Bengals’ first play of the game for a loss of 6 yards with 11:04 remaining.

On the same drive, Corey Webster knocked the ball out of Carson Palmer’s hand with 9:48 remaining, but Bobbie Williams fell on the ball to keep it in the Bengals’ possession.

Carson Palmer marched the Bengals 60 yards to the Giants’ 3 yardline during their second possession, but the Giants stopped the Bengals from reaching the end zone so Shayne Graham made a 22-yard Field Goal Attempt giving the Bengals a 3-0 lead with 0:38 remaining.

2nd Quarter

Since this is the first time that the Giants have been losing this year, Eli Manning immediately countered by leading the Giant offense 80 yards down the field and capped it off with a hand off to Brandon Jacobs who leaped over the pile for a 1-yard Touch Down run giving the Giants a 7-3 lead with 10:38 remaining.

Carson Palmer then countered by driving the Bengals 74 yards for another score, and Carson Palmer capped off the drive by handing it off to Chris Perry who broke right side for a 26-yard Touch Down run giving the Bengals a 10-7 lead with 7:20 remaining.

Eli Manning countered again by marching the Giants 51 yards down the field for another score, but the Bengals stopped the Giants from getting into the end zone so John Carney made a 24-yard Field Goal Attempt to tie the game at 10-10 with 3:55 remaining.

Barry Cofield sacked Carson Palmer for a 6-yard loss during the Bengals’ fourth possession with 2:26 remaining.

Also during the Bengals’ fourth possession, Carson Palmer kept this offensive showdown alive by marching the team 80 yards to the Giants’ 4 yardline before getting sacked by Mathias Kiwanuka for a loss of 8 yards on 3rd and 3 which set up a 30-yard Field Goal Attempt that Shayne Graham made with 0:32 remaining giving the Bengals a 13-10 lead.

3rd Quarter

Fred Robbins sacked Carson Palmer for a 10-yard loss during the Bengals’ sixth possession with 11:28 remaining.

During the Giants’ seventh possession, Eli Manning took the Giants to the 30 yardline which was where John Carney made a 46-yard Field Goal Attempt to tie the game at 13-13 with 6:23 remaining.

Dave Tollefson joined the party by sacking Carson Palmer for a loss of 8 on 3rd and 16 with 2:49 remaining which led to a punt.

4th Quarter

The Giants eighth possession began at the 25 yardline.

After the Giant defense made a few stops, Eli Manning took the Giants 67 yards to the 8 yardline where they had to settle for a 26-yard Field Goal Attempt that was made by John Carney which gave the Giants a 16-13 lead with 11:32 remaining.

Carson Palmer countered the Giants score by driving the Bengals 68 yards, and he capped off the drive with a 17-yard strike to T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the middle of the end zone for a Touch Down giving the Bengals a 20-16 lead with 4:39 remaining.

Eli Manning, in a hurry up offense, marched the Giants 68 yards to the 3 yardline where he fired a 3-yard TD pass to a covered and leaping Kevin Boss in the middle of the end zone giving the Giants a 23-20 lead with 1:50 remaining.

Carson Palmer was able to get the Bengals to the 3 yardline to set up a 21-yard Field Goal Attempt which was made by Shayne Graham on their final possession to tie the game at 23-23 with 0:00 remaining.

Overtime

The Giants won the toss and elected to receive, but the Bengals were successful in stopping the Giants from scoring during their first possession.

The Bengals went 3-and-out during their first possession.

The Giants began their second possession at the 29 yardline. Manning hit Burress on the left sideline for a 33-yard gain. After that, aired it out to Toomer along the left sideline who went out of bounds at the 7 yardline for a gain of 31 yards. On 2nd and Goal, John Carney made a 22-yard Field Goal Attempt to win the game by a score of 26-23 with 8:39 remaining.

Wrap Up

Eli Manning went 26/43 and threw for 289 yards, 1 TD, and 0 INTs.

Brandon Jacobs led in Rushing Attempts with 14, Derrick Ward led in Rushing Yards with 80.

Steve Smith led in Receptions with 7, and Amani Toomer led in Receiving Yards with 64.

Brandon Jacobs had 1 TD Run, Kevin Boss had 1 TD Reception.

John Carney went 4/4 in Field Goal Attempts.

Antonio Pierce led the team in Tackles with 10.

Fred Robbins had 2 Sacks. Corey Webster, Barry Cofield, Mathias Kiwanuka, and Dave Tollefson each had 1 Sack.

Corey Webster had 1 Forced Fumble.

The NFL.com Game Center: Post Game is attached.

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The Giants had to go back to work today, unfortunately. Below you will find a bunch of notes and reports assembled by a variety of beat writers. The Giants play their first game on Thursday so make sure you watch it.

The Star-Ledger

• Since Plaxico Burress has been unable to practice, he is contributing as an adviser to the Giants’ young receivers. Plax is taking on the mentor role even if the young guys don’t ask for it.
• Mike Garafolo assembled an in-depth 8/3 morning practice report worth checking out. Below is a sample of the entire report. There’s much more where that came from so go check out the source.
  • DEs Justin Tuck (foot) and Osi Umenyiora (hip), WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle), Amani Toomer (leg), Mario Manningham (groin) and David Tyree (knee/PUP), LBs Zak DeOssie (back) and Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP), CB Sam Madison (sports hernia), RT Shane Olivea and S Craig Dahl (knee) did not practice.
  • There we go again: first play of team drills was a bomb. Again from QB Eli Manning to WR Domenik Hixon. Great tackle on the play by CB Aaron Ross. Too bad it was way before the ball got there. That’s a 40-yard pass interference penalty on Ross.
  • QB Anthony Wright and WR Michael Jennings hooked up for deep in.
  • WR Craphonso Thorpe got the crowd excited with a spinning, toe-tapping catch on a fade to the left side from Wright. Dockery was in coverage on the play.
  • Hall ran a nice route to catch a hook from QB Andre’ Woodson in front of Webster. Hall later went deep on Pope, but the ball from Wright was overthrown and out of bounds.
• Mike Garafolo assembled an in-depth 8/3 evening practice report also worth checking out. Below is a sample of the entire report. There’s much more where that came from so go check out the source.
  • WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle), Steve Smith (groin), David Tyree (knee/PUP) and Mario Manninghan (groin), LBs Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) and Danny Clark (sports hernia), CB Sam Madison (sports hernia) and OT Shane Olivea (back) did not practice..
  • CB Corey Webster would have none of WR Domenik Hixon catching a fade on the left side. He stayed all over Hixon and knocked the ball away. Webster also stayed stride for stride on a go from QB David Carr to WR Sinorice Moss. Webster had such good position it almost looked like he was the intended receiver. Webster knocked it away for a PD.
  • Hixon ran a perfect comeback to get separation from CB R.W. McQuarters and make a diving catch. McQuarters bounced back with a PD a few plays later when WR Craphonso Thorpe ran the same pattern.
  • LB Chase Blackburn keeps making plays. I mean, this guy couldn’t get a job after the draft a few years ago and now he’s a steady backup in my mind. Tonight, he stayed with Boss on a post into the end zone and wrestled with him to grab a ball from Wright for an INT.
  • WR Brandon London made his first nice grab in a few days on a skinny post over CB Kevin Dockery. Not a bad ball at all from Woodson. London then did a great job of accelerating to at least get his hands on a deep incompletion from Manning. The ball was overcooked and I didn’t think London had a prayer of getting there, but he dove and almost made the catch after getting past CB Terrell Thomas.
• Plaxico Burress did some light running for the first time since training camp.

Big Blue Blog

• Paul Schwartz assembled his own morning practice notes. Below is a sample of his notes, but there are not too many more.
  • On Manning’s second pass, Ross made another aggressive play, storming in to bat away a pass in the flat. Unfortunately for Ross, the ball was picked out of the air by RB Derrick Ward for a completion.
  • David Carr could not have thrown a better pass on a deep toss to Sinorice Moss, who had a step on two rookies, S Kenny Phillips and CB Terrell Thomas. The ball floated down perfectly to Moss … who watched as it slid right through his arms and to the grass. Moss looked up to the sky in bewilderment.
  • TE Kevin Boss, who has caught virtually everything thus far in camp, could not make the grab on a lunging attempt from Manning over the middle.

Inside the Giants

• Tom Rock believes that Sinorice Moss is basically playing for his Giants career in this camp so he’s been under the microscope this first week and a half. That means every drop is written about, and to be fair, there have been a lot of them. Moss had a pretty good practice tonight.

The Blue Screen

• Mike Garafolo put together another morning report and another evening report.

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I’m sure all of you Giants fans know that the Cowboys got Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones from the Titans already.  Ed Werner of ESPN.com reported that,

Sources tell Werder that Dallas will send its fourth-round pick (the 126th overall) in Saturday’s draft to the Titans for Jones. There are also conditions attached to the trade related to Jones being reinstated by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and how much he plays for the Cowboys. If he plays a significant amount of time in 2008, the Titans will get an additional pick from the Cowboys in 2009. If he doesn’t get reinstated by the NFL, sources said the Cowboys get the Titans’ fourth-round pick in 2009.

The big issue here is whether or not Commissioner Roger Goodell will reinstate Pacman.  Prior to Goodell, these players never even got suspended for any wrong doing.  I don’t know what the Commissioner is going to do here because there isn’t a track record yet.  He has two options: 1) Reinstate a player that has been suspended. 2) Don’t reinstate a player that has been suspended.  We know that Goodell will suspend players, but we don’t know what will happen after the suspension is over yet.  My gut tells me that the Commissioner will reinstate Jones, but I believe that this guy should never play football again.  Another rumor surfaced this week.  According to ESPN.com, “Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones paid “extortion” money to a 29-year-old man arrested for a Las Vegas strip club shooting that left a club employee paralyzed, police said.”  We’ll have to see how all of this plays out.  It all sound very Ray Lewis-ish and Kobe Bryant-ish to me, and they all still play.

According to Clare Farnsworth of Seattlepi.com, the Seattle Seahawks have no interest in Shockey.

Newsday:

Giants’ first pick must bled in with champions - Tom Rock dissuses the concept of drafting a player that is going to gel with a Championship team.  That is the pressure that lies on Jerry Reese this weekend.

New York Daily News:

Giants get picky over Jeremy Shockey - Ralph Vacchiano summarized the overall Jeremy Shocky situation.

Prediction: Giants will select Miami’s Kenny Phillips in NFL Draft - Ralph Vacciano predicted that Big Blue will select Miami Safety Kenny Phillips with the 31st pick.  Pat Kirwan of NFL.com had the G-MEN picking Phillips in his Mock Draft that I wrote about on Monday.  If you missed that post and want to check out Phillips’ Draft Player Profile then check it out on ‘Monday’s Giants News: More Mock Drafts’.

New York Post:

TURNING THE CORNER - Paul Schwartz wrote up an article about Corey Webster’s status on the Jints.  Schwarts believes that if the Giants draft a cornerback in the first round then it’s a bad sign for Webster.

New York Times:

Cowboys Get Jones in Trade, Not Knowing if He Can Return - Judy Battista reported that the Cowboys traded for Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones.  Battista did not included the trade details so I will get them from another website.

The Star-Ledger:

A few late-round/undrafted guesses - Mike Garafolo provided a list of players that could be drafted by the Giants in the later rounds.

Eli Manning honeymoon sighting

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The New York Football Giants waived DT Manny Wright yesterday.  Wright only played one season wearing blue.  The team didn’t provide a reason for Manny’s release.  We all know that Wright has been struggling with weight issues since being drafted in 2005.  It seems like he’s lazy when it comes to staying in shape.  Manny was determined to trim down and made the final roster in 2007.  He played in six Regular Season games and was listed as inactive during the Playoffs.  He must’ve gone back to his old ways again if he was cut.

Giants.com:

The Next Chapter - Michael Eisen found out that Eli Manning is preparing harder then ever for the 2008 season.

Ready for more - Michael Eisen says that Amani Toomer is looking forward to the 2008 season.  At the very bottom of the article, Eisen reported that the Jints waived Manny Wright yesterday.

New York Post:

GIANTS CUT D-TACKLE - Paul Schwartz also covered how Big Blue cut Wright.

The Star-Ledger:

Draft visits and other tidbits - Mike Garafolo stated that the Giants will be bringing in a lot more draft hopefuls to work out next week.  Here’s some of the players coming in, according to Garafolo, “Among the other players who will be coming in, according to various sources and reports, are: Auburn DE Quentin Groves, Michigan WR Mario Manningham, Arkansas State S Tyrell Johnson, Vanderbilt OT Chris Williams and Utah DT Gabe Long. There will be plenty more names that will leak out next week. (Of course, don’t forget this one disclaimer: The Giants brought in a bunch of first-round hopefuls last year; none of them was CB Aaron Ross, whom they eventually drafted.)”  Mike also noted that:

• Brandon Jacobs and the Giants are not even close on preliminary contract terms.
• David Diehl was moved from right tackle to left tackle, and is looking for some cheddar.
• Corey Webster is going into the final year of his contract so he will be looking for an extension.
• Regarding today’s workouts, Big Blue also brought in some veterans.

Eli still wants Shockey around - Mike Garafolo got Eli’s thoughts on whether or not he wants Jeremy Shockey around in ‘08.

Giants waive DT Wright

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I just came across a very interesting article over at the Giants Blog on LoHud.com.  Ernie Palladino is trying to figure out who is going to play Safety for the Giants in ‘08.  Palladino expects Sammy Knight to play in the place of Gibril Wilson.  However, Ernie doesn’t know about the other side.  Palladino stated that he read a lot of theories about what could take place, but he didn’t provide his sources.  Here’s some of what he said could happen:

• Aaron Ross drops back to Safety.
• Move David Tyree to Safety.
• Corey Webster drops back to Safety.
• R.W. McQuarters drops back to Safety.

Ernie does not believe that Ross will play Safety because he’s only going into his second year and why mess around with a good thing.  Palladino thinks that Tyree would play the position if asked because Tyree is a team guy and plays on Special Teams and Wide Receiver, but Tyree would be like a rookie back there as a Safety.  Ernie doesn’t feel comfortable with Sammy Knight and James Butler back there, and he doesn’t really like the other suggestions that he read about so he says that the Giants should just draft a Safety and develop him “ala Michael Johnson”.

For the most part, I agree with Palladino’s perspective.  I would leave Ross where he is because he’s young and played his position really well as a Rookie.  After watching Tyree play so well on the Special Teams unit, I always thought he would’ve been a better receiver than he has been.  In Super Bowl XLII, Tyree was so effective because of the ‘element of surprise’ rather than his receiver skills.  I’m sure that the Patriots were not studying film about Tyree catching a touch down in the Super Bowl or making the greatest catch in Super Bowl history even though Tyree is listed as a Wide Receiver.  I would want to know if Tyree can tackle if he was going to play defense.  As far as moving the other Corners to Safeties, that doesn’t sound like such a bad idea to me as long as the Giants have depth at both positions.  Drafting a Safety also doesn’t sound like a bad idea to me if the Giants signed somebody high in the first or second round like they did with Ross last year.  Ross was able to make a big impact in his first year, after getting Star Struck in Big D in Week 1.

On the road to Super Bowl XLII, it was very evident that the old dogs like Madison and McQuarters were able to teach the young guys in the secondary how to stop guys like Galloway, Owens, Driver, and Moss.  Madison and McQuarters were injured in some of those games, but their knowledge of the game cannot be overlooked.  Hopefully Knight and McQuarters can do the same thing in ‘08, especially if the Giants are drafting a rookie or are going to drop a corner back to safety.

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The Giants were supposed to announce Tom Coughlin’s contract extension today, but I haven’t heard about it yet.  William Joseph is supposed to meet with the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.  Joseph was a first round pick in ‘03, and never lived up to his potential.

Giants.com:

Giants react to Favre decision

An inside look - John Schmeelk created a bio about safety Sammy Knight.

Family Bond - Michael Eisen wrote a piece about Kevin Gilbride who had kidney disease infiltrate his family about 50 years ago.

New York Post:

FAVRE’S FINALE A GIANT FIT - Paul Schwartz covered Brett Favre’s final game.

OFFICER HAS LAST PASS - According to Tom Canavan, the interception that Brett Favre threw to Corey Webster is now in the hands of Lt. Col. Greg Gadson.

New York Times:

Packers’ Quarterback Favre to Retire From N.F.L.

Last Pass by Favre: A Special Gift

The Star-Ledger:

Favre, the ultimate gunslinger, retires

Giant thoughts on Favre

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