Die Hard Sports Fan

After keeping fans on the edge of their seats for a few hours, the Giants came out of the City of Brotherly Love with a victory over the Eagles giving Big Blue their eighth win of the 2008 Regular Season.

1st Quarter

The Giants were able to get one first down on their opening drive before Eli Manning threw a pass that was deflected at the line of scrimmage, intercepted, and returned to the Giants’ 9 yardline by Mike Patterson with 13:30 remaining.

The Eagles quickly capitalized on the turnover on 2nd and Goal as they direct snapped the ball to Desean Jackson who broke to the right side and dove over the right pile on for a 9-yard Touch Down run with 13:18 remaining.

The Giants evened up the score on their next possession going 80 yards on 10 plays, and Eli Manning threw a bullet to Plaxico Burress who was in between two defenders in the middle of the end zone for a 18-yard Touch Down reception with 8:21 remaining.

When the Giants kicked off, Quintin Demps caught the ball at the 5 yardline and returned it to the 25 yardline where Ahmad Bradshaw knocked the ball out and Chase Blackburn fell on the ball at the Eagles’ 14 yardline.

The Eagles were able to stop the Giants from getting into the end zone after giving them great field position, but John Carney made a 27-yard Field Goal Attempt with 6:48 remaining giving the Giants a 10-7 lead.

2nd Quarter

A few runs by Ward along with a few passes to Toomer helped set up the Giants on 1st and Goal at the Eagles’ 1 yardline, and Eli Manning capped it off by throwing a 1-yard Touch Down pass to Kevin Boss in the back of the end zone giving the Giants a 17-7 lead with 14:55 remaining.

On 1st and 10 at the Giants’ 43 yardline, Eli Manning got sacked by Trent Cole and Mike Patterson for a loss of 9 yards with 11:04 remaining on a drive which ultimately led to a punt.

On 1st and 10 at the Giants’ 35 yardline, Manning handed the ball off to Brandon Jacobs who broke towards the left sideline and jumped over defenders near the first down marker but had the ball stripped out of his hands by Chris Gocong and recovered by Mike Patterson at the Giants’ 44 yardline with 6:39 remaining.

The Eagles took advantage of the great field position again as Donovan McNabb found Jason Avant at about the 5 yardline who ran it into the end zone for a 10-yard Touch Down catch with 4:01 remaining cutting the deficit to 17-14.

On 3rd and 12 at the 13 yardline, Donovan McNabb threw an interception to Sam Madison who returned it 19 yards to the Eagles’ 14 yardline with 2:05 remaining.

The Eagles kept the Giants out of the end zone again, but John Carney made his 26-yard Field Goal Attempt giving the Giants a 20-14 lead with 1:49 remaining.

McNabb led the 2:00 offense to the Giants’ 11 yardline with 0:05 remaining so David Akers came out to try a 29-yard Field Goal Attempt which he made with 0:00 remaining cutting the lead to 20-17 before the half.

3rd Quarter

McNabb was spreading the love during the Eagles’ opening drive of the half, and Donovan McNabb lofted an 8-yard Touch Down pass to Hank Baskett who came down with the ball in the left corner of the end zone with 11:24 remaining giving the Eagles the lead 24-20 .

The Giants gave the Eagles’ defense a big dose of Jacobs who kept moving the chains to the Eagles’ 21 yardline before Manning scrambled and threw a shovel pass to Boss at 3 yardline which was ruled a penalty initially, and then the play was challenged and overturned. On 2nd and Goal, Brandon Jacobs bulldozed his way into the end zone for a 3-yard Touch Down run giving the Giants the lead 27-24 with 5:56 remaining.

4th Quarter

The Giants continued to wear down the Eagles’ defense as Earth, Wind, and Fire got them to the Eagles’ 6 yardline before getting held out of the end zone for the third time, but John Carney connected on his 28-yard Field Goal Attempt making the score 30-24 with 13:28 remaining.

Hixon returned the ball all the way to the Eagles’ 15 yardline, but a holding penalty backed them up to the Eagles’ 40 yardline. Bradshaw had a 23-yard run which immediately got the Giants into the redzone. On 2nd and Goal at the 3 yardline, Brandon Jacobs with the help of his blockers broke the plane of the goal line while losing the football which was initially called a Touch Down, and then it was challenged and the ruling on the field was upheld. The Giants failed on their Two Point Conversion Attempt so their lead is now 36-24 over the Eagles with 9:30 remaining.

The Eagles opened up their passing attack on the Giants prevent defense marching all the way down to the Giants’ 2 yardline, and Donovan McNabb rolled to the right and threw a 2-yard Touch Down pass to Kevin Curtis in the back of the end zone on 4th and 2 with 5:30 remaining cutting the lead to 36-31.

The Giants held the Eagles on 4th and 1 at the Eagles’ 45 yardline forcing the Eagles to turn the ball over on downs with 1:48 remaining.

The Giants picked up a first down on 4th and Inches to run out the clock.

Wrap Up

Eli Manning went 17/31 and threw for 191 yards, 2 TDs, and 1 INT.

Brandon Jacobs led in Rushing Attempts and Rushing Yards with 22 and 126 respectively.

Kevin Boss led in Receptions and Receiving Yards with 6 and 69 respectively.

Brandon Jacobs had 2 Rushing TDs, and Kevin Boss and Plaxico Burress each had 1 Receiving TD.

John Carney went 3/3 in Field Goal Attempts.

Antonio Pierce led the team in Tackles with 7.

The Giants had no Sacks.

Sam Madison had 1 INT.

The Giants had no Forced Fumbles.

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

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Before I begin, allow me to provide you with this disclaimer…I hate the Cowboys more than any professional sports franchise. Jerry Jones flew his pathetic, injured team to New York, and the Giants showed America how small his Cowboys are. When it rains, it pours…and it’s pouring in Little D. The Cowboys began the game with their second string quarterback, Brad Johnson, and finished it with their third string quarterback, Brooks Bollinger. Johnson was unable to put together a successful drive, and Bollinger only put together one successful scoring drive in the 4th Quarter when he found the wide receiver that was crying after Giants beat the Cowboys in the Divisional Playoffs, yeah T.O. Do you remember when Troy Aikman said the Cowboys have a “great defense” during the Cowboys-Cardinals game? Of course you do. This “great defense” was ranked 10th in the NFL in yards allowed (298.6) and 17th in points allowed (23) prior to kickoff. When was the last time you saw a “great defense” give up over 20 points per game? I guess the last time you watched a game through the eyes of Troy Aikman. I have no idea how Aikman is able to not only keep his job when speaking in absolutes without anything to back it up. FOX Sports doesn’t even remove him from their #1 team. The Giants’ offense put up all 35 points on the Cowboys’ “great defense”. Now the team that was already crowned the Super Bowl Champions before the season began already has 4 losses, it forces them to have to go at least 6-1 after their bye week to have any hopes of winning the NFC East. It doesn’t look like that is happening. Oh well…I cannot wait to hear what Jerry Jones has to say to his pathetic team this week. I absolutely loved how the Giants never let up when they were down, and I hope that Big Blue can continue to dominate the rest of their opponents in ‘08.

Offense

The Giants offense was extremely productive yesterday, but they did have a few miscues worth noting. The offense found the end zone 5 times, but they turned the ball over 3 times. Eli Manning had decent statistics as he went 16/27 which is a 59.26% completion percentage and threw for 147 yards, 3 TDs, and 1 INT. I was really pissed off when Eli threw the interception because of where they were on the field which made it way to easy for Mike Jenkins to return it 23 yards to the house. Besides the interception, the Cowboys’ defense had 3 Sacks and 2 Forced Fumbles which were recovered by them. WR Steve Smith had 5 receptions for 29 yards while WR Plaxico Burress had 3 receptions for 34 yards. Eli threw his 3 Touch Down passes to Kevin Boss, Steve Smith, and Amani Toomer. The Cowboys didn’t want any part of stopping the Giants’ rushing attack because the Giants rushed for 200 yards on 34 attempts which is 5.88 yards per carry. Brandon Jacobs led with 117 yards on 17 carries. Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward each had 1 rushing TD. The Giants’ offense put up 35 of the 35 points.

Defense

The Giants defense put on another show for America yesterday. They were just nasty for all four quarters. The Giants’ defense had 4 Sacks, 3 INTs, and 1 Forced Fumble. Justin Tuck had 2.5 Sacks, Mathias Kiwanuka has 1 Sack, and Jay Alford had a 0.5 Sack. Corey Webster had 2 Interceptions during the game, and James Butler had 1 interception. Antonio Pierce stripped the ball out of Terrell Owens’ hands which made me laugh. I was surprised that AP did not give T.O. any popcorn. You cannot ask for better stat lines than this against one of the best teams in the NFL. The Giants’ defense put up 0 of the 35 points.

Special Teams

Carney was 0/0 in Field Goal Attempts which shows you how much of a lead the Giants had. The Cowboys also didn’t have any field goal attempts. Domenik Hixon along with the defense gave the Giants great field position all day. The Giants’ special teams put up 0 of the 35 points.

So the Giants won their seventh game which makes them 7-1. How will Big Blue fair in the next 8 games? I predicted them to be 7-1 after the first 8 games, and they are 7-1. I got 2 games wrong so far because I had the Giants beating the Browns but losing to the Steelers. I predicted the Giants to be 5-3 down the stretch giving them a 12-4 record. The Giants will travel to Philly to take on the Eagles on Sunday Night Football.

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The Giants devoured the Cowboys who came limping into Giants Stadium today giving Big Blue their seventh win of the 2008 Regular Season.

1st Quarter

The Giants scored on their opening drive as they went 75 yards, and Eli Manning capped it off by throwing a floater to Kevin Boss who was along the right sideline at the 1 yardline and ran in for a 13-yard Touch Down with 8:47 remaining.

On 1st and 10 at the Giants’ 25 yardline, Brad Johnson threw an interception to Corey Webster who returned it 57 yards down the right sideline to the Cowboys’ 27 yardline with 2:48 remaining.

The Giants capitalized on the Cowboys’ turnover as Eli Manning completed a 5-yard Touch Down pass to Steve Smith who was in the middle of field at about the 1 yardline and ran it into the end zone for a Touch Down with 0:41 remaining.

2nd Quarter

On 3rd and 7, Justin Tuck sacked Brad Johnson on the first play of the quarter for a loss of 5 yards with 14:56 remaining which led to a Cowboys punt.

On 3rd and 12, the ball came out of Eli Manning’s hands as he brought his arm back, and DeMarcus Ware recovered the football at the Giants’ 16 yardline with 11:25 remaining.

On 2nd and 11, Johnson fired a 5-yard pass to Owens over the middle, but Antonio Pierce stripped the ball out of Terrell Owens‘ hands and Michael Johnson recovered it at the 6 yardline with 10:40 remaining.

On 2nd and 8, Mike Jenkins jumped the route as Eli Manning tried to hook up with Burress along the right sideline, and Jenkins returned it down the sideline untouched a 23-yard Touch Down return with 8:38 remaining.

On 2nd and 6, Bradie James sacked Eli Manning for a 6-yard loss with 7:43 remaining. Ward reception for 17, Ward for 9, Jacobs, . Later on during the same drive, Chris Canty also sacked Eli Manning for a loss of 12 yards on 3rd and 10 with 4:58 remaining which led to a Giants punt.

The Cowboys were marching down the field as Barber kept moving the chains, but then Brad Johnson threw an interception to Corey Webster along the right sideline and he ran it out of bounds at the 48 yardline with 2:48 remaining.

The Giants ate up 1:20 as they went on a five play scoring drive before the end of the first half, and Eli Manning found Amani Toomer in the middle of the end zone for a 11-yard Touch Down with 1:28 remaining.

As the Cowboys were trying to put some points on the scoreboard before Halftime, Brad Johnson got sacked by Jay Alford and Justin Tuck for a loss of 7 yards on 2nd and 10 with 1:09 remaining.

3rd Quarter

The Cowboys replaced Johnson with Bollinger, and Brooks Bollinger threw an interception to James Butler on his first pass attempt as Butler returned it to the Cowboys’ 18 yardline with 14:06 remaining.

It only took the Giants two running plays by Jacobs to reach the end zone, and Brandon Jacobs ran up the middle breaking three tackles for a 12-yard Touch Down run with 13:16 remaining.

Bollinger handed the ball off to Barber who gained 3 yards before Barber lost 12 yards on the next reception which set up a 3rd and 19 where Justin Tuck and Fred Robbins sacked Brooks Bollinger for a loss of 9 yards with 11:51 remaining which forced the Cowboys to punt from their own 2 yardline.

The Giants second possession resulted in a Punt.

The Cowboys third possession resulted in a Punt.

With 7:31 remaining, DeMarcus Ware knocked the ball out of Eli Manning’s hands on the first play of the drive and James Bradie fell on it at the 25 yardline.

4th Quarter

The Cowboys were finally able to put a successful scoring drive together as they went 75 yards, and they capped it off when Brooks Bollinger hooked up with Terrell Owens in the left side of the end zone for an 8-yard Touch Down pass with 14:07 remaining.

The Giants immediately retaliated on their next possession as Jacobs had a huge 31-yard run which moved the Giants into Cowboys’ territory, and Derrick Ward ran 17 yards up the middle for a Touch Down on 2nd and Goal with 8:20 remaining.

The Cowboys fifth possession began at the 33 yardline. With 7:32 remaining, Mathias Kiwanuka came around and sacked Brooks Bollinger from the blindside for a loss of 4 yards on a drive which ultimately led to a punt.

Wrap Up

Eli Manning went 16/27 and threw for 147 yards, 3 TDs, and 1 INT.

Brandon Jacobs led in Rushing Attempts and Rushing Yards with 17 and 117 respectively.

Steve Smith led in Receptions with 5 and Plaxico Burress led in Receiving Yards with 34.

Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward each had a Rushing TD, and Kevin Boss, Steve Smith, and Amani Toomer each had 1 Receiving TD.

John Carney went 0/0 in Field Goal Attempts which shows you what kind of game it was.

Sammy Knight and Justin Tuck led the team in Tackles with 5.

Justin Tuck had 2.5 Sacks while Mathias Kiwanuka had 1 Sack and Jay Alford each had 0.5 Sacks.

Corey Webster had 2 INTs, and James Butler had 1 INT.

Antonio Pierce each had 1 Forced Fumble.

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

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The Giants went into the Steel City and beat the Steelers at their own game…hard nosed, old school, smash mouthed football. The NFC East is historically known for that as well so it is no shock, but I loved every minute of it. All year, I’ve had to listen to the media say that the Giants haven’t beaten anyone yet. Now we did and came out with the same result. On top of that, we did it on the road in one of the most hostile stadiums in the country…again. The Giants completely lost momentum until John Carney kicked the field goal cutting the deficit to 14-12 with 8:18 remaining in the 4th Quarter. That’s when the Terrible Towels were being waved a little less. Then emergency long snapper James Harrison snapped the ball over the punter’s head which resulted in a safety tying the game at 14-14. The Terrible Towels were being waved even less. Then came the Giants only TD of the game when Eli found Boss in the back of the end zone with 3:07 remaining, and the Giants silenced the stadium. I absolutely loved this game, and I hope that Big Blue can continue to dominate the rest of their opponents in ‘08.

Offense

The Giants offense was average yesterday even though they only got into the end zone once. They came out strong in the 1st Quarter but could not regain momentum until the 4th Quarter. Eli Manning did not have a good night statistically. He went 19/32 which is a 59.38% completion percentage and threw for 199 yards, 1 TD, and 0 INTs. New York was able to move the chains, but Pittsburgh’s defense was able to stop the Giants from reaching the end zone. The Giants’ defense constantly gave the offense great field position, but the offense did not capitalize on as many possessions as they should have. The Jints offense only put up 7 points, but they were playing one of the best defenses in the NFL. Since the Giants were able to move the chains and get into the red zone, they did make 4 Field Goals. On one occasion, Coach Coughlin decided not to kick a field goal on 4th and Inches early in the 2nd Quarter which could have came back and bit them in the buttocks. RB Derrick Ward had 5 receptions for 43 yards while WR Steve Smith had 3 receptions for 45 yards. Plaxico Burress sat the 1st Quarter for missing treatments for his sore neck on Friday. Burress keeps on pissing me off with this crap, but I guess Coach Coughlin feels the same way. As I said last week, I wouldn’t care if this was a one-off incident, but his behavior is reverting. After getting his mega-contract, he has acted like a fool. Instead, he should be helping his teammates improve. The more Burress acts like T.O. or Chad Johnson, the faster the Giants will let him go like they did with his best friend Jeremy Shockey. Kevin Boss was the only Giant to find the end zone yesterday. Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward only compiled 84 yards on 31 touches which is only 2.71 yards per carry, but that is a lot more than the Steelers defense gives up. The tandem was also able to wear down the Steelers’ defense in the 4th Quarter which led to the Giants winning this game. The Giants’ offense put up 7 of the 21 points.

Defense

The Giants defense put on a show for America yesterday. They were just nasty for all four quarters. Not only that, they got better as the game went on. The Steelers were able to score on their first drive when Roethlisberger handed the ball off to Mewelde Moore who ran it 32 yards to the house. The Giants missed a tackle which cost them 7 points. The Steelers opened up the 2nd Half by Ben Roethlisberger throwing a 65-yard bomb to Nate Washington for a TD. This was the only play were the Giants’ defense broke. Besides those two bad plays, the defense dominated the Steelers’ offense all day. The defense sacked Ben Roethlisberger 5 times. Mathias Kiwanuka got to him three times, and Justin Tuck and Dave Tollefson got to him once. Add 14 knock downs to that. Kenny Phillips, Corey Webster, James Butler, and Bryan Kehl each had 1 pick yesterday. Mathias Kiwanuka and Antonio Pierce each forced 1 fumble. These stats are similar to what to what they did last week against the 49ers. There’s a big difference between the talent level of these two teams. You cannot ask for better stat lines than this against one of the best teams in the NFL. The Giants’ defense put up 0 of the 21 points.

Special Teams

The bes play of the game took place on Special Teams when the Steelers snapped the ball to high giving the Giants a Safety. John Carney was 4/4 in Field Goal Attempts. The Special Teams unit needs to improve on returns and coverage. The Giants’ special teams put up 14 of the 21 points.

So the Giants won their sixth game which makes them 6-1. They now will face the Cowboys and the Eagles back-to-back which are huge games to set the tone. I’m can’t wait to watch these games. How will Big Blue fair in the next 9 games? I predicted them to be 6-1 after the first 7 games, and they are 6-1. I got 2 games wrong so far because I had the Giants beating the Browns but losing to the Steelers. I predicted the Giants to be 6-3 down the stretch giving them a 12-4 record. The Cowboys are next on the schedule.

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The Giants beat the Steelers in an extremely physical matchup and came out on top giving them their sixth win of the 2008 Regular Season.

1st Quarter

The Steelers marched 60 yards into the end zone on their first possession, and Roethlisberger handed the ball off to Mewelde Moore who broke to the right side for a 32-yard Touch Down run to cap it off with 11:15 remaining.

During the Giants’ second possession, Manning mixed up some passes along with an efficient running game before getting stopped at the Steelers’ 8 yardline where John Carney made a 26-yard Field Goal Attempt with 4:39 remaining.

Ben Roethlisberger threw an interception to James Butler who lost the ball, and then various players tried to fall on it and Mathias Kiwanuka came up with it at the Steelers’ 42 yardline with 2:53 remaining.

2nd Quarter

The Giants marched right down to the 2 yardline after the interception, but the Steelers came up with a goal line stand which was poor play calling by Coughlin who should have put the field goal unit out there.

The Giants’s defense was successful in making the Steelers go 3-and-out, and Hixon returned the punt to the Steelers’ 19 yardline. The Steelers stopped the Giants at the 17 yardline so John Carney connected on a 35-yard Field Goal Attempt with 10:30 remaining.

Roethlisberger zipped the ball to Nate Washington, but Butler hit Washington so hard that the ball popped out and into the hands of Bryan Kehl who returned it to the Steelers’ 44 yardline with 7:54 remaining. The Steelers were called for a Personal Foul on the play which advanced the Giants another 15 yards so the Giants took over at the 29 yardline instead.

The Steelers were able to stop the Giants from getting into the end zone again, but John Carney connected on a 25-yard Field Goal Attempt with 3:31 remaining.

With 3:21 remaining, Justin Tuck sacked Ben Roethlisberger for a loss of 6 yards. The Steelers were successfully marching down the field using the no-huddle offense until Mathias Kiwanuka sacked Ben Roethlisberger for a 9-yard loss on 3rd down with 0:56 remaining which forced the Steelers to punt.

3rd Quarter

The Steelers opened up the half, but Dave Tollefson sacked Ben Roethlisberger on third down for a loss of 8 yards with 12:30 remaining so the Steelers had to punt.

Off play action, Ben Roethlisberger aired out a 65-yard Touch Down pass to Nate Washington who ran down the left sideline and into the end zone with 10:00 remaining.

4th Quarter

The Steelers were at the Giants’ 34 yardline on 4th and 4 so they went for it rather than kicking a field goal, but Ben Roethlisberger threw an interception to Corey Webster who returned it to the 32 yardline with 14:00 remaining.

The Giants began their fourth possession at the 32 yardline. Coughlin had the offense go for it on 4th and 6 at the Steelers’ 35 yardline, and Manning hooked up with Toomer who got tackled at the 4 yardline. Once again, the Steelers’ defense stopped the Giants from getting into the end zone so John Carney made a 24-yard Field Goal Attempt with 8:18 remaining.

On 3rd and 14, Mathias Kiwanuka sacked Ben Roethlisberger for an 8-yard loss with 7:16 remaining which forced the Steelers to punt the ball away. When punting, James Harrison snapped the ball over the head of Berger and beyond the end zone which resulted in a Safety.

The Giants possession began at the 47 yardline. Manning hit Smith over the middle for 25 yards, and then he found Burress along the left sideline who got tackled at the 10 yardline. Ward broke to the left and got tackled at the 2 yardline. Off play action, Eli Manning fired a 2-yard Touch Down pass to Kevin Boss in the back of the end zone with 3:07 remaining.

The Giants’ defense made the Steelers go 4-and-out so they took over at the Steelers’ 37 yardline.

The Steelers’ defense made the Giants go 3-and-out forcing the Giants to punt.

On 4th and 15, Ben Roethlisberger threw an interception to Kenny Phillips at their own 49 yardline and no return with 1:24 remaining.

The Giants went into victory formation and ran out the clock.

Wrap Up

Eli Manning went 19/32 and threw for 199 yards, 1 TD, and 0 INTs.

Brandon Jacobs led in Rushing Attempts and Rushing Yards with 18 and 47 respectively.

Derrick Ward led in Receptions with 5 and Steve Smith led in Receiving Yards with 45.

Kevin Boss had 1 Receiving TD.

John Carney went 4/4 in Field Goal Attempts.

Danny Clarck and Justin Tuck led the team in Tackles with 4.

Mathias Kiwanuka had 3 Sacks while Justin Tuck and Dave Tollefson each had 1 Sack.

Kenny Phillips, Corey Webster, James Butler, and Bryan Kehl each had 1 INTs.

Mathias Kiwanuka and Antonio Pierce each had 1 Forced Fumble.

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

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My expectations of what the Giants would do to the 49ers in the week following the giant embarrassment on Monday Night Football were not fulfilled, but a win is a win is a win. This was also the last opponent on the Jints schedule that was considered relatively easy. The final 10 games on the schedule are much more difficult, and we will see just how good the G-MEN are once they start playing better competition. We’ll discuss the schedule later on in the week so let’s get back to yesterday’s game.

Offense

I was not impressed by the offense yesterday. Eli Manning did not have a good night statistically. He went 16/31 which is a 51.61% completion percentage and threw for 161 yards, 1 TD, and 0 INTs. The Giants defense constantly gave the offense great field position, but the offense did not capitalize on as many possessions as they should have. The Jints offense only put up 21 points on a not so good team which doesn’t leave a good taste in your mouth as the G-MEN are about to face the Steelers, the Cowboys, and the Eagles. My confidence going into these games would have been much higher if Big Blue played a nice, crisp game on offense. Even Brandon Jacobs wasn’t thrilled with how the offense played yesterday because he said, “I felt like we bounced back well enough to win the game but as far as production with our offense, I think it could have been better.” The receiving corps was not very productive either. WR Steve Smith had 4 receptions for 39 yards while RB Derrick Ward had 3 receptions for 50 yards. It isn’t necessarily bad when a running back has more receiving yards than a receiver, but it is when the top receiver only has 39 yards. Plaxico Burress was the only receiver to catch a touch down, but he only had 3 receptions for 24 yards in the game. Also, Burress got heated after being called for a questionable offensive pass interference penalty. He began screaming at the Referee, and then received a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the following play. As he walked off the field, he was caught shouting 4-letter words at Cough Coughlin. Coughlin responded, and then Eli Manning and Antonio Pierce tried to calm Burress down as he was sitting on the bench. Plax is really starting to get on my nerves again like he did prior to 2007. I wouldn’t care if this was a one-off incident, but his behavior is reverting. After getting his mega-contract, he has acted like a fool. Instead, he should be helping his teammates improve. The more Burress acts like T.O. or Chad Johnson, the faster the Giants will let him go like they did with his best friend Jeremy Shockey. Speaking of Shockey, he had a big fumble yesterday which wasn’t his fault. He blamed the coaching and the doctors for that one because nothing is his own fault. Pathetic. Earth, Wind, and Fire compiled 116 yards on 29 touches is only 4 yards per carry. Jacobs had 2 rushing TDs. That number isn’t bad, but it is low for this group who average more than 6.0 yards per carry. The Giants’ offense put up 21 of the 29 points.

Defense

The Giants defense was outstanding yesterday. They 49ers scored 17 total points, but they only scored 10 points on the Giants defense. The defense sacked J.T. O’Sullivan 6 times. Justin Tuck got to him twice, and Chase Blackburn, Dave Tollefson, Fred Robbins, and Barry Cofield got to him once. Michael Johnson had 2 picks yesterday, and one of the biggest plays of the game was when he intercepted the pass in the end zone right before Halftime which stopped the Niners chances of tying the game. Tuck also forced 2 fumbles, and Blackburn forced a fumble. The defense came back and played like they are capable of. The Giants also had a safety. We know that the Giants can rush the passer, but you know that they had a great day when they add 2 picks, 3 forced fumbles, and a safety to that. The Giants’ defense put up 2 of the 29 points.

Special Teams

The worst play of the game took place on Special Teams when the 49ers blocked the field goal and returned it for a touch down. John Carney was 2/3 in Field Goal Attempts. The blocked field goal gave Carney the first missed field goal attempt of the season. The Special Teams unit needs to improve on returns and coverage. The Giants’ special teams put up 6 of the 29 points.

So the Giants won their fifth game which makes them 5-1. They now head into the real season. I’m can’t wait to watch these games. How will Big Blue fair in these next 10 games? I predicted them to be 6-0 after the first 6 games, but they are 5-1. I predicted the Giants to be 6-4 down the stretch giving them a 12-4 record. The Steelers are next on the schedule.

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The Giants beat the 49ers in a very ugly game giving them their fifth win of the 2008 Regular Season.

1st Quarter

Dave Tollefson sacked J.T. O’Sullivan for a loss of 7 yards during the 49ers opening drive which ultimately led to a punt.

With 10:10 remaining, Fred Robbins sacked J.T. O’Sullivan for a 4-yard loss during the Niners second possession which led to another punt.

Manning handed the ball off to Brandon Jacobs who ran down the right sideline for a 26-yard Touch Down run to cap off a 54-yard drive with 7:52 remaining.

The 49ers got stopped at the Giants’ 22 yardline so Joe Nedney connected on his 40-yard Field Goal Attempt with 4:23 remaining.

2nd Quarter

The Niners committed three straight defensive penalties putting the Giants at the 49ers’ 19 yardline, and the Giants capitalized on this when Brandon Jacobs ran 2-yards up the gut for his second Touch Down of the game with 14:55 remaining.

The 49ers immediately countered with a 74-yard scoring drive of their own as J.T. O’Sullivan hooked up with Josh Morgan in the end zone for a 30-yard Touch Down reception with 11:25 remaining.

With 3:11 remaining, J.T. O’Sullivan threw an interception directly to Michael Johnson who returned it 19 yards to the Niners’ 9 yardline.

The Giants were unable to get the ball into the end zone, but John Carney made a 21-yard Field Goal Attempt with 1:52 remaining.

In the 2:00 offense, the 49ers were marching down the field successfully until J.T. O’Sullivan threw another interception to Michael Johnson in the middle of the end zone with 0:15 remaining.

3rd Quarter

On 3rd and 2, O’Sullivan handed the ball off poorly to Frank Gore who fumbled the ball which was recovered by Mathias Kiwanuka at the 49ers’ 18 yardline with 11:07 remaining.

Once again, the Giants were able to capitalize on another turnover as Eli Manning drilled a 6-yard Touch Down pass to Plaxico Burress in the back of the end zone with 9:01 remaining.

On 1st and 10 of another unsuccessful drive by the Niners, J.T. O’Sullivan scrambled and got sacked by Barry Cofield for a loss of 1 yard with 8:44 remaining.

Manning along with some big runs out of Ward and Bradshaw went 63 yards before getting stopped, and Manny Lawson blocked the 35-yard Field Goal Attempt by Carney and Nate Clements returned it for a 74-yard Touch Down return with 1:50 remaining.

4th Quarter

The Giants marched to the 49ers’ 30 yardline, and John Carney his 48-yard Field Goal Attempt with 12:22 remaining.

The 49ers were at their own 20 yardline when Justin Tuck knocked the ball out of J.T. O’Sullivan’s hands. The ball headed towards the end zone, and Josh Morgan kicked the ball out of the end zone which resulted in a penalty which resulted in a Giants safety with 4:57 remaining.

Wrap Up

Eli Manning went 16/31 and threw for 161 yards, 1 TD, and 0 INTs.

Brandon Jacobs led in Rushing Attempts and Rushing Yards with 17 and 69 respectively.

Steve Smith led in Receptions with 4 and Derrick Ward led in Receiving Yards with 50.

Brandon Jacobs had 2 Rushing TD, and Plaxico Burress had 1 Receiving TD.

John Carney went 2/3 in Field Goal Attempts.

Chase Blackburn led the team in Tackles with 8.

Justin Tuck had 2 Sacks while Chase Blackburn, Dave Tollefson, Fred Robbins, and Barry Cofield each had 1 Sack.

Michael Johnson had 2 INTs.

Justin Tuck had 2 Forced Fumbles, and Chase Blackburn had 1 Forced Fumble.

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

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The AP reported that Eli Manning has a bruising chest after getting hit by Shaun Rogers in the 2nd Quarter of Monday Night’s contest. Nobody knows if Manning is injured or not except for those in the know, but Eli had this to say…

There is just a little soreness. It didn’t affect practice or throwing or keep me from doing anything I needed to do.

There is no injury. Part of football is you are going to get banged up, and get some soreness. Nothing is injured, nothing that would cause any reason to miss any time, any practice or be worried about playing in a game.

Hopefully Eli is speaking the truth. Manning took responsibility for his mistakes and said that the hit he took had nothing to do with it. The Giants don’t have a history of releasing shady injury reports like the Patriots do so they probably are not covering anything up. I would love to see Eli back to normal so we can keep on winning.

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There were not many positives about last night’s game between the Giants and the Browns. I have been thinking and thinking about what happened last night, and I have various ideas as to what may have caused the embarrassment that we witnessed.

Prior to the game, the only thing that I thought could’ve motivated the Browns was playing the Super Bowl champions at The Dog Pound on Monday Night Football. With that said, I still expected the Jints to come out with a ‘W’. I recall games like this in the past. Off the top of my head, I can go back to last season when the Bills were beating the Cowboys on MNF at Ralph Wilson Stadium in the 4th Quarter. The Cowboys came back to win that game, but the Giants did not. Time and time again, I’ve seen these teams that don’t get much publicity get all pumped up when they are in their city and on national television.

Simply put, the G-MEN took the night off. The Giants did not show up with any sense of urgency. The Browns dominated the physical battle on both sides of the football. The offense was awful and the defense was equally bad. I’m not sure if there was a problem with the coaching or if the players were not executing. After seeing Steve Spagnuolo successfully adjust to some of the best offenses in the NFL so many times, did he not figure out how to stop the Browns or did the team not want to do what Spags had to say? What amazed me the most was that the entire team took off on the same night. It wasn’t one of those nights were the offense played well, but the defense played poorly or vice versa.

One of the biggest things that happened is the fact that the media finally termed Big Blue as the best team in the NFL. The Giants have been playing with a chip on their shoulder for so long because nobody believed that they were the best team in the NFL. Last week, as the Giants were heading into last night’s game they answered the media regarding their status by saying things like, “but no, the media said we were the 6th best team in May.” It seemed like the Giants were trying to create an imaginary chip on their shoulder because that was so long ago. Did the G-MEN finally buy into the fact that the media finally crowned them? It’s possible because this is the first or second week that the media has been saying this, and it is the first time the Giants lost a game since Week 17 to the Patriots. Not only did they lose a game, but they lost a game that they shouldn’t have lost. If this is the case then it should be easy to fix because they got humiliated on national television in October. Coach Coughlin has every right to remind his team how much work they have ahead of them to make the Playoffs and try to repeat. The Giants did not lose a road game since Week 1 last year to the Cowboys. Did they think that they can just show up and win games? If this is the problem then the Giants have plenty of time left to figure out how to win as the favorite and not the underdog. The proof is in the pudding, the Giants will show us that they are for real if they rebound immediately and win the next four games which include the 49ers, the Steelers, the Cowboys, and the Eagles. Are three out of those four game difficult? Of course, but the Giants missed an opportunity to beat up on a weaker team so they are going to have to come out on top over the really good teams.

The most positive spin I can put on this loss is that the Giants have been playing at such a high level for so long and they are bound to lose a game. They won 4 straight Playoff Games and 4 straight regular season games before suffering a loss. How they lost is humiliating because it wasn’t even close. Maybe the fact that they got humiliated will have a positive effect on the team for the remainder of the season.

Offense

Eli Manning was horrible statistically. He went 18/28 which is a 64.29% completion percentage and threw for 196 yards, 1 TD, and 3 INTs. Every time the Giants were about to catch up, Eli threw a pick. Steve Smith was the only effective receiver, and he led the team in Receptions with 9 for 94 yards. Our running game was the best offensive weapon for the Jints last night. Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward ran for 168 yards on 24 carries, but Ahmad Bradshaw never got any touches. So Jacobs and Ward were able to average of 7.0 yards per carry, but nothing else was clicking on offense. The Giants’ offense put up 14 of the 14 points.

Defense

Romeo Crennel developed a pretty good game plan because the Big Blue Wrecking Crew did not get any sacks which is two lower than they got last week against the Seahawks. The reason for this was because the Derek Anderson took 3-step drops and got rid of the ball immediately. This is something that the Giants have not seen before, and it caught them offguard. Crennel also sprinkled in some trick plays which threw the Giants’ defense offguard. Steve Spagnuolo needs to have this issue resolved immediately because other teams are going to look at tape and try to do the same thing. Spags needs to smart enough not to allow it to happen again. The defense did not do anything right so there is not much to say. The Giants’ defense put up 0 of the 14 points.

Special Teams

Did the Special Teams unit fly out to Cleveland? We know Jeff Feagles did since he kept punting the ball away, but where in the world was John Carney. Coach Coughlin didn’t even call his number last night. It was all or nothing. The Giants’ special teams put up 0 of the 14 points.

So the Giants lost their first game which makes them 4-1. They blew a perfect opportunity to go 2 games up on the division since they already knew that the Redskins and Cowboys lost. I picked the Giants to win so that gives me my first loss. Will Big Blue rebound? The 49ers will travel cross country next week to take on the Giants.

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The Browns decided to play the Giants like it was their Super Bowl on Monday Night as they overcame a ton of penalties to shock Big Blue giving them their first loss of the 2008 Regular Season.

1st Quarter

During the Browns opening drive, Anderson connected with Edwards on the left side for about 4 yards, but Edwards ran 49 yards down the sideline. Anderson handed the ball off to Lewis a bunch of times which set up a 28-yard Field Goal Attempt which was made by Phil Dawson with 10:08 remaining.

The Giants were moving the chains during their first possession, but Eli Manning threw an interception to Brodney Poole who returned it to the Browns’ 29 yardline with 6:12 remaining.

Anderson marched the Browns down to the Giants’ 42 yardline where they were stopped, and Dawson missed a 51-yard Field Goal Attempt with 0:33 remaining.

2nd Quarter

Manning immediately made up for his mistake by marching the Giants down to the Browns’ 7 yardline before handing it off to Brandon Jacobs who broke a little to the left and ran it into the end zone for a 7-yard Touch Down run with 12:09 remaining.

Anderson aired it out 70 yards to Edwards in the middle of the field which set up the Browns at the Giants’ 5 yardline, and then Anderson handed it off to Jamal Lewis who ran it up the gut for a 5-yard Touch Down run with 11:10 remaining.

Derek Anderson continued to catch the Giants’ defense off guard as he led the Browns on another scoring drive, and he capped it off by gunning it to Darnell Dinkins in the middle of the end zone for a 17-yard Touch Down pass with 2:15 remaining.

Manning hit Smith over the middle a few of times along with a few other plays which was enough to get the Giants into the red zone where Eli Manning lofted a 3-yard Touch Down pass to Plaxico Burress in the left corner of the end zone with 0:12 remaining.

3rd Quarter

The Giants got the ball first at the 20 yardline, and Eli Manning threw an interception on the first play of the half to Brandon McDonald who returned it to the Giants’ 46 yardline with 14:48 remaining.

The Browns ran a trick play to pick up 33 yards, and then they ran the ball a few times before Phil Dawson made a 26-yard Field Goal Attempt with 11:58 remaining.

With 8:21 remaining, Alex Hall sacked Eli Manning for a loss of 4 yards which ultimately led to a punt.

4th Quarter

The Browns overcame multiple penalties as they had an 88-yard scoring drive, and Derek Anderson gunned a 11-yard Touch Down pass to Braylon Edwards with 14:55 remaining.

Eli Manning countered by marching the Giants all the way to the Browns’ 9 yardline before throwing an interception to Eric Wright who returned it for a 91-yard Touch Down with 8:07 remaining. The Browns converted on a 2-point conversion to take a 21-point lead.

Wrap Up

Eli Manning went 18/28 and threw for 196 yards, 1 TD, and 3 INTs.

Brandon Jacobs led in Rushing Attempts with 14, and Derrick Ward led in Rushing Yards with 101.

Steve Smith led in Receptions and in Receiving Yards with 9 and 94 respectively.

Brandon Jacobs had 1 Rushing TD, and Plaxico Burress had 1 Receiving TD.

John Carney went 0/0 in Field Goal Attempts.

James Butler, Bryan Kehl, and Justin Tuck led the team in Tackles with 5.

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

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