Wait a Second, That’s Not the Ending I Read in the Script….
By SuperFan
DISCLAIMER: The following is a rant. Pure and simple. It is entirely fan-fueled, and the opinions expressed herein are derived entirely from the passion and emotion of being a New York Giants fan. Some of it was written shortly after the loss occurred (hence the extreme agitation), and the rest a day or so later, after I’d let the whole situation really sink in. All that being said, it’s still a rant. Given what took place last Sunday, you should understand why it might sound mean and extremely agitated. Hey, what kind of fan would a person be if they didn’t care enough to get upset about their team? Okay – you’ve been warned. Enjoy!
This isn’t fair. AT ALL. Everything that was great and magical about this whole season, from the day after we won the Super Bowl last February until now, was practically undone Sunday afternoon. I realize that football is a team sport, but in my opinion, most of the blame for the abomination that took place at Giants Stadium on January 11th falls on the shoulders of one person, and it’s NOT Eli Manning (although I’ve got a bone to pick with him as well). No, I’m blaming Kevin Gilbride for this one. Or should I say Kevin KILL-DRIVE!
This guy’s supposed to be one of the top candidates for a head coaching position next season?!?! REALLY?!?! That was the worst play-calling I’ve ever seen in my entire life. It’s like he never looked at a single piece of film during the whole two weeks we had off! Here are a few examples to support my argument:
We start the game off with the ball, with great starting field position thanks to an incredible kick return by Ahmad Bradshaw, going into the wind. The first play we called would have been a good call if we had the wind at our backs. But to try a deep ball right off the back throwing towards the windiest corner of the stadium? Yeah - that’ll get a quarterback’s confidence started on the right track. Later, after the Eagles drove scored easily following an ugly pick that they ran back to our 2-yard line, making the score 7-3, when we really needed a big offensive drive to gain the momentum back, Jacobs doesn’t even get on the field!
When the fourth-and-one occurred in the second half, and we (questionably at best) decided to go for it, what play did we call? We let Eli try to take it himself against an Eagles defensive front that had been playing ferociously all game, while Brandon Jacobs stood by helplessly in the backfield! Then, when we faced a critical fourth-and-two (not one, not inches – TWO), we tried to let Jacobs pound it in on a draw. A draw?! How can a big man be expected to build enough momentum for a quick, short gain with the entire defense blitzing using a draw play? It makes less sense than a sixty-something-year-old Indiana Jones surviving a nuclear explosion by hiding in a refrigerator! On that same drive (I think), when we FINALLY starting going to the no-huddle with six-and-change left in the fourth quarter (we should have started using it much earlier), we ran all running plays! We had finally gotten some momentum going with the offense, when we really needed it, and Eli didn’t even get a shot to do anything with the ball. Then we finished that drive with the ugly fourth-and-two draw play. Embarrassing.
But it wasn’t all the play-calling. The offense is supposed to execute the plays that are called, and we really didn’t. Eli was throwing passes to the receivers that looked like balls he’d normally only throw to Plaxico. Once again, we had to waste a timeout early in the second half because of bad clock management. Critical penalties on both sides of the ball killed us in the field position battle.
The worst part of all (of course) was that it happened against the Eagles. THE EAGLES! AT HOME! How did that happen? I’ve been saying it all season, and it hasn’t entirely been for my own re-affirmation – I truly believed we were meant to repeat this year. In all my heart, deep in my gut, I really believed it. And it all got shot down against the one team we hate the most. Plus, now everyone will feel almost vindicated about calling them “this year’s Giants.”
What does this mean? Is it really the hip new trend now to be on the road during the post-season. What would have happened if we’d lost that game against the Panthers in week 16? Would we have been better off? Are we not supposed to play extra-hard during the regular season to try and earn the top seed in the playoffs? Are bye weeks more risk than reward? SOMEBODY PLEASE MAKE SENSE OF THINGS!!!!
One thing’s for certain – no matter what off the field issues may have happened, or what I may have said in the past – we really could have used Plaxico on the field Sunday. Or the past 6-7 weeks, for that matter. Now I’m hearing nearly all the players on the team are saying they want him to play next season. You know what – me too! Hey, we let it slide with LT, and it worked out for us – why not turn a blind eye once more?
I’m sorry – that was terrible. I shouldn’t have said that. I didn’t really mean it. You see what this chaos has done to me? It’s tearing me apart!!
Well, all these questions and more will have to wait until next season to be answered. It was a truly horrible end to the season, but in retrospect, it was a great season. Let’s not get all George Steinbrenner on the Gmen and disregard every positive that took place during the year just because we didn’t win the whole thing. The 2007 Giants’ were a magical team with a “perfect” finish, so of course it hurts a lot now that they’ve failed to repeat. I don’t want football season to be over, the players and coaches don’t want the season to be over, and I KNOW you fans don’t want the season to be over. But, it is.
Coach Spags, I can only pray that you’ll be back again next year. If not, I wish you all the best wherever you end up. It’s been a privilege having you as our defensive coordinator the last two seasons.
I’ve had a great time writing this season, and have especially enjoyed hearing from all of you every week. To all the fans I visited with before the game on Sunday, thanks for hospitality, and thanks for your spirit. The only way this team can fully recover from this is by the continued support and enthusiasm of its incredible fan base. If anyone’s been known to bounce back from far worse conditions, it’s the New York Football Giants! I would love to keep up with you guys during the off-season, so please keep in touch! Once again, the address is gmensuperfan@gmail.com. Thanks for a fantastic year, and until next season, GO GMEN!!
