Superfan: Giants vs. Titans (9/28/10)

Slow Out of the Gate

By Superfan

Maybe it was my preseason optimism, or the fact that the Jets had all the attention, leaving our Gmen relatively under the radar, or all the off-season improvements we made, or a combination of all these things, but I’m especially aggravated as a Giants’ fan this season. That game on Sunday was, well, embarrassing. And I think the players and coaches would agree.

I really thought the whooping we took in Indianapolis would act as a bit of a motivator and wake up call heading into our home game against Tennessee last Sunday. Not quite.

Angry in the Morning

There’s little worse than watching your team get beat like that in an early game when you live on the West Coast. Yeah, there’s nothing quite like starting your Sunday morning off with a mind-numbing beating. Really sets the tone for the rest of your day. The rest of your day is not the least bit fun.

This week, in the spirit of trying to find a safe haven to watch our games, JJ and I were invited to watch the game at a friend of mine’s house. I wrote about my viewing experience at Jerry’s place last year, and the festiveness was no different this year. I really felt bad, because the set-up he has is pretty amazing. From the three-meal and constant snack food-fest (had to be there bright and early at 9:30am for the 10:00 Giants’ kickoff), to the great drinks, to the insane multiple TV, indoor and outdoor viewing option set up, it’s a football fan’s dream spot. He’s really done an incredible job of setting his place up as a haven for any NFL fans. It didn’t help that he was trying to get us to eat the spiciest home-grown peppers known to man on a 100+-degree day, outside, but at least he got a real kick out of it. He’s a Chargers fan, so by late afternoon he was feeling the pain we were the rest of the day.

Thanks again for the food and fun, Jerry! Always a blast watching the games at your place, even losses.

Needless to say, that’s two straight weeks where JJ and I were in a new spot, and the Gmen lost. My superstition can only be stretched so thin. We better find a luckier spot soon, or we’re in trouble.

The Wrong Kind of Angry

There’s only one way a team can outplay their opponent in seemingly every phase of the game, and still get blown-out. CONSTANT MISTAKES. And with the Giants, there were plenty. Catch able, tipped passes getting picked off. A horrible decision to try a left-handed throw in the end zone, to completely halt what was up to that point a great drive. A stupid penalty in the end zone that resulted in a safety. Two even stupider unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. Kareem McKenzie, I’m calling you out – WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!?! That should send him down a spot on the depth chart for at least a week, in my opinion. And of course, it wouldn’t be a Giants’ game without one or two costly delay of game penalties, and/or timeouts wasted because the play clock was running out. A DELAY OF GAME ON A FIELD GOAL???? HOW DOES THAT EVEN HAPPEN??

In all honesty, the defense looked pretty good most of the game. Yes, Chris Johnson had over 100 yards rushing, but he needed over 30 carries to do it. They contained Vince Young very well. All in all, my notes have many kudos for clutch 3^rd down stops all game.

We also ran the ball pretty well, and save a few bad mistakes, threw it well too. It was just the mistakes that killed us. If the Giants played heads-up football, this game would have been a two-score win.

Lastly, I always think the Giants look great in the hurry-up offense. It’s quick, they play smart, get open, and have plenty of time to snap the ball at the line. Maybe they should use it more often.

Looking Forward…

We’ve got a big Sunday night match up against a Bears team that’s coming in with a lot of confidence (well-deserved) due to a great start this season. Cutler’s looking to fit right in with Martz’s offense, and Urlacher is back in a big way, as is their newest addition, Julius Peppers.

No place like primetime football for the Giants to step it back up. Here’s what it comes down to – what kind of team are we? Are we going to be so frustrated that we panic, implode, and embarrass ourselves? Or will the real New York Football Giants we’ve come to love step on our home turf Sunday night and remind the world what real Giants’ football is all about? I’d like to assume it will be the latter, and I hope the players prove me right.

Well, I know it was short and more salty than sweet, but that’s all I got for this week. I don’t have any non-Gmen thoughts of the week, because all I could think about was how our Gmen could go about turning things around and righting this ship. You can reach me via e-mail at gmensuperfan@gmail.com, and I’m on facebook under the name “Gmen Superfan.” Until next week, GO GMEN!

Superfan: Giants vs. Colts (9/21/10)

A Primetime Bust

By Superfan

Nobody said being a die-hard fan was easy. Especially when your team played the way our Gmen did Sunday night in Indianapolis. Yes, there’s plenty to be very upset about. No, it’s not yet time to panic. The bottom line is, sometimes Peyton Manning flat out beats you. With his head, or his arm (in this case, both), when Peyton gets on a roll you can only feel sorry for the defense that has to face him. That’s not an excuse – it’s just the way it is sometimes. Unfortunately for us, we were that defense.

The easy thing to do here would be to panic. To say we gotta replace our offensive line, fire our coordinators, and re-haul the team. That would also be a horrible idea based out of unnecessary panic. The fact remains, we’ve only played two games of football. TWO! Remember how after last Monday night, everyone said the Jets were incredibly overrated, and Mark Sanchez should consider himself lucky if he’s still the guy by the end of the month? The dialogue is certainly different this week, after they impressively came back to beat the Patriots. What I’m getting at is, in a day in age where football “experts” like to adjust their Super Bowl picks every Tuesday morning, its easy to get carried away in the hype when your team wins, and, on the flip side, to panic when they lose. Especially when they lose ugly on primetime national TV against their starting quarterback’s older brother.

Still, its healthy to go back over the game, relive our (pained) experiences, pinpoint what went wrong, what needs fixing, what we improved on, and finally, looking forward to next week’s match-up.

A Faulted Viewing Plan

For week 2, I was back in California, ready to start the viewing season having recently moved to Santa Monica. My buddy JJ and I decided not to risk our luck by watching the game at my new place, so we watched it at his. Then I remembered all last season we never really watched any games at his place. It was either mine, my cousin Larry’s, a friend’s place, or a sports bar. Plus, I wore my home blue jersey instead of my away jersey. What I’m trying to say is, from a superstitious standpoint, I take partial blame for this one.

When half time finally rolled around, I’d had enough. Thinking I might have more luck elsewhere, I headed back to my place to watch the second half (no offense meant JJ – gotta do whatever it takes to win). We’re going to need to establish a more secure plan to watch the game against Tennessee this Sunday.

To top it all off, I got completely obliterated in fantasy this week. I don’t care what defense he’s playing – who can predict Chris Johnson would only get 2 POINTS? Just my luck…

Melting Under the Spotlight

Primetime national TV makes a bad game look like a really, really bad game. Especially when it’s hyped as the sibling rivalry of the millennium. Where it mattered most, we looked pretty bad.

Against a team like the Colts, you want to have the ball on offense as much as possible. Starting the game on defense won’t help that. Our defense spelled it out with their overabundance of DBs that they were playing only the pass, and it was up to the Colts to prove they could run the ball against us. And they did. Well. Starting with the ball, they drove down the field (primarily with their running game), finishing their drive with 8:16 left in the first quarter. Nearly half the quarter, and our offense never left the sideline. When we did get the ball, we went three-and-out and gave it right back. We managed to trade scoreless drives for the rest of the first quarter. Then, after a great punt by Matt Dodge at the beginning of the second quarter, the Colts marched 98 yards (might’ve been 99, actually), for the touchdown score. You can only trade punts with an offense like Indy’s for so long. Eventually, they’re going to drive down the field, and they’re going to score a touchdown. They continued to move the ball, we continued to stall, and the halftime score was a depressing 24-0.

The second half saw some scoring, but also some serious miscues, and the end of Jacobs’ day. Brandon, you have to stop this tiptoeing. You’re a north-south runner. I understand that you’re trying to keep from getting your knees knocked out, but with your running style it’s a risk you have to be willing to take. Eli made a few great throws, but it was very hard for him to get any time back there, with Mathis and Freeney having a field day against our pass protection. The most notable example of this came after we scored in the third quarter, got the ball back, and looked primed to drive the field again and continue cutting into their lead. Unfortunately, Eli went back to pass, got crushed by Dwight Freeney, fumbled, and Maola picked up the fumble and tumbled in for a Colts touchdown. It was already hard to think of the Gmen coming back before that play, but that really stung.

And I have to say it, another game played, another timeout wasted because of the play clock winding down. Maybe the Giants should try a little no-huddle, if for no other reason than to give Eli more time at the line of scrimmage to read the defense and adjust the play. I’d like to think that its still early in the season, and the o-line still has kinks its getting out, but maybe the age and injuries really are catching up to them. Here’s to hoping I’m wrong.

I read Antrel Rolle’s comments earlier, and while I’m against players going to the media about stuff that could easily be settled inside the locker room, he made some legitimate points. There appeared to be a significant lack of drive on our sideline, and I never once saw anyone getting in players’ faces on the sideline when things were looking bad. Someone needs to step up on the sideline and be that guy who wakes players up out of the apathy that comes with a huge deficit. For a time, that had been Brandon Jacobs, but he was too busy looking for his helmet.

The lone bright spot, almost wasted in a blowout like that one, was the improvement of Matt Dodge’s punting. He did a great job back there, got lots of hang time, and directed his kicks well. Now we just need to have all three phases of the team clicking during the same game.

Luckily, there are more than 2 games in the season…

Staying in the AFC South, we’ve got a tough road game coming up against the Titans. And after seeing what guys like Joseph Addai and Donald Brown did to us, I’m sure Chris Johnson’s licking his lips in anticipation of redeeming himself for his sloppy 34-yard, 2.1 yard/carry average, scoreless performance against the Steelers last weekend. That being said, the fan in me is seriously debating sitting CJ in fantasy this week, hoping the Giants contain him.

Yes, I’m upset about the loss. We all should be. The players and coaches should be furious. But by no means is that to say we should give up hope on where we stand going forward. It’s a long season sports fans, and I’m positive a big win next week will go a long way in forgetting this debacle. Remember how bad we looked the first few weeks of the ‘07-‘08 season? Exactly. By the end of this season, hopefully, this loss will simply be one of just a few in our record. This week we have to work on establishing the run, giving Eli time in the pocket, and getting guys in the backfield.

Non-Gmen Thoughts of the Week:

• I know for some reason Giants fans are supposed to hate the Jets (I don’t really hate them, just don’t love having to share a stadium with anyone), but you can’t help but feel happy for them regarding their big win over the Patriots. Sanchez looked great, and it’s always great to see any team from New England lose in New York.
• I don’t know how I feel about all these in-game quarterback switches to give teams a boost. If he’s your guy, then stick with him. If not, make a switch. But at least be concrete in your decision-making.
• Yes, Vick played in the second half the week before against a Packers team that never really planned on facing so much of him. And he played great last Sunday. But it was against Detroit. I still think there won’t be a debate over Kevin Kolb taking over as the starting QB when he returns. Either way, I can’t wait for our Gmen to play them, and beat them.
• Boardwalk Empire is awesome. Can’t wait to see next week’s episode.
• The same goes for Mad Men. They’ve still got it, and Don Draper is still the man!

That’s all for this week. Must forget the last game and think ahead to Tennessee. If it helps, don’t watch Inside the NFL, NFL Live, or any other highlight shows this week. You’d be amazed at how much easier it is to swallow an embarrassing loss when you’re not reminding yourself with bitter highlights and analysis from all media outlets all week. Time to see who steps up and takes charge on the road this Sunday. You can e-mail me at gmensuperfan@gmail.com, and I’m on facebook under the name “Gmen Superfan.” Until next week, GO GMEN!

SuperFan: Giants vs. Panthers (9/14/10)

A New Era of Giants Football Starts with a Win

By Superfan

Giants’ fans, it is my absolute pleasure to welcome you back to a fresh, new season of New York Giants football! And isn’t it appropriate that we’ve only had one weekend of games, yet all the experts are completely jumping ship with their preseason picks? Gotta love parity. And for Giants fans, this past weekend was especially fun – we had what some like to call a “superfecta;” the Giants won, and the Eagles, Cowboys, and Jets all lost (when they become legitimately relevant again in the division, the Redskins might replace the Jets as that last team mentioned).

For some, especially in the New York area, it might seem like football season never really ended. Our hometown had one of its busiest off-seasons in recent memory. The Jets made most of the noise, while the Giants quietly and smoothly made all the right moves to bulk up. All I know is, I’m glad the Gmen opened up the stadium first, so it could at least be opened up right, with a ‘W.’

Homecoming

There was no way I was going to sit back and watch the first game in the new palace on my couch 3,000 miles away. My plane ticket was booked as soon as this year’s schedule was announced. The flight in wasn’t too bad, except for the fact that I was seated next to a Cowboys fan, who for some reason was covering the Giants game for Sky Sports. I couldn’t help but say to the guy, “Interesting, because I plan to cover the Giants at the Cowboys Stadium in February.” We didn’t talk much for the rest of the flight.

Sunday rolled around, and so did nasty weather. Hey, it wouldn’t be a sufficient 2-day trip to Jersey without it raining at least fifty percent of the time. On game day, my friend Jon, my brother Robby, and I left nice and early to try and get there for the pregame ceremony. Despite getting off the turnpike at 11:30, thanks to the helpful parking attendants, we didn’t park until closer to 12:45. Man it’s a good thing those folks went to college.

As for the stadium, wow. It’s massive, very fan–friendly, and does a great job paying homage to the Gmen. The video boards lining the outside are really cool-looking, the giant posters lining the inside make you proud to be a Giants fan, and (best of all), they’ve got the radio broadcast playing all throughout the stadium, so if you get up to go to the bathroom, you can at least still hear what’s going on. Oh, and when you’re walking through the concessions area of the stands, there’s a clear view to the field of play – a comforting openness that I felt was lacking in the old stadium. Also (and you have to make sure to get there before halftime), check out the Legacy Club if you get a chance. It’s like a mini hall of fame, solely for the Giants (it’s basically the equivalent of what “Monument Park” is to Yankee Stadium. A true shrine to the New York Football Giants. Makes you even prouder to be a Giants fan.

One thing’s for certain – with this new stadium, the Giants’ home field advantage got a lot stronger. Now, onto the game itself…

Wet, Ugly, but (most importantly) Victorious

The game might not have been as attractive or ideal as Giants fans might have hoped the stadium opener would be, but the result is what counts, and the result was a win. I’ll talk first about what impressed me most in the Giants’ victory on Sunday:

The defense.

These guys were ready to play. Now I’m not going to start predicting we’ll be the best defense in the league based on a great performance on Sunday (remember, we started pretty impressively on defense for the first few weeks of last season), but I saw an intensity on the field that this team hasn’t shown us in a while. And it made me very, very excited.

Our off-season additions each had an interception (Rolle and Grant). Kenny Phillips came back in a big way, with an interception as well as an incredible touchdown-saving tackle of DeAngelo Williams. Against the Panthers, the Giants defense gave up the fifth fewest yards of all 32 teams that played this past kickoff weekend, 237. They were fourth in the league in yards per play (3.8), sacked the QB four times, picked him off three times, defended 12 passes, and forced and recovered two fumbles. Not to mention the fact that we held the league’s 3^rd best rushing offense in 2009 to just 89 yards, with a microscopic 3.7 yards/carry average. Perry Fewell and his crew should be very pleased with their performance on Sunday. The one big issue I had while watching, which I’m sure will be addressed before heading to Indianapolis for next week’s primetime match up with the Colts, was their 3^rd down play. If we let Peyton and company convert on 3^rd and long the way the Panthers did, it’ll be a very long night.

Up next, let’s talk about the offense.

I noticed the same issue that’s been harping me since I started writing this weekly article back in 2007 – MANAGING THE PLAY CLOCK! It seems to me that, if we want to have the option to come to the line and let Eli make his reads and adjust the play accordingly, the team should break the huddle and head to the line with more than ten seconds left on the play clock. It seems like nearly every play Eli was getting the ball as the play clock was expiring. Pretty easy for a defensive lineman to jump the snap when they know exactly when the QB will call for it. On that note, kudos to the offensive line’s pass protection. I don’t know if the play’s getting to the huddle late, if there’s communication problems, or if the team’s just taking their sweet time, but you can’t consider yourself an elite football team if you consistently get hampered by menial, correctable problems like this every year.

On a more positive note, Eli picked up right where he left off last season. Considering the bad weather, and his first full game on a brand new surface, he hung in the pocket nicely, and made pretty good throws. Not great, but definitely catchable. In fact, on the few tips-turned interceptions, it looked like he actually placed the ball specifically where his receiver can get it, away from the defender. Unfortunately, those times his receivers went up, and tipped it right into the defenders’ waiting hands. It’s a shame mistakes like that aren’t accounted for in a quarterback’s passer rating; of course, Eli and his peers understand that it comes with the territory. Hakeem Nicks played lights out, and could have had an even better game if he’d held on to a few of those drops. The same goes for the rest of the receivers. The latest I’d heard of Kevin Boss’s status, he was out indefinitely with a concussion and mild neck injury, which came on a cheap shot (that should’ve been called a penalty) right off the bat in the first quarter. It’s concerning if he’s out for a while, but we recently signed Bear Pascoe off the practice squad and will have him and Travis Beckum manning the position in Boss’s absence. Obviously not an ideal way to start the season, but not a horrible option either. Certainly manageable.

The rushing attack needs a lot of work. As a team, we ran the ball 36 times for 118 yards. It might look nice (over 100 yards rushing), but not when you realize that means we had a 3.3 yards/carry average for the game. It’s strange that our offensive line can be so solid in pass protection, and so weak blocking for the run game. Or, maybe that’s more than just a coincidence. Either way, something has to be done. It doesn’t matter if Bradshaw or Jacobs is the number one, neither will be able to do anything without any running lanes. Hopefully, Indianapolis will be looking to slow down Eli and our passing game, which might help give our running game a spark.

Lastly, let’s review special teams.

Awful. Just, awful. Matt Dodge kind of looked like those guys on high school football teams who, during practice, grab a ball and try to convince everyone they could be the punter if they needed them to be. Then, they grab a ball, punt it, and it goes thirty yards, rolling nearly the whole way. He better learn how to punt this week, or we better start looking for his replacement. Reynaud, on the other hand, looks like he’ll be a solid return man in Hixon’s absence this year.

Looking forward to next week’s family reunion.

Big primetime game Sunday night! I always found it kind of funny that people make such a big deal out of the “Manning vs. Manning” aspect of it. It’s not like Eli’s lining up in the secondary when Peyton gets under center. If New York’s secondary shows up, and Indy’s doesn’t, and therefore Eli has far more passing yards than Peyton, does that mean Eli outplayed Peyton? Or vice versa? Not necessarily. It’s the Giants versus the Colts, sports fans. Two siblings just happen to be each team’s starting quarterback.

Now, as a Giants fan, I’d much rather be playing the Colts 1-0 instead of coming off a shocking, disheartening division loss to open the season. They’ll be very hungry, and we’re really going to have to hit on all cylinders and minimize the mistakes if we want to take this one. If our defense mixes up the play calling like they did last week, get a lot of pressure on Peyton early, and our running game can get going, and help balance our offensive attack, we’ll have a very good shot. Talent-wise, we match up against the Colts pretty well. Other than Peyton, the one obstacle that can keep us from winning is us. The one way Peyton really knows how to hurt an opponent is by forcing them to overthink, make mental mistakes, and commit a lot of penalties. We can’t play into his strengths and beat ourselves. It’s going to be a great game to watch, and I can’t wait for Sunday night to get here!

Non-GMEN Thoughts of the Week:

· I really feel for Bob Sanders. He’s like the Ken Griffey, Jr. of football. Unbelievable amount of talent, but is hurt more than he’s healthy. And from all reports, he was really optimistic heading into this season; sure it would be a full, productive year. You look at his numbers, given the limited amount of playing time he’s had in his career, and it boggles the mind to think of what his numbers would be if he could keep himself healthy. Hopefully, this injury won’t keep him out for too long.

· All off-season, all Rex Ryan did was talk about how this year, the Jets were Mark Sanchez’s team. That it was time for Mark to step up and be the voice and the leader of this team. Kind of hard to do that if you don’t give him the opportunity to make plays. He’s not a rookie anymore. As everyone said during the telecast Monday night, it’s time to take the training wheels off.

· For anyone who likes quick, tasty, convenient coffee at home, the Keurig single-cup coffee maker is a great piece of machinery. But the CuisinArt version is much better, unless you enjoy leaks.

· This season of Mad Men is a bit stranger than past years. I figure the show’s progressing further into the 60s, so it’s only appropriate. Regardless, it’s still an amazing show.

· Entourage, on the other hand, has officially become unwatchable.

· Still sure you can live without Vincent Jackson, A.J. Smith?

· As a Yankee fan, there isn’t a team I hate more in the world in September than the Rays. Even when Tampa Bay used to be horrible, they’d still always beat us in September. Now, to top it off, they’re battling for the division. What a nuisance.

· You’re right, Randy Moss. Nobody cares. So please don’t waste our time complaining during a post-game press conference after a huge win.

· If the league switches to an 18-game schedule, which it looks like it will in 2012, it’ll be a dark day in football history. It seems like Roger Goodell and a small handful of owners (and the NFL Network), are the only folks who want it to happen. The rest he’s trying desperately to get on board. International football games, potential international teams, rule changes, and now a longer schedule. It seems like all Goodell’s tried to do is change aspects of the league since he took over as commissioner. Do you really dislike the NFL the way it is, Mr. Commish? I can understand the labor agreement, but as for his extracurricular alterations – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

That’s all my rambling for the first week of the season. Got a huge game coming up Sunday night in Indy! Let’s start this thing off 2-0, baby! If you have any questions or comments, you can contact me via e-mail at gmensuperfan@gmail.com. You can also find me on facebook, under the name “Gmen Superfan.” Looked good in week one, let’s look great in week two! Until next week, GO GMEN!!