Wednesday, November 7, 2012

SuperFan: Giants vs. Steelers (11/7/12)


Despite It All, No Harm Done
By Superfan

            It’s a good thing every team in our division seems to be on the same page.  For a game with such a strange week of preparation, where football took a back seat to far more important matters regarding family, community, and coming together in a time of crisis, it’s as though the football gods looked down and said, “don’t worry, we’ll let you get away with this one.”  Despite our offense looking exhausted, distracted (justifiably so), and downright awful, the loss we suffered really shouldn’t hurt us much in the big picture.  We lost to a non-divisional, non-conference opponent, while the other teams in our division added a notch in their respective loss columns.

            Thus ends the positive portion of this article for a good short while.  Let’s go back and revisit that excruciating viewing experience…

The View From Home
            Did all the pregame as best I could.  Had my bagel with cream cheese, lox, capers and onions from N.Y. Bagel and Deli for breakfast.  Had my blue shirt on under my Tuck jersey with my laptop open but on my bed in the other room, and my hats available but not worn.  I did wear black nylon pants instead of the usual jeans, but I’ve done that in the past and it wasn’t detrimental.  Didn’t think to ask JJ if he had his bagel and lox, assuming he’s a responsible enough adult to be able to take care of it on his own without having to be reminded.  He is, and he did.  We did our part. 
           
You try to put everything in perspective when watching a game happening so soon after such a devastating natural disaster.  You try to make yourself understand that there are far more important things going on, and it’s stupid to get upset given the real hardships being suffered by so many.  You also try to remind yourself that many of our players have had a lot on their minds this past week with regards to the recovery effort, and obviously had priorities above planning for this week’s game.  I tried, but I didn’t succeed.  I was just as angry and immature and bitter as I’ve always been.  I’ve calmed down in the days since, but it’s just so hard to not expect the best from your team on every play.  In retrospect, with all that’s happened, we’re still tops in the division and can afford to chalk this loss up to really tough circumstances.  But it sure didn’t keep JJ and me from yelling like pissed off maniacs for those 3-4 hours on Sunday. 

Distracted and Exhausted
            While watching the game, it was pretty clear to see that most of the players looked like men who’d spent the last week helping friends and family recover, with very little time for rest or preparation.  They looked tired.  And distracted.  Although, in all fairness, our offense has looked bad for a while now.  Eli even said it - their bad play finally caught up to them.  Even when we did score our one offensive touchdown, in came in large part to some very generous officiating. 
           
For a second straight week our defense got after our opponent early creating not only turnovers, but a touchdown as well.  Can’t say too much (negatively) - they came to play.  Most of the game they did their job, keeping the Steelers’ scoring down and giving our offense good field position.  Not the defense’s fault that the offense couldn’t do anything with the ball when they had it.

It was a sloppy game all around.  With our turnovers, bad penalties, and lack of hustle, it’s kind of amazing we were ahead for much of the game and still only lost by four points.  No awards this week, though.  As good as the defense played, they still blew a ten-point lead in the second half.  Just a forgettable game overall.

Non-Gmen Thoughts of the Week:
  • ·      Regardless of what candidate you voted for, I hope everyone at least voted.  No matter who won, it’s absurd how divided everyone is.  What happened happened.  Let’s remember we’re all on the same team, and should now focus more on what’s best for our country, and less on who’s best for our country.
  • ·      Assassin’s Creed 3 is fantastic.  Had a very patriotic election night - watched election results coverage, caught up on Sunday night’s “Homeland,” and helped ignite the American Revolution on my PS3.  I’m not gonna lie, it made me feel like a great American.
  • ·      Skyfall opens in theaters this Friday!!  Can’t wait!!
  • ·      Glad to hear many are doing well in their recovery efforts from Sandy.  Still, there are many who aren’t, and if you can, please give to Red Cross at http://www.redcross.org. 


Looking Ahead…
            Yeah, it’s a short article this week.  But it was a forgettable game with far more important matters to worry about.  Fortunately the team should be able to focus solely on football this week, and will need to if we want to get back on track.  Need a big win against Cincinnati on Sunday!  To talk all things Giants, you can send an e-mail to gmensuperfan@gmail.com, find me on Facebook under the name “Gmen Superfan,” or follow me on Twitter using the handle “@gmensuperfan1.”  Until next week, GO GMEN!!

                      

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