In the end, a win is a win is a win

I’m sure I speak for every Giants’ fan out there when I say I’m just relieved that we won yesterday, a 34-31 overtime thriller against Atlanta.  Finally.  Hard to believe that it had been six weeks since we last had that feeling, but after a 5-0 start the G-men had regressed badly to the tune of four straight defeats, and they needed this win yesterday to stay alive in the playoff chase.  The run game was not clicking, but Eli Manning had a career day, and the defense played well enough at times despite failing to hold a two-touchdown lead late in the game.  Here is our recap, and as that old Mets’ broadcaster Bob Murphy used to say, the “happy recap”…..

THE GOOD

Here was the best part of the game and maybe the biggest reason the G-men were victoriou s–we won the coin toss in overtime.  That allowed Eli and his receivers to work their magic, setting up Lawrence Tynes’ game-winning 36 yard kick….and oh yeah, Manning had a career best 384 yards with 3 TDs and one pick for a 111.9 QB rating…..Kevin Boss was lights out, making a few tough catches over the middle, and finishing with 5 for 76 yards and 2 touchdowns…..Mario Manningham caught 6 for 126 yards, including that sweet grab along the sidelines in OT that put the Giants in position to win the game….Steve Smith caught 7 for 79, including a critical 52 yard over the shoulder grab late in the game….and while we’re praising receivers, Hakeem Nicks made some great plays too, catching 5 for 65…heck, Madison Hedgecock caught two balls including his first TD catch of the year….Tynes made the game winner, so he should get some props, but more on him later…Corey Webster did a nice job as did most of the secondary, despite those two Falcons’ drives…and while the Giants registered just 2 sacks, they sure did pressure Ryan a lot and forced him into bad throws and mistakes for most of the game…..Michael Boley had 11 tackles, 2 assists and one sack against his former team, in a game we desperately needed a LB to step up in….Jeff Feagles got some of his leg back, with a 41 yard average on 3 punts…and the fact that we only had to punt three times was also good news….also, considering how the game began, with Manning throwing a pick right off the bat, the Giants hung in there and the offense got the job done.

THE BAD

Despite the win, there were a lot of things for us to worry about.  First off, how does a Giants’ defense continually let leads erode?  We had a two touchdown lead with like five minutes left, and allowed the Falcons to tie it.   Remember when we used to get leads like that and then stuff the other team and sit on the ball?  But for as bad as that makes the defense look, the offense is just as much to blame for failing to hold onto the ball and make a few first downs….I’m talking to you, run game…..Brandon Jacobs led the G-men with 39 yards on 12 carries, against the 25th ranked run defense!….Danny Ware, who rushed twice for 15 yards, looked better than Jacobs and Bradshaw did…also, the penalties were ridiculous.  Not only did we shoot ourselves in the foot several times, but the refs didn’t do us any favors with some of those calls, especially the late hit out of bounds on Aaron Rouse….and once again, our kickoffs and kick coverage SUCKED, giving the Falcons great field position time and again…..as for Tynes, the dude missed a 31 yarder early in the game after another failed red zone opportunity.  Thankfully, the G-men corrected things and scored four TDs, but Tynes should not miss anything from under 35 yards, ever…..and the O-line.  What’s to make of them?  This once-dominant unit cannot open running lanes anymore, and it took them a half to figure out how to protect their QB and give him time to make plays….as for the run defense, that wasn’t all that great either…Jason Snelling, 76 yards and 2 scores?  And we can’t stop a team on 3rd or 4th down, and I mean almost never….well, the Falcons were 9 of 16 on third down and 2 of 2 on 4th down.  As for the G-men, they can’t get a short yardage surge when they need it, as evidenced by that one time Bradshaw rushed up the gut for no gain and Coughlin could visibly be seen yelling “F–k me!”  That says all there needs to be said about that.

FANTASY IMPACT

For the Falcons, I didn’t think Ryan was a good play, but he proved me wrong, with 268 yards and 2 Tds with no picks….and Snelling was an adequate fill-in for Michael Turner with 76 yards and 2 scores.  Tony Gonzalez was his usual self, with 8 catches for 82 and a TD that tied the game….and Michael Jenkins caught 7 for 76, but the Giants mostly shut down Roddy White.  Jason Elam missed a short field goal just like Tynes did and finished with just 7 points. 

As for the G-men, Manning had a career day with 384 yards, 3 TDs and one pick, but how many of you played him?…Jacobs was a bust except for his TD….and you definitely picked up a few fantasy points from Kevin Boss (76 yards, 2 scores) and Mario Manningham (6 for 126 yards) as well as Smith (4 for 79) and Nicks (5 for 65).  And Tynes, despite making us all nervous, wound up with 2 FGs and 4 XPs for 10 points. 

FINAL ANALYSIS

Do I feel good about the win?  Hell yes I do, and I’m sure it gives the G-men a huge shot in the arm they so desperately needed.  Sloppy, yes, but we’ll take the win and a career day from our QB any day.  But how far can this team go with a defense that is prone to collapse, a pedestrian pass rush, and a run game that has sunk into the depths of suckage?  And oh yeah, we need to address the kicking situation or it’s going to bite us in the ass if we make it to the postseason.  We need somebody to kick the ball through the end zone or at least past the 20 yard line, and yes, Tynes kicked the game winner, but did you see that duck barely float through the right side?  Yikes.  Thursday we face a Broncos team that has sunk, and sunk fast, but the reality is they are 3rd best against the pass.  That means Eli won’t have the kind of game he had yesterday in all likelihood, and we’ll have to rely on (gulp) our running game and defense.  The Broncos, thankfully, do not remind anyone of the Saints on offense, so we’re probably looking at a 13-10 contest or something.  Which means Mr. Tynes may decide the game either way.  Does that scare you too?  But again, a win is a win and I sure will take it.  How about you?