I’m back…and here are some notes

Hey folks, happy holidays once again.  I apologize for the sporadic posting this past week, but I was in NY visiting family for the holidays.  Specifically, we were at my mom’s house, who still does not have a computer.  That meant my only blogging had to be done from my little Blackberry.  But fear not, I am back in my office and you’ll be seeing blogs just about daily from me for a while, as we start dissecting the Giants’ offsesason goals and possible moves, plus some residual commentary on the monstrosity of this past Sunday.  Here are a few random thoughts……

First of all, Harry Carson’s comments after the game Sunday.  He made reference to “Giants pride” and said that Wellington Mara instilled that pride in the players when he roamed the defensive middle for the G-men back in the 70’s and 80’s.  He said it’s a pride every current and former Giant is obligated to feel to and to display, but that it seems to be missing from the current roster, at least on the defensive side of the ball.  I’m not sure how true that is to a man, but I do know Michael Boley disagreed with Carson and didn’t really care about his comments, and that Terrell Thomas agreed with Harry.  Sure, you have to be talented too, but any player with an ounce of pride may have shown more effort on the field Sunday instead of missing tackles and going through the motions.  The numbers don’t lie, and when the defense gives up rushing totals and point totals that are among the worst in Giants’ history…well, I’m sorry, but that means to some degree that Carson’s comments are justified. 

Lookie here….so Brandon Jacobs has finally admitted what many of us suspected: he’s hurt.  The dude is having knee surgery next week, and won’t play in the finale Sunday at Minnesota.  Jacobs is apparently so proud that he didn’t want to miss a game, but he also has woefully under-performed this season, so it figures that there is a reason for that.  Of course, you have to wonder if dude should have been honest with us all along instead of trying to be a tough guy.  After the latest line (6 rushes, 1 yard), many of us were shaking our heads and thinking he might be hurt. 

I’m definitely a Tom Coughlin fan.  The guy has an excellent track record, and is just a very good football coach, especially when it comes to fundamentals and discipline.  But many of you out there are calling for his firing after that debacle Sunday.  I agree that DC Bill Sheridan should take the hit for this horrible defense, but not Coughlin.  Dude has a Super Bowl championship, and four straight playoff seasons in New York/New Jersey.  That said, I read on a message board somewhere that Coughlin does have a recent track record for some bad losses at home.  In itself, that isn’t so bad, because he also has some terrific wins both at home and on the road.  But the poster brought up a good point…..that is, that Coughlin is not the best in-game coach.  He doesn’t make adjustments well, and that’s reflected in the fact that the Giants are a team that, when they fall behind, are almost always toast.  The coach does not take risks, and he doesn’t always channel his fire into getting his team to play with any urgency.  Think about that.  When is the last time you saw Coughlin try a trick play, or an onside kick when nobody expects it?  Why was there no urgency on the Giants’ part after halftime Sunday?  You would think they would pass, pass, pass and go no-huddle on every offensive possession, but alas, they didn’t.  I’m just saying, Coughlin preaches mental awareness for his QB and others, but if you’re down 31-3 with 22 minutes left in the game, you just don’t hand off to Ahmad Bradshaw and let precious time run off the clock, at all….well, unless you’ve given up and want the game to be over.  I don’t really believe that, and I’m not in favor of ditching Coughlin, but all of this sure makes a fan wonder.

And about the Pro Bowl snub of Steve Smith……I’m sorry, the guy got hosed.  Smith has 97 receptions, which is third in the NFL behind Wes Welker and Brandon Marshall.  But IT LEADS THE NFC.  Sure, Smith has less yards than Miles Austin and Sidney Rice, and less TDs than Larry Fitzgerald, Austin or Philly’s explosive DeSean Jackson.  And Smith has a paltry 2.4 yards after the catch average.  But if you lead the conference in catches, you should be a Pro Bowler…not an alternate as Smith is.  The guy I have a problem with is Austin, who essentially came alive halfway through the season but was invisible before that.  I may be biased, and # of receptions is not a sexy statistic, but Smith still leads all those other guys in catches and he simply got hosed here.

Let me know what you all think…..and hey, it’s good to be back!  Too bad we have to watch our team play a meaningless game Sunday, with the next meaningful game being in September 2010.  Now, that’s depressing.

Tags: 2010, Bill Sheridan, Brandon Jacobs, Brandon Marshall, DeSean Jackson, Eagles, Giants, Giants pride, Giants Stadium, Harry Carson, Jacobs' knee injury, Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Boley, Miles Austin, New Jersey, New York, Panthers, Philadelphia, Sidney Rice, Steve Smith, Super Bowl, Terrell Thomas, Tom Coughlin, Vikings, Wellington Mara, Wes Welker