Super Bowl XLVI Predictions - New York Giants vs New England Patriots

As a staunch New York Giants supporter I am going to try to predict what is going to happen on the Big Blue side of the ball for the Superbowl rematch against the Tom Brady led Patriots.

Offense

Eli Manning - I think due to the hot form of #10 the Giants are going to try to exploit the Pats Secondary and we'll see Manning try air it out and find one of his plethora of speedy options.

24 Completions from 39 Attempts for 288 Yards 2 td's and 1 Int

WR

Victor Cruz, Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham are a formidable trio and will look to gain ascendancy from the beginning. I can't see the Pats containing all 3 and it isn't implausible that 2 of the 3 will have 100 yard games.

Victor Cruz - 9 Receptions for 124 yards
Hakeem Nicks - 5 Receptions for 97 yards 1 TD
Mario Manningham - 3 Receptions for 52 yards 1 TD
Jake Ballard (TE) - 5 Receptions 42 yards

RB

Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs have been a bit hit and miss thoughout the year and their success could ultimately decide the outcome.

Ahmad Bradshaw - 14 Carries 54 Yards
Brandon Jacobs - 9 Carries 49 Yards 1 TD

Defense

With the most fearsome and potent front four rotation in the league I'm expected Brady to get a good look at the underside of this Indy Dome. There are several legitimate threats to Tommy Boys health and they are in no order: Jason Pierre-Paul, Justin Tuck, Mathias Kiwanuka, Osi Umenyoira and Rocky Bernhard. All have recorded sacks during the post-season and LB Michael Boley has dropped the QB on an impressive 2 sacks also. For the Giants to score more points than the Patriots they will need to hit Tom Brady as often and as hard as possible to try to rattle him.

JPP 1 Sack
Tuck 1 Sack
Umenyoira 1.5 Sacks
Rocky Bernhard 0.5 Sacks


Score
Giants 24 Patriots 27

I will come back next week and look at where I was wrong (hopefully the score) and analyse the game.

Until then hail to the Vintage46!

New York Giants - Rd8 Miami Dolphins - REVIEW

Well a win is a win (haven't I said that already this year???????????????)

The Giants managed a 4th quarter come from behind victory at home to the win less Dolphins. While it should have been an easy tune up win in the lead up to the Patriots next week, I could have also been a shock Ala Seahawks.

Eli Manning continued his form with another 300+ yards 2 touchdowns ZERO interceptions and 100+ rating. If he's not Aaron Rodgers' backup come Pro Bowl time he never will be.

Another Corner back went down with a season injury and we struggled with the run.

But... We're 5-2 and continue to churn out the wins.

We're at the halfway mark of the season so I'm going to extrapolate at look at where some of our statistical leaders are looking at finishing the season.

Eli Manning 312 from 482 at 64.7%  4254 yards 26 touchdowns & 10 interceptions & a 102.1 Rating

This has him 3rd in the NFL and 2nd in the NFC with his career best rating. He's also 2nd in the NFL with an 8.8 per pass average.

Hakeem Nicks 76 Receptions 1150 yards and 6 touchdowns
Victor Cruz 56 receptions 994 yards and 8 touchdowns

Ahmad Bradshaw 880 yards for 10 touchdowns

Corey Webster and Aaron Ross with 6 interceptions a piece.

Jason Pierre-Paul 17 sacks
Osi Umenyoira 12 sacks (considering he missed the first 3 games I'd go with 15 sacks)

So with a 2 game buffer and a hell of a 2nd half schedule let's hope the Giants can hold on and make the play-offs. Once there anything can happen.

Until then hail to the Tuna!

New York Giants - Rd6 Buffalo Bills - REVIEW

Getting a win before a bye is always important. It's like you're girlfriend is going away for 2 weeks. You want to send her on your way satisfied or you'll spend the fortnight with visions of a latino stud servicing the needs you were unable to.

The good news is we got the win. It was as sloppy as a high school prom night but we can rest easy that the week off can be used to regroup and hopefully bring the Miami Dolphins into our house on the 30th of October and slap a pair of fingercuffs on her. No latinos for her!

So how was it won?

Eli's O Face

Eli Manning is currently sitting 5th for yards, 3rd with a rating of 101.1, 9th on comp%, 3rd for avg and 6th with 11 touchdowns. Apart from the touchdowns the rest are Career highs.

In the last 3 weeks Eli has thrown for 321, 420 and 292 yards and is averaging 296 per game over the season.

Usual suspect Hakeem Nicks caught 4 for 96 yards including an impressive 60 yard catch and run. TE Jake Ballard continued on from last weeks impressive 3 receptions for 72 yards and a score to pull in 5 for 81 yards. He is averaging 18.2 yards per catch this year and looks to be a handy option for Eli Manning.

Not so Carrie Bradshaw

In the absence of RB Brandon Jacobs Ahmad Bradshaw has had a lean trot struggling to establish the run early leaving the team to rely on the Arm of Manning. Well finally Bradshaw Bradshaw CARRIEd the running game and recorded his 1st 100 yard game of the season. Is average of 4.0  yards per carry was average but he was able to punch the ball into the end zone 3 times from the 1 yard line for scores.

Fast Freddie

Again the Giants defence was run over by a running back for 100+ yards including the typical big run this time of 80 yards. Fred Jackson is a fast back but he was allowed to waltz through too many open wholes in the line for a 1st down. Hopefully Justin Tuck's return will help sure this up in 2 weeks. CB Corey Webster did come up with 2 interceptions and Jason Pierre-Paul added another sack to his tally leaving him at 2nd in the NFL.

Flamin Fitzy

On the whole the secondary did a good job of stopping the air attack considering Ryan Fitzpatrick has been playing well and full of confidence. However another breakdown saw a inside slant route go for 60 yards and a score.

Special Teams

The only 2 notable ST plays were a 17 yard punt return by Aaron Ross and the Bill blocking a field goal that could have seen the game go into Over Time.

I'm selfishly not a fan of byes but I will be avidly watching the Notre Dame vs USC game. An Irish win could see them slip into the rankings with a 5-2 record.

Until then hail to the Gamma!

New York Giants - Rd5 Seattle Seahawks - REVIEW

Well I let it stew for a day but losses like these have a lingering burn much like a dodgy curry.

Online there is much finger pointing including injured players who some think should be out there. (Brandon Jacobs and Justin Tuck most notably) I think it will be easier to just stick to facts and stats.

Seattle Won 36 - 25

New York turned the ball over 5 times!!!!!!

Up up and give it away!

Okay so Eli Manning threw for a career best 420 yards including 3 touchdowns but has also ended up 3 crucial interceptions and a lost fumble. So did he lose the game or do his best to win it? Well let's look at his picks, the most notorious one in the dying stages tipped by Victor Cruz and returned for a 95 yard touchdown and in essence ending the game.

For the Giants offense to work it needs a balance of run and pass and in the absence of Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw having a quiet game Manning was forces to try to win the game off his own game. Ironically Eli Manning's largest passing days (420 last week, 391 in 2009 and 386 in 2010) were all home losses. Eli is best as a 200-300 yard passer complimented by a strong running game.

Despite a fumble and a tipped pass for a pick Victor Cruz continued his strong recent form with careers bests 8 catches for 161 yards and a score. Back to back 100+ yard games have seen the exposure of Cruz as a legitimate threat heightened. He'll be looking to have another strong game next week against the Bills.

TE Jack Ballard again proved we still have a threat in that position hauling in 3 passes for 72 yards and a score.

Hakeem Nicks had a quiet day by his standard but caught 4 for 65 and a lay out score. Mario Manningham improves weekly recording 5 for 56 yards and will add a triple threat for Eli to aim at.

Go the runs?

Brandon Jacobs didn't play and Ahmad Bradshaw may as well not have. He had 2 nine yarders towards the end that fluffed his numbers up to 58 yards off 17 attempts. To compound matters DJ Ware took a hand off and was tackled in his own end zone resulting in a very important 2 point safety.

Thrown to the wolves

Sure the Giants recorded 6 sacks, knocked out a quarterback and even came up with an interception to Aaron Ross but they also gave up 300+ yards, a touchdown and way too many 3rd down conversions. They also let back up QB Whitehurst waltz down the field to score a crushing TD in the last quarter. Jason Pierre-Paul recorded 2 sacks taking his total to 7 in 5 games and 2nd in the NFL and Osi Umenyoira had a sack giving him 3 in the two games since his return from injury. A return to the field by Justin Tuck will see a very formidable pass rushing attack take on the Bills next week.

Run All Over Me

Again the G-Men gave up 100+ yards including RB Lynch ripping off 98 yards and a score from only 12 attempts.

Special Teams

Seattle kicker Hauschka hit 2 field goals including a 51 yarder and 4 from 4 PAT's. Seattle punter J. Ryan landed 4 of his 7 punts inside 20. Not much to be said about the Giants special teams.

Yet another disappointing loss for the Giants in a game they were favourites. Let's hope for a smarter ball game from the Big Blue Wrecking Crew next week against the Bills.

Until then hail to the CD!

New York Giants - v Arizona Cardinals - RD4- REVIEW

With the NFC race being so tight with the exception of the Green Bay Packers this was a gettable and important win against the Arizona Cardinals.

And got it they did.

So where does that leave us at the quarter pole of the season? Well we currently sit 3-1 and equal top of our division with the Washington Redskins who are in my opinion still the weakest team in the division. Dallas are only a game behind at 2-2 and the unpredictable dream team (for the Giants anyway!) Eagles are languishing at the bottom with a 1-2 record.

I love me some stats so I going to look at where are leaders are at and even extrapolate (x4) to see where they may be heading to finish the season.

Although the Giants gave the Cards plenty of chances to put the game away they never seemed able to hammer that last nail. With the way QB Eli Manning is finishing games of late that turned out to be a big mistake. Well lets look at how the qu(w)est was won.

Air Supply

Coming into the season the focus was the defections of TE Kevin Boss to the Raiders and WR Steve Smith to the Eagles among a smattering of injuries. Eli Manning then made a call about being in the same class as Tom Brady (Elite) which didn't help not to mention a slow start to the season and a slow start in every game so far. Lucky he's throwing the lights out in the second half. 
Said Mannings 2nd half was 16 for 20 for 208 yards and 2 touchdowns this week and over the last 3 weeks his 2nd half stats read like this 32 for 40 for 415 yards 4 TDs and zero interceptions. If that doesn't burn your peepers then how about he is 3rd in the NFL with a rating of 105.6. He's behind red hot Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady. He also boasts a healthy 64% completion percentage and a 8-2 TD to INT ratio. If he were to keep up his per game averages he would finish the year with these gaudy numbers.
320 Comp - 500 Att - 4264 Yards - 32 TD - 8 INT  Career records in yards and touchdowns and a low in interceptions. If he were to keep up these numbers he'd have to be a lock for the Pro-Bowl and more importantly give the Giants the best possible chance to go deep into the Play-Offs. )On a side note Manning has been sacked 11 times already this season and 44 for the season would definitely be a career high he doesn't need)

Hakeem Nicks was back to his beastly best with 10 receptions for 162 yards and the winning score. Considering he totaled 7 receptions for 63 total for the last 2 games combined showed what he could do to a defence if other receivers are holding their end of the bargain. I'm not going to get into the Victor Cruz 'fumble', but he did total 98 yards in a game where he was over looked several times despite being wide open.and could have turned up field after a reception for more yards however opted to step out of bounds. If Nicks and Cruz were to keep up their per game averages they would finish the season like this.
Nicks 92 Receptions - 1388 Yards - 8 TD's
Cruz 44 Receptions - 900 Yards - 8 TD's 205 AVG (All the more impressive as he has only really been a regular option for the last 2 games.

Run Forrest Run

This aspect of the offence was probably the one let down for me and would have been a even bigger issue had the passing game not clicked so well. Ahmad Bradshaw again was given the bulk of the attempts but failed to have an impact with an insipid 39 yards from 12 carries and a long 13 on his sole touchdown run. Brandon Jacobs had an even rougher day with 18 yards from 9 attempts and a touchdown. He would be forgiven for his 2 yard average as he was called on to run several 3rd and short runs when the defence knew he was getting the ball. The running game won't be able to rely on the passing game and expect a win too many times in the NFL so hopefully they use the week to take stock and come out Sunday against the Seahawks and pound 'em like they are initiating a new cell mate.

Nickleback

It has been well documented the injuries to corners and benching of Aaron Ross so I won't rehash. I will mention however that after round 2 the secondary have given up 300+ yards to 4 straight quarterbacks. In the last 2 weeks they gave up 237 yards to the Eagles and 237 to the Cardinals and more impressively zero touchdowns and 3 interceptions. This is against offenses with weapons like Michael Vick and Larry Fitzgerald. Safeties Kenny Phillips and Antrel Rolle have stepped up in particular 13 tackles each over the last 2 games and a pick each. The secondary was also helped by the pass rush where Dave Tollefson backed up a good game with another recording 2 sacks. Osi Umenyiora played his first game and although he made a couple of rusty mistakes he was often in the QB Kolb's face recording a sack and a forced fumble.

Stuff it!

The run stop has been the polar opposite to the pass. It was particularly stingy in the first 2 games but has given up some serious yardage and points in the last 2. Against the Eagles, RB McCoy opened up the their offence with 128 yards from 24 attempts and a score. And this week Beanie Wells tore threw the defensive line for 138 yards from 27 attempts and a massive 3 touchdowns. For the Giants to gain immediate ascendancy against the Seahawks on Sunday, the D-Line and Co need to crunch Marshawn Lynch and the other backs in submission.

Kicks, Returns and Tackles

I personally prefer a game when the Special Teams isn't needed and this was one of them. Although Aaron Ross' 18 punt return was a fantastic start to a drive in the last quarter.


This week will be the 3rd game in a row we play a bird related team (Eagles, Cardinals & Seahawks) so let's hope that is a sign for how the result will be.

Until then hail to the Sin!

New York Giants sign WR Brandon Stokley

WTF???

The Giants passed on a proven match winner in Plaxico Burress but after the fall out with slot receiver Steve Smith and the average performances by Domenik Hixon and Victor Cruz the Giants have signed journeyman Stokley.

I understand with the looming injury to #1 receiver Hakeem Nicks and the defections of both WR Steve Smith and TE Kevin Boss that the Giants needed to sure up the position, I'm just not sure if signing a guy who caught 31 receptions for ZERO touchdowns is the man for the job.

Stokley played his first 4 seasons with the Baltimore Ravens including the 2000 Superbowl win over said Giants. In those 4 seasons he never recorded more than 24 receptions or 2 touchdowns in a season. He then spent the next 4 years with the Indianapolis Colts. Here Brandon had more success particularly with Giants QB Eli Manning's brother Peyton tossing him the pigskin. His one breakout year was in 2004 where he had 1077 yards from 68 receptions for 10 touchdowns. He production then tailed off and he spent 3 seasons with the Denver Broncos and last year with the Seattle Seahawks.

I believe Coach Coughlin will/should give Cruz and Hixon another chance.  Cruz may have hurt his chances with a deplorable dropped catch that would have been a 1st down halting the Giants opening drive.

No matter how the slot receiver goes for the Giants to succeed Eli Manning will need to share the ball around but focus on Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham.

Until then hail to GMEN!

New York Giants - PRESEASON - New York Jets

It's just a preseason game so I won't go too far but just look at the overall picture.

Jets won 17 -3

So the Giants didn't get in the endzone. 3 measly points.

Even though they had more net yards - 327 - 233
more first downs 21 - 15
more passing yards 222 - 121
more time of possession 30:04 - 29:56 (You knew I'd hit you with some stats!)

It was the 2 turnovers (interceptions) that cost the offense their chances as well as poor 3rd down conversion 3/13 23%. I know it's pre-season but I really hope Eli Manning can shake the interception shackles that have hampered him of late.

Brandon Jacobs was running downhill for his 10 rushes with 51 yards at a healthy 5.1avg.
Hakeem Nicks impressed with limited rep pulling in 5 catches for 71 yards.
The punting job is up for grabs and both Matt Dodge and Sean Weatherford failed to impress with 2 punts each.

Eli Manning threw for 200 yards and showed he is likely to hit the 4000 mark again. Unfortunately he will probably also hit the 20+ interception mark.

What most impressed me was the goal line stand by the defence. The Jets were 1st and 1 at the 1 but had to settle for a field goal after successive runs netted negative yardage.

Next week it the final tune up against the Patriots then we hit prime time.

Until then hail to the goal line stand!

New York Giants - PREVIEW - Quarterback

Eli Manning

In 2004 Eli Manning was drafted to the New York Giants in very unusual circumstances. Those circumstances are well documented so I won't rehash them here but the crux of it was Eli was always going to be a 1st pick but he publicly stated he did want to play for the San Diego Chargers who were the holders of said pick uno numero. Well... the Chargers ended up with the very handy Phillip Rivers + and the Giants ended up with Peyton's brother Eli.

I'm not going to rate the depth in QB as very few teams have a 2nd string who can take their team deep into the playoffs and it's unlikely to be proven anyway. (God I hope I didn't just jinx the Giants!) I'm going to look a little at Eli's past and predict how his 2012 campaign will be.

The New York Giants 2004 year started with Eli sitting next to the lonesome kicker on the bench until the last 7 games of season after the team had failed to show enough promise and Eli replaced journeyman Kurt Warner. The 7 final games were a great learning curve but 48% completion percentage and more interceptions than touchdowns fail to build a great hype in #10. 2005 saw Eli start a streak of 6 whole seasons without missing a game. This durability would help stabilise the Giants offence and help them on their quest to winning Super Bowl 42 in 2007 where Eli won the coveted Superbowl Most Valuable Player award.

Eli's stats have steadily improved each season with him being 1 of 6 current quarterbacks to throw for 20+ touchdowns for 6 straight seasons. He has reached the 4000+ yardage mark in the last two years and his rating has been over 80 for 3 consecutive years including 93.1 in 2009. Eli had the highest number of completions last year (339) and his rating would have been much higher had his interception number not been blown up by the 9 tipped balls that went to the opposition been caught. Eli was also without his favourite possession receiver in Steve Smith for half of the year and another injury to Hakeem Nicks. Eli is also a proven big game player having a good post-season record of 7-7, including that Super Bowl run.

Considering these stats I'm anticipating E. Manning with again throw for 4000+ yards with 32-38 touchdowns and a rating in the 90's. I also think if Eli and his main receiving targets stay healthy can could be invited to the Pro Bowl for a second time (previously 2009).

The Pre-Season is this month but I don't anticipate seeing much of Eli so 'we will have to wait til September to see some real action.

Quarterback Rating: B+

Until then hail to the Ole Miss!

New York Giants - PREVIEW - Receiving Corp

Well the lockout is over and the National Football League's 2011 season is on!

I'm very pumped and believe the New York Football Giants are in for a good year. To whet my appetite till the season kicks off I'm going to look at some of the strong areas for the Giants and where I see them being at season's end. I'll even come back then and reassess my predictions.

The Giants have always had a strong O-line but it's not glamorous and I'm not going to predict how many pancake blocks or sacks they concede. It's not Hollywood (or should I say Broadway?), so I'm going to stick to the 'sexy' positions. So I guess what I'm saying is that receiving is a sexy position.

2010 wasn't the greatest year for the 3 best wide receivers for Big Blue but that was due to injuries no form. Steve Smith only started 7 games out of 16, Hakeem Nicks 12 and Mario Manningham 8 started 16 played. They were the 3 focal points for QB Eli Manning and helped him reach his 1st 4000+ yardage year. If all 3 can stay on the field for the 16 games along with 3rd round pick Jerrel Jernigan, Tight End Kevin Boss and a running back out of the backfield then another record season is on the cards.

The 3 WR's compliment each other in style, Smith is a fantastic possession receiver, Nicks is big bull who reaches over defenders and Manningham is always dangerous for a 40+ yard reception.

STEVE SMITH

 MARIO MANNINGHAM

HAKEEM NICKS

 2010 NYG

I'm predicting that if all 3 receivers can stay fit they'll all catch 80+ receptions and 1000+ yards and 30 touchdowns between them. This would also see QB Eli Manning reaching his 2nd consecutive 4000+ yard season and hopefully 40+ touchdowns. Wishful thinking? Probably. At least they'll have better seasons than the Packers or Bears! I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

Receiver Rating: B+

Until then hail to the Mary!