N.Y. Giants: Because Stone Cold Coach Pat Shurmur Said So

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

A GIANT STEP FORWARD

New York Giants: Pat Shurmur named the 18th head coach in team history.

He becomes the team's seventh during my years as a fan.  But outside of what I've read, heard on radio, or seen on TV, I know little else about the man.

Therefore, I guess a quick bio is in order.

After spending 11 years at Michigan State and Stanford, Shurmur joined the NFL ranks in 1999 with the Philadelphia Eagles where he served as tight ends and offensive line coach through the 2001 season.  He then served as Philadelphia's quarterback coach - working with Donovan McNabb -  through the 2008 season.  During his decade long association with the Eagles, they made the playoffs seven times, appeared in five conference championships, and one Super Bowl.

Shurmur spent 2009 and 2010 as offensive coordinator of the (St. Louis) Rams under then head coach, and former Giants defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo.  In 2009, his starting quarterback was Marc Bulger (not a bad QB) who was playing out his final NFL season.  The Rams went 1-15 that year, but parleyed that into quarterback Sam Bradford, selected with the first overall pick of the 2010 NFL draft.  With Shurmur calling plays, Bradford threw for 3,512 yards as a rookie.

By season's end, the Cleveland Browns set their sights on Pat Shurmur, naming him their head coach entering the 2011 season.  Shurmur posted records of 4-12 and 5-11 during his two seasons at the helm.  But I won't hold that against him.  Since his departure after 2012, the Browns have exceeded five wins in a season just once.  In fact, the Browns are just 4-44 over the last three seasons.  Not even Bill Belichik could turn that organization around.  Since guiding them to the playoffs in 1994, the Browns have qualified for post-season play just one other time.

In 2003, Pat Shurmer returned for a second stint with the Eagles this time as offensive coordinator.  Prior to this year's run to the Super Bowl, Philadelphia last qualified for the playoffs in 2013 with Shurmur calling plays for Nick Foles.  In 2014, the Eagles posted a second straight 10-6 record but missed out on the playoffs.  A 6-9 record the following season resulted in head coach Chip Kelly's release after Week Sixteen.  Pat Shurmur would then coach the Eagles to victory in the season finale.

He has spent the last two seasons with the Minnesota Vikings.  In 2016, he split time being tight ends coach and offensive coordinator, and again served as offensive coordinator this season.  Reunited with Pat Shurmur in 2016, Vikings quarterback Sam Bradford led the NFL with a 71.6 completion percentage.  This season, the oft injured Bradford was out of action again after Week Two.  Enter back-up Case Keenun - a veteran in his own right.  With Shurmur calling plays, Keenum threw 3,547 yards over 15 games, with 22 touchdowns and just seven interceptions.

Of course, the Vikings fell well short in last week's NFC championship game against Nick Foles and the Eagles.  Shurmur's team was on the losing end of a 38-7 defeat.  One could ask what happened with the offense?  But Mike Zimmer is head coach of the Vikings, and therefore, he had to answer most of the questions and second-guessing.

But what about Pat Shurmur?

He entered that game with his fingerprints on both starting quarterbacks.  Case Keenum was 28/48 for 271 yards, one touchdown and one interception, in a losing effort.  Nick Foles, though, was better, throwing 26/33 for 352 yards, and three touchdowns.

So What Does All This Mean For The Giants?

There's something to be said for his twenty-years of practical experience.

Aside from his two year stint at Cleveland, his career work has primarily focused on the offensive side of the ball - no different than Ray Handley, Dan Reeves, Jim Fassel, Tom Coughlin, or Ben McAdoo.  As we see, the Giants have hired a string of offensive minded coaches ever since the departure of defensive minded Bill Parcells.  Four of them took the Giants to the playoffs, and two of them got the Giants to three more Super Bowls.

General manager Dave Gettleman says Shurmur will be working with Eli Manning for the remainder of his Giants career.  Then there's Davis Webb whom still needs extensive development.  And of course, there's continuing speculation as to whether the Giants will utilize their up-coming number one draft pick on another quarterback.

Where it concerns quarterbacks, Shurmur's resume suggests successful involvement with Donovan McNabb, Marc Bulger, Sam Bradford, Nick Foles, and Case Keenum.  Moreover, while head coach in Cleveland, he somehow extracted 3,355 yards and 14 touchdowns out of rookie Brandon Weeden. It's worth noting because Brandon Weeden was out of the league within another three seasons.

But like Ben McAdoo, Shurmur is a proponent of west coast style offense.  I have my issues with that.  Shurmur also said he will be calling plays on offense.  I'm somewhat less concerned with that.

Shurmur did say that moving forward he understands Giants football which allows me to think he won't make the same mistake as McAdoo with regards to Eli Manning - which was trying to turn him into Aaron Rogers.  Dave Gettleman also said reconstructing the offensive line and reestablishing the run is a main priority.  I'm confident in Gettleman's vision, and so my west coast anxieties are tempered.

Pat Shurmur has otherwise contributed to highly competitive and successful situations in Philadelphia and Minnesota.

He also has no doubt faced adversity in St. Louis and Cleveland.

The Giants locker room was clearly fractured this past season.  Dave Gettleman wasted no time removing a few malcontents from the locker room.  And Shurmur's presser left little doubt he and Gettleman are on the same page where it concerns discipline.  Having participated in both winning locker rooms and losing locker rooms could turn out being a valuable experience from which Shurmur will draw upon during his upcoming seasons with the Giants.

The duo of Gettleman and Shurmur essentially means the days of enabling Odell Beckham Jr. are over.  Sure, Shurmur says he's getting a clean slate.  But without saying it, Odell already is being forced to clean up his act and grow up.  In other words, if Beckham wants premium money from the Giants, he'll need to compromise his so called personal brand.

Discipline, however, and disposition, can be slippery slopes.  Former NFL head coach Mike Holmgren recently chimed-in on Pat Shurmer, accusing him of having rabbit ears - meaning he pays too much attention to the media.  Said another way, he may be wound too tightly.  That can certainly become a problem in New York.  However, he nailed the presser - I mean nailed it.  He was direct, and succinct as one could be.  Shurmur left no doubt where he stands regarding a great many things.  In fact, he not only acknowledged his reputation for being too serious, he owned it - just like Tom Coughlin once did, and Bill Parcells did way back when.

Then again, those guys won Super Bowls.

Bill Belichick gets away with being a schmuck because he wins Super Bowls.

Pat Shumur said he couldn't help but notice the Giants four Vince Lombardi trophies on display in the lobby at MetLife Stadium.

The Giants have many holes to fill.  In fact, they may need a rebuild instead of just a retool.  So, let's be pragmatic about the situation.  Bill Parcells went 2-13-1 in his first season as head coach.  But despite being a schmuck, players rallied behind Parcells.  Ben McAdoo also went 3-13, but clearly didn't survive.  Ironically, he got fired in part due to his failed disciplinary policies and how that resulted in a fractured locker room.  McAdoo lost his players respect and they essentially threw him to the wolves.

Therefore, Pat Shurmur can be a schmuck all he wants.  He just needs the skill and tact for making players believe it comes from the heart.

Would the Giants have been better off with either Josh McDaniels or Matt Patricia?

Who knows.  We'll find out over the next five years or so.

But for now, Pat Shurmur's press conference makes this the right choice.

Bill Belichick's minions historically do not fare very well once they venture out on their own.  Think about it - because of their success since 2000, Belichick has gone through countless coordinators on both sides of the ball.  Yet, the Patriots seemingly continue mission without a hitch.

Why?

Bill Belichick is brilliant at making in-game adjustments.  He's been the one constant in New England for 18 seasons.  He possesses a mastery of the game his coordinators simply can not bottle-up and take with them.  The man has a uniquely superior mind for either side of the ball.

Therefore, the Giants could very well be better off with Shurmur.  The question then, is how good will he be at making in-game adjustments?

N.Y. Giants: Owners Pull Plug On Ben McAdoo and Jerry Reese

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Cleaning House!

New York Giants: Owners John Mara and Steve Tisch Decide It's Time To Make Wholesale Changes.

John Mara confirmed what many fans like myself suspected - it was Ben McAdoo's idea to bench Eli Manning all along.

Sure, Mr. Mara acknowledged he could have easily put a stop to it, and took full responsibility for the poor manner in which things were handled.  In fact, he went as far as consulting with partner Steven Tisch, and together they decided it was time to make wholesale changes!

Giants President John Mara announced on Monday Ben McAdoo and Jerry Reese have been dismissed respectively as head coach and general manager of the New York Giants.

ICYMI: 

Ben McAdoo Decides Eli No Longer The Mann..

Heaven forbid Ben McAdoo tailor a system more suitable to Eli Manning's style.

Good coaches do that.  Stubborn, ideological ones, do not.

Since his first day as offensive coordinator, Ben McAdoo has been pushing his West Coast dope on Eli Manning, and till the very end sniveled when things went badly.

McAdoo seemingly didn't have much to say last season when Eli led the Giants to an 11-5 record and a return to the playoffs.  He somehow had even less to say regarding his wide receivers' ill advised trip to South Beach just before said playoff game, then offered absolutely nothing during the post-game in response to Odell turning in his worst performance as a professional.

He once again refused this season to take up issue with Beckham after infamously impersonating a dog peeing in the end zone during a game against Philadelphia.  McAdoo has also steadfastly refused to acknowledge any hints of poor play on behalf of the offensive line, and tried minimizing the numerous injuries among the receivers at every turn.

Instead, McAdoo used his words to levy criticism after criticism against Eli Manning.  He even seemly threw his proverbial hands in the air by handing off play calling duties to offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan.  But at no time did McAdoo ever once claim responsibility for his own flawed methodology.  He'd much rather have blamed Eli Manning for not carrying the Giants offense like Aaron Rogers carries that of the Packers ... when Rogers is on the field, that is.

Eli, on the other hand, started 210 straight games until Ben McAdoo stepped in.

Once the Giants were mathematically eliminated from this year's playoffs, Ben the Outsider with no real connection to Giants tradition and history, thought it wise to suggest benching the organization's greatest ever quarterback in favor of Geno Smith, or perhaps more accurately, someone better suited to play his awkward style of West Coast nonsense.

All that being said, Jerry Reese signed off on McAdoo's folly.  Generally speaking, though, he put Ben McAdoo in a position to fail, just as he put Kevin Gilbride and Tom Coughlin in positions to fail during their latter days as OC and head coach of the New York Giants.

What started well for Jerry Reese has ended horribly.  The organizational torch was passed to him after the 2006 season by former general manager Ernie Accorsi.  After a fruitful 2007 draft the Giants promptly won a Super Bowl.  Four years later Reese squeezed out the last bit of goodness from the fruits of Ernie Accorsi's labors in capturing yet another Super Bowl.  After which, Jerry Reese failed to sustain the organization's competitiveness.

The Giants indeed spiraled out of relevance.  Ineffective drafting, prohibitive manipulation of the salary cap, and Jerry Reese's over-reliance on free agency have cost the organization dearly.  His inability to replenish and resupply the roster with representative talent has resulted in a 41-51 record since 2012 through the present time, three times posting double-digit losses.

Ben McAdoo deserved to get fired based on the merits of his own shortcomings.  Jerry Reese, because he set the conditions.

BIG BLUE

SHAME ON YOU

That's what the billboard along Route 80 in New Jersey said, and John Mara heard it loud and clear. 

I'll hold off on critiquing his performance during all this for another post. 

In the mean time, Mara is a business man.  Four games remain in the Giants season, and three are at home.  Mara is no fool either, and knew better to stave off a Big Blue maelstrom.  Prominent former Giants players were threatening to parade the sidelines this week wearing Eli Manning #10 jerseys.  Ownership also ran the risk of season ticket holders selling the balance of their games, thus turning MetLife Stadium into the Big Blue Pit of Misery.  It may already be too late for some.  I'm sure in the coming games there will be more Cowboys and Redskins jerseys than usual. 

The question now becomes, how many more than usual?

N.Y. Giants: Ben McAdoo Decides Eli No Longer The Mann

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Ben McAdoo twice watched Eli Manning defeat his Green Bay Packers 

en route to winning the Super Bowl and being named MVP each time.

New York Giants: In What I Can Only Describe As An Act of Supreme Folly, Head Coach Ben McAdoo Culminates Season Long Criticisms of Eli Manning By Benching Greatest Quarterback in Team History.

Ben McAdoo served as the Green Bay Packers tight ends coach between 2006 through 2011, then served as quarterbacks coach through the 2013 season.  During his time there, he won a ring and enjoyed a daily up-close look at two of the games all-time great quarterbacks.

As tight ends coach, McAdoo was in Green Bay for Brett Favre's final two seasons with the Packers.  His arrival, however, came the season after Favre led the NFL with 29 interceptions.  So perhaps that matter escaped him once bewitched by the likes of Aaron Rogers.  Only Ben McAdoo was still tight ends coach when Rogers led Green Bay to a Super Bowl victory in 2010 over Pittsburgh.

Rogers had been starting for four seasons prior to McAdoo's promotion to quarterbacks coach.  Therefore, how much did he actually contribute towards Rogers' continuing development during their two years working together?

By 2012 and 2013, Jerry Reese's failures as Giants general manager were making desperate people out of head coach Tom Coughlin and offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride.  The latter would become the first scapegoat, and after the 2013 season was replaced as offensive coordinator with Ben McAdoo.

At that point, Eli Manning was coming off the third season of his career in which he led NFL in interceptions.  I chalk up most of that to Kevin Gilbride's aggressive down field passing.  He and Eli routinely led the league in most yards attempted per pass play.

Enter Ben McAdoo, who institutes a rather awkward style of West Coast offense.  During his two seasons as coordinator, Eli set career highs in pass attempts (albeit much shorter attempts), career highs in yardage, career highs in completion percentage, and in 2015 threw a career high 35 TD passes.

That's all fine and well.  But Jerry Reese's continuing failures as general manager nonetheless resulted in back-to-back 6-10 seasons requiring a second scapegoat, namely Tom Coughlin.

Ben McAdoo was then elevated to the position of head coach following the 2015 season.  And as we know, Jerry Reese spent money like a drunken sailor trying to reinvigorate a moribund defense.  And for a season, it worked.  The Giants actually fielded one of the league's best defenses, and carried over Super Bowl aspirations heading into the preseason.

McAdoo, however, would inevitably become the latest victim of Jerry Reese's machinations as were Tom Coughlin and Kevin Gilbride before him.  Much of the Giants present situation indeed falls on the general manager.

So why was it that Ben McAdoo would unleash harsh criticisms towards Eli Manning during the opening weeks of this season?  In fact, he's implied in more ways than one how Eli doesn't quite fit his system.

And there's the rub ...

When your quarterback is getting sacked within three seconds or less, when he's been sacked at least 50 times in his last 28 games, there is no freakin system!

When the general manager has no interest in rebuilding the offensive line and reestablishing a respectable rushing threat, there's no system.

When you're the second head coach guilty of turning a blind eye every time Odell Beckham insults the 90-plus years of Giants tradition and lifts his leg to decorum, there is no system.  How could there be with faux suspensions, and no repercussions for players guilty of giving up?  Ben McAdoo lost his locker room.  He did.  There's no disputing that fact.  Massage the situation all you want.  There are players whom quit on him.  It is what it is.

If the Giants are 2-9 this season, Jerry Reese is certainly to blame.  All other attempts at change have failed.  And so at the end of this season, he must go.

McAdoo must surely follow because Tuesday's decision to bench Eli Manning is just absurd.  If I'm not mistaken, he watched up close as Eli Manning and the Giants beat Farve and his Green Bay Packers in that epic arctic NFC championship game of 2007, then watched Eli Manning and the Giants defeat his precious Aaron Rogers and the Packers again four years later.  Each time Eli went on to win Super Bowl MVP honors.  Yet, McAdoo has determined benching Eli Manning is in the best interest of the team, and a Giant first step towards a better tomorrow.

He is benching Eli Manning in favor of Geno Smith of all people, which is complete folly.  Davis Webb is expected to get some reps over the final weeks of the season as well.  But what can be learned about him when he will most certainly be playing under extreme duress due to the Giants inept offensive line?  Not to mention, if the Giants indeed continue their losing ways, they will surely utilize what could end up being a top four draft pick on an available quarterback.  So what exactly is the point?

Eli Manning, who this season became only the seventh quarterback in NFL history to surpass 50,000 yards passing, whose streak of 210 consecutive regular season starts is second only to Brett Farve, is being pushed aside in favor of Geno Smith?

Really?

Dan Reeves was an outsider who once dictated when the Giants career of Phil Simms would end.  Now we have another outsider, Ben McAdoo, triggering the demise of Eli Manning.

Week thirteen ... Eli ... clip board duty.

Ponderous!

Damn tight ends coach.

PIGSKIN 2017: Thanksgiving Day

PIGSKIN

THANKSGIVING DAY

Week Twelve

RESULTS

Week One 

Week Two

Week Three

Week Four

Week Five

Week Six

Week Seven

Week Eight

Week Nine

Week Ten

Week Eleven

Scoreboard
Week Eleven Record:  7-4-1
Overall Record:  61-72-4
Schmear of the Week:  6-5
Bagels in the Basket:  -12


LIONS +3 (Vikings)
Never bet against the Lions, at home, on Thanksgiving Day.  It's been that way since I'm a kid.  I have a hunch the Lions win if their defense shows up hungry.

FLAG on the Pick!

Upon further review, I'll be siding with the Vikings instead.  I know the Lions beat the Vikes earlier this season.  But the Lions followed that up with consecutive losses against the Panthers, Saints, and Steelers.  Then went on to defeat Green Bay minus Aaron Rogers, the lowly Browns, and the sickly Bears.  Not impressed ... the Vikings should indeed be three-point favorites, damn it!  They've earned that respect.  I'm taking Vikings laying three on the road.
WIN  30-23 Vikings


COWBOYS Pick'em (Chargers)
The Chargers stuck some voltage into Buffalo, didn't they?  About that - Generally speaking, the AFC is the weaker conference.  There are only five teams playing above .500 and LAC isn't one of them.  Instead, they're among six AFC teams with a 4-6 record entering Week Twelve.  Meanwhile the depleted Cowboys got all clawed up last week by the Eagles at Dallas.  Without Ezekiel Elliott, the Boys have fallen to 5-5 and are fading fast.  In fact, they have been outscored 68-16 in their last two games.  The NFC boasts eight teams above the .500 mark, with Philadelphia leading the way.  Therefore, I'll take the team representing the tougher conference.  Dallas still has that offensive line to work with.  It's up to Dak Prescott to put his big boy pants on and prevail with, or without Dez Bryant's help.  With Jason Witten, there's always way.
Loss  28-6 Chargers


Giants +7 (D.C. HOGS)
The Giants still have many good players on the field.  If they commit to Orleans Darkwa and let him rush more than 20 times, that can open up play-action for Eli Manning and the Anonymous Four.  As was the case against the Chiefs, however, the Giants defense will once again need to propel them to victory.  The Hogs are just way too beat up on defense to have any chance of influencing the Giants into playing catch-up football.  I think.  I'm a fan, so what do I know?  All we want is for Big Blue to cover.  Of course we do.  Careful, though, this game could just as easily make you feel sick to your stomach.
Loss  20-10 Hogs

And The Big Blue Film Award Goes To ...
The final six games of the season will determine whether Ben McAdoo has truly thwarted a rebellion (not that it matters, as Jerry Reese and McAdoo are both seemingly in their final games with the Giants).  In the meantime, their Week Eleven performance against the free-falling Chiefs would suggest, for the moment, McAdoo at least has the team's attention.

Well done by him.  When all else fails, break from routine; audible.  It only took him ten weeks, but he did just that after the Giants humiliating Week Ten loss against the Niners.  He made the entire team watch the game film together, as opposed to the offense and defense going their respective ways.

That can be humbling because players were no longer being evaluated by their coach, per se.  The head coach left the players exposed to being judged by the entirety of their piers.  The overall effort in Week Eleven demonstrated a tangible result in McAdoo's tactic.  Smart move; perhaps desperate; maybe even lucky.  If he somehow inspired the Giants into playing for their fellow man again ... freaking brilliant.

I'm very thankful for everyone who has ever spent time visiting this thing I call 

The Brooklyn Trolley Blogger, and especially appreciative of those who continue frequenting despite all my flaws and failures as a writer.  Thank You.

😉

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

N.Y. Giants: Epic Fail

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

HOUSE OF HORROR

FINAL

Rams    51

Giants   17

New York Giants: The Defense Rests ...

According to every outlet 😞😞😞 Sunday's loss to the Rams was the third worst defeat in New York Giants history.  They allowed the most points at home since (1964) before I was born.  And it's the first time they've started a season with a 1-7 record since 1980 - under head coach Ray Perkins, which by the way I remember very well.

In fact, I started rooting for the Giants when Rams head coach Sean McVay's grandfather, John, still coached the New York Giants in the mid 1970s.

As a life long Giants fan, I feel what John McVay's grandson and the Los Angeles Rams did to them Sunday at Met Life was flat out embarrassing.  What a gutless performance.

It's not like the Rams possessed the ball for forty-five minutes.  Both teams shared the ball fairly equally.  Yet, the Rams outscored the Giants by 34 points on their way to a 51-17 rout.

No one expected anything good coming out of Sunday's game considering suspensions to DRC and Janoris Jenkins, and injuries sidelining linebackers B.J. Goodson, Jonathan Casillas, and defensive end Olivier Vernon.

The effort was nevertheless a fail on all fronts.  Jared Goff threw for 311 yards and four touchdowns.  Some of that can be attributed to the Giants disciplinary situation in their secondary.  But allowing the Rams to score on 3rd and 33, off bubble screen, was inexcusable. 

Moreover, the Giants generated no sacks, and only touched Goff twice all game.

Throw in 162 yards and two touchdowns allowed on the ground.

Fail.

The Giants headed into the tunnel trailing 27-10 at half-time.  Whatever adjustments were made didn't work, because the Giants gave up another 21 points in the third quarter.

When McAdoo was asked about halftime adjustments, the Giants head coach has no answer.

Fail.

After the game, Coach McAdoo says he'll consider benching Eli Manning for sake of gaining a glimpse into the future potential of back-up Davis Webb.

Head coaching ...

Fail.

Jerry Reese ...

Epic fail.

N.Y. Giants: Ben McAdoo's Few Known Allies Slowly Stepping Forward

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Getting by despite a lack of good friends; 

Oooo! Gonna try despite a lack of good friends.

New York Giants: Ben McAdoo Still Short On Friends Backing His Cause; Hard Building a Winning Culture Without Them.

Losing seems to bring out the worst in teams.  The Giants are no different. 

Adversity reveals just how weak or strong the ties that bind really are.

For sake of regurgitation, I refuse letting go of Coach McAdoo's early season criticisms directed at Eli Manning.  That was him talking out of his posterior, and just plain absurd.  I interpret his picking on a Super Bowl MVP caliber quarterback as a measured attempt at being a tough guy, which clearly didn't work.

Coach McAdoo then made a clear distinction between breaking team rules, and conduct detrimental to the team.  In the sense that only one of the aforementioned infractions results in disciplinary action.  He felt it necessary to suspend corner backs Dominique Rogers Cromartie and Janoris Jenkins for the former infraction, and I've been agreeable with that.  But with regards to the latter infraction, every one of Odell Beckham Jr.'s acts of high jinks and mayhem garnered nary a single word, and that's where he loses me.

Two head coaches have now turned a blind eye towards Beckham, which in my opinion flies in the face of command and control.

Tom Coughlin, though, had already reformed an Animal House culture left behind by Jim Fassell, and had already purged the malcontents, and had already won a pair of rings, way before Beckham's arrival in East Rutherford.  To be fair, Coughlin's demise as well as McAdoo's present malaise, can be attributed in part to Jerry Reese's increasingly glaring shortcomings as general manager.  Point being, however, Coughlin established a track record before his situation drew closer to conclusion.

So where are we with Ben McAdoo?  Sunday marks his 24th game as head coach of the Giants, and he's still trying to establish command and control.  Sure, he's dropping the hammer now.  But what if Odell were still playing?  That's why I believe the Giants present condition is worse than meets the eye.

That being said, Landon Collins flatly says everyone still respects Coach McAdoo. 

Jonathan Casillas took it a step further by speaking for Coach McAdoo, in reiterating how breaking rules brings consequences.  Casillas didn't stop there, and for the moment, appears to be McAdoo's biggest supporter.

Now more than ever, Ben McAdoo needs more leadership in the clubhouse backing his cause.  He seems short on allies for the moment.  And it's hard building a winning culture without them.

Eli and JPP strike me as being on the fence.  Both are without a doubt influential figures in the locker room.  But do they truly have McAdoo's back like they did Coughlin?

Bill Parcells most definitely had his clique of players, and so did his defensive coordinator Bill Belichick, for the matter.  Jim Fassell had his clique he could always turn to (even though they were a bunch of knuckleheads).  Coughlin cultivated his own clique as well.

Ben McAdoo's social club remains open to all comers, but very few seem to be rushing in.



*Google image/15minutenews.com

N.Y. Giants: Smash-Mouth Makes an Appearance in Denver

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

FINAL-LY!

GIANTS      23

BRONCOS  10

New York Giants: Big Blue Finds Daylight in Denver; Rumble to First Victory of Season.

I rest my case!

Limited throwing from Eli Manning;
a heavy dose of the ground game;
key tight end receptions;
and shut down defense.

That's Giants football where I come from.

Unfortunately, Sunday's game was the closest thing I've seen to traditional Big Blue smash-mouth football since Ben McAdoo arrived in town.

Considering the Giants defeated the Denver Broncos quite soundly, I'm forced to revisit a question I've been asking for years:

If the New York York Giants won two Super Bowls in 1986 and 1990 playing smash-mouth football, then won another pair of Lombardi trophies in 2007 and 2011 still playing smash-mouth football, and all four Super Bowl victories came against west coast styled offenses, then why on earth are the Giants so hell bent on transforming into a west coast offense?

My answer is obviously Ben McAdoo.

The Giants second year head coach gets credit points for self-reflection.  He surrendered play calling to his offensive coordinator, Mike Sullivan, and the results were in stark contrast to what McAdoo has been reconditioning us for. 

How is it that with Mike Sullivan calling plays Eli Manning's yards per completion average also rose by almost two full yards (versus previous three seasons with McAdoo calling plays)?

I'll wait ...

That being said, isn't it amazing the things you can accomplish without Odell Beckham Jr.?  Odell is the best wide receiver the Giants have ever had.  Right?  He's better than Phil McConkey, Bobby Johnson, Stephen "touchdown" Baker, Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer, you name it.

Problem is, Sunday's victory over the Denver Broncos was the Giants first of the season, and their first since last year's infamous trip to South Beach with Bieber. 

Is this proof it took Beckham's disappearance to finally open some eyes?  Does this prove, as I contend, Ben McAdoo's application of the west coast was flawed to begin with?

I don't know ...

But I do know Eli Manning only threw the ball 19 times, and connected 11 times for 128 yards.  And I know he threw a touchdown to his rookie tight end, Even Engram, who caught five huge passes for 82 yards.

With D.J. Fluker starting at center in place of Weston Richburg (concussion), the offensive line created loads of daylight for Orleans Darkwa, who rushed 21 times for 117 yards.  On three separate occasions, he rumbled for 47 yards, 17 yards, and 14 yards.

As John Madden would say ... BOOM!

But one game does not a running game make ... the line is still not without its problems. 

They allowed another three sacks.

Pfft ..!  Before the game, I was fearful Eli was going to get hurt.

The defense was shut-down.  The Giants limited the Broncos to just 46 yards rushing, sacked Trevor Siemian four times, with JPP recording three of them.  They intercepted Siemian twice, caused one fumble, and scored six points.

It was a nice day in Denver.

So, where do the Giants go from here?  After all, Sunday's victory only makes them 1-5 on the season.  There's still a lot of room to play with.

Is smash-mouth back to stay?  Will Mike Sullivan continue implementing this run-first philosophy, even though it flies in the face of Ben McAdoo? 

Or, will the head coach intercede, insisting upon some semblance of west coast?

N.Y. Giants: Dysfunction, Junction, What's Your Malfunction?

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Lunatics Are Ruling The Asylum, Again

New York Football Giants: Dysfunction Tends To Slip Into Every Team's Locker Room From Time to Time; How John Mara Intends To Address This Is What Most Interests Me.

When I think back upon instances of Big Blue dysfunction, Wellington Mara's 30-year rebuilding plan comes to mind.  That era was highlighted the very first fan inspired/hired prop plane towing a sign in protest over the Giants practice field.

Then there's Wellington's rift with his brother, necessitating the NFL Commissioner to intercede, and force the Giants into hiring George Young as their general manager.  On that note, there was Pete Rozell laughing it up over Young's selection of an unknown quarterback named Phil Simms out of Morehead State.

Soon thereafter, Bill Parcells went just 3-12-1 in his first season as head coach, and almost got fired as a result.

Lawrence Taylor ... no comment.

When I think dysfunction, I think back on two disastrous seasons under former head coach Ray Handley.

Fast forward a few years to the Jim Fassel era, when he gladly let the lunatics run the asylum.  There was the infamous mental meltdown against the Minnesota Vikings in the 1997 playoffs, in which Giants players starting fighting among themselves on the field, as well as on the sidelines.  Then there was the far more egregious mental meltdown during the 2002 playoffs in San Francisco against the 49ers, in which they blew a 38-16 lead with less than five minutes left in the third quarter.

Jim Fassel wound up leaving a veritable Animal House behind led by Michael Strahan, Keith Hamilton, Tiki Barber, Jeremy Shockey, and a few other prominent frat house pledges.

Tiki Barber's relationship with new coach Tom Coughlin, as well as that of Michael Strahan's with  Coughlin and Jerry Reese devolved to cantankerous levels, and absolutely wreaked of dysfunction.

We also saw what happened in 2007 when Jeremy Shockey sustained a season ending injury, thus freeing the Giants from his dysfunctional oppression of Eli Manning.

These days, the very mention of Odell Beckham's name has become a divisive issue because of the very dysfunction he's perceived to have brought to the team.  His history of immaturity, questionable behavior, and complete lack of professionalism prior to his injury continued undeterred.  Therefore, Coughlin and McAdoo both enabling Beckham the whole time is yet another level of dysfunction.

Dysfunction is Eli Apple saying the club needs a culture change; it's players leaving the field during games; and it's the odd circumstances surrounding Coach McAdoo suspension of Dominique-Rogers Cromartie.

Dysfunction is the background scuttlebutt suggesting Coach McAdoo is losing the team's respect.

There's only one man whom can rectify, or even eliminate, this entire current state of dysfunction presently afflicting the New York Giants - that's John Mara.

With this season already all but lost, when will his patience run out?  Mr. Mara is not afraid to draw a line in the sand and hold his employees to it.  He also possesses reasonable cause to blow this thing up.

The Giants have been hampered by the salary cap, and have drafted poorly for years.  Posting an aggregate record of 39-46 with one playoff appearance since the confetti stopped raining on Super Bowl XLVI, should indeed be making Jerry Reese feel very uncomfortably.

I know Mr. Mara will let Ben McAdoo and Jerry Reese finish out the season.  Mr. Mara is going to make them own this debacle.  After which, should the team finish the season under similar circumstances, I can almost guarantee the owner will make the next move.

N.Y. Giants: Eli Trapped in Unsafe Working Condition

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

The Good Old Days?

New York Giants: Eli Manning Surrounded By Ten Big Blue Question Marks; What A Great Time To Start Geno Smith!

Just when you thought things couldn't get any worse, they got a lot worse.

Brandon Marshall, and the Giants lone legitimate scoring threat, Odell Beckham Jr., are both out for the season with fractured ankles sustained during last Sunday's game against the Chargers.

One has to wonder if the Fates are just piling on now.

When Eli Manning takes the field this Sunday against the Broncos in Denver, he will be surrounded by ten giant question marks, all of which spell big trouble.

Having to break in a whole new compliment of receivers, I feel, is putting Eli directly in harms way.  In fact, the odds of him sustaining his first major injury, or even a potential season ending injury, I believe, are suddenly sky high.

I'll tell you why.

In weeks One and Two, Eli sustained eight sacks, and another 13 QB hits.  Adjustments were made, and as a result, Eli remained relatively untouched against the Eagles in Week Three, and in Week Four against the Bucs.  The offensive line allowed no sacks and just seven QB hits in those games, but that was because Eli was getting the ball off within three to four seconds or less (much faster than he's accustomed to).  And, he also was still throwing to a full compliment of receivers.

In Week Five against the Chargers, the already maligned offensive line was playing without center Weston Richburg (concussion protocol), while John Jerry was playing with a strained hamstring.  The starting front five allowed five sacks, and another seven QB hits.  Eli was under duress when he threw somewhat high on the play Odell Beckham fractured his ankle (but that's football).

Suffice it to say, the offensive line has proven they're incapable of providing even low level protection.  Ereck Flowers, in particular, continues being a liability on the left side.

It's not like Eli can turn to the running game.  Behind the offensive line's compounded inability to create daylight, the Giants are presently 30th in the NFL in rushing yards per game, 28th in total rushing yards, tied for 28th in rushing attempts, yet actually rank 21st in yards per attempt.

Do we have to bring the tight ends into this?

Do we need to bring Ben McAdoo's ponderous play calling into this?

Yeah!

But with respect to Sunday's game, will Eli Manning and his new receiving corp be up to speed against a very good Denver defense?  Will Eli be able to get passes off within three to four seconds again? 

That's why I say, if these new kids on the chopping block aren't operating with the necessary smarts, and playing at the required speed, Eli is in big trouble.

What's going to happen against the rest of these defenses the Giants still must play?

Seahawks?  Rams?  Chiefs?

The more I think about it, the more I feel this might be a great time to start Geno Smith!

N.Y. Giants: Odell Beckham's Dog Day Afternoon

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

"I'm a dog, so I acted like a dog."- Odell Beckham Jr.

New York Giants: Owner Speaks Out; John Mara Pissed Off.

Tuesday's New York Post reported Giants owner John Mara said he's very unhappy with Odell's behavior on Sunday.  He also said the team will handle the matter internally.

I guess that takes the pressure off Jerry Reese and Coach McAdoo to speak out against their best player.

Coach McAdoo refuses to criticize his offensive line, refuses to take exception with Odell Beckham over Sunday's behavior, yet Eli Manning is fair game?  Funny how Coach's big blue marble spins, if not curiously.

For someone who is only three games into his fourth NFL season, OBJ's shameless acts of self-promotion are many.  Topping the list of incidences is a full blown feud with cornerback Josh Norman; his initial assault and subsequent love affair with a kicking net; another meltdown against Minnesota which included bumping a referee; taking the Giants receivers corp on an ill-timed trip to South Beach just before last year's playoff game against the Packers; then putting forth one of his worst ever performances in said playoff game.

The Giants have enabled it all, including Sunday's episode.  The only (person) people who can stop such antics are other players.  Winning locker rooms police themselves.  That being said, Landon Collins was recently on New York City radio condoning Odell's celebration antic.

So there's that ...

Here's the thing - prior to Sunday's game against the Eagles, I believed Odell Beckham's conduct and level of professionalism left himself wide open for public criticism.

What he did Sunday, however, is different.  If we are to take Odell at his word in believing he acted out with a personal protest directed at POTUS, then that's fine by me because protest is the American way.  We The People will settle these issues on our own - thank you - because when the establishment and their conventional wisdom continually fail its citizens; when promises of change and improvement never come; protest is in order.  In turn, protest comes in many and sometimes creative forms.  Sometimes protest even occurs on a football field.

Odell is a smart guy.  He knows exactly what he's doing, and doesn't seemed burdened by potential consequences.  He makes no apologies, and will continue marching to his own beat.  But at the end of the day, we're still talking about football, aren't we?  At least I am.  And as a Giants fan, I do not appreciate the things Odell does.

In all fairness to OBJ, though, I grew up dealing with Lawrence Taylor's issues.  I remember Bill Parcells and George Young cringing whenever their best player did something wrong, forcing them into damage control mode.  Like Taylor, Odell is presently one of the highest profile stars in the NFL There's no denying he's a superior talent, but his self-promotion is increasingly becoming a detriment to the team.  Unfortunately, all those highlight catches have not yet served as a catalyst for elevating Giants success.  Taylor at least helped lead the Giants to a pair of Super Bowl victories.

Odell is a game changing talent, and in the very near future this organization must decide whether committing a king's ransom in order to retain him will be in their best interest.

On that note, there are reasons why Odell Beckham became the fasted receiver to reach 300 receptions in NFL history this past Sunday.  The talent/skill level of the Giants offensive line has been far below par during Odell's three first three seasons with the team.  They've had no tight end to speak of.  In turn, the running game has been futile at best.  Therefore, the Eli/Odell connection continues being the lone extent of recent Giants offensive capabilities.

Knuckleheads abound in life.

In a game they once led against the Vikings, I watched the 1997 Giants defense breakout into a fight against each other while on the field, then lose in ponderous fashion.

Jeremy Shockey was just as problematic as Odell, if not more so because he often worked against a younger Eli Manning instead of with him.  Can't say that about Odell.  He never lambasted his coach to the media either like Tiki Barber did with Tom Coughlin.

It is what it is ...

Some things never change, like older fans wrangling with and against younger sensibilities; debating levels of tolerance or lack thereof; or arguing over personal accountability.

N.Y. Giants: Rushing to Conclusions

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Offensive Line Inability to Create Daylight

Keeping Big Blue Fans Brooding in the Dark

New York Giants Football: After Three Weeks, Season Already Seems All But Lost.

It took three games, but the Giants finally broke the century mark in rushing.  They ran the ball 17 times for 49 yards during Sunday's 24-27 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, finally pushing them over the 100 yard mark in rushing for the season.

Through the first three games, the Giants backfield of Darkwa, Perkins, and Vereen, have rushed a total of 43 times for 134 yards.  That averages out to 14 attempts for 44.6 yards per game/ 3.1 yards per rush.

That's not complimentary football, folks, as Coach McAdoo likes to say.

Sure ... Eli threw three TD passes in the fourth quarter against the Eagles.  And on the one hand, Eli Manning and Odell Beckham proved that when they're in sync, they're among the most feared threats in football.  That being said, the Giants most gifted offensive player and lone scoring threat is at the same time the team's main source of controversy and fan irritation.

Eli clearly made adjustments heading into this game and got his throws off (more or less) within two seconds or less.  With regards to Coach McAdoo's version of the West Coast offense, that's the way it's supposed to be.  And in a micro sense, it worked.  Pressure on the offensive line was reduced.   They allowed no sacks and only four other QB hits.

But I ask, what good is this quick strike capability when their inability to run the ball and control the clock is continually putting Coach Spagnuolo's defense on the field for an average of 34:31 minutes a game?  Said another way, the Giants opposition is possessing the ball for ten more minutes per game.

More defensive field time equals more wear and tear.  In Week One, Dallas' Ezekiel Elliott rushed 24 times for 104 yards.  Detroit rushed 29 times for 115 yards.  Meanwhile, the Eagles oppressed the Giants defense with 39 rushes for 193 yards.  Said another way, they've already allowed a grand total of 437 yards on the ground, an average of 145 yards allowed per game.

With more wear and tear, injuries at some point could become problematic.  Janoris Jenkins, J.T. Thomas, and B.J. Goodson all had issues heading into Week Three.  Meanwhile, Olivier Vernon leaving Sunday's game with an ankle injury perhaps is not coincidental.

I derive no joy by saying the Giants regular season, and any aspirations of making the playoffs already seem like dust in the wind.

N.Y. Giants: Coach McAdoo Masterminding His Own Dilemma

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Head Coach Ben McAdoo 

Joins Opposition In Assault Against Eli Manning

New York Football Giants: Delusional Head Coach Implements Flawed Offensive System, Then Blames Eli Manning For Poor Results.

Ereck Flowers played terribly this past Monday night.  We know.  Although I find myself disagreeing with Coach McAdoo more and more, the head coach is right about one thing - the problems facing the offensive line affect the entire unit, not just one person.

First on the docket, pass protection.  After allowing three sacks and four QB hits during Week One against the Cowboys, the Giants offensive line allowed the Detroit Lions five sacks, and another eight QB hits.  Do the math, and that's eight sacks, and twelve QB hits through their first two hours of football.

Second, the running game remains inept.  The Giants backfield rushed just ten times for thirty yards against the Lions.  Add that to their Week One totals, and the Giants have thus far rushed 26 times through two games for a mere 85 yards.

Now ...

Lack of skill/talent aside, herein lies the real problem with the Giants offense.  Coach McAdoo thinks he's running a West Coast style offense (or variant thereof).  I watched Coach Bill Walsh and Joe Montana both invent and perfect the West Coast offense during their run together with the San Francisco 49ers.  Therefore I say with great confidence that Coach McAdoo could not be getting this more wrong.

In very simple, loose terms, the West Coast style is predicated on three-step drops, slants, timing patterns, and above all, quickness.  It's a system which dares opposing defenses to blitz, creating a "damned if you do/damned if you don't" situation.  Yet, it's patient enough to take what is given.  Just look at the Patriots ... the modern day masters of West Coast.  Tom Brady is a statue in the pocket, but no one gets to him because he gets the play off too quickly.  It's the speed with which a QB makes his read, executes, and/or dumps off to the backfield (or throws it away) that is most key in keeping the quarterback clean and minimizing pressure on the offensive line.

Coach McAdoo has certainly changed the offensive philosophy around here over his three-plus years with the Giants.  Eli's completion rate under McAdoo is up, but his yards attempted per pass are way down.  While that's an affect of the West Coast system, Coach McAdoo's version looks much like the same Kevin Gilbride set at the line of scrimmage, replete with five to six step drops (even from the shotgun, and he's still getting sacked).

There's a common link among the offensive braintrust; a bridge between Gilbride and McAdoo; and his name Mike Sullivan.

But I'm not going there ...

The system also requires balance, meaning, the ability to run the ball.

It's Jerry Reese's fault the line is so dreadfully bad.  And it's Jerry's fault that a franchise which once prided itself for playing smash mouth football has all but abandoned the run.  There's no getting around it - poor offensive line play is killing this team, and just might get Eli hurt.  West Coast demands a far more intricate brand of play from the offensive line than the Giants are presently staffed to execute.

But it's the increasingly delusional head coach's faulty implementation of his West Coast hybrid presently putting Eli in harms way.  It's this delusional head coach who also continues minimizing the offensive line deficiencies, and instead seems hell bent on destroying his quarterback's moral.

See?  Damned if you do ... damned of you don't.

Just saying.

N.Y. Giants: O-Line Puts Worst Foot Forward

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Coach McAdoo 

Serving Up Offensive Line Kool-Aid

Week One

FINAL

Giants        3

Cowboys  19

New York Football Giants: New Season, Same Old Story.

ICYMI: As Offensive Line Goes, So Go The Giants 

This is an offensive line/backfield issue in the collective sense, as much a philosophical issue; be sure of that.  So there's no point in singling out players.  We know who they are, and what they're incapable of.  If anyone needs to be singled out, it's Jerry Reese for de-prioritizing these units over the last six seasons to the point of complete deterioration.

What I'm not sure about, is what Coach McAdoo is trying to sell us.  No coach should ever place himself in agreement with the press by saying, "Yeah, well, my O-Line sucks."  I understand not wanting to throw a struggling unit under the bus.  We all get that.  But reducing the matter to a non-issue.  That's the first indication of a huge problem.  And it's beginning to seem as if his media deflections and denials are cries for mercy.

The Cowboys sacked Eli three times, and registered four more QB hits.  In other words, the pocket was not a hospitable place to be.  Meanwhile the passing lanes remained riddled with obstacles as well.  Dallas defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence in particular laid siege to the right side of the Giants O-Line with two sacks, and two more QB hits.

Okay ... so Coach knows he has no running game, and that Eli Manning is in jeopardy with every snap he takes from center.  He also knows that without Odell Beckham Jr. turning seven yard receptions into 65 yard gains the Giants are somewhat impotent.  Sunday night was a Prime Time example (embarrassment).  Sure, Brandon Marshall is a fine receiver in his own right, and is here to alleviate the double team on OBJ.  But with no OBJ, and no viable running game to set up play-action, an average Dallas Cowboys defense (IMO) simply loaded the box, limited Marshall to one catch, and essentially defied the Giants to beat them with Sterling Shepard.

Dallas QB Dak Prescott nearly out-rushed Paul Perkins and Orleans Darkwa by himself.  Big Blue's backs joined to rush a mere ten times for thirty yards.  In fact, the Giants only rushed the ball eleven times all night if you include Sterling Shepard's six yard romp.

If you care to argue Shane Vereen's nine receptions for 54 yards out of the backfield count for something ... fine.  But what if I countered by saying he accounted for 23% of the Giants offense during what was effectively a shutout.

Now consider that guy on the opposing sideline.  Behind a well drafted, cohesive, and effective offensive line, Dallas' Ezekiel Elliott rushed 24 times for 104 yards ... against a good Giants defense.

That being said, the Giants defense played very well Sunday night, holding the Cowboys to 19 points. But if the offense remains intent on leaving them out there for 35:00 minutes a game, then we're all in for a long season.

The score was only 0-3 after the first quarter, and 0-16 at halftime.  We are not talking dire circumstances here.  Those are generally times for regrouping, making adjustments, getting back to fundamentals, and attempting to establish the run again.  But that's only if you have any semblance of a rushing attack.  One must have the mindset as well.  Teams must want to run the ball and commit.   And for that, you need an effective offensive line.  It appears as if the Giants have none of the above.

Dallas rushed for 129 yards and held the ball for 34:14 minutes.  They produced 392 yards of offense on 71 plays.  As previously noted, the Giants only rushed for 35 yards and possessed the ball for 25:46 minutes.  They were limited to 233 total yards on just 53 plays.

If you do not think there is a correlation between running successfully, and time of possession, and victory, then you're drinking Coach McAdoo's Kool-Aid.


 ... and I picked the Giants to win too.

N.Y. Giants: All Eyes On Offensive Line

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Nothing Changes

Everything Starts Up Front

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL

NEW YORK GIANTS

vs.

DALLAS COWBOYS

FROM

The House That Jerry Built

TEXAS

New York Football Giants: Big Blue Will Go As Far As Their Offensive Line Takes Them.

We left off last season with Coach McAdoo downplaying the offensive line's pedestrian performance, and instead taking odd shots at Eli Manning, and placing the onus on his QB's individual play.

Coach McAdoo may have simply been employing tough talk tactics, especially coming off guiding the Giants to their first winning season since 2012, and first playoff appearance 2011.  There's also a part of me that totally understands the art and intricacies of Coach Ploy.  Indeed, many things coaches do and say serve specific reasons, particularly where it involves sending messages and/or singling out players.  And at this point, Coach and Eli are also no longer strangers to one another.  But if Coach McAdoo honestly believes his offensive line was not necessarily a problem (or the problem) last season, then we have a big problem on our hands.

I obviously believe the offensive line remains this team's greatest liability.  Last year's performance was mediocre at best ... and I think that's being kind.  One hand washes the other.  So, with regards to Eli, Coach McAdoo has obviously altered the plan since Kevin Gilbride once called the shots.  Eli played under duress.  Why?  His 6.7 yards per attempt last season were his lowest since 2008.  His 10.7 yards per completion were his lowest since 2006.  And while Eli's average yards per game, and QB rating improved dramatically during Coach McAdoo's time as offensive coordinator, Eli's yards per game and QB rating experienced a noticeable downturn last year, not coincidentally, during McAdoo's first year as head coach.

Point is, Coach might be talking out of both sides of his mouth.  It was his own offensive predictability that stood out most me.  That, and the team's complete lack of a running game.

Fact is, the Giants attained an 11-6 record last season despite their offensive line deficiencies.  And as far as I'm concerned, all that does is build false hope.  You saw what happened in the playoffs last season against the Packers.

Having a great defense is just that ... great!  But if your offensive line is incapable of pass protection, and creating daylight for the running game, and thereby managing the clock, then the quick strike system (aka Odell Beckham Jr.) allows the opposition every chance in the world to stay in the game, and position themselves for victory.  Why?  Because they'll likely have sufficient time on the clock. Said another way, the Giants can not win in December and January if their defense has been forced to play 32:00 to 38:00 minutes a game.

The alternative has been Eli needing to orchestrate a game saving 1:39 minute, 87 yard drive for the victory.

The Giants head into this season with the same offensive line as last season.  There's something to be said for continuity.  I believe in that.  But does this unit, as presently constituted, posses the talent worthy of such a time investment?

At left tackle, the answer is unequivocally, no..!  Ereck Flowers must blossom this season, and preferably sooner in the year that later.  There's no doubt all eyes will be on him.  But will Eli need eyes in the beck of his head?

Hoepfully (I can't stress that enough), LG Just Pugh is a year wiser, and a year better.  And at Center, I'm expecting perhaps too much from Weston Richburg.  I have a belief that winning, success, or at the very least a effective running game is born of an all-pro caliber center.  Look how the Jets ran with Jeff Mangold, then how their running game fell off the planet without him.  The same thing happened last year of the Atlanta Falcons in the Super Bowl against the Patriots.  Atlanta couldn't keep the Patriots offense off the field once their center got hurt because they could longer run the ball effectively.  The Giants won Super Bowls with Bart Oates at center, with Joe Morris, and O.J. Anderson, and Sean O'Hara at center with Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw.  Get the picture?

The right side of the line is a complete mystery to me.  I have no idea what we'll be getting, from what is sure to be a revolving door system, involving John Jerry, Bobby Hart, and D.J. Fluker.

At least Jerry Reese thought enough to fortify tight end, if only to help the running game, and give Eli an occasional outlet.  But by no means are any of them a primary pass option, and that's too bad.

To make this long story short, and as good as this defense is expected to be, the Giants will only go as far as their offensive line takes them.

N.Y. Giants: Back to the Frozen Tundra

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

2007 

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP 

GAME

New York Football Giants: Best way to defeat Aaron Rogers is by keeping him on the sidelines..

Let the record show, that in his first campaign as head coach Ben McAdoo ended Big Blue's four year playoff drought, guiding them to a well earned Wild Card berth - considering, that is, the team punctuated their 11-5 record with two victories over this season's NFC East champion (and #1 seed) Dallas Cowboys.

That being said, let the second season begin!

The Giants will again trek to Green Bay's famed Lambeau Field where they'll resume their ongoing subarctic conflict against the Packers.  This time led not by Tom Coughlin, but by Ben McAdoo who returns to the place where he helped create the beast Big Blue must slay named Aaron Rogers.

Again.....

The Giants obviously emerged victorious in a pair of epic confrontations played at Lambeau during their 2007 and 2011 Super Bowl runs ... games Packer fans would much rather forget.  Which is why Sunday every cheese head in Wisconsin will have nothing but revenge on their minds.

*          *          *

But if the Giants are to be successful in Green Bay, and hopefully beyond, they'll need to gain a measure of ground control and clock management.  They'll need to run the ball whether they like it or not.  They must do so in order to keep the Packers defense honest, which is another way of saying keeping Eli Manning alive and maximizing play-action.  Running the ball will help keep Aaron Rogers on the sidelines, and perhaps lessen the burden being placed on the Giants defense (minus JPP) when Rogers is on the field.

• Question:  What is the single most factor differentiating these Giants from the Super Bowl champions of XXI, XXV, XLII, XLVI?

• Answer:  Previous opponents were forced to respect a formidable Giants running game.  Joe Morris and O.J. Anderson ran behind superb offensive lines led by all-pro center Bart Oates, while Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw rushed behind another superb offensive line anchored by yet another all-pro center, Shaun O'Hara.

Promising center (I'm being kind) Weston Richburg is good, and will get better.  In fact, the Giants do their best running up the middle.  However, he does not have the quality of personnel lined up to his left and right that Oates and O'Hara enjoyed.  The performance of left tackle Ereck Flowers has been the most distressing of the lot.  Otherwise, left guard Justin Pugh represents the best of the rest.

Having Shane Vereen on injured reserve combined with Rashad Jennings' unspectacular style and underwhelming performance only exacerbates the situation.

So what's a coach to do?

Everyone says the Giants should go right after Green Bay's weak secondary.

I could not agree more.

But I say do that by attacking Green Bay's more competent front seven.  Sit a third receiver from time to time, and at least attempt to smash mouth a way through to daylight.  Let Nikita Whitlock play like a true fullback.  Give Green Bay some double tight end sets.  Said another way, do what it takes to gain 3.5 yards per carry.  Give Weston Richburg, Justin Pugh, and John Jerry, the help they need to make this happen.

But a coach must first try, and commit.

Sell out.

Because at this point rookie Paul Perkins is the most powerful and elusive runner the Giants have.   Take that with a grain of salt, especially coming off a 102 yard performance during the season finale against a disinterested Washington Redskins defense.  That game nevertheless marked the first time this season a Giants running back rushed for 100 yards in a game.

To his credit, Perkins has been consistent.  He rushed 112 times this season, averaging 4.1 yards per carry.  He closed out the regular season on an uptick, rushing 47 times for 226 yards over the Giants final three games for an average of 4.80 yards per carry.

Run ... so Eli Manning can throw the ball to Miami Vice on his terms, not Green Bay's.

N.Y. Giants: Coach McAdoo Earns Week Two Game Ball

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE..!

Game Ball Goes to Coach McAdoo 

for demanding the New York Football Giants take better care of

"THE DUKE"

WEEK TWO FINAL

Saints    13

Giants   16

New York Football Giants: Coach McAdoo's reinvestment in the run, and Doing It For The Duke will get him far.

After two games head coach Ben McAdoo is undefeated.

Make no mistake, there's great value starting 2-0 in a 16 game season.  After all, you can't win division titles in September, but you certainly can lose them.  So, give the man his due.

But what Coach McAdoo has actually accomplished in two short weeks as first time head coach of the Giants needs more context.

Passing Aggressive Personality Disorder: Eli, Gilbride, and Coughlin.

For better and for worse, Eli Manning and former offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride spent years routinely leading the NFL in most yards attempted per pass - all with Tom Coughlin's blessings, of course.

Their system was good enough to win a pair of Super Bowls.  But on a year-in-year-out basis, such high risk/high reward down field passing would certainly increase Manning's odds of getting intercepted.

Sure enough, in 2007 Eli led the league in interceptions during his first season under Gilbride.  In 2010, Eli attempted his most passes under Gilbride to that point of his career, and wound up topping the league for a second time with 25 interceptions.  By 2013, times grew considerably more dire for both Kevin Gilbride and Tom Coughlin. In his final season under Gilbride, Eli Manning led the league in interceptions for a third time in his career, which perhaps more than anything, spoke about the Giants depleted running capabilities, poor defense, and overall mounting desperation.

With the Giants disappointing 7-9 record requiring a sacrificial lamb, Kevin Gilbride took the hit for his friend Tom Coughlin by notifying the organization of his retirement from football.

Say what you will about Kevin Gilbride (I do), he still maintained a balanced attack. Although he often drew the ire of Giants fans (myself included) for what I called his endless search for the perfect pass play, he knew how and when, and did utilize his running game effectively (creativity withstanding) ... back when the Giants could.  But once center Shaun O'Hara retired, the rest of the offensive line and running game deteriorated in kind shortly thereafter.

That's a main reason why by 2014-15 Tom Coughlin had become an exponentially desperate head coach, who perhaps limited much of new offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo's play calling autonomy.

Coughlin all but abandoned his already inconsequential running game that now featured an untenable, counter-productive four back rotation.  At the same time, Eli was setting career highs with 600+ pass attempts in consecutive seasons as the Giants began incorporating a more west coast style system.

But after two straight 6-10 seasons and 12 seasons overall as head coach of the New York Giants, Tom Coughlin unavoidably gave way last year for the promotion of Ben McAdoo.

Meet the New Boss

Jerry Reese arguably dealt Coughlin a losing hand in his latter years as head coach.  For the moment, that remains another matter.

Today, after just two weeks of play, there's little debating how much more head coach McAdoo is benefiting from better quality personnel, particularly on defense.

As offensive coordinator, he noticeably shortened up Manning's passing game, thus making him a more efficient quarterback. Eli limited himself to 14 INT's in each of his two seasons under OC McAdoo.

But the most welcome change from one regime to the next has been head coach McAdoo's reinvestment in the running game.

Last year, the Giants threw the ball 76 times, and only rushed 42 times through the first two games of the season against Dallas and Atlanta.  The Giants utilized four different backs against Dallas, while three rushed in week two against Atlanta.

This season, first year head coach McAdoo and first year offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan have elected to pass 69 times, and rush 52 times.  Rashad Jennings and Shane Vereen have been the lone ball carriers, with the exception of Orleans Darkwa making his first and only rush of the season against the Saints.

All this sort of confirms Tom Coughlin's operational level of desperation.  The change is proving refreshing.

All that being said, once is an event, twice is a coincidence, and three times is a trend.  So let's see how things play out in Week Three.

Tugging at Big Blue's Heartstrings

Ben McAdoo spent ten years working under Mike McCarthy in New Orleans, San Francisco, and of course in Green Bay, prior to his arrival in New York.  With a credible resume, hiring McAdoo as offensive coordinator in 2014 was viewed, then, as somewhat of a layup - easily chalked up to career progression.

Instead, the general apprehension lay in having a 39 year old head coach.

Anyone savvy enough to invoke The Duke is wise beyond his years.  Perhaps a calculated move on McAdoo's part, but one that should have some members of the media feeling embarrassed of themselves for not catching it.

Starting the season 2-0 is nice too.

I'm sure Wellington would approve.

N.Y. Giants: Jerry Reese Facing a Reality 'Chick

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

That was then...

I got news for ya...

Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, and Michael Strahan

aren't walking through that door!

NEW YORK GIANTS: This game is largely a referendum on Big Blue general manager Jerry Reese.  Everyone finds out where Big Blue really stands Sunday afternoon.

For a few years previous to 2014, I started reading and hearing varying accounts to the effect how Bill Belichick should have replaced himself as GM in New England.

So ponderous were they, I nearly died laughing!

Therefore, let's talk truth, right here, right now.

Very simply, Robert Kraft hired Bill Belichick not only to be his head coach, but to become the Patriots' entire front office.  Since then, the New England Patriots have posted exactly one losing season (their initial one together back in 2000).

Moreover, the Patriots have only missed the playoffs twice in the first 15 years under Belichick.

In 2007, his team posted the first undefeated regular season of the 16-game schedule era. They've played in six Super Bowls, won four of them, and are obviously this year's defending champion (exactly 15 years after Robert Kraft, Bill Belichick, and Tom Brady won their first together).

As we know, Belichick and Tom Coughlin both served together under Bill Parcells.  Four years after Bill Belichick's career ended with the Giants, Jerry Reese's started.  Ironically, the Patriots only two Super Bowl defeats during the Belichick era came at the hands of Jerry Reese, Tom Coughlin, Eli Manning, and the New York Giants.

Jerry Reese indeed owns two Lombardi trophies, both at Belichick's expense.  Yet, each has their respective organization headed in opposite directions since the day they last met for a championship.

• With regards to personnel, Jerry Reese has failed to sustain what Ernie Accorsi started.  His overall draft results have been pedestrian at best - his salary cap management, even worse. 

• Whereas defense and the running game were once the Giants primary strengths, they are now the Giants primary weaknesses.

• The Giants literally haven't fielded an impact linebacker in decades.  They have six guys that between them can not generate a single sack, and a secondary as fragile and shallow as Donald Trump's ego. 

• Tom Coughlin is first and foremost a pass oriented coach.  Kevin Gilbride loved going long, but always tried maintaining some sort of balance between pass and run.  Under Ben McAdoo, the passing game has gone from long to short, which has statistically improved Eli Manning's efficiency.  The run, however, has become a mere afterthought.  They have four running backs whom they all use extremely ineffectively, and disturbingly infrequently.

Giants fans should be very clear about a few things regarding this team, and those Super Bowl teams.

First, both Super Bowl winners rushed the ball extremely well with Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw behind an exceptional offensive line.

Second, and more importantly, two huge reasons why the Giants twice beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl, (IMO), were Aaron Ross and Corey Webster.  They were shutdown corners for Steve Spagnuolo during the SB XLII run.  Then, many times during their XLVI season, former defensive coordinator Perry Fewell's system resulted in the secondary looking like Keystone Cops.  It wasn't until Fewell relented late in 2011 at the behest of his secondary, that Aaron Ross and Corey Webster were able to get back into man-coverage.  Once Fewell simplified his (stupid) plan, the pass rush helped the 9-7 Giants bull their way to another championship.

These guys couldn't bull there way through my tomato garden.

Old Rivals Meet Again

New England Patriots

vs.

New York Giants

FROM

Snoopy Stadium

THE SWAMP

I expect Tom Brady to relentlessly, and mercilessly attack the Giants linebackers all day long with crisscross patterns, wide receiver screens, and slant patterns.

Meanwhile, I expect Gronk to do anything he damn well pleases.  The Giants will be damned if they double or even triple cover him, and damned if they don't.  That said, Bill Belichick could just as easily have him line up, and help tenderize the Giants front seven with a strong running game - because they can - and Belichick would do it just to prove a point.

In any event, I expect the Patriots to dominate time of possession, and put up lots and lots of points.

In truth, I expect the Giants to play their worst game of the season.