BBB
10-17-2005, 12:22 PM
Since the Giants lost a tough game divisional game, one that they had every opportunity to win, I figured it was time to purge my bad thoughts and look ahead to the Broncos. I wanted to ask a few questions and share my scouting report of the Giants for you.
There used to be a time, when I was going to school in Boulder and later living in California that I followed the Broncos pretty closely as a "second" team to my beloved Giants, but since I've been living in the Southeast for the past 5 years, I've lost touch with the AFC West in general. Like any other NFL fan, I'm well aware of the Denver's superb running game, solid receivers, and their awesome linebackers, but very unsure about that new defensive line and the secondary.
Keeping in mind the fact that the stats mean very little at this point, I must ask a direct question related to the Denver defense. According to the numbers, Denver ranks 30th in pass defense just in front of the Giants and the 49ers. Is this a mirage, or is there a kernel of truth in these numbers? Is this a potential area for the Giants offense to exploit, or simply the product of a few games playing with the lead?
How about Plummer? I know that he's been playing great football and limiting the mistakes that have plagued him in the past, but is this simply a product of maturation or is his protection/running game so good that he just doesn't force anything?
As for the Giants, they're pass defense is pretty shaky. They have done a decent job so far of playing the old "bend but don't break" zone defenses, allowing the opposition to eat up vast chunks of yards between the 20's while limiting red zone opportunities to field goals. This worked very well in the three wins because the Giants offense put up huge numbers in all three victories. It didn't work so well against LaDainian Tomlinson because he simply "broke" the defense. (It also worked against Dallas, but the Giants offense decided to lay an egg until the last 6 minutes of the game.) The cornerbacks are very weak. Will Allen has been overrated his entire career and while a pretty solid tackler, he can't make a play on the ball. The other corner, Will Petersen, is out indefinitely, leaving the rookie Corey Webster and second year man Curtis DeLoatch to play the opposite side. All the corners suffer from not effectively covering the middle zone and giving up too much cushion. The SS is Gibril Wilson, who is the most talented guy in the secondary but the FS is Brent Alexander who, in my opinion, is too old and too slow to be starting in the NFL.
The linebackers are decent, with MLB Antonio Pierce the best all-around player. Sam LB Carlos Emmons is dinged, but his understudy Reggie Torbor is beginning to come on in his second year. Will LB is a disaster at the moment with the continuing injuries to Barrett Green (inactive last week) and his spot being filled by Nick Greisen, who is a good run stuffer but slow in coverage. As a unit, they could be improved, but right now they are doing a good job in run support but are contributing to the soft "middle" of the zone. (The seam running the width of the field 10-15 yards from the LOS)
The defensive line is the best unit on the defense. The three defensive ends are the strength. You know Michael Strahan, but Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck (R) are playing pretty well. Umenyiora is the starter opposite MS and is a great pass rusher but has a tendency to overrun the play on draws and delays. His best rush move is to the outside, which leaves lanes open for the run. Tuck is a very impressive rookie who ran down Tomlinson from across the field during the Giants Sunday night debacle. He is also a solid contributor on special teams. The tackle rotation of William Joseph, Fred Robbins, and Kenderick Clancy has been better than expected. With the exception of Tomlinson, the Giants have done a good job holding down the opponents run game and Joseph in particular has been disruptive in the backfield. This will, of course, be a key matchup against Denver's great running game.
The Giants offensive line has been much maligned in recent years, but the signing of Kareem McKenzie and the emergence of the two young guards (Snee and Diehl) have made this unit quite strong. They can open holes in the run game and have done a decent job of protecting the quarterback. The left tackle, Luke Petitgout, has some problems with speed rushers and struggled against Dallas' LaRoi Glover, but has looked good otherwise.
Tiki Barber is who he is, and his fumbling problems are well in the past. Brandon Jacobs is the big rookie HB who is quite a bruiser. He does have a tendency to run too high and this resulted in a fumble yesterday but he is very difficult to stop in short yardage. He doesn't get many carries, but his talent is tantalizing. Eli Manning has improved by leaps and bounds but still makes some youthful mistakes. Fortunately, his mistakes haven't been deadly because he's got 10 TD vs. only 3 INT's. The only problem with his numbers and his play is that he throws a lot of balls away rather than risk a turnover.
The receivers are headlined by Shockey and Burress. Amani Toomer is looking like his career is winding down, but as one of my personal favorites, I'm hoping that he can regain some of his explosiveness after the nagging injuries of last year. Tim Carter is the #3 with terrific speed but he is injury prone and runs "lazy" patterns from time to time. If the opposition can stop Burress and Shockey, then this offense will likely grind to a halt without one of the other receivers emerging. Tiki Barber, as always, remains a threat in the passing game as well, though I feel the Giants have been underutilizing him so far this season.
Special Teams is another unit of strength. Punt returner Chad Morton has been mistake free so far and has already returned one punt. Willie Ponder is the kick returner and one of the more dangerous in the league. He led the NFL in return average last season and is among the leaders again this year. David Tyree is the "ace" gunner and several rookies and young players have made the coverage units quite solid. Jeff Feagles continues to be a steady punter who has a knack for pinning teams deep and Jay Feely is a perfect 10/10 on field goals so far this year.
In a nutshell? Young quarterback, good skill players, weak secondary.
There used to be a time, when I was going to school in Boulder and later living in California that I followed the Broncos pretty closely as a "second" team to my beloved Giants, but since I've been living in the Southeast for the past 5 years, I've lost touch with the AFC West in general. Like any other NFL fan, I'm well aware of the Denver's superb running game, solid receivers, and their awesome linebackers, but very unsure about that new defensive line and the secondary.
Keeping in mind the fact that the stats mean very little at this point, I must ask a direct question related to the Denver defense. According to the numbers, Denver ranks 30th in pass defense just in front of the Giants and the 49ers. Is this a mirage, or is there a kernel of truth in these numbers? Is this a potential area for the Giants offense to exploit, or simply the product of a few games playing with the lead?
How about Plummer? I know that he's been playing great football and limiting the mistakes that have plagued him in the past, but is this simply a product of maturation or is his protection/running game so good that he just doesn't force anything?
As for the Giants, they're pass defense is pretty shaky. They have done a decent job so far of playing the old "bend but don't break" zone defenses, allowing the opposition to eat up vast chunks of yards between the 20's while limiting red zone opportunities to field goals. This worked very well in the three wins because the Giants offense put up huge numbers in all three victories. It didn't work so well against LaDainian Tomlinson because he simply "broke" the defense. (It also worked against Dallas, but the Giants offense decided to lay an egg until the last 6 minutes of the game.) The cornerbacks are very weak. Will Allen has been overrated his entire career and while a pretty solid tackler, he can't make a play on the ball. The other corner, Will Petersen, is out indefinitely, leaving the rookie Corey Webster and second year man Curtis DeLoatch to play the opposite side. All the corners suffer from not effectively covering the middle zone and giving up too much cushion. The SS is Gibril Wilson, who is the most talented guy in the secondary but the FS is Brent Alexander who, in my opinion, is too old and too slow to be starting in the NFL.
The linebackers are decent, with MLB Antonio Pierce the best all-around player. Sam LB Carlos Emmons is dinged, but his understudy Reggie Torbor is beginning to come on in his second year. Will LB is a disaster at the moment with the continuing injuries to Barrett Green (inactive last week) and his spot being filled by Nick Greisen, who is a good run stuffer but slow in coverage. As a unit, they could be improved, but right now they are doing a good job in run support but are contributing to the soft "middle" of the zone. (The seam running the width of the field 10-15 yards from the LOS)
The defensive line is the best unit on the defense. The three defensive ends are the strength. You know Michael Strahan, but Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck (R) are playing pretty well. Umenyiora is the starter opposite MS and is a great pass rusher but has a tendency to overrun the play on draws and delays. His best rush move is to the outside, which leaves lanes open for the run. Tuck is a very impressive rookie who ran down Tomlinson from across the field during the Giants Sunday night debacle. He is also a solid contributor on special teams. The tackle rotation of William Joseph, Fred Robbins, and Kenderick Clancy has been better than expected. With the exception of Tomlinson, the Giants have done a good job holding down the opponents run game and Joseph in particular has been disruptive in the backfield. This will, of course, be a key matchup against Denver's great running game.
The Giants offensive line has been much maligned in recent years, but the signing of Kareem McKenzie and the emergence of the two young guards (Snee and Diehl) have made this unit quite strong. They can open holes in the run game and have done a decent job of protecting the quarterback. The left tackle, Luke Petitgout, has some problems with speed rushers and struggled against Dallas' LaRoi Glover, but has looked good otherwise.
Tiki Barber is who he is, and his fumbling problems are well in the past. Brandon Jacobs is the big rookie HB who is quite a bruiser. He does have a tendency to run too high and this resulted in a fumble yesterday but he is very difficult to stop in short yardage. He doesn't get many carries, but his talent is tantalizing. Eli Manning has improved by leaps and bounds but still makes some youthful mistakes. Fortunately, his mistakes haven't been deadly because he's got 10 TD vs. only 3 INT's. The only problem with his numbers and his play is that he throws a lot of balls away rather than risk a turnover.
The receivers are headlined by Shockey and Burress. Amani Toomer is looking like his career is winding down, but as one of my personal favorites, I'm hoping that he can regain some of his explosiveness after the nagging injuries of last year. Tim Carter is the #3 with terrific speed but he is injury prone and runs "lazy" patterns from time to time. If the opposition can stop Burress and Shockey, then this offense will likely grind to a halt without one of the other receivers emerging. Tiki Barber, as always, remains a threat in the passing game as well, though I feel the Giants have been underutilizing him so far this season.
Special Teams is another unit of strength. Punt returner Chad Morton has been mistake free so far and has already returned one punt. Willie Ponder is the kick returner and one of the more dangerous in the league. He led the NFL in return average last season and is among the leaders again this year. David Tyree is the "ace" gunner and several rookies and young players have made the coverage units quite solid. Jeff Feagles continues to be a steady punter who has a knack for pinning teams deep and Jay Feely is a perfect 10/10 on field goals so far this year.
In a nutshell? Young quarterback, good skill players, weak secondary.