No need to talk about the obvious stuff to true Giants fans - like the dominating job by our OL in the running game, accurate passing by Eli and domination by our WRs. It looked like we could make a play anytime we wanted to. And I'm not going to talk about the obvious stuff like pass rush and dominating game by the DL. You know all that.
Here's what I'm going to talk about:
The OL is great run blocking line but is not as good as everyone thinks at pass blocking. They're not bad, in fact they're very good, but they can get beat sometimes. The truth is - Eli makes them look a little better than they really are. Aside from being a gifted passer, he is a very instinctive player, has great pocket presence and is quicker than everyone gives him credit for. In fact everyone makes fun of how slow and unathletic he is. The truth is - he is not a fast runner in the open field, but he has such good anticipation and good quick feet, that he avoids some rushers better than we realize. If you still have the game on your DVR (shame on you if you deleted it) go back and look at the TD pass to Burress. Boss was staying in to block, but he stumbled and completely whiffed on the RDE who came clean from Eli's blind side. Eli sensed it, stepped up and let the guy go past him behind him and he threw the easy TD. This happens a lot. Eli has great pocket awareness.
Our DL is ridiculous. Robbins and Tuck might be the best DT pair in football. Since the middle of last season I was calling Tuck one of the 5 best DL-men in football. Actually, I was underrating him. I think nobody is close to him. His strength, size, speed, quickness and technique are as good as anyone in the league. Add in his pure athleticism and you have the best defensive player in the league. Could any DE in the league have held that pass that he intercepted yesterday? And did you see him lope into the endzone - he looked more like a WR than a DE. Can any DE in football run down the field and cover a TE in zone blitzes like he does? Everyone was hoping he could replace the retired Strahan and become this generation's Strahan. Wrong - he is this generation's LT.
Can you imagine what this defense would look like if Osi was not hurt? McDougle and Wynn are very talented substitutes and should keep our main guys fresh. And - keep your eye on Jay Alford. he is a star in the making.
As good as the DL is, the DB's might be the strength of this defense. Webster picked right up where he left off in last year's playoffs. Ross is very strong in coverage and a great tackler. And has anyone noticed how greatly improved Kevin Dockery is? I am still a bit nervous about Butler at S, he's OK, I guess. But Michael Johnson is improving and Phillips is going to be a pro bowl player by his 3rd year. Our best cover guy from last year was Sam Madison and we are so improved that he can't get on the field.
The Giants are so loaded at WR. It is a pity Moss can't get on the field, because he might be the fastest one on the team. Hixon looks great.
The RB rotation is perfect. Don't rotate them by play or by down and distance, rotate them by qtr. Have Jacobs and Ward wear the defense down and come in with Bradshaw at the end. I know I said this last time - but I'd like to see the Giants do this with their WRs also. Moss and Hixon coming at a tired DB would be dangerous.
Gilbride is getting a little more creative. I'm not talking about the pass-run mixture, that was always good. The running game and the formations have become more varied. We are now running some counters, we are running more stuff right up the middle between the center and guard. Of course we still have our staple - the stretch play off-tackle led by a pulling G from the other side. The running game is so good that Eli doesn't even have to play fake for the passing game. The defense has to commit more db-help to stop our power running game and the WRs have more open space to run in. Speed on the outside complements a power running game beautifully and that's what we have.
From the big picture, when you are domiating the opponents at the line of scrimmage, you have skill position players on offense, good cover guys on defense and a great qb - you're going to win a lot of games.
Before we get too pumped up, however the Redskins weren't ready for the season in week 1 and the Rams stink. Nevertheless, we should be 5-1 at worst after 6 games (I am assuming that we stub our toe somewhere along the line). Games 7-9 will tell us how good we are: Steelers in Pittsburgh, Cowboys at home, Eagles in Philly. After those games we will find out if we are pretty good, very good or f-ing great. We also have a tough stretch in games 12-13-14 when we play all 3 NFC east opponents 3 weeks in a row.
NFC East seems like the best division in football. In fact the 3 best teams in the NFC, or maybe the entire NFL, might all be in our division.
I am pumped up: We are going to the game to see the Bengals this Sunday. At that game we will be seeing the best pure passing qb in football. On the other team, Carson Palmer will be there also. Did I mention that I think Eli is pretty good.
I hope that the Giants don't get too full of themselves becasue that gritty work-like attitude is why we won the Superbowl last year.
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