Hixon

This is getting stupid. Hixon done for the year with an ACL injury on the same knee he hurt last year. Hixon was starting to find his stride and was playing fairly well. If he's the 2nd or 3rd best WR on the team, he could be productive. However, this is a moot discussion at this point. If Nicks stays healthy, Manningham stays healthy and actually catches the ball when it's thrown to him, if Stokley catches on, the Giants are still a few players short at WR. They need to get Devin Thomas to play, they need to see if Jernigan and Cruz can contribute, they need to hope that Barden comes back and they should probably sign another WR.

The big worry is that the collective spirit of the team will be crushed by all the injuries. The biggest problem with the offense, however is not the WR group but is the blocking in the OL. I repeat my contention that the OL is talented and capable. Their main problem now is developing the cohesion to adjust the blocking schemes and not miss assignments, especially when the defense blitzes or lines up in a way that they did not expect. However, I believe this will develop over time.

My big concern with the blocking is with the TEs and FB position. All the announcers love Hynoski, because he is a throwback player, has a great attitude and he is a great story. Gruden was praising him a lot Monday night, but the fact is that he misses a lot of assignments and when he does pick up the right guy, he doesn't exactly demolish him and get a great push at the point of attack. Hedgecock was much better before he got hurt. Maybe he will develop a bit more as he gains more confidence and learns the offense better.

However, the big concern is the blocking from the TE position. Pascoe and even Ballard have been getting absolutely destroyed by the LBs or DL-men that they have had to block. This makes the running game suffer and the makes the OL look worse than it is.