Approach to the Game – New York Giants at Arizona Cardinals, October 12, 1997: The Giants had better not take Arizona too lightly. The Cardinals have a good team that could easily be 5-0 with a few breaks here and there. They’ve been in every game and nearly beat such teams as Tampa Bay and Washington. They have already beaten Dallas. For their part, the Giants are coming off of a emotional and physical ball game. The must re-group and re-focus on the Cardinals. Last week is history. The Cardinals represent another divisional opponent and thus this is an important game. If the Giants are to truly become a good team, they must start winning games on the road and they must start putting more offensive points on the board.
Giants on Offense: Is this the start of the Danny Kanell era? The ball seems to be in his court. If Danny can provide the impetus that the Giant offense currently lacks and put some points on the scoreboard, then he may not relinquish the job for years to come. Danny is a smart, heady ball player who seems to have a feel for the game. However, questions remain about his arm strength. His lack of experience in the pro game will also be a factor. Look for the Cardinals and Vince Tobin to throw the book at Kanell and try to confuse and rattle him. The rule of thumb in the NFL is come after young quarterbacks and that’s exactly what Arizona will most likely do on Sunday.
Kanell will face a very formidable and well-coached defense. CB Aeneas Williams is one of the best in the business and he finally has a quality corner to play opposite of him in rookie Tom Knight. Williams will most likely be matched up against WR Chris Calloway for most of the afternoon, so the Giants need a big performance out of Kevin Alexander. The good news is that Kanell seems to like to throw Alexander and has a good rapport with him. Danny may also be more willing to get the ball into Amani Toomer’s hands when the Giants go to 3-WR sets. We’d take a couple of shots deep to keep the Cardinals honest, but for the most part, it is probably best to focus on the short- and intermediate passing game over the middle of the field. The Giants shied away from the deep out pass against the Cowboys last week and it will be interesting to see if this pattern returns or not with Kanell in the line-up. If Danny has an inadequate arm, it will show up on this pass.
The topsy-turvy roller coaster performance of the Giants’ offensive line makes another stop this week. Which line will show up? The line which played decently against the Eagles, Ravens, and Cowboys, or the line which played horribly against the Jaguars, Rams, and Saints? Jim Fassel doesn’t seem to have much faith in this group, especially Scott Gragg and Greg Bishop. Fassel has chosen to keep Howard Cross in to help out with the pass blocking assignments and this has hurt the Giants’ options on offense and made them more predictable. The feeling here is that Fassel needs to let guys like Gragg to sink or swim on their own merit, to get Cross and/or Aaron Pierce more involved in the passing game. Up front the Giants probably face their greatest test of the year thus far. Roman Oben faces pass rushing terror DE Simeon Rice and the Giants’ interior trio will have to deal with All-World Eric Swann. DE Michael Bankston (a Giant killer) and DT Bernard Wilson are no slouches either. MLB Eric Hill may be available this week to play. He’s an intimidating presence in the middle of the field and arguably the best middle linebacker in the game. Let’s hope he doesn’t come back this week. Because of the Cardinals’ strength in the middle with Eric Swann, it may be wiser for the Giants to run more outside this week than they did last week. Tyrone Wheatley has the speed to burn defenses to the outside if the Giants’ offensive line can be effective and coordinated enough to run the sweep. Run Wheatley outside, Way to the inside.
Because the Cardinal defense will most likely be coming after Kanell with the blitz, a steady diet of screens, draws, and quick slant patterns wouldn’t hurt matters. However, the Cardinals are very good at disguising their coverages and Kanell needs to do a good job in differentiating between man-to-man and zone coverage. Because the Arizona safeties are ordinary, we would like to get Pierce down the seam or Wheatley down the sidelines for more deep stuff too.
Giants on Defense: These guys need to suck it up and play a great game again. No resting on their laurels — Sunday is another game. Because of the lack of continuity on offense due to all the injuries and the new system, the defense will be counted on again to keep this a low-scoring affair. Arizona has the potential to put a lot of points on the board. The key, once again, is to shut down the run first. The Cardinals are not happy with their running game, but they field the kind of quick, fast players who can pick up big yardage if the Giants let their guard down. The Cardinal line is an ordinary unit and the Giants’ defensive line may be able to make some hay in both the run and pass defense department. But it all depends on attitude. If Michael Strahan, Robert Harris, Keith Hamilton, and Chad Bratzke play with the type of heart and desire they have all season in this game, the Giants will be in good shape. If they let up “because it’s the Cardinals,” the Giants will be in trouble. It is unfortunate that DE Cedric Jones re-injured his knee this week in practice because depth will become a major concern on the defensive line given the desert heat. Consequently, Bernard Holsey, Ray Agnew, and Christian Peter need to play well.
At linebacker, Jessie Armstead is having a great year and we’d have him and/or Scott Galyon keep an eye on FB Larry Centers (if he plays) all day. Centers is the Cardinals’ most dangerous weapon as a pass receiver out of the backfield. Larry can also run the ball. The Cardinals have a much better receiving tight end this year with the acquisition of Chris Gedney from the Bears. The Giants’ defense has been somewhat vulnerable to the tight end and the Giant linebackers and safeties must not let Gedney (or fellow TE Johnny McWilliams) become a factor. OLB Corey Miller played a disappointing game last week and if he doesn’t start making some plays, we would start phasing in Ryan Phillips more. The Cardinals may also attempt to expose Corey Widmer some in coverage and he needs to be quick and active in his zones.
For some reason, the Cardinal passing game has given the Giant defensive backs fits over the course of the past few seasons. Phillippi Sparks and Jason Sehorn have the ability to shut down WR’s Rob Moore and Frank Sanders, but they have historically had problems with these two. The Giant safeties have been a big-play bunch this year. Let’s hope they continue their fine work.
Giants on Special Teams: Arizona PK Kevin Butler has cost the Cardinals more games than Brad Daluiso has cost the Giants this year — let’s hope it stays that way. P Brad Maynard should be able to unload some big punts in the Arizona heat. Kick-off coverage gave up a major return against the Cowboys last week — they can’t and shouldn’t count on Daluiso to nail every kick into the endzone. The Giants haven’t broken a big kick return since Thomas Lewis did it on opening day. David Patten has the speed, but he needs to show more vision and instincts. His fumble last week almost gave the game away too. Amani Toomer has been more productive as a punt returner, but he still dances around too much for our taste. What is it with the Giants that they can never block a kick or punt?