New York Giants 14 – Chicago Bears 7
Overview: Less than nine months ago, the Giants were a beat up and battered team that finished a supposed “playoff run” by going 0-3 down the stretch. The offensive line was unconfident and untalented; there was no running game; there was much finger pointing and whispers about players who were not playing hard; and no one was having any fun. The Giants finished the disappointing 7-9 season with an utterly embarrassing effort (or lack thereof) in Dallas despite words of warning from the head coach and owner. Many players had quit. It was obvious.
Fast forward to the off-season and General Manager Ernie Accorsi and Head Coach Jim Fassel and their respective assistants completely re-made the roster. The malcontents were sent packing. In came some savvy veterans – guys with talent and, just as importantly, leaders who brought with them a calming, confident presence. Together with the leadership growth of some key veterans such as Kerry Collins, Tiki Barber, Sam Garnes, and Keith Hamilton, the Giants mysteriously acquired that key ingredient this offseason that separates the winners from the losers in the National Football League: the Giants began to believe in themselves.
0-4 didn’t bother them in the preseason; they didn’t panic. The players knew what they were capable of and they went out an proved it in the first three games. Unbelievably, the Giants have made it look easy. One gets the sense that we haven’t seen the “A Game” from the players and coaches yet. It almost seems as if they are holding their best back for those big battles to come against Washington, Tennessee, and St. Louis. This team has not even come close to peaking yet. What a difference nine months make.
That confidence combined with a dramatically improved talent base has given the Giants a crucial 3-0 head start. But that is all it is. Now the real battles will begin. How good and how far this team will go is about to be determined. The more the Giants win, the more the pressure rises. But with that pressure can come great glory. It is all there for the taking. But each player must fully realize that with each passing game there can be no letdown, no breather. That won’t come until February. Now is the time to put it all on the line. Hard work in the film and weight rooms; complete focus in team meetings and on the practice field; and execution and intensity on game day will determine the outcome.
Get ready players, coaches, media, and fans because now the fun part is about to really start.
Quarterback: Another solid performance from Kerry Collins (24-of-33 for 249 yards, 1 touchdown and no interceptions) who was not spectacular, but very efficient. The high point of his day came on the first drive when the Giants drove the length of the field (80 yards) and never faced a third down situation. The drive was culminated by his best throw of the day (and perhaps season) – a gorgeously thrown deep ball to Ron Dixon for a 34-yard touchdown. Dixon was well-covered, but the defensive back never had a chance because the pass was so well thrown. I also saw something from Collins that really made me take notice later in the game. Collins stood in the pocket and calmly delivered a pass to Ike Hilliard despite knowing he was about to get sandwiched by two Bear defenders. Plays like that win games. I also loved the rollout to the left where Kerry was able to throw back across his body and find a well-covered Dan Campbell. Kerry and Dan seemed to be completely in sync with one another on that play as Dan somehow could tell that Collins wanted him to reverse direction in order to get open.
Don’t be fooled by the final score of this game, if it weren’t for the kicking game, a fumble, and a barely-deflected shovel pass, this game could have easily been 34-7. (In the first half, they got nothing out of drives of nine, eleven, and nine plays). But Collins again kept drives alive with accurate throws. Most importantly, for the second game in a row, he didn’t make the dumb mistake. No fumbles, no interceptions.
Offensive Line: BBI reporter Chris Jabobs will provide his excellent detailed analysis, but I want to make a few quick observations. I still can’t get over the fact how quickly this unit has come together. The Giants’ blocking schemes are not your basic, run-of-the-mill mano-a-mano stuff. This is a very involved zone-blocking system with lots of traps and pulling. Throw in the screens, reverses, counters, and various out-of-the-ordinary plays that Jim Fassel and Sean Payton are coming up with (not to mention the motion before every snap), and it is a minor miracle that they guys are acting like they have been together for five years. To me, the interior trio of Glenn Parker, Dusty Zeilger, and Ron Stone really stood out this week. Stone really surprised me with his pulling this week. Yes, there were moments when Bear defenders such as DT Mike Wells and MLB Brian Urlacher were able to stuff things, but these guys once again wore down their opponent. As John Madden pointed out throughout the game, Parker was doing a great job on his pulling (especially to the right). But I thought Ron Stone and Dusty Zeigler deserved more attention as well. LT Lomas Brown kept high-priced free agent Phillip Daniels quiet all game. RT Luke Petitgout only had one big snafu where he was bull-rushed back into Kerry Collins for a crucial sack. On the plays that I watched him, Luke seemed to be doing a decent job on his run blocks. The Giants once again dominated the time of possession (38:11 to 21:49), number of plays (76 to 56), and put up 407 yards of total offense. The Giants are wearing out opposing defenses and keeping their own defense fresh. “We were so fresh that whenever we went out there, we gave (the Bears) our best shot every time we went on the field,” SS Sam Garnes said.
And you know what? No penalties.
Tight Ends/H-Backs: Much more active in the passing game this week. H-Back Pete Mitchell (2 catches for 17 yards) made his presence felt on the first two drives – one was a nine yard pick-up on first down and the second one converted a third down. His return is going to be huge in coming weeks, especially on third down. Dan Campbell made an incredible, diving catch for 13 yards after reading Collins’ eyes (and intentions) by reversing his field and shaking the defender. Even Howard Cross got into the act with an 18-yard reception where he put on a Mark Bavaro impersonation by running over defenders after the catch. As for the blocking, Campbell was up and down on the plays where I kept my eyes on him. There was one Ron Dayne sweep to the left where Campbell did a great job of sealing the corner. However, on a right-side sweep, he couldn’t handle the defensive end and the play was stopped for no gain. Fans should also learn to appreciate Howard Cross’ contribution to the “Thunder and Lightening” production – he remains a superb run blocker.
Halfbacks/Fullbacks: They’re still at it. Tiki Barber (17 carries for 86 yards; 6 catches for 58 yards) and Ron Dayne (19 carries for 69 yards) have now torn apart three NFL defenses and a running game that was a joke last year is now putting up the best numbers in the league. The style has been well-documented already: Dayne punishes the opponent on straight-ahead runs and Barber runs around them with quickness and moves. Their highlights of the day came on the 6-play, 43-yard drive in the third quarter – a drive that was all “Thunder and Lightening” running. It was almost as if the backs and blockers (including the fullbacks and tight ends) said, “Enough of this crap, it’s time to put this team away.” The big plays on the drive were Tiki’s 19-yard run behind Zeigler and Parker and Ron Dayne’s 8-yard left-side sweep on 3rd-and-one where he punished the tackler. Tiki finished the drive with a halfback reverse behind a great block from the pulling Parker. Dayne had a big run called back due to a holding call on WR Joe Jurevicius, but Dayne seemed to take yet another step forward. He attacked the line a little quicker and more aggressively this week. The funny thing is that even when he appears stuffed, you find out he somehow still picked up four yards. Once again, he was huge in picking up first downs on second- and third-and-short. Tiki’s one big mistake was his fumble near the 10 yard line, but he did properly cover the ball on the play. Still, that could have been a killer turnover. He also dropped a swing pass that stalled a drive. It’s also too bad that his shovel pass was deflected because it looked like a huge play to me if completed.
Greg Comella (4 catches for 31 yards; 1 carry for 4 yards) continues to have a major role in this offense as both a receiver and blocker. Greg’s blocking was very strong again on Sunday on those plays where I watched him. I also like the attitude he brings to the field. There was once play where S Tony Parrish was giving Tiki the business after a big hit and Comella came over, shoved Parrish, and seemed to say, “Don’t pull that crap with us.” I love seeing fellow players sticking up for others like that. The two plays where I kept my eyes on FB Craig Walendy he did a real nice job with lead blocks.
Wide Receivers: With the running game operating a such a high-level, the receivers didn’t see the ball much. I’ve been somewhat surprised that the Giants haven’t been able to get Amani Toomer (5 catches for 24 yards) more involved with the downfield passing game this year so far. Perhaps, they are saving that for later opponents. Perhaps, Toomer is being doubled-teamed and can’t shake it. Regardless, Ike Hilliard (6 catches for 58 yards) was Collins’ favorite target on Sunday. He, like Dayne, has become a major factor on third down in keeping drives alive (Pete Mitchell will only add to this mix). His third down reception late in the game when the Giants were trying to run out the clock was a huge play. He did drop one perfectly thrown pass in the first half, but redeemed himself on the same set of downs with a key reception for first down. He also almost came up with a circus catch on a low-throw from Collins in the end zone on a flea flicker. Contrary to popular belief, Ike has not peaked and is getting better.
The guy who could really add to this mix flashed against the Bears. Ron Dixon got behind Thomas Smith on second-and-inches (a wonderful time to throw deep) for a 34-yard touchdown on the first drive of the game. Get one thing straight – Smith is no slouch; he’s one of the best corners in the game and he was playing well off of Dixon before the play even started. Dixon also did a good job on a 12-yard reverse earlier on the same drive. The Giants still haven’t been able to get the ball to Joe Jurevicius (though Joe continues to be a factor as a blocker on the field). His holding call brought back a big run by Dayne however and stalled a drive.
Defensive Line: This unit had a fairly strong game. The run defense was once again superb, but the Bears don’t run the ball very well so it’s hard to get an accurate judge on that. The pass rush was a bit curtailed by the need to prevent QB Cade McNown from scrambling and the Bears’ quick passing game. The defensive tackles were particularly stout inside. Keith Hamilton (3 tackles, 1 sack) was active against the run and was factor on the pass rush on a number of occasions. Christian Peter (3 tackles) couldn’t be moved off the ball; he needs to get more pressure on passing downs however. Michael Strahan (4 tackles, 1 sack) made a few plays against the run by hustling down the line of scrimmage. He did pick up a sack and had a few pressures. Cedric Jones (2 tackles), like Strahan, did well moving down the line to tackle the runner in the hole. Ryan Hale and Cornelius Griffin (1 tackle) saw limited action. Hale shows some pass rush promise and the Giants may want to think about using him instead of Peter on passing downs. Remarkably, the Bears were only able to pick up 54 yards in offense in the second half of the game (and only 48 yards rushing for the game total). The defensive line deserves much of the credit.
Linebackers: Strong game for the linebackers, particularly in pass defense. There were a couple of breakdowns where the back seven seemed a tad confused by the unusual passing schemes of the Bears, but the linebackers and defensive backs did a good job of coming up and making sure tackles on all the short passes and screens. Jessie Armstead (5 tackles, 1 sack), Mike Barrow (5 tackles, 1 sack), and Ryan Phillips (4 tackles) all were very active. This was probably Armstead’s best game of the young season and he did a wonderful job of timing his delayed dog up the middle for a sack. He was flying all over the field. Ryan Phillips did a good job in coverage on one early pass to the flat. Barrow forced an absolutely key fumble late that Strahan recovered.
Secondary: Like I said above, there appeared to be times when the secondary seemed a tad confused by the unusual schemes of the Bears, but the corners and safeties performed well and only gave up one big drive that led to points (a 12-play, 74-yard march where Cade McNown was 7-for-8). The guy who I thought played very well was Emanuel McDaniel (2 tackles) who seemed to always have tight coverage on his guy. CB Jason Sehorn (5 tackles) had a mostly positive performance. There were many plays where he was locked up one-on-one on Marcus Robinson, one of the best receivers in the game (most of Robinson’s catches didn’t come against Sehorn but were short passes where Robinson was running through the middle zone of the field). Sehorn got beat pretty badly by Robinson on one fly pattern, but fortunately the ball was badly overthrown. He also seemed to mistime his jump on well-thrown pass in the end zone where the receiver was ruled out-of-bounds. Later on the same drive, Sehorn was beat by Eddie Kennison for a short, 2-yard out TD pass (very difficult to defend without jamming the wide receiver). Jason really shined however on the Bears’ last desperate drive. Locked one-on-one with Robinson on another deep fly, Jason was step-for-step with the receiver on what may have been a game-saving play. He then did a great job on the ensuing play by coming up on a short pass to prevent the receiver from picking up a first down. McDaniel then deflected the 4th down pass to the tight end. Dave Thomas (4 tackles) had only one bad moment where he was beat by Robinson deep (again McNown missed him). But aside from that Thomas was not heard from other than making very sure tackles. Safeties Shaun Williams (5 tackles) and Sam Garnes (2 tackles) were key in stopping the short screen passes. Reggie Stephens saw quite a bit of time and wasn’t heard from – a good sign. My big complaint with the secondary thus far this year is that, like last year, they don’t seem to be in position to make interceptions.
Special Teams: First the good news. Kick-off and punt coverage was very good – the best so far. Bear returners never got untracked and the coverage men got down the field quickly.
The bad news? The kicking and punting games were horrendous and could have cost the Giants the game. Brad Daluiso missed a 34-yard field goal that would have given New York a 10-0 lead. He then had a 41-yarder blocked when holder Brad Maynard dropped the snap (the snap from Jason Whittle wasn’t great either). Then very late in the game, another Daluiso effort from 31-yards was blocked. These mistakes are not acceptable, especially the bad hold from Maynard.
Maynard was also terrible on two coffin corner efforts. One he kicked out of bounds past the 20 yard line and another he knocked into the end zone. Maynard looks like a bust to me and the Giants have to start thinking about possibly replacing him either this year or next offseason. To his credit, he did nail a very good 57-yarder, but the inconsistency in his game is really hurting the team.
Analysis of the Offensive Line
by Chris Jacobs
Lomas Brown 95%:
Had about as good a game as a player can have, very consistent. I’d say his only downfall, again, was he’s getting tired at the end of the game. I had him graded out at 103% in the first half, he seems to get really tired in the fourth quarter, this may hurt the team in a close game down the road. Did a great job picking up a stunt with Parker in the first quarter. Will have his hands full next week, they may keep a back in the backfield to help him with Smith.
Glenn Parker 100%:
He didn’t play a perfect game, actually I’d say Lomas had a better game. Parker made more mistakes than Brown but he made up for extra efforts here and there, and that’s why he graded out so high He really works his ass off out there and has to be in great shape because they’ve got him running all over the place out there. His first step on his pulling was flatter down the LOS this week which put him in the right position to make his blocks. Once again, next week is the big test.
Dusty Ziegler 89%:
Had his worst game yet, but he still graded out at 89% which is a good sign. For some reason he had two bad plays in a row at the end of the first half, on pass protection where his man beat him. Then on the first two plays of the second half he got beat on two consecutive running plays. I noticed that in the Cardinal game he came out after the half a little slow also. I know when he was with Buffalo, that big pig Logan for the Jets always gave him a hard time so we’ll see how he does this week against fat ass Wilkinson.
Ron Stone 95%:
Every time I say something about a guy he does the opposite, last week I talked about how his quickness is his downfall and so they start pulling him. I didn’t take count but he must have pulled about 5 or 6 times, I’m glad they did this because it makes the offense more unpredictable. I was really impressed with his speed pulling around the corners and finishing guys off. On one Dayne sweep he pancaked Urlacher, it’s that kind of attitude these guys didn’t have last year that’s the difference.
Luke Petitgout 90%:
Another solid game, the only glaring mistake was the sack he gave up at the end of the game. (Someone please explain to me how that isn’t a facemask). His only weakness to this point is he seems susceptible to the bull rush, Lomas is too but he’ll drop and cut the guy instead of getting pushed back into the QB. I’m sure with time he’ll learn, he’s playing well for a second year guy.
Why were there only 14 on the board!:
If the O-line collectively grades out at 93%, and the QB completes 73% of his passes with no interceptions, 407 yards of total offense, how come this wasn’t a blowout?
- Kicking game is atrocious.
- Jurevicious holds a guy after Dayne is already 16yards downfield. He’s not a rookie anymore he has to start using that big round thing in his helmet.
- Shovel pass that was tipped, would have been 6 easy, there was no one in between Tiki and the endzone.
- Tiki’s fumble.
I had another 26 points on the board without these mistakes, this won’t fly against the Redskins.
Sean Payton:
Third Quarter, the counters and misdirection plays aren’t as effective as the past two weeks. The Bears D is very disciplined in making sure they don’t over pursue Tiki. So what does he do? Ram it down their throat, Tiki up the middle, Dayne around the outside, then a nice little Delaware Wing-T sweep for a touchdown. This offense is very diverse, there is no one player they need to rely on the carry the team.