Approach to the Game – New York Giants at Arizona Cardinals, November 11, 2001: The Cardinals are not having a good season, but they are playing better football this and should not be taken lightly. They beat the Eagles at the Vet earlier this year and defensively shut out the Eagles at home in the second half of last week’s game. And while the Cardinals’ offense has struggled, Jake Plummer and his receivers are still capable of making big plays and putting points on the board.
The Giants cannot afford to lose this game. They are 4-4 overall and 2-2 in the NFC East. Another division loss here could prove devastating.
Giants on Offense: The important thing for the Giants is not to put themselves into a deep hole for the third week in a row. The offense needs to put some productive, point-scoring drives together early in the game. Whether this is done via the pass or run is little matter as long as it gets done. Once the Giants have a lead, they then can pound the Cardinals with their running game.
In order to put some early drives together, the offensive line needs to come off the ball more effectively in the ground game and provide more solid pass protection. Kerry Collins also needs to guard against turnovers a bit more, while at the same time not becoming too cautious. It’s a delicate balance.
The Cardinals’ defensive line is ordinary at best. But they all play very hard so the Giants need to match or surpass their intensity up front. If they do, then the Giants should be able to control the line of scrimmage. At end, gone are Simeon Rice and Andre Wadsworth. In their place, LT Lomas Brown will face Thomas Burke and RT Luke Petitgout squares off against rookie Fred Wakefield. Inside, Russell Davis lines up over RG Ron Stone and Barron Tanner faces LG Glenn Parker.
WLB Rob Fredrickson and MLB Ronald McKinnon are quality starters. Both are instinctive, play-makers. Fredrickson can play the run, cover, and blitz. McKinnon is undersized and does better when freed up by the defensive tackles. Ray Thompson will likely start on the strongside. While athletic, he’s undersized for the position and the Giants should be able to run the ball in his direction.
Fortunately for New York, they no longer have to contend with Aeneas Williams in the secondary (he was traded to the Rams in the offseason). Left corner Tom Knight has been limited with a hamstring injury and may not play. David Barrett will start if Knight can’t go. Neither is very good. Right corner Corey Chavous is a smart, physical player who lacks top athleticism. Amani Toomer should be able to do some damage against him. The safeties are average too. If I’m Fassel and Payton, I’d be very tempted to go to 3-WR sets early and attack down the field. The Cardinals are well-coached on defense and play hard for Dave McGinnis, but they are lacking in talent on that side of the ball.
Giants on Defense: The Cardinals have been struggling on offense when it comes to putting points on the board, but they have some good talent on that side of the ball and have some very capable play-makers who could have a breakout game at any moment.
Where the Cardinals have really improved offensively is up front on the line. They have gotten bigger and better and it is a line that could become one of the better ones in the league. There will be some tough battles inside between DT Keith Hamilton (who is still ailing with a shoulder injury) and LG Pete Kendall (one of the better guards in the league). DT Cornelius Griffin has the unenviable task of squaring up against the massive and super-talented rookie RG Leonard Davis. LT L.J. Shelton is a former first round draft pick with an excellent combination of size and athleticism – yet another formidable foe for DE Kenny Holmes. RT Anthony Clement is underrated and big – he will give DE Michael Strahan a good game. Just like last week in facing the big and physical Dallas offensive line, the Giants will need to out-quick their opponent and play with superior technique. This is an offensive line that can drive people off the ball.
The Giants may catch a break in that HB Michael Pitman has suffered a couple of concussions and may not play. If he does, he is a tough, aggressive runner who can catch the ball (remember his big screen pass for a touchdown against the Giants last year in Arizona). If he doesn’t play, former first rounder Thomas Jones will start. While he has been disappointing to the Cardinals, he is a quick runner with good speed and moves. As usual, the defensive key is to shut down the run and then concentrate on getting after the quarterback.
Jake Plummer is an enigma. At times, he can look terrible and at other times he can look unstoppable – especially late in football games. The focus for the Giants must be to keep him from gaining confidence and getting into a rhythm. A strong pass rush is a good start – but just keep in mind that the Cards’ offensive line is no longer a weakness. The Giants may have to blitz more to get consistent pressure and that will expose the secondary to more risk.
The good news is that WR Rob Moore (hamstring) is out. But WR David Boston has given the Giants fits in the past. Jason Sehorn has first hand experience at how good he is. On a good team, Boston would be considered one of the league’s best. Frank Sanders has also given the Giants problems in the past. He lacks deep speed, but has gotten deep on the Giants in previous games. Will Allen, who struggled last week, faces him. The third wide receiver, MarTay Jenkins, is a speedster who caught the last-second TD pass against the Eagles in the Vet. Will Peterson will have to guard against the deep stuff with him.
Starting TE Terry Hardy (shoulder) is out. His back-up, Twan Mitchell, is a converted receiver so you know he can catch the ball. The linebackers and safeties need to keep an eye on him.
Giants on Special Teams: The big worry this week is the punting game with Rodney Williams out. Owen Pochman hasn’t punted since high school. You can be sure that the Cardinals will try to rattle him by coming after him.
The good news is that Pochman will be activated so kick-offs should be better. That is good news for a cover unit that is improving with added talent (Clayton White, Kevin Lewis, Dhani Jones, Cedric Scott). The bad news is that MarTay Jenkins is deadly on kick returns with the blazing speed to go the distance. Be careful there.
The Cardinals will have their own new punter this weekend – Chad Stanley and the Giants should try to come after him a bit.