New York Giants 19 – Washington Redskins 17
Game Overview: Leave it the Giants to find a new way each week to make a game that shouldn’t be close a nail-biter. The Skins should have been shut out of this game, but instead, the Giants found themselves trailing 17-10 late in the 3rd quarter. Kerry Collins overthrew two receivers for what should have been easy touchdowns; an idiotic taunting penalty and a dropped interception by Will Allen handed Washington seven points; a bad interception that gave the Skins the ball at the 12-yard line and a dropped interception by Will Peterson caused a 10-point swing (Peterson would have likely scored on the play); and another interception gave Washington the ball on the 11-yard line and WR Rod Gardner comes down with a TD catch despite being surrounded by a sea of blue defenders. I’m telling you – I was pulling my hair out.
But the Giants found a way to pull it out as the defense limited the Redskins to 166 yards of total offense (60 yards rushing and 106 yards passing). PK Matt Bryant was a perfect 4-for-4 on a wet, soggy field. TE Jeremy Shockey (11 catches for 111 yards) had his best day as a pro by far and WR Amani Toomer (8 catches for 95 yards, 1 touchdown) made an impact against a quality opponent who was often double-teaming him.
The Giants have a nice little winning streak going now, but keep in mind that the Jaguars, Vikings, and Redskins are not very good. The Giants still have not beaten anyone of consequence since they defeated the Rams in week two. Most importantly, the injury situation is depressing. Not only are Keith Hamilton, Ike Hilliard, Dusty Zeigler, and Tim Carter out for the year, the Giants don’t know when they will get Cornelius Griffin, Ron Dixon, and Chris Bober back. Kenny Holmes is playing hurt and all three starting linebackers have had problems with their hamstrings.
My big hope for this team is that it realizes all of the above and doesn’t start getting a big head about itself. I think the key for the Giants is to get to 8-4 in the next two weeks and then play those last four games like a sprint. But getting to 8-4 will not be easy.
Special Teams: The big relief was that PK Matt Bryant went a perfect 4-for-4 on field goal attempts, including a 43-yarder. Obviously, he benefitted from the return of P Matt Allen as his holder and the insertion of Chris Bober as his snapper. Because the Giants are not going to activate two punters, they have waived P Tom Rouen despite the fact that the Rouen looked to be the better punter. It is absolutely absurd that the Giants have based who their punter will be on his skills as a holder. This whole mess goes back to the poor coaching decision in training camp to not have QB Jesse Palmer work with Bryant. But I digress.
Bryant’s kickoffs were not good, but the field conditions and weather were a factor. His kickoffs landed at the 23, 14, 13, 9, 13, and 7. Kick coverage was good despite the erratic kickoffs with returns being limited to 10 yards (Kevin Lewis and Sean Bennett making the tackle), 17 (Kevin Lewis), 22 (Marcellus Rivers), 28 (Kevin Lewis), 17 (Reggie Stephens and Wes Mallard), and 23 yards (Marcellus Rivers). Kevin Lewis also forced a huge fumble on a kick return that Marcellus Rivers recovered. This set up a field goal that cut the Redskin lead to 17-16. Obviously, Lewis and Rivers were the stars of the kick coverage team.
Matt Allen was horrible. His punts went for 31 (muffed), 17 (a terrible pooch punt opportunity – Damon Washington made the tackle), 34 yards (another terrible pooch punt opportunity that reached the end zone – the net was 14 yards), 31 yards, and 49 yards (a good clutch punt – Marcellus Rivers made the tackle – again).
Delvin Joyce was finally given some space to return punts. His returns went for 3, 10, 25 (this was called back to a holding penalty on Johnnie Harris), and 28 yards. The latter set up the first field goal in the second half. His kick returns went for 19, 26, 20, and 27. Pretty average.
The low, game-winning field goal attempt by the Redskins’ punter was blocked by DT Lance Legree and recovered by FS Omar Stoutmire.
The big negatives? The delay of game penalty on the Giants’ field goal unit in the 3rd quarter turned a 47-yard field goal attempt into a punt where the Giants only netted 14 yards. This could have cost the Giants the game. Also, long snapper Bob Jones, who only snaps for punts now, not only brought back an excellent punt by Matt Allen with his obvious holding penalty. But his next snap on the re-kick was low. Why does this guy still have a job?
All in all, the Giants’ special teams were the biggest factor in the Giants winning the football game. When was the last time you could say that?
Defensive Line: Good game by this group. DE Michael Strahan (7 tackles, 2 sacks) was back to his old self in terms of his run defense. He was very stout on strongside runs in direction and even made a nice play from the weakside spot on the Skins’ first offensive play. Late in the 1st quarter, Strahan teamed with Dhani Jones and Will Allen to stuff a Stephen Davis run to the right for a 1-yard gain. On this same drive (in what ended up to be the Skins’ first scoring drive), Strahan had three solid pass pressures. On the next drive, he batted down a pass at the line of scrimmage that was intended for a receiver who was wide open underneath. On the next play, on 3rd-and-9, he sacked Shane Mathews to force a punt. In the 3rd quarter, on the play where Jason Sehorn intercepted Shane Mathews, Strahan was applying heat to the quarterback once again. On the next drive, Strahan got another pass rush on Mathews that forced an incompletion. On the last Redskins’ possession, Strahan first pressured Mathews into an incompletion on first down and then sacked Mathews for 7-yard loss on 3rd-and-10 from the Redskins’ 14 yard line, all but putting the final nail in the coffin.
DT Cornelius Griffin (4 tackles) was active before he was forced to leave the game with an another ankle injury. He made a great pursuit play on the Skins’ second possession when he chased Stephen Davis down from the backside; this was an important play as Kenny Holmes and Dhani Jones were handled at the point of attack. On the very next play, both Griffin and Holmes got a good pass rush on Mathews to force an incompletion on 3rd-and-3. Griffin combined with SS Shaun Williams to tackle Davis for a loss on a draw play in the second quarter. Near the end of the 3rd quarter, Griffin combined with the blitzing Brandon Short to force an incompletion on 2nd-and-10.
Kenny Holmes (2 tackles) played decently against a quality opponent (Chris Samuels). Holmes combined with Brandon Short to stuff a Davis draw on 1st-and-goal from the 8-yard line in the 2nd quarter. On Mathews’ last TD throw, Holmes had excellent pressure on the play and clobbered the quarterback as he threw the ball. Later in the quarter, Holmes did a great job of stringing out a 3rd-and-3 sweep in his direction, allowing Mike Barrow to make the tackle from behind for a 1-yard loss and forcing a punt.
DT Lance Legree (2 tackles) made a big impact on the Redskins’ last serious drive to win the game. Before that, he combined with Dhani Jones on a Davis run up the middle in the middle of the 3rd quarter, holding the back to a 1-yard gain. On the drive in the 4th quarter where the Skins were attempting to regain the lead, Legree and Mike Barrow tackled Davis for a 2-yard loss on 1st-and-10 from the Giants’ 33. This was a huge play because the Skins came up 2 yards short on the 3rd down play and were forced to try the field goal that was blocked. Before that, Legree got a great pass rush and clobbered Mathews as he was throwing the ball on 2nd-and-12, causing an incompletion (Dwight Johnson also got a good rush on this play). Johnson (2 tackles) saw action both at end and tackle (especially the latter after Griffin left the game). He did a good job and earned the praise of Head Coach Jim Fassel after the game. He stuffed Davis on a 3rd-and-1 run up the gut for no gain in the 4th quarter. Later on the same drive after the Skins converted on 4th down, Johnson combined with the blitzing Brandon Short to put pressure on Mathews to force an incompletion. On the play before Strahan’s last sack, Johnson also got a good pass rush on the quarterback.
DE Frank Ferrara (no tackles) didn’t make any plays. He was embarrassingly blocked by a wide receiver on one pitch in his direction in the second quarter.
Linebackers: Mike Barrow (9 tackles) was more like his old self this week despite playing with a strained hamstring and later suffering a concussion late in the game. He was active against the run and did a better job this week of filling gaps, such as the 2nd-and-6 run by Davis at the beginning of the 3rd quarter where Davis only picked up 1 yard. On the play where Brandon Short should have intercepted Shane Mathews’ pass in the 4th quarter, it was Barrow’s blitz and hit on Mathews that caused the play.
Brandon Short (6 tackles) combined with Strahan on the game’s first offensive play to hold Davis to a 2-yard gain. He also did a good job of sniffing out a draw play in the second quarter. Short was a major factor as a blitzer in the second half of the game, especially in the 4th quarter. Although he didn’t come up with a sack, he forced a number of incompletions. The bad news was that he dropped what should have been a game-sealing interception on the Skins’ last serious drive to take the lead.
Dhani Jones (3 tackles) improved against the run this week. He did a great job of holding at the point-of-attack on a Davis run off left tackle for 3-yards late in the first quarter. On the previous play, he showed good pursuit on a strongside run where he combined with Strahan and Allen to make the tackle. Jones had decent coverage on TE Leonard Stephens in the end zone (along with Shaun Williams) in the second quarter. In the 3rd quarter, he and Legree held Davis to a 2-yard gain on a run up the middle. Jones made a great tackle in the 4th quarter on Davis on Davis’ best run of the game (for 14 yards) when Jones chased the play down from behind or it could have been off to the races for Davis (Holmes, Short, and Legree were taken out of the play and Shaun Williams had taken the wrong angle).
Defensive Backs: What impressed me was the fact the Giants didn’t seem to be confused with all the various sets Steve Spurrier employs to get his mostly average receivers open. The biggest problem the Giants’ defensive backs – specifically, Will Allen and Will Peterson – had was holding onto the football. But you can’t ask much more than holding an opponent to 106 yards of passing offense. Shane Mathews only completed 4 passes in the entire second half of the game.
Shaun Williams (6) tackles set the tone on the Redskins’ first drive of the game. He nailed Stephen Davis in the backfield on 3rd-and-1 for a 1-yard loss and forced Washington to punt. However, I don’t know what Williams was doing on Mathews’ second touchdown of the game as he watched WR Rod Gardner run in front of him for the reception; Williams should have made a play on the ball. On Washington’s last possession of the game, Williams knocked away a pass intended for Willie Jackson on 1st-and-10 from Washington’s 14-yard line.
Washington’s only decent downfield passing play came on an 18-yard connection near the end of the first quarter as Rod Gardner found an opening in the Giants’ zone in front of FS Omar Stoutmire (4 tackles).
The Skins’ first wide receiver screen went for 7-yards on the second play of the game, but two subsequent attempts were defended perfectly as Will Allen (3 tackles) and Will Peterson (5 tackles) each came up quickly to make the tackle. Where Allen really screwed up was his stupid unsportsmanlike penalty on 3rd-and-5 after making a great play on WR Chris Doering on a shallow crossing pattern. He later could have redeemed himself on this drive by intercepting a pass thrown right to him in the end zone, but he dropped it (incidentally, both Ralph Brown and Jason Sehorn had great coverage on the goal line on this play). The Redskins scored on the next play as Peterson was beaten by Willie Jackson, despite solid coverage from Peterson. The pass interference penalty called on Peterson earlier on this drive was bit touchy if you ask me. Peterson had a chance to make a huge play right after Collins’ interception gave the Skins the ball on the 12-yard line. On 3rd-and-11, Mathews hit Peterson right in the chest and there was nothing between him and the end zone 98-yards away…but Peterson dropped the ball. The Skins then kicked the field goal…it was a 10-point swing. Peterson had a two negative plays on the Skins’ last offensive possession right before halftime. He got beat on a slant by Jackson for 11-yards and he missed a tackle on Jackson two plays later after a short reception.
In the second half, the Skins’ receivers could find little breathing room against the Giants’ defensive backs, but there were some mistakes. Will Allen had excellent coverage on Gardner on a 3rd-and-5 pass after Shockey’s interception. This forced the Skins to punt in what looked like a good scoring opportunity for Washington. But after Collins’ interception on the next possession, Will Peterson was beat again for a touchdown (this is the play where Shaun Williams didn’t make a play). Later in the quarter, Peterson had good coverage on Gardner on an intermediate crossing route that fell incomplete. Then in the 4th quarter, the Skins took a shot deep at Peterson and came up empty as Peterson once again had excellent position on Gardner. On the Skins’ drive where the block occurred, Peterson was flagged with a horrible pass interference call for 7-yards; Peterson did nothing wrong on the play. The Skins later benefitted from a huge non-call by the officials on the same drive. On 3rd-and-10, Gardner obviously pushed off on Will Allen, sending him to the turf. But the officials didn’t call the penalty and a 13-yard gain resulted.
Things didn’t start off well for Jason Sehorn (1 tackle, 1 interception). He was beaten by WR Derrius Thompson for 8-yards on 3rd-and-6 on the Redskins’ first scoring drive. But Sehorn, like the two Wills, kept the guy he was covering quiet most of the game. And Sehorn made a great, athletic interception on 3rd-and-10 near the end of the 3rd quarter that set up New York’s final go-ahead points. Later in the 4th quarter, Sehorn had excellent coverage on a pass intended for Derrius Thompson that fell incomplete.
Quarterback: QB Kerry Collins (22-of-46 for 211 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions) had plenty of good reasons to have his problems on Sunday. The weather was a factor. He had only one veteran wide receiver out there (an unbelievable situation). The Skins have three good cornerbacks and a quality set of linebackers. I didn’t expect fireworks. But his inaccuracy almost cost the Giants’ the game – and this despite pretty remarkable pass protection. He badly overthrew a wide open Tiki Barber and Dan Campbell on a back-to-back plays on the Giants’ first drive. Instead of a 16-play drive culminating in 7 points, the Giants had to settle for 3. He had one pass almost picked off when he forced a ball into Daryl Jones on a slant where Jones was double-covered. On the next drive, he threw behind Shockey and the pass was picked off and returned to the Giants’ 12-yard line, setting up a field goal.
On the next drive, Collins made some plays. He threw a beautiful sideline pass to an extremely well-covered Amani Toomer on 3rd-and-4 for 5 yards and a first down. Three plays later, on 3rd-and-10, Collins spotted Jessie Armstead coming free on the blitz and hit Shockey as the hot receiver for 15-yards and a first down. On the next play, he found the wide open Toomer streaking down the middle of the field for a 35-yard touchdown toss.
But Collins wasn’t real sharp in the second half either. The second interception was not his fault; Champ Bailey merely made a great play on the ball. But on the next drive, his accuracy was still off as there was one pass that was thrown very low and far behind Shockey. Later on this same drive, Collins broke the cardinal rule of quarterbacking when he threw late over the middle of the field. The decision was not only poor, but so was the high throw. Two Redskins had a chance to pick it off, but they couldn’t come down with the ball. On the next drive, he made his best throw of the game – a 4th-and-10 out pass to Amani Toomer for 12 yards – a key play in the game that led to a field goal. But later on the drive, he underthrew Dan Campbell on a seam pass from the Washington 22-yard line. On the next drive, after the Redskins fumbled the kickoff, Collins was behind Shockey again for another incompletion. And on New York’s last field goal drive, Collins threw a 2-yard pass to Barber over the middle when he had Dan Campbell all alone on the right sideline on what would have been an easy touchdown. Collins simply didn’t see Campbell.
Wide Receiver(s): Amani Toomer (8 catches for 95 yards, 1 touchdown) was the only wide receiver on the roster to catch a pass on Sunday. That’s unbelievable. What was impressive about Toomer’s performance is that in the past, Toomer has tended to disappear in games against top corners and/or where he was double-teamed. The Giants desperately needed Amani to make some plays on Sunday and he came through for them. Toomer could rarely shake free of Bailey when Bailey would line up on him, but Toomer somehow came up with his share of catches. Things did not start off well, as five of Collins early passes were intended for Toomer but only one was completed (Toomer beat Fred Smoot on a 9-yard pass on the Giants’ 3rd drive). But on the fifth drive, the last before halftime, Toomer caught two 5-yard passes, including a superlative diving reception for a first down on 3rd-and-5 despite being covered like a blanket. Then he finished up the drive by beating the safety easy for a 35-yard touchdown reception. (Incidentally, the announcers said Toomer had dropped a pass on this drive, but in fact Bailey got his hand on the ball).
In the second half, Champ Bailey was able to get hand on the slant pass to Toomer early in the third quarter. The ball was deflected up into the air and intercepted by the safety. It was simply a great play by Bailey. On the next drive, Toomer caught a 13-yarder and a 11-yarder – the latter being off of deflection where Toomer did a nice job of tracking the ball down to come up with the catch. A pass intended for Toomer on 3rd-and-10 right after the big punt return by Joyce was deflected by Bailey again and Toomer couldn’t come down with the ball. However, on the next play, on 4th-and-10, Toomer caught an out pass for 12-yards against Darrell Green. He later caught a 5-yarder against Bailey in the 3rd quarter.
It was disappointing that Daryl Jones didn’t make any plays in the passing game on Sunday. But keep in mind that this was his first start and his only significant playing time with the first unit except for late in the Vikings game. Plus, since he is the “Z” receiver in the Giants’ offense, much of the time he was lined up against Champ Bailey (who played a great game against the Giants). Daryl had four passes thrown in his direction – all in the first half. The first pass was a go route, but Bailey had Jones well covered. On 3rd-and-20, Collins tried to hit Jones in the end zone, but Collins’ pass was thrown out-of-bounds. The next pass thrown Jones’ way was the slant where he was double-covered and not open. Jones’ last opportunity was the 3rd-and-10 deep crossing pattern where Jones beat both Smoot and the safety, but dropped the ball. Twice in the first half, Jones was open underneath, but Collins decided to throw the ball instead to Toomer and Campbell. Jones was flagged with a costly false start penalty on 3rd-and-8. It was costly because Collins’ pass to Shockey went for 9-yards on the very next play – 4 yards short.
The only pass thrown in Derek Dorris’ direction was deflected away from Dorris by the defensive back (this was the pass that Toomer caught off of the deflection).
Tight Ends: Jeremy Shockey, despite playing on two bum toes, finally had his breakout game (11 catches for 111 yards). Shockey was a factor in the game early and often. On the Giants’ first drive, he caught 4 passes for 41 yards and had another thrown in his direction (it was tipped at the line of scrimmage). The second catch was an impressive diving effort for 10-yards.
One of the most important plays of the game was Shockey’s 15-yard reception on 3rd-and-10 from the 50-yard line. The Skins had just gone ahead 10-3 and if the Giants had to punt, momentum would have been completely with the Skins. The Skins blitzed Armstead off of the corner and Collins hit Shockey short as the hot receiver. Shockey broke one tackle short of the first down and then spun his way past the marker. On the next play, the Giants scored to tie the game. But it wouldn’t have happened had it not been for the third down conversion.
In the second half, Shockey caught a 15-yard pass on a crossing route on 3rd-and-3. This kept the game-winning field goal drive alive right after Sehorn’s interception. On the next drive, Shockey caught a 15-yarder that was important because it moved the Giants from their own 9-yard line to the 24 – a key play in the game in terms of field position.
But it wasn’t a perfect game for Shockey. He fumbled the ball away at the Giants’ 36 on the second play of the second half and only good defense prevented the Redskins’ from turning that into points. He also dropped two big passes in the second half. The first was a deep pass in the third quarter where Shockey had a step on the defensive back and Collins laid the ball in there perfectly. The second came early in the 4th quarter on 2nd-and-9 from the Redskins 19. Shockey had beaten the linebacker and Marcellus Rivers gave him a good block on the play down the field. If Shockey caught the pass, I think he would have scored easily.
Dan Campbell (1 catch for 7 yards) did a nice job of blocking in the first half, including from the fullback spot this week. There were a number of plays where I spotted him taking LaVar Arrington out of the play. However, like his OL teammates, he did get stymied a few times in the second half with respect to his run blocking. Campbell got open for what should have been a 25-yard touchdown pass on 2nd-and-20, but Collins overthrew him in the end zone.
Running Backs: The running game actually performed decently in the first half of the game, but then faltered in the second half. As usual, Tiki Barber (64 yards on 24 carries) was the early focus. On the first drive, he picked up 3 yards (LG Rich Seubert missed his block on Daryl Gardener), 2 yards (excellent pursuit play by the Skins’ safety), 5 yards (a nice cutback run as the Giants fooled the Skins by pulling Seubert to the right), 6 yards (good blocks by Campbell and LT Luke Petitgout), and -2 yards (RG Jason Whittle was flagged for holding on this play).
On the Giants’ third drive, Barber picked up 6 yards (up the gut behind a good OL surge), 4 yards (good block by Campbell), 3 yards (good blocks by Seubert, OC Chris Bober, and Whittle), 6 yards (Giants’ accepted a penalty to negate this play), no gain (excellent pursuit play by Jeremiah Trotter), and no gain. Contrary to what I thought heading into the game, the Giants were having more success running up the middle than outside.
Two series later, Ron Dayne (10 carries for 29 yards) got his first touch. His best run was hist first, a 9-yard effort around left end behind good blocks from Petitgout and Shockey. On 2nd-and-1, Dayne did a good job of keeping his feet moving as he picked up 2 yards and the first down. Two plays later, he only picked up 1 yard as Seubert missed a block on the defensive lineman who made the tackle. Dayne had a nice blitz pick-up on the Giants’ first drive during one of Kerry’s overthrows.
In the second half, the Giants couldn’t get anything going except for a few runs. Tiki Barber was able to break off a key 23-yarder that set up the second field goal in the second half after the Redskins’ fumbled the kick return. It was a good cutback run behind good blocks from Petitgout and Seubert. (Incidentally, the cutback burned Jessie Armstead badly). Later on the drive, however, Barber dropped a screen pass on 3rd-and-11 from the Redskins’ 15-yard line. The Giants had two blockers out in front of Barber on the play. Barber’s other decent run was a 6-yard draw on 3rd-and-goal from the Redskins’ 7 yard line. I liked the call and it almost worked as the Skins barely kept Barber out of the end zone. Kudos to Barber’s effort on his 3rd-and-3 run around right end that was poorly blocked. He came darn close to making the first down that would have helped the Giants to run more time off of the clock. However, Tiki is darn lucky that the ball wasn’t ruled a fumble as it came loose when he stretched for the marker (incidentally, Daryl Jones got a killer block on the play). Dayne’s only decent carry was a 5-yarder behind good blocks from RT Mike Rosenthal and Whittle. There was one Dayne run where he cut it back up inside for only a 2-yard gain; I thought he had a decent hole to his left if he had seen it. The big problem was the offensive line was getting any movement in the second half of the game.
Offensive Line: For the most part, the pass protection was excellent. The Redskins surprised the Giants with a couple of blitzes by Armstead when it appeared he was covering Shockey. Arrington also came free as he was unaccounted for on a couple of plays. There was one play in the first half where both Rosenthal and Whittle got beat quickly and this led to immediate pressure on Collins. Chris Bober got beat on one pass rush by Dan Wilkinson on the first drive. Seubert had some problems with a couple of stunts and Luke Petitgout had a problem on one stunt.
The run blocking was pretty solid in the first half, but really faltered in the second half as the Giants had all kinds of problems moving the Redskins’ off the line of scrimmage between the tackles and running outside against the Skins’ linebackers. Daryl Gardener was a constant thorn in the side of the Giants and Rich Seubert in particular.
Whittle was flagged for holding, the line’s only penalty.
Rainy Days
by David Oliver
And all the rest. Sunday began inauspiciously, dark and gloomy. Dr. Joe and I headed North on the pavement of dreams, Route 95, a concrete ribbon transporting us through Charm City, past Cal Ripken’s Aberdeen Field of Dreams, across the Susquehanna and into the stinking wasteland of Delaware, over the architectural wonder of the Delaware Memorial bridge, dual megaliths giving testimony to the creative genius of the engineering profession, up the I-295 (free) bypass of the Turnpike, which waits for us much like the inevitability of age. The New Jersey Turnpike, passing through hectare upon hectare of rural land, across the river from the City of brotherly Love, no joke, a true Cain and Able City if ever there was one; back to I-95, known more for the industrial wasteland of its northern passage, container cranes on the right, cogeneration and cracking plants on the left, oil storage terminals dotting the landscape as industrial replacements for the green of trees, every time I pass then I think of Billy Sol Estis and his soybean oil scam. But I love this northern part for it is home. I love the Pulaski Skyway, fondly remembering the Breyer’s plant we passed in Newark before climbing up and over Seacaucus, the Pepsodent plant at the end as we descended downwards into the Holland Tunnel and adventure. The weather always changes as you pass New Brunswick, home of Rutgers and hapless football. What was grey now becomes sprizzle, leaving a grimy trail in the wake of the wipers, the sky meeting the pavement in our own version of cry the forsaken land, the split in the road, one section heading east for the transit to Paradise, the other west towards the meadowlands and on to the Tappan Zee bridge and Rip Van Winkle. Out of the mist rises Avalon, Giants Stadium, the Guggenheim of sports with its upwards crawling ramps. Off the Turnpike and into the Bacchanalian frenzy of tailgate heaven.
It promised to be a day of little poetry, sloppy and brutal as a battering ram against the Giants’ fans dream of playoff destiny. The Redskins, even a terrible team as this one, could be a roadblock, more a tragedy. Divison games are never pretty, no wedding cake revelry, more like a dry Panettone which we eat only because generations of our forebears ate it. Too often these games are decided by toes, as in kicks made or not made. Too often have Redskins running backs made the giants defense appear like Swiss Cheese or Limburger. But there is always the memory of that playoff victory on the way to the SuperBowl, with darkness descending and paper blowing across the field, when those glorious Giants pistol-whipped the mighty Redskins, left them gasping for air to the thunderous cheering of the frenzied crowd, capped off by Jim Burt hoisting his son on his shoulders and heading for the fans.
As our bags were being checked, Dan Snyder and his entourage pulled up in two Limos. They were allowed into the inner sanctum, the lot closest to the doors, where only the team buses are now allowed. A lot cordoned off by steel fencing and guarded by Hessians, fierce, but not too coordinated. As the Limos leave there is a shouting match among the guards over who authorized entry. Yet again, thank you Usama Bin Laden, for you have allowed these cretins without self control the power to control us. I decide to skip practice because of the gloom. Hanging out in the tunnel, I note the size of the Redskins, awesome, as most teams who walk the tunnel to the visitors room. They always seem larger than our warriors. I note Tre Johnson, seemingly with a small head for his mammoth proportions and a fine set of dreads, or threads, or braids. If they played with no helmets, this would be one scary dude. Dan Snyder is walking in the wake of his minions, black topcoat open and flapping, reminding me of an Australian drover herding his roos into the pen. I hope he leaves here today realizing once again that rich boys may have the toys, but often it isn’t enough. On the field, General Peter Pence, U.S. Army 4 Star is a guest of honor. General Pence is a NJ boy and he is making the rounds. He was at Dover in September, guest of NASCAR. Funny how life is now; here is a 4 Star General whom very few people have probably ever heard of; a chestful of medals, but where was he that our media has not lionized him, or where was I that I did not hear of his exploits. He is ramrod straight, possessing the look of a successful Coach. Maybe he will call plays for the Giants today.
THE VIEW FROM THE SIDELINES
Which brings us to the game. Not much rain until near the first half, then a steadily increasing downpour, soaking everything, cameras, lenses fog up, clothes, boots. The sidelines are muddy, even with the rip rap put down for the TV crews. If you close your eyes, you can feel the wet in your bones, the very fibre of your being is hosed over. The fans must feel it, at least those who are not well-lubricated against the elements, and the players must feel it. But with the sod down you don’t even get those beautiful shots of turf face, you know, the photos with players full of mud and blood, soaked through to the skin. Only Stephen Davis looks the part, having been pushed down so many times that his back is black from mud stains. The game was not artistic, and only a Giants’ victory kept us from deep depression. The Giants had a wonderful Red Zone efficiency of 0% and a wonderful Goal-to-Go efficiency of 0%. That’s right, 0-4 and 0-1. It doesn’t matter who calls the plays on the sidelines; it doesn’t matter what plays are called; it comes up 0% for Jim Fassel just as it did for Sean Payton. It is kind of sad watching the Giants’ own version of the Maytag Man standing by himself along the sidelines, still looking at his chart, looking at it as if it is the Rosetta Stone of football, and thinking, if only he can figure out the first character, all the rest would fall in place.
COACHING
But this is not a badly coached team, maintaining discipline and ekeing out wins with a cast of characters even Giants loyalists wouldn’t know without a roster list. One man goes down, another fills in and on goes the game. Coach McNally wanders among his troops, a solemn mein, or aura surrounds him. He is a Yoda force, stressing fundamentals and faith. Another stalwart goes down (Chris Bober) and a rookie prepares to fill a gap somewhere. It was almost a premonition as right after the failed Redskins FG, everyone seemed to be coming up and patting Tam Hopkins on the butt, giving him a nudge, preparing him for the battle. In the locker after the game, I talked to Bober, who showed no sign of injury, didn’t let on that he was hurt. Coach Lynn continues to work magic. He gave me a knowing grin and nod in the locker, a telling glance as if to say “how do you like this defense?” In truth, I am not comfortable with it, even though it is showing results. I like a defense that has linebackers where they traditionally play. The front four play hard and they are easy to spot. But the safeties and the linebackers appear to be playing as one, like the fan spread of a Peacock’s tail when he is on edge. The corners roam the field and provide a great perimeter game. There aren’t as many sacks, there’s not as much pressure, so I am always on edge because it seems to depend on perfect play to stop an offense. It stopped the Redskins, but that isn’t saying much. The Skins are basically Stephen Davis and Gardner. Shut down Shane Matthews and the Skins offense plods. Matthews does not respond well to pressure, which is why I wanted to see more dogs. Nevertheless, Matthews didn’t respond well anyway and if not for the butter all over the Wills hands, this game could have been a rout.
Could have been a rout, but wasn’t. That’s the key here, as ekeing out a win over a struggling team can be defined as boring. Unless, of course, you are an avid movie fan, used to manipulated endings, in which case a missed FG or a made FG with under a minute left can be considered exciting. So the coaches are doing a good job. Buy the fact remains, 0-4 in the Red Zone is unacceptable. They might as well install interactive displays on the seats and let the fans call the plays when they enter inside the 20 yard line- can’t get much worse than 0%.
THE OFFENSE
Matt Bryant. That was basically the offense. Four FGs. But props must be given to Jeremy Shockey and Amani Toomer. Both puffed a couple, but they brought the ball in time after time and that wasn’t easy on a wet, sloppy day. It was fun watching Shock go up against Jessie Armstead. It wasn’t fun seeing Jessie sitting on the Redskins bench in that awful uniform, looking like a foster child who had just been sent off to another ‘loving’ home. It was true pathos in the tunnel after the game seeing Jessie, gracious and nattily attired, welcoming a procession of Giants players, Will Allen, Kevin Lewis, watching Kenny Holmes quietly hanging with him, and Michael, grabbing him in an embrace to say goodbye once again.
Back to the offense. Kerry Collins had another of his terrible games and came away lucky. He overthrew a WIDE OPEN Tiki Barber on what would have been an easy score; he overthrew an open Daryl Jones in the end zone. He fired every pass at the same velocity, no touch, no arc, just whoomp. So several bounced off receivers, one off Daryl Jones, one off Derrick Dorris. And yet, Kerry can direct it into Amani’s mid-section, or lead him on a sideline route, today on the Giants sideline where he used to hit Jurevicious. His best pass of the day was his interception, thrown straight and true, right into the arms of a Skins defender. Kerry threw 46 times, he completed 22 passes; his QB rating for the game 50.2. Shane Matthews had a higher rating, yes, that Shane Matthews.
But the Giants had an overwhelming lead in time of possession, with Tiki gaining 64 yards and Dayne adding 29. Not Thunder & Lightning, but better than Davis and good enough to grind the clock into the dimming light. One crucial play was the Tiki around end, step out-of-bounds, fumble play which resulted in a first down, replay challenge of some 7 minutes which split the baby, giving possession to the Giants but 1 yard short which would give the Skins another chance to snatch victory, lost only when the kicker slipped and bounced the ball off of Lance Legree’s chest. It was that kind of a day.
The offensive line once again did the job, protecting Kerry. That was the difference.
THE DEFENSE
It was an unbelievably gritty performance spoiled only by Will Allen’s taunting and pushing after a nice stop and the inability of the secondary, except for Jason Sehorn, to hold onto sure interceptions. It seemed as if the Giants in reality had scored the first 30 points, as the defense would shut down the Redskins time and again, only to let them escape the noose. Michael Strahan had a fine game, with 2 sacks, one of which sealed the victory at the end. Kenny Holmes was active, Lance Legree appeared stout. Cornelius Griffin was having a good game until that run by Stephen Davis. Grif broke through the line and hit Davis squarely. I could hear the thump. Then, it was almost as if everything stopped, freeze frame, Griffin slipped to the ground and Davis kept going, maybe getting to the line of scrimmage or a 1 yard gain. Griffin rolled over and held his ankle. Another lineman down. Those ankles appear to be a real obstacle between Griffin and greatness. Dwight Johnson came in and was a monster. He continually penetrated. blowing up plays, or making them. Another unheralded free agent from Baylor. That’s two on the team. Dwight is a quiet guy, good natured, with a ready smile. Last year, when he was signed to the practice squad, we talked several times and he has been confident that when his chance comes, he will show some stuff. He showed some Sunday. Shaun Williams had a good day, helping out all over the field. He had several nice hits and didn’t let anything behind him.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Delvin Joyce looks better every game, Kevin Lewis has bulked up and is getting down field and Marcellus Rivers is making tackles and made a nice fumble recovery. I asked KLU (Kevin Lewis) what was the difference in special teams this year? Basically he told me, “Every one on the special teams unit wants to make the play…you’ve got 11 hungry guys out there, every snap.” I asked him, you had that last year, didn’t you? Apparently not. KLU was noncommittal but said, “It’s a different feeling. We’re in the huddle before we even go out there, and we’re like, we’re going to make the difference, I’m going to be the one, it’s a different feeling, everyone is taking pride in their job.” I asked if it was the coaching or the players and he said, “It’s the players, it’s definitely the players. Bruce does a fantastic job of getting us in the right schemes, but it’s like, it’s your ball, guys, go out there and do something with it. He puts it in our hands to get it done.”
I talked to Delvin Joyce and teasingly told him I always wanted to talk to a football player from a girl’s school. He laughed and said, “Hey, wait a minute”, then we chatted about the old days. He is as friendly and gracious a player as I have met in the locker room and obviously is enjoying the opportunity. I asked him if he had a role model and he told me his dad; as an aside, he told me he is the giant (no pun) in his family, and Michael Jordan. Jordan, not only for his on court exploits but also for the way he handles himself off the court, clean and professional. Also Barry Sanders, because of his humility, the way “he would score a TD and simply hand the ball to the ref.” He told me he tried to incorporate that demeanor into his game as “there’s no need for all the flash; you get paid to do this, that’s enough.” I asked him if he had any doubts about making it as a Pro. He told me, “You know, I did, because I sat out last year and I was working, I really didn’t think it would happen, so I was set on moving on, but looking back on it, my success never began with football, it wasn’t going to end with football. If it happened, it happened, and by the Grace of God, I’m here now, so it’s good.” We talked about the road here and playing against the big guys. He said, “Today, everyone was blocking so hard, a lot of effort out there.” On the bigger guys, he said, “Ever since I was younger, they always told me, the bigger they are, the harder they fall, so it’s never really given me any kind of concern.” I mentioned that we had a JMU Alumnus on the Board, whose name I’m not supposed to mention, but what the hell, we are Interactive so I asked Delvin if he had any words for a fellow Alum. He said, “Joey in VA, take care, wish you luck, and Go Dukes.”(exact words).
OTHER CONVERSATIONS
Chris Bober told me, “We just feel like we’re in a groove right now. Whatever they throw at us, we’re going to handle it.” Chris and Seubert both gave props to the Redskins’ defense and both said they were huge, particularly the front four. Chris said the key was “we kept pounding and pounding and pounding, got the point on the board and it was good enough to win.” I asked him about Jessie and he told me he was never around him much and because this is his first year starting, didn’t go up against him much in practice. Interestingly, Chris told me, “He was out there, and, of course, words were being thrown around, but it was kind of fun.” On LaVar he said about accounting for him “on film, you might, but out there, unless I’m going one-on-one with him, which I don’t think I did, you don’t even notice.” I mention this because it shows how focused these linemen are – players are players, forget the press clippings, if he’s mine I worry about him. Disciplined, well coached guys.
Seubert told me, “This was probably the best D-Line we have faced, the best D-Tackle I’ve faced.” I asked him about the line and LBs, were they moving around, filling in on line stunts. He laughed and said, “They did a lot of stunts, very active, they did a lot of DEs, DTs, but they run them all the time, so sometimes they are going to get home, but the linebackers were moving around a little bit.” Seubert said he didn’t hear a lot of talking going on and towards the end there’s “kind of a mutual bonding, like, you play against a guy, you help a guy up. You want to knock him back down, knock his head off, he wants to knock you back down, knock your head off. We’re both playing this game of football.” I asked him about the improvement in the line and he said “that’s experience.” He gave props to Luke, telling me that Luke talks to him all the time, calming him down, and Bober “he knows what he is doing.” I asked if he was ready for the stretch run and he shot back, “I’m ready, it’s started already, hasn’t it, it started 2 weeks ago. We just have to win, Philly comes here for the last game, it’s going to be interesting.” We wrapped up by him telling me, “This is the longest season I’ve ever played.”
Just something to keep in mind; many of thee kids are first time starters and it is a long season. They were happy in the locker, and it never hurts when you’re happy. Like Seubert said, “comes Sunday, you just go out there and play.”
OK, I’m out of time. Just a little aside. Back in the summer when it looked as if I was going to move on, Sandy and I were at my vets getting some shots for one of the cats. My vet is a big Redskins fan so we talk a lot of football. His brother in law is a Giants fan. He asked me if I was moving on because he knows I’ve been at it a while. He looked at Sandy and asked her if she’d be happy if I stopped. Sandy shot right back at him, “If he goes back, it will only be because of the kids in the locker room.” Talking to Delvin Joyve and Kevin Lewis and the other guys reminded me of that. Sandy’s right. These are great kids.