By Jimmy Cunningham, howiGit New York Writer, Manhattan, NY

Tom Coughlin is one of the best coaches in the NFL. He is one of three active coaches to have multiple Super Bowl victories – one of them being Mike Shanahan who won his in the 90’s and has not had a winning record since 2006 –  the other being Bill Belichick, who Coughlin has beaten in both of his Super Bowl wins. However, Sunday night’s loss to the Eagles was a result of two poor coaching decisions in the last 2:30 of the game.

The first decision was how Coughlin handled his last two timeouts around the 2 minute warning. The Eagles had the ball trailing by 1, with a 1^st and goal from the Giants 8 yard line and 2:30 to play. LeSean McCoy ran for four yards and the Giants let the clock run to the two minute warning. The Giants then stopped the Eagles next two plays (calling their timeouts after both plays), forced a field goal, and had the ball kicked off to them with 1:49 left to play. What Coughlin should have done is use his timeouts on the other side of the two minute warning. Assuming the Giants stop the Eagles in the same way they get the ball kicked back to them with 2 minutes left. That is 11 seconds that Coughlin let tick away – an error that was magnified by what took place on the subsequent drive.

The Giants got the ball on the 35 after a good return from rookie David Wilson, who returned the ball well all game. Thanks to two pass interference calls on the Eagles’ corners the Giants had the ball on the Eagles’ 27 with 47 seconds to play. A 42-yard field goal is well within Lawrence Tynes range and the Giants looked like they had pulled off another last minute comeback. The Giants play calling was questionable from there on out, but Giants Offensive Coordinator Kevin Gilbride can’t shave his face without screwing up so I can’t say I was surprised. After a dive play up the middle for a yard the Giants took a shot at the end zone and after some back and forth by both players offensive pass interference was called on Ramses Barden. The Giants get pushed back to the 36, putting them outside of Tynes’ range (Tynes’ career long is 53 yards). With 21 seconds left Eli threw an incomplete pass to Domenik Hixon leaving them with 3rd and 20 from the 36 with 15 seconds left. Time for one more play along the sideline, or even a dump over the middle and a spike, right?

Wrong.

Instead Coughlin sends out Tynes to try a career long to win or lose the game. Giants snap the ball, the kick is up, and it’s nowhere close – game over. But wait! Andy Reid, who somehow saved a timeout until the end of the game, iced the kicker. The play doesn’t count. One would think that after watching the kicker come nowhere close that Coughlin would take advantage of the other coach’s mistake – do the right thing and attempt to get closer for the game winner. Nope. Out came Tynes again, who this time was on target but was a yard or two short. There is a reason Tynes’ career long is 53 and not 56.

But what would have happened if Coughlin used his timeouts properly before the two minute warning? Instead of 3^nd and 20 with 15 seconds left there are 26 seconds left. I do not believe Coughlin would have made the same decision with 26 seconds left. They would have had time for a play almost anywhere on the field and time to spike the ball. If they got 5 yards they are in Tynes’ range. But Coughlin let precious seconds waste away and was left with a decision that he got wrong.

The Giants are now 2-2, and worse, 0-2 in the division. The Giants never make things easy for themselves, and I am not panicking nor calling for Coughlin’s head, yet. But I would feel a lot better today at 3-1 with a win in Philly. The frustrating part is the Giants players put themselves in position to win on the field, but the guy pulling the strings from the sidelines did not.

A lot went right for the Patriots yesterday, as they toppled a Vince Young led Eagles team 38-20 on the road. Tom Brady continued his ascent on the NFL’s single season passing yardage record, throwing for 361 yards and 3 touchdowns to pass Johnny Unitas on the all-time wins list (not a bad day’s work). Wes Welker and Deion Branch were involved in the offense, compiling 115 and 125 receiving yards, respectively. Rob Gronkowski had a touchdown, as usual. The defense even played well for much of the game. The Pats are now tied for the best record in the AFC and sit firmly atop their division.

Yet my confidence is waning.

As I watch the Patriots offense, it’s easy to see that little can go wrong. Tom Brady is so good, and has so many weapons, it’s almost impossible to defend against the pass. Benjarvus Green-Ellis, while not sensational, runs hard and doesn’t cough the ball up (he had 2 touchdowns yesterday). The offensive line has been decent as of late, despite starting  3rd string center. But the defense man… what are we going to do about this damned defense?

The first drive of yesterday’s game was case in point. Vince Young attacked from the get-go, leading the Eagles up the field for a touchdown on the back of two huge passing plays. If Vince Young is capable of carving up this secondary, I can only imagine what Aaron Rodgers would do. Or Drew Brees. Or Matt Ryan. You get the idea.

While I’m often cited as being overly optimistic about the championship chances of Boston’s sports team, this is one season in which I am assuredly pessimistic. With the easiest road in the league from here on out, the Patriots seem destined to end the season at 13-3 or 12-4. They’ll likely get a first round playoff bye, and home field advantage. But I can’t get around foreseeing another early playoff exit for the Patriots. Even as their confidence grows and the wins rack up, come the playoffs they’ll all of a sudden have to face the best teams in the league. Our inability to stop opposing quarterbacks will be our downfall, and another year in Tom Brady’s prime will be wasted.

Sure, this sounds very negative. But I don’t see any way around it. Maybe Billy B has a magic cornerback rabbit up his sleeve, because at this point as a New England fan, I feel like that’s just about all I can hope for.

By Ryan Foran, howiGit Contributing Philadelphia Writer, Philadelphia, PA

With Boston and New York getting so much love on this site I figured it was time to give Philadelphia some representation. There will be no discussion of the “Dream Team” here, as they are certainly not worthy of that title with a 3-4 record. But with LeSean McCoy having another career day on Sunday with 185 rushing yards and 2 TDs (he’s broken his career record for yards 4 times this season already) while being named the NFC offensive player of the week, I thought it was an appropriate time to raise the question; is LeSean McCoy the best running back in the NFL right now?

After putting up some ridiculous numbers this past Sunday night on national television and helping Andy Reid to move to 13-0 after a bye week, LeSean “Shady” McCoy is the fourth running back in the history of the NFL to rush for over 150 yards against the Cowboys. This puts him in company alongside Walter Payton, John Riggins, and Jim Brown. It is also important to note that Shady put up these numbers against a Cowboys team who were at the time leading the league in run defense and against their defensive coordinator Rob Ryan who personally dubbed the Eagles the “all-hype team.” While making Rob Ryan eat his words was great (it was also probably the healthiest thing he has eaten in a while) a single game performance does not make you an elite player – just ask Timmy Smith or Desmond Howard. So let’s dig a bit deeper into Shady’s stats.

Through 7 games Shady has accumulated 754 total rushing yards, good for second in the league. He currently sits behind only Adrian Peterson who has only 44 more yards and has played one more game. Shady is the only player in the league to score a touchdown in every game and has 8 rushing TDs. This again puts him behind only Adrian Peterson who has 9 but also has that additional game under his belt.

Shady leads the league in yards per game with 107.7, and is second in the league in yards per attempt with 5.6. Here, he sits behind only Demarco Murray who has been solid the past 2 weeks in this category. That said, before Murray’s breakout game against the Rams he had only 74 yards total in the previous 5 games and only averaged 3.5 yds per carry once, leaving his numbers skewed or at least very inconsistent.

Shady also has 2 receiving TDs, putting him in a tie for first with a slew of other running backs but bumping his TD total up to 10 which leads the league in total TDs among running backs and places him second in the league regardless of position behind only Calvin Johnson who has 11. Johnson has also played one more game then Shady. However, besides these 2 TDs his receiving stats are not stellar, as he has been targeted 33 times with 23 receptions for 138 yards, putting him only in the top 20 for total yards among running backs.

In summary as far as running backs go Shady is second in rushing TDs, tied for first in receiving TDs,  2^nd in total rushing yards, 2nd in yards per carry, and he hasn’t fumbled yet. He is second in the league regardless of position when it comes to total TDs and he has done all of this while playing behind a young offensive line who starts two rookies and in one less game than some of his competition. With a bit of help from Mike Vick he has led the Philadelphia Eagles, a team who has not been known to run the ball, to the number one rushing offense in all the NFL.  Looking at these numbers I for one think LeSean “Shady” McCoy is the best running back in the league.

Do you agree?

The regular season is in the books, the playoffs are set, so without further adieu, here are my picks:

In the AFC…..

Jets-Colts: Colts Win

Ravens-Chiefs: Ravens Win

Ravens-Patriots: Patriots Win

Colts-Steelers: Colts Win

Colts-Patriots: Patriots Win AFC Championship

In the NFC…….

Saints-Seahawks: Saints Win

Packers-Eagles: Packers Win

Saints-Falcons: Falcons Win

Bears-Packers: Packers Win

Packers-Falcons: Packers Win NFC Championship

In the Super Bowl…….

Packers-Patriots: Patriots Win Super Bowl

As I mentioned before, leading the pack causes paranoia. I really didn’t want to pick the Patriots to win, and came very close to choosing another team. While the Pats defense has been great at times, we’ve still managed to let up 30+ points all too frequently. That’s not gonna fly in the playoffs. That said, I’m sticking with the Pats for another Super Bowl title.

I caught last night’s Sportscenter following the Eagles loss to the Vikings. Andy Reid snapped at the media in his press conference, which was awesome. They later showed an empty podium, waiting for Michael Vick to come out and address the press. Said Sportcenter anchor Steve Levy, “I wonder is Vick will show up to an empty room like Eli Manning did last week. Of course he won’t. People will actually stick around to listen to Michael Vick speak.”

Ahhhh Steve. You make things so easy for me…

Just so you all know, you can finally purchase your AFC East Champions apparel on Patriots.com today. Steal your mom’s credit card and get after it….

Another Sunday in the books, another lovely week in the NFL. The more games I watch, the more I am impressed with the NFL — you’ve got to give it to the league, they’ve got a great product. A product which is doubly exciting to watch when New England keeps steamrolling opponents and both New York teams are desperately trying to throw their seasons out the window. With the Jets officially in the playoffs despite a loss to the Bears, it’s very apparent to me that the Giants will somehow, someway join their equally undeserving brethren in the playoff mix. If it took the 49ers beating the Patriots 63-0 next week and Michael Vick throwing 11 interceptions, it would happen. The Giants will get in. As usual, let’s start my rundown with the Pats.

New England Patriots 34, Buffalo Bills 3 – The Patriots rolled over the Jets, Tom Brady officially set the record for the best streak of quarterbacking the game has ever seen, the Patriots won the AFC East and clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs, and, um, yup that’s about it. My concerns now shift to making sure Bill Belichick doesn’t get any of our key players injured next week by playing them the whole game (you know he will) and worrying about a potential let down with the bye week and all. The Pats are playing so well you almost want to see them continue their streak — I bet they find themselves in a tough game in the second round of the playoffs against a team with some momentum. The team I least want to face? Indy. At the end of the day Peyton can still pick our defense apart with ease.

Green Bay Packers 45, New York Giants 17 — “This was GIANTS football,” continuing on for another week. Eli Manning set his own personal best for turnovers in a season, featuring just 4 interceptions in this game. Throughout the course of the action I wondered aloud, “Would the Giants be a better team with Jay Cutler as their QB instead of Eli?” That questions is officially on the table for discussion’s sake people, so run with it. That said, I was also very impressed with Aaron Rodgers. There’s not a lot to say — the guy is mobile, makes good decisions, makes good throws — he’s a stud. Considering the Pats almost lost to his backup last week, this is one team I’m very concerned about facing in the playoffs. That is admittedly jumping on the Packer bandwagon pretty easily, but I’m all set with staying away from the Eagles and the Packers.

Chicago Bears 38, New York Jets 34 — Does this answer the Jay Cutler is better than Eli question? Probably not, but it’s nice to see the Jets lose. Yet they somehow manage to get a playoff berth out of it. Damn Jets. I would love to see a Jets-Giants battle, for sake of giggles.

Who wins an Eagles/Packers game?

It was a another crazy week in the NFL, and without further adieu, let’s jump right into it with our two most discussed teams (the good guys and the bad guys).

Patriots 31, Green Bay 27 — The Patriots escaped the Green Bay Packers yesterday, in a game that should not have needed escaping. The 31-27 victory was still a W, but you’ve got to give the Packers credit for coming out strong. The on-side kick to start the game was ballsy, as was the play of back-up quarterback Matt Flynn. You’ve got to feel bad for the guy — although he played great he did crumble on the last play of the game — and nothing could have been cooler than beating Tom Brady in your first career start and on your dad’s birthday (he was in the stands). Regardless, you’ve got to applaud his effort.

This game also showed the world once again what I’ve long stated is the blueprint to beating the mighty Pats. A step by step guide for those of you who haven’t caught on….

1) Win the time of possession battle — Keeping the ball out of Tom Brady’s hands is the key. The Pats offense had the ball for only 19 minutes in this game.

2) Half running plays, half passing plays — This chews up clock, and confuses the Pats young defenders (they let up 27 points to a QB in his first career start).

3) Use some form of trickery — See on-side kick to start the game.

Eagles 38, Giants 31 — I’m trying very hard to not start this game’s comments with HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. So long, Giants. There goes the division. That said, I actually think you will still get a playoff berth still — you play Green Bay next (followed by the mess that is the Redskins) and Matt Flynn showed that he can’t handle blitzing well. Michael Vick was a stud as usual in this one, what else is there to say. This was an absolutely debilitating loss, in all ways. I will give you this — this game was NOT Eli’s fault (for once). I always give the Giants “D” their due, but this one is squarely on them. So at least I’ll save you the Eli hammering, for today.

Now for the fun part — messages I received from Giants fans, all of whom were at the game, throughout the course of the action:

1) I don’t hear you eagles fans, and I’m talking to you bandwagoners and giant haters. This is GIANT football.

2) How does that Eli Manning dive fumble taste. Looked like a fumble to me you know why…cuz were taking over first place.

3) GMEN BABBBBYY!!!!!!!

4) This is a DOMINANT win.

And the subsequent message from the Eagles fan, God Bless him…

1) Hope you guys didn’t leave quite yet..

Let’s just say that although the Pats scared me a bit yesterday, everything worked out just as it should have.  “This is GIANT football!” Sure was…

Overall, this was a pretty boring week in the NFL. To touch upon the teams most relevant to our readers:

1) The Patriots defense looked like hell in the first half against the Detroit Lions, allowing 17 first half points. Bill Belichick then made halftime adjustments and Tom Brady turned it on, resulting in a 35-7 second half beat down, 4 Tom Brady TD’s, and a 45-24 victory. Still, I’m not going to get excited about beating the Lions with their backup quarterback starting.

2) The Jets cruised by a lousy Cinci team, 26-10.

3) The Giants pulled out a late victory over the Jaguars, 24-20. Eli Manning managed not to turn the ball over for once resulting in a win — big surprise this formula works! This was an atrociously played football game. David Garrard was given an opportunity to win the game in the 4th quarter and should be shot for his performance. This was a crucial win for the Giants — a loss could have derailed their season.

4) Jay Cutler did what he decides to do about 10% of the time — play well — and the Bears beat Michael Vick’s Eagles despite his amazing TD pass late in the 4th quarter. A strange loss for Philly, this one keeps the Giants in the hunt in the NFC East.

All of that said, I must touch on fantasy football this week. I have long thought that fantasy sports are useless, and I continue to think so. Nothing should keep you from simply rooting for your favorite team. That said, I am in a league for work and have had a huge season with my running backs. Here is how they performed this past week:

Chris Johnson — 7 rushes for 5 yards

Darren McFadden — 8 rushes for 2 yards

Reggie Bush (backup) — 1 rush for 1 yard

Suffice it to say, I lost big time despite Tom’s big performance. Frustrating, to say the least. Even Adrian Peterson only managed 6 rushes for 36 yards. And they call these fools fantasy studs….

Check out http://chrisross91.wordpress.com.

This was a big weekend for the NFL, as the league’s best rivalry of the past decade (Patriots-Colts) were in action as were the NFC favorite New York Giants taking on the NFL’s new wonder boy, Michael Vick, and his Eagles. A few games to touch on, so we’ll break them down one by one.

1) Patriots beat Colts 31-28 — The latest game in the Brady-Manning rivalry, this one embodied the relationship these two quarterbacks have. Brady played near flawless football, completing 78% of his passes for 186 yards, 2 touchdowns, and no interceptions. Manning put up 396 yards on a zillion passing attempts, but ultimately threw a crippling interception after storming his Colts back from 17 points down in the 4th quarter. He had me shifting in my chair, for sure. That being said, I saw one major flaw with the Patriots — with a big lead in the 4th quarter they became complacent and began to play “contain” defense. This formula didn’t allow a big 50 yard play, but it allowed the Colts to gain 10 or 15 yards on practically every play. If you’re giving that to Peyton Manning, he’s going to score very quickly on you, as we saw. I think the Patriots would have been much better off staying aggressive and putting pressure on Manning. This is what ultimately led to the game losing interception, and this has been shown time and again as the only real strategy that works in flustering Peyton.

On another game note, I’d like to address my readers in New York who have been suggesting strongly lately that Tom Brady is soft, cocky, can’t back it up, and is generally viewed as an ass. Let me start by saying, you couldn’t be more wrong. As I was watching the pregame show, nearly every commentator on every national news station showered both Peyton and Brady with praise — both for their skill, their leadership, and what they do for the game. The words “class act” was used referring to Brady. Brady is unbelievably popular and seen in a very positive light by almost everybody, even those who are jealous of his success. Second of all, for all of you haters I’d suggest you listen to a Tom Brady news conference after a game. The man is incredibly poised, very frank, and showers praise on both his team and his opponents wherever it is due. He always, in particular, is kind with his words when speaking about Peyton’s game. Sure, on the field he gets fired up and talks. That’s cause the guy is a competitor — he wants to win as much as anybody in the league week in and week out. He’s confident in his ability, as he should be, but he always give opponents their due. Listen people.

2) Eagles beat Giants 27-17 — Eli being Eli, he made a bonehead play and fumbled the ball as he drove him team down the field at the end of the game. While Eli has improved most aspects of his game significantly, he still remains a turnover machine. Yes, many aren’t his fault, but no matter whose fault they are turnovers equal loses.  You’ve got to give the Giants’ defense credit, they did a pretty good job on Michael Vick. He still had a great game, but it was not the Michael Vick show ala last week. That said, I don’t think you can expect 6-10 touchdowns out of Vick every game as everybody seemed to expect after last week.  I think it’s hilarious how the Giants lost, especially with Eli coughing it up, but honestly I don’t think this is a big setback for the Giants. It’s a tough divisional loss, but they are still a good team and this won’t derail their season. They’ve got a pretty easy schedule the next three games before taking on the Eagles again.

3) Jets beat Texans 30-27. This one was wild. The Jets scored in the game’s closing moments to pull out another unlikely victory. It wasn’t dripping with good consistent play, but they pulled it out and that’s what matters. That’s what the Jets have been about as of late, and there is a lot to say about teams that just keep on finding ways to win. The Jets have so many talented players that somebody could always get open or make a big game-winning play, and that’s what’s happening. As a Patriots fan it’s incredibly frustrating, but you’ve got to give them credit. The AFC East will likely ride on the Patriots-Jets Monday Night Football game on December 6. I think after wins against the Ravens, Steelers, and Colts the Patriots are now officially the team to beat in the AFC — big surprise I’m picking the Pats to beat the Jets. They want revenge.

The Manning brothers blew it this week and the Patriots beat the Colts, so I could not be more happy in week 10. This is quickly turning into one of the best, most competitive NFL seasons in a long time. Let’s face it — no one has any idea who is going to be hoisting the Super Bowl trophy this year.

Check out http://chrisross91.wordpress.com.

By Jimmy Cunningham, howiGit Contributing Writer, New York, NY

Last year, the New York Giants started off as hot as any team, only to fade.  Yet after insurmountable injuries in the secondary and a tough, back-loaded schedule, the Giants organization, players and fans have been left with a bad taste in their collective mouths.  The goal this year? To prove that last year’s New York Giants are not the real New York Giants. The expectations of this season rest solely on a few factors: Kenny Phillips and Keith Bulluck’s health, Osi Umenyiora and Brandon Jacobs having bounce back years, and new coordinator Perry Fewell’s Tampa-2 scheme reigniting the formerly feared Giants defense.  With these factors in mind, let’s take a look at the upcoming New York Giants season – position by position.

Quarterbacks- Despite Eli Manning’s general lack of respect in the media (including the founder of this blog who some may say is still sore from losing a Super Bowl to someone with an “ever-present whining-panicked-crying look”), Manning has a Super Bowl ring and MVP under his belt – more than any other quarterback in the NFC East can claim. The bottom line remains that Manning remains a top ten QB in the league.  While he still has things to improve on – including holding onto the ball – the Giant’s group of very talented, young wide receivers should continue to help Manning improve. If Manning can put up at least 25 touchdowns while holding his turnovers under 20, the Giants should consider it a successful season from their star quarterback.

Running backs- The Giants have a very good tandem at running back, with both players complimenting each other well.  As the pound-for-pound largest and most physically intimidating running back in the NFL, Brandon Jacobs has been considered the number one for the last few years, but that may change in the upcoming season. Giant fans last year grew frustrated with Jacobs’ lack of physicality when running, and his frustration equaled the frustration of the fans.  Biting at Jacobs heals is the shifty Ahmad Bradshaw, who looks poised to take the starting job if Jacobs continues to struggle.  How will Jacobs handle this pressure if Bradshaw overtakes him for the starting job?  For sake of the Giants success, hopefully well.  If the two of them are able to work together, the Giants will have a very dangerous offense.

Wide Receivers- While the Giants lost former starter Dominik Hixon for the season, the receiving corp. looks poised to be mentioned among the best in the league. Coming off of a career year, in which he set the the Giants record for receptions in a season and made the pro bowl, Steve Smith is one of the best possession receivers in the league.  Second year player, Hakeem Nicks, coming off a remarkable rookie campaign, has been receiving rave reviews from the media at training camp and also has been seen as a fantasy sleeper by many publications this season. If Nicks can follow through with expectations and have a breakout season, while Smith continues to be the reliable possession receiver the Giants have come to expect, there is no better and younger one two punch in the NFL. Add the speedy Mario Manningham in the slot and the 6’6” Ramses Barden in the red zone, and the Giants have plenty of weapons at Manning’s disposal. Undrafted rookie Victor Cruz also has shown promise after putting on a show in the first preseason game against the Jets.

Tight Ends- While Kevin Boss in no way should be mistaken as a superstar tight end, he has grown into a reliable target for Eli Manning, as well as an excellent blocker in the running game.  Second year player Travis Beckum has shown promise as well and will likely continue to improve.

Offensive Line- Back in 2008, when the Giants won the Super Bowl, critics lauded them as having the best line in the NFL. With most of that line still intact, the Giants will look to regain their form along the offensive line.  The only major change will come with the insertion of Will Beatty at either the guard or tackle position. He is most likely to replace right tackle Kareem McKenzie, who despite performing at a high level over the last few years, is getting up there in age. Beatty, a second round pick last year, is a big young talent that will hopefully give the Giants more flexibility on the offensive front.

 Defensive line- The Giants are loaded at the defensive end position, especially in terms of athleticism. Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, Mathias Kiwanuka, and rookie Jason Pierre-Paul are all quick, athletic players that can get to the quarterback. The trouble for the Giants will not be getting to the quarterback, but rather finding a place for all of these players to contribute while remaining happy with their role on the team.  The benefit to this is that on passing downs they can put them all on the field at the same time and attack the quarterback. This skill upfront allows for Fewell to call fewer blitzes which will allow for better coverage in the middle of the field, which was a major problem last season. The free agent signing of defensive tackle Chris Canty was supposed to bolster the defensive front, yet injuries kept him on the sideline most of the year.  Expect a healthy Canty to produce for the Giants this year. Jay Alford, Rocky Bernard, and Barry Coefield will platoon for the Giants to fill out the defensive front.  Rookie defensive tackle Linval Joseph, who has been receiving excellent reviews from the Giants insiders, also figures to play a role in the defensive tackle rotation.  One thing is for sure; the depth of the Giants defensive front is something that every offense around the league will need to account for week to week.

Line Backers- With the loss of defensive captain Antonio “AP” Pierce, many expect a fall off at the linebacker position. And while AP’s skills had diminished over the last few seasons, no one can dispute that he was the leader of the defense, and had every player in the right position on every play. The Giants will be looking to free agent signee Keith Bulluck to fill AP’s shoes.  Bulluck had filled the same role as AP for the Tennessee Titans over the last 11 season, breaking 100 tackles six times from the outside position and making 2 All-pro teams and a Pro Bowl.  After having reconstructive knee surgery in December, Bulluck was available late in the free agency period, and the Giants scooped him up.  A health Bullock could make all the difference for the Giants defense. With the Giants switching to Fewell’s Tampa-2, the middle linebacker position becomes more important than ever before. Outside linebacker Micheal Boley began last season on the injured list, yet showed promise during the end of the season.  Boley, like Canty, is another player who needs to stay healthy in order to earn his contract.  Clint Sintim, another second year player, will most likely fill in the other starting outside linebacker role. Gerris Wilkinson could also see a good amount of time during passing situations.

Secondary- After a porous performance last season, the Giants secondary must improve in the upcoming season, especially with the strong passing attacks in their division.  Last season the secondary was decimated with injuries, most notably to safety Kenny Phillips, who missed 14 games with a knee injury. With a full recovery, Phillips will be paired with former Arizona Cardinal, Antrelle Rolle. Rolle, a former first round pick out of Miami, has experience in the Tampa-2 scheme that Fewell enforces.  His play making ability could be lethal alongside Phillips, another former Miami player.  Matched with the safety tandem, the Giants have three young fast corners that have all shown promise at points, but need to show more consistency. Corey Webster seems to go from superstar in the making to practice squad player every season.  Terrell Thomas looks to be on the verge of a breakout season.  Aaron Ross is looking to recover from a hamstring injury, a nagging injury he has seemed to have since he has entered the league. If the secondary can stay healthy, the Giants could sneak up on some people.

Special teams- The loss of punter Jeff Feagles, the most consistent Giant since he joined the team, will most likely be the most detrimental to the team. While Feagles would not wow anyone with his length on his kicks, he could put a team inside the 5 unlike any punter ever in the league. Lawrence Tynes returns as kicker, which leaves a lot of uncertainty at this position. The return game seems to be an open competition with Hixon out for the season.

Season overview- Over the last few seasons the NFC East has been called the toughest division in the NFL. With the Eagles being the most consistent team in the division, and the Cowboys receiving the most notoriety, the Giants have gone largely overlooked.  Yet the Eagles have traded All-Pro Donovan McNabb this offseason, a move that will likely hurt them this upcoming season. Taking the reins of the talented Eagles offense will be Kevin Kolb, but is he ready? McNabb may have worn out his welcome in Philly, which is not difficult in a city notorious for being short-minded, but sometimes the evil you know is better than the evil you don’t. The Cowboys are being picked to win the division by most pundits, yet they have been picked to win since Clinton was President, with no rings to show for it. The Giants beat the Cowboys twice last year, including in the stadium opener of Jerry “Nip/Tuck” Jones’s wet dream. The Redskins have improved with the addition of McNabb but the Redskins are a team that one will have to see to believe. Every year the Redskins make a big splash and then disappoint. The NFC East seems to have teams that all have each other’s number – the Giants have the Cowboys number, the Eagles have the Giants number, and the Cowboys have the Eagles number. That may all change, but I think the division is pretty wide open. The Giants play two pretty tough divisions in the NFC North and the AFC south. Looking at the Giants schedule I want to say they’ll go 10-6 and make the playoffs. However, there are a lot of questions still to be answered – hopefully the Giants will respond.

Check out http://chrisross91.wordpress.com.