Die Hard Giants Fan

The good news is that I’m flying down to Charleston, SC for a wedding this weekend.  The bad news is that I won’t be able to cover the NFL Draft to the extent that I would’ve otherwise.  I’m a Mets fan and a Rangers fan too so I’m going to miss a Braves-Mets series and Games 1 & 2 of the Rangers-Penguins series.  I set my DVR to record all of that except for Game 1 of the Rangers-Penguins series because it’s on Versus, and I don’t have it.  Also, MrJokah has to attend his brother’s Baby Shower tomorrow and Phessional is turning 30 this weekend.  So it’s a busy weekend for all of us.  We should be able to get a few posts out per day, but nothing like if I was home.  I would watch the entire Draft live, and let you know about each pick.

By the end of the weekend, we will know who’s going to be on our team and what the Giants will do with Shockey.  It’s definitely going to be interesting.

Go Jerry Reese!

Newsday:

Umenyiora unhappy with contract, but won’t hold out

Giants should only trade Shockey for real value

Giants listening to offers for Jeremy Shockey

Bob Glauber’s 2008 NFL mock draft - Here’s who Bob Glauber thinks Big Blue will pick:

31. Giants. Jerod Mayo, LB, Tennessee. Giants also like Phillips, but if he’s off the board, Mayo is a terrific get at this spot. Can be impact weakside ‘backer from the get-go.

New York Daily News:

Osi Umenyiora scraps idea of holdout

Mock NFL Draft: Jets have sights set on Darren McFadden - Gary Meyers has the Jints picking:

31. GIANTS: Kenny Phillips (S, Miami)
Jerry Reese’s phone could be red-hot if Ryan is the only QB off the board. The Falcons, Chiefs and Ravens could all want to move up a few spots to jump ahead of Miami to get Brian Brohm, Joe Flacco or Chad Henne. Tough call for Reese between Phillips and Tennesse LB Jerod Mayo. Can’t go wrong with Miami safeties.

New York Post:

MAKING A MOVE - Paul Schwartz believes that Gerris Wilkinson must take charge at his position or he may get passed over.

JINTS’ OSI: I WON’T HOLD OUT

The Star-Ledger:

Shockey could be part of draft-day blockbuster

The mid-round possibilites - Mike Garafolo added more names that the Giants may select in the later rounds this weekend.

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O’Hara, Mitchell, & Madison all have not practiced yet this week.  Which is no surprise seeing as it is only Thurs morning.  This being the playoffs and all I’m sure the Giants will be coy releasing any ‘real’ information about the status of any players.  Hopefully all 3 will be able to play come Sunday, we need all of them on the field.  I was trying to decide who we need to play the most or who we could afford to have sit this game of the three and it’s an extremely tough decision.  Seeing as we have the most depth at LineBacker, I’d say we can make do without Mitchell the best, but you have to remember we are already playing without one starting linebacker, Kiwanuka,  & Mitchell has made some huge plays during the season…fielding two back-ups in the playoffs is far from ideal.  Yet Torbor and Wilkinson have looked good in the games they played and Tampa is not a fierce offense.  Using the same logic about the Tampa offense makes one believe that we could get by without Madison as the only receiving threat on the team is Galloway.  Yet we all know the struggles the Giants have had this year in the secondary, remember Todd Collins and Tarvaris Jackson anybody?

With all that said, I feel we need O’Hara out there more then the other two players, he is the anchor on the O-line.  The centers job is to call out the assignments for the rest of the O-line, I don’t think I want a backup in there doing that in a game of this magnitude.  The O-line that is made up of solid players and no stars, a group that has played a few years together, that chemistry just cannot be replaced and especially come playoff time against the number 1 defense in the league.

Here’s hoping all three can play come Sunday and knowing the how secretive coaches get during the time of year, I’m sure we all won’t know for sure until - Sunday 1 PM EST - GAME TIME!

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There is some speculation the Big Blue will make rookie D-Back Aaron Ross the starter in place of either Corey Webster or old R.W. McQuarters this weekend. Also Gerris Wilkinson, the 2nd yr Linebacker is looking healthy and should see time this weekend.
Some good news for the G-Men; Tyree may play this week and Brandon Jacobs is rumored to be back for week 4; however one would think he would be splitting carries with Ward now.

These changes make sense and I applaud the Giants for at least trying, too many times a team rides out something that isn’t working (ahem* Tom Coughlin 1 yr extension *ahem) until its too late. Certainly 0-2 is a very dire situation to be in, but if we are able to right this Defense the NFC looks awfully week and I for one wouldn’t be surprised to see an 8-8 team, possibly a 7-9 team sneak into the playoffs this year.

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Back-ups review

Offense:

QB: Jared Lorenzen and Anthony Wright are strong QBs but still need some adjustment with their accuracy

RB: Reuben Droughns, Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw will switch up the pace nicely

FB: Robert Douglas will hopefully recover well and make a great addition

TE: Kevin Boss and Michael Matthewshave been fitting in with the team and with the plays as well

WR: Steve Smith, David Tyree and Anthony Mix are solid back-ups. They’re very well rounded and all have great speed and hands.

OL: Zach Piller, Grey Ruegamer, Guy Whimper and Adam Koets have been doing very well but I feel need better coaching to position themselves.

Defense:

DE: Adrian Awasom has been doing average work and will need to step it up if he wants to be around next year

DT: Barry Cofield, Manny Wright and Jay Alford need an extra push. I can definitely see them becoming successful just need to put extra aggression in their style of playing.

LB: Chase Blackburn, Reggie Torbor, Zak DeOssie and Gerris Wilkinson will be great back-ups. Chase and Reggie are above average compared to Zak and Gerris but we can depend on all our options if need be.

CB: Corey Webster, Kevin Dockery and Aaron Ross are the best additions. Any of these guys can be put in the field starting day and make a hell of a contribution

SS: Michael Johnson and Craig Dahl will do fine. I still believe we need to work on them a little more to compete with top receivers

Overall we have a strong team here. We can depend on some back-ups more than others but I’m sure they will all be watching themselves carefully to better their own skills.

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After today’s cuts, Michael Eisen provided a list of his predictions, and here it is:

Offense: 26

Quarterback (3): Eli Manning, Jared Lorenzen, Anthony Wright.

Running Back (4): Brandon Jacobs, Reuben Droughns, Derrick Ward, Ahmad Bradshaw.

Fullback (1): Robert Douglas.

Tight End (3): Jeremy Shockey, Kevin Boss, Michael Matthews.

Wide Receivers (6): Amani Toomer, Plaxico Burress, Sinorice Moss, Steve Smith, David Tyree, Anthony Mix.

Linemen (9): David Diehl, Rich Seubert, Shaun O’Hara, Chris Snee, Kareem McKenzie, Zach Piller, Grey Ruegamer, Guy Whimper, Adam Koets.

Defense: 24

Ends (3): Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, Adrian Awasom.

Tackles (5): Fred Robbins, Barry Cofield, William Joseph, Manny Wright, Jay Alford.

Linebackers (7): Antonio Pierce, Kawika Mitchell, Mathias Kiwanuka, Chase Blackburn, Reggie Torbor, Zak DeOssie, Gerris Wilkinson.

Cornerbacks (5): Sam Madison, R.W. McQuarters, Corey Webster, Kevin Dockery, Aaron Ross.

Safeties (4): Gibril Wilson, James Butler, Michael Johnson, Craig Dahl.

Specialists: 2

Punter (1): Jeff Feagles.

Kicker (1): Lawrence Tynes.

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