Halftime

It has been a couple weeks since I wrote about the Giants. At the beginning of the season I felt that the Giants were being underestimated and that they would have a surprisingly good season. After the first couple of games I was ready to throw in the towel. It wasn't that the Giants lost their first two, but instead of how they lost them. It was the worst defensive performance I had ever seen by Giants team. Since that goal line stand in that Week 3 Washington game the Giants have not looked back. They are 6-2, having lost only to the top two teams in the NFC.

This week the Cowboys come to town. The 7-1 Cowboys. The Cowboys who put a beating on that Giants defense in Week 1. Look, time and time again we realize that no game is a must-win unless it eliminates a team altogether. With that being said though, I feel that this week will show a lot about where the Giants are going this year. Can the Giants lose this week and still go far in the playoffs? Sure. A playoff run is much more likely though if the Giants to win this week and have this propel them to a 13-3 or 12-4 type year.

Go back one year ago. The Giants were 6-2 and about to face undefeated Chicago in Giants Stadium. The Giants got off to a good start, and then fell apart in the second half of that game and in turn the season. The Giants need to have a strong second half in order to save their coach's job. People are not talking about it now, but the Giants really have not shown us anything different than last year until they perform in the second half and the playoffs.

Another very important issue is the play of Eli Manning. Not much has been made of his play so far because the Giants are doing so well, but he really has not played that well. He had a great opening game in Dallas and since then he has been very mediocre. I have been one of his biggest supporters, but this is the type of game where Eli needs to come to play if the Giants are going to reach that next level. He has the running game, the support from the defense and an array of receivers. At this point there is reason for him not to step up. I know his shoulder may not be 100% for this entire season as a result of that play in Dallas opening night, but now is not the time for excuses.

Lastly I want to point out one funny thing. As I said before, after the first two games of the season I honestly felt that the Giant defense was as bad as any I have ever seen and the worst by far from a Giants team. At this point though I am putting this defense on a level with any Giant defense since Parcells was here. They are in the quarterback's face all game and they force turnovers. They have speed, they hit hard, and they have ball hawks. I am not saying they will shut down Dallas this week, but they will beat them up physically and will put the Giants offense in a position to win the game. It will be up to the offense to take that opportunity and capitalize.

Other Stuff...

• I am watching the Knick game right now. I have heard that Iverson has lost a step, but I can not see it on this night. He has controlled the game offensively and pretty much done what ever he has wanted. If he can play at this level consistently through out the year, then Denver will definitely be a team to be reckoned with out West.
• One major negative about this Denver team is that they do nothing defensively. They can score with anybody, but I do not know if they can keep up with the San Antonios or Dallases with this lack of defense. I know Kenyon Martin is not playing tonight, and that definitely may have some impact on this.
• Another player not yet in a groove for the Knicks is Eddy Curry. So far the Knicks have looked much more to getting Randolph the ball down low, while Curry has gotten much of his points on dunks and ally-oops. Curry has always been a guy who can disappear for long stretches on the floor. This does not bode well for that.
• Might as well give my thoughts on Pats/Colts. Basically I feel the same as I did before the game. The Pats can beat the Colts in Indy in January, but the Colts can not beat the Pats in Foxboro in January. The Colts defense looked good on Sunday, but they are not a big hard hitting team. They are built on speed, especially with those defensive ends. That does not fly in the potential cold, snow and ice of New England. That is why this was a must-win for the Colts. I don't really want to hear about the injuries from an Indy perspective. The bottom line is that Harrison has a degenerative knee condition so you can not expect much from him the rest of the year. In addition, Indy was up 10 points in the 4th quarter. They just could not get stops in the 4th quarter and they really had trouble containing Wes Welker on punt returns. New England moved the ball at will in the 4th quarter and had great field position to start their drives. That Pats are still long way from 19-0, but right now they are in a class of their own in the NFL.
• Last thing on the Knicks game. There was a foul called probably with less than a second left on the clock but the buzzer sounded. Everyone was ready to let the game be over, but Isiah Thomas went over to the referees right away to make sure they put time left on the clock (after he saw George Karl and other Nuggets go to the locker room). You talk about class in sports. Well, when the Knicks were losing they started fights (Nuggets) and made accusations about other players being dirty (Bowen), etc. Well now they are showing how to win with no class as well. At least when the Patriots run up the score or do things to irk the other team they have 3 Super Bowls and a Hall of Fame coach to validate them. The Knicks have a sexual harrasser and a punk ass squad.

STKAFI