Just Not Getting It

Why do I like the Knicks so much? It's inexplicable really. They have one guy who shows up every day, a veritable superstar in my mind, a guy who not only shows up every day, but does so in the absence of anyone else. That would be Jamal Crawford, of course. Half shooting guard, half point guard, he consistently does either job, whichever one is needed the most that night.

And, yes, there is David Lee grabbing rebounds left and right. He does his job, but at 6'9" and 240, really can't be a presence in the middle. He rebounds and makes a lot of dunks, seldom showing any propensity to shoot the ball from any distance, not because he can't necessarily, but because he has to get in line.

Maybe this Knicks team reminds me of those Mets of the Sixties, those lovable oafs. Who can forget Marv Throneberry, early Eddie Kranepool, Choo Choo Coleman, Rod Kanehl, and over-the-hill stars such as Duke Snider, Richie Ashburn, Gil Hodges and Frank Thomas? How about Roger Craig pitching just well enough to lose 20 games?.

You have to go back that far, and to another sport, to find anything that quite mirrors this bunch. I think you can even draw a remarkable parallel between Isiah Thomas and that first Mets Manager, Casey Stengel. Try to get a straight answer out of either of them.

The Marv Throneberry of this Knicks team would have to be Eddie Curry. I'm not quite sure he's as lovable but he sure is colorful. He plays hard about one game out of every three. A giant of a man at 6'11" and 285 pounds, he has 23 blocks this season, four of them in one game. Just for perspective, let me add that the fine young center, Carlos Boozer of the Utah Jazz, has only 24 blocks but he has grabbed 595 rebounds to Curry’s 247. Boozer is also a fierce defender.

I find it quite amusing now that Eddie seems puzzled by his absence from the lineup. And Isiah justifies it, not by admitting the guy epitomizes "soft" but by philosophizing about the way the game has changed, how more and more, teams are going with smaller lineups. Casey couldn't have said it any better. Isiah is either a very nice man, or he brought Eddie to the Knicks. Or both.

Then there is 6'9" power forward, Zach Randolph. He has 9 blocked shots. I tried to find a picture that would show some kind of vertical leap. Shown above is the result. He could be 8" or so off the ground. Has anyone seen him dunk? Despite his inability to get up in the air, he shoots the ball quite well, and actually does get his share of rebounds, averaging a humongous 10.1. So he does at least serve a useful function on the floor.

Curry, who used to score, can't even do that this year. The team suffers with both big men on the floor. Eddie apparently doesn't know what else he could be doing when the ball goes to someone else.

It’s a shame really. Randolph could have been a great addition despite his defensive liabilities. If only those two could have played together, the Knicks would have had two big scoring threats down low, a tough thing to defend. But, no, Curry elected to pout.

The rest of the team is no bargain either. Quentin Richardson, the starting small forward, has been incredibly inconsistent, and, for one long stretch of critical games (they’re all critical when you’ve won so few), could not find the basket. It seemed to have left the building. It was like watching the Yanks Chuck Knoblauch trying to find first base.

At point guard, there had been Stephon Marbury, of course. Flawed at best, his season started badly, there was a death in the family and then some fairly serious injuries, and ended quite early. There is hope in Nate Robinson, though, who, while small in stature, can jump through the roof, can shoot the ball, and can really be a spark plug when he is not throwing the ball away. I’d compare him to an early Mets fellow named Ron Swoboda, who could be great, but was more often not in his formative years.

There is hope still, however, if you show patience. A starting lineup of Robinson, Crawford, Lee, Richardson and Randolph is not too shabby. Although I’d like to see a more consistent small forward, Richardson does play defense. David Lee also tries to put in a good defensive effort, but doesn’t have those quick feet.

Yes, this Knicks team is exciting to watch, if you don’t expect too much. Even the backups can be exciting. Mardy Collins, listed as Robinson’s backup at the point, can play defense and Renaldo Balkman does the same behind Richardson. Jared Jeffries has been spelling Zach Randolph and is also a defensive specialist. Freddy Jones backs up Jamal, and he shows flashes of real ability.

James Dolan apparently decided not to make any more moves under Isiah, deciding apparently not to send good money after bad, or, at the very least, deciding to let the next man do it. And, although I’ll miss what a new ingredient could have added, in the person of a legitimate point guard, small forward or center, it’s heartening to get an indication that change is on the way.

I have tried to support Isiah all the way. Isiah was such a breath of fresh air over Larry Brown, who did nothing but whine, and seemed to try to lose games, no doubt, putting his bid in for the GM role. Isiah has been, if nothing else, a gentleman, at least in the public eye. Even his player moves could have worked out, if not for Eddie Curry, Isiah’s biggest mistake.

Curry just never had it, and despite Isiah’s most fervent prayers, Curry would never get it. He now occupies the bench much of most nights, a place he richly deserves.

All Things Being Equal...

There are going to be some real dogfights for divisional titles this year in Major League Baseball. No, there won’t be any pit bulls or even evil-looking roosters, but there will be some guys with that determined look on their faces, and they’ll be dramatically changing the outlook for their respective teams in the races for the playoffs.

In the AL East, while the Red Sox won it all last year, they will have trouble repeating. With Curt Schilling ailing, the starting pitching isn’t really that strong. Josh Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka are #1 and #2, but #3 will be Wakefield and #4 will be Jon Lester or Clay Bucholz. The lineup isn’t really all that strong either after a big three of Ortiz, Ramirez and Youkilis. Jacoby Ellsbury, their nifty cf of last year, will have to do it again to make me a true believer.

The Yankees have all that power and, although they lost out in the Santana sweepstakes, have fewer question marks in a starting rotation going into the season. Wang and Pettite are very steady and Joba makes a hell of a third starter if they put him there. Mussina wasn’t as reliable last year as he had been, but I’d expect that one of either Phil Hughes or Ian Kennedy should be a more than adequate replacement.

<>The real surprise team in all of baseball, though, could be the Toronto Blue Jays. I believe Scott Rolen will outperform Troy Glaus, who they traded to the Cards. When Scott Rolen is happy, he’s formidable on offense and defense. He’s a winner, as is another very nice clutch player, a real gamer, ss David Eckstein. Vernon Wells had shoulder surgery and could recapture some of the magic he produced in the past. On paper, their potential lineup is scary with speed and power. Alex Rios, their rightfielder returns. Rios hits for power and can run. Lyle Overbay is a very nice first baseman. And Frank Thomas, if he can stay healthy, could out-produce his 2007 numbers of 26 homers and 95 rbi’s.

Pitching? Roy Halladay, A.J. Burnett and youngsters Dustin McGowan and Shaun Marcum are the best starting rotation in the league. And with B.J. Ryan returning to close, and a perfectly good middle-relief corps of lefties and righties, the Jays might also have the best relief corps in baseball.

<>In the AL Central, Detroit’s additions of Dontrelle Willis, Miguel Cabrera and Edgar Renteria should make them too much for anything else in the Central. But the Indians will be returning with the best starters in Sabathia, Carmona, Westbrook and Byrd. The relief corps is very strong again, despite the seemingly annual harangue over closer Joe Borowski. <>

The Angels will once again battle the Mariners for supremacy but neither of these teams is on the rise. Whoever prevails will fall in the first round.

I think the Jays will win the AL East this year. And maybe win the whole shebang. Because these three AL East teams will be knocking one another off all year, look for the wildcard to come out of the Central Division. Detroit and Cleveland will probably prevail over the Mariners or Angels.

In the NL East, the most ballyhooed addition of a player was, of course, Johan Santana, and he should considerably bolster the Mets staff, considering the net advantage of him versus Tom Glavine. The Mets also should have less controversy this year if swapping a Schneider for a LoDuca at catcher is any indication.

The Phillies will be tough again though. They also acquired a pretty fair closer in Brad Lidge, enabling Brett Myers to move back into his #2 starting role. Cole Hamels is the Number 1 starter and the southpaw went 15-5 with a 3.39 ERA in 2007. The starting pitching does drop off after the first big two though. They do have some nice middle relief though in Tom Gordon, J.C. Romero and Ryan Madsen.

<>The Braves are looking improved as well. While Tom Glavine isn’t Johan Santana, he isn’t chopped liver either and will probably be better than ever in his old home ballpark. The loss of Andruw Jones though will be painful. They do have the powerful Mark Teixeira now though, and a young fellow named Yunel Escobar, a 6-2 200 pound ss who hit .326 for them last year should adequately replace Edgar Renteria. If Chipper Jones can stay healthy, you have to look out for the Braves as well.

In the NL Central, there are the Chicago Cubs. They are loaded with pitchers. Zambrano, Lilly, Rich Hill, Jon Lieber for starters and a shootout for closing duties between Kerry Wood and Carlos Marmol. Two intriguing additions to their lineup could make them that much stronger. Kosuke Fukudome may compare with Ichiro, they say, and there is also a new catcher in the person of Geovany Soto who hit .353 in AAA before smacking .389 for the major league club in just 18 games.

The Cubs ascendancy may very well be at the expense of the perennial hard-luck Milwaukee Brewers. But the Brewers added five pitchers to their suspect relief corps. And have a potentially strong starting rotation. The Brewers could surprise. Prince Fielder returns, of course, and if Bill Hall can man third base while Ryan Braun moves to the outfield, their defense will be greatly improved.

<>In the NL West, the Arizona Diamondbacks, San Diego Padres and Colorado Rockies seem poised for another thriller of a division race in the NL West. All pitching, no hitting for the D-Backs though; the same can be said for the Padres. I expect that the Rockies will prevail once more, despite the losses of Kaz Matsui and starter Josh Fogg.

Parity can be a wonderful thing. Especially if it results in a Blue Jays-Cubs World Series. Or Indians-Brewers even. Only the networks would take issue with those matchups. That is, unless you discount about 20 million Yanks, Mets and Red Sox faithful.

The Yanks and Continuity

Although I had planned a very different article for today, I had read this morning that Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, Derek Jeter and Andy Pettite were the sole remaining vestiges of those Yankees teams of the 1996-2000 era, that team that won 4 out of 5 World Series. That prompted my curiosity about what those teams had that was so special. So I did a little checking.

What they really had a lot of was continuity, in the starting rosters for most years and in the bullpen for other years. The real run to me, and the greatest team, wasn't really that 1996-1997 team; it was that 1998-2000 team that won three straight.

Going back to 1994, the strike year, when the entire season and World Series was cancelled, the Yankees were very good. They were leading the AL East in 1994 under Bucky Showalter and finished the season at 70-43. That team had Mike Stanley catching, Don Mattingly at first base and Pat Kelly at second. Wade Boggs played third and the shortstop was Mike Gallego. Luis Polonia manned one of the OF positions, but Bernie Williams and Paul O'Neill did play the other two spots.

In 1995, Tony Fernandez replaced Gallego at short and Gerald Williams replaced Polonia. Otherwise, that team was much the same but lost the ALDS to Seattle. Interestingly enough, Andy Pettite pitched 175 innings and went 12-9 that year. David Cone went 9-2 that year in 99 innings. Mariano Rivera was a starter and went 5-3 in 67 innings. Bernie Williams and Paul O'Neill were the nucleus of that team and many of the teams to follow, both batting over .300 and leading the team in rbi's.

In 1996, Joe Torre's first year, the biggest changes besides Torre were a young fella named Derek Jeter as shortstop and a fiery first baseman named Tino Martinez. Jeter batted .314 in his rookie year and Tino knocked in 117. Bernie was magnificent and O'Neill was solid. Pettite won 21 games. Joe Girardi , the Yanks current manager, had taken over the catcher's position.

In 1997, that team lost Wade Boggs And Mariano Duncan. They were replaced by Luis Sojo and a journeyman named Charlie Hayes. Tim Raines spelled Gerald Williams in the outfield. David Wells took a pitching spot. The Yanks went down to Cleveland in the Division Series.

In '98, Posada replaced Girardi and hit 17 home runs in just 358 at bats. Chuck Knoblauch took over at second base and scored 117 runs. Another nice player, Chad Curtis, took over for Raines in left field. Orlando Hernandez, El Duque, was 12-4. The pitching staff was great, with David Cone going 20-7, Wells went 18-4, Pettite was 16-11 and another Hideki named Irabu went 13-9. The Yanks swept the Padres in the World Series.

In '99, it was the same guys coming at the league again. Clemens replaced Wells. The relief corps was remarkably stable since 1997, when Rivera took over from John Wetteland as the closer and Mike Stanton, Jason Grimsley, Graeme Lloyd, Jeff Nelson, and Ramiro Mendoza were the stalwarts at middle relief. The Yanks again swept a World Series, this time against the Braves.

In 2000, here they came again. Ricky Ledee played some for Curtis and David Justice joined the gang. Pettite and Clemens went 19-9 and 13-8 and both pitched over 200 innings. Cone began a decline though. And El Duque was just mediocre. A lot of people pitched a lot of innings, Ramiro Mendoza, Dwight Gooden.. ..but the Yanks still managed to win the Subway Series in 5 games against the Mets.

2001 wasn’t quite the same though, nor were the results. Knoblauch moved to left field while a fella named Alfonso Soriano played second. David Justice played a role. Cone was missed though, and Hideki Irabu was replaced by Ted Lilly. That team eventually lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks behind Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling and Luis Gonzalez. And, sadly, if anyone lost that World Series, it had to be Mariano Rivera who took the loss in Game 7.

The Yanks haven’t been the same since that game really. In 2002, Tino Martinez was replaced by Jason Giambi, who, in retrospect, never really made the grade. And, nearly as significant, Scott Brosius, a big-time Series performer and clutch player at third base, was replaced by Robin Ventura. Paul O’Neill retired, a kind of death knell to that era in my mind.

The Bombers have never really recovered. They did make strong bids in 2003 and 2004 but never really had that magic of the late Nineties. The Marlins took them out in six games in the 2003 Series, and, in a paralyzing series of games in 2004, the Red Sox came back to whip the Yanks in seven after Mariano Rivera blew the save in Game 4.

After 2003, of course, the Yanks were vastly different. The pitchers in 2004 were Vasquez, Lieber, Mussina, Kevin Brown, El Duque and Esteban Loaiza. Arod and Matsui had strengthened the team but they seemed lost at both the right-side infield spots, with Tony Clark at first base in 2004, Miguel Cairo at second.

There is hope though, Yankees fans. There has been increasing continuity in this team since 2006. The infield and outfield have been stable, although first base has been a huge problem. Although Robinson Cano eventually took over at the keystone bag, first base continues to be a wasteland, much as left field had been earlier. Pitching too has seen a remarkable lack of continuity, with a fill-in approach, but now there are Hughes and Kennedy.

Yes, 2008 has promise. The holdovers from the great Yankees teams of the past, though, will have to perform. That means Jeter, Posada, Rivera, Pettite. Abreu and Damon have been in place for some time now, as has Matsui. And, of course, Arod. LaTroy Hawkins strengthens the bullpen. Chamberlain strengthens any rotation he wishes to join.

Watch out for these 2008 Yankees.

A Shame It Was A Sham......

The Congressional hearing on steroids use in baseball was a sham. Divided along party lines, the Republicans lambasted Brian McNamee and lauded Roger Clemens. The Republicans went so far as to attack McNamee for being a drug dealer and a liar.

Although the Democrats were more even-handed, they supported McNamee and brought Clemens face-to-face with the sworn testimony of Andy Pettite, who recalled that Clemens did say he used HGH.

Another sad day for America. The two-party system isn't working.

Some Very Fine Tuning for the Mets

As much as it's difficult to pull ourselves from football, after the Giants Super Bowl win and the surprise cancellation of "Inside the NFL" by HBO, it's high-time to talk baseball. I'll skip basketball for the moment and Shaq's trade to the Suns, which was highway-robbery on Miami's part. I'll skip all the drivel revolving around Roger Clemens too. I'd like to forget about him completely, as much of the sports world will do once the syringe results are in. Except....I do wonder how Mike Piazza feels about the whole thing.

Yes, it's about time I turn my attention to my favorite subject, the New York Mets. Shaking off their astounding collapse of 2007, the Mets, after some seemingly lack-luster moves over the winter, managed to pick up Johan Santana, only the best pitcher in the game. Although I say that with some reservation, given the unbelievable performance of Josh Beckett in last year's playoffs and World Series, millions of fantasy baseball players can't be wrong.

And, as any fantasy player will tell you, the first pitcher chosen in fantasy drafts for several years has been Johan Santana. I must also confess, however, that most winners in fantasy baseball do not select pitchers in the first round. Nor, for that matter, do they select pitchers in about the first five rounds. The reason, of course, is risk.

Pitchers do some very strange things with their shoulders and elbows. The pitchers who seem to last the longest, though, are those fastball pitchers and Johan qualifies. The interesting thing about Santana is that, despite the overpowering heater, his strikeout pitch is quite often the "circle change". The nice thing, from a Mets fan's point of view is that the circle change requires no twisting of the wrist or elbow. Just sock that ball way back in your palm and let it go.

Pitchers are also very often inconsistent, both from season to season and within each season itself. In the last three years with the Twins, Santana went 16-7, 19-6 and 15-13. His ERA for the same years was 2.87, 2.77 and 3.33. I've heard it said that he's had over 200 strikeouts every year, but that's a bit like saying Barry Bonds had over 30 homers every year. Santana had K totals of 238, 245 and 235 in his last three years.

Josh Beckett for the same years went 15-8, 16-11 and 20-7, very impressive, but that was with the World Champions for the last two years. His ERA for the same years was 3.38, 5.01 and 3.27. (It is rather troubling that, in his first year changing leagues, his ERA increased dramatically). He struck out 166, 158 and 194 batters. He gives up more hits, walks more batters and pitches fewer innings than does Santana.

Despite having pitched so many innings over the last three years, he doesn't throw many pitches per outing.. He doesn't walk many batters, and he doesn't surrender many hits either. That reduces his pitch counts per game dramatically, and, if I may say so, puts smiles on his and his teammates' faces all throughout the game.

You may have guessed by now, that despite the risk associated with pitchers in general, I am thrilled that the Mets acquired this 28-year old. No pitcher has been more consistent and no pitcher has a more risk-worthy pitching style than Santana. In addition, as far as anyone knows, he does not attend cock-fights.

The Santana contract compares favorably, given inflation in the market for pitchers, to the deal for Pedro Martinez, which was for four years and 53 million back in 2004, if you consider that Pedro was 33 years old at the time. Pedro, of course, pitched well for the Mets in 2005 and half of 2006 before missing almost the entire 2007 season.

This 2008 season will be another contract year for Pedro (another interesting fact not lost on fantasy players). There is every reason to believe that Pedro may have his best season in years, which would be saying something. If Pedro can produce at 90% of his 2005 production, he wil pitch 28 starts, throw 195 innings and strikeout 187. His ERA would be about 3.10.

So, Mets fans, we lost a nice left-hander, Tom Glavine, and gained the best southpaw in baseball. We lost a nice catcher, Paul LoDuca but Brian Schneider has been a better defensive catcher, and Ramon Castro may get more at-bats, a good thing. We lost Lastings Milledge and Shawn Green but acquired Ryan Church, and Endy Chavez may get more at-bats, another good thing. In addition, both Schneider and Church bat left-handed; expect eventual platoons at both catcher and right field.

The rotation looks to be that much stronger, but, perhaps more significantly, the middle relief could regain its 2006 status. Duaner Sanchez returns. Minaya also picked up a 27-year old named Ruddy Lugo. He should complement Pedro Feliciano, Jorge Sosa, Scott Schoenweiss and another interesting addition, Matt Wise from the Brewers.

Last year's collapse was primarily due to too many leads given up in the middle innings, due to comparatively short starter outings and too many middle relief appearances. Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado, however, also slumped and placed additional pressure on Wright and Beltran for run production. They need to have better years.

Moises Alou needs to be play a full season. He has been a great hitter but in his last three years has averaged only about 100 games. Marlon Anderson backs him up, but is also the premiere pinch-hitter in the league, and he can't do both.

It should be another battle with the Phils this year. They picked up a closer in Brad Lidge and moved Bret Myers into the rotation. They also added power to an already strong lineup in the form of Geoff Jenkins from the Brewers.

The Mets now have better starters, better overall relief and more flexibility, if not power, in their lineup. Look for a mid-season trade if Delgado can’t produce. With a little luck, the Mets should make a return trip to the World Series.

G-Men - Teamwork Without Arrogance

All New Yorkers are Giants fans today. But they weren't on Friday. Everyone was shocked on Sunday. How often do we have to see an offensive juggernaut get beat in a Super Bowl before we're able to digest the fact that they don't necessarily win in February, especially not against a determined and talented opponent.

Yet it was easy to recognize that the Giants were hot, that they had great leadership on both sides of the ball, that they had an overpowering defense, that they had a legacy quarterback, that they were having more fun all week than were the Patriots. Enthusiasm? The Patriots showed little of that in those two weeks before the big game. And they showed that same weakness in the game, especially in the trenches.

Even given all of that, however, the Giants may have needed a miraculous catch on the other end of a spectacular escape by the suddenly slippery Eli Manning to come away with the victory. I say "may have" because David Tyree's jumping, reaching, ball to head-squeezing catch occurred on a third down. There's no doubt in my mind that somebody else would have made a play on fourth down. Much as Brandon Jacobs pounded through the Pats on that fourth and one. Much as Amani Toomer did on third and ten, coming back and securing a throw a few inches off the ground. Much as Steve Smith did on third and eleven.

It shouldn't have had to come to 4th quarter heroics. The Giants physically dominated the entire game. If you could knock the G-Men for anything, it's that they gave all their fans the scare of their lives. To be honest, watching the game was painful for a true Giants fan. Yes, we could cheer the heroic pass rush from Strahan and Umenyiora and Tuck, and even Jay Alford and Kawika Mitchell, and love the 45-yard catch and run by rookie TE Kevin Boss, and thrill to the pounding of Jacobs and the slashing of Bradshaw....but where were the results?

With 2:42 left in the game, despite having their butts kicked for the entire game, the Pats were up by three. We had to watch Randy Moss celebrating the lead (and himself) on the sideline. We had to endure seeing Cory Webster slip, enabling the score. We had to endure the huge Chase Blackburn failure to get off the field, thus prolonging a Patriots drive that could have been a Giants death knell. We had to watch a battered Brady complete short pass after short pass to Welker and Faulk and Moss. There had also been the interception on Smith's bobble, the missed opportunity to a wide-open Plaxico.

While it's difficult to say the Giants were unlucky, given the outcome, they really didn't have much luck. I suppose all the good fortune they lacked for 57 minutes and change came back to them on that one final drive. Yet Tyree's catch, even that seemingly individual moment was the result of some excellent teamwork, that of center Shaun O'Hara and guard Rich Seubert continuing their struggle against Richard Seymour and Jarvis Green, who had run a beautiful stunt on the play. Their staying with their blocks is what really enabled Eli to escape the grasps and make that wondrous throw.

But that play may have never come to pass without Toomer's earlier heroics, or the work of the offensive line and Brandon Jacobs on that seemingly forgotten fourth down. And, even that miracle may have been forgotten if not for the nifty work of Antonio Pierce, the linebackers and that hard-hitting secondary. The point here is that the Giants victory truly was a team effort, and that statement certainly doesn't exclude the head coach, his offensive and defensive coordinators.

The biggest surprise of the game was that the Giants pass rush had such enormous success versus that of their last regular season game. The Giants coaching staff had the presence of mind to hold back in that game from showing their entire blitz package, as the playoffs were coming up. As a result, the Patriots couldn't solve the Giants pass rush. As a result, Brady had no time to throw. As a result, Brady threw the ball up many times with almost no hope of a completion. As a result, the Patriots juggernaut offense was reduced to just 14 points, just short of Plax’s prediction so derided by Brady, a derision that may have given those defenders just the push they needed.

In the final analysis, this was a match of two very similar opponents. Both teams had good leadership, but the Giants was a hair better. The superior offense of the Patriots was negated by the fierce Giants pass rush and sound coverage. The kicking game went to the Giants. Feagles was much more effective than was Chris Hanson. Gostkowski never got his lone opportunity.

As good as Eli was on this day, the day he would tie his brother in Super Bowl wins, it would be a stretch to say he was better than Brady. Indeed, if not for the level-headedness and accuracy of Brady, maybe the Pats wouldn’t have even been close in this game. A lesser quarterback would have come undone.

It must be said that, in retrospect, Belichick may have lost this game. His decision to eschew a field goal attempt on a 4^th and 13 from the Giants 31 was a serious error. The failed Pats 4^th down pass attempt kept the score at only 7-3 in favor of the Patriots. The game was ultimately decided by three points. A punt would have made some sense in a field-position game, an attempt to make a first down was borne of arrogance.

And that may have been the real key to victory, a magnificent display of teamwork but a lack of arrogance by 53 guys who now get their place in the sun.

On Leadership, Heritage, Defense and Fun

Even the gods of football have to be tired of the Patriots same sad old song. Team, team, team, ad nauseum, that same tired old injury report, Bruschi, Vrabel, Seau, yada yada, and of course Brady Brady Brady. It's that sameness of spirit that'll beat the Patriots Sunday night. It's too mechanical, too rehearsed, a team of automatons led by a sociopathic coach who may have assembled a team that seems a little long on experience and a little short on enthusiasm.

The Giants, on the other hand, are a team coming off three impressive victories, all on the road, and with their season on the line in each one. Along the way, they beat an old nemesis, Jeff Garcia, in the first playoff game, then they beat a team to which they had twice lost during the regular season, then they beat another team that thrashed them in the regular season, a team with a Hall of Fame quarterback on a tradition-rich field in zero-degree weather.

If you truly do believe in the team concept, then you have to pick the Giants on Sunday. In Tom Coughlin, they have a head coach who has changed his coaching style to accommodate and strengthen his team. In Kevin Gilbride, they have an offensive coordinator with the guts to listen to his players to improve the offense. In Steve Spagnuolo, they have a defensive coordinator with the guts to adjust his schemes to the strengths of his players, to play bump-and-run with the most dangerous receivers in the game, to blitz when four men alone couldn't get it done.

They have no super-model spouse at quarterback, just Eli Manning, a guy with a strong football heritage, a guy who does what he needs to do to win, a guy who'd love to get a ring to match his older brother's, a guy who'd love to laugh with his Dad after still one more huge win. Records aren't important to him. He was just as happy after a win in Buffalo, one in which at least five of his passes were dropped and his rating was about 32, as he was after his 132 qb rating in the Cowboys victory.

The Giants have other leaders too, hungry men all, such as Antonio Pierce on the defense, who held up two men at once until help could arrive against the Packers to prevent a sure touchdown. Michael Strahan leads a group of strong defensive linemen, athletic types who stop the run and the pass too. On the offense, Amani Toomer has played like a man possessed in these playoffs, making seemingly every big third-down catch, and who remembers how bad it felt to lose a Super Bowl.

Another thing weighing heavily in the Giants favor is defense. The Patriots with their high-flying offense have not been particularly impressive on the defense. Although they only gave up 12 points to the Chargers, it was to a Chargers team playing without their premier back, LaDainian Tomlinson, and with a hobbled quarterback. Previous to that game, they surrendered 20 points to a Jacksonville team that had a rather one-dimensional offense compared to that of the Giants. And, of course, prior to that game, the Giants scored 35 against them.

The Giants defense has been opportunistic as well as good. Against Dallas, it was the defense that made two consecutive 4th quarter stops to ruin the Cowboys year and versus the Pack, it was a key 4th quarter interception against Bret Favre that carried the G-Men to the Super Bowl.

Of course, the Giants did indeed lose to the Patriots in that first encounter but it was without one of their emerging stars, the powerful and speedy Ahmad Bradshaw, who has been one of the keys to the Giants victories in their playoffs run. Not only has he been a threat to score every time he touches the ball, he has, more importantly, helped eat up the clock, something the Giants were unable to do against the Pats in the second half of the first game. The Giants also had some gross misfortune in a blown coverage after the injury to Sam Madison that resulted in that long touchdown pass to Randy Moss, the fastest, strongest,most dangerous receiver in the NFL today, just ask him.

There is also the fun factor. The Giants are a heavy underdog, they can play fast and loose. They don't carry the weight of fantastic expectations. The Patriots carry the burden of all those consecutive wins and, significantly, they do seem rather afraid of losing this game. They realize what they're facing and don't want to blow this most important game of all, the one that could render all their previous records rather meaningless. They seem rather tight in their interviews and it wouldn't be surprising if they play on Sunday as tentatively as they interview.

There is some precedent, of course, for heavy underdogs winning Super Bowls, two significant ones belonging to New York teams. The Jets were 17-point dogs to the Colts back in that most famous Super Bowl of them all, the one responsible for the merger of the AFL and the NFL. These same Giants, in fact, were underdogs to that Buffalo Bills team who were 7-point favorites in Super Bowl XXV, the Bills who had beaten the Giants once that season already, the Bills who had scored 51 in their last outing against the Raiders.

The Giants won that day with a power running game and some magnificent defense, an imaginative defense that changed defensive formations throughout the game. The Giants controlled the ball, and, by the time the Bills figured out what was happening to them, it was too late.

I think the Giants will once again win a final encounter. Any Giant could be the hero, Manning, or Strahan or Toomer. But it could also be Jacobs or Bradshaw or even Kevin Boss. It could even be Cory Webster. But the G-Men will get it done.