Wednesday Odds and Ends

So what can you expect on a Wednesday morning in New Jersey when it’s just Philly and Pittsburgh on the NFL horizon. (Yeah, sure, I know, it could be Arizona and/or Baltimore but a reasonable person shouldn’t expect it). Odds and ends is what I’m serving today.

By Wednesday morning, you’ve heard all you ever wanted to hear if you’re a Giants fan. How bad Eli was and how he can’t throw in the wind, and what if we had Plaxico, and how bad was it throwing to Hixon and Toomer, and why didn’t they let Jacobs run more, and what about the defense?

Yeah, I’ve had it with that. They lost. Get over it. They were lucky to have gotten that number 1 seed. They actually played their hearts out on Sunday but there are at least two factors in any football game. There is “heart” and the G-Men had plenty of that. But there is also talent and there wasn’t nearly enough of that.
So it’s up to Jerry Reese now, and I’m already hearing whines from the do-gooders that Plaxico shouldn’t be allowed to come back. Well, good luck with the union, fellas. And good luck finding somebody with those nice physical attributes combined with a knowledge of that somewhat-difficult offense. Good luck with Hixon and Toomer and Smith and Moss and Manningham too.

The Giants are kind of predictable in situations such as this one actually. They really hate over-paying for talent. So I wouldn’t count on Jacobs returning, unless the big fella is okay with taking less than another team might offer. Ward will probably come back, because, let’s face facts, he gained his thousand by following blocks for the most part.
As a third-down back, he failed in my eyes on Sunday, and probably for anybody who was really watching. (I understand G.M.’s really do watch the games). So, expect some changes in the running backs department. If both return, that’d be okay, better than okay maybe, but it still won’t get them to that brass ring (or the gold one encrusted with diamonds either).

On defense, they’ll need some help in the secondary, I suppose. Sam Madison, James Butler and a couple of others will be out there in one way or another. I’d love to see them draft a linebacker or two. This group doesn’t thrill me. The defensive line is signed except for Fred Robbins so they’re in great shape with Umenyiora, Tuck, Kiwanuka and Alford, the kid from East Orange. But I wouldn’t mind having one more.
Eli needs a backup too, and David Carr isn’t too bad in that department. It’s at running back where they are most vulnerable. Jacobs did entirely too much running east and west in that Eagles game. It seems he’s hell on wheels once he gets some steam up, but, alas, not before. So a team that recognizes his weakness can make sure he never really gets started, which is exactly what the Eagles did on Sunday.

So, I’d welcome another running back for sure. I’d like to see Ahmad Bradshaw get a real live opportunity. Then, if there’s another Adrian Peterson out there somewhere, I’d be happy to draft him.
But Jerry Reese has proven he’s some kind of personnel guy. In the NFL, that’s more than half the battle. What might hurt the Giants more than any of these player changes would be the loss of Spagnola as the defensive coordinator. At the very least, we can expect them to lose the first couple of games just learning the new defense.

Okay, enough about the Giants. The Jets are still pretending to interview candidates for their vacant head coaching position. I fully expect them to go with the biggest butt-kisser, that is, whoever can jump the highest when Woody says boo. Through Tannenbaum of course. That’s enough about the Jets, unless you want to hear some more about Bret Favre. I certainly don’t.
If you’re a reasonable gambling man, you’ve already lost your shirt on the friggin’ Arizona Cardinals. The other games were predictable, at least to a certain degree. There was Baltimore’s ridiculously strong and manic defense, and there was Donovan McNabb and a whole boatload of receivers. But Arizona winning against a strong playoffs team two weeks in a row was sumthin’ friggin’ inexplicable (and inexcusable too).

You had to feel somewhat for the Titans. They lost on some big turnovers, which is a tough way to lose. That Crumpler fumble as he neared the goal line was a real killer. Losing their best running back for the second half didn’t help much either. Jeff Fischer deserved better.
The upcoming Sunday games should be great ones though. Kurt Warner against Donovan McNabb, and those two great defenses going after each other in Pittsburgh. You’re pretty much guaranteed to see everything on Sunday, from heavy hitting to bone-crushing sacks to beautifully floated passes to diving catches in the endzone.

My guess is you’ll be seeing some pretty fancy field goal kicking too, in Pittsburgh because neither team can even get to the red zone half the time, and in Arizona because the Eagles are so bad at scoring from in close. The Eagles secondary is too good to expect many TD’s from that feared Cards receiving corps.
Had enough of the NFL? The Knicks are playing pretty well lately, and, speaking of odds and ends, you have to really start wondering about Eddie Curry (apparently). Other than that, though, they’re doing pretty well for a team that just shucked two of its best players. And Harrington’s from Jersey!

The Nets too are a very interesting team. It looks as if Brook Lopez is working out just fine at center, especially if Vince keeps busting his horns. If there’s anything wrong with the Nets, it’s that they can’t seem to find the right rotation.

And the Mets lost the Derek Lowe sweepstakes. Go Tim Redding!! And what about Ollie?