Giants Embarassment

I’ve about had it with the Giants. That Sunday night display of clueless defense was just too much for an old cornerback. I mean…where was the coverage? I could understand a breakdown in coverage on a single play. On a bad night I could understand even a couple of mistakes. After all, these are supposed to be pros.

What a sad joke they are! What a poor excuse for a football team! Except for the offense, which, to their credit performed admirably all night long (except for Manningham), this team stinks out loud. Last night was not an isolated incident. This team’s defense has been horrible ever since Spagnuolo went to St Louis to coach the Rams.

We could have expected a period of transition, similar to the beginning of the Giants Super Bowl season of 2007, when the defense turned it around after three weeks of horrible coverage and awful losses. After all, a professional defense is a complicated thing. You’d expect that a few weeks would be needed to digest it.

But what you wouldn’t expect was what happened last night. Let’s review:

FIRST HALF
First Philly possession – 7 plays to a Brent Celek TD, big 32 yard completion to DeSean Jackson, Philly needed no third downs in the drive.

Second Philly score – starts with Jacobs fumble after Giants were moving the ball. Fumble scooped up and returned 60 yards for a TD.

Second actual offensive possession - Philly actually had to punt.

Third Philly possession – 12-plays, Philly settles for a field goal.

Fourth Philly “possession” – 72-yard punt return for TD.

Fifth Philly possession – 8 plays, 2 third downs, one went for 23 yards down the middle to Celek, one to DeSean Jackson for 44 yards. Vick scored the TD.

Second HALF

First Philly possession – The new guy in the defense (Jonathan Goff) gets an interception! Manning fumbled shortly thereafter.

Second Philly possession – Philly had to punt AGAIN (holy cow)

Third Philly possession – 60-yard TD to Jackson on first play after Giants score

Fourth Philly possession – another punt – WooHoo!

Fifth Philly possession – 12 plays, 91 yards, TD, McNabb passes to just about anybody wearing green, they were all open.

Sixth Philly possession – Philly just burning time – punt, meaningless possession

Every time Philly needed a score, they got one. Philly could score at will. The Giants were helpless. McNabb had all day to throw. Almost literally. The secondary couldn’t cover anybody. Again.

I’ve been saying all year long that this new defensive coordinator was not working out. Now I’m saying Coughlin isn’t working out. The man did nothing, through all the blown coverages, through all the losses, through all the embarassments, he’s done NOTHING, except to protect his horrible defensive coordinator.

I said several weeks ago the Giants wouldn’t make the playoffs with that defense. (It doesn’t take a rocket scientist after all). The only reason they have a chance at making the playoffs at all is that Dallas is faltering and has a tough remaining schedule.

But they were actually favored against the Eagles, a remarkable fact that indicates how over-rated the Giants really are. They are no match for the Eagles.

The Eagles have a coach who actually knows how to coach. When there’s a problem, he fixes it. He responds to changes in his environment. Reid may pass too often and forget about his running game but he realizes his mistakes and reacts. Coughlin just stands there looking confused and making excuses.

Maybe I’m being too hard on Coughlin. I wonder if this clueless DC was his choice. I wonder if keeping him is within his realm of empowerment…perhaps not, and, if not, I apologize.

But somebody has to take the hit for these year-long failures.
The G.M. has certainly done nothing, either to adequately replace the safety that went down or to replace the middle linebacker when he went down. Let’s give him some of the blame too.

But maybe he can’t spend any money. After all, the Giants haven’t sold nearly all the PSL’s they’ve needed.

So maybe it’s the fan’s fault. Ownership is punishing its fans for not buying up the seat licenses, for moving from mezzanine sections to the upper deck, for not drinking the tres cher Kool-Aid.

In any event, I’m through even rooting for this team. It’s tough to keep pulling for those who don’t even try to help themselves. The Giants are as bad now as they were in the sad years before George Young was hired, when the Mara brothers were fighting each other and neither one knew what he was doing.

And it’s not just the defense. The special teams have been almost as bad. At least two of the wide receivers look as if they’ve never played football before, Manningham and Moss.

About 90% of high school receivers know how to drag a leg after making a catch near the sideline. Manningham is uncoachable, apparently. Either that or the coach(es) don’t know how to teach. Sinorice Moss just never picked up route-running or anything else.

Okay, I’ve said enough about that sorry organization.

In lighter matters, the Jets looked really solid yesterday. I know the Bucs aren’t very good but the Jets beat them slowly and inexorably to the end. Their second-string QB didn’t take any chances and the running game under Thomas Jones wore those Bucs down. Their defense was unbelievable. In fact, statistically, they have the best defense in the league.

They get Atlanta next at home and the Falcons haven’t shown much; they’re all banged up. Then they get two ridiculously tough opponents, the Colts and the Bengals, but both those teams may be coasting by the time the Jets come to town.

But, even then, they could easily miss the playoffs as there are so many other teams in the hunt.

But, playoffs or not, I like the Ryan-led Jets. Ryan has made mistakes but he’s admitted them and then taken action to change things for the better.

The Giants simply have not.