The Giants turn in an ugly, embarrassing, disgraceful loss in their Giants Stadium finale. So the question was with nothing to play for other than pride, would the entire team show up and play this game with a sense of urgency or would they simply mail it in.
They didn’t, as Minnesota shredded them to bits 44-7. Were there good things in this game? Here and there, yes, but not enough to hand out “hits,” in my opinion.
Was there a lot of bad in this game? Uh-huh. So I’ll make this easy and give the entire team a miss – and yes, that includes the offense, which couldn’t get anything going.
QUOTE BOOK
“This year has been a disaster.” – Giants DT Barry Cofield
MUSINGS: IT’S FINALLY OVER
With Black Monday just hours away and both head coaches and assistant coaches from losing teams set to hold their breaths as they await word on their status for next season, everyone is focused on defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan, who is likely to be terminated as soon as this week.
But I’d like to ask a simple question: How come no one is talking about the job this year done by special teams coordinator Tom Quinn?
Let’s start with the obvious problem: K Lawrence Tynes. While Tynes is one of the players I have on my “Endangered Giants” list, I don’t’ believe it was all his fault.
Quinn, remember, had Tynes change his mechanics on both field goals and kickoffs. The intentions were honorable – better distance and depth on the kickoffs and better accuracy on the field goal attempts, but as we saw this season, the result weren’t always there as it was like asking someone who’s been right-handed all their life to start using their left hand at the same level .
Even P Jeff Feagles, a directional specialist, wasn’t exempt from the problems. From what I could tell, this year Feagles was asked to kick the ball higher than his usual pooches (the latter of which he does extremely well) in an effort to get the coverage down the field and stop the return man. Problem is that not every return man they encountered was Philly’s DeSean Jackson, so I never did understand why Feagles wasn’t allowed to do what he does best.
Another thing that drove me crazy is when Feagles was asked to kick the ball to the side of the field where his gunner was double-teamed. Seriously, I’d like to know what the thinking was behind that decision, as I never was able to get an answer that made any kind of sense.
There are other things on special teams that I could point to, but the bottom line is there wasn’t any consistency in this unit all season long. Now I know for a fact that they devote significant practice time to special teams – that part of practice is usually open to the media.
So I simply don’t buy the excuse that Quinn had to shuffle guys on and off the special teams just to meet numbers just as I no longer buy the excuse of injuries affecting the defense, considering at about 90 minutes three times a week was spent practicing various defensive plays and schemes for that week’s opponent.
One thing is certain – it’s going to be a very, very interesting next few weeks at the Timex Performance Center. Be sure to tune into the blog for our updates and analysis.
MUSINGS #2: SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE
Usually when the season ends, we get word about all the players who are headed for off-season surgery. As I write this, at least five Giants – RBs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw, DE Justin Tuck, WR Hakeem Nicks (wrist) and FB Madison Hedgecock (shoulder) – have dates with the surgeon’s scalpel in the next week or two.
Of all these injuries, the ones I have the biggest issue with are Tuck’s and Hedgecock’s. We all knew when Tuck’s shoulder injury occurred (back in Week 2 against Dallas. However, the news concerning the timing of Hedgecock’s injury is just mind-boggling.
To be clear, I’m not irked by the fact that both players tried to gut it out. I’d expected nothing less from either. However, when a player makes a living off his upper body strength and that’s taken away from him that early in the year, how smart is it to leave him to fend for himself?
I don’t know how severe Hedgecock’s and Tuck’s injuries are, but obviously they’re severe enough to warrant surgery. And I have to believe that the constant pounding they both put themselves through couldn’t have helped them or their team for that matter.
Hedgecock is not one to complain – you barely even notice his presence sometimes, which is not necessarily a bad thing. Tuck is also not one to complain and I admire him for wanting to set an example for his defensive. Like I said, I admire him for wanting to tough it out. But at what point do you say, “Hey, my best isn’t helping my team so many it’s time that I step aside?”
INJURIES/LINEUP CHANGES
GIANTS: CB Corey Webster (knee); RT Kareem McKenzie (knee); LG Rich Seubert (knee); DT Chris Canty (knee); TE Scott Chandler; and S Sha’reff Rashad. Rhett Bomar was the third quarterback, the first time since Super Bowl XLII that the Giants designated an emergency quarterback.
Receivers Sinorice Moss and Ramses Barden were active for the first time in weeks. Barden, who prior to the game had only been active for two games, the lat being against Tampa in Week 3, came into the Vikings game looking for his first NFL reception. Moss, meanwhile, had been inactive for the last seven weeks after failing to nail down the punt return job.
As was the case last week, Kevin Boothe started for Seubert at left guard and Will Beatty started for Kareem McKenzie at right tackle.
CB Bruce Johnson suffered a concussion in the second quarter and didn’t return. Johnson had come into the game to replace Kevin Dockery, who suffered a stinger earlier in the game. The injuries to Dockery and Johnson forced the Giants to use more of their base defense , which by the way saw rookie D.J. Johnson fill in for Dockery opposite of Terrell Thomas in the base defense.
After the game, FB Madison Hedgecock confirmed what I’ve suspected for a while now – that he played this season with a shoulder injury. Hedgecock, who will need off-season surgery, revealed that he tore his labrum back in the Giants’ first preseason game and was never quite the same since.
MINNESOTA: QB Sage Rosenfels (3rd QB), WR Jaymar Johnson, CB Karl Paymah, TE Garrett Mills, LB J Leman, C Jon Cooper, DT Jimmy Kennedy, and DE Jayme Mitchell.
ODDS & ENDS
Head coach Tom Coughlin and the players always talk about the importance of starting fast, and with good reason. In 2009, the Giants finished 1-7 in games when they failed to score first and 7-1 in games that they did score first. Against the Vikings? Yup, they didn’t score first.
One good thing to come out of this season is that with their 8-8 record, the Giants now have finished at .500 or better five straight season for the first time since 1954-63 when they finished at .500 or better for 10 straight seasons. Had they won this game and finished at 9-7, it would have marked the first time since 1988-90 that they finished above .500.
How bad has it been for the Giants defense? They were outscored 85-16 in their last two games. They also surrendered two straight games of 40+ points, the first time that’s happened since 1971. All together, they’ve surrendered five games of 40+ points, tying the 1966 defense for that dubious honor.
THE FINAL WORD
Well, might as well start working on the Sheridan article as I think this performance sealed his fate. But before I do that, on behalf of all of us at Inside Football, thanks for reading our weekly post game reviews. The outcome of the games weren’t always pretty and certainly this was a season to forget, but we hope you’ll be back with us next year as I have a few new wrinkles planned for the post game coverage that I think you’ll enjoy.
There’s still a lot more coverage ahead in the coming days and weeks for that matter, so please be sure to visit or subscribe to our RSS feed. Up next is baggy day on Monday, and I’m sure there will be a lot to come from that (assuming that enough of the players stick around to talk, which I’m not optimistic of). After the players, we’ll hear from tom Coughlin and Jerry Reese, whom I’m sure will have some ‘splaining to do.
I hope you’ll consider a subscription to Inside Football next year as it’s sure to be an interesting off-season. General Manager Jerry Reese has a LOT of work to do this off-season, and we’ll of course have all the latest news, notes and scoops. Use the special discount code MOLLY and save $5.00. Remember, your subscription dollars help keep this blog and our paper alive.
