Drelo's predictions for the NY Giants
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by user DRE-LO
I, like my fellow Armchair brothers and sisters am anxiously counting down the hours, minutes, and seconds till the official NFL party begins. But in the meantime, here's my official predictions for how the Giants season will turn out. Then it's up to you guys to dissect, analyze and let me know if i'm on point or off base!!
NY Giants- On paper, this is undoubtedly one of the most talented Giants teams in the history of this franchise. They're definitely better on paper then the Super Bowl team in 2000. Thus, the expectations for this Giants team are sky high and they very well should be. All eyes will be on Eli Manning as it is a make or break year for the third-year QB. He must establish himself as a leader on this football team and he must become more accurate in the pocket. Eli will have even more weapons this year as some of his passes will definitely be going to rookie WR Sinorice Moss as well as oft-injured WR Tim Carter. If Carter can stay healthy, {FOR THE LOVE OF PETE!!!} the Giants receiving corps will be much more dangerous. Plaxico Burress will have an 1,000 yard season again, but I really don't feel he has reached his full potenial yet due to the fact that he has been lazy at times and dosen't show much effort. He must work harder and become a better teammate for Eli. Tiki Barber is still running like he's 21, but the fact of the matter is that he is 31. That's the age when hits start to really hurt and injuries occur frequently. Ask Curtis Martin, Marshall Faulk and Corey Dillon. Thus, it's imperative that Tiki Barber dosen't carry the load at the RB position. It's time for Brandon Jacobs to carry his share of the load. He had an impressive pre-season and has earned that right.
As far as the defense is concerned, the first thing that comes to mind is the impressive quartet of defensive ends. One is headed for Canton, Ohio while the rest are headed for impressive careers. Strahan and Umeniyora will continue to give offensive tackles fits like they did last year. And if they happen to grow tired of beating opposing linemen to the punch, Justin Tuck and rookie Mathias Kiwanuka have proven capable of keeping the sack party going. The linebacking corps for the Giants will go as far as their health goes. Tom Coughlin plans to not use Lavar Arrington in third and long situations at all so that he could get the most out of him. Brandon Short was a great pick-up for insurance in case injuries should become of Pierce and Emmons. The Giants secondary is improved, but is still the weakest link. R.W Mcquarters was a great pickup at nickelback. Will Demps and Gibril Wilson are solid at safety, but they have to make an immediate physical impact in order to stump offensive coordinators because they're not great in coverage. Corey Webster and Sam Madison can either make or break the Giants secondary.
In terms of special teams, Giants fans should salivate on the 1-2-3 combo of kick and punt returners: Sinorice Moss, R.W Mcquartersand Chad Morton. Feely is streaky at best, but I'd rather have him than Vanderjagt right now. Feagles is the best punter in the NFL as he put so many inside the 10-yard line last year. They're hardly any weaknesses in this department.
Jared "The Hefty Lefty" Lorenzen is a great backup with a strong arm. A good insurance policy. To me, a backup QB is the second most important man on a football team because he always has to be ready when called upon.
This is a make or break year for Tom Coughlin as well. This is the most talented team he has had in his coaching career. Thus, mediocrity will be unacceptable now. Coming off a embarassing 26-0 to the Panthers that even had Tiki crying foul, Coughlin could be on the hot-seat if this team dosen't reach expectations.
I've said make or break a lot in this article. Allow me to say it once more. It's make or break time for this Giants franchise. Ernie Accorsi has done a great job putting this group of talent together. For the first time as a Giants fan, I EXPECT this team to make the playoffs without fail. I know that they're in the toughest division in football with every team guaranteed to get at least 8 wins or more. But anything less would be uncivilized and would leave me uncivil.
And when they make the playoffs, I don't expect them to be satisfied and happy that they got there as they clearly were last year. They must reignite their hunger at that point for their drive to the Super Bowl.
Bottom Line: 11-5 and a trip to the NFC Championship Game against the Carolina Panthers.
Date
Thu 09/07/06, 2:11 pm EST
