Giants-Jags

Amidst massive media attention questioning whether Eli is the right "mann" in New York, the Giants young QB made a lot of pundits look brilliant in posting his second consecutive miserable game. The loss can not be solely thrown on the right arm of Manning, but he must shoulder a good portion of the blame. Worst of all, he looks to be suffering from a lack of confidence. On many occassions in last night's game Manning looked reluctant to pull the trigger. When he did manage to get his throws off, many balls were simply not thrown in the right places for his playmakers to make something happen. It's hard to imagine he hasn't been distracted by the multitude of experts who have labeled his draft day acquisition as a mistake. The loss of Amani Toomer is certainly taking its toll. By Manning's own admission, the receiver had emerged as a guy he could trust to make a big play. A few things about last night's disappointing loss really stuck out:

Where's the emotion? It seemed ironic on the night ESPN did it's feature on "Ballin", the Giants defense attempted no jump shots. Many purists would point to this is as a good thing, but it's not a matter of being a fan who enjoys celebrations. The defense had rallied around the group effort; it became a unifying force that provided a huge spark on both sides of the ball. Although the defense had little to cheer about last night, it was a clear demonstration that for some reason the Giants were playing with no emotion.

Not capitalizing early. After a fumbled snap that pinned the Jags deep in their own zone, the Giants started their first possession at the Jacksonville 30 yard line. A short run and an offside set the Giants up with a 2nd and 3 at the 23. Manning drilled a ball in to the ground on an easy swing pass to Tiki, then overthrew Plax on a deep ball. Feely converted the 40 yard attempt, but on the road against a tough team you need to put more than three points on the board in that situation.

Play Selection. While the final score wasn't indicative of how poorly the Giants played, it also does not demonstrate how close this game remained throughout. Despite that, the Giants, as they so often have, abandoned the run. Although ineffective, Barber needs more than ten carries. Of those ten, several were on second down draw plays that fooled no one and most of the others were just poorly timed. He never had a chance to get in to any sort of rythym, which is inexcusable in a game where your quarterback is struggling. His sore thumb clearly affected his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield, but he should have been given more opportunities in more suitable running situations. The coaching staff also needs to find ways to get #80 involved early in football games. It is well known that the offense is a far better unit when their gifted TE is getting early touches. Especially with no receivers stepping up in Toomer's absence, there is no reason Shockey is not getting the football.

Lack of a Pass Rush/Big Cushion on Receivers. The impact of Strahan and Umenyiora's absence has been monumental in the pass rush. Forcing William Joseph to move outside not only depletes their depth in the middle, but poses no speed threat off the edge. It is also becoming apparent that Sam Madison has been the best corner on the defense. Corey Webster is routinely giving "Dave Thomas-esque" (not the Wendy's guy) cushions on his receivers. This is not a problem when faced with diminutive speedsters such as Santana Moss, but to be giving the big receivers on Jacksonville that much space to make catches is ridiculous.

Did Shiancoe's cheap shot on Donovin Darius spark the Jags? It may have, and the team had every right to be mad. The more notable reason to look at this situation is how Darius' backup filled in admirably. Much is made about the Giants losses, but the reason they're made to look worse is because many of the fill-ins have played sub-par ball. For Jacksonville, Gerald Sensabaugh came in and performed brilliantly. Across the field, Tim Carter turned the ball over as the Giants were heading in for a score, Barber had to stay in the backfield to protect Bob Whitfield, Reggie Torbor had an opportunity to kill a Jaguars critical late game drive but failed to wrap Garrard up, and the two fill ins at defensive end failed to produce a pass rush. In short, the starters are sorely missed.