Underdog?

by GAgiantfan on May 31, 2008 12:23 PM EDT Comment 5 comments

Underdog or No Underdog?

One guy says the best the Giants will do in 2008/2009 is 8-8.

Another says that he believes the answer is maybe, but not likely, that
the Giants can extend the legacy began last season.

Still, another says that he thinks the Giants could have a record of 8-8,
but they also could go 12-4. Either way, he says, they'll finish second
in the NFC East.

Here's a quote from an aspiring sports journalist: "New York: Had an
improbable playoff run ending with a spectacular superbowl win. It wont
happen again."

What this leads me to believe is that many out there really do have
"IHAG", which is surely not a new brain condition, but it seems so
prevalent today. For many years, I thought this was some type of myth or
something. "Internalized Hatred about the Giants", or affectionately -
dubbed "IHAG", runs uncontrollably through the veins of many, and it
seems as if that condition will continue to spread with the "Big Boy"
analysts as they step up to make their claims for the upcoming season.

This is nothing new. We saw the emergence and the rise of this
condition last season as the Giants made their amazing playoff run and
went on to win the Super Bowl.

To me, though, it's an awesome thing to see "IHAG" spreading like a
wildfire! All it means is that we've done something right.

Many seem to repsect the great run that the Giants went on, but most
contend that it was a fluke. What that means to me is that we can dress
in our underdog clothing again. Sure, as Harry Carson spoke about
recently, we should beware because each team we play will be out to win
against the current Super Bowl Champ. (still sounds good huh)

I understand about championship teams stumbling after they win, and that's bound to happen to us. However, I don't think we have a fluke on our hands. We have a solid team with a solid coach, and best of all, we play as a team. Those things all bode well for an excellent future.

But to get little respect is a good motivator and allows us to work under the "us against the world" line of thinking. So, we're the Super Bowl Champs and what, we weren't supposed to be? We weren't supposed to win against (insert team name here) ?

Isn't it so lovely to be hated?

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Comments

Two things I'm sure of:

1. It’s good to be underrated.
2. The Giants will be better in ‘08 than they were in ‘07.

by george cronin on May 31, 2008 3:47 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I think so too GC

I really believe that more than an improbable run at the end of the season, the team gained confidence 1) playing FOR each other as a team(yeah this sounds corny but does reflect the character of the current group) especially after week 17. 2) Eli seemed to have the light turned on and never really shut of f regarding the in game decision making part of his game this was a long time coming but once learned is like riding a bike. Finally if the team is in fact under rated by a few or more teams, maybe with the help of the so called analysts and the current SUPERBOWL CHAMPIONS are of the right mind set collectively to defend their title this could buy a couple of wins by itself.

We're only gonna score 17 points?

by big blue wrecking crew on Jun 2, 2008 10:23 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Better in '08

The thing is, the Giants could be a better team in ‘08 in many, many ways and not wind up winning another Super Bowl. The ball bounces in strange ways, and weird things do happen. I will discuss this more later, but in no way can you define the success/failure of the coming season by whether or not the Giants win again.

by Ed Valentine on Jun 2, 2008 3:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

yep

The way I see it, last years team compares with the 2001 Pats, and while a lot of people forget this now, those Pats went 8-8 and missed the playoffs the next year, before coming back strong in ‘03-’04 and turning into one of the best teams in league history. I’ll be disappointed if the Giants take a step back next year, but I also know their future is bright, and they honestly probably won the Super Bowl about 2 years before they realistically should have been expected to win it, not that I’m complaining about that.

by cjmulrain on Jun 2, 2008 8:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs