New York Giants' notebook, 09.17.08

by Ed Valentine on Sep 17, 2008 6:00 AM EDT in News Comment 18 comments

Here are a few New York Giants' notes for a Wednesday morning.

LIKE MIKE: Justin Tuck gives Michael Strahan much of the credit for Tuck's ascension to what he is today -- one of the best defensive ends in football.
MEET THE NEW TIGHT END: Steve Smith is 5-foot-11, 195 pounds. Yet, he is doing a lot of the heavy lifting in catching the type of passes in the Giants' offense that used to go to that tight end who is now in New Orleans.
FALL FROM GLORY: Ex-Giant Mark Ingram was sentenced Tuesday to 7 years in prison after being convicted on bank fraud and money laundering charges. Ingram was a hero of the Giants' 1991 Super Bowl victory over Buffalo.
G-POPE IS A BENGAL: Cincinnati has signed former Giants cornerback Geoffrey Pope.
BE WARE: Here is an entertaining Q&A with Giants' backup running back Danny Ware.

POWER RANKINGS: I don't put much stock in power rankings and I hope you don't, either. But, they do create fun arguments. NFL.com has the Giants No. 2 this week behind Dallas. ESPN has the Giants No. 3, but couldn't resist a tiny jab. " The Giants summarily dismissed the Rams, but that's not saying much. The Giants have found success in the post-Umenyiora era."

CAPTION CONTEST: Get your entries in for Week 2 of our Caption Contest by tonight. The winner will be announced either Thursday or Friday.

NON-FOOTBALL NOTE: This one is for Yankees' fans. Derek Jeter became the all-time hit leader at Yankee Stadium last night, and over at Bugs & Cranks I have posted a little message for Jeter-bashers.

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Power Rankings

I always am amused by them. Did anyone see the Justin Tuck interview on Rome is burning or NFL Primetime? I forget which. It was amusing.

by Woogie526 on Sep 17, 2008 8:03 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

More Stats

http://www.nfl.com/stats/team

I know 2 games is a small sample size and our opponents have not been stellar. But how can the Giants get so much less credit when they are in the top 5 for 5 of the 6 offense and defense categories as a team.

Offense
4th yards per game.
5th rushing yards per game

Defense
3rd Total Defense
5th Passing Defense
5th Rushing Defense

The cowboys are in 2 of the categories, none of them defense.
The eagles are in 3 of them.

Yet The cowboys are “ranked” higher then us everywhere.

Off to do my best Rodney Dangerfield impression.

by Woogie526 on Sep 17, 2008 8:42 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

jeter is a tool

by kendynamo on Sep 17, 2008 8:45 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Ahh, Ken

It’s a good thing you’re a Giants fan. Ripping Jeter is a bad thing to do around me.

by Ed Valentine on Sep 17, 2008 8:48 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

hey, cut us mets fans some slack

yesterday was bad. very bad.

by kendynamo on Sep 17, 2008 8:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Mets

Imploding again, I see. So maybe last season wasn’t Willie Randolph’s fault. Watching Mets fans squirm is one of the few joys us Yankee fans have left for the remainder of the baseball season. LOL!!

by Ed Valentine on Sep 17, 2008 9:05 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I couldn't sleep after that loss last night

I know it’s just a game, and they’re millionaire athletes and it shouldn’t mean anything to me, but I’m emotionally invested, and losing the way they have hurts. Plus, about half of my friends are Phillies fans, and this past offseason was absolutely miserable b/c of them, so I need the Mets to win this thing. I kept trying to calm myself last night by reminding myself “hey, at least I’m still a Giants fan…Super Bowl, Super Bowl, Super Bowl”

For a change, I almost wish I was a Yankees fan right now, I’d have already come to terms with our fate months ago and could just try to wish the Stadium a fond farewell.

by cjmulrain on Sep 17, 2008 9:24 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

True

The Yankee fan part of me sleeps easy these days. The season is over, and I came terms with it a long time ago.

by Ed Valentine on Sep 17, 2008 9:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

The Mets will get in

The Brewers may not win another game this season.

That said, dunno how far you can go w/that bullpen.

As a Yankee fan, I’ll actually enjoy this October more than the previous few. No first-round knockouts, no getting shut down by the likes of Kenny Rogers and Paul Byrd. No freaking midges, or whatever those goddamn bugs are called.

by drunkUncle on Sep 17, 2008 10:44 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Very true

I hadn’t thought of that before … this October will be a nice change with no more stress & disappointment.

Great write up on Jeter Ed. I’m sure it won’t change anyone’s mind, but I think people will start to clue in when more of those hit records fall.

by potroast on Sep 17, 2008 11:43 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Jeter

The sides are clearly drawn on that fight. It’s like conservative Republicans vs. Liberal Democrats. No one is changing any minds on the other side. I just feel the need every so often to — as clearly and rationally as I can — make the ‘pro-Jeter’ case.

by Ed Valentine on Sep 17, 2008 12:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think Jeter

is neither as good as many Yankees fans think, nor as bad as most haters think. He’s a fantastic hitter, and is likely gonna end his career with 3,500+ hits, which is truly astounding. I’ve always felt he was an overrated fielder, and many of the stats seem to back that up, BUT he has made some truly phenomenal plays at very important times. Look no further than the ‘01 ALDS against the A’s – the out of nowhere cut off and flip to the plate is one of the 3 best plays I’ve ever seen.

I feel much the same way about Jeter as I do about Chipper Jones, or in a football sense, Tony Romo/Donovan McNabb. I can’t stand them b/c they play for teams I don’t like, but I respect the hell out of them and recognize that they are very good players.

So basically, I take the middle road, which is how I feel about the two political parties: they’re both wrong!

by cjmulrain on Sep 17, 2008 12:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I was about to say that....

…as a Yankee fan, this October will be SO much less stressful! For the first time since ‘95 I can peacefully go about my business of obsessing over the Giants and not worrying about some washed up nobody pitcher 4-hitting the Yanks in a crucial game 4. PS: if I saw Kenny Rogers on the street – it would be war, man. WAR. I would take great pleasure in punching him in throat, even if he is bigger than me. I hate him; and I also loathe Curt Schilling (for everyone’s information).

by Cody K on Sep 17, 2008 11:45 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs