Mosley's assessment on the mark

LB situation is problematic, but the D line and the secondary are greater problems by far.Sintim, Goff and Boley could work out fine, then all we need worry about is depth at LB. We need to bring in new blood for the O line as well and this could prove to be more crtical than the LB situation. I’d hate to see the O line get back to where we were when “Off-side” Pettigout was OLT. He should have been gone a lot sooner than he was.

Kawika Mitchell was, in my opinion, the best Linebacker on the field in 2007. Hustle, hustle, hustle. Letting him go was a mistake. Antonio was always vocal, very appreciated,
but not as good as his rep or ego told him he was, though he did have some great moments in ‘07. Still, Mitchell was better overall. Since then, the LBs have vacillated between decent to chink in the armor. I agree with F.Bradshaw. Free agency is the best way to attempt to fix this. Is there another, yet even better Mitchell?
RBs? I would seriously consider cutting Jacobs loose. He’s not Tiki, a freak who got better as he aged. He’s a brute runner, with talent to spare in that regards, but his one dimensionality has cost him, and the team. Calling a 27 year old man old is tragic, but his show and ability is, sorry to say, old. Ahmad, great change up runner, gutsy, as we’ve all been witness to, but not our starter. Don’t brush off picking an RB in 2nd or 3rd rounds. Seriously. We need one. Fast. No one in free agency excites me there, as far as I can tell. Is there anyone of interest available I’m missing? First round: Corner. As well as a DB in free agency. They have to spend. OL, I’d go FA. Ca-ching! Has to be done.

The priorities on defense should be DT and linebacker, in that order. The secondary got blamed for a ton of bad plays that were the result of a lack of push up front and the inability of the linebackers to cover tight ends or backs out of the backfield. Think of how many 3rd and long situations turned in to first downs because the QB had 4 or 5 seconds to throw. No secondary can hold up to that. And while their tackling was often atrocious, when they’re constantly in a position of making tackles 20 yards down field (because that’s how long the QB has to throw) they’re going to look bad sooner or later. In fact, this year’s secondary is better man for man that the group that won the Super Bowl in 2007, even with Phillips on IR. They won in ’07 because of pressure (just ask Brady).
Given the lack of leadership on the field, they need to fill some of these spots through free agency.
On offense, they need another tackle, at least, and I agree that they need another RB in the mix, especially since Ware seems to have washed out.

Shanahan can out coach coughlin in his sleep.

Hixon, Jacobs, Moss. for… ?

Those are our two areas of interest. The linebacker position is not the heart of our recent Giants team, Jerry Reese will tell you that. Look at our offseason. We picked up Canty and Bernard to strengthen Tuck, Osi, Kiwi, Cofield, and Robbins. Sure Boley was picked up, but we spent a majority of our money getting a DT/DE hybrid in Canty so that we could absolutely demolish lines. 2008 is a better example. Honestly, I can’t remember our starters. I know it was Pierce and Clark. Was Blackburn our third? Who started when Pierce went down last year? DeOssie? Wilkinson? I honestly can’t remember, and yet we were one of the most dominant defenses in the NFL. The top position we need to concern ourselves with is Defensive Tackle. First round hopefully. If we can get someone who can be disruptive up the middle, then (assuming our line returns to order i.e. being the New York freaking Giants) our weaknesses at Linebacker can be covered up.

And we’re jumping the gun on Linebacker aren’t we? Sure Pierce is likely done as a Giant and the chances of Clark returning are slim, but we still have Goff, Sintim, and Kehl to try out, plus potential FA pick up. If we’re grabbing any LB it’ll be in the FA. Why have three young rookie-esque linebackers? We’d be settling ourselves up for disappointment. I’d grab a LB off FA or sign Clark (if reasonable) for another year until we can see how Goff and Sintim produce.

Now for our secondary, well its not as bad as it looks… potentially. A lot depends on Kenny Phillips. Will he return? Will he be the same? Will he ever play football again? If he returns and plays healthy, the Giants are secure in the secondary with Rouse and Phillips as starters for safety, with Anderson and Ra’shad learning behind them. Keep either C.C. Brown or Michael Johnson for another year as back up, and I lean towards the latter (I know Brown sucks in coverage, but the dude can hit). Webster and T2 have the CB positions locked with Ross and B. Johnson behind them. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a veteran backup brought in just for security purposes.

Our other big areas are O-Line and Runningback. Personally, I’m weary about this O-Line, but it seems like some reorganizing could really help. Beatty has proven he can start if need be, so plugging him in over McKenzie, or swapping Diehl with Suebert and plugging Beatty in with LT could resolve our concerns. Snee & O’Hara were not problems this year, so a complete overhaul is not necessary. I’d like a OL drafted, but not until we can shore up DT first. Also, if we have the opportunity, I would love a new RB. Sure we’re stacked, but let’s look at our RBs.

Brandon Jacobs – Mediocre season that required surgery. RBs have a short shelf life, but guys like Jacobs are even shorter. There’s a chance he could be done.

Ahmad Bradshaw – Great player, but will be undergoing surgery. Not a good sign.

Andre Brown – Injuried in training camp. I just can’t trust going into training camp with all three RBs coming off surgery.

Gartell Johnson – He seems like a good special teams player. Otherwise he’s not the go-to guy.

DJ Ware – He’s done. He got his chance when Brown got injured, and blew it. I doubt he’ll be here long.

Personally I’d like one healthy, potential RB entering into training camp. Worst comes to worst maybe we get a new Kick Returning. While I love Hixon, the guy is inconsistant. Some competition could really help.

Anyway, my final concerns for the draft follow: Defensive Tackle, Running Back, Offensive Lineman, Safety. After that draft solely by best available.

The Giants don’t have the right DT’s or linebackers to go to the 3-4. Tuck, Osi & Kiwi are all too small. No nose tackle. In truth they don’t have linebackers for a 4-3 either but they’ve got a few guys who can play. They just need a little more speed and a middle linebacker with range who will hit.
I agree With Rollo, by the way. He couldn’t cover worth spit, but C.C. Brown will come up and hit. If he was bigger he could be an outside linebacker.

i think Antonio Pierce should be a defensive coach. He is respected by his teammates . ,and knows the defense. We have a running back that we drafted last year and was on IR. Pepper is a man who has a Patriot background….We need a special draft to enhance our team. We drafted well last year. Beatty,Hicks ,Sintin and Barden have good careers ahead of them. Go giants

We do not have the right player make-up for a 3-4..We are built to be a 4-3..period end of discussion. The team needs to fix what is wrong with our current talent..lose whoever doesn’t fit it (which is minor)..and move forward with it..This is not a re-building bottoms-up year it is fixing a combined prolefera of problems across both sides of the ball..Defense being first and foremost..We are not dealing with a nightmare here..I vote for Pepper Johnson as DC..a guy that bleeds blue or Romeo to come in and fix the defense..Pepper is my first choice..OCs can afford the luxury of being somewhat stoic on the sidelines..You need an animated animal for a DC on the sidelines..