I said the other day I thought Peter King was pretty accurate saying the Giants are the 5th best team in the NFL, but who am I to argue with the Sporting News if they want to put the Super Bowl Champion New York Giants (Saying that just never ever gets old) number one

 Anyway, enjoy! We're number one!

SN Power Poll

One last thing: For my money, its much easier to paste a link in here than the old board

Being a single-minded Giants fan, when I think of draft busts I think mostly of the color Brown. Twice, in fact. There was a Bunch of others, I'm sure. Then there was a DE and a WR we must have been blind to pick.

What I don't often think about is how much better the Giants have fared compared to other teams. USA Today has, though, and with the exception of our new backup QB David Carr, there are no Giants on the list.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/gallery/football/s080423_draftbusts/flash.htm?gid=489&aid=2418

There have been players who underperformed because of injury, because they couldn't make the transition from college to the pros, and because the GM totally misjudged their abilities.  Any thoughts on who the biggest busts were for the Giants (who cares about anybody else)?

My wife just called to tell me that Aaron Pierce is interning on the Howard Stern Show on Sirius. Not sure for how long, I tuned in just in time to hear them finish the segment with him. I usually don't listen to Howard at my desk, for obvious reasons

Maybe Antonio can become a wack-packer

Antonio the Stutterer?

La-La-Linebacker?

Antonio the Actor?

Well, just figured I would let you know, Baba Booey to y'all!!

Is it wrong of me to admit that for a long time I couldn't stand this guy? I guess if he can change, I can too. I really do feel crappy about it, he's proven himself to be a hell of a coach, and more importantly, one hell of a man

Coughlin’s Playful Side Has Deep Roots in Florida Lawrence Green

Tom Coughlin, right, greeted each group of players on the ninth green at his charity tournament.

By JOHN BRANCH Published: May 6, 2008

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Tom Coughlin stood behind the ninth green at Marsh Landing Country Club on Monday, telling the story about the golf cart that rolled into the lake at No. 2 a few years ago. He provided his own sound effects.

“So the cart goes in the water — blub, blub, blub,” he said. “The clubs go in the water — blub, blub, blub.”

The gathering onlookers, Coughlin is sure, still believe that it was his fault that the cart’s brake had not been set.

Coughlin interrupted the story to watch Giants guard Chris Snee hit an approach shot.

“Look at this shot by Snee,” Coughlin said. In front of others, at least, he usually calls his son-in-law Snee, not Chris. “It’s on the pin.”

Coughlin, 61, urged the ball to spin backward after it struck the green’s back edge. Instead, it rolled into a bunker. Coughlin animatedly tried to pantomime the result to the golfers by repeatedly arcing one hand over an outstretched arm, which might better symbolize a dolphin jumping over a bar than a ball rolling into a bunker.

“That’s the best shot I’ve actually seen him hit,” Coughlin said. “It was actually straight.”

Then he returned to the cart-in-the-lake story.

“The best thing was the bubbles,” he said, wiggling his fingers as he lifted his arms. This sign language was clear: Bubbles going to the surface. And Tom Coughlin having fun.

Most people, including his own players, rarely see Coughlin in anything less than full intensity. But those close to him have long said that the public image was only a partial reflection. To see the true Coughlin, watch him among friends and family, away from football. They said nothing of sound effects and charades.

The makeover of Coughlin’s image has been stunning. A year ago, he had a tenuous hold on his job and was trying to unwind his reputation as a soulless disciplinarian. Now that the Giants have won the Super Bowl, there is less need for Coughlin, holder of a fresh four-year contract, to be explained.

Around Jacksonville, however, Coughlin’s transformation has been deeper and more complete. Coughlin may be more popular than ever in North Florida. He is certainly more appreciated.

Coughlin was the original coach of the Jaguars, who began play in 1995. He had a home at Marsh Landing, a beach house at Atlantic Beach, and a fledgling charity that he called the Jay Fund, which raised money for the families of children with leukemia.

It is named for a scrappy safety from Brockton, Mass., named Jay McGillis, whom Coughlin coached at Boston College in 1991. A few days after McGillis started a game against Syracuse late in the season, he was found to have leukemia. He died on July 3, 1992, and Coughlin found his cause.

Coughlin eventually lost his job with the Jaguars. But he kept the beach property, and he kept the Jay Fund.

So there he was on the ninth green Monday, hosting his 13th annual dinner-and-golf event, which raised about $260,000. The charity is closing in on a $5 million goal to endow the Jay Fund in perpetuity.

About 450 people attended the steak dinner and auction Sunday night at the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club. About a third of them returned for Monday’s tournament, including several Giants and former Jaguars. Jeff Fisher, the coach of Coughlin’s former rival Titans; Wade Phillips, the coach of his current rival Cowboys; and the former coaches Dan Reeves and Dick Vermeil were also there.

Coughlin waited for each group to arrive at the ninth green, then putted and chatted with them.

In between, he occasionally tapped his watch and commented on the pace of play. He talked about the retirement home that he and his wife, Judy, are building on the plot where their beach house used to be.

Coughlin riffed about hotels, and how he did not understand whether valets and bellmen should be tipped when they take the car or luggage, or when they give it back, or both. He laughed at one group that did the “Electric Slide” in the fairway. He said he had few close relationships with other head coaches because — duh — you play them.

“Even Bill Parcells, we never called each other,” Coughlin said. “What are you going to talk about?”

Before the tournament’s 8:30 a.m. start, Coughlin stood in front of the clubhouse sipping coffee and checking his watch. He wore tan shorts, a Jay Fund golf shirt, a straw hat, golf shoes and socks with the N.F.L. logo.

“Hey, Rich,” he said to Giants guard Rich Seubert. “Where’s Snee?” Players, as if testing Coughlin’s clock-watching reputation, were the last to find their places at the golf carts lining the parking lot.

Receiver Michael Jennings, who lives in Jacksonville, arrived in his customized Chevrolet Caprice at 8:27. Music pulsed out the open windows. Jennings emerged wearing a black tank top and a thick gold chain. His mouth held his grill — a row of removable gold caps that cover his teeth. He had never been on a golf course before.

Coughlin likes Jennings — “One of a kind,” he said — and found him a collared shirt to wear. On the course, Jennings admitted to not playing well.

“The sun is reflecting off my teeth,” he offered.

Jennings’s group included John McGillis, Jay’s father. Coughlin brings John and Pat McGillis to the event each year. He wants them firmly connected to the legacy being shaped in their son’s name. Coughlin calls them every July 3 and Oct. 17, Jay’s birthday. He calls at Christmas, Thanksgiving and other holidays. He will call them this week to make sure they got home O.K.

“Whenever I see something negative about Tom Coughlin, I get so upset,” Pat McGillis said. “I say: ‘You don’t know Tom Coughlin. You have no idea what Tom Coughlin is like.’ ”

The McGillis family, like many of those far away in Jacksonville, cheered the Giants in the Super Bowl. Finally, Coughlin’s legacy would center on a championship, not various interpretations of his personality.

Coughlin wants it to be more than that. In a hotel suite hours after the Super Bowl in Arizona, Coughlin hugged his good friend Ernie Bono. It was Bono, who lives in a house along Marsh Landing, who forgot to set the brake on the cart that plunged into the lake.

Coughlin kissed Bono on the cheek.

“And he said to me, ‘This has to be a forum for leukemia,’ ” Bono said on Monday.

Coughlin was out of earshot. He stood behind the green, looking in the distance for the next group to arrive.

Giants Extend David Diehl's Contract

In a classy move for a classy guy, the Giants have handed David Diehl a six-year, $31-million contract extension less than three years after his last one. Diehl's agent, Peter Schaffer, confirmed the extension, which was first reported by ESPN.

"It's a recognition by the Giants of David's commitment to the team, his attitude and his personality," Schaffer said. "He's the ultimate team player."

That's true. Diehl has started all 80 regular-season games and six postseason games since he was drafted by the Giants in 2005. He's played through all kinds of pain and everywhere on the offensive line except center -- right guard in 2003, right tackle in '04, left guard in '05 and '06 and left tackle last season after the team cut Luke Petitgout.

No matter what the team has asked of him, Diehl has done it. And he's now played the most important position on the line for a Super Bowl winner.

Schaffer wouldn't discuss the financials of the deal, which was finalized about two weeks ago, but someone familiar with the terms of the contract confirmed ESPN's report of escalators that increase Diehl's contract by $750,000 to $1.1 million if he stays at left tackle.

Diehl's previous contract -- a six-year, $15.5-million extension -- would have expired after the 2011 season. He's now extended through 2013.

I'm curious to know what this does to the Giants cap situation

Congrats to Diehl

Giants announce 4 more rookie signings

The team has announced the signing of four more undrafted free agents:

*Alabama WR D.J. Hall
*Alabama DE Wallace Gilberry
*Tennessee DE Antonio Reynolds
*Michigan State S Nehemiah Warrick

That leaves Army P/K Owen Tolson, Akron DT Nate Robinson and Washburn DT Eric Butler as players who have reportedly signed but haven't been officially announced.

Thanks to Mike Garafolo at the Ledger

So I'm a huge Penn State friend.  I actively read Black Shoe Diaries, the PSU blog at Sports Nation, which I would arguably say is the standard-bearer for PSU blogs.  As you may know there is much controversy over JoePa's age and a succession plan.  So being cranky and irritable on a Monday, I see someone has posted this on BSD's Diaries :

How about John Hufnagel after JoePa?

With all the talk about eventual coaching succession, Hufnagel's resume is stellar. QB at PSU 70-72, I think sixth in Heisman voting. Played pro football 15 years, then coached Doug Flutie, and Jeff Garcia in Canada. Was QB coach for Peyton Manning; then Mark Brunell at Jacksonville, then QB coach for Tom Brady at the Patriots, onto the NY Giants as Offensive Coordinator 2004-2006 credited with Eli Manning's fast development. Do you sense a strong pattern here?!?! Now head coach in Calgary, probably left the Giants because Tom Coughlin felt threatened by his exceptional coaching talent.

I think my angry comments touched off the big Coughlin debate we had in December, and I believe Ed among others said I needed to let go of Hufnagel hate.  To be fair, I was never really back on the Coughlin bandwagon until it looked like we finally completely scrapped Hufnagel system after the Redskins loss.  Normally, this would roll of my back due to the pleasure of a being WorldChampionNewYorkGiant's fan, but I was a little cranky this morning, and thought of having to watch him call plays for another team I love made me crack a little.  So I responded with a "summary" of what I thought of his coaching ability. 

Ironically, I've never seen any signal caller so universally hated the current PSU OC, Jay Paterno, Joe's son, which in addition to describing his genealogy also describes what appears to be his only qualification for the job. 

An Preview of the Article "Woodson's Slide"  from Progridironfootball.com

"Woodson was one of college football's most exciting quarterbacks. From the beginning to the end of his senior campaign, you could not go a week without hearing his name being a potential first round draft pick.

All he did was get better every year, break school and NCAA records, and performed in big games when they counted.

Fresh of his impressive bowl game against Florida State, it seemed Woodson was sure first rounder and probably the first or second QB picked in this years draft.

Then came the Senior Bowl."

The full article can be read at progridironfootball.com

I didn't realize this til I read it in an article the other day

The Giants had only 4 picks in 2005, after trading away picks for Eli the previous

2nd round: Corey Webster

3rd round: Justin Tuck

4th round: Brandon Jacobs

The other pick was Eric Moore, DE, who didn't last, but still, how many teams 4 seasons later have 3 starters in the lineup from the 2005 draft? And I don't think its unrealistic to say Tuck and Jacobs have a pretty good shot at going to Hawaii someday.

As much credit as Jerry Reese is getting these days, lets not overlook the fact that Ernie was doing some nice things along the way too, albeit with Jerry's help

[NOTE: I asked out friends over at Conquest Chronicles, SB Nation's USC blog, for some background on Terrell Thomas, the Giants' second-round pick in the NFL Draft. Here is their report.]

Terrell Thomas was one of the premier lock-down cornerbacks in college football.

From WeAreSC.com

Overall in 2007 while starting all 13 games, he had 45 tackles, including 4.5 for losses of 29 yards (with a 15-yard sack), plus a team-best 4 interceptions that he returned 44 yards (11.0 avg.), a team-high 7 deflections, 3 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery. He was named to the 2007 All-Pac-10 second team (for the second consecutive year), ESPN.com All-Pac-10 first team, Rivals.com All-Pac-10 second team and Phil Steele's All-Pac-10 second team. He was an East-West Shrine Game invitee.

Known for his lock-down skills on receivers, he is also versatile enough to play free safety. His ability and penchant for making big tackles inside the box has shown he has more than lived up to the challenge of covering the opposition's main receiving target and has allowed just two touchdown catches over the last two seasons at USC.

Because of his ability to dominate vs. the run, he has also seen some action with the linebacker unit. He shows little regard for his own safety, willingly hurling himself into the pile to make the play. Can be effective in man and zone coverage but at his best playing press-man. Is physical and aggressive, using long arms and strong upper body to take receivers out of their routes at the line. He is instinctive in coverage and knows when to turn and look for the ball. He takes solid angles and is a reliable open-field tackler. In zone, he does a good job of keeping everything in front of him and reading the QB's eyes. Gives a good effort and is very productive in run support.

He's instinctive but he also tends to freelance at times and can get in trouble by being out of position. He's fast for his size but he does lack elite fluidity in his hips and will have some trouble keeping up with smaller, quicker WR's on double moves in the NFL. Struggles to find the ball over his shoulder and is much more effective when the play is in front of him.

He will be a great addition to the Giant secondary, and with me living 5 minutes away from Giants Stadium I will get the added benefit of seeing both Thomas and Steve Smith play this season.

The SUPER BOWL CHAMPION New York Giants were honored at the white house by the President today.  Here is a link to the transcript of the event.  And here is the best zinger from Bush, a nice little dig on Romo and 'Boys.

And it clearly gave your team some self-confidence, because you stormed through Tampa Bay and then went into Dallas -- I'm a good sport. (Laughter.) We're going to send Jessica Simpson to the Democrat National Convention. (Laughter.)

Couldn't find any video but I'm sure it will be up at some point, though it really wasn't that exciting to watch on CNBC today.