Good morning, New York Giants fans. Today is a somber day as many of you are dealing with the ongoing floods from Hurricane Irene. Hopefully the pain and damage that this storm has inflicted on you all is as minimal as possible and that you and yours remain safe. And while the perspective of sporting events is lessened on days like today, some do view sports as a welcome respite. So on that note, the game between the Giants and Jets will be played Monday night, and here are some bits of news and notes....
Game on for Giants, Jets as stadium survives Irene | New York Daily News
The heavy winds and torrential rains that battered New Jersey late last night and throughout today have apparently spared the stadium at the Meadowlands, and the Giants-Jets preseason game is still scheduled to be played Monday night at 7 p.m. "Yes, we are planning to play the game tomorrow night," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello confirmed in an email. According to a Giants team spokesman, the stadium suffered no damage from Hurricane Irene and, as of this afternoon, still had power.
NJ Transit: No Rail Service Monday - East Windsor, NJ Patch
NJ Transit rail service will remain suspended until further notice, except for the Atlantic City Rail Line, as a result of residual impacts of Hurricane Irene. The changes also mean no rail service for the New York Giants/New York Jets game scheduled for Monday evening.
Rex Ryan, Tom Coughlin have much to learn about starters in Monday night Giants-Jets preseason game
Now that Hurricane Irene has stepped aside, the Jets and Giants finally get to put on their dress rehearsal for the season Monday night in what will be the first of two meetings in the next four months. The second one counts. Monday night's does not count in the standings, but the third preseason game of the summer is always when coaches find out the most about the team they are taking into the season. And with the lockout wiping out the offseason, Tom Coughlin and Rex Ryan still have a lot to find out.
Hopefully TC will not find out that any more of his players are injured. I know I speak for all of you that I just want that injury bug to stay far away from MetLife Stadium.
Three things to watch for New York Giants and Jets in preseason meeting at MetLife Stadium
What about QB Eli Manning? He has bad memories of his last game against the Jets, when he was sandwiched between LB Calvin Pace and S Jim Leonhard, lost his helmet and ended up with a bloody three-inch gash in his head. He's also still looking for his first preseason touchdown pass.
I know that ultimately most of us feel pretty good about our quarterback. But the fact that he has zero touchdown passes in the first two preseason games is mildly troubling.
New York Giants team report: Hakeem Nicks' slow start no cause for concern - NFL - Sporting News
Nicks (6-0, 215) is a physical player who uses his leverage, strength and very large hands to outmaneuver cornerbacks. Giants fans shouldn’t be overly concerned about Nicks’ performance so far. He didn’t do much in the preseason last year, then got off to a fast start once the games began to count.
Giants' gamble on DE Jason Pierre-Paul paying off – USATODAY.com
When the New York Giants selected defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul 15th overall in the 2010 draft, the pick was widely viewed as a high-risk, high-reward proposition. New York had a minimal body of work by which to judge the raw prospect since he had played one season of major-college football, at South Florida, after two junior college stints. His learning curve would be awfully steep. It looks as though general manager Jerry Reese's high-stakes gamble will be amply rewarded.
There are no doubt going to be a ton of season previews published in the next 10 to 14 days, so here is one of those, courtesy of the LA Times.