Ahmad Bradshaw will start Sunday vs. the Philadelphia Eagles

Tom Coughlin indicated in his Wednesday press conference that running back Ahmad Bradshaw will practice this week and start Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. In typical Tom Coughlin fashion:

Q: Will Ahmad start?
A: Yes.

Bradshaw missed half of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers game and all of the Carolina Panthers game with an injury to his neck. This is a move that was not unexpected. Tom Coughlin has shown loyalty to veterans before. It's not like Bradshaw is a bad player, however, he has had issues creating yardage in the run game. This week will begin to show whether his lack of production in the run game is his fault or the offensive line. In place of Bradshaw the last week and a half Andre Brown has made a name for himself by hitting the hole decisively and picking up the yardage he could get. He has averaged 5.6 yards per carry.

Even though Bradshaw is starting, it's likely Brown will continue to get a fair share of carries. Even though Brown has looked impressive I don't think this is the wrong move. Bradshaw has not produced in the running game as much as the Giants would like, but he is one of the best in the league as a pass blocker on third downs and is an asset in the receiving game. Plus, despite his success as a runner, Brown has yet to show that he can keep the Giants biggest asset, Eli Manning upright. The Eagles are a team that can really rush the passer and the Giants will be glad that Bradshaw is there to clean up the Eagles pass rush. But Bradshaw has been put on notice -- Andre Brown means to take his snaps one decisive run at a time. Fair or not, Brown's two impressive weeks have cost Bradshaw his built in "the offensive line is terrible" excuse Bradshaw supporters have claimed for the better part of a year now. If Bradshaw doesn't impress, he might see Brown run away with his job.