Loading ...The Giants secondary struggled mightily last season, partly due to the loss of safety Kenny Phillips to a knee injury following a week two win at Dallas. How sad is it that Phillips only played in two games and he still finished tied for second on the team statistically with two interceptions? The secondary was terrible without their best playmaker following week two, but I feel as though they will take a huge step forward during the 2010 season for many reasons:
- The Return of Kenny Phillips - The loss of Phillips, the best player in the Giants secondary, following week two of the 2009 season doomed the Giants defense. After two games Phillips had two interceptions and 13 tackles, leading the entire Giants team in both categories. Without Phillips, Michael Johnson was forced to be the best safety on the field, which he was incapable of doing, and the horrible C.C. Brown was forced into action. We all know what happened next. The Giants organization is being cautiously optimistic with Phillips and will limit him in training camp and the preseason, but it looks like he will be ready for action by the season opener. I think it will take the Giants talented young safety a little time to become confident in his knee again, but his return will be a huge boost to the secondary. I just wish the Giants would give the fans an honest answer on how hurt Phillips is and what we can expect from him in 2010, but we should know what we are getting during training camp.
- The Addition of Antrel Rolle – The Giants free agent prize this off season was the talented and super athletic Antrel Rolle, a former cornerback who moved to safety in Arizona. Rolle has a nose for the ball (10 interceptions the last three years), is blessed with great vision and speed after an interception (four interceptions returned for TDs) and can make a big hit in the open field (as he did on Giants tight end Kevin Boss last season). If Rolle is paired with a healthy Kenny Phillips, the Giants likely have the most talented safety tandem in the entire NFL. He also is insurance that, if Phillips is not healthy, the Giants will still have a Pro-Bowl caliber safety on the roster. I expect big things from Antrel Rolle in 2010.
- The Development of Terrell Thomas - A second round in the 2008 draft pick out of USC, Terrell Thomas has quickly developed into one of the better starting cornerbacks in the league, and is ready to become a star. Thomas led the Giants in both tackles (85) and interceptions (5) during the 2010 season, running one of those interceptions back for a touchdown. I think Thomas is ready to burst onto the national scene, and he will look even better surrounded by Rolle and a healthy Phillips and Corey Webster.
- New Defensive Coordinator Perry Fewell - One reason the Giants defense was so horrendous in 2010 was defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan, who was unqualified for the position and was totally overwhelmed. The Giants fired Sheridan this off season and brought in the fiery Perry Fewell, a high energy coach who was the former defensive coordinator and interim head coach of the Buffalo Bills. Fewell came into the league as a defensive backs coach, and from what I’ve heard, he is focusing heavily on improved play in the secondary during practices. The addition of Fewell could be a huge boost to the Giants secondary, and he is getting rave reviews as the defensive coordinator thus far.
- Corey Webster’s Health - The Giants best corner entering 2009, Webster struggled with a knee injury that ended up costing him the final three games of the season. He had a limited impact with just 51 tackles and one interception, and he was clearly not the top flight corner the Giants expected him to be. When Fewell discussed his impressions oft he Giants during OTAs, he talked about Webster standing out and making great plays, and mentioned that he is perfect for his style of defense. I think that a healthy and motivated Webster has a huge comeback season under Fewell and surrounded by much more talented players in the secondary.
- Signing Deon Grant - The Giants signed veteran safety Deon Grant this off season following his release from the Seattle Seahawks. The 31 year-old Grant has clearly lost a step from his younger days, but he is regarded as one of the brightest players in the league, who can still get the job done on smarts. He still managed three interceptions in 2009 while making 78 tackles, was a leader on and off the field for the Seahawks, and he will bring some much needed experience to the secondary. Grant is also amazingly durable, never missing one of his 144 career NFL games due to injury.
- Improved Pass Rush – Most of the Giants defensive lineman (Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, Chris Canty, Barry Cofield, Fred Robbins, Rocky Bernard, Jay Alford) were either playing hurt last season, were placed on injured reserve, or were coming off a serious injury in 2008. Really, everyone except Mathais Kiwanuka and Dave Tollefson, which is an amazing case of bad luck. Due to these injuries, the Giants pass rush was non-existent in 2009, and quarterbacks had all day to pick apart the secondary. The Giants will not only have all of these players healthy in 2010, but also added defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul in the first round and defensive tackle Linval Joseph in the second round of the draft. So the Giants pass rush should once again be ferocious in 2010, which will obviously make the secondary look better. Quarterbacks under duress make many more mistakes.
- Aaron Ross’ Health – The Giants talented but injury plagued former first round pick, who seems to be cursed with deformed hamstrings is finally 100% healthy. Of course he now wants to return punts, a terrible idea in my mind. Why put a valuable player who cannot stay healthy in such a high risk position? Ross needs to realize that he is the nickelback which is basically a starter in today’s passing league NFL. The Giants need him healthy, because the only other non-starting cornerback currently guaranteed a roster spot is the promising Bruce Johnson. The one thing the Giants lack in the secondary is cornerback depth, but Rolle could get back to his roots and slide down to play some dime corner on sure passing downs, with Phillips and either Johnson or Grant deep. The team also has undrafted rookie free agent Seth Williams from Richmond, a player who really impressed the staff during OTAs.
- Michael Johnson – When Kenny Phillips was injured last season, Johnson was asked to be the best safety on the field, and he was not up to the task. After two good games next to Phillips, Johnson was terrible when paired with C.C. Brown and Aaron Rouse for the remainder of the season. Unlike many of this sites readers, I think that Johnson has a good chance to win the third safety spot behind starters Phillips and Rolle. Although Johnson will never make a Pro Bowl and is a will never succeed if he is the best safety on the field, if he is able to play pressure free next to either Phillips or Rolle, he will be fine.
- C.C. Brown and Aaron Rouse – No longer with the team. This can only pay huge positive dividends for the secondary.
- NOTE: Expect wide receiver Domenik Hixon to clear waivers and land on the Giants IR. His release was really a formality, because this is the final year of his contract. If another team wanted Hixon, they would need to pick him up, then place him on IR and sign him to an extension. Nobody is going to do that for a return man with a blown out knee. As you know, Hixon tore up his knee fielding a punt untouched on the Giants new stadium turf during OTAs.
- NOTE: I was just reading that former Giant C.C. Brown is expected to win the Lions starting safety spot next to young star Louis Delmas. Don’t they know C.C. stands for Can’t Cover? Detroit’s management had better be scouring the waiver wires for a safety during roster cuts.
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I remember someone saying that. Our best defensive back gets hurt, we sign a stiff who just got cut in Green Bay and it is a blessing in disguise?
Started 5-0 and finish 8-8. Yeah blessing in disguise if your a eagles fan
Jenna. Don’t let the Skins fans bother you until they have a winning season.
My best friend is a Skins fan and I had 2 summer internships in Crystal City.
Every time they talk sh!t, I ask about the playoffs. That shuts them up real fast.
Count me in the blessing in disguise camp. Long story short, it was embarrassing enough that it got Sheridan the hell out of here without the chance to coach for his job. It also stepped up the heat on the front office and allowed the signing of Rolle. And, thus, if he comes back healthy, we get Phillips, Rolle and Fewell instead of Phillips, Johnson and Sheridan.
I’m not religulous, but that sh|t is divine.
I m not in the heart of Deadskin territory, but I’m pretty close and from all the SH!T I dish out, they seem to be pretty passive. I guess not winning anything and having a midget running the team for the past few years will do that to team moral. Jenna, if it ever gets tuff just mention a tiny man throwing millions at big names and getting nothing in return. Usually leaves a blank stare. . . .
The sad part is Sheridan was there to begin with and while I m glad they ousted him, they still let it happen and for that they lost some respect in my book. Top flight franchises should never hire micky-mouse coordinators. I expect that from the eagles or the chargers.
Training camp has yet to begin and the team has already lost two players. Statistically speaking, ther will be more damage before September. The Hixon loss will not have a big impact; the loss of the third round pick will. If the guys on defense who absent last year fail to show up again (Ross, Alford & Canty), it might be 1996 all over again in that the Giants will be fighting with Philly for the last place trophy of the NFC East.
Nah, offense gives you at least 8 wins.
wvchirodoc- – Im like most of the posters on here , my info comes from public sources and the best info for me is on this site . I dont remember hearing anyone complaining about the Sheridan hire , in fact , most people like me seemed to think that he was going to continue the schemes that had been used under Spags so we were for hiring him I think . Of course , things have turned out differently but quite frankly getting to this stage with Fewell being hired as coordinator is a LARGE plus in my mind because if Sheridan had turned out to be mediocre instead of as bad as we thought he was , he would still probably be the DC rather than getting Fewell . Now , we can only go by past history so I suppose Im kinda keeping my fingers crossed until we see a couple of preseason games to get an idea of the schemes Fewell will run with the talent he has on THIS team but Im quite sure the defense will turn out better than last years because there is a large bunch of the players who will come into the season renewed good health and an enthusiastic DC who has had good success in the past
There’s no use engaging in the counterfactual, “what if” games about Sheridan. He had paid his dues, been around and probably interviewed better than Giunta or whoever else was vying for the job. He got hired and f***ed up our season. It’s tempting to ponder what our defense could have been under his leadership had it not been decimated by injuries, but it’s all conjecture–he was here, now he’s not. Let’s hope Fewell does better with more.
19. Is Tom Coughlin light enough on his feet to coach on the bubble all season?
Nowhere is the hot seat hotter than in New York, where the coaches and managers who are placed on it get almost daily reminders of their precarious status from the media. But just 2½ years removed from the Giants’ memorable Super Bowl win, Coughlin enters the season with a discernible sense of urgency and pressure on his shoulders. That’s the natural outgrowth from last season when New York’s heady 5-0 start dissolved into a 3-8 non-playoff finish with the Giants defense collapsing in the final month.
They don’t do ultimatums in the Giants’ front office, but it was pretty clear when team owner John Mara said he was “unhappy with everybody” last January that he was serving notice to the head coach that a 2009-like disaster could not be repeated, not with New York moving into its new $1.6-billion stadium this year and not with the franchise having spent so freely on roster upgrades since its Super Bowl upset of New England.
How the season unfolds will tell us plenty about Coughlin’s fate in 2011, but suffice to say that if the resurgent Jets are the only winning story in New York this fall, change will likely be in the air for the Giants.
Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/don_banks/07/15/20.nfl.camp.questions/2.html#ixzz0twtsv5bq
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