Loading ...Aaron Rodgers seemed genuinely impressed when asked about the New York Giants defense this past week, noting that there were less "holes" in the coverage.
"They've been playing really well as a whole," Rodgers said. "There hasn't been those occasional holes that we saw a few weeks ago when we played them and we hit them, they kind of dropped a couple of coverages, there hasn't been those mistakes on their defense, they've been playing really sound together and it's going to be a tough challenge."
Defensive coordinator Perry Fewell has been growing more comfortable with his defensive personnel since linebacker Michael Boley returned from injury as well as defensive end Osi Umenyiora. The last time out against the Packers, Osi Umenyiora sat out while Michael Boley saw his first action in several weeks.
This left rookie Jacquain Williams frequently tasked with covering tight end Jermichael Finley in the middle of the field.
Then Aaron Rodgers leaked a little known secret to the world: how similar the New York Giants defense is to the Chicago Bears defense.
Whats so special about being likened to what was the 9th ranked defense last year and 17th this year?
Well that is certainly a good question. The Bears went to battle with Green Bay in the final week of the season last year as well as in the NFC Championship game. Between the 2 games, the Packers scored only 24 points on offense.
Of course the Bears were a healthy team then, which featured a strong defensive line, rangy linebackers, solid corners, and good safeties.
"If you're getting ahead in the game you can kind of dictate those coverages and situations a little bit better, playing from behind against a Giants or Bears team," Rodgers said. "They want to play that Tampa-2 coverage and keep everything in front of them. You get ahead of them, you force them to play a little 1-high. It just depends on the opponent.
Where there is smoke there is fire. The Bears play Green Bay twice a year and are consequently very familiar to one another. The Giants will now meet Green Bay for the 3rd time in just over a year. They are becoming familiar with Green Bay and what some of their "bread and butter" plays on offense are.
Aaron Rodgers can burn any defense for big plays, but a key in this game will be for the Giants to keep everything in front of them and make the Packers go on some long drives. The more snaps the Packers take, the more opportunities the Giants will have to get to Aaron Rodgers and knock the ball out or force him into a mistake.
Also…
- Be sure to "like" Giants 101 on Facebook and to follow Giants 101 on Twitter
- Meet Victor Cruz at the Poughkeepsie Galleria on January 17th
- Get your tickets to meet Brandon Jacobs at "The Man Show" January 29th
- Text "oneteam" to 20222 to donate $10 to the One Team for the Lights charity initiative.
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Alex Smith was put down relentlessly on this site before our initial meeting with the 9er’s. He then proceeded to beat us. Beware.
Any pro QB can beat a team playing a zone when they don’t know how to play it.
Those passes to Davis were bigtime NFL throws, period. Its one thing to opinions you have to take actual play into account. Alex Smith has turned into a pretty good NFL QB. Not great but he’s not Dilfer either.
Absolutely. The big pass to Davis that set up the score was a very difficult throw. The angle at which Davis was running his route and the postion of the defender left a very small and briefly open window with which to complete that pass. Smith timed it perfectly and the throw was exactly where it needed to be. He earned some respect on that last drive.
I was referring to our game, not the game just played.
Kujo – Brees takes at lot of risks and if the defense makes plays and catches the ball then he will have some turnovers. Even that great play by Graham was an extremely risky play. That’s why I have always felt rodgers had a better year. But Rodgers has a much worse OL & running game.
Brees is a screen master. He broke the record throwing screens (1,200 yds total) and broke Marino’s record.
Eventually every offensive record will be held by a dome team player. Except maybe number of carries.
For me, every win against the so-called elite QBs (Rodgers Brees Brady) counts as a victory for the NFL. While spouting PC horse manure about parity, they’ve jiggered the rules to optimize the game for a select few. Brees threw for over 450 yards and still lost. Great!
Power to the people!
It’s like the steroid era in baseball.
GOAT56 – by my count, Brees had one perfectly thrown long pass. The other 5-6 he throw in this game were “chucks” hoping his tall athletic receivers could come down with ball or prevent an interception. This NO/SF game proved to me he is much more of a dink-and-dunk QB. I will take Eli’s long ball touch (and decision making) every day of the week.
And I will say this having watched almost all of the Saints games this year, Sproles is NO’s MVP, without him their receiving core is above average. Sproles was the best free agent pick up this year. They guy is just phenomenal.
While it’s true that San Fran will be no push over, I still would rather play them than the Saints at home… Not to mention I’ve grown a serious hatred for the Saints as long as Brees is their QB.
True also… we have to worry about beating GB first… but my initial comment started with “If we can pull a win tomorrow….. or something like that”. Beating GB will be no easy task, but I feel we can and will beat them tomorrow.
To some, it seems like every game that we play is like an impossible task to win. While always hearing how ____ is a good team or _____ team is too good for us to win against….. there is one thing that I see missing in those statements…. the GIANTS are a good team as well. While not discounting all the other teams we come across, I feel that many are constantly discounting our own team.
I’m not directing this at anyone in particular, just from the vibe that I get from alot of statements. True…. GB,SF,NO,NE,Bal,etc,etc,etc… are good teams… but so are the GIANTS. Just because such and such is a good team does not mean that we will lose. We’ve beat the best before and will in the future.. so why not now? We can overcome adversity along with the best of them. Our team is much improved over the last 4 or 5 weeks, our defense is playing outstanding, we have one of the top ELIte QBs in the league, We’ve got quite a few players playing at the top of their game right now, and we are HOT!!! right now. New Orleans I was scared of. The rest we can and have played as good as or better.
We matched up well with San Fran last time. We matched up well with Green Bay last time. We took them both to the wire and could have won those games as well as lost them. The biggest difference I see is: then our defense was playing nowhere near like it is right now and the offense was carrying the load. One game, Eli came up short. The other he scored too quickly. If the Giants didn’t prove they could hang with them while the defense wasn’t playing too good…. then I guess they could never prove it to some.
I’m an optimist = maybe….. but I do think about Giants football almost every minute of every day. It is my favorite conversation piece at work and such…. and I would rather have a good feeling about my team leading up to the game, than to go through all week miserable because all is lost. I love my GIANTS football, and will have total faith in my team no matter what the odds are. This organization has pulled off the upsets before when counted out, and that is when they are at their best. I feel tomorrow is one of those times. The Packers a re a hell of a team, but guess what…. so are our Giants!!
+1000, wave that towel tomorrow…I’m more pumped now after the NO loss then I was before and I’ve been pumped. If they get through tomorrow they’re going all the way. I just feel it.
For every article or SportsCenter segment where Brees was stroked endlessly, where his record season was celebrated, where the line was shown as 9ers as home underdogs as #2 seed, every player in that 9er locker room was seething. They came out with rage today, out physicaling New Orleans all day, knocking guys out and making alligator arms show up all over the field.
For every article or SportsCenter segment where JPP was stroked endlessly, where the 2007 season was celebrated, where the Giants are described as the team that matches up the best against Green Bay, every player in that Green Bay locker room…
Bingo.
That’s what compelled me to yesterday post my disgust with the incessant 2007 talk. Can’t blame the media for it… it’s the kind of cheap, pat narrative that it loves. Can’t blame the fans for lapping it up, either.
But I’ve gotten an uncomfortable vibe that the Giant players may have bought into it too heavily themselves. All this “team of destiny” nonsense; as if all the Giants have to do is show up and let the power of history take over and do the rest. Reminded me a little too much of all the Tebow chatter this week… and how his “faith” would somehow enable he and the Broncos to defeat a much superior team.
And – as you say – all these ridiculous 2007 comparisons will certainly provide extra motivation to a Packers team that hardly needs it.
Excited as I am for this game; much as I’m looking forward to it, I believe it’s gonna be ugly. I just hope the Giants can avoid suffering the kind of humiliating smackdown that the Pats are currently laying on the Tebows.
That OC for the Packers who had the family tragedy is coaching tomorrow.
You know that we’re gonna lose now…
Haven’t heard that Kujo. All accounts I’ve seen said he will not be there and the staff is splitting his duties for the game.