Loading ...The NFL is a brutal, unforgiving league that does not give credence to past accomplishments; nor does it allow players to skate by on personal accolades. When players step onto the field, it no longer matters how many Super Bowl's they have won, how many MVP trophies they have collected, or even how many words of encouragement they have received from their coaches. On Sunday, the only thing that can help a player get his team a victory is his ability to perform at a high level at that specific moment in time.
The 2011 New York Giants' improbable Super Bowl run was due in large part to their ability to play with a ferocious intensity against elite competition. They did not care if they were playing the 15-1 defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers on the road, or the Tom Brady-led New England Patriots. Big Blue did not ever flinch at their opponent, and this attitude was a major factor in their Super Bowl victory.
However, last year the NFL saw a perennial contender in the Indianapolis Colts become the worst team in the league seemingly overnight, and the San Francisco 49ers go from 6-10 in 2010 to the NFC Championship Game in 2011. Every year there are teams that either under perform or outperform their expectations, and being the previous year's Super Bowl champion does not exempt a team from this precedent.
The 1986 New York Giants went from 14-2 Super Bowl champions to a 6-9 record in 1987. In fact, since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger, only six teams have defended their respective titles. There are no guarantees in this league and every team will be gunning to throw the Giants off their championship pedestal; however, the 2012 New York Giants have all the pieces to make a run at another Super Bowl victory. Below, we will examine what needs to happen for Big Blue to hoist another Lombardi Trophy in 2012.
Key Players Must Stay Healthy - This is a fairly obvious statement; however, this sentiment can not be overstated. Several teams have gone into a season with lofty expectations, only to see their dreams derailed by injury. For example, last season we saw the Houston Texans put together a great team, only to have their first and second string quarterbacks get injured in consecutive weeks, effectively ending any serious Super Bowl aspirations they may have had. For the Giants to have any chance at a repeat this year, it is imperative that the key contributors can stay relatively healthy and be available for big games. Hakeem Nicks has already gone down with a broken bone in his right foot, but hopefully the rest of the Giants core can avoid the injury bug for the 2012 season.
Must Survive a Tenacious Schedule – Speaking of big games, the 2012 New York Giants will have plenty of them. On top of playing their annual divisional bouts, Big Blue will face seven playoff teams from 2011. Although the schedule seems daunting, it does not have to be viewed as a bad thing. Last year, the Giants played their best football against the better teams on their schedule. If they can find their way into the playoffs, the Giants will be more battle tested than every team they face.
Running Game Must Improve – Tom Coughlin and the rest of the Giants' coaching staff are going to ask a lot from rookie first round pick David Wilson and last year's third string running back D.J. Ware. With Brandon Jacobs gone and Ahmad Bradshaw's chronic foot issues, it is likely that one of these two running backs will be the starter for the Giants in one or more games this season. For the Giants to defend their title in 2012, not only does Ahmad Bradshaw have to stay healthy, but Wilson, Ware, and even Da'Rel Scott will have to be ready to produce in a big way.
Pass Rush Must Be Explosive – The emergence of Jason Pierre-Paul provided a needed boost to the Giants pass rush last season. At times, the pass rush became stagnant, which allowed opponents to carve up the Giants secondary. With such a tough schedule, the Giants can not afford to have games where the pass rush does not show up and produce. The Giants defense is only as good as its pass rush allows it to be, so look for defensive coordinator Perry Fewell to keep getting after the quarterback in 2012.
Eli Manning Must Keep Getting Better - In 2009, Eli Manning had a better quarterback rating (93.1), a better completion percentage (62.3), and less interceptions (14) than he did in 2011(92.9/61.0/16 respectively); however, he followed up his 2009 season with fairly inconsistent play in 2010. Although 2011 was clearly Eli Manning's best season, it is not inconceivable that he does takes a small step back this year. Eli needs to build off last season and get better for the Giants to have a chance at winning a fifth Lombardi Trophy in 2011.
The New York Giants have a core of young players that are capable of making them a force to be reckoned with for years to come. Furthermore, they have one of the best (maybe even the best) coaches in the league in Tom Coughlin. With that being said, Big Blue, just like every other team, has a lot of work to do and several issues to solve if they want to win a title in 2012.
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Wow 7 games against playoff teams is crazy when you realize that none of those are division games. That means 13 games are against playoff teams and the division. Plus games against TB & Car don’t look easy either. But I like it for our squad because we play better against the better teams.
I do think our DBs were much improved in coverage over the last 7 games last year and should be improved this year. Of course we expect a great pass rush but I think our DBs can hold up even if our pass rush isn’t quite as good. Though, I think our pass rush should be better and more consistent with a healthy Tuck, Osi and Austin. Tollefson shouldn’t be missed if we stay reasonably healthy at DE.
Eli in 2010 was much more a matter of his WR letting him down. Not only were there drops and tip balls but wrong patterns like Nicks vs. Dallas. Remember the mass amount of injuries at WR in 2010. Eli in my view has been on a steady progression. Last year Eli was way better than 2009, that’s why the QB rating is just a tool.
One thing is for sure. That hot dog I had for lunch was definitely built to repeat.
Looks like Domenik Hixon is the one getting the first-team reps at OTAs, alongside Cruz.
How is a team built to repeat when they don’t know what they have on the O line and number 1 WR is already hurt and the toughest schedule in the league? Teams that were built to repeat like the Pats and Packers couldn’t do it. I hope I’m wrong and they do repeat, but to saythey are built to repeat really.
I think this is a good piece by Paul.
The most beneficial thing for the Giants is that if they can get through this schedule and manage to make the playoffs (and it will take no more than 10 wins and might be done again with only 9….the other NFC East teams have brutal schedules as well) they really WILL be used to tough games one-after-another. It’s always an advantage that they carry over teams that have relatively powder puff opponents through much of their seasons.
Who has to step up in order for the Giants to dramatically improve this season? I would say the prime prospects are Jernigan, Beatty, Baas, Wilson, Bennett, Amukamara, Rivers and Herzlich. They are the question marks. I think there are others who will predictably get better, including JPP, Kiwi, Joseph, and Williams. It would also make a huge difference if Tuck can get through the season without being hurt.
Nothing puts a damper on post-championship OTAs as much as:
GmenMania says:
May 30, 2012 at 9:16 PM
Looks like Domenik Hixon is the one getting the first-team reps at OTAs
Sure sounds as if the Giants are taking a long look at Krow’s Samoan at MLB:
Q: What prompted the team to sign Jake Muasau, who is from a small college [Georgia State]?
A: Obviously, our scouting staff did a really nice job and had him down and we brought him in during rookie minicamp. When I walked in the equipment room and the first time I saw him, I thought he was Kawika Mitchell, and I got excited. ‘Kawika’s back.’ And then he turned around and said ‘I’m so excited to be here.’ Then I said, ‘It’s not Kawika.’ He comes to the meeting room, he’s prepared. Coach Herrm has done a nice job of getting him focused on what to do. We saw something in him at rookie minicamp and said ‘Hey, let’s give this guy a shot’ because he was really professional at how he went about his work and business. We think if we give him the opportunity to get enough reps at the position he’s playing right now, we might find something. Obviously, preseason games will tell, but we like what we saw in rookie minicamp and we like what we’ve seen in these three OTAs.
Q: Where does he fit? He has never played inside linebacker?
A: He looks like a natural Mike, even though he’s not played it, than some of the guys we have. Coach Herrm has really done a nice job with him. Mentally, he has a visual picture of what we want and how we like to fit. I’ll be very interested in how he performs when we get to training camp and when we get to preseason because he’s just doing what we ask him to do. Sometimes that’s just the best thing: just go out and play.
http://www.giants.com/news-and-blogs/article-1/Coordinator-Fewell-anxious-for-Camp-Battles/8bceb602-3ebc-4cb7-b612-abfb2df09e27
Even if Muasau turns out to be nothing special, it’s not exactly a ringing endorsement of Greg Jones and Herzlich when Fewell says that a UDFA from some no-name program “looks like a natural Mike, even though he’s not played it, than some of the guys we have.”
Ouch.
Uhm…. “Eli Manning Must Keep Getting Better”. Really? You mean, the Giants can’t repeat if he performs as lights out/clutch as he did last season? That’s not even accurate. In 2007 he played worse and still won a Super Bowl. I’ll grant you an ‘all good’ on the other points (although not every pass rush is ferocious all 16 games a year), but this one was silly.
I respectfully disagree. The 2007 team was not ranked 32nd in rushing and it had one of the best offensive lines in football. Eli did not have to be stellar because he had a more well rounded offense. However, this season, with serious question marks on the offensive line and at backup running back, Eli is going to have to put a lot of weight on his shoulders.