Tomorrow is a classic trap game for the Giants. If the Giants don't look past the Redskins, they should easily beat them. The Giants offense is playing complete football for the first time this season. The injuries to the offensive line have finally uncovered the correct combination (they have a young guard who never got the opportunity to start until the center, Baas, went out with neck and head injuries, and the shuffling of the line has given the Giants the push they lacked all year). The return of Ahmad Bradshaw and the reinvigorized Brandon Jacobs (who realizes he is playing for his spot in the league) have finally given the Giants a run game. Eli Manning is playing quarterback as well as anyone in the league not named Aaron Rogers or Drew Breeze, and he has as good a compliment of wide receivers in Nicks, Cruz and Manningham as anyone.
The Giants defense, however, consists of Jason Pierre-Paul, and pretty much nothing else. Osi has been hurt most of the season, Tuck has been a shadow of himself all season playing through the neck injury he sustained in the Jets pre-season game, and until Bolle came back from injuries against the Cowboys last week, they had no linebackers to speak of. The Giants secondary, decimated by injuries to all 4 starters, has been as poor a pass defense as I have ever seen the Giants field.
This week, however, the Redskins inconsistent offense should stop itself enough times for Eli and the Giants offense to pull away, assuming the Giants don't beat themselves with stupid turnovers and inexplicable drops on key third down passes. Eli throws at least one tailor made pick-six ball off his back foot on an out pattern in an obvious passing situation each game. Gilbride has to take the out pattern off the table in third and 5+ situations, where the other team will be bringing pressure. As good as Victor Cruz has been he drops at least one key third down ball each game. Ballard, who makes all the tough catches, also drops a lot of balls when he is wide open. The Giants cannot run screen plays when Brandon Jacobs is the tail back, he flat out drops the ball every time. If the Giants are in a second and ten situation, they predictably call a running play, which 99 times out of 100 goes for 2 yards or less, leaving them in a 3rd and long. They cannot run the ball in second or 10 and longer situations, period.
If the Giants don't look past the Redskins to the Jets and Cowboys, Gilbride can avoid calling the wrong plays, and the Giants don't make any mental mistakes, they should win this game by 2 scores. If they turn the ball over or stop themselves with poor play calls and/or dropped passes, they could easily lose the game or be asking Eli to manufacture another 4th quarter comeback.
I think the Cowboys will beat Tampa Bay Saturday night and the Giants will beat the Redskins during the early game on Sunday, thereby helping the Jets by numerically eliminating the Eagles before the late game kick-off. The Eagles, whose talent on paper should destroy the Jets, might mail it in once they are finally eliminated, a very deflating moment for "the dream team". Jets fans better pray this happens, because otherwise they are going to get manhandled by the Eagles. The Jets cannot handle a lot of team speed, and the Eagles have tons of team speed. The Jets also have a lot of trouble matching up with pass-catching tight ends, and Brent Celek in one of the best. The Jets can't get any pass rush without blitzing, and if you blitz and play man, Michael Vick will run the ball for huge gains while your secondary has its back turned in man coverage. The Jets can't run the ball, and the Eagles strength is pass defense (they have 3 top notch cover corners). If the Eagles come to play, the Jets are right back on the outside looking in at the playoffs.
