It's All Coming Down to This

After Ahmad Bradshaw ran over Brodney Pool and coasted into the end zone for a fourth quarter touchdown, the message was clear. The Gmen won the so called "Battle for New York." Truthfully I don't understand such overhype, but I guess Jets head coach Rex Ryan is to blame. What bugs me the most about how he uses the media to hype up games is he doesn't even make it about the game he makes it all about himself and what he thinks. It's selfish in my book.

But hey how about Victor Cruz breaking Amani Toomer's single season franchise record for receiving yards in a season. Not only that he did it with style. A 99 yard touchdown reception when the Giants were backed up in their own end zone. Simply awesome. That salsa dance is like fine wine it gets better with age. That was easily the play of the game.

Alright now that the Giants have beaten the Jets and are done with the stupidity of Rex Ryan we can think about more important things. The entire season as we know it has come down to one final game against our division enemies the Dallas Cowboys. Sunday night, the lights, the drama, it's going to be a battle beyond recognition. I get chills up my spine just thinking about it. This is going to be one hell of a football game.

A battle for the NFC East in the final week of the regular season. Unbelievable. As we can remember from our last game against the Cowboys, these teams matchup against each other pretty well. I would expect both Eli and Romo to have good games. I know Romo injured his hand in that game against the Eagles, but I would be very surprised if he did not play in this game. But then again it was his throwing hand and you never know. It will be interesting to see what happens with that.

I cannot imagine a better way to bring in the new year. The Giants have had a very erratic season filled with many highs and many lows. But so have the Cowboys. The Giants have also typically gotten together and put in some remarkable team efforts for big games. As a fan am I nervous? Absolutely. But that's just because of what's at stake. Am I confident the Giants can win? Damn right. I have been correct 8 out of 15 times in predicting Giants victories this season. Sure I always predict the Giants will win, but that's not an arrogance, it's a philosophy about believing in your team. It's something I think is very important in the world of being fan. Against all odds when the Giants backs are against the wall and it doesn't look good, you still gotta believe. Because that's what being a sports fan is all about in my opinion, not just rooting for your team, but truley believing in them with your heart and soul.

Giants. Cowboys. It's all coming down to this.

But no matter what, don't stop believing in the Giants. If that clock is winding down and we need to score against all odds and we have the ball, we're going to do whatever's necessary to win the game. I believe in the New York Football Giants.

Never Give Up

First thing's first:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXfaL4QdKdI

Ahhhh music to my ears. That game on Sunday night was one hell of a football game. The Giants had many reasons to roll over and die but they never quit. They scored fifteen points with like three and a half minutes left in the game. Lets talk about some of the awesome individual efforts from some of the stars of this great team win:

Brandon Jacobs- He's baaaaaack. Jacobs looked like he was in his 2007-08 form. He was running with a purpose, blowing people off the ball. No tip-toeing, just good ol' fashioned north to south big man football. It was awesome, if he can keep it going that will be huge for us. It was great to see for Giants fans. And that signature touchdown dance on the Dallas star in the end zone was icing on the cake.

Jason Pierre-Paul- I think he just punched his ticket to Hawaii. Can we just think about the type of game he had for a second? The man was everywhere he's an absolute beast. He had a sack for a safety, an additional sack, a forced fumble, and a game winning blocked field goal. He's a warrior, one of the best defensive players in the NFL and he's only in his second year! JPP's turning out to be one of the best draft picks Jerry Reese has had as Giants general manager. His constant hustle is inspirational to other members of the team to never give up on the play. He is an absolute monster.

Eli Manning- The wizard. A Greek God. The best. These are words that come to mind when I think about Eli running the two minute offense. He's drove down the field to come back and win the game in the fourth quarter in six out of our seven wins. Not to mention the San Francisco and Seattle games we lost when he moved the offense to the red zone to try and win the game in both those games. He is moving the ball at will, against any defense in the NFL. Now he has ALWAYS had fourth quarter magic but this year is something even more special. It's just ridiculous, he tolerated some of the worst snaps I've ever seen from our replacement center Kevin Boothe who decided to have a nervous breakdown for the entire drive. But that wont stop Eli. Heck he even threw a pass with his left hand when he was being rushed by Demarcus Ware. Why not? He's Eli Manning, and if the games even remotely close and he's got the ball in his hands late in the game, he will score. In fact Eli is one fourth quarter touchdown shy of passing a tied record held by Johnny Unitas and Peyton Manning. With regards to Mr. Unitas, we have to realize that he still has the record and this was back when they had 12 game seasons. Regardless there's no doubt about it, Eli's fourth quarter magic is becoming historic.

Danny Ware- He is the nastiest two-point conversion shotgun draw specialist the NFL has ever seen.

I could go on and on about the efforts from every player, but the truth is this was a team win. Tommy Coughlin icing the kicker to steal the win and take first place in the division? Man that is just awesome. But basically, we are 1-0 in our 4 game season. Next week we have another division game against the Redskins and winning it is extremely important because the Cowboys still have two division games as well. It may be unlikely, but there's a chance that the Giants can have the division clinched before the next Giants Cowboys showdown in week 17 if they win their next two and the Cowboys lose their next two. That would be sweet, but there's also other possible crazy outcomes as well. If the Giants win next week against Washington, and the Cowboys beat the Bucs then the Giants have a divisional record of 3-2 and the Cowboys would be 2-2. Then even more hypothetically if the Cowboys lose to Philadelphia (I will never root for the Eagles but I'm just saying it's not an easy game with a healthy Vick) and if the Giants lose to the Jets that would set up the final game with the Giants having a record of 8-7 (3-2 divsional record) and the Cowboys with a record of 8-7 (2-3 divisional record). THAT WOULD MEAN, and keep in mind this is all hypothetical folks, that the Cowboys would be motivated to win that game to tie everything up in the division as far as overall records, and divsional records. AND THAT WOULD MEAN that the tie breaker would become a matter of who has the better conference record for the year. Off the top of my head I am not sure who has the better one, but just for fun lets say that was tied, then it would be a matter of points allowed and points scored, or strength of victory.

The point is this divisions getting insaaaaaaane. But the Giants control their own destiny. The best thing they can possibly do obviously is to win out and be 10-6 to clinch the division. Lets see what happens folks, it's going to get crazy very soon. But from the Giants perspective, all they gotta be doing right now is be thinking about the Washington Redskins.

One week at a time. Never Give up. Fight for this division. This team will not quit.

"I Definitely See us Winning These Last Four and Getting Into the Playoffs" - Victor Cruz

History has a way of repeating itself. In 2000 The New York Giants started off the season looking like the favored team in the NFC East. But a mid-season slump put the New York Giants playoff hopes in jeopardy, and Jim Fassel took action. He took over the role of offensive coordinator from Sean Payton and made a public announcement soon afterwards: "I'm raising the stakes right now. If this is a poker game I am shoving my chips to the middle of the table. I am raising the ante. Anybody that wants in can get in, anybody that wants out can get out. This team is going to the playoffs. That is my whole goal in life right now."

The Giants went on a run to the super bowl but lost to the Baltimore Ravens that year. They beat the Eagles three times in the same year and then shut out the Minnesota Vikings 41-0 in the NFC Championship game. Sure times and circumstances have changed, and what happened eleven years ago has absolutely nothing to do with the Giants fate this year, but can we all agree that it's a little bit eery?

I just felt like that needed to be said...But okay it's showtime we're going to Dallas part I of the battle for our division. This will be a crazy game. If you look at who we've beaten and who they've beaten it's kind of ridiculous:

                   Gmen                                                                                  Cowboys

Eagles:Won once, lost once. Close games.                                 Got destroyed.
San Fran: Barely Lost                                                                  Barely Won
Patriots: Barely Won                                                                   Barely Lost
Miami: Barely Won                                                                     Barely Won
Buffalo: Barely Won                                                                    Destroyed them
Washington: Lost                                                                         Barely Won twice
Arizona: Barely Won                                                                   Barely Lost

The wins and losses don't lie. It's evident that the Cowboys and Giants have had similar seasons, very up and down. But the past is the past. Both teams control their own destiny. This is going to be one hell of a football game. The Giants are confident. Even after a four game losing streak, they feel they have what it takes to be a playoff team. Epecially after the way in which they lost to Green Bay (Ballards knee was fucking in there is photo evidence and the league issued an apology). But like I said, the past is the past. The Giants know its going to take every ounce of strength they have to win this game. Miles Austin is returning to the Cowboys which is unfortunate because the Giants have a banged up secondary. On defense they will certainly have their hands full with Bryant, Austin, and Witten. At the end of the day we all know it's going to come down to the Giants ability to get to Romo.

On offense be sure to do one thing, block Demarcus Ware. He is the best pass rusher in the league and leads the NFL in sacks. So maybe we wont be able to stop him but we sure got to slow him down. Eli Manning will give yet another spectacular performance. Lets face it this game is an NFC East division game so it's tough to predict, but I can gurantee you one thing: If Eli Manning has the ball and needs a score to win towards the end regulation, the Giants will win the football game. 

Since Giants fans will be at an emotional high on Sunday night I would like to say one thing: Keep the faith. Regardless of what happens the spirit of Giants football will never die. Our team is confident, that's for sure, and I am one of many fans that believe in them, that's for sure. But there comes a point where you have to look at the bigger picture. Why do we all love the Giants so much? It's because they will never leave you. They're a reliable tradition. Sure there are all nightmares of games that keep us up at night, heck there are occasions when the team even quit on the fans. But they always come back. Always. Giants football and sports in general are endless. Since that fateful day where Tim Mara purchased the New York Giants in 1925 for $500, a great tradition was bestowed upon us. There have been good times and bad, but Big Blue will never die.

That's it folks. In a world that is constantly changing, people need a healthy reminder that some things will never leave your life. And that's what sports, football, and the New York Football Giants can do for you.

Lets Go Giants. Romo will be on his back on every snap and the Giants will move the ball at will.

Nothing to be Ashamed of

Football is a game of inches, in fact sometimes millimeters. If Jake Ballard's potential touchdown catch was ruled in bounds (officials would have needed the space hubble telescope to be sure), we would have won the damn game. But as fans we should still be proud. Despite this loss the Giants looked the best team in the NFL dead in the eyes and gave them a serious run for their money. At the start of the game you could see it in the Giants eyes: they were ready to go to war.

And what a war it was! Sure you can argue that the defense did not play well enough. Especially because of Rodgers game winning drive at the end that gave the Packers a total of 38 points. But I thought the defense had it's moments. The Dline looked much improved. We were able to get to Rodgers. Justin Tuck's swagger is back, and JPP was doing his thing as well.

Truthfully I think it's extremely difficult to play defense at all with all of these fairy rules the NFL has. Illegal touching, helmet to helmet, defenseless receivers, it's all horse manure. I understand the leagues best interest is to protect the players, but defenses are hesitant to play tough. I mean, just look at the Packers. Their defense sucks. The Giants were running on them (great to see Ahmad again) without any problems. Green Bay is one of the worst run stopping defenses in the NFL and they are 12-0. How is that even possible? Maybe defense just isn't as meaningful as it used to be.

But lets not get all mopey, there were a few questionable calls, but that was one hell of a football game. Looking at this loss positively, the Giants confidence is back! Losing to the best team in the NFL by a field goal will allow the Giants to believe in themselves again. Could they win out and finish 10-6? It's possible, our toughest opponent will be Dallas and we have to play them twice. Truthfully I think 9-7 will be good enough to win the division.

Speaking of the division, we are one game behind the Dallas Cowboys for first place. We play them next week, and then once more after that. Game on.

The Giants are winning this division, you better bELIeve it.