Giants On The Ropes After Loss To Chicago

The Giants have been slammed to the mat with a right uppercut. The question is can they get up for the ten count? Most of the injuries are on the defensive side of the ball, but there seems to be enough depth on defense this year that, thus far, those injuries appear to be less of a concern - at least over the short term.

I believe the critical injury thus far is the loss of Toomer. Toomer was a perfect compliment to Burress and Carter. Carter provided enough of a downfield threat to stretch the field and keep defenses honest. Plaxico was the tall big play threat. But Toomer's role was the most critical - clutch third down, move the chains, possession receiver.

Unfortunately there is no ready replacement for this role. Carter is not the ideal choice. First of all he isn't capable of filling the role of possession receiver. He simply doesn't have the hands or the talent to make the kind of catches Toomer made. Time after time this season Toomer made clutch catches while on his tippy toes on the side and endlines. I do not recall a single occasion when Toomer dropped the ball or failed to keep his toes inbounds. He was the clutch receiver because he was so dependable - you could count on him to make the big play when the chips were down. Does anyone recall seeing Carter ever making those kind of catches?

Moreover, using Carter as the possession receiver eliminates his role as the only real downfield threat the team has, further weakening the Giants passing scheme. The impact of the loss of Toomer upon the passing attack simply cannot be overstated. What made the Giants offense to powerful - so difficult to defend - was its balance. They could beat you through the air or on the ground. You defend one, they beat you with the other. Your choice - but either way you lose.

However, the Giants are now left without any viable third down possession receiver - the first and most basic function of any passing game. Defending against the Giants receiving corp has now become much easier - stop Burress and you eliminate 90 percent of the passing attack. The passing game is no longer very difficult to defend - the Giants are no longer the balanced attack they were when the season started - and their offense is realistically now a much more easily defended one dimensional running attack.

But there was hope. Shockey had not been very involved in the offensive attack and it seemed logical that some of the passes that had been going to Toomer would now go in Shockey's direction. That is until Luke Petitgout went down in the Chicago game. As with Toomer, there is no adequate replacement available for the loss of Petitgout. Worse, the loss of Luke is a double whammy. First, it obviously impacts the passing game. There will be more sacks and overall pressure on Manning. There will much less time for long routes, further reducing an already diminished downfield and shortening the amount of field the defenders have to cover. Furthermore, it will increase Shockey's blocking responsibilities just at the point when he is needed in the passing game. Losing Petitgout just makes the Giants even more one dimensional.

But the second part of the double whammy may be the most damaging. Petitgout was a critical component behind the Giant's great success in running the ball. If the loss of Toomer (and Petitgout) makes the passing game easier to defend, the loss of Luke will make running the ball much more difficult. With a much less theatening passing attack, teams will almost certainly adopt a "stop the run and force Eli Manning to beat you with his arm" approach to Giants games the remainder of this year.

If so, then the balance of this season has suddenly be placed squarely upon the shoulders of Eli Manning, who has been struggling since demolishing Washington. Sure, the Giants went on a 5 game winning streak, but it wasn't Manning and the offense that won those games. That winning streak was the direct result of a resurgent defense. A defense that was suddenly pressuring quarterbacks and getting turnovers.

To my untrained eye, Manning still struggles hitting open receivers in the 8-15 yard range when he isn't under any great pressure. Like many quarterbacks, his completions come in streaks. However, what concerns me is that even during those times in a game when he is "hot" and putting a string of completions together, he is still not hitting his receivers on the run. More often than not the completions come as a result of the receivers making circus catches, reaching behind, up high, or diving to the ground, to grab the ball. Rarely do we see Manning throw the ball right on target without his receiver breaking stride.

It is something that has concerned me well before the season started. The good news is that Manning will learn from this experience. It is a big test for him. Here is a team that headed into the season with all the talent in the world and high expectations for a super bowl run. They find themselves in first place in the Division and with a great Divisional record. Now, it is a team on the ropes and their season could go either way. They are in position to still do something with this season, but they will need their quarterback to step up and shoulder a big part of the burden. In the end, regardless of how it turns out, Eli Manning will benefit merely by going through the ordeal.

A note about the Chicago game. I was very encouraged by what I saw, especially on the defensive side of the ball. During the first half I thought the Bears and Giants had switched uniforms. The Giants defense was dominant - totally kicking butt and playing incredibly physical aggressive football. By the end of the game the Bears put up some big numbers, but that was due in large measure to the total lack of offensive production all game long, along with the lack of depth and substitutions for the defense - they had to get worn down. They showed there is still enough talent on the defensive side of the ball for the Giants to do something this year.

I do not believe there is much reason to do any type of analysis about the match ups for Monday night's game. I am more interested in seeing how the Giants play. Moreover I don't think the match ups will have much to do with the outcome of the game. The outcome will depend more upon answering the questions the Giants will have to answer the rest of this season. Can the defense remain strong? And can Eli step up and create a credible passing attack sufficient to free up the running game?