What Now?

The 2009 Giants were a complete shell of the team that won one of the greatest Super Bowl games in NFL history in 2007 and then went 11-1 to start 2008. And the most disturbing thing is not that it happened, but that nobody seems to know why it happened. And if you don't know why, you can't fix it.

Clearly Harry Carson was well within his rights to vent about the lack of effort he saw in the horrible loss to Carolina in the last game ever to be played in Giants stadium. And Michael Strahan echoed those comments a week later on the Fox telecast, saying that the players had licked the stamps on the envelope weeks earlier. The observations of those two former proud Giants were later drowned out by owner John Mara expressing his disgust at the listless, emotionless and lifeless display put on by the players whose salaries he pays.

But while the lack of emotion and effort, with the playoffs on the line, was inexplicable, the more important question remains: what happened to these Giants between 2008 and 2009? Nobody knows. I have not read one article in any paper, not heard one comment by any commentator, and most importantly have not heard one word from any Giant coach or player, that explains how the young team that won the 2007 SB and went 11-1 to start 2008 suddenly sank to become one of the dredges of the NFL.

At the end of the 2006 season, Tom Coughlin was fighting for his coaching life. The media and the fans were calling for his head and the odds makers had him a long shot to survive as Giants head coach. Giants ownership didn't fire him but only gave him a one year extension and ordered changes to his staff and his personality. That's how bad things were at the end of 2006.

That was followed by two golden years. The Giants won the SB in 2007 and validated their legitimacy by going 11-1 to start 2008. They won 15 of 16 games dating back to the start of the 2007 playoffs. Then the disaster of 2009 which was eerily similar to the horrors of 2006.

How does one explain those two golden years? Well there is one common denominator and his name is Steve Spagnuolo. The players took to Spags almost immediately. His enthusiasm was infectious on both sides of the ball. His scheme called for an aggressive style of football with the defenders running downhill towards the ball. But more importantly he infected the team with confidence and enthusiasm, something sorely missing in 2009. Is it mere coincidence that the team turned things around in 2007 with his arrival following the misery of 2006? And is it mere coincidence that the team seemed listless and lifeless in 2009 following his departure?

Those are unanswerable questions. And his record with the Rams, whatever it turns out to be, won't be a measuring stick of the importance he held to the 2007-08 Giants - just because he was a great defensive coordinator doesn't mean he will be a successful head coach. And, yes, there were many things wrong with the team above and beyond the defense in 2009. But what Spags brought to the table was infectious and impacted the entire team - defense, offense, special teams and the entire coaching staff. The question is: can Coughlin find another Spags to energize the team in 2010 and beyond?