Hard to say if the G-Men played worse today or in the Cleveland game. They could do absolutely nothing on offense, and seemed to fold on defense when it mattered most.
The big problem on offense was that Eli couldn't find open receivers, and even when he did, the passes were too often dropped (the deep pass to Domenik Hixon and the 3rd & short to Steve Smith come to mind). What can we attribute that to? Would Plaxico Burress have been able to get more separation against Philly's DBs?
On defense, the Giants allowed too many 3rd down conversions (both Philly TDs were on 3rd downs). Their normally fearsome pass rush totaled just one sack and a few minor pressures. Did Antonio Pierce's legal concerns affect the way he prepared for this game, and being the captain of the defense did it adversely affect the whole unit? The Eagles were 12 for 18 (67%) on 3rd down while the Jints struggled mightily, converting just 3 of 11 - and 0 for 3 on 4th down. Speaking of 4th down, I couldn't believe the play call on 4th & 1 late in the 4th quarter. They'd had trouble throwing all day (13 for 27) and decided to throw on 4th & short? I guarantee a draw gets a first down there.
Anyway, here's to Dallas losing and a division title for the G-Men.
- I did an interview with Yanksblog.com. You can find it here.