Grossman really sucks

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

Why is that? And what do you mean by broke? Just a curious Giants fan, here.

I'm a Giants fan, too! /wave

Because of the way Coughlin coached the team this year, abandoning the run at key moments, and by creating situations where the game rested on Eli's shoulders and then plays were called that pretty much guaranteed to fail. And while we'll never know how much is the responsibility of the assistant coaches, the blame has to come to rest with the guy at the top.

Plus, I just really despise Coughlin as a coach. He's a little martinet with an attitude and approach that might work in some college deep in football country, but is just really ill-suited to the pros. I think his work in Jacksonville was overrated and attributable in large part to the kick-start they and Carolina were given. He's supposed to be this 'discipline first' kind of coach, and that was the one area where the Giants have been absolutely pathetic under his direction: the chronic false-start penalties, the bad clock management, the mouths running in the locker room, Burress, etc.

I was really torn this year -- part of me hoped they wouldn't make the playoffs so they'd fire him, but I really wanted to see Tiki go out on a high note.

 

[drothgery]

EDIT: It will be interesting to see where the current crop of younger QBs goes. Carson Palmer is the best bet to lead the pack. Big Ben already has a ring. Leinart looked good as did Rivers. Eli Manning should make big steps next season. We'll see how Romo bounces back. Vince Young already looks like he could take a team to a Super Bowl. Am I missing any big names?

Jay Cutler in Denver.

Possibly Jason Campbell in Washington, JP Lossman in Buffalo, and Charlie Frye/Derek Anderson in Cleveland.

The best young benchwarmers are probably Matt Shaub in Atlanta and Kellen Clemens with the Jets.

I think it is far too early to judge Rex Grossman fairly.

I don't. He's been hurt a lot, but last year was his fourth season in the NFL. And no one who expects to be a regular starter in today's NFL should be putting up numbers like Rex did after their rookie year. If I were the Bears, I'd be taking a hard look at Jeff Garcia and Damon Huard as short-term solutions, and deciding if the long term answer is Orton or drafting someone new.

 

[DaveMage]

Plus, I just really despise Coughlin as a coach. He's a little martinet with an attitude and approach that might work in some college deep in football country, but is just really ill-suited to the pros. I think his work in Jacksonville was overrated and attributable in large part to the kick-start they and Carolina were given. He's supposed to be this 'discipline first' kind of coach, and that was the one area where the Giants have been absolutely pathetic under his direction: the chronic false-start penalties, the bad clock management, the mouths running in the locker room, Burress, etc.

Being a Jaguars fan, I can tell you that while Coughlin was here, he grated on me. You are quite correct that Jax and Carolina were given a nice kick-start, which helped. However, Coughlin can be a good offensive coach. One problem with NY is that, unlike in Jax, Coughlin does not get a chance to get the players he wants. Manning wasn't a Coughlin pick, he was a Giants GM pick that Coughlin had to live with. I will say this, though, Coughlin will give everything he can to make Manning a better player.

Coughlin the man (when he's not being a football coach) is a really generous guy. He gave (and continues to give) a lot to the Jacksonville community. But he's an easy one to dislike as a fan because he doesn't come across as someone you want to cheer for. He's flippant with the press and doesn't answer questions well (IMO). In contrast, Del Rio is a breath of fresh air. Del Rio is a guy I can cheer for even when the Jags are losing, beacuse I can see the passion and commitment both in his interviews and on the field behavior.

 

[kenobi65]

Del Rio is a guy I can cheer for even when the Jags are losing, beacuse I can see the passion and commitment both in his interviews and on the field behavior.

I liked Del Rio as a player (even though he played more than half of his career for the two teams I hate, Dallas and Minnesota), and I'm happy to see him doing fairly well as a coach. Also, he looked sharp as hell in that suit this year.

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

Being a Jaguars fan, I can tell you that while Coughlin was here, he grated on me.

I left Gainseville after they were awarded the franchise but before they started playing, so while I was never a big fan, they were definitely on of my 'I'll cheer for them so long as they're not playing the Bucs or the Giants'.

I'm generally opposed to coaches being GMs nowadays; too many conflicting interests. The coach needs to be concerned with what he can do during the current season with what he's got, and the GM needs to be worrying about free agents and caps and all that crap. Not that they shouldn't talk (or that it can't work with one person doing both), just that I think its gotten so complicated that most teams are better off seperating those two roles. Like, say, the Redskins.

There's a lot of guys that make great coordinators that just shouldn't make the transition to head coach, and New York is an especially rough place to be one.

 

[John Crichton]

Jay Cutler in Denver.

Ah, I knew I missed one.

Possibly Jason Campbell in Washington, JP Lossman in Buffalo, and Charlie Frye/Derek Anderson in Cleveland.

They are young but I don't think any of them are going to turn out to be stars. Lossman has shown a few signs of being a good QB but he has a bit too much of Jake the Snake in him. You can win with him, but not because of him.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

You know, Tiki Barber's numbers went up significantly under Coughlin- his best 3 seasons of rushing, as a matter of fact.

( http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/playerStats?categoryId=70344 )

I suspect that Coughlin wasn't so much abandoning the run as either being pressured into by game situations or by trying too hard to "outcoach" his opposition.

 

[John Crichton]

I'm a Giants fan, too! /wave

Hey!

And that must stink, living down there in Redskins country....

Because of the way Coughlin coached the team this year, abandoning the run at key moments, and by creating situations where the game rested on Eli's shoulders and then plays were called that pretty much guaranteed to fail. And while we'll never know how much is the responsibility of the assistant coaches, the blame has to come to rest with the guy at the top.

I can't really blame Coughlin for anything to do with Eli Manning. Typically, the head coach has much less of an impact on a QB's development these days than the offensive coordinator or the QB coach, both who are new this year (well, one is but you know what I mean). I didn't like the Coughlin signing when he came on 3 years ago. I wouldn't have minded him getting fired last year but there aren't any coaches available right now that are much better, ya know? Mangini was a diamond in the rough for the Jets and there weren't many promising assistants out there that really looked good. The only 2 coaches that I would have been happy with were Cowher (not coming to the Giants) or Weis (not leaving Notre Dame at the moment but he would love the Giants' job).

And that said, I hated the offensive and defensive coordinators he brought on initially. If he doesn't get it done this season, meaning obvious development of Eli and less penalties I think he's gone. And some of the blame has to be put on the players, too. Burress and Shockey need to shut up and Eli needs to step up the call them out when they try to show him up (throwing hands in the air, barking at him after a bad throw, etc).

The funny part about the Giants is that they haven't had a defense that has stepped up since Parcells left. When is the last time you remember the defense getting a key stop in a big game? Honestly, I'll be glad when Strahan is gone now that Tiki isn't here anymore. The old guard couldn't win with Fassel and they are doing the same amount of yapping until Coughlin.

Plus, I just really despise Coughlin as a coach. He's a little martinet with an attitude and approach that might work in some college deep in football country, but is just really ill-suited to the pros. I think his work in Jacksonville was overrated and attributable in large part to the kick-start they and Carolina were given. He's supposed to be this 'discipline first' kind of coach, and that was the one area where the Giants have been absolutely pathetic under his direction: the chronic false-start penalties, the bad clock management, the mouths running in the locker room, Burress, etc.

This team (with the current crop of established stars) I think was a bad fit for Tom. Strahan, Tiki and Shockey are bigger than the team and were allowed to mouth off all the time. They've been doing it too long and Tom (or any other head coach) isn't going to change that. Look at Parcell's in Dallas - his team was just as undisciplined and it wasn't just TO.

I can't really speak to his Jacksonville experience. What I do know is that his team did very well in a short amount of time. If Tom had his choice, I bet he would have never signed Burress. He did turn Tiki around and he was great in the games. Never showed up anyone and singlehandedly won many games for the Giants and was the entire offense more times than I can count. As for Shockey, it a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation. He's the best TE they have and a fierce competitor. Play him and you get all the BS that goes with him, bench him and you lose the best player you have at that position and weaken the team.

Honestly, Eli has to step up and get those two guys in line. He has to make the Giants his team. With Tiki gone he may be able to do that a bit even though they may win a few less games at this point. Eli will get at least two more years as a starter without having to worry about being benched. The Giants made too much of an investment (money + draft) in him to not give him as much time as possible to develop.

And I hate to blame injuries, but I really think if the Giants were healthy (or at least had Petigout and Toomer) they could have made the SB, considering how terrible the NFC was.

 

[John Crichton]

Being a Jaguars fan, I can tell you that while Coughlin was here, he grated on me. You are quite correct that Jax and Carolina were given a nice kick-start, which helped. However, Coughlin can be a good offensive coach. One problem with NY is that, unlike in Jax, Coughlin does not get a chance to get the players he wants. Manning wasn't a Coughlin pick, he was a Giants GM pick that Coughlin had to live with. I will say this, though, Coughlin will give everything he can to make Manning a better player.

That is a great point. This is not fully Tom's team yet. These are not all his players. When he was hired, I recall a 5 year plan to clean house and it hasn't quite been that long yet.

Coughlin the man (when he's not being a football coach) is a really generous guy. He gave (and continues to give) a lot to the Jacksonville community. But he's an easy one to dislike as a fan because he doesn't come across as someone you want to cheer for. He's flippant with the press and doesn't answer questions well (IMO).

That's fine with me as long as the guy wins. Look at Belichick in NE - he is a total jerk but since he has 3 rings he mostly gets a pass. Well, until now when people outside NY and NE saw his antics in the playoff and the crummy interviews he gives.

Not everyone can be as entertaining and good of a coach as Parcells, Dungy, Gruden or any of the likable guys. Ya know?

 

[Olaf the Stout]

Coming into this a little late as I only got to watch the game over the weekend (I'm in Australia and my Dad taped it for me so I didn't get the tape until Friday), I personally thought that Addai should have been the MVP. He got the first downs when the Colts needed it and when the game was still alive. Most of Rhodes yardage came when the Colts were just stalling for time at the end. Addai also did it for his team as a running back and a receiver.

Unfortunately the quarterback of the winning team always seems to get the MVP unless someone else has had an absolutely fantastic game.

Olaf the Stout