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NYG inactives: Steve Smith, Robert Douglas, Brandon Jacobs, Craig Dahl, Adam Koets, Manny Wright, Kevin Boothe. Jared Lorenzen is the third QB again.
Aaron Ross starts at LCB. Derrick Ward is in, contrary to popular reports from this AM.
No Westbrook, no Dawkins, no Sheppard for Philly. Should be enough, right?
So, I watched some college football yesterday... Can someone explain to me why college officiating is so bad? Maybe I should as Abramson. He knows that game.
Latest example: Punt-returner's interference in the Auburn-Florida game. Luckily it didn't cost Auburn anything, but still. If the returner doesn't call for a fair catch, he's fair game once the ball gets into his arms, right? Right? Sheesh.
Anyway... On to the pros, where the refs don't normally make at least one bonehead call a game.
Giants-Eagles. What do we have here?
Eagles: Brian Westbrook isn't 100 percent healthy, but I suspect he'll play. Same for Brian Dawkins. But with Lito Sheppard out, the corners are vulnerable. So is the offensive line if Steve Spagnuolo can find room for all his pass rushers.
Giants: No Brandon Jacobs (not official, but when has TC ever just plugged someone in coming back early from an injury?), but Derrick Ward should be out there. Running game is huge tonight -- Philly will be making sure to have bodies in the secondary on Burress, Shockey and Toomer, so there should be room to run. We'll see if Omar Gaither reacts to Ward the same way Jeremiah Trotter used to react when Tiki ran near him. Methinks not.
Not saying the Giants have arrived, but the Eagles haven't either. They had one TD in the first two games after piling em up on the lousy Lions.
Giants, 23-21.
Inactives tonight.
First, the news of the day...
Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward are both questionable for Sunday. Jacobs practiced fully and Ward didn't practice at all thanks to soreness in his sprained left ankle. But if Ward can go, don't expect to see Jacobs out there -- even though he feels he can play, TC is not one to get players back early.
Steve Smith is out and Plaxico Burress is questionable. Which means he'll play.
For the Eagles, TE L.J. Smith is out, CB Lito Sheppard and T William Thomas are doubtful and S Brian Dawkins, RB Brian Westbrook and CB William James are questionable. Which means Dawkins and Westbrook will play. James? He materialized on the Philly injury report with a finger problem, so who knows with him. If both he and Sheppard are out, watch the Giants try to spread the field.
OK folks. On to the List... We've done some work for y'all and we're trying to bring it back to the NYG. So here are 13 players (and one assistant coach) and the tracks they listen to on game day to get themselves ready to go:
Antonio Pierce -- Hail Mary, 2Pac
Michael Strahan -- Stronger, Kanye West
Plaxico Burress -- Motivation, T.I.
Osi Umenyiora -- Under Pressure, Queen/David Bowie
Justin Tuck -- Dream On, Aerosmith
David Diehl -- The Last of the Mohicans soundtrack
Gibril Wilson -- Strictly For My ------, 2Pac
Sam Madison -- Anything by Trick Daddy
Aaron Ross -- Anything by Li'l Wayne
Shaun O'Hara -- Eye Of The Tiger, Survivor
Mathias Kiwanuka -- SpottieOttieDopaliscious, OutKast
Lawrence Tynes -- Doesn't own an IPod
Zak DeOssie -- Respect, Pantera
WRs coach Mike Sullivan -- Face The Pain, Stemm
Catch you tomorrow with a game preview.
A few injury updates from today's practice, including some news on Plaxico Burress:
Running backs Derrick Ward and Brandon Jacobs returned to practice, while injured wide receiver Steve Smith stood on the sidelines and fullback Robert Douglas pedaled a handbike nearby.
Burress returned today from his visit with orthopedist Robert Anderson in Charlotte, N.C. He was was on sidelines during the allotted time reporters are allowed to watch practice, doing agility work and catching over the shoulder passes.
The Giants issued the following statement on Burress' condition, from Vice President of Medical Services Ronnie Barnes:
"Plaxico and I visited with Dr. Robert Anderson in Charlotte yesterday. Dr Anderson reviewed Plaxico's MRI results and administered his own physical exam of Plaxico. Dr. Anderson confirmed our findings, which is that Plaxico has a serious sprain to his right ankle. The best prescription for this injury is rest, and as a result, Plaxico's practice time for the immediate future will be limited. For the time being, we will continue to evaluate Plaxico's injury on a day-to-day, week-to-week basis."
--Reporting by Katie Strang. Posted by Newsday.com
Down to Charlotte to see noted orthopedist Robert Anderson to see how to "best manage" his right ankle issues... This is on team physician Russ Warren's recommendation.
Sounds ominous, despite the Giants' injury report spin -- managing doesn't sound too bad, but who knows what Anderson will say?
More later.
A day late, all that, I know. Sometimes the blog must wait.
So here it is: Whose spot should Justin Tuck take on the starting D-line? I'm sure many of you agree with my Chalk Talk assessment in today's paper that Tuck needs to be on the field more; who steps aside?
I will be back later with stuff from the locker room and TC's press conference... No lineup changes, I'm sure -- well, if there are, he won't say -- but I'll be back with the news of the day.
Let's see some opinions, people. I know you've got 'em.
Guess I'll be making predictions from now on... Anyway, here's the next-day perspective on the first 'W'...
THE GOOD
Goal-line stands: Welcome to the Giants, Kawika Mitchell. He made the key plays on second and third downs, then Justin Tuck and Aaron Ross got in there on fourth down. Did anyone think the 'Skins weren't scoring there? Hands? Anyone? Thought so.
The kid DEs: Tuck and Mathias Kiwanuka played superbly. Tuck has done that since the day he showed up for training camp; Kiwanuka finally shut his brain off and just rolled, and the results were eight tackles, 1 1/2 sacks and a lot more enthusiasm than he's shown in weeks. These guys need to be on the field, and if it means less time for Fred Robbins (a shame, because he's the most consistent D-lineman they have) or Barry Cofield, then so be it.
Sam Madison: Wow. Just, wow. Showing the kids in the secondary how it's done, from coverage to tackling to positioning. And he had a dark-green corduroy jacket on after the game... Again, wow. Just, wow. But not in a good way.
Everyone in the second half: Plax, Osi, Strahan, Aaron Ross, Eli (except for that heave to Sean Taylor), Reuben Droughns, Derrick Ward, the equipment guys and Jackie, the waitress at the Denny's in Perryville, Md. who served me and MG around midnight on the drive home.
THE BAD
Corey Webster: Guessing he'll get at least a week to clear his head... After that, it's up to him whether he can figure things out.
Plax (first half): Three drops and a generally distracted look... And back to the good for a second: How huge was his tackle of Taylor on Eli's second INT? Kept the Redskins back deep and gave the Giants good field position on the next possession. No shades of last season there.
Punt and kick coverage: Seams all over the place. Rock Cartwright found room on either sideline -- Ahmad Bradshaw and James Butler both failed to seal off the sideline on one run -- and Antwaan Randle-El's punt return to start the final Redskins drive was nearly a killer.
Among the other tidbits from a few media sessions today...
-- Giants adjusted in-game very, very well to both the Skins' offense and defense. Not just for the Giants' D putting the four DEs up front, but with their having both safeties play down on the LOS and leaving one CB back as a sort of free safety when the Skins went to two-TE, one-WR sets. Santana Moss burned the Giants in the second quarter on one of those, but that was Webster's bad.
-- Eli audibled well, so well that one of his better calls, opting out of a pass play on third-and-5 from the Redskins 11 and calling a draw to Derrick Ward that picked up 6, drew some funny reactions from his O-line. Eli saw two LBs ready to blitz, but saw the safeties were still back, telling him there was no blitz. "We just wanted to make sure he hadn't been sniffing glue or anything like that," Shaun O'Hara said.
Back tomorrow with another Q of the week.
Brandon Jacobs, Craig Dahl, Gerris Wilkinson, Adam Koets, Steve Smith, Kevin Boothe, and Kevin Boss.
Jared Lorenzen is the third QB.
Should be nice and toasty around game time, which may ensure that Aaron Ross stays on the field... Kid likes the warm weather.
No word yet on Plax, but safe to assume he'll play. He may not hate missing practice, but he does hate missing games.
And the minor roster move yesterday -- waiving DE Marquies Gunn and activating RB Robert Douglas -- might mean a couple things: Either that TC is happy with his other three DEs, or more likely that Mathias Kiwanuka will be lining up with his hand on the ground more often today.
As for some recent questions... Sid: I think Pierce, like a lot of LBs in this league, gets exposed when he gets caught in space trying to defend the pass. He'll never be a Ray Lewis, a guy who makes up for some scheme mistakes by being a superior athlete; Pierce's greatest strength is being the anchor of a sound defense. And, without trying to draw any air-horn fire, this has not been a sound defense for the majority of Pierce's time with the NYG.
He knows where to be when almost everyone else knows where to be -- if you think about some of his big plays, like his fumble return for a TD against the Cowboys a couple years ago, it came from Kendrick Clancy making the play and Pierce being in the right place.
I'm not too into making predictions this season, for the simple reason that I don't think you all much care about them. I picked the Giants as my best bet in the paper on Friday, though, because I don't think this team is as bad as they've shown.
Back with inactives in a few hours.
Except, in this case, it was two former players...
Oddly enough, Tiki Barber had something to say about Pierce's air-horn display. Can you believe Tiki speaking out like this? On Sirius last night:
"Now that things are struggling, first of all he runs away from it early in the week and now he’s refusing to answer questions by being completely disrespectful to a group of people who are just trying to do their job. That’s the job of media, ask the question. And you don’t have to answer it but don’t be rude."
And, on Sirius this morning, Shannon Sharpe:
"It’s childish. It’s childish and very trivial and totally uncalled for... Whether I caught 10 [passes] for 115 [yards] and two [touchdowns] or I caught one for five and we lost by 14, I was going to talk because if you’re going to talk when things are going good, I need you to talk when things are going bad. And that’s how it was. It never got too bad, it never got too good in order for me to talk. [If] we didn’t play well I’m going to be honest [and say], ‘We didn’t play well. I didn’t play well. Offensively we didn’t play well. Defensively we didn’t play well.’ There’s enough blame to go around for everybody. But don’t be childish. That is so ridiculous. It irks me when I see guys act like that. That’s ridiculous. Are you 14 [years old] or are you 28, 29 making millions of dollars to play a kid’s game? And you act like this?”
AP's response:
"Do they play for the New York Giants? Then I have nothing to say. I'm sorry I scared everybody (with the air horn)."
And... we're done with that.
Burress was limited (sorry for jumping the gun), he'll be a game time decision on Sunday.
That's about all I learned on the practice field today.
I also learned today that veteran commenter JD is from a different era than me... No worries, my good man. I have a wide variety of older musical tastes, from Bobby Womack to Them to CSNY to the MC5. We can talk about that if you like.
And excellent list, rnargi... The Replacements are really a favorite, just don't love any of their CDs enough from start to finish to pick one.
I'll leave the scrapping on BBI to the experts.
I wasn't there yesterday for Antonio Pierce's air-horn display or Michael Strahan's (yawn) latest overreaction to an innocuous question -- my deepest hope is that once Ol' 92 retires, the only media job he can find will be doing man-on-the-street interviews, and every question he asks is greeted with, "That is crap. Be creative."
Ah, I can dream.
I've had a day or so to digest the stuff from yesterday, excellently delivered to you by Erik Boland. This is not a new blog topic, since some Giants player seems to take it upon himself each of the last three seasons to excoriate the media and rally his teammates by taking shots at us, but here's my feeling on the latest:
-- Pierce got my Good Guy vote last year, and even now, he'd get it again. The air-horn stunt was immature, but he still gets it -- this isn't life or death stuff, and he's hardly serious when he's talking about his reading list or asking fans to send defensive tips. He's a sharp guy who uses a lot of outside influences as motivation, which isn't the way I'd do it, but I'm not a football player. To each his own.
-- If Strahan weren't such a fickle bully, I'd give him a pass too. But he likes to pick on various people who have nothing to do with what goes on inside the locker room, so that's fine.
-- Bottom line: We all have bad days, especially when we're being ripped by our bosses. I wouldn't want to be asked the same questions every day, or hear how much I stink every day. And yes, I do take it personally when I get lumped in with my colleagues and competitors for doing something I didn't do, just as Strahan or Pierce might get miffed if they had good games and were ripped nonetheless.
Anyway, like Gibril Wilson said, we're not splitting the atom here. Can't take it all that seriously.
And the debates among you all will rage on... I mean, just go over to BBI -- there's people there who'd fight you if you said it's sunny out.
OK, speaking of raging debates... Seems I stepped on some toes with my list last week, so it's only fair that I give you a chance to make fun of my faves. Here's a random sampling of 10 favorites from my CD collection. Rip away...
10. Buffalo Tom, Let Me Come Over -- A holdover from my college years. Great Boston-based band that just toured again.
9. Helmet, Meantime -- I've mentioned them before, and the first four tracks are still the best way to get going in the morning. And thanks, Tim, for pointing out a terrible mistake. We all need editors.
8. Run-DMC, Raising Hell -- The original.
7. Sublime, 40 Oz. To Freedom -- Imagine how big they'd have been if Nowell hadn't killed himself.
6. Guided By Voices, Bee Thousand -- Weird and beautiful.
5. The Roots, Phrenology -- Best hip-hop of the last 10 years.
4. Judgment Night soundtrack -- Never saw the flick, but the soundtrack is on my playlist all the time. It's a bunch of rock and rap groups paired together for each track... Helmet/House of Pain, De La Soul/Teenage Fanclub, Mudhoney/Sir Mix-A-Lot and my favorite, Faith No More/The Boo-Yaa Tribe.
3. Bob Mould, Workbook -- Sugar and Husker Du lead singer does a brilliant solo album.
2. Radiohead, The Bends -- Almost perfect disk.
1. Husker Du, Flip Your Wig -- Perfect disk.
OK, rip away... I'll bring my air horn.
He'll be facing reporters later on. I doubt he'll be as genial as he's been the past several media sessions, but he seems like someone who doesn't skirt the tough questions, so we'll see. Our man Erik Boland will be on hand to process the info.
Good job by everyone who weighed in on the Shockey question... And I do mean everyone. Lotta strong opinions out there, which is always good.
As to the D, gmen, my own feeling is that Ross on the outside and Webster in the slot would work; that Kiwanuka to DE, Wilkinson to WLB and Mitchell to SLB would have to be better than what they're doing now; and benching Strahan for a game to let Tuck play would be the smartest thing TC could do.
I might even let Michael Johnson have a crack at James Butler's spot on occasion.
Once Erik gets settled out at the stadium and Spagnuolo has spoken, we'll get some of his stuff up here.
First, a non-Giants comment: Went to see a free show at 7 World Trade Center yesterday evening. The Old 97s, who were quite good, followed by The Hold Steady, who was terrific. The Hold Steady is fronted by this quirky, charismatic man:
Amazingly, he is no relation to this quirky, charismatic man:
The first guy is Craig Finn. The second guy is Must Love Blogs. I picture them as sort of the Bizarro world versions of one another.
Anyway, with all the talk of the miserable Giants defense here, I have a question to take us in a different direction:
Is Jeremy Shockey still worth having around? It's my Chalk Talk thesis for the week, one that I'll try to analyze there, but I'd also like to see what you all feel about the irrepressible lad and his madcap antics. Enough already? Worth it for the talent and passion he still brings?
Let's discuss.
Oh, and a late correction from me: Robert Douglas was added to the practice squad, not the roster.
A few of the prominent guys ducked out quickly -- Pierce, Osi, Strahan, Shockey -- and the rest said some very familiar sounding things... At least familiar to those who were around after the week 3 debacle in Seattle last season:
Gibril: "We've just got to get off the field on third down. It's simple as that. We're not splitting the atom here."
Mitchell: "It's about having that confidence, being ready to beat your man and thinking you're going to be the one to get to the quarterback. We're just not getting that big play. It looks real hard right now, but it's as simple as that."
Webster: "We shouldn't have to wait until we have a bye week (like we had last season after the Seahawks loss) or wait until we're last in the league in defense to turn things around. Let's do it on our own, that should be our motto."
TC got a pretty good grilling -- about why the Packers' less-than-elite tight ends were uncovered, about why there's no pass rush and why Mathias Kiwanuka is coming off the field so much in passing situations -- and he had some explanations, but not too many answers.
As for the injuries, WR Steve Smith (fractured scapula) is out at least two weeks, according to the Giants, and then he's week-to-week. I'll interpret that as at least a month.
DE Adrian Awasom has a fractured transverse process in his back, the same injury that felled William James/Peterson. Think that's all for Awasom this season; in fact, FB Robert Douglas was back with the team today, though they made no roster move as of yet.
Douglas is in because RB Ahmad Bradshaw (sprained elbow) is out. Also on the injury report: LB Reggie Torbor (bruised elbow), QB Jared Lorenzen (sprained ankle) and WR Plaxico Burress (sprained right ankle/sprained left pinky).
That is all.
I'd try to take issue with some of the vitriol off the comments board, but it's hard to disagree... Not even a cynical fan could have foreseen how low this team has sunk in just two games.
Let's recap as best we can:
THE GOOD
Ummm... Eli? Sure, I'll give the QB some positive feedback because he displayed his toughness by basically ignoring what the doctors told him and working his arm to the point where he was ready to play. Funny how no one's crying for Philip Rivers anymore...
I'll give a small plus to Aaron Ross, who got his hands on a couple Brett Favre passes and didn't look lost at the nickel. Too bad he cramped up, because the rest of the secondary was not good.
That's really about all... Maybe Derrick Ward, who averaged 6 yards a carry; but he had trouble finding room when it mattered most.
THE BAD
Corey Webster: Can't really see him starting anymore if Ross is healthy. Watching Webster track the flight of Favre's pass to James Jones made me think of that classic TC word from '04 regarding his DBs: Mesmerized.
Tackling: Maybe the Giants need to bring in Ronnie Lott or some former great to explain how to do this... Kawika Mitchell, Antonio Pierce, James Butler, Webster -- don't really see too many other teams fail to wrap guys up or whiff the way the Giants do in the open field.
Pass rush: Maybe the switch will go on this week, and I agree with Michael Strahan when he says it's happened before like this. Week 3 a year ago, to be exact. But Fred Robbins and Justin Tuck are the only guys getting free in passing situations; really the most astounding thing to me was just how good they were against the run until DeShawn Wynn's 38-yard TD score late. Only 47 rushing yards allowed until then, on 25 attempts. That's vintage. Which makes the inability to stop the pass all the more baffling.
Special teams: Ahmad Bradshaw's fumble and elbow injury were the worst, but there were plenty of low moments aside from Ross' downing a Feagles punt at the GB 5. Lawrence Tynes pulling a 34-yarder wide left; Feagles coming within a hair of having his first punt blocked and atrocious kick coverage.
Stupidity: Jeremy Shockey can point the finger all he wants at others -- and, frankly, how Wes Welker wasn't flagged for a much more obvious spike in the Pats-Chargers game last night is beyond me -- but he's no dummy. He knows not to do what he did, and Shockey made matters worse by dropping a sure TD on the next play.
Amani Toomer's personal foul was stunning, because the guy has been the picture of comportment and class all throughout his career. And Gibril Wilson steam-rolling Packers punter Dave Ryan was equally inexcusable, though he did grab an INT on the next play. Lucky for him.
Maybe it's time for TC to put some teeth behind that famously mean rep of his. I'd venture a guess that even without the elbow injury, Bradshaw wouldn't have been returning kicks this Sunday. TC reinforces the rules for his rookies and young players, but not so much with the veterans. He doesn't have much margin for error with Shockey or Toomer, and fines don't work. I don't really know what the options are, but there's got to be something besides laps.
Strahan: Only noticed him twice -- once when he dropped a sure pick, the other when he made a nice stop for a 3-yard loss. Otherwise, he was manhandled again and didn't look like he had much fire. Tuck and Osi got better push through the line and were more active.
Wouldn't that be a kick if 92 came back and ended up being a role player? He won't have to face his old pal Jon Jansen on Sunday in D.C., so here's his chance to show something.
Inactives:
NYG -- Jacobs, Dockery, Wilkinson, Koets, Boothe, Tyree, Davis
Zak DeOssie's in, and the DT rotation stays the same.
WR Greg Jennings and RB Vernand Morency out for the Pack. If the Giants defense can't get it done today...
I can't say for sure he's starting, but more than enough people around the NYG are liking what they've seen from Manning in practice that they would be stunned if he doesn't play on Sunday.
One person familiar with the team's plans for Sunday also said not to rule out Lorenzen starting and Eli backing up, ready to jump in if J-Lo can't get it done. If J-Lo can get it done, then Manning gets a week of rest. Seems like a smart move to me.
And Osi Umenyiora listed as probable has to be a pleasant surprise, considering we all (myself included) thought and heard he was out for a significant length of time.
The rest of the final injury report:
Out -- Jacobs, Tyree
Doubtful -- Dockery
Questionable -- Manning, Tynes, Wilkinson, DeOssie (back)
Probable -- Umenyiora, Wilson (quad)
DeOssie's back locked up on him last night... This team is scary at long-snapper. Grey Ruegamer's the guy in case DeOssie can't go.
And, lastly, a classic quote from Plaxico Burress regarding the number of injuries: "Hey, man, what do you want me to say? This ain't badminton."
As for all the strong reactions to the latest list, I welcome all of it... And remember, it's 98% Giants around here. We always get back to the football.
As to some recent questions in the comments...
-- Only change you should expect to see in the defense is Sam Madison for R.W. McQuarters. Aaron Ross is still a work in progress, folks. Doesn't matter how old he is.
The first number is how many throws Eli made during the 30 minutes reporters were allowed to watch practice today.
He threw about 10 fades to a variety of receivers and a few short in-routes. There were a couple wobblers, but the in throws were straight and delivered with some velocity.
More later, when practice ends.
Now, a quick FridayList, since there's too much other stuff cookin... I admit I stole this concept from Blender, but that's the way it goes. Top 10 Most Overrated Bands/Musicians Ever:
10. The Arcade Fire -- I'm always leery when the cool kids tell you that you have to love a band... Just don't get the hype.
9. Foo Fighters -- Always liked 'em, but I was always waiting for something more.
8. 311 -- Why can't people just like Bob Marley instead?
7. The Police -- Great at the start, then progressively more and more disappointing. Sting's jazz odyssey period has been the last straw.
6. The Moody Blues -- Can't even think of the words to describe what they do to me. It isn't good.
5. The Eagles -- Though they do qualify in the Best Elevator Music category.
4. Aerosmith -- Unlistenable since Run-DMC dragged them out of the crack house.
3. Steely Dan -- I know I'm not alone in this (see Seth Rogen's riff about how much they suck in Knocked Up), but even in my mellowest moments I can think of 486 bands I'd rather be listening to.
2. Billy Joel -- Can't really say this around the NY area, but he should've retired after Glass Houses.
1. Pink Floyd -- No comment necessary. Worst ever.
See, Blauber? Didn't rip you or your beloved 8-track collection once.
Oh, and Peter -- Hanlon was not the one who gave Mortensen the bad info... On the contrary, I believe "Must Love Blogs" Best quoted Mortensen as saying this: "Here's how good I feel about the story: Pat Hanlon has never lied to me and I don't believe he's lying to me now."
There was also something about Mortensen saying Hanlon could laugh at him if Eli plays on Sunday... I would add either of the next two Sundays to that, since Mortensen said one month, but that's just nit-picking.
On to the locker room... Brandon Jacobs was walking without a limp or a wrap on his right knee and swore he'd be running by next week. "It sure won't be five weeks," he said of the time he'll miss.
And Osi looked OK too, though his eyes went wide when I suggested the injury looked back. "It felt bad too," he said. "It felt like, 'See y'all next year.'"
He didn't rule himself out for Sunday, but said he's not like a certain other DE in that he absolutely needs to practice before he can play. Russell Warren, the Giants' team doc, will check out Osi tomorrow; that leaves only Friday. I say count Osi out for the Packers.
He stretched, he put his helmet on, took a couple snaps from Shaun O'Hara, then watched Jared Lorenzen and Anthony Wright throw passes. Eli tossed the ball (with his throwing hand) to equipment guy Tim Slaman a few times.
So there you go. He's ready!
Osi was on the stationary bike, along with a whole team of cyclists: DB Kevin Dockery (ankle), K Lawrence Tynes (calf), WR David Tyree (wrist), FB Robert Douglas (knee) and RB Brandon Jacobs (knee). Seeing Jacobs was a surprise, but did anyone wonder whether he was tough?
That's the word from the coach in his press conference that just ended.
Manning will be on the practice field today and do some soft-tossing on the side, as well as stay with his fellow QBs in individual drills. Jared Lorenzen will get the first-team snaps, but TC said much of the swelling is gone from Manning's shoulder and he's reporting far less pain and soreness.
Umenyiora will also be on the field today, riding the stationary bike. TC likes what he sees with Osi too, so much so that Mathias Kiwanuka will stay at LB this week.
K Lawrence Tynes has a strained calf and won't practice. Josh Huston is still a FA and would get "strong, strong consideration" if Tynes can't kick before the end of the week.
DT Barry Cofield (knee) will practice.
Speaking of, practice starts in a few... I'll bring back some eyewitness accounts of Eli standing around.
The Giants put William Joseph (back) on injured reserve, effectively ending his five-year run with the team. It's doubtful the injury was serious enough for IR, so as they did with Will Demps and Marcus Bell, this is a way to dump Joseph.
Giants also released G Matt Lentz and TE Jake Nordin from the practice squad to make room for RB Quentin Smith and TE Jerome Collins.
Sunday night was a whirlwind, yesterday was a time to flip through the medical dictionary... So today, with the players off and healing, let's go over the game and its consequences:
THE GOOD
Eli: Don't think anyone out there should underestimate just how well he played. Completion % almost 70, four TDs and almost a fifth to Toomer, one INT that was no one's fault (maybe Plax for slipping, I guess) and real poise as the blitzes got stronger in the second half.
As for the shoulder... The truth, I think lies somewhere in the middle of "day-to-day" and "out for a month." Every one of us with pen and notebook in hand has heard of similar injuries and tries to make our own conclusions, but we ain't doctors. Even if we were, how would we know what the MRI looks like?
Personally, I think ESPN was a little irresponsible for going with a story, hearing a denial and then just hammering their version home on every telecast across all the networks... But you can head over to Best's Must Love Blogs to see what the media pros have to say.
And I don't absolve myself from the responsibility factor, people. I ran with a report on the blog yesterday, then I heard contradicting things and changed it... Of course, there's a difference between this thing and ESPN, but all we have left at the end of the day is our own responsibility.
Anyway... Gut feeling here is that J-Lo starts on Sunday and Eli returns in D.C. Here's another plus for young Manning: The kid is durable. He's taken some big hits over the last three years and bounced back every time.
Derrick Ward: Not sure he can sustain it against a much better defense this Sunday, but he might be the surprise of the team. I'm still a bit more surprised that he's not returning kickoffs -- Ahmad Bradshaw is good back there, but I think Ward's better -- but he's got some bigger shoes to fill now. If he can go for 90 yards on 10-15 carries while Jacobs is out, I bet TC would sign for it right now.
The O-Line: With a couple of exceptions, it handled everything thrown at them. DeMarcus Ware had a couple pressures, but did he do anything else? No. So Dave Diehl passed his first test. In fact, every guy was quite good, and Rich Seubert avoided throwing any punches when a few Cowboys defenders got upset with him.
Plax: Lest you all forget, I pronounced him to be the biggest disappointment for the upcoming season... So I've got that going for me. I should know by now there are athletes in every sport who only shine when the bright lights are on, and Burress is the champeen of them among the Giants.
Lawrence Tynes: Did he even make one over 40 yards in the preseason? In camp? Ever? Guess TC made the right call there, though remember to hydrate, LT.
THE BAD
Linebackers: Seriously, I could start anywhere, but Kiwanuka/Pierce/Mitchell (and then Torbor) all looked too passive... A lot of getting caught in between. We'll never know whether there were zones that were called to keep T.O. in check and that's what left the middle of the field wide open for Jason Witten, or whether any one of the LBs just plain blew an assignment keeping track of the Dallas TE.
Kiwanuka just looked like he was thinking way too much... Going one way when he needed to be going the other, tentative and then over-committing and flying by the play... He's a DE, and in tomorrow's Chalk Talk for the dead-tree product, I'll try to explain why he needs to be a DE again.
James Butler: Maybe it's just the position, but first it was Will Demps who couldn't take anyone down, now Butler's having problems. If Michael Johnson could figure out the calls, I bet he'd be a decent option back there, because he can hit.
Michael Strahan: I almost went for the, "Is his holdout over?" gag -- oh, wait, I guess I just did. Oops.
He looked... small. Flozell Adams is no joke, but Strahan was getting pummeled on passing plays. Just rag-dolled around. You can't expect 92 to be 92 right from the start, but that's what the Giants needed with Osi down. Didn't happen.
Jay Alford: Tough start for the rook. Bad snap cost the Giants the extra point early, had a couple other wobblers and then, in some DT action, got absolutely detonated at the point of attack a few times.
THE UGLY
Officiating: TC mentioned Patrick Crayton's false start that went uncalled on the clinching Dallas TD late and Bradie James hanging off Chris Snee's face mask for about 10 seconds seemed like it might have been a foul... Of course, when Ed "Welcome to the Gun Show" Hochuli is identifying players as "the nose guard" on calls, there are problems.
The Texas Stadium turf: This makes seven pretty serious injuries to Giants players in their last two visits. Not all of them can be blamed on the turf, but I'll tell you what: I stood down there for the last couple minutes of the game, and it was like standing on your grandma's Astroturf welcome mat. And that crowned field? I could barely see the other end zone from where I was.
That's all for today... Remember, it's one game. Listen to your pal BB and just chill.
OK, here's what everyone's saying:
-- Giants say Eli has a bruised A-C joint in a statement; TC says Eli has a sprained shoulder, which means it's separated. So ESPN is somewhat right. But he's day to day, and neither Eli nor TC is ruling the QB out for Sunday. Hey, Eli shook Blauber's hand. "Vigorously," Blaubs reported. He's cured!
Seriously -- it's not as minor as Eli made it out to be, but it's not necessarily an automatic month either.
-- Osi has an irritation of the lateral meniscus in his left knee and the Giants say he's day to day. A person close to the situation said Umenyiora will miss a month. Who's right? Who knows? Osi wasn't around today and TC isn't ruling anything out there either... Not even moving Mathias Kiwanuka back to DE if Umenyiora's injury is serious.
-- The only sure thing is Jacobs' sprained MCL. Three-to-five weeks for him.
-- Oh, and Barry Cofield hyperextended his knee. But he's fine. Swear.
And, lastly, Terrell Owens did give Gibril Wilson the finger after T.O.'s second TD... Which prompted Wilson to shove Owens and draw a personal foul. "I think it goes back to last year. We don't exactly get along," Wilson said. Maybe he doesn't get fined for retaliating.
Reports have Osi Umenyiora out up to 8 weeks with a torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee and Brandon Jacobs out 3-5 weeks with a sprained right MCL.
A person familiar with Eli's shoulder injury said the QB appears to be OK, with just a bruise. He should be ready to play against the Packers, but it's doubtful he'll do much throwing this week.
More after the official word in an hour or so.
X-rays were negative, but he's done for the night and will have further tests tomorrow.
That means Jacques Reeves starts at LCB, rookie Anthony Spencer starts at SLB for Greg Ellis and Patrick Crayton starts at WR for Terry Glenn.
5 1/2-point favorites still?
FB Robert Douglas, S Craig Dahl, LB Gerris Wilkinson, OL Adam Koets, OL Kevin Boothe, WR David Tyree and DT William Joseph.
That is all for now... Madison's in, Strahan's in, Manny Wright's in. Let's get this thing started.
Giants just announced that Ol' 92 will be active for tomorrow night's game. CB Dovonte Edwards was waived to make room for Strahan on the 53-man roster. Edwards was a Giant for exactly five days.
Giants also gassed practice squad WR Fred Gibson.
Off to Big D... Game preview tomorrow.
Since it's all about the printed word in Giantsland these days -- what's that? Game? Come on, you guys don't care about the games -- the List has caught wind of 10 more Giants (and Newsday) related books on the way, in addition to the three already in the pipeline:
In case you forgot...
Here are the rest of the books you'll be toting to the tailgates:
10. 40 And Fabulous: How To Stay Fit, Healthy And Remember Which Way To Turn The Laces, by Jeff Feagles
9. Giants Online, The Outtakes: 101 Uses For The F-Word, by Pat Hanlon
8. Son Of A Beach Ball, by Zak DeOssie
7. A Brief History Of William Joseph (pamphlet only)
6. Sigh... My Life As A Blogger, by Neil Best 
5. The In-Laws, by Chris Snee
4. Yanni: The Sweetest Music In The World, by Bob Glauber
3. 50 And Fabulous: The Secret To Staying Young In the NFL, by Sam Madison
2. The Ultimate Eli Manning Karaoke Guide
1. Particle Physics Revealed, by Jeremy Shockey
I'll have a practice update and game preview later... Gotta go pre-order some of these.
