Monthly Archives: September 2008
According to FOX Sports, Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress has been fined 40-50 times as a member of the New York Giants before his recent suspension. Burress was suspended by the team for missing team meetings, ignoring phone calls, and other problems that were piling up. An anonymous source explained the situation:
“He doesn’t care about the fines but if you don’t let him play … that’s all he cares about. He just wants to play football. He pretty much put Jerry Reese and Coach in a bad spot on this one. It had to stop and just fining him again wasn’t going to do it.”
Obviously after fining Burress at least 40 times, it doesn’t seem to scare him. Unfortunately, it seems like suspending him is the only way to make him learn from his mistakes.
With the Giants off this Sunday, I decided to treat myself to a nice leisurely day of rest. At Shea Stadium watching the Mets crumble (don’t call it a collapse) for the second year in a row.
As ironic fireworks went off to bid the decrepit stadium farewell, and orange and blue confetti fell from the heavens, the type that should be reserved for the clinching of a championship, not a 4-2 loss to a team that is used to playing in front of 17.5 fans each game (there are many half people in Florida), I began to think how different this baseball season would have been if only the Mets played football instead.
I’d be a writer for MetsFootballBlog, writing things like:
Is there any better QB to WR combination in the NFL than Johan Santana to Jose Reyes? And how about that leaping catch Endy Chavez made in the back of the end zone? Too bad Scott Shoenweweis‘ potential game winning field goal caromed off the upright and out of the stadium for a homerun.
Game Notes: TE Moises Alou will miss the rest of the season after breaking all ten of his fingers trying to make a one handed catch. FB Luis Castillo has been re-signed to a twelve year deal, despite the fact that off season surgery revealed that his knees were made of Cadbury creme eggs.
Anyway, as baseball season has come to a close, football is now the only show in town. But since the Giants were off this week, I’ll simply do a recap of the Giants game I played in Madden ’07, the most recent edition I have of the game.
Giants 70, AFC Hall of Fame 7
The Giants won a wild one Sunday, beating the AFC Hall of Fame team by a score of 70-7. Rich unlocked the AFC Hall of Fame team by earning Madden Tokens and purchasing the AFC Hall of Fame Madden Card.
Tiki Barber had a career day, rushing for 341 yards and 4 touchdowns on 20 carries. When asked about his slightly pixilated appearance, Barber suggested that it’s probably time for Rich to upgrade to an HD TV or maybe get an Xbox 360 for Christmas. Little did he know that Rich is Jewish.
Eli Manning passed for 734 yards and added six touchdown passes to Tim Carter, all on Hail Mary plays. Manning decided not to throw to his other receivers because the B and X button are broken on Rich’s controller.
Lavar Arrington had his coming out party with 2 interceptions and 3 sacks and Will Demps lead the team with 12 tackles. The lone points for the AFC Hall of Fame team came when Chad Morton fumbled a punt in the third quarter, which is stupid because I can’t control when my players fumble but whatever. The fumble was recovered by Hall of Fame Player #41 and returned for a touchdown.
The game was delayed late in the 4th quarter when Rich had to go to the bathroom and then got distracted by something and forgot he was playing.
Arrington said after the game that he is finally starting to feel comfortable in the Giants defensive system. “Back in Washington, we didn’t use the hit stick as often. We were taught to try and strip the ball or just dive at the players, but I’m finally starting to get the hang of the hit stick. I think it’s going to be smooth sailing from here on out, and I don’t see myself having a career ending injury any time soon.”
The Giants will take on the ’86 Giants next week.
Bonehead of the Week: GiantsFootballBlog Writer David Jacks
The hot rumor around the GiantsFootballBlog office is that something in one of my recent articles is reminiscent of another article on this site.
“Did Rick Resh, another great writer on Giantsfootballblog.com, just write the same article as myself, only two days later? I may be delirious from all the cold medicine, but it looks eerily similar, and now I think I may have started a war between writers.”
Well, to Mr. Jacks, I can assure you that I did not steal anything from your articles, as I have not yet learned to read English. My first language Russian. I don’t can read American writings good. I sorry to you for fish puddings. Yes?
For not knowing about the inspiring journey I took, escaping soviet Russia for America so many years ago, you are this week’s Bonehead of the…week.
Many folks doubted the Giants were as good as the Cowboys coming into this season on paper, Peter King of SI among them. However King now sees the light and declares the Giants top dogs in the NFL.
In training camp, Justin Tuck told me the defensive linemen were sitting around at the team’s Super Bowl party in Phoenix three hours after the game last February, all talking about winning another one instead of how they were going to celebrate this one. The Giants are deep at running back and wide receiver (even with the Plaxico Burress fireworks), have a workmanlike and versatile offensive line, are surviving the killer losses of Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, and are maturing in the secondary. Will they win again? If they don’t get a big injury on defense, and if Eli Manning continues his steady climb as a passer and leader, the answer is yes.”
I love hearing that story by Tuck. It just goes to show you that this team was hungry for another ring as early as three hours after they won their last one. It is so difficult to repeat, but I think if the Giants can prove their mettle against some tougher opponents, which they’ll soon be facing, they may have a decent shot at defending their title.
Before I get to the picks, let me say this, I may be having one of the worst week of my life. Quick recap: Click on “read more” if you are soleless, and are using me for my keen intellect, but if you have a care, read on.
Sunday - I get all “Mike Martz” in my post and decide it’s time to play genius and on three seperate 3rd and one’s I call these plays, reverse, double reverse, double reverse flee flicker fumblerooski with an option to buy, out of the wing T (what, it could work – losing my mind and yelling – YOU DONT UNDERSTAND THE WING T sobbing no, YOU don’t understand). Those plays represent my Arizona, Houston and Chicago picks. The second I made those picks, I knew what I was doing. I was saying “look at me and how smart I am. I sleep with Heidi Klum and Carmen Electra on top of each other.” Safe to say, 12-3 went straight to my head. I sleep alone. I am stupid. I am Mike Martz’s Madula Ablongada (by the way is it possible that he is turning the niners offense around? I submit no, not yet)
Every week this season, I have given in depth keys to assist the Giants in defeating their opponent. From the toughest of the tough, to the St. Louis Rams, I have been there to help point the team in the right direction. But this week, the Giants face an opponent fiercer than any other: the Bye Week.
The Giants have played the Bye Week every year since 1990, and still have yet to come away with a victory. It is no overstatement to say that the odds are stacked against them. But with these 5 keys, not only can the Giants beat the Bye Week, but maybe you can too.
1. Read a Book
In the primitive days, before there was television, mankind used to write down shows using words. Although there are no cool chase scenes, explosions, or nudity, books can be used as a cheap substitute for TV during re-run season. Books can still be found at your local Amish town store.
2. Watch Hockey
You don’t have to be Canadian to watch hockey anymore (although it is strongly recommended)! The NHL pre-season is just starting up, and the three local teams could all be in store for great seasons (statistically speaking, teams have a better chance of making the playoffs than not). If you like hockey, you know how exciting and action packed it can be. If you don’t like hockey, you can always tape a piece of green cellophane to the screen and drink until you think its football.
2a. Drink Until You Think Everything is Football
This one is self explanatory
3. Invent Your Own Sport
I like to play a game called “Tackle Chess Ball.” It’s half chess, half tackle football! More accurately, it’s just football played on a chess board. Games don’t last very long.
4. Get to Know Your Chinese Uprisings!
We all know that the White Lotus Rebellion was an anti-Manchu uprising that occurred during the Qing Dynasty. But did you know that it wasn’t until the Jiaqing Emperor overthrew the Heshen Clique that the uprising was truly stifled? See? Learning can be fun! This sort of educational information can be found on Wikipedia or even in a book* (*see above).
5. Have a Baby
With all the time you’ll spend caring for the little bugger, football will be the last thing on your mind. And after a week, you can return the kid for store credit, just in time for the Seahawks game!
Early into this season it is becoming clear that the balance of power in the NFC has shifted, and the current beasts of the NFL hail from the NFC East.
The undefeated Giants along with the Cowboys and Eagles top pretty much every power ranking across the web today, reports Paul Domowitch at Philly.com
ESPN.com, USA Today and Pro Football Weekly have the 3-0 Cowboys first, the 3-0 Giants second and the 2-1 Eagles, whose only loss was by four points to the Cowboys, third. SI.com has the Cowboys first, the Eagles second and the Giants third. FoxSports.com has the Giants first, the Cowboys second and the Eagles third.
The NFC East is the only division with two unbeaten teams and four with winning records.
Domenik Hixon will start at split end next week when Plaxico Burress serves his one-game suspension. Steve Smith will start in the slot and at flanker behind Amani Toomer, reports Mike Garagolo at the Star Ledger.
The agent for Plaxico Burress, Drew Rosenhaus, is trying to have his client’s suspension overturned, reports Vinny DiTrani at The Record.
“Although we do acknowledge that there was an infraction here, and a violation of team rules,” Rosenhaus said today, “it’s not something we think is tantamount to Plaxico being suspended from the team for these two weeks, especially the ballgame. … It’s obviously something that doesn’t sit with us, and we’re going to do what we can to get this turned around.
“I do believe there are things that take place in the NFL that you can say are worse and have not led to suspensions. We’re hoping an arbitrator would agree with our position and reinstate him in time for him to practice for the Seahawks game.”
His agent said Burress was surprised at the suspension and that he had a “responsibility relating to his family that he took care of, he personally handled,” he said, adding Burress thought it was “an emergency.”
Ed Beeson at The Record reports that Burress had two domestic disturbance calls where police were summoned to his home over the summer. It is not know if those incidents are related to Burress’ absence on Monday.
PK John Carney has been named the “NFC Special Teams Player of the Week.” In Sunday’s 26-23 overtime victory over Cincinnati, Carney kicked four field goals: from 24, 46, 26, and 22 yards. The last field goal came in overtime to win the game for the Giants. It was the 15th game-winning field goal of Carney’s career and his third in overtime.
Lawrence Tynes is going to have to wrestle that ball out from under Carney’s foot, he’s making a pretty strong case to make Tynes a back up.
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