The Giants should have gotten embarrassed yesterday. They did not. I love these kind of losses. They are such a harbinger of good things to come.
The litany of injuries the Giants had to overcome were too numerous to list. Just know that IOL, LB, WR, CB, TE and S were all impaired. If the Gmen would have gotten crushed, you couldn’t fault them. Yet they competed and played very well considering new players had no time to practice on a short week.
I admit that I have not held out much hope for the return of Shane Lemieux and Nick Gates. Correct on Lemieux. But Gates was very good.
Kayvon Thibodeaux had his best game as a Giant.
Reports are that Bellinger is nearly fully recovered from eye surgery, with his double vision nearly all gone. I won’t breathe a sigh of relief until he’s 100% and playing. Yet he’s practicing and his return to the team will be a huge boost to them making the playoffs. Just as importantly, Bellinger’s return means a 10 year staple TE nabbed in Round 4.
McKinney and Neal may be able to return next game. Neither made the trip to Dallas.
So many young players are getting valuable experience and playing time. They’ll play next year as roster players/backups/or those competing for starting jobs.
The Giants will evaluate a new surface for MET Life stadium. There is only room for improvement! Less injuries!
People are trashing Kafka for his playcalls. Regular readers of this NY Giants blog know I am typically critical of many Giants playcallers. Yet with Kafka I am going to defend him on many levels. He doesn’t have the personnel. This limits what he can do. The precipitous “decline” in the offense took place coincident with Bellinger’s departure from the active roster. Bellinger is an excellent blocker and a sound receiving option. His presence enables Kafka to use so many more run and pass plays effectively. Opposing defenses have much more trouble diagnosing what the Giants will do when he’s lined up.
Summary: injuries are temporary (assuming they can be addressed). Daboll and Schoen are building something permanent. It’s frankly remarkable and noteworthy that this team in Week 12 was able to be competitive. Where is this team going to be when it no longer has Gettleman’s parting (salary cap + dead cap) gifts, is healthier, deeper, and re-upped on requisite talent? We see an extremely competitive franchise that has been rebuilt in a single season.
UltimateNYG 