[video=youtube;gHbT_qOuVQA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHbT_qOuVQA[/video] The more I reflect on this Giants season, the more I'm convinced Tom Coughlin needs to make the 2nd fundamental change to his coaching philosophy. His tenure with the Giants has been marked with his trust and faith in the veterans he's got. That's an admirable trait most of the time, but the flipside to it is that it also involves a hesitance to trust unknown commodities. I believe that's one of the main reasons the Giants are currently stuck in such a rut right now. You just need to trace the team since their Super Bowl win two years ago. That 2007 team was an experienced, veteran squad led by the likes of Michael Strahan, Antonio Pierce, Kawika Mitchell, Amani Toomer, and most of the O-line. After the championship, the roster underwent some significant changes (no more Strahan, Kawika, Gibril Wilson). But Coughlin didn't need to make fundamental changes to his approach. Some of those 2007 leaders were still performing for the team and he didn't need to make difficult decisions to replace the ones that left. Players like Justin Tuck and Eli Manning had been groomed for years and naturally stepped up into the role. Now all the while, you need to recognize that since 2007, GM Jerry Reese has been building a foundation of young prospects for this team. I believe he fully recognized that some of the significant figures on that team were aging and anticipated the need to replace them. Since 2007, he's stocked up almost every position on this team with promising young prospects (I detailed this in another thread). The problem is that Coughlin has been too afraid/hesitant to start using them. Players can be promising as hell, but that doesn't necessarily translate into anything unless they see legitimate playing time. Prospects fulfill their potential by gaining experience. And that has not been possible since 2007, because Coughlin has irrationally clung to his veterans. The examples are endless. He nailed a talented Kenny Phillips to the bench in his rookie year in favour of the lead-footed James Butler. What was clearly meant as a one-year stopgap solution (Danny Clark) has started for two years over players like Brian Kehl and Clint Sintim. Before his season-ending injury, our explosive young D-tackle (Jay Alford) wasn't getting enough snaps in place of old, injured Fred Robbins/Barry Cofield. Reports out of training camp/practice have praised MLB Jonathan Goff, but he's barely seen any snaps over a deteriorating Antonio Pierce. Matthias Kiwanuka is one of this team's best-kept secrets and he doesn't consistently see the field, despite his versatility. You fail to anticipate the inevitable and it'll hurt you in the long-run. That's clearly what's happened to this team this year (specifically its defense). The Giants are depending too much on aging, underperforming veterans and their promising prospects haven't seen enough playing time the past year or so to replace them. Even with this team slumping like it has, a lot of these young players haven't gotten opportunities. Coughlin needs to realize that this is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Your up-and-coming players won't ever be ready to step in until you trust them and take a chance on them. This team has some serious decisions to make after this season, and Coughlin absolutely has to swallow his pride and cut some of the aging, dead weight. That also applies to the way he treats his coordinators, but that's another topic entirely.
