Poor old Bill. He couldn?t get a running game to save his life at the start of the season, but managed a 2-1 record anyway. Then he finds a running game, and everything else falls apart?including his coaching decisions. Yep, Parcells proved he was human by letting emotion dictates choices rather than the percentages. Sure, he is one of the masters of calling for the gutsy calls at just the right time. While I give him his props for all those times, I also have to call him when they don?t work. This is one of these times. Three plays made the difference in this game. A 4th and goal early in the game failed when Larry Allen slipped and fell before he could make a block, which allowed the Giants to stuff Eddie George. A 3rd quarter running into the kicker penalty allowed the Giants to continue the drive, which led to 7 points. Another late 4th down play, from their own 43, failed when the Giants CB made a great play to stop FB Barnes a yard short. Offense: D+ It was out of balance the whole time. The Giants D just didn?t give them the chance to get their bearings and get rolling. Sure, they found 166 yards of rushing, but the offense just never came together. They were 4 of 11 on 3rd downs and 0 for 2 on 4th. Quarterbacks: C Not sure Vinny ever did anything too wrong, really. He threw the ball where it needed to be, but the passing game just didn?t get rolling. Running backs: B A committee approach served well. We need this game?s performance as a consistent minimum. Wide receivers: C- Keyshawn made some good plays. Glenn made a good move, but was missing most of the game, as was Antonio Bryant. Tight ends: C- Witten made some good plays. He is really developing into a better blocker, and is already an underrated threat in the passing game. His fumble, though, was big. Off Line: C+ Vinny got sacked a couple times, but they really did an OK job against Strahan and company. Defense: C They looked like Doomsday for much of the game. Midway through the 3rd quarter, Tiki Barber was averaging 2.1 YPC. He had 34 total yards on 12 touches. That was before he broke out a 60 yard run. He also had a 60 yard reception off of a screen pass, which doesn?t bother me much. There were about 5 minutes left in the game, with Dallas down by 9, so they had to stack the line on 3rd and short. Warner was effective but not overbearing. Defensive backs: B We are still struggling to get our 7th round draft pick guys used to starting. Newman played much better!!! Special teams: C+ Several good kick returns. The running into the kicker penalty turned the gam
Agree with the penalties, but I try to get a true overall grade considering good points and bad. That way I don't bounce between A's and F's with wins and losses. They did some good stuff in this game too.
