New York Giants QB Eli Manning

Before we know it, we will blink and NFL training camps will start.  The New York Giants have been pretty quiet for the most part this offseason.  That is, they have been compared to last.

Here’s a look, position by position, at the current Giants offensive roster before it heads to training camp.

Quarterbacks
Obviously there’s no worry here.  Eli Manning will of course head to position and responsibility of leading the Giants offense.  Now that he has two Super Bowl MVP’s, there are no doubts whether or not he can handle it.  His back-up is David Carr, whose press conference for his re-signing we are still waiting for (snicker).

This will be Carr’s third season with the Giants as the second-string QB, and has only seen one stint of playing time with the team.  It was in 2009 when the Giants blew out the Oakland Raiders and decided to give Manning the rest of the day off.  Carr may not see much playing time…again…but if heaven forbid something happens to Manning, I believe the Giants have a solid back-up in Carr.  He knows the Giants playbook and studies it every week.

Wide Receivers
Last season, the Giants had an unstoppable trio of receivers in Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz, and Mario Manningham.  No matter where opposing defenses forced Manning to throw, there was a reliable receiver ready to catch the ball.  That trio is currently broken up.  Manningham left New York for San Francisco, and Nicks is recovering from a fractured foot.  Nicks is expected to recover in time for the start of the season, but until then, what?  There’s still one spot left to be that third guy.  That guy that will make the third down catches.

Luckily for the Giants they have some depth.  Domenik Hixon is returning from missing his second straight season with a second straight ACL tear.  He’ll be used, but should be with caution.  Ramses Barden, who was drafted by the Giants in 2009, is looking to redeem himself of three miserable seasons.  In three years he has 15 catches and 174 yards.  Ouch.  If he has game in him, then this is the opportunity to show it.  If he still can’t prove his worth, then the Giants need to move on.

Finally, there is the rookie Rueben Randle of LSU.  There is a lot of hype around this kid, especially from GM Jerry Reese.  Reese claims him to be “NFL ready” and a lot of analysts called this Giants pick a steal.  NFL ready or not, he is young and still need to develop.  I can see the Giants using him for some of those third down catches, but he may not necessarily be the “third down guy”.

Tight Ends
Yes, the Giants made a mistake when they lost Jake Ballard to the New England Patriots.  But there’s one thing everyone needs to remember:  With or without Ballard, the TEs are limited.  Ballard had a bad ACL tear to his right knee and was ruled out for the entire 2012 season after he failed a physical.  Travis Beckum also tore his ACL.  It’s possible Beckum could be available for the season, but he obviously would be limited.

The Giants have two key players to turn to.  Bear Pascoe has the most experience with the Giants of all the TEs on the roster.  He was the second man to go to after Kevin Boss in 2010 and Ballard in 2011.  Unless another player steps up to the plate as the starting TE, Pascoe will be the guy.

That player that could possibly be Martellus Bennett.  The Giants signed Bennett after he played his first four seasons with the Dallas Cowboys.  He went from being the number two guy behind Jason Witten to now hopefully getting a starting role with New York.  In his career with Dallas, he has 85 receptions for 846 yards and four touchdowns.

Rookie Adrien Robinson can also have a chance to show what he’s capable of, but he has to outshine a ton of TE’s that saw no playing time last season.  I think the show for TE’s this training camp will be an interesting one.

Running Backs
Like the WR situation, the Giants lost veteran Brandon Jacobs when they could not reach a new contract agreement.  Jacobs is now with San Francisco.  Who do they have left?

The Giants have some depth, but it’s not as deep as the WRs.  Ahmad Bradshaw will continue to assume the starting role responsibilities, however he is recovering from a fracture in his foot.  He’ll be healthy to participate in training camp and start the season off, but he’s injury prone.  The Giants need to finalize some reliable backups.

First round draft pick David Wilson from Virginia Tech would be an easy choice, but like Randle he’ll need to develop enough in time to play a key role.  I don’t think he’ll have much of an issue making a statement in training camp, but it’s the question of transitioning onto the regular season field that is always the up in the air for rookies.

The Giants also have DJ Ware who is, in my opinion, pretty underrated.  I’m a little surprised he wasn’t used more, especially when both Jacobs and Bradshaw were battling injuries.  Ware had 46 carries for 163 yards and averaged 3.5 yards per carry.  He showed last season that he has the speed to break through the defensive lines.  I think he should be used more in 2012.

Offensive Line
In 2011, the offensive line behind Eli Manning was pretty horrific.  Manning was sacked 28 times during the regular season.  He’s a tough QB, but no one should have to take that many hits.  Kareem McKenzie failed to do his job of protecting Manning, which probably explains the reason why he’s not back with the team.

The key behind the Giants becoming a strong offensive line is a healthy David Baas.  Baas was brought to the team in 2011 hoping to hone his skills, but he was riddled with injuries that sidelined him for most of the season.

The tackles have a highly important role this season.  They really need to step up and provide better protection for Manning.  David Diehl and Will Beatty will be the go-to guys to protect, and hopefully Sean Locklear can bring a verteran and leadership presence to make the position stronger.

Special Teams
The special teams played a huge role in the Giants run for the Super Bowl.

Their kicker Lawrence Tynes made the crucial FG that put them in the big game, but it was the work of punter Steve Weatherford that made a huge difference.  Weatherford punted for 3,745 yards in the regular season average 45.7 yards.  In the postseason he managed to put the ball deep into the opposing teams end, making it extra difficult to come back down the field.

Overall the New York Giants offense is almost, just almost a match to last year.  A few tweaks here and there and they’ll be better.  The biggest challenge will be getting the offensive line a lot stronger.  A strong o-line gives more freedom to Manning.

Bear Pascoe (PHOTO: Lori Van Buren / Times Union)

Last week, Giants GM Jerry Reese took a gamble by placing starting TE Jake Ballard on waivers.  Ballard tore his ACL during Super Bowl XLVI and failed a physical before minicamp.  Reese’s plan was to reclaim Ballard and place him on the PUP-list.

Unfortunately the plan backfired when the New England Patriots scooped Ballard away from the Giants.

Even if Ballard was still a Giant, the team needed to address the TE situation.  Who will be the go-to guy?

The first guy to look at is Bear Pascoe.  The Giants have used him over the years as a second TE behind Ballard and Kevin Boss.  Of all the TE’s he has the most experience with the team and will be looked at to lead the staff.

In 2011 Pascoe played eight out of the 17 Week season.  He had 12 receptions for 136 yards, but no touchdowns.  He made a big impact for the Giants in Super Bowl XLVI with four receptions for 33 yards.

The irony behind all of this is Pascoe and Ballard are good friends and were roommates during their time with the Giants.  Now Pascoe will likely be taking over Ballard’s job.

But as we know, Pascoe can’t do it all.  Travis Beckum is also recovering from a torn ACL, but is expected to play next season.  However, it’s not likely he’ll recover enough to be a full time starter.  The number two guy they should look at is Martellus Bennett.

The Giants acquired Bennett this offseason from the Dallas Cowboys.  He’s 6’6″ and weighs in at 296lbs.  During his four years in Dallas he had 85 receptions for 846 yards.  He has decent speed that could give Eli Manning another moving target on the field in place of Ballard.

After being the number two guy behind Jason Witten in Dallas, Bennett is probably hungry for this opportunity to show the Giants what he’s capable of doing.  Pascoe is the starter for now, but Bennett won’t make it easy.

Rookie Adrien Robinson from Cincinnati can also have a shot at playing a role this season.  However, it’s still too early in the offseason to make any real determinations.  The Giants will have a better idea of what to do with him when training camp arrives.

After losing Kevin Boss, Kevin Gilbride and his coaches were able to train Jake Ballard enough to be a quality starter.  The Giants would not have won Super Bowl XLVI without him.  They have Pascoe ready to go, but need another TE to take the charge.  Bennett is the guy to play that role.

Jake Ballard PHOTO: Andrew Mills/The Star-Ledger

Today while working, I received a text update from ESPN that read “Giants cut TE Jake Ballard (torn ACL)”.

This was the face I made:

Then I saw the below tweets from Ralph Vacchiano (@TheBlueScreen) from the New York Daily News:

Then I made this face:

Ballard will likely clear waivers and will be placed on the PUP-list and will miss the remainder of the season.

My fellow Giants fans, or really just anyone that knows me well, know my feelings about Ballard, but there is a reason why he has caught my interest.

When the Giants lost Kevin Boss after the 2010-2011 season I wondered what in the world they were going to do in that spot.  Boss, like Steve Smith, was another one of Eli Manning’s most trustworthy players to get to where the ball is placed.  What TE was going to be Manning’s go-to guy now?

Ballard stepped his game up big time last season and made Giants fans, in no disrespect, forget Boss.  Ballard caught 38 passes for 604 yards and four touchdowns in the regular season, one of which was the big game-winner against the New England Patriots.

It’s really a shame that this ACL injury happened.  Ballard was showing great promise for the Giants after last season.  This is one of those times where we are reminded that the NFL is still a business, but at least there is hope for Ballard’s return to the team.

It takes a lot of pieces to a puzzle to win a championship, and Ballard was certainly one of those pieces.  Without him they would have never made the playoffs, and therefore would not have won Super Bowl XLVI.

Ron Antonelli/New York Daily News

I read an interview today with Eli Manning on Giants.com.

Manning was asked, “When you return as a World Champ and you know what is ahead and how difficult it is to look back, where does the motivation come from when you know you will be getting a ring next month?”  I was intrigued by his answer:

I think the motivation is always trying to improve; always trying to get better, always trying to become a better player.  Sometimes you can’t worry about winning a championship next year.  You know how difficult that is; you know that a lot of things have to happen.  But you can’t always control that.  You can control making sure you are doing everything you can to be prepared–to get your workouts, to be in shape.  Make sure you are doing everything you can to try and stay healthy and get your teammates mentally and physically ready for the season.  So that is what we are doing right now.  We are working hard.  We are getting prepared and figuring out ways to get better.

If there’s one thing I noticed about Manning last season, it was the way he worked with his weapons in the offseason.  He ran “Camp Eli” in Hoboken during the NFL lockout.  He took young and inexperienced players like Victor Cruz and Jake Ballard and worked close with them to help improve their game.

Manning said the key factor to motivation is trying to improve.  He spent the offseason trying to help his teammates step it up another notch.

Making a move like this, to run a camp when coaches couldn’t, and to motivate young players when no one else could, is the definition of leadership.

Sure, the goal every team wants to accomplish in any season of any sport is to win the championship.  You’d be crazy not to.  Being a defending champion can make it difficult to NOT thinking about repeating.

Manning is making it clear that even though that will be the focus down the line, that shouldn’t be the focus right now.  Now is the time to focus on preparation for the season.  Manning is pretty much saying let’s get to Week 1 first and work from there.  Let’s not get over excited and expect more than you should.

The focus right now is improvement.  Without that you won’t be better.

There are many questions players should be asking at this moment:

I was injured last season.  How do I stay healthy?  I scored a lot of touchdowns last year.  How do I score more?  I ran for 2,000 yards last season.  What do I need to do to get 3,000?  I have decent speed.  What training do I need to get faster?

Manning wants his guys to ask themselves how they can take what they did last year and make it better.  There’s plenty of time before Super Bowl XLVII.

Manning has very unique leadership skills.  He’s not the outspoken loudmouth that you read about in the paper everyday.  He keeps his discussions with teammates behind closed doors.

He is also physically and mentally tough and it splashes to his teammates.

Anyone that says Manning isn’t tough is out of their mind.  Let’s compare him, let’s say, to Tom Brady.

Don’t get me wrong, Tom Brady is a great quarterback.  Probably top five in NFL history.  He has the looks, the model wife, and the insane stats.  What he also has are veteran receivers, tall and fast tight ends, and a strong offensive line.  That’s what makes him great.

What does Manning have?  He has a weak offensive line.  They don’t protect him enough and he gets sacked on average four times a game.  The second Brady’s line crumbles…he crumbles.  When Manning’s line crumbles…he gets up and keeps going.  Brady complains to the officials.  Manning takes the hit and moves to the next play.

Teammates recognize the fact that the leader keeps calm, cool, and collected.  When they see this, they follow.

Antrel Rolle put it simply last season:  Manning doesn’t always get up in front of his team to speak, but when he does, they listen.

It’s that time of year again! On April 26th we will all be witnesses to the 2012 NFL Draft. After being Super Bowl victors, the New York Giants will have the last pick in the first round.

The last few seasons the Giants had desperately needed to draft a linebacker. This time around, I don’t believe it is a big need. There are four positions that need players this time: Tight end, running back, offensive linemen, and defensive back.
At the end of the 2011-2012 season the Giants lost two of their tight ends in Jake Ballard and Travis Beckum, both to ACL tears. They’ll most likely be out for most, if not all of next season. The only healthy tight end that the Giants are able to rely on right now is Bear Pascoe. They need some help there.

If they can draft a young tight end with fresh legs then it might help that position in speed. There will be plenty of TE’s to draft this year. Coby Fleener of Stanford will most likely be the Giants’ choice if they decide to draft this position first.
The Giants released running back Brandon Jacobs. That leaves Ahmad Bradshaw as the only running back left on the roster. The Giants used DJ Ware for some rushing yards when Jacobs and Bradshaw were nursing injuries, but Ware isn’t an efficient or trained RB. It’s time to look to the draft for a new set of power. It’s going to be hard to find a RB by the time the Giants’ turn comes up in the first round.  Most of the worthy first round picks will be taken by then.  A RB will most likely be drafted in the later rounds.
Last season really opened up the vulnerability in the offensive line. It’s not very hard to figure out that they are weak there given the fact that Eli Manning was sacked 4-5 times per game. Luckily for the Giants, Manning is tough and hasn’t been injured because of it. However, he can’t contine to take all of those sacks every week. David Baas is injured every other week which doesn’t help either.

I don’t care what position is drafted. Whatever will provide Manning a little more protection is a step in the right direction. Some choices that could be available in the first round are Mike Adams (OT, Ohio State), and Amini Silatolu (OG, Midwestern State).
Defensive backs were an issue before the beginning of last season, and the loss of Terrell Thomas to an ACL tear was no help. Thomas is healthy and resigned with the team, but it is still important that the Giants look for a new and young corner, especially after losing Aaron Ross to the Jacksonville Jaguars this week.

This is probably the weakest position for the Giants right now. Antrel Rolle stepped it up last season and they’ll have a healthy Prince Amukamara, but they and Thomas can’t do it all. They need help.

And hey, if the Giants do decide to draft that defensive linemen they no longer need, the best available player would most likely be Dont’a Hightower from Alabama. With guys like Justin Tuck, Jason Pierre-Paul, and Osi Umenyiora a defensive lineman is not, or at least shouldn’t be, a priority right now. A corner is much more needed in defense.

As always, who knows which player or what position the Giants decide to draft first.  We could be completely surprised.  We’ll just have to wait and see…