New York Football Giants: Can They Repeat After All of Their Off-season Additions and Subtractions?

The New York Giants are coming off one the most improbable and historic Super Bowl wins in the history of the NFL. After squeaking into the playoffs with a ten and six record very few experts gave them any chance to go very far, never mind achieve the impossible and knock off the undefeated New England Patriots. 

With that incredible season behind them, there are a lot of questions surrounding this team as many personnel changes have taken place. The question is with all of these changes, what’s it going to take to get back to that level of play and repeat with another Super Bowl appearance? 

Here is a look at the additions and subtractions on both offense and defense. The hope is that everything adds up to another road to the Super Bowl.

Quarterback

Eli needs to be the Eli we saw at the end of last season, starting with the last few regular season games, going all through the play-offs and the Super Bowl. He shut up a lot of critics over the course of these games, which included: an awesome performance in the last game of the season; road play-off victories at Tampa Bay, Dallas and Green Bay; one of the most miraculous plays in Super Bowl history (David Tyree’s helmet catch on the winning drive late in the fourth quarter); and climaxed with the Super Bowl MVP award.

The bar has been raised as Eli has flat out pushed his game to another level. He has potentially propelled himself into the upper echelon of quarterbacks in the league. Now he has to prove he can do it over the long haul. Great performances now need to be the norm and not the exception. Anything less would be unacceptable. With a phenomenal championship season under his belt and his confidence at a career high, the best of Eli may be yet to come. If it is, then this is unquestionably a huge plus for this season.

Offensive Line

By the end of last season, the unit comprised of center, Sean O’Hara, guards Rich Seubert, and Chris Snee, and tackles David Diehl and Kareem McKenzie, blossomed into one of the most efficient and effective offensive lines in the league. Their ability to blow open holes for the running game and to consistently protect Eli was one of the unheralded ingredients to their championship run.

The one critical factor that helps offensive lines continually improve and become cohesive, is time played together as a full unit. This will be their second consecutive season together. With one very successful campaign under their belt, the expectation is they will be even better. This should be another huge plus for the offense.

Tight End

The subtraction of Jeremy Shockey has to be one of the biggest blows of the off-season. No one can ever doubt his talent as one of the top tight ends in all of football. No one could question his passion for the game, and desire to perform well and win. But, he carried with him a very selfish and volatile personality. Like a ticking time bomb, it was inevitable that at some point something would go wrong, and it did.

We will probably never know the true story, but let’s concede that the answer usually lies some where in between. What we do know is sometime between the time he suffered his season-ending broken leg and the end of the Super Bowl, something went drastically awry and drove a wedge between his relationship with the organization.

Management claimed that Shockey was being too sensitive, too emotional and unprofessional about trivial things. Shockey claimed the Giants showed him a lack of respect both on and off the field, starting with rumors that they did not want him on the sidelines during the Super Bowl. There was also other chatter that they proved they could win without him. The fact is they did prove that they could win without him. So, if that is what was bothering him, he for sure let his ego get in the way of his professionalism.

By the time the college draft rolled around in April, the relationship became almost completely severed, as Shockey demanded a trade. The Giants held off on pulling the trigger simply because they still wanted him, and who could blame them. But, that show of good faith did not change Shockey’s attitude as he continued to show his dismay during off-season workouts and training camps. The situation began to negatively impact the team and General Manager Jerry Reese stepped in. He realized that Shockey’s behavior and attitude would be cancerous to the defending Super Bowl Champions. So, he granted him his wish and traded him to the New Orleans Saints. Even though they will miss his talents on the field, the potential negative impact he could have had on the team is a wash.

Replacing him will be second year man Kevin Boss. Kevin proved he does have the ability to make big plays, as he did throughout the end of the season and in the Super Bowl. He helped confirm that they can win with him in the starting role vs. Shockey. The only questions that remain are his ability to perform over the long haul and his ability to block well. As much as Shockey did not like the role of a blocker, he was damned good at it and played a key part in establishing the Giants running game. The hunch here is that Boss will make it a point to improve as much as possible.

In the end, this is a wash as the positives of losing a bad attitude and already winning without Shockey, completely wash out the negative of losing his performance on the field.

Running Backs

The three headed monster of Brandon Jacobs (1,009 yards & 4 TD’s), Ahmad Bradshaw (190 carries and 1 TD) and Derrick Ward (602 yards & 3 TD), is like no other in the league. Either of these backs could be starters on many NFL teams.

Brandon will once again carry the majority of the workload. But, Bradshaw as he proved late last season, adds a much-needed new dimension to the offense. His speed and ability to break tackles, compliments Jacobs well as they once again provide a Thunder and Lightening running attack.

Derrick Ward is the perfect back for either Jacobs or Bradshaw. He can effectively run inside the tackles and get to the outside when needed. His six hundred plus yards in limited action last season proved that.  

The only question is health. But to be honest, even if one of these guys goes down, it probably won’t matter because all three are that talented.

Let’s not forget the stellar blocking of full back Madison Hedgecock. Without his bulky two hundred and sixty-six pound body leading the way, the yards would be much tougher to come by.

This unit has the ability to gain over two thousand yards on the ground. As long as they can match last year’s performance the Giants will be in good shape. There are no additions or subtractions here, just a need for them to stay healthy.

Receivers

Plaxico Burress returns as the bonafide number one go-to-guy and perhaps the unheralded MVP. Over the past few years he has helped to completely change the face of the offense. Unfortunately, he still may not be one-hundred-percent physically, but he claims he will be ready to roll.

Amani Toomer comes back for his twelfth season as the number two-man, and does so as the all-time Giants receiver, an honor he achieved last season.

Closing in on him are the returning Steven Smith, Sinorice Moss and this year’s second round draft choice Mario Manningham. This corps can only get better which is bad news for defenses. If all of these guys remain healthy there could very well be too many weapons for defenses to stop. This unit has the potential of being another huge addition to an already successful offense.

Offense Overall

From the looks of things, the offense is a plus three over last year, even with the loss of Jeremy Shockey. They have an improved Eli, a returning and improving, cohesive offensive line, and a much-improved receiving corps. On offense, the Giants should be better than last year.

Defensive Line

The retirement of Michael Strahan should not have been a surprise to anyone, after almost calling it quits last year. The Giants have been preparing for this for three years now, starting with the emergence of Osi Umenyiora a few years ago and then Justin Tuck last season.

The facet of Strahan’s game, which will be the most difficult to replace, is his leadership. This could be a huge subtraction for this team. Michael was without a doubt the leader of not only the defense but the entire team. He led by example and with his vocal prowess. He commanded respect and got it. He earned his stripes becoming one of the greatest Giant defenders of all-time and one of the best defensive ends in NFL history.

The Giant most players will look to fill this role, especially on defense, will be Antonio Pierce. He has been a quiet leader of this team for the past three seasons. Now he will have to be more vocal. No one can really replace Strahan, but someone has to step up and lead the way. Being the middle linebacker and defensive captain, Antonio should easily transition into this role. But, the question remains can he?

Without a doubt the most devastating blow to the team is the recent, unexpected loss of Osi Umenyiora for the entire season. A perennial pro-bowler with thirty-three and a half sacks over the last three seasons, including a Giants record of six in one game against the Eagles, the Giants were looking for him to step up to another level in replacing the physical presence and performance of Strahan. That is no longer a possibility.

The loss of Strahan’s leadership and Umenyiora’s talent is a double subtraction for the Giants. It’s hard enough replacing one pro-bowler, but two is nearly impossible.

The weight of the world is on Justin Tuck and Mathias Kiwanuka. Justin was slotted to take Strahan’s starting spot and most expect him to do it well as he truly began to blossom last year. But, now Kiwanuka has been switched from outside linebacker, back to his original position of defensive end to replace Osi. The question here is can he admirably fill in for his fallen comrade? If he can, he could very well turn around the loss of Umenyiora. If not, the Giants could really be in trouble on the defensive line.

Linebackers

Antonio Pierce in the middle is a stud. There is no question about that. There may be other middle linebackers with a more physical presence, but he is among the best middle linebackers in the game. The question here is where do they go from here?

Moving Mathias Kiwanuka from outside linebacker to defensive end to replace Osi is a first critical loss for this unit. They also lost Kawika Mitchell to free agency, so that is a second subtraction. This means two-thirds of last year’s starting three linebackers are now gone.

The subtraction of Mitchell brought the addition of free agent outside linebacker Danny Clark, who has been a solid player for eight seasons, most recently with the Houston Texans. He will start on one side of Antonio Pierce.

The big problem is who replaces Kiwanuka? The man in the spotlight is third year linebacker Gerris Wilkinson. Gerris does have some starting experience as he helped fill in for Kiwanuka last year after Mathias broke his leg. Giving the unit depth is four-year veteran Chase Blackburn, second year man Zak De Ossie and this year’s fourth round draft choice Brian Kehl.

If no can step up to Kiwanuka’s level, this is yet another huge loss for the Giants.

Secondary

One of the Giants top defensive backs from the past three seasons, Gibril Wilson, has departed via the free agency, creating a potential huge hole in the secondary. However, the Giants organization has been hard at work for over three years to improve and stabilize what has been their weakest link during that time.

The subtraction of Wilson brought in quite a few additions. First, the Giants signed twelve-year veteran Sammy Knight (formally of the Jaguars and Chiefs) and his forty-two career interceptions. Next they drafted highly touted cornerback Kenny Philips of Miami (FL) in the first round. Then, a few rounds later they took cornerback Terrell Thomas of USC.

These three critical additions, combined with second year rising star Aaron Ross, the leadership of Sam Madison and other key contributors like James Butler, Kevin Dockery, Michael Johnson, R.W. McQuarters, Geoffrey Pope and Corey Webster puts the defensive backs in a position to be drastically better than last year. The secondary took a huge step up a year ago and the expectation is they will continue to improve. This is a very big addition to a unit that was in the bottom tier of the league just a few short years ago.

Defense Overall

The losses of Strahan and Umenyiora are absolutely huge in both on field performance and leadership. The moves made to fill those gaping holes wound up negatively impacting the linebacker corps. So it’s almost like a triple subtraction.

However, there is huge potential for success in the secondary. Their improvements could help minimize the decrease in talent and leadership on the defensive line.

In the end, the defense will probably not be as good as last year, with the loss of both Strahan and Umenyiora being too much to bear.

Three Keys to Repeating

1. Eli needs to be as good if not better than he was at the end of last year, and the entire offense needs to be flat out better. They must be more productive and more consistent taking pressure and playing time away from the defense. Time of possession is key. The longer they have the ball, the less time a weakened defensive unit needs to be on the field.
2. Defensive Coordinator John Spagnuola will need to devise yet another scheme to get the most out of his two new defensive ends and his two new outside linebackers. Last year he masterminded a new successful system that the players brought into and ran with all the way to the Lombardi Trophy. He will have to do it again this year. 
3. If Justin Tuck, Mathias Kiwanuka and a new linebacker unit can make up for the loss of Strahan and Umenyiora, this team can once again go a long way in the play-offs.

Conclusion and Prediction

Regardless of all the negatives, this team has completely jelled as a unit and has stuck together, especially since the departure of Jeremy Shockey.

They are still a very talented, well-coached, and well-run team.

You cannot put a value on what kind of positive effect last year’s success has had on their psyche. Their confidence is sky high and rightly so.

They have made some key additions to balance out the losses and to improve in critical areas that needed help.

They once again have very few believers, as most experts do not think they will be as good as last year. This is a role they love and seem to thrive in.

With that said, the Giants should improve on last year’s 10-6 record to at least 11-5. As far as getting back to the Super Bowl, the prediction here is the Giants make it back to the NFC Championship Game. There are just too many open questions to take it any further than that. However, if the additions override the subtractions, they do have the potential to win a second straight Super Bowl.