The Giants rallied around their underdog status last year. They wanted to prove they could win for their embattled coach and QB, that he NFC didn't belong to the Cowboys and and that Patriots weren't unbeatable.
Now all of that motivation is gone. Why are they going to bleed for Tom Coughlin? The Giants were never talented enough to just blow teams away. They're going to be in a battle almost every week. Do they have the inspiration to come out on top against hungry teams on a consistent basis?
New York showed just how thin the line is between winning and losing in last year's playoffs. If that ball hadn't magically stuck to David Tyree's head, tonight's NFL season-opener game would be in Foxboro. The Giants couldn't afford any offseason hiccups if it hoped to defend its title. But they may have taken a couple of major steps backward, losing Osi Umenyiora and Michael Strahan. Their defensive line singlehandedly won games last year. Without Umenyiora's six-sack domination of the Eagles and Strahan's three-sack performance against the Lions, the Giants may not have even been in the playoffs. Defensive end Justin Tuck looks like an up-and-coming star, but that's against single coverage. Can he thrive as the primary guy?
Enter the Washington Redskins, who have been about as unimpressive as an NFL team can be in the preseason. They were outscored 71-6 in their two final preseason games. But to be fair, many of their best players were on the bench and new coach Jim Zorn undoubtedly held back a big chunk of the playbook. And of course, preseason under any circumstances is completely meaningless.
Even with the adjustment the Redskins have had to make to a new coach, they're still an NFC East team, and at the end of the day, is there really that big a difference between these four teams? On any given Thursday, any of them can surprise the other. In Week 15, just a few weeks before Manning magically transformed into a Super Bowl hero, the Redskins came into the Meadowlands and made him look like a high school quarterback (18-for-53, 184 yards) in a 22-10 win.
Washington enters the season with a lot more to prove than the Giants. Zorn was generally perceived to be a last-choice pick for head coach. Quarterback Jason Campbell doesn't get any respect and the only marquee name on defense is veteran Jason Taylor, who may not even play this week. The Redskins can take advantage of that us-against-the-world mentality that propelled New York to a championship. Don't be surprised if all the festivities and accolades around the Giants actually make Washington the more fired-up team tonight.
This year's Giants are reminiscent of the 2002 Patriots - coming off a miraculous upset win in the Super Bowl with a clutch quarterback and a solid, young nucleus. New England had an emotional letdown that year and missed the playoffs. Don't be surprised if the Giants get off to a slow start as they grow into their role as world champions.
Prediction: Washington 24, New York, 23 - The Redskins run and throw to Clinton Portis all night, letting their big offensive line mow down the suddenly susceptible Giants front seven.
Danica Patrck
Jessica Trainham
Mavs Dancers
College Football, Top 25 Review
Comments (16) Add A Comment
They are still the underdog, strill get no respect, please, please, please keep writing this stuff, it will help motivate that team. Giants 31, Washington 17
AllStarz
Total Comments (11611)
Andrew is right on. With the Giants' D-Line either in Greece or on IR, the table is set for a Clinton Portis feast. It's also the regular season again, so it's more likely "Bad Eli" will show up, as opposed to "Good Eli", his playoff doppelganger.
browniefan98
Martin , OH
Total Comments (193)
Have to go with the Skins here:
Washington 56, NY 3
McHale89
Houston , TX
Total Comments (1)
Please stop with all the NFC comparisons, the SB champs may get off on a slow start, but when it counts, the Offense will get the winning points.
num1giantfan
Medford , NJ
Total Comments (1)
Giants 26 Redskins 13
EOD
Castle Point, NY
Total Comments (6)
as usual, another stupid prediction from perloff...seriously, can he please get fired already so we can make way for some real writers?
thetinman77
Suffield , CT
Total Comments (2)
A qb with as many super bowl rings as Eli Manning is getting more attention in NY than the entire super bowl team.
Add that to the fact that many experts are picking the Giants to finish third in their division this year.
What are you talking about their underdog motivation is gone? I stopped reading after the first line because I could tell it wouldn't be worth reading. Their motivation is the same if not greater this season.
jadebaseball91
Pelham , NY
Total Comments (52)
I've said it about 30 times now. The Giants D-Line is as good as any in the league. Justin Tuck and Mathais Kiwanuka are two top tier DEs. Any writer who points out the Giants d-line as a weakness, I immediately stop reading their articles, because they don't know what they are talking about. Writers who point out the Giants LBs as their weakness are the good ones. This article is very dangerously borderline...
jadebaseball91
Pelham , NY
Total Comments (52)
The Rodney Dangerfield's of the NFC East will prove it again. It was no fluke, the defense is built on a system that will control the game. The offense will BIG PLAY the skins to death. 35-14 G-MEN
GBigPCB
Panama City Beach, FL
Total Comments (1)
You still work here?
URNZE
Total Comments (3656)
How can SI have this guy Perloff on staff? Two "what if" questions in paragraph 3. This is stuff high school reporters write. He must be a rookie or sour Patriots fan or someone that was made to look like a fool at a Giants/Coughlin press conference.
DrewAndrews
Jacksonville , FL
Total Comments (1)
as usual, perloff writes a dumbazz prediction that is totally completely wrong.
YngwieScruggs
Cleveland , OH
Total Comments (196)
Perloff formula for writing an article:
1. Headline must be eye-catchingly wrong.
2. Predictions must be wrong and totally out of left field.
3. Reasons for making said predictions are dubious at best, usually repetitive, and never without any merit--they usually involve fallacies or just pure unpredictable BS like "hangovers, rising to the occasion, having more to prove,"
4. At least one very strangely cherry-picked example which usually ends up contradicting his point--he says that the 02 Patriots had a let down. I wonder if he realizes that every single Super Bowl defending champion in the last 9 years has won their opener, and that's what we're talking about here. Besides, if you have to go back 6 years to draw any comparison, it's a bunch of junk to begin with. The teams are TOTALLY different also, but never mind that... they have a young quarterback, and everyone knows young quarterbacks who win the Super Bowl are flukey. It's not like Brett Favre or Tom Brady or Ben Roethlisberger ever had a good season after winning a championship. Logical reason for defending champions winning their openers--because injuries have not set in yet, and the team is really really good because they were good enough to win the Super Bowl with almost as good a team as they have now. It's not that hard, but it doesn't fit into the Perloff formula outlined above. Why use common sense and analyze sports when you can just spout off some BS prediction. This guy is almost as bad as Skip Bayless.
YngwieScruggs
Cleveland , OH
Total Comments (196)
WRONG.
The G-Men weren't world beaters tonight but they ran the ball well, Plaxico owned the Skins coverage and their defense shut down Jim Zorn's offense. I'm not picking them to win it all, but don't look past the Giants. They have a team out there.
Hwatney
Denver , CO
Total Comments (25)
wow, you got hosed on this prediction, perloff. can i have your job?
bygwyllay
Ypsilanti, MI
Total Comments (17)
ou hang out with too many talking heads and they convinced you that football can be quantified by individuals, players injured, this team has lost nothing in terms of team and will.
AllStarz
Total Comments (11611)
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