An Off-season to Forget for the New York Giants

What makes this league so great is the cycles. Yes there are dynasties, but winning back to back Superbowls is one of the hardest feats in sport. Since the Giants won the big game, they've slowly become overconfident and complacent and have suffered one of their worst offseasons that I can remember. This offseason was paintful and certainly the worst in my memories of the game. As of fan of the game for over 20 years, I had experience nothing but pure passion and fond memories of the NFL. The lockout didn't serve any team particularly well if at all, but most were able to rely on strong draft picks and solid free agent signings to carry them through training camps and the preseason. The lockout was like an old ex-girfriend who was hooking up with someone you knew. You wanted to know as much as you could about the progress of the negotiations while at the same time you were tired of hearing about it. Everyday there was something knew to report on ESPN, but when it came down to it you just wanted to know when it was going to end.

Once the deal was in place, It was clear this off-season would define the Giants this year and years to come. They quickly cut ties with Superbowl offensive line pillars in Rich Suebert and Shaun O'Hara. Granted age and injury were a factor but it was sad to see the loyal dogs off leash. They resigned Kevin Boothe and Coughlins son-in-law Chris Snee was still in the picture. The other key offensive departures were Eli Manning's security blanket and teddy bear in Steve Smith and Kevin Boss. It was clear at this point that the offense would not be the same. Mario Manningham, Hakeem Nicks and re-signed RB Bradshaw will have to carry the load and catch balls for what current players consider a not-top-100 player in Eli Manning. On the other side of the ball the G-Men are plagued by injury and controversey. First round Draft Pick Prince Amukamara has just recently taken off his walking boot while defensive ends Osi Umenyoira and Justin Tuck are sidelined. Probably the greatest hit to the once unflappable and shutdown Steve Spagnuolo defense was the season ending injury to defensive back Terrell Thomas to a torn ACL. These gaping holes were on display for all to see Sunday when Rex Grossman and the Redskins walked into the Meadowlands and had a clinic.

In week 11 the G-Men will host the Philadelphia Eagles in just their third division game. Between then and now they will face; STL, PHI, ARZ, SEA, BUF, MIA, NE, SF. In any other year I would say they will go 6-2 over this stretch with losses to only NE and PHI putting them at 6-3 heading into division play on a roll. This time around they'll be fighting a much tougher battle which may lead to the departure of Tom Coughlin when all is said and done. The Giants have a lot of work to do this season if they don't want to wind up looking up at the rest of the division.