Giants' 'D' more comfortable with Fewell

The Giants were ranked seventh in the league on defense last year and led the NFL in takeaways. Not bad for a bunch of guys who apparently had no idea what they were doing.

This year, in its second season under coordinator Perry Fewell, the Giants defense is expecting even more production.

"Last year there was a lot of mental gymnastics going on out there," safety Antrel Rolle said of his first season in New York and the team's first under Fewell. "I consider myself a smart guy when it comes to football. Obviously, it wasn't easy for me."

It helps, too, that most of the players are back. The Giants even added third safety Deon Grant earlier this week. Not one player on the projected first unit of the Giants' defensive depth chart was not with the team in some capacity in 2010. Drafted rookies Tyler Sash and Marvin Austin are the only new Giants on the second string.

"He knows how to use his personnel," linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka said. "Perry is going to put people in a position to make plays."

Kiwanuka is one of the guys who caught on pretty quickly last year. He had four sacks in three games before a bulging disc in his neck cost him the rest of his season. He's back at linebacker this year -- wearing a protective roll on the back of his shoulder pads to help support his neck -- and hopes he and the rest of the Giants can pick up where they left off.

"The thing that puts us in the best position is having Perry," Kiwanuka said. "He's going to call the right numbers at the right time as we live up to our potential to be a dominating defense."

Rolle agreed, noting that the confusion that sometimes set in last season shouldn't be an issue in Year Two under Fewell.

"There was a lot of communication," Rolle said. "It took a lot of study time, a lot of shifts and motions and adjustments. You always had to think on the go and you had to do a lot of thinking. It wasn't just a one-assignment technique. I think it's definitely going to be a better unit."