Giants grades
New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz smiles from the bench during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game against New York Jets. (Dec. 24, 2011) Credit: AP
OFFENSE: C
For a while, it looked as though the Giants would try to win the game on the strength of one play. Granted, it was a 99-yard play, but they clearly needed more. Early in the third quarter, they had run the ball nine times for only 8 yards. Eventually they found a little spark and started carving paths for Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw. They finished with 96 combined rushing yards; a 17-yard run by D.J. Ware put them over 100 for the game. Eli Manning was 9-for-27 for 225 yards, an interception and a touchdown with a passer rating of 61.5. Not exactly the MVP Eli performances we've seen. The Giants scored touchdowns on two of their four red-zone visits and converted 4 of 15 third downs.
DEFENSE: B-PLUS
Finally they showed up. It wasn't perfect, but it was the kind of effort Giants fans have been pining for. They stopped the run, holding Shonn Greene to 58 yards on 14 carries, and limited Sanchez to 258 passing yards, a number surprisingly low considering he hoisted 59 attempts against them. They also sacked Sanchez five times and intercepted him twice. They probably should have had three other turnovers that were overturned by replay, including one that initially was ruled a fumble return for a touchdown by Aaron Ross, and also had at least two dropped interceptions. The Giants improved mightily on third downs -- the Jets were 4-for-21; the most recent five Giants opponents each had been over 50 percent -- but converted all three of their fourth-down attempts, two of them on costly penalties.
SPECIAL TEAMS: B
Steve Weatherford had two punts inside the 20 and had a net of 35.2. The former Jet had to punt nine times. The coverage wasn't always perfect, but it was good enough to pin the Jets at the 8 and set up Chris Canty's safety. The Giants got nothing out of their punt-return game, but Jerrel Jernigan looked comfortable on kickoff returns and had a 31-yarder. Lawrence Tynes connected on field goals of 21 and 36 yards. They probably don't practice it all the time, but they looked confused on the onside free kick after the safety and Henry Hynoski nearly gave the ball back to the Jets when it clanked off him and was alive for a moment. Fortunately for the Giants, it rolled out of bounds.
COACHING: B
Does this get chalked up as a win for the "talk is cheap, play the game" philosophy? The Giants had a strong week of practice, perhaps their finest, and it paid off. Tom Coughlin also had a heart-to-heart with Justin Tuck that apparently played a part in inspiring the defensive captain to ignore his injuries and focus on the positives. Perry Fewell dialed up some good pressures and seemed to have defenders in the right places even though they didn't always make the plays (see all of those dropped interceptions). Kevin Gilbride might have been run out of town had the Eli Manning interception cost the Giants the game. Turns out it was an audible, but still.
