Speeches seem to light fire under Giants
Tom Coughlin doesn't think the fiery halftime speeches by Justin Tuck (above) and Osi Umenyiora were anything out of the ordinary. (Sept. 21, 2010) Credit: David Pokress
Tom Coughlin doesn't know what the big deal was about Sunday's halftime speeches from Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck. "We've had that on numerous occasions," he said Monday. "I'm not sure why it's being so heavily publicized now."
Well, the difference is that this time they worked. The Giants came out for the second half a changed team and earned a 24-20 comeback win over the Jaguars that could wind up being a season-saver.
It's not the first time this year that oratory has propelled the Giants to great heights, that words led to deeds. In Week 4, after the Giants had lost two games in a row and their season seemed to be slipping away, former linebacker and current assistant coach Jessie Armstead spoke to the team during a Saturday night meeting. The Giants beat the Bears the next day, beginning a five-game winning streak.
Can the words of Umenyiora and Tuck drive the Giants through the end of the season?
"We hope so," linebacker Michael Boley said. "We hope that we don't need a speech to get us going. Obviously, we hope we can keep things on the right track and not need someone to step up and say something just to get us going."
Giant steps
Coughlin said "you have to admire" the efforts of WR Michael Clayton, who joined the Giants on Wednesday and played Sunday . . . Eli Manning said he spoke with RB Ahmad Bradshaw about his demotion to second-stringer and reminded him that some of the best games in his career have come from that role. Coughlin sounded as if Brandon Jacobs will be the starter against the Redskins . . . CB Brian Jackson broke a bone in his hand and will play in a splint.
