The season effectively ended for the Giants with three games left on the docket after the Giants mailed in a desultory effort against the much sharper and driven Chargers. Due to respective Eagles and Cardinals victories, every conceivable scenario involving the Giants was exhausted, leaving the Giants in the ultimate must-win situation today to have a sliver of a possibility of January football. I really would understand if fellow Giants fans just skip the recap because, really, ugh.
A Microcosm of the Season All Wrapped in One Game: Tipped-ball interceptions. Perfectly-thrown interceptions. Fumbles. Dropped balls. Bone-headed penalties. The constant ineffectiveness of the offensive line, no doubt clearly being attributed to Will Beatty’s strong mental makeup. We saw all of the bad stuff today. And, oh yeah, shotgun draws on third-and-long. Stop that, Gilbride. I could pretty much stop it right here and you’d likely get the gist of a team that appeared ready to back up the U-Hauls.
The Eli vs. Phil Angle was Again One-Sided: In what could be the final meeting between the two former trade pieces, Philip Rivers was once again sharp even though he gave the Giants a pulse on a strip-sack fumble by Cullen Jenkins. But aside from that little blip, Rivers cruised while Manning’s vexing season continued. Eli will always have the trump card with the two rings, but he fell to 0-3 to the Chargers in his career, much to the not-at-all hidden delight of the Charger faithful.
This Team will have a Decidedly Different Look Next Year: Nicks is working his way back into the Giants price-range with every drop, but it seems like both sides are looking to say their goodbyes. Mathias Kiwanuka is no sure thing to re-sign. Antrel Rolle carries a hefty cap number when the Giants are already up against it. A litany of players are playing under one-year deals. I’m driving the extend Beason bus. And then there is Justin Tuck, who is heating up at the perfect time with another sack today, giving him five in the last two games.
But the big change could still involve the coaching staff. I still wouldn’t rule out Tom Coughlin stepping aside; especially if son-in-law and offensive-line Iron Horse Chris Snee goes elsewhere or retires.
Up Next: A likely angry Seahawks team will be looking to get on track and the Giants can only hope to play something of a spoiler for Seattle’s final seeding. But as we’ve seen in the past, when there’s nothing to play for, the Giants have a tendency to capitulate the rest of the way. The only thing we know about this year’s version of the Giants is that you never know which team will show up.
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