Giants Team Report

INSIDE SLANT

A win is a win, but no one on the Giants’ defense is pretending to believe that the season-long problems that have plagued their performance have suddenly disappeared now that the team’s four-game losing streak is over.

The problems on defense, which continued in the Atlanta game, have been a mixed bag, from guys who were simply beaten despite being in the right position to guys who were the victim of a miscommunication.

“We’re playing great defense, but you have to play consistently throughout the game, and we’re not doing that,” cornerback Terrell Thomas(notes) said.

Coach Tom Coughlin was asked if he thought the defensive problems were more a result of the schemes not fitting the talent or if it were the players not executing the schemes.

“I don’t know if you can separate that,” Coughlin said. “Scheme, yes, but within the scheme you would hope there is a comfort level where the player is in position to be able to make some plays from his alignment spot.”

According to Thomas, the defense hasn’t been pressing to make plays to the point where it’s overlooking smaller details.

Rather, the problem has simply been a matter of finishing what they start on each play.

“We have to win our one-on-one matchups, and we have to execute the scheme in the defense, and we’re not doing that as a team,” Thomas said. “A lot of times, the pressure is there, and then they make the throw and whoever is supposed to be covering the receiver gets beat. Once we start finishing those plays and getting back on the same track, I think we’ll be fine.”

With the playoffs still very much in reach, the New York defense knows that it needs to expedite the house-cleaning process, especially since after the team returns from Denver, it’ll begin a three-week string against NFC East opponents, Dallas, Philadelphia and Washington.

“It’s that time of the year when you have to be playing your best football,” cornerback Corey Webster(notes) said. “We got most of (the problems) corrected coming off our four-game losing streak, so hopefully we can use that to keep things going in the right direction.”

“I think we’re getting closer to our goals,” Thomas said. “We’re getting a lot better in certain areas, but we still have a lot of improvement in other areas still to go. I think we’ll get there though.”

Series History:   10th regular-season meeting. Giants lead series 5-4, and are 1-0 against Denver in postseason play. The most historic meeting between these teams was in Super Bowl XXI, when QB Phil Simms completed 22 of 25 passes (88 percent) for 268 yards and three touchdowns as he led New York to a 39-20 victory over the favored Broncos. In their last four meetings dating back to 1992, the home team has emerged victorious. This is the Giants’ first visit to Denver since the 2001 season opener, a game that the Broncos won 31-20.

NOTES, QUOTES

—The Giants have confirmed they will be without the services of running back Ahmad Bradshaw(notes) in their game against the Denver Broncos on Thanksgiving night.

Bradshaw, who didn’t accompany the team on its trip, has been playing most of the season with a right foot injury consisting of a sore ankle and a cracked bone in his fifth metatarsal (pinkie toe).

He has worn a protective walking boot in the days following games and has been on a modified practice schedule in which he usually doesn’t practice on Wednesday and Thursday, but takes limited reps with the team on Friday and during its Saturday walkthrough.

Against Atlanta, Bradshaw added a high ankle sprain in his left foot, an injury also requiring a protective walking boot. Bradshaw, who didn’t practice with the team on Monday or Tuesday as it prepared for its game against Denver, was seen on crutches before the Tuesday practice.

Bradshaw has rushed 115 times for 549 yards and four touchdowns and has averaged 4.8 yards per carry. He will be replaced in the rotation by third-year pro Danny Ware(notes).

Ware, who missed five games with a dislocated elbow suffered on the Giants’ opening kickoff in Week 1, returned to action against Arizona but did not have any touches on offense. Ware’s first carries of the year came two weeks later, against San Diego, when he finished with two rushes for nine yards.

Last week against Atlanta, Ware also had two carries out of the third-down shotgun package, rushing for 15 yards total, including a big 13-yard second quarter run that set up an Eli Manning(notes) four-yard touchdown pass to TE Kevin Boss(notes). Ware is averaging 6.0 yards per carry thus far in 2009.

• Cornerback D.J. Johnson(notes), whom the Giants signed from the Broncos’ practice squad on Nov. 11, has been busy sharing everything he knows about his former team with his current coaches and teammates.

“It’s to be expected,” he said of the questions his teammates and coaches have asked. “They didn’t have to corner me into it. I’m going to volunteer it—after all, they pay my checks now.”

So what has Johnson been able to share with his new team?

“All I’ve really been doing is watching film and trying to give them my best analysis of what the corners and secondary are doing,” he said. “If you can figure out what they’re doing just by watching film, you’ll know how to run your routes and design your concepts against it.”

One current teammate who hopes to benefit from Johnson’s knowledge of the X’s and O’s is cornerback Corey Webster, who likely will face Brandon Marshall(notes).

“I’ve been picking everyone’s brains about those wide receivers,” Webster said. “You always try to get every little tip you can if it will help your game. We did that when the older guys where here, and we did that with D.J.”

Johnson also provided a bit of an insight into the state of the Denver locker room.

“It was a real fun atmosphere at the very beginning of the season,” he said. “The preseason wasn’t real fun when we were losing, but once we started winning and it got going, it was a fun atmosphere. Everyone enjoyed themselves.”

When Denver began losing, though, Johnson said that suddenly the bottom dropped out.

“After one loss, the atmosphere kind of changed, and you could have sworn that they were on a 1-15 team. It’s probably most likely the same way (now).”

By The Numbers:   119—Points the Giants have scored off their opponents’ turnovers.

Quote To Note:   “I eat every day; I am not worried about necessarily eating on Thanksgiving Day. Hopefully I get to eat some quarterbacks.”—DE Justin Tuck(notes), when asked if he was going to have time to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal on Thursday.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

The Broncos have lost their last four games after starting 6-0. They are extremely angry and ready to take their frustrations out on the Giants, who are riding high after their dramatic, 34-31 overtime win against Atlanta.

While both teams are in the same boat as far as having a short workweek, Denver has several advantages going into Thursday’s prime-time matchup. For starters, they don’t have to fly nearly across the country as the Giants do. Also, they’re already accustomed to the higher altitude.

Despite the challenges, the Giants aren’t worried. Tom Coughlin, who has never had to coach a football game on such a short turnaround, developed a condensed practice and meeting schedule designed to get his players the necessary mental and physical reps to be competitive. The players, meanwhile, have wasted little time in doing their part in studying film, being extra attentive during classroom sessions, and following through on every practice rep they’re given.

“We can do it,” quarterback Eli Manning said of the challenges posed by the shortened workweek. “It something that guys have to take it upon themselves to look at the game plan, look at Denver’s defense and see things. We are going to have to talk a lot, get a lot of reps through walkthroughs and take a lot of mental reps so that come game day we are on the same page on Thursday.”

Player Notes  

• K Lawrence Tynes(notes) recorded a career-high four field goals against Denver when he was a member of the Chiefs in a game played on Thanksgiving 2006 (Nov. 23).

• RG Rich Seubert(notes) is the only player left from the 2001 Giants team that helped christen INVESCO Field at Mile High on September 10, 2001, in a 31-20 loss.

• WR Domenik Hixon(notes) was originally drafted by Denver in the fourth round of the 2006 draft, but after a shaky start to his pro career, the Broncos waived him and the Giants picked him up on Oct. 3, 2007. Hixon, who still owns a home in the Denver area, said he’s looking forward to returning to the place where his NFL career got stated. “If your employer lets you go and you get hired by someone else that you were competing against, would it mean more to you?”

• LB Michael Boley(notes) was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week. Against Atlanta, his former team, Boley recorded a team-high 13 tackles (11 solo), one sack, two tackles for losses and two quarterback hits.

• RB Gartrell Johnson(notes), whom the Giants acquired off waivers from San Diego on September 15, is expected to be active for the Denver game with Ahmad Bradshaw sidelined.

• QB Eli Manning, who has been listed on the Giants’ injury report with a foot injury, was listed as probable.

• LB Antonio Pierce(notes), who remains sidelined indefinitely with a bulging disc in his neck, sought a second opinion on his injury from Dr. Robert Watkins, a noted spinal surgeon based just outside of Los Angeles. It was not immediately known if Pierce, who was very active in coaching and encouraging his defensive teammates last week on the Giants’ sideline, planned to join his teammates in Denver for their Thanksgiving night matchup against the Broncos.

• RB Brandon Jacobs(notes) remains in search of his first 100-yard rushing performance not only this season, but also in more than a year. Jacobs last rushed for at least 100 yards (22 carries for 126 yards and two touchdowns) on November 9, 2008 at Philadelphia, a game the Giants won 36-31. In 2009, his single game best so far came against Kansas City, when he rushed for 92 yards on 21 carries (4.4 yards per carry). The previous week against Tampa, Jacobs also rushed for 92 yards on 26 carries, averaging 3.5 yards per carry.

• OL Adam Koets(notes), a former sixth round draft pick from 2007, is the only remember of the current 53-man roster that has yet to be active for any regular-season game this season. Koets was projected to be the backup center behind starter Shaun O’Hara(notes) as well as a reserve at guard.

Game Plan:   For all the talk involving the Giants defense and its inability to finish games, it should be noted that the offense remains far from satisfied with its performance of late.

“No, not quite yet,” said RB Brandon Jacobs when asked if the offense’s problems are completely fixed. “We still could be playing a little better. Throughout our six wins, we still haven’t played as good as we can play. We could be a tad bit better, and we’re going to have to be going against a very good Denver team.”

Among the problems that the players can fix with a little more attention to detail and focus, Jacobs said, are the drive-killing mistakes that either end a potential scoring drive or force the team to settle for a field goal.

“We just need to stop having the penalties and stop shooting ourselves in the foot,” said Jacobs. “Our first drive last week was going really well, and then we had a few penalties and had to come from behind to get a first down, and it delayed our drive a little bit in having to go on back to get the same 10 yards that we already got instead of getting 10 more new yards.”

It’s certainly a valid concern considering that in their first five games, New York scored 151 points. In their last five games, that total has dropped to 115 points.

The good news is that Denver, which gave up only 43 points in its first five games, has since given up 140 points. If the Giants can take advantage of what Denver gives them, they will be closer to accomplishing their goal of posting a complete game on offense.

Matchups To Watch:   Giants LT David Diehl(notes) vs. Broncos LB Elvis Dumervil(notes), the NFL’s sack leader. Dumervil, a former defensive end who was moved to outside linebacker this year in defensive coordinator Mike Nolan’s 3-4 defense, has recorded eight of his 12 sacks in Denver’s last four games. He’s on the same pace that former Giants DE Michael Strahan(notes) was on when he set the single-season record with 22.5 in 2001. Diehl, meanwhile, has held up well as the blindside protector. He has given up just one sack against a 3-4 defense this season. Diehl, who struggled a bit in last week’s game against Atlanta, is probably going to get some chip blocking help if Dumervil proves to be too much of a handful early on.

Giants WR Steve Smith vs. Broncos CB Champ Bailey(notes). Smith remains in the top five league-wide in receptions and receiving yards. Last week against Atlanta, he averaged 19.8 yards per reception after averaging just 7.8 yards in his previous two games. Bailey, who is one of the league’s top corners, rarely allows opposing receivers to rack up yards against him. Through 10 games, he has only allowed one touchdown pass.

Giants CB Corey Webster vs. Broncos WR Brandon Marshall. Webster broke out of his mini slump last week against Atlanta with a whopping five passes defensed, four of which came against the Falcons’ top receiver, Roddy White(notes). In Marshall, he’ll face an opponent who, thanks to his long stride, is able to gain separation against defenders. Last week, Marshall was limited to just three catches for 26 yards against San Diego, but he was limited by a sore back. Before that, he had posted 125 yards after the catch in his previous three games. Marshall was not on Denver’s injury report this week, so he’s expected to be at full speed against Webster.

Injury Impact:   RB Ahmad Bradshaw (foot), who has been wearing a boot on his right foot for most of the season, suffered a new injury in the Giants’ victory over Atlanta, this one to his left ankle. Bradshaw, who didn’t practice Monday or Tuesday, was seen on crutches. “After the game, we thought it was just an ankle sprain, but evidentially it’s more severe than that, so he’s in a boot,” coach Tom Coughlin said. If Bradshaw can’t play Thursday, third-year man Danny Ware, who last week did well in his limited snaps as part of the third-down package, will take his reps, while rookie Gartrell Johnson, who has been inactive since Ware’s return, likely would be activated.

LB Antonio Pierce (neck) remains out indefinitely. Coughlin said that he’s hoping to have Pierce back before the end of the season.