Letters to the Editor: November 28, 2012
Joe M. writes…
Two questions I ask your thoughts: 1/ I watched the Tampa Bay-Atlanta game and watched Doug Martin make plays the entire game (he was their only running back). Martin also missed a block resulting in his QB being sacked yet he wasn’t removed from the game but allowed to continue to play to his skill level. The reason for bringing this issue goes back to the draft when Tampa Bay moved one spot ahead of Giants to draft Martin which now makes the Giants look foolish.
Other than the Eli trade, the Giants are not aggressive in trading up which in this case was only one spot. Two players come to mind in the Giants process which were missed, Jonathan Ogden and Darrelle Revis. Teams generally are aware of possibilities on draft day and the Giants failed to consider the potential for this move.
2/ Michael Coe made the original roster and played in games. He was injured and placed on Injured Reserve. Now I see the Giants waived him. Please explain if he made the original roster and played in games (recalling he made a great defensive play at goal line in a game), why would he be released? Thank you.
Joe, I’ll start with your second question. Coe was placed on IR with a hamstring injury. My guess is he’s now healthy enough to play again and since he can’t return to the Giants, they released him so he can maybe catch on with another team for the rest of the year.
Now for your first question. PLEASE stop comparing Wilson to Martin. Two different players from two different backgrounds and in two different scenarios. The Giants didn’t “swing and miss” on Wilson, and to suggest otherwise right now is being short-sighted.
Let’s use some logic here. The Bucs are rebuilding this year so they have more of a pressing need to get Martin, who comes from a pro-style offense in college, on the field. The Giants are off a Super Bowl championship and have an established starter. Plus Wilson came from a college offense where all they asked him to do was run the ball.
Also, the Bucs offense is brand new – talk to me next year when the league has a year’s worth of film to evaluate on the Bucs and they figure out ways to slow Martin down.
You also cannot compare trading up for a franchise quarterback to a running back. The trade up for Eli was a no-brainer and has paid dividends ten times over. In the Giants’ case, they had Wilson in their cross-hairs.
Regarding Ogden, as I recall, the feeling was that the Ravens weren’t going to take him when they picked ahead of the Giants. I don’t recall what the scenario was with Revis, but you can’t sit there and say “what if” as you’ll drive yourself batty.
As I said to someone on Twitter this morning, this coaching staff has won two Super Bowls. Can we PLEASE give them the benefit of the doubt that they know what they’re doing as far as evaluating talent and when it’s ready to succeed and not sitting here thinking that they were made to look foolish by the Bucs?
David L. writes…
Wonderful job as usual covering my beloved Giants. There are a few things about the passing game that I do not understand. First, why has Gilbride stopped using Martellus Bennett? He used him a lot during the first month of the season but has basically left him out of the game plan since. Don’t think he has scored a TD since week 3, which was at the time 3 weeks in a row.
Second, what about Ramses Barden? He looked like he was ready to contribute and be the 3rd receiver. Has he been active since his concussion? They are in love with Reuben Randle, who does look like he has potential but I think Barden, as a bigger target and more experienced in the offense would be a better option for the 3rd receiver.
In your Hits, Misses and Musings, I think you left out the biggest hit…Osi finally came to play! When he has his motor going like that, he is unstoppable. I think I saw the stat that it was his 56th strip sack in his career. Amazing.
David, thanks for the compliment. As I said in HM&M, I can’t list the entire rundown so I pick out just a few that really stood out one way or another. As for Barden, based on what I have heard, he continues to have lapses in his consistency and with him heading for free agency after this year, it looks as though they might hitch their wagon on Randle as the future permanent third wide out for next year.
Bill A. writes…
It is sad to see André Brown go down with another injury after proving he is an NFL player. His career is 4 years old but does he actually qualify for the pension. I just wondered whether the years on the practice squad(or partial years in the NFL) help these journeymen get some long term retirement compensation. RG3 will be interesting to watch at home against the Giants. He is special. We will need to score 30 points to win.
Bill, I do believe years spent on the practice squad do count. I’d have to look that up. Anyway, I don’t believe that Brown’s injury is career-ending.
