December 12, 2025 • 52 mins
Paul Dottino and Matt Citak discuss the key matchups against the Commanders, talk about Jermaine Eluemunor’s play this year, and take calls from fans.
0:00 - Commanders preview
13:00 - Updates from both teams
24:00 - Key matchups
32:00 - Calls
42:40 - Jermaine Eluemunor
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
It's time for a Big Blue Kickoff line.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Nobody can ever tell you that you couldn't do it because.
Speaker 1 (00:09):
You're on Giants dot com. Do you know what I
saw to York Giant Crime and the Giants Mobile at
seventeen Rial.
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One tun down.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
We all were old Taffer.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
What they did happen?
Speaker 1 (00:21):
Part of the Giants podcast network.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Let's go on the Crazy Dogs has fun.
Speaker 5 (00:27):
I get everybody, and Welcome to Friday's edition of Big
Blue Kickoff Live, presented by Cadillac, the official luxury vehicle
of the New York Football Giants.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
On Paul Tatino, He's Matt Sidetek.
Speaker 5 (00:37):
We'll be here for the next hour to talk Giants
football with you as they get ready to take on
the Washington Commanders here on Sunday at Metlive Stadium. The
voice is coming back, just to Tad. It was worse yesterday.
It's coming back, just to Tad. This is what happens
when you have a coughing fit in the middle of December. Uh,
it was bad on Wednesday night and I didn't even
(00:58):
know how I was gonna make it through yesterday.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
But I did a little bit better today. Not great,
but we're going to try to do our best.
Speaker 4 (01:05):
Have you still been doing your ten mile walks outside
in this weather?
Speaker 5 (01:09):
No?
Speaker 2 (01:09):
No, actually not, it's it's it's just yeah, this is
too much. It's just too much. I kind of took
a week off.
Speaker 5 (01:19):
In any event, We will be here for the next
hour to talk Giants football with you folks, as again.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
They get ready to take on Washington.
Speaker 5 (01:26):
As always, coming to you from the Giants Podcast Studio,
presented by Hackensack Meridian Health, Keep getting better and as always,
our numbers two duo one nine three nine four five
one three or social media it's hashtag Giants Chat. And
if you are not listening to the show live, we're
watching the show live. Our entire podcast network is available
(01:49):
on the Giants mobile app podcast platforms everywhere and at
giants dot com slash podcasts. Okay, we talked to Mike
Kafka just before practice earlier this morning, and.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
This was one of the.
Speaker 5 (02:03):
H I guess I could say least revealing Friday morning
pressers that we've had all season.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
It was pretty quick, it was, it was very quick.
Speaker 5 (02:13):
He did tell us that Thibodeau, who is definitely doing
better in terms of his rehab with his shoulder injury,
has some limited stuff he's able to do, but not
quite ready yet. So he's out against Washington that much,
he was able to tell us. He did not tell
(02:33):
us whether or not Jamie Gillen is going to punt
on Sunday. We do know that they brought in Cam
Johnston already yesterday, a veteran NFL kicker, in case he.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
Has to punt.
Speaker 4 (02:46):
Yeah. Kafka did say he was asked about Jamie specifically,
and he did say that Jamie is not going to
kick at practice today.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
Correct.
Speaker 4 (02:57):
However, unlike Kavon, who he did rule out BEFORECTICE, he
would not go so far as to rule Jamie out.
He said, they want to keep, you know, keep that
one open at least for now till after practice, maybe
maybe even tomorrow, and see if he progresses at all.
So he did, I guess, you know, give a little
bit of an update there. And then the only other
player he talked about on the injury front was Gunner Ochesky,
(03:19):
who he said has is continuing to progress through the
concussion protocol, is at the next step. Yesterday we saw
him upgrade from I.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Believe he was. Was he d NP Wednesday?
Speaker 4 (03:33):
Yeah, or maybe he was limited Wednesday but then upgraded
to limited yesterday, and.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
I guess he progressed.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
I would expect on the final on the injury report today,
It'll say I think, based on what Kafka said, barring
any setbacks, that he would be a full participant and
that he would shed the non contact designation that has
been on the injury report the last couple of earlies
on Wednesday, and assuming he he is a full participant
(04:01):
in today's practice and does not have any setbacks, I
would think that then either whether it's later today sometime tomorrow,
would be the appointment with the independent neurologist to hopefully
get that final clearance, and if he gets it, then
he should clear and be good to go for Sunday's game. Yeah,
a coach seemed very confident. Yes, he did say he expects, Yes,
(04:22):
barring a setback, he expects Gunner to clear in time.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Yes.
Speaker 5 (04:26):
So that would be really cool, because this is one
of the guys who I'm gonna be honest with you folks.
You know, we get a certain feel for certain guys
during the course of the year. He's a guy you
pull for. He just is I mean, I don't know
how else to describe it. He was a long shot
to make it to the NFL when he came out
of school and was able to hook on with the
(04:48):
Pats for a while. Actually, you know, wound up being
a sensational kick returner for a short time, made a
pro to one year as a return guy, and then
it got sidetracked, right, and then he thought he might
be out of the league, and then the Giants pick
him up, and then he thinks he's out of the
league again, and then the Giants bring him back. I
root for the guy because he's a blood and guts guy.
He's just a regular dude, and for his shake, for
(05:12):
his shake. I hope he's back, And I'll be honest
with you, I hope the Giants bring him back again
in the training camp next year and give him a
chance to win a job.
Speaker 2 (05:21):
I hope so too.
Speaker 4 (05:22):
But the Giants did make or do have some guys
on the practice squad ready to fill in and case
Gunner does not get that final clean they do. Of course,
Amir Smith Marsett has been on the practice squad all season,
but the Giants also brought back Exavier Gibson, who was
with the team for a brief stint earlier in the season,
then went to I believe the Eagles and was there
(05:42):
for a little bit, and he started at the Jets
the beginning of the season. So he's been all around
this little Tri state area. So both Smith, Marsett and
Gibson are on the practice squad and both have that
experience as kick returners in case Gunner does not get cleared.
But again, the the expectation, barring any setbacks, is that
he will get cleared. And I forgot. There was one
(06:04):
other injury update that Kafka did give, and that was
Tyler Nubit, who was added to the injury report yesterday
as a limited participant with a quad injury, and kaf
CAAs said he's fine. There's no concerns there at all.
He'll be good to go for Sunday's game.
Speaker 5 (06:19):
Now, of interest, the Giants did pick up a receiver yesterday.
Speaker 4 (06:26):
Yes, they finally filled that open roster spot that's been
sitting there all week.
Speaker 5 (06:30):
And to be honest, I was a little surprised because
it's not like the resume is just chock full of stuff.
Ryan Walter right, Ryan Miller Miller, Ryan Miller Miller, He
he hasn't played a whole ton, and in the limited
action that he has played, he hasn't done a lot either.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
He's mostly a special teams guy.
Speaker 4 (06:53):
I was gonna say, he's played primarily on special teams
for Buccaneers. This season. He's played about sixty percent of
their special team snaps. He's a big guy, six foot two,
two hundred and twenty pounds. Again, not much receiving production.
Last year, he had twelve catches for one hundred and
twenty eight yards two touchdowns. This season, two catches for
(07:16):
thirty four yards and a touchdown, So he hasn't really
been used much as a receiver in the offense. Again,
has played primarily in a lot on special teams in
the gunner role.
Speaker 5 (07:28):
So some of these, and I'll be honest with you, folks,
some of these back end of the depth chart moves,
bottom of the roster moves that they've been making, I
don't know if these things are necessarily meant so much
for today.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
As much as they are.
Speaker 5 (07:44):
They want to see guys, get a feel for them
and maybe wonder if during the offseason they may want
to put them on future reserve contracts and stuff of
that nature. Because I can't imagine, you know, you pick
up a guy like Miller and think, oh, my goodness,
he's going to help us try to win a game
in the next month.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
I don't think that's what you do.
Speaker 4 (08:01):
Yeah, was it you and I that spoke about this
two weeks ago or was it was iol of John
might have been job at it, But yeah, we gave
a heads up a couple of weeks ago that we
might start seeing some roster moves that you know, at
first you might look at it and be like, why
would they sign you know, player X to the practice
squad or bring claim this guy off of waivers And
it's the It's.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
Exactly what you just said. It's because not every roster.
Speaker 4 (08:23):
Move at this point, when you're two and eleven going
into week fifteen with four games left, not every roster
move is going to be made to simply just win.
In this last month. There will be some roster moves
where the Giants will bring guys in just to get
a little head start and get a look at a
guy to see, oh, maybe we do want to sign
this guy to a reserve future contract because as we
see every year, within what twenty four to forty eight
(08:46):
hours of the season ending, it's going to come out
that the Giants signed you know, anywhere between you know,
five to fifteen players to reserve future contracts. This is
a great time to get a close look at them
inside the building early to see maybe how their work
ethic is, see how they learn, how they pick up
the systems and stuff, how they interact with everyone else,
(09:07):
and just get a look at them on the practice
field for this last month before it breaks for the
off season, because once everyone leaves for the off season,
you can't bring guys in for visits for reserve future contracts.
Speaker 5 (09:17):
The other thing you have to keep in mind, too,
is that teams that are in contention, and I use
the word luxury in quotes, they don't have the luxury
of playing around with the back end of the roster
trying to find.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
Guys like this.
Speaker 4 (09:31):
No, they're worried about winning now exactly rightfully.
Speaker 5 (09:33):
So they need every roster spot to try to win
Sunday's game or Saturday or Monday whenever they're playing. When
you're an also ran at this point in the season, again,
you have that luxury to start playing around with those
kinds of guys.
Speaker 4 (09:49):
Yeah, so while you know, on paper, maybe we say, like,
I don't see what role Ryan Miller might have and
helping the Giants in these last four games. You never know,
first of all, you never know. Second one, well, as
we said, it could just be to get a look
at him in this last month and see is this
guy worth signing to or is there a future deal
to bring him into training camp and to really see
(10:09):
what he's got.
Speaker 5 (10:10):
In fact, one of those kinds of players. I personally
believe that's the reason they picked up Saul the kicker,
the former Pittsburgh Panthers kicker a couple of weeks ago.
He's a left footed kicker who has a really nice,
strong leg, and he did some good things in college.
And you know, he had a couple of camp visits
here this year with some pro teams. But the Giants
(10:33):
picked him up and they threw him on the practice squad. Now, again,
a team that is in contention, maybe they're a little
more leary about bringing in a quote project kind of guy. Certainly,
I mean, how many teams are going to carry an
extra kicker on the practice squad. You know, at the
time when the Giants brought Saul in, they already had
(10:53):
a bunch of kickers.
Speaker 4 (10:54):
I think it was when he brought in. I think
he was the fourth at that time.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
He was number four.
Speaker 5 (10:59):
Yeah, so you know there's a case where, hey, you
don't know, how is Ku going to work out over
the final month and a half.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
You don't know.
Speaker 5 (11:08):
Certainly if he does really well, you would anticipate that
you'd have a chance to resign him.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
And bring him back next year. You would think that.
Speaker 5 (11:16):
But just in case, You've got a chance to look
at this kid now for a month. And that's there's
another example of one of those guys that you look
at with the thought that maybe, just maybe there's an
opportunity there down the road for him.
Speaker 4 (11:30):
Yeah, and especially because you know we're talking about Ku
and Sauls Graham. Gano is under contract next year. However,
obviously with all the injuries he's dealt with the last
couple of years, and the fact that I believe he
doesn't have any guaranteed money left on the deal because
he'd be going into the final year, you know, depending
we don't even know whether his health if he's going
to play next year.
Speaker 2 (11:51):
Like it's very sign injury reserve right now.
Speaker 4 (11:53):
Yeah, it's very up in the air right now, especially
with the injury history, his age. Who knows if he's
you know, he could retire, We don't know, but yeah,
the Giants could be in the business of finding a
new kicker for the twenty twenty six season. So you
have Coup in right now and you're seeing how, you know,
how he plays, especially in the conditions of MetLife Stadium,
because it's very different obviously than playing in the Dome
(12:14):
in Atlanta where he came previously. And then you get
a good look at Saul's as well, to see if
you know one, if not both of them, maybe are
guys you want to bring back at the very least
for training camp work through the summer to see which
one you know, ends up being the kicker for twenty
twenty six.
Speaker 5 (12:29):
All right, folks, So that's a little bit of a
perspective as to what's happening with the lower part of
the roster. We really don't talk about that very much
because there's really no need. But I think it's important
to note that while some of these transactions are in
the fine print and they kind of go unnoticed, don't
let it fly under the radar too much. Do keep
(12:50):
it in mind, because at some point in time, maybe
as little as a month down the road, all of
a sudden, you're going to see that that guy signed
a reserve deal because they want to bring him the
training camp. And you'll say, oh, yeah, I remember they
had him in in December. So that's why I wanted
to bring that up as far as this game goes, folks,
you know, I was on Washington, DC Radio earlier this week,
(13:13):
and you know, we were kind of joking with the guys. Well,
it's just not Gibbs and Parcels we're talking about here,
some of the great classic Giants Redskins battles of the
eighties and nineties. No, these are two teams that certainly
expected to do a lot better this season. The Commanders, well,
they were coming off of twelve one year.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
I didn't think they'd come anything close to repeating that.
Speaker 5 (13:35):
But I certainly did not think that they'd be scraping
the floor in the basement like the Giants are right now.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
No, coming off an NFC championship run.
Speaker 4 (13:43):
You know, I didn't. I agree with you. I didn't
expect them to, you know, repeat that, but I certainly
thought they would at the very least you know, be
in the playoff hunt going into November December.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Well, here's what's interestingly not.
Speaker 5 (13:55):
Both of these teams have had a miserable time on
the defensive side the ball. Yeah, and you know, obviously
Giants fans are incredibly disappointed and shocked that that's happened here.
How do you think the Washington fans feel? Because Dan
Quinn is their head coach and he has always been
(14:16):
known for enhancing the strength of his defenses. Now, to
be fair, okay, to be fair, going into the season,
one of the weaknesses that we all thought was going
to be on this Washington team was their lack of
pass rush. Now, they basically brought Von Miller how to
the cobwebs to kind of help them because they were
(14:39):
so desperate for pass rush. We knew that was going
to be an issue, and it has been. The secondary
has been even worse of an issue than anybody could
have imagined. And Frankie Louver at linebacker is now missing
tackles at a crazy rate. And Bobby Wagner, well, you
know what, as awesome as he still is against the run,
(15:00):
he's got some trouble covering people now because the range
is starting to starting to go away.
Speaker 4 (15:06):
Yeah, but that's not that's the one guy on the defense.
I think you know you're right in in coverage, he
has not been the best the season, but basically every
other aspect of his game has been phenomenal.
Speaker 2 (15:16):
Once again, he's instinctive.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
He is one of just overall, one of the most
impressive players to me in the entire NFL. The fact
that he is fourteen years into his career and for
the most part, still playing at an all pro level
year in and year out is just wild. I mean,
he's third in the league in tackles. He's been phenomenal
against the run. He's been good in the past. Rush
(15:38):
coverage has been the one area where he's not been
that great. I agree with you.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
The other time catches up to everybody.
Speaker 4 (15:45):
Was he thirty five thirty six.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
It's amazing.
Speaker 4 (15:47):
Every other aspect of his game though, it was playing
very well. Frankie Luvu might be the biggest surprise on
that defense because he was an All Pro last year,
the second team All Pro. He was great, and then
he's just taken such a big step back this year,
which this season I would say is a little bit
more of what we kind of saw in his first
few years in Carolina, it was closer to that. This
(16:09):
season is closer to that than last year. So you know,
maybe last year was the outlier season. I don't know,
but yeah, this this defense, it struggled just as much
as the Giants defense has struggled this season. But on offense,
despite the defensive struggles, you would think that, you know,
(16:29):
with the defense giving up so many points and yards,
that the run game would kind of get abandoned and
they wouldn't have much success with it. But they've been
one of the best rushing teams in the NFL all season.
They ranked fourth in the NFL in rushing yards this
season at seventh in rushing yards per attempt. And that's
with them, you know, playing from behind, I would say
(16:50):
in most weeks, and yet they're still running the football
and having success, having success, whether it's Chris Rodriguez, Jacory
Krossky Merritt, even Jeremy McNichols a little bit, they seemed
to be finding succes no matter who's running with the ball.
Not to mention the quarterback situation obviously this week is Mariota,
but Mariota and Jane Daniels both have rushing ability in
(17:12):
their bag.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
How much do you think they'll lean on the run
now that zach Ertz has been lost for the season.
Speaker 4 (17:19):
That, combined with the weather on Sunday, whether or not
it snows, it's going to be very, very cold, I
would expect both teams to lean into the run, maybe
more so Washington because for their defense. The Washington defense,
again it's not been great overall, but the pass defense
has really really struggled.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Oh it's terrible.
Speaker 4 (17:40):
And so this is a good game for Jackson Dark
to hopefully take advantage of this great matchup and sort
of go back to what he was looking like the
beginning part of his starting tenure this season, at least
in terms of passing.
Speaker 5 (17:54):
I think what we've kind of read is that one
to three inches sometime overnight Saturday into early Sunday, but
it will stop by kickoff from what I've heard.
Speaker 4 (18:04):
So I've asked our director of event presentation, who's very
on top of the whole weather situation, and she said
that the forecast kind of keeps changing. The latest she heard,
as of I believe was yesterday evening, was that it
could be it's gonna probably be a couple of inches,
but it could end up being Saturday overnight and by
(18:28):
the time kickoff comes it could have completely stopped. Yeah,
we're gonna get a final weather report in a couple
of hours. I'm gonna go upstairs and get a final
weather report from her in a couple hours and see
what you know the professionals are saying about this forecast.
Speaker 2 (18:41):
But hopefully nothing will be final till Sunday morning, of.
Speaker 4 (18:44):
Course, of course, but hopefully it's Saturday night snow early
morning Sunday. I'm hoping by the time I'm driving out
here Sunday morning, there's no snow coming down from the guy.
Let it all be on the ground already, so there's
time to clear it out before kickoff.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
Yeah, that would be nice.
Speaker 5 (19:01):
So in any event, when looking at these two teams,
you know, there are a number of matchups that I
think are interesting, and certainly, to be honest, it will
be von Miller, who is at the right edge of
the Washington pass rush. As old as he is, and
if you look at his overall production, he's not doing
(19:23):
much against the running game at all. He's strictly in
there to try to get after the quarterback with whatever
juice he has left and he'll be going up against
Andrew Thomas, who I want to just interject this because
right before the show started, I asked Matt about do
we know where the updates are on the.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
Pro Bowl voting.
Speaker 5 (19:42):
Now we all know the Pro Bowl vote isn't as
important as the All NFL vote, because the All NFL vote,
which is also known as the All Pro Team, is
the one that's most significant, the one that is most
recognized by the league. That's the one that gets published
in the official NFL record books. Elias, the official statistician
recognizes it, the Associated Press recognizes it. That's the one
(20:04):
that carries the most beef amongst all of the all
Star teams that get named at the end of the season.
The Pro Bowl vote is obviously kind of wishy washy,
but it's still kind of nice to be recognized. The
thing that bothered me is that, you know, I haven't
been keeping track of some of the tabulations, but you
came back to me and said, I think Andrew Thomas
(20:26):
is like not in the top ten.
Speaker 4 (20:27):
Confirmed, he is not in the top ten right now,
that's what you're in the fan vote, that is a joke.
I agree, he's been one of the best tackles in
the league this season. He certainly deserves to be a
Pro Bowl. But I can't say I'm fully shot because
his breakout season in twenty twenty two, he was voted
or yeah, voted second team out Pro and didn't make
(20:49):
the posis not voted a Pro Bowler, which does not
make any sense.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
No, now, you know, it does happen. Okay, it does happen.
And I certainly hope that the.
Speaker 5 (21:00):
The writers who are in charge of the AP vote,
which becomes the old Pro Vote, I hope they're smart
enough to recognize that Andrew Thomas has been absolutely phenomenal.
I personally believe it's probably the best season I've seen
him have since he came to the Giants.
Speaker 4 (21:16):
You think it's better than twenty twenty two season, I do,
I honestly do. I think they're very comparable seasons. I
will say I'm probably cutting haars here, splitting hair. I'll
give the slight edge to this season just because in
twenty twenty two, Andrew Thomas was great at left tackle.
The rest of the line though, was not, you know,
(21:38):
the greatest, and it was his play did not help,
you know, sort of elevate the rest of the line
this season, it seems like his play like once he
got inserted into the lineup week three in the first half,
and then week four fully the whole entire unit, the
whole offensive line took a step up as a collective unit,
which we just didn't. That's not on Andrew Thomas in
(22:01):
twenty twenty two, but we just didn't see it like
we're seeing it this season, which of course that also
goes with the other guys. That's not a purely Andrew Tommins.
But since they're very comparable season, I'm going to give
the slight edge. I'm gonna agree with you and give
the slight edge to this season because the whole line
as a unit, this is the best offensive line we've
seen from the Giants in a while. I mean they
(22:21):
are I know you don't like PFF, but they PFF
releases offensive line rankings each week.
Speaker 2 (22:27):
Giants are at ten.
Speaker 4 (22:29):
I think all of us would have signed up for
a top ten offensive line before the season started. It
will be I think no doubt if you told us
that the Giants would have a top ten offense before
the season started, I think all of us would have
expected a better record than two and eleven, but nonetheless,
I guess we'll take the small victories.
Speaker 5 (22:47):
Yeah, yeah, I mean I think, you know, at least
in twenty two he had the consistency of Daniel Jones
behind him every week, he had the consistency of Barkley.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
Yeah, you know.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
Also true, this has been a little.
Speaker 5 (23:00):
Bit of a mismash as the running back situation has
been a revolving door because of injury, and the quarterback
thing also has been.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
A revolving door.
Speaker 5 (23:08):
Now he didn't play at the beginning of the year
when Russell Wilson was in there, but he has had
to deal with both Winston and dark Yeah, so there
one half of Russell Wilson, Yes, the first half that
Week three game where he played the first half. Correct,
So I mean there's been variables, I guess for sure,
which which I'm giving him a little extra credit for
(23:30):
being able to overcome variables and still produce at the
incredible level that he has.
Speaker 4 (23:35):
The rest of the line, though, has been healthy. I mean,
obviously JMS missed a couple of games. Schlowman, though, filled
in very admirably when Schmidt's was down, and Jermaine missed
what one game one or two one. I think it
was one one game where Marcus Ball filled in admirably.
Speaker 2 (23:54):
Is it okay? Did okay?
Speaker 4 (23:56):
But as an overall unit, this is like the most
consistent production, the most consistent lineup on a weekend and
week out basis we've the Giants have had in years, all.
Speaker 5 (24:08):
Right, So let's let's just hit a couple of these matchups, folks.
Two on one nine three, nine four five three year
is our phone number. So I think it's an interesting matchup. Nonetheless,
the aging von Miller against Andrew Thomas, I think it's
still rue. I give the edge too in that mass
Well obviously, I mean Thomas should have no trouble shutting
(24:29):
him out in my opinion, But nonetheless, because of von
Miller's pedigree, and he's going to the Hall of Fame,
okay for sure, So whatever he's got left and he
does lead the commanders and saxes, he does.
Speaker 2 (24:40):
I think he's at six and a half.
Speaker 5 (24:41):
Sick six and a half, and he's got a lot
of pride. Let's face, he knows who Andrew Thomas is,
and he knows that this is a chance. And I
don't know how many, if if he's even going to
play next year. He's gonna want to go out and
show people, hey, I could still play against the best
and still be effective. I think this is gonna be
It's gonna be a matchup I'm gonna want to watch anyway,
(25:04):
even though Miller's on his last legs. Another interesting matchup
to watch. I think Laramie Tunsel at left tackle, depending
upon how the Giants wind up playing Burns and corner.
We've seen they have flopped. I know Burns has played
some more on the other side. We don't know how
(25:24):
they're gonna play it this week, but no matter who
is lining up against Tunsle, that should be another really
fun matchup because you're talking about two of the best
left tackles in the game being on the same field.
Speaker 4 (25:35):
Yeah, this is the matchup that I was actually most
interested in. Actually, both of the Commander's tackle matchups where
the two that I'm most interested to see because so
Brian Burns has primarily lined up on the left edge,
so going up against the right time since Kaevon got hurt, Yes,
since Kaevon got hurt. Now it's not every single snap,
(25:57):
but he's taken more snaps on that side, so that
would leave especially because again cape I got ruled out
this morning, Abdul Carter to face a lot of Laramie Tunsael.
It's not going to be every snap, but he's going
to get a lot of the veteran and Laramie Tunzel
is right, as you said, is right up there with
Andrew Thomas among the league's top left tackles. He's been
(26:20):
phenomenal this season.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
He did give up a sack to the Giants in
Week one.
Speaker 4 (26:26):
Since then, PFF has him down for one additional sack
allowed in the next twelve games and only fourteen total pressures.
He is PFF's number three offensive tackle in pass protection,
number eight tackle overall.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
He's very good.
Speaker 4 (26:43):
This is probably going to be Abdull Carter's toughest matchup
of the season. But to Abduall Carter's credit, Obviously, prior
to the buy, Abdul had his own we'll call it,
you know, some disciplinary issues that everyone's put behind now.
(27:04):
But he did get benched for that first first quarter
against the Patriots, right, but once he came onto the
field at the start of the second quarter, he was great.
He had probably his best game of the season. First
full sack.
Speaker 2 (27:20):
That's great.
Speaker 4 (27:20):
I mean Drake may kind of ran into him for
that sack, but nonetheless we'll take the first full sack.
Six total pressures according to ESPN Analytics, and this is
the stat that I think shows that Carter has been
better than his numbers, the box score numbers will say
he ranks ninth among all edge rushers in past rush
(27:44):
win rate, yes, at eighteen percent. So he and that's
even better than Burns who's eleventh in that stat. So
he's been having success. It just has not resulted in
a ton of sacks. But hopefully after the Patriots game,
the final three quarters where he did play well, and
obviously the second off the field issue in three weeks,
(28:06):
you know, hopefully that kind of lights a spark underneath
him going into this final month of the season. He
is one of the guys that I think this last
month is the most important too. You know, I would
say all the young guys, but Abdul and Jackson are
the two guys that I really want to see step
up in a big way in this final month because
they if the Giants are going to have success, any
success in twenty twenty six, those two guys are going
(28:28):
to play very big roles in that and so I
want to see them start to play well, gain some
momentum and some confidence. Jackson, obviously, I don't think he
lacks in any sort of confidence as we hear.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
Him, you know, speak to the media each week, and
I don't think.
Speaker 4 (28:42):
Abdul does either. But Abdul hasn't had the same on
field production and success that Jackson has had this season,
so I would really like to see him get going
in this final month. It's not going to be easy
going up against Laramie Tunsel, but if he could get
a sack or even just a couple of pressures off
of tons, that would go a long way, and having
the young twenty two year old gain some confidence going
(29:06):
into this the final stretch, the offseason, going into next year,
and then just on the other side real quick where
Brian Burns will, I guess primarily be lining up against
Josh Connery Junior, the rookie right tackle struggle to start
the season. Connor pick, first round pick late first round pick,
really struggled at the start of the season, was credited
with four sacks allowed in the first two weeks of
(29:28):
the season, but since then he has been a lot better.
He's only allowed two sacks and twenty four pressures over
the last eleven games since that rough opener, So despite
the rough start, he has been a lot better. He
was one of the top tackles going into this past
year's draft. So Brian Burns and Abdul Carter going up
(29:49):
against these two doesn't matter which one's going up against which.
Those are the two matchups I'm most excited to see
on Sunday.
Speaker 5 (29:56):
Now, when you consider the Commanders have a solid rushing
which you've already alluded to earlier in the program, and
we were expecting potentially some nasty weather, we just don't
know exactly well, you have to take note that the
Commanders when they run behind right tackle are averaging over
eight yards of carry on forty one rushes. The eight
(30:18):
yard average per carry behind right tackle leads the National
Football League. When they run right up Connarley's back, they
have been dominant in the run game. It stands to
reason that they're going to want to feed whoever is
in the backfield and tell them to run behind right tackle.
Speaker 3 (30:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (30:41):
Not only that, that's the good Washington stat of running
outside the right tackle.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
Now tell them the Giants pour outside against the run. Yes,
that's exactly where I was going. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (30:55):
So through thirteen games on runs to the outside, so
that's not just their tackle or the right left edge,
but both edges, the Giants have allowed the most yards
per carry at seven point zero, the highest success rate
at fifty four point eight percent, and the highest explosive
(31:15):
play rate, which at twenty five percent. Explosive play rate
I believe is ten or more yard twenty more yards in.
Speaker 2 (31:21):
This case depends. I think, I think which.
Speaker 4 (31:25):
Ten for the running play? I think ten plus yards.
They're the worst run defense in like all the metrics
when it comes to rushes to the outside. So put
that with Washington, Washington's success of running to the outside,
and hopefully, and I'm sure it will be that that
has been a big talking point in this building this
(31:46):
week leading up to Sunday. The Giants know that they're
going to try to run to the outside, So let's
hope that they obviously come prepare to stop that, because
if they can stop that part of the Washington game,
this Washington offense might have some trouble moving up and
down the field.
Speaker 5 (32:02):
All right, let's go to the phones, Alex and Sarah
qu Show Online too, your first up on the show.
Speaker 3 (32:07):
Hello, Thank guys. How we're doing today? Hi?
Speaker 6 (32:11):
Good, good, Hey. I just wanted to sort of talk
about Obviously, season has been disappointing, to say the least.
The thing that's hard for me though, is it's and
I keep having these conversations where you guys have said
this too, which is like, it's really disappointing because we're
playing I think some of the best certainly offensive football
that I've seen this team play in I don't know,
(32:33):
a decade maybe, and so to see the results not
show up and now just sort of see the turnover.
I think a lot of Giants fans have this like
weird misled belief that like that changing the scheme and
changing all the coaches and that these things are that
they're not going to have the effect that they might have,
that this that the success will be lined. But and
(32:55):
I just think, you know, asking people to learn new
systems and all that stuff, I'm scared of it. I mean,
at this point it seems like it's inevitable obviously at
this point. So a question for you is that the
things that I would like to see in these last
few games are are the top three things I'd like
to see are. I want to see this defense have
(33:15):
start to look a little bit like what we thought
this defense could look like. And I'm sure it'll be
a little too little, too late, but like at least
show us like, oh that, yeah, the money invested didn't
pan out this year, but that there's hope for the
future for this defense. For sure. I want to obviously
continue to see Jackson Dart look the way he's looked
and continue to develop. And then you know, I also
(33:38):
think I don't know what happened to those special teams
last week, but that was looking pretty promising too, And
I'd like to see us return to some semblance of
like respectable specialists. I just want to see all three
phases like look strong going into this offseason, so that
there's some justification for some amount of continuity. To be honest,
I'd love for Brisillo to be back, because God forbid
(33:58):
we go back to the offensive line for however many years, it's.
Speaker 3 (34:02):
Finally looking good.
Speaker 6 (34:03):
Yeah, And so here's my last thing I'll leave with.
I'm curious to get your thoughts on it. And I
know it's a little early to be doing like the
whole head coach search thing at this moment, but it's coming.
And I've been sort of a proponent of keeping Kafka
on if for no other reason than just to keep
some offensive continuity, But that's not enough of a reason.
And so my new sort of hope is, if we
(34:25):
were to bring Spags back as our coordinator as our
head coach, do you think there's any chance that Kafka's
a little more likely to stay on as offensive coordinator
given their past relationship working together, Because I would love if,
if he isn't given the head coaching job, at least
keep him on for our offensive coordinator, because I think
he's done a really nice job offensively this year. So
(34:46):
that those are my questions for you.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
Appreciate the call. Thank you, Alex, Thanks Alex Well.
Speaker 5 (34:51):
I will say this, Mike Kafka, as far as I know,
does have one year left on his contract.
Speaker 2 (34:58):
Do you are you are you on board with that that?
I don't know. I don't know if coaching contracts aren't
typically Okay.
Speaker 5 (35:05):
Well, I think I guess what I'm telling you is
reality may be also different than paperwork, but I believe
paperwork there would be a possibility that Mike Kafka could
stay even if they decided to name a defensive minded
(35:25):
head coach in that spot. Now, whether or not he
would want to, or whether or not he would get
another opportunity to go somewhere else to be a head coach,
those are things that I would not even speculate on.
But in theory, if they named a defensive minded head coach,
and you're right, Spags and him did work together in
Kansas City, in theory, could that potentially be a possibility.
(35:51):
I guess I wouldn't rule it out, but I just
don't know how likely it is, given that we don't
have the other parts of that equation.
Speaker 4 (35:59):
Yeah, I mean, as we've come to learn, never seen ever,
like you never know what could happen. The only thing
that I kind of question is I can't think of
a situation, and I could just be not remembering, but
I can't think of a situation where a coach was
named interim head coach in the middle of a season,
finished out the season coaching for that team, then the
(36:20):
team decides to hire someone else from the outside as
the head coach, and then that guy returns to his
old position.
Speaker 2 (36:26):
Yeah, it would It would take a unique set of circumstances.
Speaker 4 (36:28):
Can you remember a situation of that? I could just
be completely forgetting, but I just cannot well remember.
Speaker 5 (36:35):
Well, you know why, because the Giants haven't been in
this situation very often, And I can't honestly tell you
that I keep trackable the interim head coaches.
Speaker 2 (36:44):
That have been in the NFL for the last fifty years. Yeah,
it's just not something that you usually keep track of.
Speaker 4 (36:49):
But on paper, I mean that sounds like a situation where,
you know, the interim head coach would say, like you
passed me over for the job that I've just held
for the last whiles. You just don't know why should
I go, you know, take a demotion.
Speaker 2 (37:02):
That's again I'm talking about on paper.
Speaker 5 (37:04):
I'm not saying it's realistic, but it is what it is.
I will say this, you know, there are four games left.
What if the Giants go on a four game winning
streak and absolutely blister their next four teams? Now, I'm sorry,
you guys are gonna laugh and go ahead if you
want to. But they're playing Washington, They're playing Las Vegas,
(37:27):
they're playing Minnesota, they're playing Dallas. Are you honestly gonna
sit here and tell me the Giants can't win all
four of those games.
Speaker 4 (37:36):
No, they can for sure. I mean, the next three
opponents are all teams with losing records that are in
similar situation to the Giants. The only one that has
a winning record is the Cowboys. But that game is
in week eighteen, when they might be.
Speaker 2 (37:48):
In five hundred. They're not winning. There's six, six and one. Okay, fair,
they don't even have a winning record.
Speaker 5 (37:54):
Yeah, and by the way, they were getting their butts
kicked at home until we gave them the game.
Speaker 4 (37:58):
And they But by a week eighteen when the Giants
play the Cowboys, they could be eliminated and they could
be under five hundred at that part too, So I ask.
Speaker 2 (38:05):
You, so then, is it not possible the Giants could
win four in a row. No, they could.
Speaker 4 (38:09):
But my only thing is, I don't think you you
should make decisions about, you know, the future of this
franchise just based on the next four games alone. Like,
even if you win the next four games, I don't
think that necessarily means Okay, let's just run everything back
because you got this late momentum. Agreed, season, agreed, But
it would but it would not shock me if the
(38:29):
Giants four and oh maybe just because we're two and eleven,
so I get you know, could we win a couple
of those games?
Speaker 3 (38:36):
For sure?
Speaker 4 (38:37):
I think there's a good chance we do win one
or two of these final games.
Speaker 5 (38:40):
You would have to chew on those games a little
more thoroughly. If they wound up going on a roll
here and looked really, really good, you'd have to give
them heavier consideration than you might otherwise do.
Speaker 4 (38:52):
Yeah, but at the same time, as you just mentioned,
you got to keep in mind the opponents in these
four games. That's why I was very interested to see
the little stretch leading into the buy, because that was
our last stretch of games against playoff contenders, teams that
are really in the hunt. And if you know, the
Giants had ripped off a couple of wins against you know,
the stretch against the NFC North or the Patriots, who
(39:14):
at the time were the number one seed in the AFC,
that would have been a lot different than you know,
winning a couple of games in this final stretch. You
still obviously want to go out and try to win
ball games because again, and Jackson Dart spoke about this
before the bye, the guys in the locker room do
believe in momentum carrying from the end of one season
into the next. Whether people at home, whether fans do
(39:34):
or not, might be another story. But the guys in
the locker room that are going to be here next year,
they do think that is a real thing. So I
do think it would be good, obviously if the Giants
do win a couple of these games, just get some
confidence and sort of remind themselves like, oh, yeah, this
is what it feels like to win football games, because
hopefully next year the Giants are winning a lot more
football games than they have been this year.
Speaker 5 (39:55):
I do believe there is something to having young players
at the pro level learn how to win games after
they've just lost a bunch of them. You know, I've
been saying this now for what the last decade. As
we go into December and people talk about, well, is
it really better for the team to win? No, I
don't believe there's any carryover. No, I don't believe in
(40:17):
that at all. The momentum stops when the season is over.
What I do believe is that young players who experience
winning at the NFL level, especially if they have not
done it, before can learn something from that which they
may be able to use in the following season. That
I believe momentum, I do not believe.
Speaker 4 (40:38):
All right, I was just going by what Jackson himself,
I understand said a couple of weeks ago. But I agree,
especially because the Giants have lost so many games, you know,
in the final couple of minutes, minute or two. How
many times does that happen, you know, since that overtime
or since the win against the Eagles more often than
we would like. So yeah, I agree that I think
there is a benefit to these young guys who will
(41:00):
be here next year again learning how to at like
properly close out games and come up with these victories
in these close one possession games, no matter who. Definitely
some benefit to that, absolutely, And I will say just
because to the point that you may have, you know,
some people saying, like, what benefit wouldn't it be more
beneficial to you know, lose the games in order for
you know, to help you you won't even go there
(41:22):
draft stock, which unfortunately we've had this conversation every year
for the last couple of years now. But I would
say the one difference this year than in the years
prior is the Giants aren't in the business of drafting
a quarterback at the top of the first round next year.
The last couple of years, the quarterback position has been
a very big question mark where I can, again, no
(41:44):
one in this building, whatever you know, say like we
need to lose games. Everyone's always trying to win, and
as they should in this building. But I can somewhat
understand people outside the building saying it's more beneficial to
lose to get higher to the number one pick if
you're still in the business of looking for a franchise quarterback.
We know that Jackson Dart is going to be the
(42:04):
quarterback next year. I'm not sitting here saying he's the
franchise quarterback moving forward for the next decade. He needs
to you know, things change very quickly in the NFL.
John and I were talking about this the other day.
You need to win, You need to have success year
in a year out in order to become a franchise quarterback.
So I'm not ready to go there yet, but I
am confident in saying I don't believe the Giants will
(42:25):
be looking for a quarterback in this upcoming draft, which
makes having you know, the number two or three pick
or the number six or seven pick less significant.
Speaker 5 (42:36):
Agree, We go to David Michigan. You're next on the show. Hello, Hello, Hey,
how's it going on?
Speaker 3 (42:45):
I believe it or not, this is my first call
all season.
Speaker 4 (42:50):
Nice to hear from you again.
Speaker 3 (42:51):
Wow, I've been I've been. I know, Paul, we bounced
back and forth on an act, but this is my
first actual call. I've been overcome with enthusiasm and joy
on Mondays that I haven't been able to dial the phone.
Speaker 2 (43:05):
I understand.
Speaker 3 (43:07):
But anyways, I have a question which seems a little
out of left field. I want to talk about the coach.
Is there any rankings that you know of? Ranking rating
like PFF does players on general managers.
Speaker 4 (43:25):
Not that I am aware of.
Speaker 5 (43:26):
There is a and I don't know who puts it out,
but there is a graphic and a chart that comes
out that assigns value to every team's draft pick. And
every five years they go back over that chart and
(43:46):
they move it along one year at a time in
five year segments, and they use a scoring system based
on is that guy a Pro Bowl player? Is that
guy an All Pro player? Is that guy a starter?
Is that guy a reserve. Is he still in the league,
Is he still on your team? There is such a
(44:07):
there is I do not, but there is such a
chart that exists.
Speaker 3 (44:11):
Because I was I was thinking about, like, actually, I'm
retired now, retired a few months ago, so I got
some time on my hands, and I was actually thinking
of doing something exactly like that. But I didn't know
if there was anything out there, you know, like it. Anyway,
on the head coaching search, I really want us to
(44:34):
go with a defensive minded coach. Defense has always been
what's really defined the Giants, and even though it's years
after we've had a championship or been you know, worrying
the rest of the NFC East, I really feel like
it's time to go home to defense. That's that's my thought. Obviously,
(45:00):
you want the best guy. If you interview ten people
for the job, and the guy that knocks you over
as far as a culture change is an offensive coach,
then yeah, I think you got to do that. But
I would go in with him. If I had a
fifty one to forty nine bias going into the interviews,
(45:21):
it would be to come with a defensive coach with
the tools to change the culture in the building, not
just on the field, in the building, and that you
and I are exactly the same age, Paul. We've been
we've been bleeding blue for exactly the same number of years.
(45:42):
And I think you're probably in line with me that yes,
they have to pick the best guy, but focusing on
defense when we've got so much talent on that side
of the line that's under performed so miserably, I think
(46:04):
we gotta go defense. And one last thing before I
let you go, which is, uh, you guys talk about
the kicking room. It's funny. I think SyTech and somebody
addresses the other day about a day or two after
I I tweeted out, because I'm thinking the same thing.
(46:26):
We've got to get a kicker, and I'm all for
spending some draft capital like a fifth like a third
day pick to lock in a kicker we want. And
the reason I wouldn't wait for an underdo the undrafted
free agent route is that a guy like I'm just
(46:48):
gonna throw a name out, a guy like Freeman from
U cun is going to be in demand. Why would
he come even though he's in cann I maybe he's
a giant gun. I don't know why would he come
to a team that is so miserably dysfunctional right now
when he's got the choice of the rest of the league. And,
(47:10):
by the way, one of the things I'm gonna lament
is if I were there betting now, then I'm not
I would bet that very Unfortunately, illumin Or is not
coming back, and we're gonna have a big, fat, stinking
haul and the right tackle because why would he a steady, durable,
(47:32):
solid citizen, wonderful player.
Speaker 5 (47:35):
Like that, A Jersey native who, by the way, is
a huge fan of Carmen Brisillo, the offensive line coach.
So there are two reasons why he would want to
come back.
Speaker 3 (47:45):
Yeah, but I'm just okay, you guys know better than
I do. I only know what comes filtered through the
media through his I love this guy. But if I
wanted to cash in and somebody's offering me, I'll make
up a number. If somebody's offering me sixteen million a
(48:05):
year at a good team with a good culture to
solidify their right tackle position, and the Giants are only
offering me thirteen or fourteen, where would you go?
Speaker 5 (48:18):
Yeah, it's not a slam dunk, Dave, I won't say that,
And I do think that. You know, while he has
expressed an interest in staying here, he certainly wants to
see if he can get paid. There's no doubt about
that too. Yeah, I'm I'm cautiously optimistic.
Speaker 4 (48:34):
Yeah, as a veteran that's kind of played his whole
career on you know, one or two year deals, not
for high amount of money, like after coming off his
best coming off his best season, I fully expected to
look for the best possible contract, whether it's here or
somewhere else.
Speaker 2 (48:50):
And I would have blamed it.
Speaker 3 (48:51):
Well, the Eagles may make them an offer. I mean
they have to. They have to beef that team up
and things like that. By the way, guys, and I
know you've got another caller. I'm working on that spreadsheet
of the last fifty years of interim coaches for you.
Speaker 4 (49:07):
All right, beg good Dave, Thanks thanks Dave.
Speaker 1 (49:11):
Uh.
Speaker 5 (49:11):
Marcus bow Is at this moment considered the Giants third tackle.
If Illuminar does take a free agent deal somewhere else,
Bo's gonna get the first shot.
Speaker 2 (49:22):
Or they could bring someone else in.
Speaker 4 (49:23):
Who knows. There's a whole offseason there is, there is
things play out. But but yeah, Marcus bow I probably
will get a look some consideration for sure if illumin
Or is not back. A couple of things he mentioned
Dave mentioned real quick. First of all, I hope Jermaine
does not go to Philadelphia very much so. But if
(49:46):
Lane is, assuming Lane Johnson does not retire, he will
not be going there because they have my Lotta and
Lane Johnson at the two tackle positions. So if Lane
Johnson retires, that's another story. Then it becomes a position
where the Philly needs to address it.
Speaker 2 (49:59):
But he's a walking injury Lane Johnson, I know.
Speaker 4 (50:01):
But when he's on the field, he's I know, probably
the best tackle right tackle in the league up there
at least. And then the other thing, real quick, if
you look at the last let's just call it like
five years of teams using draft capital to pick a kicker.
I feel like more often than not, that kicker is
on a new team within before that rookie contract is up,
(50:24):
so that I hesitate to, you know, spend at least
premiere any sort of premiere draft capital on a kicker,
just because you could sign a guy off the street
that could end up being a pro bowler. We've seen
it happen in this building. In the last decade with
various guys, so I hesitate to use draft capital kicker.
Speaker 2 (50:43):
That's just my personal opinion. I wouldn't do it either.
Speaker 5 (50:45):
Look, do me a favor because my voice is given out.
Can you read the Special Olympics promo? Because I know
we have to get that in before the end.
Speaker 2 (50:51):
Of the show.
Speaker 4 (50:52):
Yes, Special Olympics New Jersey's annual Snowball is heading to
Rutgers Football Stadium in twenty twenty six. This annual flag
for tournament will be on the field from March sixth
through the eighth of twenty twenty six. The six on
six tournament will feature competitive, recreational and co ed divisions.
All proceeds benefit thousands of Special Olympic New Jersey athletes
(51:14):
across the Garden State. Register your team today at njsnowbol
dot org and that's njsnowbol dot org.
Speaker 5 (51:22):
Giants Washington one o'clock Sunday. Pregame on WFAN Radio starts
at eleven am. Postgame is immediately following. Also on MSG
postgame immediately following the game as well. Anything else you want.
Speaker 4 (51:34):
To promote, I just see real quick, just one YouTube
comment that Pearson wrote down here, just want to just
address it real quick. Who would be considered the best
left tackle if in the league. If it's not Andrew Thomas.
Andrew Thomas certainly in the discussion, I would say this
year to Tristan Wurfs, Laramie Tunsall, Garrett Bowles, those four
are probably your top four left tackles real quick, Okay.
(51:54):
Promoting just the normal content, we get a game preview
on Giants dot com. In terms of articles, Dan Salmon
had his weekly one on one interview with Mike Kafka and.
Speaker 2 (52:06):
Yeah, I think that'll do it.
Speaker 5 (52:08):
Thanks for joining us on Big Blue Kickoff Live presented
by Cadillac, the official luxury vehicle of the New York
Football Giants. Coming to you from the Giants Podcast Studio
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you again next time.
Speaker 2 (52:19):
Everybody,
It's time for a Big Blue Kickoff line.
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Nobody can ever tell you that you couldn't do it because.
Speaker 1 (00:09):
You're on Giants dot com. Do you know what I
saw to York Giant Crime and the Giants Mobile at
seventeen Rial.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
One tun down.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
We all were old Taffer.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
What they did happen?
Speaker 1 (00:21):
Part of the Giants podcast network.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Let's go on the Crazy Dogs has fun.
Speaker 5 (00:27):
I get everybody, and Welcome to Friday's edition of Big
Blue Kickoff Live, presented by Cadillac, the official luxury vehicle
of the New York Football Giants.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
On Paul Tatino, He's Matt Sidetek.
Speaker 5 (00:37):
We'll be here for the next hour to talk Giants
football with you as they get ready to take on
the Washington Commanders here on Sunday at Metlive Stadium. The
voice is coming back, just to Tad. It was worse yesterday.
It's coming back, just to Tad. This is what happens
when you have a coughing fit in the middle of December. Uh,
it was bad on Wednesday night and I didn't even
(00:58):
know how I was gonna make it through yesterday.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
But I did a little bit better today. Not great,
but we're going to try to do our best.
Speaker 4 (01:05):
Have you still been doing your ten mile walks outside
in this weather?
Speaker 5 (01:09):
No?
Speaker 2 (01:09):
No, actually not, it's it's it's just yeah, this is
too much. It's just too much. I kind of took
a week off.
Speaker 5 (01:19):
In any event, We will be here for the next
hour to talk Giants football with you folks, as again.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
They get ready to take on Washington.
Speaker 5 (01:26):
As always, coming to you from the Giants Podcast Studio,
presented by Hackensack Meridian Health, Keep getting better and as always,
our numbers two duo one nine three nine four five
one three or social media it's hashtag Giants Chat. And
if you are not listening to the show live, we're
watching the show live. Our entire podcast network is available
(01:49):
on the Giants mobile app podcast platforms everywhere and at
giants dot com slash podcasts. Okay, we talked to Mike
Kafka just before practice earlier this morning, and.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
This was one of the.
Speaker 5 (02:03):
H I guess I could say least revealing Friday morning
pressers that we've had all season.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
It was pretty quick, it was, it was very quick.
Speaker 5 (02:13):
He did tell us that Thibodeau, who is definitely doing
better in terms of his rehab with his shoulder injury,
has some limited stuff he's able to do, but not
quite ready yet. So he's out against Washington that much,
he was able to tell us. He did not tell
(02:33):
us whether or not Jamie Gillen is going to punt
on Sunday. We do know that they brought in Cam
Johnston already yesterday, a veteran NFL kicker, in case he.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
Has to punt.
Speaker 4 (02:46):
Yeah. Kafka did say he was asked about Jamie specifically,
and he did say that Jamie is not going to
kick at practice today.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
Correct.
Speaker 4 (02:57):
However, unlike Kavon, who he did rule out BEFORECTICE, he
would not go so far as to rule Jamie out.
He said, they want to keep, you know, keep that
one open at least for now till after practice, maybe
maybe even tomorrow, and see if he progresses at all.
So he did, I guess, you know, give a little
bit of an update there. And then the only other
player he talked about on the injury front was Gunner Ochesky,
(03:19):
who he said has is continuing to progress through the
concussion protocol, is at the next step. Yesterday we saw
him upgrade from I.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Believe he was. Was he d NP Wednesday?
Speaker 4 (03:33):
Yeah, or maybe he was limited Wednesday but then upgraded
to limited yesterday, and.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
I guess he progressed.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
I would expect on the final on the injury report today,
It'll say I think, based on what Kafka said, barring
any setbacks, that he would be a full participant and
that he would shed the non contact designation that has
been on the injury report the last couple of earlies
on Wednesday, and assuming he he is a full participant
(04:01):
in today's practice and does not have any setbacks, I
would think that then either whether it's later today sometime tomorrow,
would be the appointment with the independent neurologist to hopefully
get that final clearance, and if he gets it, then
he should clear and be good to go for Sunday's game. Yeah,
a coach seemed very confident. Yes, he did say he expects, Yes,
(04:22):
barring a setback, he expects Gunner to clear in time.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Yes.
Speaker 5 (04:26):
So that would be really cool, because this is one
of the guys who I'm gonna be honest with you folks.
You know, we get a certain feel for certain guys
during the course of the year. He's a guy you
pull for. He just is I mean, I don't know
how else to describe it. He was a long shot
to make it to the NFL when he came out
of school and was able to hook on with the
(04:48):
Pats for a while. Actually, you know, wound up being
a sensational kick returner for a short time, made a
pro to one year as a return guy, and then
it got sidetracked, right, and then he thought he might
be out of the league, and then the Giants pick
him up, and then he thinks he's out of the
league again, and then the Giants bring him back. I
root for the guy because he's a blood and guts guy.
He's just a regular dude, and for his shake, for
(05:12):
his shake. I hope he's back, And I'll be honest
with you, I hope the Giants bring him back again
in the training camp next year and give him a
chance to win a job.
Speaker 2 (05:21):
I hope so too.
Speaker 4 (05:22):
But the Giants did make or do have some guys
on the practice squad ready to fill in and case
Gunner does not get that final clean they do. Of course,
Amir Smith Marsett has been on the practice squad all season,
but the Giants also brought back Exavier Gibson, who was
with the team for a brief stint earlier in the season,
then went to I believe the Eagles and was there
(05:42):
for a little bit, and he started at the Jets
the beginning of the season. So he's been all around
this little Tri state area. So both Smith, Marsett and
Gibson are on the practice squad and both have that
experience as kick returners in case Gunner does not get cleared.
But again, the the expectation, barring any setbacks, is that
he will get cleared. And I forgot. There was one
(06:04):
other injury update that Kafka did give, and that was
Tyler Nubit, who was added to the injury report yesterday
as a limited participant with a quad injury, and kaf
CAAs said he's fine. There's no concerns there at all.
He'll be good to go for Sunday's game.
Speaker 5 (06:19):
Now, of interest, the Giants did pick up a receiver yesterday.
Speaker 4 (06:26):
Yes, they finally filled that open roster spot that's been
sitting there all week.
Speaker 5 (06:30):
And to be honest, I was a little surprised because
it's not like the resume is just chock full of stuff.
Ryan Walter right, Ryan Miller Miller, Ryan Miller Miller, He
he hasn't played a whole ton, and in the limited
action that he has played, he hasn't done a lot either.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
He's mostly a special teams guy.
Speaker 4 (06:53):
I was gonna say, he's played primarily on special teams
for Buccaneers. This season. He's played about sixty percent of
their special team snaps. He's a big guy, six foot two,
two hundred and twenty pounds. Again, not much receiving production.
Last year, he had twelve catches for one hundred and
twenty eight yards two touchdowns. This season, two catches for
(07:16):
thirty four yards and a touchdown, So he hasn't really
been used much as a receiver in the offense. Again,
has played primarily in a lot on special teams in
the gunner role.
Speaker 5 (07:28):
So some of these, and I'll be honest with you, folks,
some of these back end of the depth chart moves,
bottom of the roster moves that they've been making, I
don't know if these things are necessarily meant so much
for today.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
As much as they are.
Speaker 5 (07:44):
They want to see guys, get a feel for them
and maybe wonder if during the offseason they may want
to put them on future reserve contracts and stuff of
that nature. Because I can't imagine, you know, you pick
up a guy like Miller and think, oh, my goodness,
he's going to help us try to win a game
in the next month.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
I don't think that's what you do.
Speaker 4 (08:01):
Yeah, was it you and I that spoke about this
two weeks ago or was it was iol of John
might have been job at it, But yeah, we gave
a heads up a couple of weeks ago that we
might start seeing some roster moves that you know, at
first you might look at it and be like, why
would they sign you know, player X to the practice
squad or bring claim this guy off of waivers And
it's the It's.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
Exactly what you just said. It's because not every roster.
Speaker 4 (08:23):
Move at this point, when you're two and eleven going
into week fifteen with four games left, not every roster
move is going to be made to simply just win.
In this last month. There will be some roster moves
where the Giants will bring guys in just to get
a little head start and get a look at a
guy to see, oh, maybe we do want to sign
this guy to a reserve future contract because as we
see every year, within what twenty four to forty eight
(08:46):
hours of the season ending, it's going to come out
that the Giants signed you know, anywhere between you know,
five to fifteen players to reserve future contracts. This is
a great time to get a close look at them
inside the building early to see maybe how their work
ethic is, see how they learn, how they pick up
the systems and stuff, how they interact with everyone else,
(09:07):
and just get a look at them on the practice
field for this last month before it breaks for the
off season, because once everyone leaves for the off season,
you can't bring guys in for visits for reserve future contracts.
Speaker 5 (09:17):
The other thing you have to keep in mind, too,
is that teams that are in contention, and I use
the word luxury in quotes, they don't have the luxury
of playing around with the back end of the roster
trying to find.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
Guys like this.
Speaker 4 (09:31):
No, they're worried about winning now exactly rightfully.
Speaker 5 (09:33):
So they need every roster spot to try to win
Sunday's game or Saturday or Monday whenever they're playing. When
you're an also ran at this point in the season, again,
you have that luxury to start playing around with those
kinds of guys.
Speaker 4 (09:49):
Yeah, so while you know, on paper, maybe we say, like,
I don't see what role Ryan Miller might have and
helping the Giants in these last four games. You never know,
first of all, you never know. Second one, well, as
we said, it could just be to get a look
at him in this last month and see is this
guy worth signing to or is there a future deal
to bring him into training camp and to really see
(10:09):
what he's got.
Speaker 5 (10:10):
In fact, one of those kinds of players. I personally
believe that's the reason they picked up Saul the kicker,
the former Pittsburgh Panthers kicker a couple of weeks ago.
He's a left footed kicker who has a really nice,
strong leg, and he did some good things in college.
And you know, he had a couple of camp visits
here this year with some pro teams. But the Giants
(10:33):
picked him up and they threw him on the practice squad. Now, again,
a team that is in contention, maybe they're a little
more leary about bringing in a quote project kind of guy. Certainly,
I mean, how many teams are going to carry an
extra kicker on the practice squad. You know, at the
time when the Giants brought Saul in, they already had
(10:53):
a bunch of kickers.
Speaker 4 (10:54):
I think it was when he brought in. I think
he was the fourth at that time.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
He was number four.
Speaker 5 (10:59):
Yeah, so you know there's a case where, hey, you
don't know, how is Ku going to work out over
the final month and a half.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
You don't know.
Speaker 5 (11:08):
Certainly if he does really well, you would anticipate that
you'd have a chance to resign him.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
And bring him back next year. You would think that.
Speaker 5 (11:16):
But just in case, You've got a chance to look
at this kid now for a month. And that's there's
another example of one of those guys that you look
at with the thought that maybe, just maybe there's an
opportunity there down the road for him.
Speaker 4 (11:30):
Yeah, and especially because you know we're talking about Ku
and Sauls Graham. Gano is under contract next year. However,
obviously with all the injuries he's dealt with the last
couple of years, and the fact that I believe he
doesn't have any guaranteed money left on the deal because
he'd be going into the final year, you know, depending
we don't even know whether his health if he's going
to play next year.
Speaker 2 (11:51):
Like it's very sign injury reserve right now.
Speaker 4 (11:53):
Yeah, it's very up in the air right now, especially
with the injury history, his age. Who knows if he's
you know, he could retire, We don't know, but yeah,
the Giants could be in the business of finding a
new kicker for the twenty twenty six season. So you
have Coup in right now and you're seeing how, you know,
how he plays, especially in the conditions of MetLife Stadium,
because it's very different obviously than playing in the Dome
(12:14):
in Atlanta where he came previously. And then you get
a good look at Saul's as well, to see if
you know one, if not both of them, maybe are
guys you want to bring back at the very least
for training camp work through the summer to see which
one you know, ends up being the kicker for twenty
twenty six.
Speaker 5 (12:29):
All right, folks, So that's a little bit of a
perspective as to what's happening with the lower part of
the roster. We really don't talk about that very much
because there's really no need. But I think it's important
to note that while some of these transactions are in
the fine print and they kind of go unnoticed, don't
let it fly under the radar too much. Do keep
(12:50):
it in mind, because at some point in time, maybe
as little as a month down the road, all of
a sudden, you're going to see that that guy signed
a reserve deal because they want to bring him the
training camp. And you'll say, oh, yeah, I remember they
had him in in December. So that's why I wanted
to bring that up as far as this game goes, folks,
you know, I was on Washington, DC Radio earlier this week,
(13:13):
and you know, we were kind of joking with the guys. Well,
it's just not Gibbs and Parcels we're talking about here,
some of the great classic Giants Redskins battles of the
eighties and nineties. No, these are two teams that certainly
expected to do a lot better this season. The Commanders, well,
they were coming off of twelve one year.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
I didn't think they'd come anything close to repeating that.
Speaker 5 (13:35):
But I certainly did not think that they'd be scraping
the floor in the basement like the Giants are right now.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
No, coming off an NFC championship run.
Speaker 4 (13:43):
You know, I didn't. I agree with you. I didn't
expect them to, you know, repeat that, but I certainly
thought they would at the very least you know, be
in the playoff hunt going into November December.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Well, here's what's interestingly not.
Speaker 5 (13:55):
Both of these teams have had a miserable time on
the defensive side the ball. Yeah, and you know, obviously
Giants fans are incredibly disappointed and shocked that that's happened here.
How do you think the Washington fans feel? Because Dan
Quinn is their head coach and he has always been
(14:16):
known for enhancing the strength of his defenses. Now, to
be fair, okay, to be fair, going into the season,
one of the weaknesses that we all thought was going
to be on this Washington team was their lack of
pass rush. Now, they basically brought Von Miller how to
the cobwebs to kind of help them because they were
(14:39):
so desperate for pass rush. We knew that was going
to be an issue, and it has been. The secondary
has been even worse of an issue than anybody could
have imagined. And Frankie Louver at linebacker is now missing
tackles at a crazy rate. And Bobby Wagner, well, you
know what, as awesome as he still is against the run,
(15:00):
he's got some trouble covering people now because the range
is starting to starting to go away.
Speaker 4 (15:06):
Yeah, but that's not that's the one guy on the defense.
I think you know you're right in in coverage, he
has not been the best the season, but basically every
other aspect of his game has been phenomenal.
Speaker 2 (15:16):
Once again, he's instinctive.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
He is one of just overall, one of the most
impressive players to me in the entire NFL. The fact
that he is fourteen years into his career and for
the most part, still playing at an all pro level
year in and year out is just wild. I mean,
he's third in the league in tackles. He's been phenomenal
against the run. He's been good in the past. Rush
(15:38):
coverage has been the one area where he's not been
that great. I agree with you.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
The other time catches up to everybody.
Speaker 4 (15:45):
Was he thirty five thirty six.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
It's amazing.
Speaker 4 (15:47):
Every other aspect of his game though, it was playing
very well. Frankie Luvu might be the biggest surprise on
that defense because he was an All Pro last year,
the second team All Pro. He was great, and then
he's just taken such a big step back this year,
which this season I would say is a little bit
more of what we kind of saw in his first
few years in Carolina, it was closer to that. This
(16:09):
season is closer to that than last year. So you know,
maybe last year was the outlier season. I don't know,
but yeah, this this defense, it struggled just as much
as the Giants defense has struggled this season. But on offense,
despite the defensive struggles, you would think that, you know,
(16:29):
with the defense giving up so many points and yards,
that the run game would kind of get abandoned and
they wouldn't have much success with it. But they've been
one of the best rushing teams in the NFL all season.
They ranked fourth in the NFL in rushing yards this
season at seventh in rushing yards per attempt. And that's
with them, you know, playing from behind, I would say
(16:50):
in most weeks, and yet they're still running the football
and having success, having success, whether it's Chris Rodriguez, Jacory
Krossky Merritt, even Jeremy McNichols a little bit, they seemed
to be finding succes no matter who's running with the ball.
Not to mention the quarterback situation obviously this week is Mariota,
but Mariota and Jane Daniels both have rushing ability in
(17:12):
their bag.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
How much do you think they'll lean on the run
now that zach Ertz has been lost for the season.
Speaker 4 (17:19):
That, combined with the weather on Sunday, whether or not
it snows, it's going to be very, very cold, I
would expect both teams to lean into the run, maybe
more so Washington because for their defense. The Washington defense,
again it's not been great overall, but the pass defense
has really really struggled.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Oh it's terrible.
Speaker 4 (17:40):
And so this is a good game for Jackson Dark
to hopefully take advantage of this great matchup and sort
of go back to what he was looking like the
beginning part of his starting tenure this season, at least
in terms of passing.
Speaker 5 (17:54):
I think what we've kind of read is that one
to three inches sometime overnight Saturday into early Sunday, but
it will stop by kickoff from what I've heard.
Speaker 4 (18:04):
So I've asked our director of event presentation, who's very
on top of the whole weather situation, and she said
that the forecast kind of keeps changing. The latest she heard,
as of I believe was yesterday evening, was that it
could be it's gonna probably be a couple of inches,
but it could end up being Saturday overnight and by
(18:28):
the time kickoff comes it could have completely stopped. Yeah,
we're gonna get a final weather report in a couple
of hours. I'm gonna go upstairs and get a final
weather report from her in a couple hours and see
what you know the professionals are saying about this forecast.
Speaker 2 (18:41):
But hopefully nothing will be final till Sunday morning, of.
Speaker 4 (18:44):
Course, of course, but hopefully it's Saturday night snow early
morning Sunday. I'm hoping by the time I'm driving out
here Sunday morning, there's no snow coming down from the guy.
Let it all be on the ground already, so there's
time to clear it out before kickoff.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
Yeah, that would be nice.
Speaker 5 (19:01):
So in any event, when looking at these two teams,
you know, there are a number of matchups that I
think are interesting, and certainly, to be honest, it will
be von Miller, who is at the right edge of
the Washington pass rush. As old as he is, and
if you look at his overall production, he's not doing
(19:23):
much against the running game at all. He's strictly in
there to try to get after the quarterback with whatever
juice he has left and he'll be going up against
Andrew Thomas, who I want to just interject this because
right before the show started, I asked Matt about do
we know where the updates are on the.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
Pro Bowl voting.
Speaker 5 (19:42):
Now we all know the Pro Bowl vote isn't as
important as the All NFL vote, because the All NFL vote,
which is also known as the All Pro Team, is
the one that's most significant, the one that is most
recognized by the league. That's the one that gets published
in the official NFL record books. Elias, the official statistician
recognizes it, the Associated Press recognizes it. That's the one
(20:04):
that carries the most beef amongst all of the all
Star teams that get named at the end of the season.
The Pro Bowl vote is obviously kind of wishy washy,
but it's still kind of nice to be recognized. The
thing that bothered me is that, you know, I haven't
been keeping track of some of the tabulations, but you
came back to me and said, I think Andrew Thomas
(20:26):
is like not in the top ten.
Speaker 4 (20:27):
Confirmed, he is not in the top ten right now,
that's what you're in the fan vote, that is a joke.
I agree, he's been one of the best tackles in
the league this season. He certainly deserves to be a
Pro Bowl. But I can't say I'm fully shot because
his breakout season in twenty twenty two, he was voted
or yeah, voted second team out Pro and didn't make
(20:49):
the posis not voted a Pro Bowler, which does not
make any sense.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
No, now, you know, it does happen. Okay, it does happen.
And I certainly hope that the.
Speaker 5 (21:00):
The writers who are in charge of the AP vote,
which becomes the old Pro Vote, I hope they're smart
enough to recognize that Andrew Thomas has been absolutely phenomenal.
I personally believe it's probably the best season I've seen
him have since he came to the Giants.
Speaker 4 (21:16):
You think it's better than twenty twenty two season, I do,
I honestly do. I think they're very comparable seasons. I
will say I'm probably cutting haars here, splitting hair. I'll
give the slight edge to this season just because in
twenty twenty two, Andrew Thomas was great at left tackle.
The rest of the line though, was not, you know,
(21:38):
the greatest, and it was his play did not help,
you know, sort of elevate the rest of the line
this season, it seems like his play like once he
got inserted into the lineup week three in the first half,
and then week four fully the whole entire unit, the
whole offensive line took a step up as a collective unit,
which we just didn't. That's not on Andrew Thomas in
(22:01):
twenty twenty two, but we just didn't see it like
we're seeing it this season, which of course that also
goes with the other guys. That's not a purely Andrew Tommins.
But since they're very comparable season, I'm going to give
the slight edge. I'm gonna agree with you and give
the slight edge to this season because the whole line
as a unit, this is the best offensive line we've
seen from the Giants in a while. I mean they
(22:21):
are I know you don't like PFF, but they PFF
releases offensive line rankings each week.
Speaker 2 (22:27):
Giants are at ten.
Speaker 4 (22:29):
I think all of us would have signed up for
a top ten offensive line before the season started. It
will be I think no doubt if you told us
that the Giants would have a top ten offense before
the season started, I think all of us would have
expected a better record than two and eleven, but nonetheless,
I guess we'll take the small victories.
Speaker 5 (22:47):
Yeah, yeah, I mean I think, you know, at least
in twenty two he had the consistency of Daniel Jones
behind him every week, he had the consistency of Barkley.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
Yeah, you know.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
Also true, this has been a little.
Speaker 5 (23:00):
Bit of a mismash as the running back situation has
been a revolving door because of injury, and the quarterback
thing also has been.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
A revolving door.
Speaker 5 (23:08):
Now he didn't play at the beginning of the year
when Russell Wilson was in there, but he has had
to deal with both Winston and dark Yeah, so there
one half of Russell Wilson, Yes, the first half that
Week three game where he played the first half. Correct,
So I mean there's been variables, I guess for sure,
which which I'm giving him a little extra credit for
(23:30):
being able to overcome variables and still produce at the
incredible level that he has.
Speaker 4 (23:35):
The rest of the line, though, has been healthy. I mean,
obviously JMS missed a couple of games. Schlowman, though, filled
in very admirably when Schmidt's was down, and Jermaine missed
what one game one or two one. I think it
was one one game where Marcus Ball filled in admirably.
Speaker 2 (23:54):
Is it okay? Did okay?
Speaker 4 (23:56):
But as an overall unit, this is like the most
consistent production, the most consistent lineup on a weekend and
week out basis we've the Giants have had in years, all.
Speaker 5 (24:08):
Right, So let's let's just hit a couple of these matchups, folks.
Two on one nine three, nine four five three year
is our phone number. So I think it's an interesting matchup. Nonetheless,
the aging von Miller against Andrew Thomas, I think it's
still rue. I give the edge too in that mass
Well obviously, I mean Thomas should have no trouble shutting
(24:29):
him out in my opinion, But nonetheless, because of von
Miller's pedigree, and he's going to the Hall of Fame,
okay for sure, So whatever he's got left and he
does lead the commanders and saxes, he does.
Speaker 2 (24:40):
I think he's at six and a half.
Speaker 5 (24:41):
Sick six and a half, and he's got a lot
of pride. Let's face, he knows who Andrew Thomas is,
and he knows that this is a chance. And I
don't know how many, if if he's even going to
play next year. He's gonna want to go out and
show people, hey, I could still play against the best
and still be effective. I think this is gonna be
It's gonna be a matchup I'm gonna want to watch anyway,
(25:04):
even though Miller's on his last legs. Another interesting matchup
to watch. I think Laramie Tunsel at left tackle, depending
upon how the Giants wind up playing Burns and corner.
We've seen they have flopped. I know Burns has played
some more on the other side. We don't know how
(25:24):
they're gonna play it this week, but no matter who
is lining up against Tunsle, that should be another really
fun matchup because you're talking about two of the best
left tackles in the game being on the same field.
Speaker 4 (25:35):
Yeah, this is the matchup that I was actually most
interested in. Actually, both of the Commander's tackle matchups where
the two that I'm most interested to see because so
Brian Burns has primarily lined up on the left edge,
so going up against the right time since Kaevon got hurt, Yes,
since Kaevon got hurt. Now it's not every single snap,
(25:57):
but he's taken more snaps on that side, so that
would leave especially because again cape I got ruled out
this morning, Abdul Carter to face a lot of Laramie Tunsael.
It's not going to be every snap, but he's going
to get a lot of the veteran and Laramie Tunzel
is right, as you said, is right up there with
Andrew Thomas among the league's top left tackles. He's been
(26:20):
phenomenal this season.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
He did give up a sack to the Giants in
Week one.
Speaker 4 (26:26):
Since then, PFF has him down for one additional sack
allowed in the next twelve games and only fourteen total pressures.
He is PFF's number three offensive tackle in pass protection,
number eight tackle overall.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
He's very good.
Speaker 4 (26:43):
This is probably going to be Abdull Carter's toughest matchup
of the season. But to Abduall Carter's credit, Obviously, prior
to the buy, Abdul had his own we'll call it,
you know, some disciplinary issues that everyone's put behind now.
(27:04):
But he did get benched for that first first quarter
against the Patriots, right, but once he came onto the
field at the start of the second quarter, he was great.
He had probably his best game of the season. First
full sack.
Speaker 2 (27:20):
That's great.
Speaker 4 (27:20):
I mean Drake may kind of ran into him for
that sack, but nonetheless we'll take the first full sack.
Six total pressures according to ESPN Analytics, and this is
the stat that I think shows that Carter has been
better than his numbers, the box score numbers will say
he ranks ninth among all edge rushers in past rush
(27:44):
win rate, yes, at eighteen percent. So he and that's
even better than Burns who's eleventh in that stat. So
he's been having success. It just has not resulted in
a ton of sacks. But hopefully after the Patriots game,
the final three quarters where he did play well, and
obviously the second off the field issue in three weeks,
(28:06):
you know, hopefully that kind of lights a spark underneath
him going into this final month of the season. He
is one of the guys that I think this last
month is the most important too. You know, I would
say all the young guys, but Abdul and Jackson are
the two guys that I really want to see step
up in a big way in this final month because
they if the Giants are going to have success, any
success in twenty twenty six, those two guys are going
(28:28):
to play very big roles in that and so I
want to see them start to play well, gain some
momentum and some confidence. Jackson, obviously, I don't think he
lacks in any sort of confidence as we hear.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
Him, you know, speak to the media each week, and
I don't think.
Speaker 4 (28:42):
Abdul does either. But Abdul hasn't had the same on
field production and success that Jackson has had this season,
so I would really like to see him get going
in this final month. It's not going to be easy
going up against Laramie Tunsel, but if he could get
a sack or even just a couple of pressures off
of tons, that would go a long way, and having
the young twenty two year old gain some confidence going
(29:06):
into this the final stretch, the offseason, going into next year,
and then just on the other side real quick where
Brian Burns will, I guess primarily be lining up against
Josh Connery Junior, the rookie right tackle struggle to start
the season. Connor pick, first round pick late first round pick,
really struggled at the start of the season, was credited
with four sacks allowed in the first two weeks of
(29:28):
the season, but since then he has been a lot better.
He's only allowed two sacks and twenty four pressures over
the last eleven games since that rough opener, So despite
the rough start, he has been a lot better. He
was one of the top tackles going into this past
year's draft. So Brian Burns and Abdul Carter going up
(29:49):
against these two doesn't matter which one's going up against which.
Those are the two matchups I'm most excited to see
on Sunday.
Speaker 5 (29:56):
Now, when you consider the Commanders have a solid rushing
which you've already alluded to earlier in the program, and
we were expecting potentially some nasty weather, we just don't
know exactly well, you have to take note that the
Commanders when they run behind right tackle are averaging over
eight yards of carry on forty one rushes. The eight
(30:18):
yard average per carry behind right tackle leads the National
Football League. When they run right up Connarley's back, they
have been dominant in the run game. It stands to
reason that they're going to want to feed whoever is
in the backfield and tell them to run behind right tackle.
Speaker 3 (30:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (30:41):
Not only that, that's the good Washington stat of running
outside the right tackle.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
Now tell them the Giants pour outside against the run. Yes,
that's exactly where I was going. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (30:55):
So through thirteen games on runs to the outside, so
that's not just their tackle or the right left edge,
but both edges, the Giants have allowed the most yards
per carry at seven point zero, the highest success rate
at fifty four point eight percent, and the highest explosive
(31:15):
play rate, which at twenty five percent. Explosive play rate
I believe is ten or more yard twenty more yards in.
Speaker 2 (31:21):
This case depends. I think, I think which.
Speaker 4 (31:25):
Ten for the running play? I think ten plus yards.
They're the worst run defense in like all the metrics
when it comes to rushes to the outside. So put
that with Washington, Washington's success of running to the outside,
and hopefully, and I'm sure it will be that that
has been a big talking point in this building this
(31:46):
week leading up to Sunday. The Giants know that they're
going to try to run to the outside, So let's
hope that they obviously come prepare to stop that, because
if they can stop that part of the Washington game,
this Washington offense might have some trouble moving up and
down the field.
Speaker 5 (32:02):
All right, let's go to the phones, Alex and Sarah
qu Show Online too, your first up on the show.
Speaker 3 (32:07):
Hello, Thank guys. How we're doing today? Hi?
Speaker 6 (32:11):
Good, good, Hey. I just wanted to sort of talk
about Obviously, season has been disappointing, to say the least.
The thing that's hard for me though, is it's and
I keep having these conversations where you guys have said
this too, which is like, it's really disappointing because we're
playing I think some of the best certainly offensive football
that I've seen this team play in I don't know,
(32:33):
a decade maybe, and so to see the results not
show up and now just sort of see the turnover.
I think a lot of Giants fans have this like
weird misled belief that like that changing the scheme and
changing all the coaches and that these things are that
they're not going to have the effect that they might have,
that this that the success will be lined. But and
(32:55):
I just think, you know, asking people to learn new
systems and all that stuff, I'm scared of it. I mean,
at this point it seems like it's inevitable obviously at
this point. So a question for you is that the
things that I would like to see in these last
few games are are the top three things I'd like
to see are. I want to see this defense have
(33:15):
start to look a little bit like what we thought
this defense could look like. And I'm sure it'll be
a little too little, too late, but like at least
show us like, oh that, yeah, the money invested didn't
pan out this year, but that there's hope for the
future for this defense. For sure. I want to obviously
continue to see Jackson Dart look the way he's looked
and continue to develop. And then you know, I also
(33:38):
think I don't know what happened to those special teams
last week, but that was looking pretty promising too, And
I'd like to see us return to some semblance of
like respectable specialists. I just want to see all three
phases like look strong going into this offseason, so that
there's some justification for some amount of continuity. To be honest,
I'd love for Brisillo to be back, because God forbid
(33:58):
we go back to the offensive line for however many years, it's.
Speaker 3 (34:02):
Finally looking good.
Speaker 6 (34:03):
Yeah, And so here's my last thing I'll leave with.
I'm curious to get your thoughts on it. And I
know it's a little early to be doing like the
whole head coach search thing at this moment, but it's coming.
And I've been sort of a proponent of keeping Kafka
on if for no other reason than just to keep
some offensive continuity, But that's not enough of a reason.
And so my new sort of hope is, if we
(34:25):
were to bring Spags back as our coordinator as our
head coach, do you think there's any chance that Kafka's
a little more likely to stay on as offensive coordinator
given their past relationship working together, Because I would love if,
if he isn't given the head coaching job, at least
keep him on for our offensive coordinator, because I think
he's done a really nice job offensively this year. So
(34:46):
that those are my questions for you.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
Appreciate the call. Thank you, Alex, Thanks Alex Well.
Speaker 5 (34:51):
I will say this, Mike Kafka, as far as I know,
does have one year left on his contract.
Speaker 2 (34:58):
Do you are you are you on board with that that?
I don't know. I don't know if coaching contracts aren't
typically Okay.
Speaker 5 (35:05):
Well, I think I guess what I'm telling you is
reality may be also different than paperwork, but I believe
paperwork there would be a possibility that Mike Kafka could
stay even if they decided to name a defensive minded
(35:25):
head coach in that spot. Now, whether or not he
would want to, or whether or not he would get
another opportunity to go somewhere else to be a head coach,
those are things that I would not even speculate on.
But in theory, if they named a defensive minded head coach,
and you're right, Spags and him did work together in
Kansas City, in theory, could that potentially be a possibility.
(35:51):
I guess I wouldn't rule it out, but I just
don't know how likely it is, given that we don't
have the other parts of that equation.
Speaker 4 (35:59):
Yeah, I mean, as we've come to learn, never seen ever,
like you never know what could happen. The only thing
that I kind of question is I can't think of
a situation, and I could just be not remembering, but
I can't think of a situation where a coach was
named interim head coach in the middle of a season,
finished out the season coaching for that team, then the
(36:20):
team decides to hire someone else from the outside as
the head coach, and then that guy returns to his
old position.
Speaker 2 (36:26):
Yeah, it would It would take a unique set of circumstances.
Speaker 4 (36:28):
Can you remember a situation of that? I could just
be completely forgetting, but I just cannot well remember.
Speaker 5 (36:35):
Well, you know why, because the Giants haven't been in
this situation very often, And I can't honestly tell you
that I keep trackable the interim head coaches.
Speaker 2 (36:44):
That have been in the NFL for the last fifty years. Yeah,
it's just not something that you usually keep track of.
Speaker 4 (36:49):
But on paper, I mean that sounds like a situation where,
you know, the interim head coach would say, like you
passed me over for the job that I've just held
for the last whiles. You just don't know why should
I go, you know, take a demotion.
Speaker 2 (37:02):
That's again I'm talking about on paper.
Speaker 5 (37:04):
I'm not saying it's realistic, but it is what it is.
I will say this, you know, there are four games left.
What if the Giants go on a four game winning
streak and absolutely blister their next four teams? Now, I'm sorry,
you guys are gonna laugh and go ahead if you
want to. But they're playing Washington, They're playing Las Vegas,
(37:27):
they're playing Minnesota, they're playing Dallas. Are you honestly gonna
sit here and tell me the Giants can't win all
four of those games.
Speaker 4 (37:36):
No, they can for sure. I mean, the next three
opponents are all teams with losing records that are in
similar situation to the Giants. The only one that has
a winning record is the Cowboys. But that game is
in week eighteen, when they might be.
Speaker 2 (37:48):
In five hundred. They're not winning. There's six, six and one. Okay, fair,
they don't even have a winning record.
Speaker 5 (37:54):
Yeah, and by the way, they were getting their butts
kicked at home until we gave them the game.
Speaker 4 (37:58):
And they But by a week eighteen when the Giants
play the Cowboys, they could be eliminated and they could
be under five hundred at that part too, So I ask.
Speaker 2 (38:05):
You, so then, is it not possible the Giants could
win four in a row. No, they could.
Speaker 4 (38:09):
But my only thing is, I don't think you you
should make decisions about, you know, the future of this
franchise just based on the next four games alone. Like,
even if you win the next four games, I don't
think that necessarily means Okay, let's just run everything back
because you got this late momentum. Agreed, season, agreed, But
it would but it would not shock me if the
(38:29):
Giants four and oh maybe just because we're two and eleven,
so I get you know, could we win a couple
of those games?
Speaker 3 (38:36):
For sure?
Speaker 4 (38:37):
I think there's a good chance we do win one
or two of these final games.
Speaker 5 (38:40):
You would have to chew on those games a little
more thoroughly. If they wound up going on a roll
here and looked really, really good, you'd have to give
them heavier consideration than you might otherwise do.
Speaker 4 (38:52):
Yeah, but at the same time, as you just mentioned,
you got to keep in mind the opponents in these
four games. That's why I was very interested to see
the little stretch leading into the buy, because that was
our last stretch of games against playoff contenders, teams that
are really in the hunt. And if you know, the
Giants had ripped off a couple of wins against you know,
the stretch against the NFC North or the Patriots, who
(39:14):
at the time were the number one seed in the AFC,
that would have been a lot different than you know,
winning a couple of games in this final stretch. You
still obviously want to go out and try to win
ball games because again, and Jackson Dart spoke about this
before the bye, the guys in the locker room do
believe in momentum carrying from the end of one season
into the next. Whether people at home, whether fans do
(39:34):
or not, might be another story. But the guys in
the locker room that are going to be here next year,
they do think that is a real thing. So I
do think it would be good, obviously if the Giants
do win a couple of these games, just get some
confidence and sort of remind themselves like, oh, yeah, this
is what it feels like to win football games, because
hopefully next year the Giants are winning a lot more
football games than they have been this year.
Speaker 5 (39:55):
I do believe there is something to having young players
at the pro level learn how to win games after
they've just lost a bunch of them. You know, I've
been saying this now for what the last decade. As
we go into December and people talk about, well, is
it really better for the team to win? No, I
don't believe there's any carryover. No, I don't believe in
(40:17):
that at all. The momentum stops when the season is over.
What I do believe is that young players who experience
winning at the NFL level, especially if they have not
done it, before can learn something from that which they
may be able to use in the following season. That
I believe momentum, I do not believe.
Speaker 4 (40:38):
All right, I was just going by what Jackson himself,
I understand said a couple of weeks ago. But I agree,
especially because the Giants have lost so many games, you know,
in the final couple of minutes, minute or two. How
many times does that happen, you know, since that overtime
or since the win against the Eagles more often than
we would like. So yeah, I agree that I think
there is a benefit to these young guys who will
(41:00):
be here next year again learning how to at like
properly close out games and come up with these victories
in these close one possession games, no matter who. Definitely
some benefit to that, absolutely, And I will say just
because to the point that you may have, you know,
some people saying, like, what benefit wouldn't it be more
beneficial to you know, lose the games in order for
you know, to help you you won't even go there
(41:22):
draft stock, which unfortunately we've had this conversation every year
for the last couple of years now. But I would
say the one difference this year than in the years
prior is the Giants aren't in the business of drafting
a quarterback at the top of the first round next year.
The last couple of years, the quarterback position has been
a very big question mark where I can, again, no
(41:44):
one in this building, whatever you know, say like we
need to lose games. Everyone's always trying to win, and
as they should in this building. But I can somewhat
understand people outside the building saying it's more beneficial to
lose to get higher to the number one pick if
you're still in the business of looking for a franchise quarterback.
We know that Jackson Dart is going to be the
(42:04):
quarterback next year. I'm not sitting here saying he's the
franchise quarterback moving forward for the next decade. He needs
to you know, things change very quickly in the NFL.
John and I were talking about this the other day.
You need to win, You need to have success year
in a year out in order to become a franchise quarterback.
So I'm not ready to go there yet, but I
am confident in saying I don't believe the Giants will
(42:25):
be looking for a quarterback in this upcoming draft, which
makes having you know, the number two or three pick
or the number six or seven pick less significant.
Speaker 5 (42:36):
Agree, We go to David Michigan. You're next on the show. Hello, Hello, Hey,
how's it going on?
Speaker 3 (42:45):
I believe it or not, this is my first call
all season.
Speaker 4 (42:50):
Nice to hear from you again.
Speaker 3 (42:51):
Wow, I've been I've been. I know, Paul, we bounced
back and forth on an act, but this is my
first actual call. I've been overcome with enthusiasm and joy
on Mondays that I haven't been able to dial the phone.
Speaker 2 (43:05):
I understand.
Speaker 3 (43:07):
But anyways, I have a question which seems a little
out of left field. I want to talk about the coach.
Is there any rankings that you know of? Ranking rating
like PFF does players on general managers.
Speaker 4 (43:25):
Not that I am aware of.
Speaker 5 (43:26):
There is a and I don't know who puts it out,
but there is a graphic and a chart that comes
out that assigns value to every team's draft pick. And
every five years they go back over that chart and
(43:46):
they move it along one year at a time in
five year segments, and they use a scoring system based
on is that guy a Pro Bowl player? Is that
guy an All Pro player? Is that guy a starter?
Is that guy a reserve. Is he still in the league,
Is he still on your team? There is such a
(44:07):
there is I do not, but there is such a
chart that exists.
Speaker 3 (44:11):
Because I was I was thinking about, like, actually, I'm
retired now, retired a few months ago, so I got
some time on my hands, and I was actually thinking
of doing something exactly like that. But I didn't know
if there was anything out there, you know, like it. Anyway,
on the head coaching search, I really want us to
(44:34):
go with a defensive minded coach. Defense has always been
what's really defined the Giants, and even though it's years
after we've had a championship or been you know, worrying
the rest of the NFC East, I really feel like
it's time to go home to defense. That's that's my thought. Obviously,
(45:00):
you want the best guy. If you interview ten people
for the job, and the guy that knocks you over
as far as a culture change is an offensive coach,
then yeah, I think you got to do that. But
I would go in with him. If I had a
fifty one to forty nine bias going into the interviews,
(45:21):
it would be to come with a defensive coach with
the tools to change the culture in the building, not
just on the field, in the building, and that you
and I are exactly the same age, Paul. We've been
we've been bleeding blue for exactly the same number of years.
(45:42):
And I think you're probably in line with me that yes,
they have to pick the best guy, but focusing on
defense when we've got so much talent on that side
of the line that's under performed so miserably, I think
(46:04):
we gotta go defense. And one last thing before I
let you go, which is, uh, you guys talk about
the kicking room. It's funny. I think SyTech and somebody
addresses the other day about a day or two after
I I tweeted out, because I'm thinking the same thing.
(46:26):
We've got to get a kicker, and I'm all for
spending some draft capital like a fifth like a third
day pick to lock in a kicker we want. And
the reason I wouldn't wait for an underdo the undrafted
free agent route is that a guy like I'm just
(46:48):
gonna throw a name out, a guy like Freeman from
U cun is going to be in demand. Why would
he come even though he's in cann I maybe he's
a giant gun. I don't know why would he come
to a team that is so miserably dysfunctional right now
when he's got the choice of the rest of the league. And,
(47:10):
by the way, one of the things I'm gonna lament
is if I were there betting now, then I'm not
I would bet that very Unfortunately, illumin Or is not
coming back, and we're gonna have a big, fat, stinking
haul and the right tackle because why would he a steady, durable,
(47:32):
solid citizen, wonderful player.
Speaker 5 (47:35):
Like that, A Jersey native who, by the way, is
a huge fan of Carmen Brisillo, the offensive line coach.
So there are two reasons why he would want to
come back.
Speaker 3 (47:45):
Yeah, but I'm just okay, you guys know better than
I do. I only know what comes filtered through the
media through his I love this guy. But if I
wanted to cash in and somebody's offering me, I'll make
up a number. If somebody's offering me sixteen million a
(48:05):
year at a good team with a good culture to
solidify their right tackle position, and the Giants are only
offering me thirteen or fourteen, where would you go?
Speaker 5 (48:18):
Yeah, it's not a slam dunk, Dave, I won't say that,
And I do think that. You know, while he has
expressed an interest in staying here, he certainly wants to
see if he can get paid. There's no doubt about
that too. Yeah, I'm I'm cautiously optimistic.
Speaker 4 (48:34):
Yeah, as a veteran that's kind of played his whole
career on you know, one or two year deals, not
for high amount of money, like after coming off his
best coming off his best season, I fully expected to
look for the best possible contract, whether it's here or
somewhere else.
Speaker 2 (48:50):
And I would have blamed it.
Speaker 3 (48:51):
Well, the Eagles may make them an offer. I mean
they have to. They have to beef that team up
and things like that. By the way, guys, and I
know you've got another caller. I'm working on that spreadsheet
of the last fifty years of interim coaches for you.
Speaker 4 (49:07):
All right, beg good Dave, Thanks thanks Dave.
Speaker 1 (49:11):
Uh.
Speaker 5 (49:11):
Marcus bow Is at this moment considered the Giants third tackle.
If Illuminar does take a free agent deal somewhere else,
Bo's gonna get the first shot.
Speaker 2 (49:22):
Or they could bring someone else in.
Speaker 4 (49:23):
Who knows. There's a whole offseason there is, there is
things play out. But but yeah, Marcus bow I probably
will get a look some consideration for sure if illumin
Or is not back. A couple of things he mentioned
Dave mentioned real quick. First of all, I hope Jermaine
does not go to Philadelphia very much so. But if
(49:46):
Lane is, assuming Lane Johnson does not retire, he will
not be going there because they have my Lotta and
Lane Johnson at the two tackle positions. So if Lane
Johnson retires, that's another story. Then it becomes a position
where the Philly needs to address it.
Speaker 2 (49:59):
But he's a walking injury Lane Johnson, I know.
Speaker 4 (50:01):
But when he's on the field, he's I know, probably
the best tackle right tackle in the league up there
at least. And then the other thing, real quick, if
you look at the last let's just call it like
five years of teams using draft capital to pick a kicker.
I feel like more often than not, that kicker is
on a new team within before that rookie contract is up,
(50:24):
so that I hesitate to, you know, spend at least
premiere any sort of premiere draft capital on a kicker,
just because you could sign a guy off the street
that could end up being a pro bowler. We've seen
it happen in this building. In the last decade with
various guys, so I hesitate to use draft capital kicker.
Speaker 2 (50:43):
That's just my personal opinion. I wouldn't do it either.
Speaker 5 (50:45):
Look, do me a favor because my voice is given out.
Can you read the Special Olympics promo? Because I know
we have to get that in before the end.
Speaker 2 (50:51):
Of the show.
Speaker 4 (50:52):
Yes, Special Olympics New Jersey's annual Snowball is heading to
Rutgers Football Stadium in twenty twenty six. This annual flag
for tournament will be on the field from March sixth
through the eighth of twenty twenty six. The six on
six tournament will feature competitive, recreational and co ed divisions.
All proceeds benefit thousands of Special Olympic New Jersey athletes
(51:14):
across the Garden State. Register your team today at njsnowbol
dot org and that's njsnowbol dot org.
Speaker 5 (51:22):
Giants Washington one o'clock Sunday. Pregame on WFAN Radio starts
at eleven am. Postgame is immediately following. Also on MSG
postgame immediately following the game as well. Anything else you want.
Speaker 4 (51:34):
To promote, I just see real quick, just one YouTube
comment that Pearson wrote down here, just want to just
address it real quick. Who would be considered the best
left tackle if in the league. If it's not Andrew Thomas.
Andrew Thomas certainly in the discussion, I would say this
year to Tristan Wurfs, Laramie Tunsall, Garrett Bowles, those four
are probably your top four left tackles real quick, Okay.
(51:54):
Promoting just the normal content, we get a game preview
on Giants dot com. In terms of articles, Dan Salmon
had his weekly one on one interview with Mike Kafka and.
Speaker 2 (52:06):
Yeah, I think that'll do it.
Speaker 5 (52:08):
Thanks for joining us on Big Blue Kickoff Live presented
by Cadillac, the official luxury vehicle of the New York
Football Giants. Coming to you from the Giants Podcast Studio
presented by Hackensack Meridian Hells. Keep getting better. We'll see
you again next time.
Speaker 2 (52:19):
Everybody,
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