Big Blue Kickoff Live 9/3 | Prep for Week One

Madelyn Burke and Shaun O’Hara discuss the Giants matchups with the Commanders, talk about the Giants receiving core, and take calls from fans.

0:00 - Giants vs Commanders

13:00 - Calls

24:00 - Youtube questions

30:00 - Wide receivers

43:00 - Starting fast

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
It's time for a Big Blue Kickoff line.

Speaker 2 (00:07):
Nobody can ever tell you that you couldn't do it
because you're.

Speaker 3 (00:10):
On Giants dot Com. You know what, I saw you
York Giant Crime and the Giants Mobile App.

Speaker 4 (00:16):
Seventeen one time down.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
We all we're all tapering it.

Speaker 3 (00:21):
Well happen part of the Giants podcast Network.

Speaker 1 (00:24):
Let's dog has a hot Welcome into Big Blue Kickoff
Live presented by Cadillac, Madeline Burke, Sean O'Hara hanging out
in studio. It's Wednesday, my dudes, the show brought to
you by Cadillac in the Giants Podcast Studio, presented by
Hackensack Meridian Health. Keep getting Better. Just a reminder before

(00:44):
we get started to that there's an archive of this
show and our entire podcast network on the Giants Mobile App,
on podcast platforms everywhere, and on giants dot com Slash podcast.
It's Wednesday, my dudes, but it's also week one Shot Go.
It is go time. The Giants have the Commanders Sunday
at one pm at Washington to start the season. Have

(01:07):
jazz are you for this one?

Speaker 3 (01:08):
You know what? I'm so pumped up and on my
way over here. I was just kind of looking outside
and just kind of thinking about back when I was
a player and how excited I was for Week one,
Like the anticipation as a team of you know what,
it's a clean slate. We got a new team, you
know for the Giants. You've got a new quarterback in
Russell Wilson. There's all this new energy, and I think

(01:32):
this is the most positive preseason that the Giants have
had in a long time. There's so much great momentum,
there's so many great things to build on from what
happened in the preseing games and in training camp. And
I know, if I'm a player in the locker right
now for the Giants, I can't wait. I can't wait
to get to Sunday at one o'clock. I can't wait
to get on that train and go down to Washington.
And I think it's a great Week one matchup for

(01:55):
the Giants. This is a team that the Giants really
have kind of pounded for the last years, if you
strap lay over the last five years. But they lost
twice last year. They lost both games. They got swept.
That hasn't happened in a lot of time.

Speaker 1 (02:09):
That Week two games, that Week two game was an astress,
though Washington won with onlyfield goals and Graham Gano was
injured on the first play.

Speaker 3 (02:16):
A record, right, they say, They said an NFL record
is the first team to lose a game, Yeah, without
giving up a touchdown.

Speaker 1 (02:25):
Well, no, because Monday Night Football Bears Cardinals where Denny
Green lost it on the podium. You want to crown.
The Bears won without any offensive touchdowns. They did have
special teams touchdowns though, and yeah, so they had touchdowns.

Speaker 3 (02:38):
Pulled his hammy on the opening kickoff, Yeah, and then
that just spiral and they ended up losing by three
to your point. So they sacked Jane Daniels five times
in that game. The Giants Steven's got off to a
hot start last year. I'm sure we'll get into that
a little bit. But I think offensively for the Giants,
we saw a lot of production. All preseason training came.

(02:58):
We were talking about there needs to be progress offensively,
and that progress needs to be production and it's points.
So you know we're down with opp You know, offensive
production in points will do you know me?

Speaker 1 (03:09):
So Listen'll be.

Speaker 3 (03:10):
This will be fun. I think the players can't wait
to get to there's a there's a lot of leadership
on this team.

Speaker 1 (03:16):
I feel like in a lot of layer driven leadership too.

Speaker 3 (03:19):
Yeah, that means that there's it carries more week.

Speaker 1 (03:22):
I agree, it's accountability. I think you know, in any regard,
if your boss tells you to do something, you hear
it one way. But if your peer or your friend
or your colleague kind of echoes that same sentiment, it
feels a little bit more personal. A lot of excitement
around this team. The vibes are high. You mentioned the points.
Giants had thirty plus points in every preseason game. We'll
see if that trend continues, if the offense continues to

(03:43):
roll in Week one, let's get it going. But we
want to hear from you guys as well. To A
one nine three nine four five one three is the
phone number two A one nine three nine four five
one three, or you can participate on social media at
hashtag Giants Chat or chime in in the YouTube comments.
But a lot of conversation to get into around this
Week one. We mentioned, you know, there's a lot of excitement,

(04:06):
a lot of optimism that you can feel from the
fan base, from the media, from people covering this team.
Brian Dabele right now is at the podium addressing the media.
Big storyline, of course, earlier this week was the unofficial
depth chart that came out from Giants' public relations that
listed Jackson Dart as the backup quarterback. Davill was asked
about that, he said, all three quarterbacks will be ready

(04:27):
to play on Sunday, and that is kind of where
he's leaving it right now. He also mentioned that everyone
is out there practicing there having a padded practice today,
including Andrew Thomas, Theo Johnson. Just going to kind of
see how these guys rev up for the week. Yeah,

(04:47):
there's three practice days this week Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, travel
on Saturday, game day on Sunday, Sean.

Speaker 3 (04:53):
So this is kind of the start of what the
regular season week schedule will look like. Now, it's a
little bit different because you're coming off of Labor Day weekend.
In years past, when there was four pricing games, the
last pricing game was always that Thursday night before Labor
Day weekend, so you kind of had a couple of
days off of the Usually we'd come back Monday, practice,
be off Tuesday, and then Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, your normal

(05:15):
weekly schedule, So under that premise, Wednesday was always your
big full padded you know, working on first and second
down run plays. We used to call it nine on seven.
Now they call it something different because they don't want
that clear that Moniker on such a physical team period.
But Wednesday is huge, you know, install, here's our game

(05:38):
plan for Washington, Here's what we're going to try to
do against them, and what their defense is going to
try to do against us. So that's obviously something that
you're putting in Wednesday, and some of these guys are
seeing it for the first time, you know, listen for us,
this is his first time in a game week Jackson Dart.
Obviously as a rookie, one of the hardest things to

(05:59):
do as the number quarterback is you've got to mentally
be locked in like you're starting the game, even though
you're not. You're not getting all of the reps as well.
Russell will probably take all the first team reps, you know,
and jacksonar will probably get some. So that's always hard
to kind of get thrust into it without getting all
of the actual reps. So mentally you got to stay
locked in.

Speaker 1 (06:17):
That's also why you know, we saw Brian Dable, and
he talked to us, especially in our production meetings before
the game broadcast, about how he was deliberate about putting
not just the players but the coaching staff in uncomfortable
situations and kind of surprising them with certain moments.

Speaker 2 (06:30):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (06:30):
One of those moments did include pulling Russ out for
a place, sending Jackson dart in to say, hey, you know,
got to go in there, make a play. Are you ready?

Speaker 2 (06:38):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (06:38):
He hit Theo Johnson a thirty yard gain on a
on a slant right there, and that was a moment
for him to feel what it would feel like if
on a moment's notice, hey, you got to go right now,
and the rookie was able to execute.

Speaker 3 (06:52):
You never know as a player when the call of
duty is coming. Yeah, And I think that was great
insight by day both to say, you know what, I
want to get this guy battle tested, and the only
way to do it was surprise him and throw them
into the fire and just let him kind of learn
as he goes. And I think that is where real
growth happens. You know, you could sit back there and

(07:12):
with the training wheels on, but until you get on
that bike, training wheels off and you got to learn
like if I tip over, I'm falling, like there's there's
no harness, there's no safety net. That that is when
you really grow as a player and as a person.
So I think that was huge, you know, and then
we also saw that all of a sudden, the headset didn't work. Yeah,
so now you know what, you know kind of our

(07:33):
game plan, you know what we're trying to get done.
So you know, let's see if you can handle that
mental side, but as well. So those are all good things.
But I think for this team, you know, there's there's
so much going into Week one, and you're defensively, you're
also looking at all right now we're actually game planning.
We're game planning for Jane Daniels. You know what do
we want to do, you know, for Shane Bowen. Defensively,

(07:56):
it's we want to get after the quarterback. Right obviously
with Adual Carter in there, everybody's been talking about this
front and how many sacks they had last year. They
started out through seven weeks, they led the NFL in sacks.
They had thirty one through the first seven weeks. They
had five sacks in this Week two matchup. Last year
and then in the next game they couldn't. They had
zero sacks. So Jane Daniels is one of those guys

(08:17):
where look, we've got to get after the quarterback. We
got to contain him though he is a threat to
get out of the pocket and extend the plays. There
were a number of times last year in that way
two game where guy we had a free blitzer that
should have had a sack. Michael McFadden on one play
had a chance to sack him and couldn't bring him down.
So that's something that they're going to be working on too,

(08:37):
is we can't it's not just enough to get to
the quarterback. We've got to finish it off and we've
got to get him to the ground. We can't have
miss sacks if we have a blitzer that comes free.

Speaker 1 (08:46):
Right absolutely and finishing. Also, something that we've heard from
Keevon Thibodeau is why he talked about wrestling in this offseason.
He wants he noticed how many of his sacks last
season were half sacks and how much higher his total
number could have been had he finished and been able
to get there and you know, bring guy to the ground,
sweep the leg.

Speaker 3 (09:04):
Johnny sweep the legs, Johnny put them in a body bag.

Speaker 1 (09:09):
One of the things Brian Dable said too is quote
everyone will be out there in practice today, Sean. That's
a really great place to be going into week one
of an NFL season, when you've got everyone healthy enough
to practice.

Speaker 3 (09:22):
I can't tell you how many times you talk to coaches,
you talk to players, and everybody says, man, can we
just get through the preseason healthy? And as a player,
you know you're always thinking about, Look, preseason, I want
to knock off the rust. I want to work on
my craft. But like as a lineman, it's like, man,
I hope I don't like tear any ligaments in my hands,
my thumbs, Like, I want to get through preseason start

(09:44):
Week one fresh, and this Giants team is just that.
And I can't remember the last time that the Giants
started a regular season and everybody was healthy and they
got through everything unscathed. So you know, kudos to Stable,
to Shame and the way that they planned everything because
you know, look, there was a lot of joint practices

(10:05):
back to back with the Jets. They played everybody in preseason,
which I think was a smart move because you got
to hit the ground running. Like when September rolls, it
can't be sloppy September for the Giants, Week one and
week two can't be ah shucks, we let that one
get away. Now, we can't do that. We cannot give
away games. We can't let them slip through our fingers
like they have in the past, especially to start the

(10:26):
season off. So I think that was that was great.
And then also, you know, I think Aaron Wellman, you know,
he's took over for the strength and conditioning program. That
has always been something that Ronnie Barnes, the head of
medical for the Giants, he's vice president. I got to
make sure I give him the proper title, a VP
of Medical. He is always been at the forefront of

(10:48):
nutrition and load management, recovery. Those are all things that
they really looked at this off seating to say, how
do we try to find a way to shake that
up and kind of get rid of this that monarch
that they had where you know, they constantly led the
league and players on ir So, yeah, that's a you know,
all hands on deck. So kudos to them for getting
through all that, and the players too for being diligent

(11:11):
and taking care of their bodies. That's a big part
of it. So yeah, man, you're I mean, you're all
hands on deck. You got everybody on board. You know,
let's hope that that stays true through the week. But
I think it's it's great too, because there's guys that
were coming off injury that you know, they were kind
of making sure, all right, we're going to ease them
into it. You know, Neighbors, they kind of took care
of him in the preseason, and then obviously Andrew Thomas,

(11:33):
you know, him coming off a pup, trying to make
sure he's ready to rock and roll.

Speaker 1 (11:37):
Yeah, it's like they say, luck is where preparation meets opportunity,
And you know, the Giants did have a little bit
of luck in the fact of just you know, good juju,
in the fact that they didn't have any of those
unfortunate freak accident injuries in the preseason. But I remember,
you know, you and I do preseason broadcasts of games,
and usually when I've been on the sideline in years past,

(11:59):
at least three four five of those hits are injury updates.
Injury updates, injury updates. We didn't have Touchwood luckily, that
you know, problem this preseason, so we'll see if that
health and that, as you mentioned, not just the staff,
the trading staff that keeps the players healthy, but also
the players kind of taking care of their own bodies
and being ready for week one is such an important element.

Speaker 3 (12:21):
Yeah, I feel like the medical tent was very rarely used. Yeah,
Jackson Dart, I think got his first dose of it
and he took a big hit and he's okay, so good.
The Giants were overdue for some good luck.

Speaker 1 (12:31):
Absolutely the good juju. And Hey Giants fans, make sure
you go and subscribe to The Giants Huddle podcast. It
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(12:53):
five star positive review for all of our Giants podcasts.
Two one nine, three nine four five one three is
the phone number. Let's such the phone lines, because we've
got Ron in Pittsburgh who's been holding the longest Run.
Welcome to Big Blue Kickoff Live. You're on with Sean
O'Hara and Madeline Burke. What's going on?

Speaker 4 (13:10):
Hey, thanks for taking my call. Thanks here and living
in Steelers Territory, but I actually grew up in Hillsboro,
New Jersey. I think that's where nice right.

Speaker 3 (13:19):
What's up?

Speaker 5 (13:20):
Ron?

Speaker 3 (13:20):
Ron from the Borough r O Borough Borough.

Speaker 2 (13:23):
Go Go you are?

Speaker 4 (13:25):
Oh that's it? Your number, I think it was sixty
six is still up on the scoreboard there, at least
when it was when I graduated.

Speaker 3 (13:31):
Yeah, still they're still Rocket is looking a little weathered
and tattered these days, but uh yeah that's still up
there representing.

Speaker 4 (13:39):
That's awesome. Uh, glad to have you on the Giants too.
You know that was it was cool. It was a
sense of pride at the at Hillsboro High School, you know,
having any play in the NFL. Anyway, what I wanted
to talk about was specifically NFC East players. Over the years,
we've had a lot of Giants, you know, Saquon or
Dori Jackson. This year was Ojalai. There was another cornerback too,

(14:03):
I can't remember who. A couple of years ago went
to the Eagles. Obviously, Landon Collins went to Washington. We
signed Chauncey Goldstein from the Cowboys. I think Alfred Boris
played for three out of four NFCAST teams. Yeah, and
it just seems like that division is, forgive the word choice,
like pretty incestuous. Is that common across the NFL? Or

(14:25):
is that something specific to the NFC East.

Speaker 3 (14:28):
Yeah, good question. I don't know. I don't know that
I've really got a pulse on all these other divisions
and how that happens. But I do think I'm sure
it happens because you get so familiar with them and
it's like, hey, you know what, like that guy, we
had a hard time tackling him, or we had a
hard time blocking him. You know, Chris Canty is a
guy that comes to mind. You mentioned Chauncey Goldston. He

(14:49):
was wearing ninety nine in Dallas. So as I was
watching film after we signed him, I had flashbacks to
Chris Canty. We signed him from Dallas and he was
a huge factor on Super Bowl forty sixteen, and I
used to tease Richie Sibert. I'm like, Richie, Richie got
you paid Chris because Richie couldn't block you. So if you're, hey,
if we can't block you, if you can't beat them,

(15:11):
join them, right. So we kind of brought Candy in there,
and we used to kind of always you know, tease
Chris in front of rich about, Hey, you know you
should make sure you take Richie out of dinner because
he got you. He got you paid because we couldn't
handle you when we played you with the Cowboys. But
I think that is, you know, in the NFC East,
it's it's always one of the most physical divisions. So
when you play in the NFC East, I feel like,

(15:34):
you know, when the winter rolls around, like you've got
to be able to play smash my football on both
sides of the ball. And I think that that's something
that you know, all the four teams they look at
it like, hey, you know what this guy's been in
this division. They understand the rivalry, they understand what those
games entail and how physical they can be, you know.
And I think also guy like Landon Collins, it's like, hey,

(15:54):
you know what, I have a chance to go somewhere else.
I like being you know, Philly Giants, Cowboys, Washington, Like
you're this is kind of the mecca, Like Nnessee East.
The spotlight's always on you. You're always playing in big games,
and I think a lot of players like that too.

Speaker 1 (16:09):
But I think to your point shown, the familiarity is
a big factor. And Ron, you mentioned there's a lot
of incestuous nature of guys going back and forth, but
it is that familiarity and you think about it and
it comes down to you know, even in the preseason
when players are claimed off the waiver wire, Tommy Devido
claimed by the Patriots, why because he just put a
hat trick on the Patriots in the preseason. They just
saw up close and personal what he's able to do.

(16:31):
So when you're playing in division and you're so familiar
with what a player is able to do, and then
they become a free agent, you say, yeah, we want
that guy because we know, like you said, what he's
done to us. That I think would probably be the
reason in the familiarity and plus for a player not
having to go too far or being familiar with the
division and what it takes to go against the other opponents,

(16:52):
and it might be a benefit as well.

Speaker 4 (16:55):
Ron Cool. Thanks guys, one more question. I'll take the
answer off the air gets the first sack of the
twenty five seasons. Oo.

Speaker 1 (17:04):
I like the question and thanks for the call. Ron
who gets the first sack for the New York Football Giants.

Speaker 3 (17:10):
I just mentioned how tough it was to bring Jayden
Daniels down. Yeah, you know, it's it's you know, getting there,
Like g I Joe. They're saying, knowing is half the battle. Well,
getting there is half the battle, and then you got
to take them down. You know you mentioned Thibodeaux. I
think Thibodeaux has really I've seen a lot of progress
with him with his ability to kind of finish beating
the offensive lineman and getting to the quarterback. But I'm

(17:32):
gonna go I'll go with Brian Burns on this. You know,
Washington has kind of tweaked their offensive line a little bit. Okay,
I'll say Burns. Spider Man gets his gets the first
sack for the Giants this year.

Speaker 1 (17:45):
Sean O'Hara is officially going with Spider Man. I am
gonna say, I'm gonna put my faith into the young
Darth Vader, the rookie Abdul Carter, because you know why,
this man is focused, determined, and he has motivation, you know,
like when you're watching a real a true crime documentary

(18:07):
and they're like, well, what's the motive. You know, obviously
the motive is you want to get a sack as
a pass rusher. But I'm Dual Carter tweeted out about
three weeks ago. Now, yeah, I'm sorry if you see
me and I'm looking a little rough. I'm not going
to cut my hair until I get my first sack.
And he did not have a sack in the preseason,
So I think that you know, this man, first of all,

(18:29):
is going to want to come into Sunday Night football
with a clean lineup. So week one or week two,
he's got to get in there. And I think there's
a little bit of a sense of urgency to get
this going. Plus he's a force to be reckoned with.
So I would not be surprised if we see a
Dual Carter incredible get the sack.

Speaker 3 (18:47):
Well, I'm pretty sure he'll be out there on the
first third and law oh yeah, And I'm sure his
barber is hoping that he gets.

Speaker 1 (18:52):
Into got the barber on the sideline just ready with
the clippers.

Speaker 3 (18:56):
I'm sharpening these things for weeks. I can't wait to
get get on those Bucks shows.

Speaker 1 (19:00):
Yeah, listen, we're ready. We're ready for it. I like
that idea though, and I think, you know, it is
interesting when you look at the way that this commander's
offense has come together. Sean. You know, we mentioned Jane Daniels.
He's you know, can be a little bit tough to
get down. But let's talk a little bit about their
skill position players. Terry McLaurin. They finally got that squared

(19:23):
away his contract. He obviously missed quite a bit of
training camp in the preseason, so remains to be seen
what kind of game shape he is in. He's gonna
be out there because there's no a situation which he's not.
I do like though, the excitement around their young running
back Bill Corey Crosskett Merritt, they called Bill. It feels

(19:46):
like the Brian Robinson trade was even more of a
signal of the fact that they believe in this young guy.
There's a lot of hype in the at least in
the fantasy football world around him.

Speaker 3 (19:59):
Yeah, and I I think you don't make that move
if if you haven't already been validated by a young
run back like that, right, and if you're saying, look,
we see that he's got all these tools, and we
can get compensation for Ryan Robinson. You know, I think
Austin Eckler too kind of gives them that luxury as well, Like,
you know what if we need to lean on Eckler
a little bit more early on as he kind of

(20:21):
gets his bearings, I think they felt comfortable with that.
Austin Eckler is you know, he's been in every down
back early on his career. He's obviously excellent out of
the backfield. So they've got they've got a guy that
can help out and carry that load. But yeah, this offense,
you know, it's interesting. You know Jane Daniels Rookie of
the Year last year. You know, he led quarterbacks in

(20:41):
rushing yards as well. He had almost nine hundred yards rushing.
So some of that was scrambling, but some of that
was design runs as well. So their run game is
going to be multifaceted. And I will also sprinkle in
Deebo Samuel Use. Deebo was a big pickup for them.
They had Terry McLaurin already, so it wasn't They're not
bringing in Deebo to be the number one receiver. They're
bringing in Debo to kind of be that that Robin

(21:03):
to the batman and now all of a sudden he's
in the slot. But they will line him up in
the backfield as well. He did it with Shanahant in
San France a lot. They actually line him up, you know,
in running back on first and second down, and he
kind of he's that hybrid role and I think that's
something that the Giants have to prepare for as well.
There's gonna be some wrinkles. There's gonna be some plays where, look,

(21:25):
Deebo is going to get the ball as a slot receiver,
some quick throwers try to get him in space. He's
a powerful guy, he's a tough runner, so you want
to get him in space and let him break tackle.
So that's going to be something that Shane bow and
this defense had to focus on. Where is Deebo, where
is he what's he lined up? But what's the matchup
looking like if it is a pass, but you know,
be ready for the runs as well. So that's the

(21:46):
multifacet run game they're getting from Washington.

Speaker 1 (21:48):
Yeah, now this is a Washington team too that as
you mentioned earlier, the Giants have had their number in
previous years. But it is a different team than that
then has been in previous years. We mentioned that, you know,
Washington swept the series last season, even though there were
a couple of moments that feel asterisk like in that series.
But also they've got more consistency than they've had in
recent years. Jane Daniels is just the first. Is the

(22:09):
first quarterback to start consecutive season openers for Washington since
Kirk Cousins back in twenty sixteen seventeen. So it's been
about ten seasons, almost eight straight with a different week
one starting quarterback. That's the longest streak in the NFL
since nineteen fifty. That's including the Cleveland Browns in that mix,
who have had a lot of quarterback turnover. So the

(22:30):
fact that they've got consistency at the quarterback position, they've
got new weapons as you mentioned in debo, and some
you know, interesting new toys. It's going to be. This
isn't the Commanders of a couple of years ago, where
the Giants would always kind of have their number. This
is a tough matchup.

Speaker 3 (22:48):
Yeah it is. And you know, I'm just kind of
looking at at Washington's roster as well, and you know,
I think kind of something that's flying under the radar.
Two is Larmie Tunsel in a left tackle. So you know,
Larmie Tunsel, he was gonna be the number one overall
pick in the draft. I think it was twenty fifteen maybe,
you know, until the gas mask incident came out and

(23:10):
then he kind of slid. But he has been one
of the elite left tackles in the NFL for a
long time. He's signed a couple of big deals, big contracts,
so that's, you know, something to look at this offensive line.
I don't think last year anybody thought the Washington Commander's
Office line was going to play as well as they did. Sure,
so the fact that they were able to upgrade some
of those positions, you know, I think that that's gonna

(23:32):
bode well for them as well. And it's gonna, you know,
make the Giants pass rush. You know, that's that's a
tough challenge. He needs a tough out if you're one
on one against a guy like that.

Speaker 1 (23:41):
Yeah, two oh one nine four five one three is
the phone number. But let's head to YouTube, where we're
getting comments as well from some of our listeners and viewers.
Thanks so much for tuning in on YouTube. Let's start
with Mike Mainey, Giants fan my whole life. He says,
my concerns are Evan Neil and John Michael Schmidt's anything
thoughts on their improvement. Oh sorry, I'm just fine.

Speaker 3 (24:03):
Let's start with JMS. This is the best I've seen
JMS play since he's been drafted. And you know, last year,
I kind of go back to I feel like in
the first week of practice last year, he injured his
shoulder and I don't think he was ever one hundred
percent after that, and I felt like he kind of

(24:23):
struggle at times with using his hands and getting his
hands inside and you know that kind of he was
on the edge of defenders a lot. This year, I
feel like he's much better with his anticipation. It's like
he understands the defenses now where they're going. He's not
behind the defender anymore. Now he's in front of them.
He's anticipating the stunts and the movements and seeing what
the defense is doing if there is a blitz. So

(24:46):
I think he's next level from a mental standpoint, But physically,
this is the best that I've seen him use his hands,
and I think that's that's a big part of playing
center because everything is close quarters combat. Like you've got
to you've got to have your hands on him before
he gets his hands on you, and you've got to
be quick with it. You're working in concert with your guards.
You're passing off twists. Very rarely is it just one

(25:07):
guy in front of you and you're just blocking him
head up. There's guys and bodies flying everywhere.

Speaker 1 (25:12):
So how much tape does he have on his fingers?

Speaker 3 (25:15):
Well, if he's smart, he tapes them all. He used
to tape every single knuckle. You know. That was kind
of how I felt like I was ready for battle.
But you've got to throw those hands, you know. Luda
talked about throwing them bows. You got to throw them hands.
And I think that's what I've seen from John Michael
Schmidts that the one thing that has plagued the Giants
offensive line in the last couple of years is blitzes

(25:35):
and twists on the inside. So the two guards and
the centers passing off some of those A and B
gap blitzers when they bring a linebacker in one A
gap and they kind of loop and twist the defensive lineman.
That's been something that has not been as clean as
it should be. It looked a lot better when we
would watch practice in training camp and in the preseason
and the joint practices that looked a little more cohesive.

(25:56):
So I think that helps, you know, the more playtime
you have Evan Neil. You know, look, I think Evan
Is is working hard, but it's still it doesn't look
natural to him yet. You know, moving into guard, there's
some different things you've got to kind of figure out.
You're a little in a little bit of more of
phone booth like tackle, you're more in space. Guard you're

(26:17):
kind of you're kind of in a phone booth, and
you kind of have to figure out how to handle
all that movement because you do have a lot of
stunts by the defensive it and stunts by the d tackles.
You've got to have your eyes on the inside backers
as well because they get involved in it. So I
think he's progressing. But if Evan nil is in the game,
run the ball when he gets moving downfield, like if

(26:40):
he gets if he could block guys in a straight line,
he is a people mover, you know. He just he's
got to keep working on his footwork and keep working
on the change of direction.

Speaker 1 (26:49):
Got to keep moving people. Like in Detroit they got
a people mover that takes people around. Say, I don't
know if you know, you know so what they call it,
it's a tram. We're getting a lot of questions about
Andrew Thomas. Scott Young wants know any word on Thomas.
If he's going to be a go for Sunday. He
is out on the practice field and they're going to
take it day by day. But again, fortunately this isn't
some injury that crept up like whack a mole. They've

(27:10):
been preparing for this in the off season and you know,
getting James Hudson all the reps at left tackle, so
they are prepared if he's not ready to go, and
they're not going to put him out there in a
situation where he's not. Ryan has a question. He says,
we hear a lot of concern about Thomas, but hat
haven't heard any talk about Russ being a lefty and
the burden that takes off the left side. I've got

(27:30):
to clarify Russ is actually a right handed quarterback. So
not sure, you know, maybe there's like a mirror image flip,
but he is a right handed quarterback. So Ryan, I
just want to clarify that, just so people aren't getting
confused by that.

Speaker 3 (27:43):
Ryan, you got it, you got it. You gotta take
the l on that one. I mean, Russell Wilson has
been playing a long time, and I'm not sure there's
another Russ out there that he could possibly be confused with.
But look, he's mister unlimited, but I think that is
one limit. I don't think he could throw with his
left hand. Don't think anybody wants I'm frolling with his
left wing.

Speaker 1 (28:00):
We haven't seen it yet.

Speaker 3 (28:01):
That Ron you've got to take down now. You better
shot on a beer, buddy, and whatever you do, don't
bring that up at work, right because you lose all credibility.

Speaker 1 (28:08):
And I'm you know, listen, We're only here to just
make sure that that sentiment doesn't get repeated in further
water cooler conversations, because hey, I don't know. Sometimes you
see something you're like that looks like his left hand, yep,
but it was his right.

Speaker 3 (28:21):
Bags of sand was I thinking, I think maybe maybe
nobody will notice.

Speaker 5 (28:30):
I can't.

Speaker 1 (28:30):
I can't even piggyback off of that reference right now.
So I'm gonna just Giants fans of another impactful draft
and free agency class in the books. That means it's
full steam ahead to the twenty twenty five season. Take
your fandom to the next level with the Giant Season
ticket membership and catch all the action at MetLife Stadium
with an exciting home schedule on the horizon. With the membership,

(28:51):
you'll also stay connected to the club all year round,
not just on game days, with exclusive member access and benefits.
To learn more about a New York Giants season ticket membership,
visit Giants dot com, slash tickets and also speaking of
exciting events and uh and things to participate in. This
Friday at American Dream, we're having a season kickoff event.

(29:12):
I'll be there, Brendan London.

Speaker 2 (29:14):
Will be there.

Speaker 1 (29:14):
Are you coming through? Got some Giants legends, not including
this one apparently.

Speaker 3 (29:19):
No, no, I won't be there, but I'll be there
in spirit.

Speaker 1 (29:22):
Be there in spirit, Russ Maleague. We've got some players
coming through, So come get your tickets. Support Giant season
kickoff Friday this Friday, September fifth at the American Dream.
Pangs of sand to a one nine three nine four
five one three is the phone number. Let's send back
to the phone lines. ED in New York is online
one ed, thanks for calling you on Big Blue Kickoff

(29:42):
Live with Sean o'ha and Madeleine.

Speaker 2 (29:43):
Burk Hey, Madeline, Hey, Showan, Sean, I remember launching you
as a young kid. I know that probably dates you
there and I apologize for that. I had a couple questions.
I feel like the Giants they look different, the attitudes different.
Daples really turned it around as far as the atmosphere
in the work environment. But I feel like the Giants

(30:07):
are missing a number two guy. A lot of teams
have number two guys. You know, the Eagles have A J.
Brown and Devonde spent the you know the Cowboys have
cde Lamb and now pick In. The Giants have league neighbors.
But who can step up and be to make defenses
go WHOA wait a minute, we got to watch this guy.

(30:29):
I just don't know if the Giants have it, so
that would that would be the first question.

Speaker 1 (30:34):
I like that, and I think that there's going to
be a difference in what we see from some of
these scale position players with a different quarterback under center.
The way that you know the ball gets out when
Russ throws it, versus you know, quarterbacks of the past.
I think he's going to open things up for a
guy like Darius Slayton or even a Jalen Hyde Wandale
Robinson also incredible volume of receptions last year. Didn't get

(30:58):
a lot of yak from that, but I think if
they're there's a different more anticipation in the ball placement
that could possibly change the season too. Sean, what do
you think?

Speaker 3 (31:05):
Yeah, No, I think it's a valid question. Ed and listen.

Speaker 2 (31:08):
Ed.

Speaker 3 (31:08):
You're only as young as you feel, so I'm young
at heart. I still I drink I still drink beer
like I'm twenty five, so you know, not a Twitter.
But it's funny you mentioned age. I was just talking
with Pearson. Pearson just celebrated his thirty first birthday this weekend.

Speaker 1 (31:22):
So happy birthday, Pierson.

Speaker 3 (31:24):
Butler, I feel like you're only as old as the
youngest person in the room, so we're all with you.
Happy belated. But ed to your question, I think there
is they're waiting for somebody to take that role, like
who is it going to be? And I think Darius
Slayton could absolutely be the guy. He has been the
Giants explosive playmaker, on offense for the last couple of years.

(31:45):
He's got that world class speed. So you love to
have a guy that you can throw on the slot
and just kind of use that speed, or have him
on the outside and put Maleak in the slot. So
I think with Slayton, I think One Dale. You know,
One Dale was one of the best third down receivers
in the league last year, so that he's kind of
got a stronghold on that guy on third down. You

(32:06):
want to put him on a little pivot route, a
little whip route some people call it a jerk route,
and get him in space. You know, I think he
has that ability. I think Tyrone Tracy can kind of
be that guy. So I think it might be who's
the number two weapon for the Giants. It might be
by committee to start the season off. But I think
one guy that people are overlooking is Theo Johnson. And

(32:27):
I think Russell Wilson loves his tight ends and he
and Theo have had really good synergy throughout this entire
training camp in preseason, and Theo he looks great. I mean,
he was having he was off to a great start
last year as a rookie, was having a really productive season.
Before the foot injury, and he looks even bigger, faster,
and stronger now. So I think THEO could end up

(32:48):
being a big part of this passing offense. And he's
kind of flying under the raid on right now people
aren't talking about, which we're okay with.

Speaker 1 (32:53):
But also to your born, about the Russ and his
introductory press conference with the Giants, the very first meet
availability he had talking to Giants media, referenced very specifically.
You know, Russ loves watching film. He's a film junkie.
He gets in there and kind of retains a lot
of it, a lot of specific THEO Johnson plays. He
was referencing from the season prior. I mean, this man

(33:16):
dove in and had a lot of admiration for the
way THEO plays. And I think the way that Russ
talks about THEO shows that that connection was there even
before they even got in the room and started working together.

Speaker 3 (33:27):
Yeah, and every quarterback loves a big target like that,
so you know that's big. You know. Look, I think
Jalen Hyatt, you know, he he showed, you know, in
that final preseason game that he can get behind defenders.
You know, he had a couple of drops in that game,
but then he made up for it with the big
touchdown catch, So you know, he's a guy that you know,
I think they're kind of like, all right, is this
the year that it all clicks and comes together? So

(33:49):
I think with the ability that Russ has at throwing
the ball down the field like he throws a very friendly,
very catchable ball, I think that hasn't injected a lot
of enthusiasm and a lot of positivity in this offense.
And you know, ed, I think when you are have
a defense that is looking at the offense like man,
they're struggling to score points or you know what, do

(34:11):
we really have big play potential? Your defense plays different
when they know we got a guy back there, We've
got a guy that can with one throw, can turn
this game on tilt and change the field and change
you know, the score with one moon ball. I think
that breathes life in the entire team, certainly in the offense,
but it also it helps with the defense too. They

(34:33):
start to play a little more invigorated football, a little
more passionate, And I think that's what we have seen
from the Giants. You know, you mentioned that, you know,
it looks different, It does and it is and it
feels different, and they're having fun. You know that scoring
points is fun and winning games is fun. So I
feel like this team has personality and they've got this
identity now that we really haven't seen in the last

(34:54):
couple of years.

Speaker 1 (34:55):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (34:56):
Yeah, and I know that we you know, we only
have time for one one more here, But do you
feel sewn that this team is kind of going, hey,
you know, we had something that worked where we were
punching the mouth defense would have run it down your throat,
run offense. Do you feel like the Giants just like, well,
since that worked, it wasn't broke, maybe we'd go back
that way now that we got scataboo. And do you

(35:19):
really do you think that that might be the way
things go back to where we're just gonna we have
possibly a top five bcons this year. I really believe that.
Do you feel like it's a hey, we're gonna punch
in your face and then run it down your throat.
Is that kind of the style that you might they
might go back to.

Speaker 3 (35:34):
I mean, and you're speaking my language. I'm an offensive lineman,
So yeah, I love that mentality. I love that mindset,
you know. I feel like Dabel has always kind of
been like, our what are we doing well, and let's
attack that. They didn't bring Russell Wilson in to hand
the ball off, you know, they brought him in the
win games, so I think that they're going to lean
heavily on that. I stood out on the field during

(35:56):
one of the preseason games as they were warming up,
and normally I just try to watch all different kinds
of positions and just kind of see everything. I found
myself agast watching Russell Wilson throw the football. I mean,
it is it's a thing of beauty. Like he's he
has an unbelievable arm, even at his age, He's such
a gifted thrower, and I think that's going to be
a big part of the offense now. He's so accurate

(36:17):
as well. So part of the run game sometimes is
quick throws, so it's hey, let's get the ball out quick.
It could be a three or four yard route, but
if the ball gets there on time and they break
a tackle, now it's ten, twelve, fifteen yards to big
chunk play. So I think that's kind of going to
be what it is. Dabill has never been a smash
mouth run the football offensive guy like that's never kind
of been his calling card, if you will now, I

(36:40):
think there are times when you have to do that.
You know, you're running the foreman an offense, you're protecting
the lead, and you want to run the clock out,
you've got to turn to that. And that's where you'll
probably see more kam Sky taboo and see more of
that two and three tight end. But you know, they
Dabell does love the smash mount football, but it usually
comes out of multiple tight end formations, sarily with a

(37:00):
full back. It's let's get those guys out there. So
that's what I think you look at. And when that
smash mouth football and they two to three tight end
formation comes out, and when you're running the ball well
with that, it's great because now you can layer in
some pass plays where the defense is condensed because you
have two or three tight ends at the last scrimmage
and now you have a lot of open space and

(37:22):
now all of a sudden you go to throw the
ball and you get THEO Johnson out in space. You
get more one on one coverage with Malik on the outside.
So that's something that they'll probably build off of.

Speaker 2 (37:33):
Well, yeah, I appreciate both the Metal and Seean. Thank
you so much for your time man and.

Speaker 1 (37:37):
Go Blue, thank you so much for the call.

Speaker 3 (37:39):
Ed.

Speaker 1 (37:40):
Yeah, and I mean you've just recently had some one
on one time on the field with Theo Johnson for
a feature.

Speaker 3 (37:47):
Yeah. Yeah, it's good to kind of just pick his
brain a little bit about how, you know, going into
his second year, things that he's kind of learned about
how to get open and how to use his body
and you know, just kind of being with it, going
to stand next to him. Like he's a big dude,
Like he's tall, he's got long arms. Quarterbacks love that,
especially down in the red zone when we can just

(38:08):
throw a high ball up there and let our guy
go and get it. But one of the things that
he said to me that I thought was interesting was,
you know he said with Russ, the ball is on
you so quick, and He's like, there's sometimes where I
turned my head around and the ball is already there.
I didn't even see the throw. I just saw the ball.
And when you have a quarterback that's putting the ball

(38:29):
on the money like that, you know, sometimes sometimes the
ball catches you, you know, like you're you're you're just like
you can't get your hands up quick enough. But what
that does is now it's like I can run my
route and I know, boom, the ball is going to
be right there. I don't have to make an acrobatic catch.
I can catch the ball and make a move after that.
So now you're not here in THEO talk about.

Speaker 1 (38:47):
That, and now you're not running your route and getting
there and waiting for it. You know that anticipation in
that timing is working really well.

Speaker 3 (38:55):
That's huge.

Speaker 1 (38:56):
Huge. Giants Fans run our walk with Giants Legends. The
Giants Foundation will host a five K race and kids
run presented by Quest on Sunday, October twenty sixth at
nine am at MetLife Stadium. Net Proceeds will benefit the
Giants Foundation. All participants will receive a commemorative T shirt
and after the race stay for a post race festival

(39:16):
with appearances by Giants Legends and a live DJ. Register
now at giants dot com Slash five k. The Giants
Foundation is a five oh one C three nonprofit corporation.
Two A one nine three nine four five one three
is the phone numbers. We head back to the phone lines.
Ernie and Dallas. Ernie is holding online too. Welcome to
the show. You're on Big Blue Kickoff Live with Sean

(39:36):
O'Hara and Madeleine Burke.

Speaker 6 (39:38):
Hey, how you doing doing great?

Speaker 1 (39:40):
How are you earning?

Speaker 6 (39:42):
I'm down here in Dallas and I'm a little bit
of blue in the middle of a lot of the stars.
It's not easy, but I wear my giant cap proudly.

Speaker 1 (39:53):
We respect, we respect the strength of character and that
you know.

Speaker 3 (39:57):
We'll be down your way in thirteen days.

Speaker 1 (40:01):
Yeah, twelve days.

Speaker 6 (40:03):
Well for our second win of the year.

Speaker 1 (40:05):
Oh, I like it. I like it.

Speaker 4 (40:08):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (40:10):
I was looking at don't that was a cap last
night and we're at nine and a half million minus?
How do we what happens if we don't get that
fixed by the start of the season.

Speaker 3 (40:25):
Good question. You know, I think that they're if you're
not under that, there's there's a penalty. There's probably a
cap fee. But I think that's something that you know,
most gms handle whatever the deadline is. It's like, all right,
we're gonna you know, they work their way up to
that deadline and it's usually all right. What we can

(40:46):
do to make cap room is let's go into some
of our biggest contract guys Andrew Thomas, you know, Dexter
is probably one of them, and we could say, all right,
what can we do to shuffle some cap money? So
all of a sudden, hey, they sign up an extension
or they agree to restructure the contract to give them

(41:07):
more money up front, which lowers the cap number over
the duration of the contract. So you know, Brian Burns
would probably be a candidate for that. It's guys that
have kind of you know, big cap numbers, but but
have three or four years left on their deal. So
there's there's ways to do that and to kind of
get you back down to uh, you know, you don't
want to be down to zero because you want to

(41:27):
have a little wiggle room because the Giants were up
against that a couple of years ago and they, you know,
it was like, hey, we don't even have enough money
in the cap to sign players to come in for
the last couple of games of the season. So it
does become a little bit of a numbers game. But
I feel like it's algebra. You know, It's like it's
not just you know, pluses and minus It's like if

(41:48):
X plus y equals z, then you know you got
the Thiagrahm theorem coming out that that's way above my
paid grade.

Speaker 6 (41:55):
Carry the two people looking for some restructuring news that
I haven't seen it, And that's what it's been kind
of worrying me, because, like you said, you don't want
to be zero. You want to have at least maybe
three or four million or something in there, you know,
the the good.

Speaker 3 (42:09):
Yeah, I feel like those are things that you never
hear about. You never hear about what's happening while it's happening.
It's just kind of like, oh, hey, this come just
this just happened. It's like, you know what, We've been
working on this for three weeks and then we finally
kind of got to some numbers and figured out how
to massage this and do this. So, you know, if
you're a general manager, you're not just going to one
player and saying, hey, you know, do you want to restructure?

(42:30):
You start talking to all of them and seeing like
what makes the most sense and who's willing to do what.
And I think there's a lot that goes into that.

Speaker 1 (42:40):
Yeah. Absolutely, it's like you hear about the problem.

Speaker 6 (42:42):
It's a little bit yeah, Yeah, thank you so much.

Speaker 1 (42:46):
Thank you for the caller and you appreciate it, Giants fans.
The Giants official connected TV streaming app, Giants TV brings
original video content and game highlights on demand and direct
a big blue fans. Giants TV is free on Apple TV, Roku,
and Amazon Fire TV and on the Giants Mobile app.
Week one is upon us Sean and it is important,

(43:11):
I think for myriad reasons for the Giants to get
out and start strong. You know, you don't want another
zero and two start to the season just for vibes.
Ernie's got them winning the first two games coming into
Dallas having won the Washington game. I love the confidence
out there, but you look at the history of you know,
season openers or the recent history. I will say they've

(43:33):
been outscored sixty eight to six in the last two seasons,
forty to nothing to Dallas two years ago, twenty eight
to six against Minnesota. They allowed nine touchdowns and only
scored six points over the last two of the last
two season openers. That is not going to be the
vibe going into this season. And I think that the

(43:53):
biggest difference that I noticed that you can point to
as a tangible difference is the preseason play starters have
gotten out there. You mentioned no more sloppy September. They
got the cobwebs off, getting the rust off, getting out
there and kind of getting a feel for one another
and not having to work through the kinks of a
game action when they count. That I think is going

(44:15):
to play a huge role. Plus the way that we
have seen offensively the Giants putting up points no matter
which unit is out there. Every unit had multiple scoring
drives throughout this preseason. The ones two, so the three
is the fourth what have you? Which shows systematically things
are working and things are getting better. You've got my
Kafka back call in the plays from the sideline, so

(44:37):
you can be more communicative. There's such an emphasis on
communication and on that player driven leadership. Russ is bringing,
you know, captain positivity. Darius Layton talked about him the
other day and it was like, I've never seen somebody
so consistently in such a good mood, just always always
up here. And that has been really good for this building,
bringing that positivity into this building. But I also think

(44:59):
this building has been really good for us kind of
reminding him, Hey, this is a player that a lot
of these guys really respect and admire and are excited
to work with, and you know, it could be the
perfect storm for all parties involved.

Speaker 3 (45:12):
Yeah, I think it absolutely is, and it's contagious. Yeah, positivity,
and when you have guys like that that are you know,
they love what they do. You know, that's that that
is tenfold in the locker room and out on the field,
and when you have guys that are in leadership roles.
Quarterback position is always in a leadership role, but when
your best players are also your hardest workers, that gets contagious.

(45:34):
And now everybody says, all right, well that guy, he's
a ten time pro bowler. You know, if that's what
it takes, then I need to start doing that too,
and I need to up my game. So I think
that that is part of that was part of the
whole plan that Joe Shane and Brian Dabele came down with, Like,
here's how we want to build a team. This offsene here, guy.
We need guys that are going to elevate the rest
of the team. So I think that's been something that

(45:56):
we have absolutely seen and I think Russ you know,
and Jamis Jackson, even Tommy DeVito the quarterback room, this
quarterback play that we saw in this preseason. It feels
like a totally different offense. Yeah, it feels like even
you know, when Russ was in there, okay, you know

(46:16):
he came out, boom, all of a sudden, Jackson darkyment
we're scoring points. It was like the offense there was
no like, okay, well net drop off. Sure, you know,
we're back to like ten yard fight, you know, or
techno bill. There's only four plays that you have to
choose from. No, the entire you know, the whole offense
looked cohesive. It looked functional. Tom and Devido threw three
touchdown passes in the last preseason game, and you know

(46:38):
that's probably that's why the Patriots signed him. Yeah, you know,
and when you looked at it, Jameis Winston, you know,
look he comes in, Jackson dart Is in the medical
medical tent. Jamis comes in and boom, right out of
the gate, boom, pops a touchdown. So that when you
see that offensive production, then you know, okay, every quarterback
is seeing the same things. The processing speed of all
of them has been accelerated, and the offense is blocking people.

(47:02):
You know that, you know they threw the ball what
fifty times in Buffalo in the first prison game, zero sax.
So those are things that you look towards. All right,
this offense looks totally different to your point originally, Mata
one hundred percent. The Giants, like you have to hit
the ground running.

Speaker 2 (47:16):
You know.

Speaker 3 (47:16):
I touched on that earlier on you can't come into
week one and yeah, that was a wasted possession. Oh
you know what, we let that game slip away, Like,
you can't do that. The Giants have one of the
toughest schedules in the league. We've been talking about it
all off season. Yeah, they've got the.

Speaker 1 (47:30):
Chiefs with the Commanders, though Commanders also have a top
eight strength schedule.

Speaker 3 (47:34):
Pretty much if you're in the NFC East, you've got
one of the tough schedules because we're playing you know, yeah,
that same division and the same opponents. But this is crucial,
and I think that was a part of why we
saw the starters play so much at the preson because it's,
you know what, like I don't want to risk getting
guys hurt, but I also I can't hold them back
and try to try to save them from injury at

(47:57):
the risk of them not being ready to rock and roll,
you know when Week one rolls around. So I think that's,
you know, a big part of the plan that it was,
as we saw in the preseason and in training camp
for how we're gonna play guys. But you know, I
think that's that's really the point of emphasis. We get
start fast, start fast fast, and red zone offense has

(48:18):
been crucial. That's something that I feel like they worked
every single day. Yeah, and the joint practices versus the Jets,
that was a very big point of emphasis. You know,
it's one thing to drive the ball down the field.
Once you get into that red zone, now you can't
just keep kicking field goals. Yeah, you got to score points.
And Giants have average fifteen point eight points per game
the last two years in a row. That's one of
the worst scoring offenses in the league. And that's something

(48:40):
that that they absolutely feel like we had to fix.
And one hundred and seven points in the preseason, you know,
it seems like they're on the right path with that.

Speaker 1 (48:49):
Yeah. Well, it's also red zone offense is also important
to consider in the analytics conversation. Right when people say, oh,
go for two instead of kicking the pat you've got
such a better shot this and that. Okay, mathematically all
things being equal, maybe, but if you can't score from
the red zone, you can't complete a two point conversion.
So in terms of you know, aggressive play calling and

(49:12):
kind of believing in your players in that point as well,
you need to have the skill set to be able
to be aggressive. And you think about you know, Dables
first season as head coach, team went to the playoffs,
first game against the Titans, he calls a two point conversion.
You know, you've got to be able to trust your
players to punch it in when they're in that range,
whether it's you know, just driving down the field or

(49:34):
going for two or whatever it takes to win the game.

Speaker 3 (49:37):
Yeah, and you got to execute, you you got to
get it done.

Speaker 1 (49:39):
Execution to a one nine three nine four five one three.
Let's head back to the phone line. So we've got
time for one more call Alex in Philly. Alex, thanks
for calling in. You're on Big Blue Kickoff Live with
Sean O'Hara and Madeleine Burke.

Speaker 5 (49:51):
How you guys doing calling in just got I got
one Bowl prediction and honestly, uh, I think a real
underrated part of this season is how good this old
line has been performing. And you could tell that they're
coming together as a unit, which I feel like it's

(50:12):
going a little bit underrated. Everybody keeps talking about the
quarterback play.

Speaker 4 (50:15):
Quarterback play in.

Speaker 5 (50:16):
The preseason, and it was great. Obviously it was great.
But I feel like the old line jelling together and
not just the first string or the second, second, and
third just jelling together, giving those quarterbacks enough time to
operate the way David wants them to operate. I feel
like it's gonna be huge this year.

Speaker 2 (50:34):
People, don't you know.

Speaker 5 (50:35):
We're like one of the few teams that are bringing
back all five starters on that offensive line, but with
no one's taking it serious. I don't know. I just
feel I feel like, I mean, Sean, you probably know this.
I remember watching O seven and they asked Tuck and
all the pass rushers that what made you guys, you know,

(50:56):
so good? You know? And he was saying how he
had to go against those monsters on the offensetive line.
You Sean and McKenzie and snee and all of them,
and iron sharp is iron And I feel like this
offensive line has had seen one of the great one
of the one of the good defensive lines in this league,
just in our own house. And I feel like they're
a very underrated union. I really do think they're They're

(51:19):
primed to show some show something this year. And my
bold prediction is Giants lead league and sex and they
ultimately gets us into the playoffs.

Speaker 1 (51:28):
I like it, Alex. I like the prediction. I'm with you.
I'm I made that similar bold prediction on our Giants
Hangout show this week that the Gants are going to
go to the playoffs because the vibes are right. The
vibes are right. But yeah, in terms of his offensive
line comment, Sewan, I got to start with you there
as the center on the on the show.

Speaker 3 (51:45):
Yeah, Alex, I love what you're saying. And look, the Giants,
I don't I don't think they're underlooked. I think they
have been dysfunctional at times the last couple of years.
So it's you know that they they've earned that. Moniker.
I kind of go back, in funny you back to
seven two thousand and seven. I go back to when
I first came to the Giants in two thousand and four.
Now that was coach Coffin's first year. Jim Fossil was

(52:08):
the coach before that. And in two thousand and three
Giants fans, if you remember, Carry Collins was the starting
quarter but he got hurt. Jesse Palmer came in, you know,
he played in I think he might have got banged
up to like the quarterback carousel was in full effect.
And I'll never forget it was a Monday night football game.
Joe thisman was calling the game and he said on

(52:30):
the broadcast, you know, the Giants have the worst O
line in the NFL. So in two thousand and four
when we came, I came to the Giants, we drafted
Christnie that year, Luke Pettigo was here, Dave Dial was
going into his second year. Our offensive line coach, Pat
Flarty Flats as we call him, you know, he made
sure that we knew about that. He was like, I
just want you guys to know this is this is

(52:52):
what you are inheriting from the team before. And that
was one of the things that drove us and I'll
never forget in two thousand and four, like we are
not going to be the weak link. They're never gonna
be able to say that about us. That same group
in two thousand and seven. You know, Luke Pettigo was
no longer there, Dave dial was in a left tackle.
We picked up Kareem McKenzie from the Jets, and that

(53:12):
group we started I think thirty eight to forty consecutive
games together. And you know that started back in two
thousand and six, two thousand and seven. So that's that
kind of chemistry. I always say, offensive lineman, you got
to slow cook it. You can't. You can't microwave office
of lineman. You can't speed up the process. And that's

(53:33):
why I think you got to slow cook at the
crock pot, put it on, put it on the tragger
grill and at one hundred and eighty degrees and let
it sit there for eight hours. It's got a marinate.
That's how that chemistry really builds. But I do agree
with you that I think this offensive line it looks cohesive.
They look like they're all on the same page. And
I think even with James Hudson, he's been a big

(53:55):
pick up for the Giants this offseason. So if you
look at what has transpired the last two for the Giants,
when Andrew Thomas went down, it was we were constantly
trying to you know, plug that leak, and it just
we didn't have a player that could just go in
there and solve the issue. I think James Hudson, he
took every rep in training camp, he was in a

(54:16):
left tackle. He has showed that he can handle that
position and he's a.

Speaker 1 (54:19):
Guy who plays offensive line with the defensive mentality.

Speaker 3 (54:22):
He's he's got a little vibe to him. I think
it's good. I think that you know, we talked about
positivity is contagious. That's contagious too, and you could see
it kind of rubbing off on some of the other guys. Hey,
you know what, It's okay to play with the mean streak.
It's okay to be a dirt bag at times on
the office line. And we had a lot of those
guys and I think that that's how we played the game.
So this offensive line I'm looking you know, I think

(54:44):
absolutely the bar has been raised for this group. You know,
you mentioned that they're not it's not a new unit.

Speaker 2 (54:51):
You know.

Speaker 3 (54:51):
Jermaine Luminour last year was his first year. I think
he solidified himself. John Runyon's a veteran. Greg Van Rodin
is a true veteran and he played every single snap
last year for the Giants, he was quietly one of
the MVPs of the team. So I think that this
offensive line they can do good things. And I think
one thing that helps every offensive line is a good quarterback. Well,

(55:13):
it make you look good.

Speaker 1 (55:13):
They make you look good. But also I think that
you know, with that back to that player driven leadership too,
we talk about how you know, number one, Dave's is
quick to underscore that, you know, sacks are also a
quarterback stat. You know, it's not solely oh, the offensive
line blew it here. The other thing, too is the
fact that getting a clean pocket is a collaborative effort
from the five players on the offensive line and the quarterback,

(55:36):
you know, having to work together, that trust. And you know,
some of these guys have talked in this preseason about
how Russell Wilson, for example, they know that they're going
to have to hold the line a little bit longer
because he's back there and he's going to extend a
play with his legs. But they trust that he's going
to make a plays and so they are locked in.
They say, okay, instead of you know, maybe one two

(55:56):
seconds here, maybe I got to go one two three
and make sure I can keep this hod or going
on hold or, but like you trust that you're holding
it because something's happening back there. It's not just okay whatever.
And that trust in your teammates I think really has
helped elevate and also the accountability. I mean, Jermaine and
Luminar talked about how Russ will kind of say, hey,

(56:19):
you know, point out certain things and draw attention to
certain elements. If we need you to finish strong here,
we need to do this there. And that accountability of
your teammates and that player driven leadership has been rippling
throughout this locker room so far in this preseason.

Speaker 3 (56:33):
Yeah, that's a great point too. In veteran quarterbacks, I
played with one when I was in Cleveland. Kelly Holkum
would do this. Eli did this a lot too. There
are plays that will come in and it's like, okay,
we're taking a deep shot here, like we're going for
the juggular. And when we have a quarterback that is
next level thinking, he comes in and he doesn't just
call the play. It's like, hey, guys, we're taking a
shot right here, all right, So I need you guys,

(56:54):
you got to hold on, hold on, to that bucking
Bronco like your life depends on it, Like I need
an extra second here, and we're going to hit the
home run ball. So when a guy comes into the
huddle and he's got that knowledge and expectation, this is
what we're going for right now. I got to get
everybody on alert. Know nothing, you're not blocking, like your
life depends on every play. But it's like, all right
on this play in particular, this is getting This is

(57:15):
a long developed play. I need I need an extra second.
You know, we would have code words. Sometimes we'd add max.
So if it was like sixty two protection sixty two,
you know, red would be like a quick three step
five steps. You new ball was coming out quick. But
if they said max, you knew, like all right, we
got to hold on the rock, or we got to
hold on the block because he's going to hold on
the rock for another second.

Speaker 1 (57:33):
Hold or that's it. It's week one. Let's go. We've
made it. We made it through training camp, we made
it through preseason. We are just four sleeps away from
our first game to get it. Sorry, listen, we're still We.

Speaker 3 (57:49):
Told man On there would be no math today.

Speaker 1 (57:53):
You know, I got the finger count and going four
sleeps away from the first game of the twenty twenty
five season, where we will see what all this excitement,
what all these new pieces and new faces and and
you know, second year guys, and all the excitement is about,
and how it'll execute on the field in the division.
And Sean and I are going to be Sean and

(58:15):
I are going to listen. See we're already so on
the same wavelength that we both at the same time
thought it's a good opportunity to plug the postgame show
because right after the game, flip into MSG Networks or
the Giants YouTube channel and watch us break it all
down plus our postgame show. It's getting a little bit
of a remix this year. We're gonna have some new
elements and some exciting new toys to play with. So
you're gonna want to tune in, and no I canna

(58:38):
tell you what they are, because you got to tune
in and watch to find out.

Speaker 3 (58:41):
Boom, well done.

Speaker 1 (58:43):
Shaken, Pearson's over there and just like what is happening
on this all right? Well, on that note, let's wrap
it up because that's our Wednesday show, Big Blue Kickoff Live.
We've got a couple more days of shows before the
first game of the season. But we are jazzed to
be out here Big Blue. Let's go big Blue things.
So much for listening to this episode of Big Blue
Kickoff Live presented by Cadillac Live from the Hackensack Meridian

(59:06):
Health Podcast Studio. Keep getting better Giants podcast platforms everywhere.
Giants dot com slash podcast is where you can find
the archive of this show. For Sean O'Hara, I'm Madeline Burke.
We'll see you next time.