T-Rock's Take on the Giants

So, the nasty, awful Media is at it again... Can't we just let those poor Giants alone?

I was not there at the OK Corral today, but it sounded like fun once again. No Strahan, but Plaxico spoke up and, as always, spoke his mind. "My high school coach once told me I dance like everybody walks," he said, also adding that he loves the media and understands we have a job to do.

Antonio Pierce did some Media-bashing, but when he does it -- with that sly smile on his face -- somehow, it sounds OK.

I said it yesterday and I'll say it again: If the Giants feel like they have to circle the wagons and blame us for their woes, so be it. If they win on Sunday, we'll hear all the "You guys didn't respect us" cliches.

If they lose, though... Watch out.

The bigger reason for a win or a loss will not be the evil Media -- of which the biggest mouths in the locker room, Strahan, Barber and Shockey, are members by virtue of their outside media arrangements -- but getting injured guys back.

Osi, Brandon Short and Sam Madison all practiced again and it sounds as if they'll play on Sunday. Strahan didn't practice yesterday, but I'm leaning towards him playing even more now. Corey Webster (toe) is a no-go, but Madison and McQuarters sounds a lot better than Webster and anybody at CB.

So, dear readers, I will take my evil self out to the stadium again tomorrow and stir up my bubbling cauldron of evilness. Just remember who it was that made Strahan call out his teammate on the radio, or made Tiki call out his coaches, or made Shockey... well, Shockey. It's us. We're evil. If there were no Media to portray these guys in such a negative light, they would be free to deliver their positive messages of goodness and sunshine.

Sorry for the extended sarcasm... I love my job, and so do most athletes. It gets tiring, being the scapegoat all the time.

And Keith, if we were banned from the locker room, who would be left to get the Giants all riled up?

By now, if you care about such things, you know that Michael Strahan turned his own divisive words from Monday morning, when he said he planned to speak to Plaxico Burress about being labeled a quitter, into an attack on the media -- specifically, Kelly Naqi of ESPN. Blauber blogged the stuff earlier for me, so I appreciate that.

Now, I get to do the analysis.

Basically, Strahan made a thinly veiled attempt to make this situation "Us vs. Them" -- the Giants players against the dreaded media. Just as Tiki Barber went public with his criticism of the game plan in Jacksonville last week to a) get some complaints off his chest and b) distract us all from ripping Eli Manning, Strahan is trying to keep the team together.

The difference here is that it was Strahan who started this whole thing with what he said on WFAN Monday morning. No one tricked him into calling out Burress, who said today that Strahan never personally spoke to him nor did Plax hear what Strahan said; strange that Burress, who did kind of quit on the first interception, ends up looking like more of a stand-up guy than Strahan, who has every right to privately shred a teammate not giving full effort.

Once you do it in public though... We get what happened today. Not Strahan's finest moment, but if the Giants win on Sunday, surely someone will trot out the "You guys counted us out" chestnut. So you fans won't care who started it, as long as it fires up the Giants.

In actual, you know, news... Osi Umenyiora, Sam Madison and Brandon Short practiced today, and Umenyiora sounded like he's ready to play. Wait until tomorrow, I say, when he feels the effects of his first practice in six weeks.

Strahan did a bit of 9-on-7 run defense work, so don't count him out either... It wouldn't be Willis Reed, but if he's going to get all fired up on Wednesday, he might as well play in the next game and back up his words.

Antonio Pierce (knee), Corey Webster (toe), Carlos Emmons (groin) and Gibril Wilson (shoulder) didn't practice. Webster already looks like a no-go for Sunday, so Madison's return would be huge. Can't see R.W. McQuarters and either Frank Walker or Kevin Dockery going toe to toe with Terry Glenn and T.O.

Eli stinks. He's finished. Coughlin should be fired. Burress is a dog.

OK... Deep breaths, people. Now, let's assess the comments, shall we? I've just looked them over and I'll toss out some random responses:

-- Burress dogged it on the INT, no question. But I am a little surprised at the wave of sentiment to get rid of the guy. He's the No. 1 receiver and those are hard to come by -- and it's also hard to find No. 1s who aren't prickly, who don't pout (Marvin Harrison this week?), who don't want the ball on every play. As in sync as Eli and Burress have been at times, that's how out of sync they both are now. It's not irreparable.

-- Frank Walker's play was far more egregious than Kiwanuka's. Kiwanuka made a dumb play, the dumbest of all the dumb plays. He knows it, you know it. And I don't accept any of the excuses about the NFL rules protecting QBs. Wrap him up, drive him to the sideline, drive him back to the first row behind the end zone if you have to. Play to the whistle is what these guys are taught. So he messed up and I doubt he'll ever do it again.

But Frankie W... There's no words. Watch the replay again: He's pulled off his man in coverage, sprinting up from the end zone, head down, to hit a guy who's on the sideline and being pulled down by two guys. On fourth down. There's no football sense at all in that play, and he might have gotten flagged for hitting any player, not just a QB.

-- Eli's not done. Even if you wanted him to be, he's the guy. He had three smart quarters, posting David Carr numbers; in the fourth, once the Titans stacked nine guys in the box to keep Tiki Barber in check, Eli had no answer because his down-field vision is off. If he doesn't see Burress, he doesn't see much of anything. That will be hard to unlearn, but he has to do it.

-- Coughlin's not done... yet. My colleague, Capt. Blauber, asked TC if the coach thought about taking over play-calling duties. TC didn't give a resounding "you're way off base there" response, but I'm not sure there's much he'd do differently. My two cents? Use more two-back sets with Barber and Brandon Jacobs, because Manning trusts Jacobs as a checkdown receiver. More three-step drops, more quick in routes. Short and steady down the field only gave the Giants a 21-0 lead, so why continue with that?

Coughlin may save his gig for next season and beyond because of the injuries. Not an excuse, just an obviously huge reason why the Giants cannot sustain anything on defense. Even without Luke Petitgout and Amani Toomer, the offense can score. But the defense is held together with bubble gum and hope right now.

And yes, Bob, I messed up too -- Eli did have 230 yards against the Jags, the Giants play the Cowboys this weekend... But Joe Theismann? That's low, dude. Loved it tonight when Kimmel asked him how his leg was doing.

OK, it didn't just happen, but it did happen just yesterday. And today, the Giants went about the business of trying to fix it, repair it and forget it, because the Cowboys are coming to town, and first place is still on the line, for those who think the season's finished.

That was the purpose of a players-only meeting today, called following the players' film review. Some of the players who called the meeting spoke, according to a couple guys who were present: Antonio Pierce, Michael Strahan, Shaun O'Hara and Tiki Barber. Eli Manning didn't speak; neither did Plaxico Burress.

Pierce told some reporters about the meeting. "You guys write what you want to, and that's fine," he said. "But guys in here read that. And we can't have anyone thinking the season's over, because it's not. We've got five games left and everything we want to accomplish is still right there for us."

The biggest boost to the Giants' cause is not a few words of motivation, but a few healthy bodies returning to the defense. Tom Coughlin said Osi Umenyiora and Brandon Short are scheduled to practice on Wednesday and Strahan will "advance" in his recovery, meaning perhaps some individual work. Strahan's already basically a no-go for Sunday, but if Umenyiora and Short are back, that would remove William Joseph and Reggie Torbor (or Carlos Emmons, who looks worn down) from the starting lineup, and that's a step in the right direction.

Sam Madison made a locker-room appearance, saying he doesn't want to rush back like he did three weeks ago and kill his whole season. Corey Webster is nursing a mysterious toe injury and Coughlin said he won't know about Webster until tomorrow.

As for Coughlin's dwindling tenure, Pierce had some perspective, having gone through three head coaches in four seasons with the Redskins. "I don't think it's to the point where he doesn't have control of the team," Pierce said. "That's not the case. I've been around that. When the coach is about to get fired, everybody can feel it. He's not the one with the pads on. It's on us."

Jeremy Shockey suffered a compound dislocation of his right ring finger in warmups... He's playing, but keep an eye on it.

Frankie W. is starting in Webster's place, not Dockery. Should make all the difference.

DE Travis LaBoy is the only notable Titans scratch. Tony Brown starts in his place.

CB Corey Webster (toe) isn't active today. WR Sinorice Moss is the other gameday inactive, joining the fivesome who did not travel.

So the Giants' starting corners? R.W. McQuarters and Kevin Dockery. Yikes.

And Brandon Short is not. Ah well. Thought he was coming back, but not tomorrow. So Reggie Torbor gets another start at SLB and he has to be better than he was on Monday.

The other four Giants who didn't make the trip are DE Michael Strahan, DE Osi Umenyiora, CB Sam Madison and T Luke Petitgout. Sinorice Moss came along and I guess he may play, though Coughlin did not indicate that yesterday.

What will happen tomorrow? I'm usually right about these things, as you all know, so here's my detailed prediction...

Tiki Barber rushes 30 times for 186 yards. He even scores a touchdown, as does Brandon Jacobs. Eli Manning struggles again, but it's not as noticeable. Vince Young does some damage, mostly with his feet, but Travis Henry is not a factor and the Giants come up with a key fumble recovery late to seal a 24-17 win.

There you go. Inactives tomorrow afternoon.

I don't know if he fined Tiki or not, but the coach's comments today from his media session (which I did not attend) show me what kind of talk it was that he and Barber had.

"There is no question about my commitment to that: the balance, the running the ball. I have said it since day one. Look at Tiki’s numbers over the three years. Were they the same as they were before I got here? Just check that part out, too, while you are doing it."

Coughlin is not the smoothest guy around. He can be a little awkward when he gets to talking. But it sounds as if, in addition to reading Barber his version of the riot act, he not-so-gently reminded his star running back that Tiki could very well still have been a fumbling nobody had Coughlin and RBs coach Jerald Ingram not come along. Which, for a guy like Tiki, should serve to end any dispute with his coach. Coughlin helped make Barber who he is today, a guy who is at least part of the Hall of Fame conversation, a guy who will be able to reap huge post-career rewards very soon.

It's exactly the right way to go with Barber, and Coughlin may have won himself some points in the locker room for doing so.

You know, it's funny to think that the two guys who have sounded off to us reporters about bad coaching have their own forums for communicating directly with the public. Tiki has his radio show and Shockey has his column in that New York tabloid.

What does it all mean? I don't know, really. Maybe that some guys can't help themselves, that they have to have the spotlight on them or else it's all too boring. Whatever. Just interesting to me.

Here's one more idle thought from my holiday, for all those who really think Eli Manning can't lead the Giants anymore: If he were to go down with any kind of injury on Sunday in Nashville, what would be your first thought? Would it be, 'Finally, we get to see what Jared Lorenzen can do with this offense?' Or would it be more like, 'Oh, %$@#%$&&&!!!!'

Let's all think about that one.

My man Anthony Rieber was on hand today, telling me that Coughlin essentially ruled out WR Sinorice Moss for Sunday's game because Moss hasn't aired it out yet in practice to really test his quad. LB Brandon Short practiced and appears to be a go for Sunday, as does DT Barry Cofield. Any positive news about the defense's health should help that unit.

CB Corey Webster (toe) did not practice and is questionable for Sunday. He's been bad, I know, but the alternatives -- Kevin Dockery or Frank Walker -- might be a little scarier.

Prediction tomorrow.

It was first reported on the CBS pregame show today and person close to the situation confirmed to me that Tom Coughlin sat Tiki down last night and told his star RB to shut it. Barber spoke out about the team's (read: Coughlin's) too-quick decision to not run the ball on the Jaguars on Monday night, the fourth time since the start of the 2005 season that Barber has popped off to reporters, not his head coach, about too much passing.

It's the right move by Coughlin, as would a fine. The Giants went through this with Shockey after the Seahawks game, and the coach dealt with his mouthy tight end in private. He gave Barber the same treatment, showing everyone else that no one is above the team's law.

Speaking of the coach, one player told me that Coughlin's postgame tirade on his team -- which all of us reporters could hear through a closed door separating the interview room from the locker room in Jacksonville -- was "tame by comparison." He meant to the halftime screamfest, in which Coughlin accused his team of playing without passion.

The player told me that Coughlin always leads the team in a prayer after the game down on one knee. Coughlin stayed on the knee and spoke in an almost plaintive tone to his players, telling them that the coaches would make the proper adjustments to the game plan and be ready for Tennessee.

"He's never stayed on one knee before," the player said. "It felt like he needed to be a little more humble because he might lose us if he didn't."

Which sounds to me like Coughlin knew he'd messed up by forcing a shaky Eli Manning to throw 41 times. But that doesn't mean he's going to go soft when Barber steps to the mic and goes on a run, run, run rant.

My only personal feeling about this latest Tiki diatribe is that he doesn't have the clubhouse cache he once did because, in six or seven or eight games, he's out. And it's on his terms. So who is he to say what the team should do, since he's putting himself first when retirement day comes?

Just my opinion. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

Let's recap: Eli can't throw the ball, the Giants can't run, William Joseph and Jonas Seawright played at the same time in a regular-season game that wasn't played on European soil and Big BB is quoting Rage... Yeah, that sounds about right.

It was a debacle on Monday night, plain and simple. Manning is not going to be benched, obviously -- he's the franchise, not a kid in need of a good talking-to anymore -- and, as we heard today, Tiki isn't going to let up on his coach or offensive coordinator. "I felt insignificant," he said today.

Now, this is not a new phenomenon. I've been on this beat for a season plus these last 10 games, and this will be the fourth time I'll write in the paper that Tiki is upset that the Giants don't run more. He has a point: He carries the ball 20 or more times, the Giants win. When he's under 20, they lose. Of course, carrying it 20 or more times and running behind a LT who belonged in the Pro Bowl is different than trying to run behind Bob Whitfield, which contributed to the Giants abandoning the run game.

But abandon they did, and they weren't down by double-digits until the second half. Which is not the right move. And the fact that five of Barber's 10 runs were draws is ridiculous. That's an even quicker abandonment than usual.

So pin this one of Eli, but also on the coordinator and coach. When the defense is as depleted as it was on Monday, even down six points, you need to control the tempo to give guys a blow. The Giants defense was on the field for 40 minutes, which would wear down 11 Pro Bowlers.

It was awful.

So, what's next? The Titans, who can run the ball with the best of them. That means the Giants have to counter with a commitment to the run game so that a) Barber can get his confidence back -- he's just such a fragile guy (sarcasm, anyone?) and b) Manning can settle into the game. He can't fling passes all the way around the field, chasing Plaxico Burress through crowds of defenders. He's a good no-huddle QB when he has to be, but he's best handing the ball off and running a play-action now and again.

Osi Umenyiora did some individual work today, but if he plays against the Cowboys in 11 days, count me as surprised. Brandon Short did practice and he seems to be raring to go, which would be huge. Reggie Torbor was overmatched on Monday, so Carlos Emmons can move back to the strong side.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. By the time you're on the couch in a tryptophan stupor, the Giants will be in second place.

WR Sinorice Moss and LB Tyson Smith are the game-time inactives, joining the five Giants who didn't travel: Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, Brandon Short, Luke Petitgout and Sam Madison.

That means Michael Jennings will play -- Moss is getting closer to full health, but Tom Coughlin decided Jennings' ability on special teams would help with David Tyree less than 100 percent.

More later.

Guess the other two inactives. The Giants kept five players home from their trip to Jacksonville today: Michael Strahan, Luke Petitgout, Brandon Short, Osi Umenyiora and Sam Madison. That's five guys out, plus third QB Tim Hasselbeck.

Who will the other two be? If Sinorice Moss can play, sadly, our man Michael Jennings may be deactivated. It would really be a shame, since Jennings is from Jacksonville and he's been dreaming about playing here all season long.

There aren't many other possibilities -- I'd go with either Jonas Seawright or Lance Legree as the other.

As for our man MJ, I've got a little homecoming story in the paper tomorrow. Hope you enjoy it, because I truly enjoyed spending some time with him. Just watching him drive down the streets of Newark -- waving at cops, chatting with anyone who stopped to check out his Chevy -- it's hard to do anything but root for this guy.

As for the game... I did pick the Jags as my best bet in the paper, and I'll tell you why:

-- They are very physical. Tiki Barber's banged up, Bob Whitfield has to play left tackle for a full 60 and Eli just hasn't been sharp. I doubt the Giants will be filled with confidence on offense.

-- They know who their QB is. Byron Leftwich is having ankle surgery on Tuesday, so it's David Garrard the rest of the way. I somehow feel that knowledge may cure some of the drops among receivers.

-- It's just the Giants and Cowboys now in the East. As I'm writing this, the Cowboys just tied it up with the Colts in the third quarter. Win or lose, Dallas and the Giants are the only two teams fighting for the East, so I don't think anyone's getting much of a cushion before the Dec. 17 game in Giants Stadium.

Tomorrow's game will be ugly.

Jags 17, Giants 13

Sorry gang -- been on the couch for a couple days when I wasn't at the stadium. I'm ready now, I think.

OK, let's field some questions...

Chris: Tiki's thumb isn't in the best shape -- he was wearing a real, honest-to-goodness cast on it this week -- and who knows what can happen in a game against a very physical defense. Both Tom Coughlin and Barber pointed out that he played through the injury against the Bears, but no one mentioned the fumble when Eli Manning and Barber misfired on a handoff. The thumb definitely had something to do with that.

As to your further point, that the Giants cannot win without a monster Tiki game on Monday, is that ever not true?

Andrew: Osi's injury was never really characterized as minor, though the fact that the Giants still list him as doubtful for Monday's game is awfully humorous. Strahan has a better chance of playing Monday that Umenyiora does. Now, as I said a couple days ago (also known as my last post), there are varying degrees of hip flexor injuries, from a minor strain to a tear. Osi's, obviously, is closer to the worst-case scenario, so the possibility exists that he's still a month away from playing.

CT Ron: David Boston, Peter Warrick -- kicking the tires. Sinorice Moss may play Monday, and if he can do anything close to what the Giants hoped he would when they drafted him, no NFL flameouts are necessary.

Big BB: Dude, you're the best. Hope you don't get disgustipated with me.

Lauren/Sam: I'll try to work my way back into a regular rotation.

One caveat about the stomach virus on a college football Saturday: Too many Taco Bell commercials. Ugh.

And Byron Leftwich is having surgery on his ankle, so the Giants don't have to prepare for him, as TC said they would.

Lastly, Blauber/FGOS chided me for not having any more music in my blog... Here are my latest faves from the satellite radio:

TV On The Radio, "Wolf Like Me"
Cold War Kids, "Hang Me Up To Dry"
The Hold Steady, "Chips Ahoy!"

I'll get my prediction up tomorrow, then it's off to Jacksonville. Yippee.

Now that I got some of you regulars' attention... Just kidding. I'm glad Bajio, Ryan, Chris and the rest of the crew are checking in.

So, Bajio... Here are some answers:

a) Not so hot, apparently. The Giants brought Warrick in for a look last year, right before the season began, and didn't commit. Drew Rosenhaus is Warrick's agent, so if the Giants wanted him, he'd be a Giant already. David Boston and Marc Boerigter also came in for workouts, according to Kenny Palmer over at Scout.com. Seems the Giants are doing what they usually do, which is kick some tires on players at a position of need.

The best solution is to have one of their own WRs become a reliable target.

b) Osi's injury is a bad one. A strained hip flexor can be a mild little thing, or a complete tear of one of the muscles in there. He's got a pretty bad tear, obviously, and considering he hasn't practiced, he's still a ways off.

c) Coughlin isn't warm and fuzzy, but then again, neither am I when I'm in the media room asking him questions. He can be a little more gruff than most, I'd say, but that stuff doesn't really bother me. If it bothers you, that's a different story, because you guys are the ones whose interest keeps things going.

d) Guy Whimper seems like a fine young man. I have no clue how he is as a player, because he's dressed exactly once. He's nowhere near ready to take Luke's spot.

And Ryan, I think Shockey's value in the passing game overrides their desire to keep him in and block. Visanthe Shiancoe and Rich Seubert have been doing the bulk of the blocking, so maybe you'll see Shockey split out wide more -- and maybe Eli finding him more.

Today was another Giants' day off. Tomorrow should be a news-worthy day with injured players perhaps returning to practice.

How come when the Giants are winning five straight there's nothing but crickets out there when I blog, but one lousy loss and everyone (save you, Big BB) comes flying out to flay the team?

Just kidding. We welcome comments at all times, even from the out-of-town team fans who feel the need to crow a little... Takes me back to Seattle. Those were the days.

Coughlin's explanations today on some of your comments...

Why no Brandon Jacobs? Situational, the coach said. Only 56 plays, not enough time to squeeze him onto the field. Can't say I would accept that one given how he's been running of late.

Why only two throws to Jeremy Shockey? Coughlin put this one squarely on Eli's shoulders, and to me, it's justified. The kid gloves are off with Eli -- he's had enough good games and seen enough defenses to make his own adjustments. He hit Burress early with a couple three-step drops, then no more of those -- not smart, especially after Petitgout went down and Alex Brown was using the E-Z Pass lane on Bob Whitfield.

Coughlin also pointed out that Tim Carter, who was invisible to those of us who try to watch the whole field, had a solid game. He was simply ignored by Eli. The gauntlet's down for Manning: He has to find the right guys and get them the ball, not force it into tight spots to his favorites.

As to the question about Sinorice Moss -- he's probably going to practice this week, but the question now becomes this: Can the Giants afford to dress him and sit someone else? They're not depleted at WR the way they are on defense. Moss is still a gamble because of the lack of playing time, so we'll see if and when he's healthy enough to go, where they can use him.

The word of the day is "disgustipated." Thanks, Big BB. We all needed that.

That wasn't quite how the Giants wanted it to go... Kudos to Tom Coughlin for accepting responsibility for the pivotal play call, Jay Feely's 52-yard try into the wind that turned into Devin Hester's 108-yard missed FG return. And I don't mean kudos for telling the media and fans, I mean for telling his team; some coaches might have feared looking weak for admitting a mistake in such a big game, but Coughlin told his team it was his call.

Heck, it might have even endeared him to some players who view him as having no interpersonal skills whatsoever.

But, ultimately, it was the wrong move. You have Feely, who missed a 33-yarder into the same uprights in the opening quarter. You have Jeff Feagles, the best directional, inside-the-20 punter in NFL history. And you have a bit of momentum, having stopped the Bears offense on the prior series. You also have 11+ minutes to go.

Now, you don't expect Hester to take that all the way back, but even Coughlin said afterwards that a return is one of the risks of trying a long field goal. For a guy who takes very few risks, it was a strange decision. Even a regular old miss gives the Bears the ball at their own 42, which is a big risk to take too.

Just strange, like the game. I guess the only normal part was the Giants losing another key veteran to a season-ending injury. Luke Petitgout is going for more tests today, but a broken leg is pretty self-explanatory. It's usually at least a 6-8 week recovery; for a big guy like Petitgout, he won't come out on the short end of that unless he drops 40 or 50 pounds. So he's done at least until the postseason, and maybe after that.

And Bob Whitfield... If what Alex Brown did to him is indicative of what DEs will do to Bob on the left side, Eli Manning better work on those three-step drops.

Sam Madison's reinjured hammy can't be dismissed either. He told me after the game that it wasn't as bad as when he first hurt it in Dallas, but it was pretty close to a full setback; I'm betting he's shut down until after Tennessee. Fortunately for the Giants, the passing attacks of the Jags and Titans aren't exactly lethal. But given how badly Corey Webster was abused in Madison's absence last night, the secondary is definitely in worse shape.

Highlights? Tiki, as usual, and that sprained thumb better only be minor... Gibril Wilson had a fierce game, though the underneath routes the Bears destroyed the Giants on could have been covered tighter by the safeties... For a half, at least, the makeshift D-line did the job. Wore down though and got nothing going in the second half... David Tyree had some nice grabs as the new No. 2 WR.

Lowlights? Eli, Eli, Eli -- he was bad last night, not just mediocre. Bad protection, I know, but he needs to adjust to having a lesser LT in there on his blind side... Will Demps' flailing miss on Thomas Jones' 3rd-and-22 run at the end of the half was the first pivotal play before the FG try... And to the officials, who make consistency a dirty word. Brandon Jacobs can put the ball under his jersey one game, but not another. Fred Robbins pats Rex Grossman on the head and it's a personal foul. Lance Briggs pulls down Tiki by the middle of the "21" on his back and it's a horse collar.

Huh? Here's a good guideline for those roughing-the-passer calls, Ed Hochuli: If the QB who gets roughed pops up and starts clapping excitedly after he's roughed, pick up the flag. He's fine, and he's a faker.

As for the celebration stuff... This rule is like old Reagan-era Attorney General Ed Meese's definition of porngraphy: I know it when I see it. Just let them celebrate, let T.O. sleep on the ball, let Chad Johnson do whatever it is he does with the ball, let Brandon Jacobs tuck it under his jersey. If you let guys throw the ball into the stands, or spike it off the back judge, or anything else, you can't say what's good and what's a foul. Silly.

OK, I'm done for now. Anyone else got any problems??

Carlos Emmons (groin) couldn't make it... A mild surprise, given that he practiced on Friday, but it's not a surprise when he misses a game.

The fact that the Giants signed LB Tyson Smith off the practice squad yesterday was a pretty good indicator that Emmons wouldn't go tonight. So Smith is active, Torbor and Gerris Wilkinson start alongside Antonio Pierce, and Emmons and Brandon Short (quad) give the Giants two LBs and three DEs (Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck) on the inactive list.

Also there are WR Sinorice Moss (quad) and CB Frank Walker (hamstring), who also practiced all week. Sam Madison is back. But the scary part is that all seven inactives are guys who would normally play.

Also, William Joseph bounces out to LDE, with Adrian Awasom starting on the sidelines.

The Bears are missing CB Dante Wesley and, most important, WR Bernard Berrian. No Berrian and wind and rain should help the Giants defense keep Rex Grossman in check.

But Cazart thinks I think it is... Here's why I'm making the prediction that I'll make down at the bottom:

1) The Giants have the better QB in this game by about a thousand light years. Rex Grossman has played well, but he's also had two games that would have gotten him benched in just about every other city. The Cardinals' defense hasn't scared anyone, but he was running for his life in that game; against a better Dolphins defense, he did just as poorly. The Giants defense, even minus four starters, is better than either of those two. Eli Manning, meanwhile, has been bounced around by plenty of big-time teams and recovered nicely.

2) Even though Osi and Strahan and Tuck are out, the Giants have their DTs. And those DTs are the reason that the Giants have turned opposing offenses one-dimensional. Fred Robbins may be bounced out to DE, but William Joseph has been good as a sub, and Antonio Pierce is there to direct traffic. Best way for the Giants to go is have Adrian Awasom start in Strahan's spot so that Robbins and Barry Cofield can continue their excellent interior work.

3) If the Giants can run, it doesn't matter who they're playing. If Tiki and Jacobs have room to operate and Eli Manning stays conservative, the Bears won't be able to do too much. Brian Urlacher has to do what Jeremiah Trotter did to Barber in Philly, but I don't see the Giants' blockers being unable to find No. 54 tomorrow.

4) Tim Carter is no Amani, but he doesn't have to be. I wouldn't want to rely on TC to make the same sort of big catches Toomer's been making for years, but Eli ideally won't be locking in on anyone, leaving the field wide open.

Yes, the Giants will miss Toomer. And Strahan. And Osi. And Tuck. And Brandon Short. But all they need is one or two good drives and a sturdy effort from the D.

Giants 16, Bears 12

And Chris Claiborne is likely to get a few snaps behind Gerris Wilkinson to give the rookie a breather.

The Giants spoke glowingly about Amani Toomer today, and the one consistent note sounded about him was his consistency -- the guy never dropped passes and usually made spectacular catches when other receivers might not have laid out for a ball. "You can't just put anyone out there and have them be Toom," Plaxico Burress said.

Certainly not anyone currently in the Giants locker room. Tom Coughlin stayed mum when asked whom the Giants would add to take Toomer's place on the roster, and said "everyone will play" Sunday in Toomer's place. That throws Tim Carter, Michael Jennings and David Tyree into the No. 2 WR mix, but not Sinorice Moss, who won't play no matter how well practice goes tomorrow.

Carlos Emmons (groin) missed practice again, staying in the locker room to get treatment... Paging Reggie Torbor! So it'll likely be Torbor-Antonio Pierce-Gerris Wilkinson on Sunday to contain a good run offense and keep TE Desmond Clark out of the middle of the field. Yikes.

It's only 4:03, so if there's late word of another major injury, I'll update.

I wouldn't even begin to make some injury up for laughs, because it might just come true.

Amani Toomer's season-ending knee surgery isn't the biggest blow to the Giants, but it definitely smarts. He was starting to become a bit of an afterthought in the offense -- Plaxico Burress is Eli's favorite, Jeremy Shockey and Tiki Barber usually get more looks -- but Toomer was just always there and came up with more than one or two key catches over the last season and a half.

Obviously, he's done more than just that over his terrific career, but since Burress came to town, Toomer's been a reliable No. 2.

Who's that guy now? Tim Carter? Please. Sinorice Moss? Michael Jennings? Funny how a guy like Toomer can be so forgotten at times and yet so essential.

Burress' back and Shockey's ever-changing health become even more important now. Neither can afford to be out, because then it's just 10 guys blocking for Barber with the occasional throw over the middle to Visanthe Shiancoe.

There aren't many options out there for fill-in WRs. Ricky Proehl's agent contacted the Giants, but they may not want a 38-year-old who doesn't know the offense. Anthony Mix has been on the practice squad all year, but is he ready for real action? Would any PS guy from another team be ready?

Stay tuned.

We've got the midseason report card running in the paper tomorrow, so we'll hand out some hardware on the blog today...

MVP, Offense: Tiki. Who else? Leads the league in rushing, which keeps everyone's cake-holes shut about the whole "retirement distraction" thing. I don't think the team is strong enough (or healthy enough) to send Barber into the sunset with a Super Bowl ring, but a rushing title wouldn't be bad.

MVP, Defense: Fred Robbins. A surprise pick, since Antonio Pierce has been excellent and R.W. McQuarters has been a very pleasant addition to the secondary, but did anyone think Robbins would be a force at DT? He's tied for the team lead with two INTs, he's got a fumble recovery and 3 1/2 sacks, second on the team.

MVP, Front Office: Ernie Accorsi. How's that Mathias Kiwanuka pick looking now? Not that he's a genius for knowing his Pro Bowl DEs would both be hurt, but he drafted a sharp, athletic young player who has worked hard to make himself a valuable presence, not just a green rookie learning as he goes.

Biggest Play: Plaxico Burress' fumble into the end zone in Philly that Tim Carter recovered, beginning the fourth-quarter comeback. Without that play, the Giants are 0-3 after Seattle and who knows where they are now.

Leadership Badge: Antonio Pierce. Listen to him long enough and he could convince you Mother Nature disrespected you for raining on your picnic. The reason his teammates follow his lead isn't only because he's one of the smartest guys on the field; he's a master motivator, taking every perceived and mild slight personally.

Badge of Courage: Also to Pierce, for playing through a hand injury that probably would sideline most guys. He knows his value to the team is on the field.

Frankenstein's Monster Injuries: Let's see... Two bad quads (Sinorice Moss and Brandon Short), a torn Achilles (LaVar Arrington), a sprained Lisfranc joint (Michael Strahan), a bum hip flexor (Osi Umenyiora), a sprained foot (Justin Tuck), partially torn pec (Carlos Emmons), bad back (Plaxico Burress), bad ankles (Amani Toomer, Jeremy Shockey), bad hammy (Sam Madison) and pounding migraine (Kareem McKenzie). You think head trainer Ronnie Barnes uses a highlighter on his anatomy map?

Predictions:

-- Giants win the East, finish 11-5 again, get No. 2 seed in the East... Lose NFC Championship game in Chicago.

-- Tiki Barber rushes for 1,700 yards, three TDs, and loses out to LaDainian Tomlinson for the rushing title. Barber retires. It is not a distraction.

-- Michael Strahan returns for the final game of the regular season and has a strong postseason... Every other injured player on defense returns before the playoffs too. Strahan does not retire.

-- Tom Coughlin gets a three-year extension before the end of the postseason. The Giants announce it in April.

We'll put these in the time capsule.

Thanks for checking in, folks... Especially you, Doc.

I would say that Strahan did have his foot wrapped in ice, but I can't really know for sure... It's not just the Giants who treat injuries this way. If Strahan wants to be on the sidelines when he should be resting his foot in a tub of ice, who's to stop him? They're big boys and they can do what they want.

Look at concussions -- every other sport known to man makes its players sit out when they are concussed. Football players? Right back into the game sometimes! It's insane.

As for rushing the rest of the injured defenders back, I'd say it's not smart and the Giants won't do it. The Bears game is big, but if they lose this one and get Osi, Tuck, Madison and Short healthy, that'll matter more over the final seven games. And the playoffs, if the Giants get there.

He does have a Lisfranc joint sprain, but it's not broken or dislocated. If it were, he'd be done for the year and the Giants would be in even worse shape.

They're not in good shape now... Perhaps neither are the Bears, whose own defensive leader, LB Brian Urlacher, suffered a sprained foot yesterday. Urlacher reportedly said if it were up to him, he'd play against the Giants.

It isn't up to him, and I bet he won't play. Playing on a sprained foot isn't pretty and can end up doing a lot more damage; that's why Strahan will be in a cast and on crutches for at least a week.

Coughlin's conference call in 45 minutes... More to come.

Er, sort of... The Giants didn't cover the spread, they very nearly lost, but hey, they are 6-2 now. And even better, a win Sunday gives them the best record in the NFC, with a tiebreaker to boot over the Bears.

But that's getting a little bit ahead. Especially with an eagerly awaited injury update on Michael Strahan's sprained right foot. It might come this afternoon from Tom Coughlin, it might not come until Wednesday. You just don't know what they're going to tell us.

The dreaded "Lisfranc sprain" phrase careened around the press box yesterday when Strahan left. The Lisfranc joint, as my detailed (OK, Google) search revealed, is at the base of the toes. If it is dislocated, sprained or broken, the middle of the foot swells up and you can't put any weight on it; Strahan's foot was not broken, which is the good news.

If it is a Lisfranc sprain, Strahan could miss serious time -- maybe the rest of the season. That happened to Eagles RB Brian Westbrook. If it's not a Lisfranc sprain, it still isn't good, because I hear guys like Strahan who are pushing off on every play and trying to wrestle through 300-pound linemen need to put weight on their feet.

I doubt you see No. 92 play against the Bears. Just an uninformed opinion.

And that would mean, unless Osi Umenyiora and/or Justin Tuck have miraculous recoveries, that the DEs against the Bears are Mathias Kiwanuka and Adrian Awasom. Why didn't that genius Ernie Accorsi draft two DEs in April? What was he thinking????

I would guess that Fred Robbins will be taking plenty of snaps at DE this week, with William Joseph sliding into Robbins' tackle spot. It won't be pretty, but it'll have to do.

As for the Texans game... Yikes. The defense did pretty well, actually -- they were a bonehead James Butler play away from not giving up a TD for the second straight game, despite how successful Houston was at hopscotching its way down the field. The Giants still locked down the running game and R.W. McQuarters made some nice plays in coverage.

On offense, no Plaxico Burress and no Kareem McKenzie meant a few errors on the right side of the line from Bob Whitfield and a few Eli Manning passes that sailed over receivers' heads. Whitfield played well enough though, especially against Mario Williams -- anyone think that was a bad pick still? The kid is very, very good.

Manning only needed two good drives yesterday to win, and that's all he had. Jeremy Shockey was the focal point of the passing game and performed well. Oh, and that Barber guy did OK too, averaging just under 7 yards a carry. Amazing.

Frankly, it's OK if the offense learns how to win while struggling. The next two games are against the Bears and Jaguars, who are second and tied for fourth in the league in points allowed. These games will be won by the defense, and even if Awasom, Chris Claiborne and Kevin Dockery are the main guys, the Giants defense has to be prepared for two more throwdowns.

Here's our Monday Moment: Jacques Lisfranc (1790-1847) was a French field surgeon in Napoleon's army who had to amputate a soldier's foot through that joint in the foot after the soldier fell from his horse but got his foot caught in the stirrup.

Staple's new blog motto: Enlighten and Educate. We'll do Final Jeopardy questions later.

That's a scary-big list of inactives, and it makes today's game a little scarier too.

No Burress means Amani Toomer, Jeremy Shockey and Tiki Barber become bigger targets for Eli Manning, and Tim Carter could provide the big-play capability... Of course, that's been the case ever since Carter got here, and it hasn't worked out so well.

No Short means Gerris Wilkinson becomes important again, especially in keeping David Carr honest and helping to shut down the underneath passing game of the Texans.

The rest are holdovers from last week, but if Kevin Dockery ends up covering Andre Johnson or Eric Moulds...

Scary game now.

Who needs blog posts when the Texans are in town?

Actually, the Giants' health (or lack thereof) may make this a more competitive game than they'd like with the Bears on tap... No, no one's actually planning for the Bears, obviously, but the Giants can't help but think about that game on Sunday night nine days from now.

No Osi Umenyiora (hip flexor) this Sunday, no Justin Tuck (sprained foot) and I'm betting no Brandon Short (quad strain), no Sam Madison (hamstring) and possibly no Plaxico Burress (back spasms) -- though the back is a tricky thing.

If Burress is really ready to go -- and it might not be known until the inactives have to be submitted a couple hours before game time -- Coughlin might be given some pause by Burress' last game after missing a Friday practice with back spasms. That was in Seattle, and Coughlin had to sit Burress down after a terrible half.

So the defense is banged up. Luckily, Houston's offense is banged up without having to actually have any injuries. David Carr was pulled last weekend and his confidence can't be too high; Wali Lundy had a nice rushing game in Nashville, but the Giants' run defense has been superb.

So it's a very good day for Osi, Tuck, Madison and Short to get rest. Gerris Wilkinson would play for Short, R.W. McQuarters for Madison (and I'd bet Kevin Dockery, not Frank Walker, plays the nickel) and Mathias Kiwanuka gets his second consecutive start.

I'll post tomorrow if there's news on Burress. It pains me to do this, of course, but my prediction is pretty clear.

Giants 31, Texans 13.

If Houston wins, you can officially say I am Mr. Opposite.