T-Rock's Take on the Giants

The rumored retirement of special teams coordinator Mike Sweatman is true -- he stepped down after 23 seasons in the NFL, 12 with the Giants. The team will announce it tomorrow.

Tom Quinn, Sweatman's assistant last season, will take over as special teams coach.

A couple of teams players said at the end of the season that Sweatman, a military man whose fire and intensity outshone TC's in 2004 and 2005, lost some of that fire last season, and the unit suffered, especially on kick returns and kick coverage.

That should be about all for Giants news... I'm here in Miami and we're trying to get a Super Bowl blog together. Celebrity sightings, unusual stuff; I wanted to blog at the NFC Championship game about my Ric Flair sighting (he's a lot shorter than I thought), but the moment passed.

A person close to the situation confirmed what's been around the internets for a few hours now -- that Chris Palmer, former Browns head coach and Jaguars offensive coordinator under TC, is Eli's new position coach.

Palmer, 57, spent last season as the Cowboys QBs coach, helping that Romo kid be pretty good for a few games (couldn't help him with the snap-holding, apparently). Palmer was the Texans' OC from 2001-05, and before that had two awful seasons as Browns head coach.

He was TC's OC from 1997-98, and Mark Brunell went to the Pro Bowl both those seasons. He was also Bill Parcells' WRs coach from 1993-95 with the Patriots, then became QBs coach in 1996.

In the interest of full disclosure, Palmer was head coach at Boston U., my alma mater, from 1988-89. So I think it's an excellent choice.

He's currently the Eagles LBs coach, and he's worked for eight seasons under Philly's well-known defensive coordinator, Jim Johnson. He's also helped turn Jeremiah Trotter into a Pro Bowler and he got good mileage out of no-names like Omar Gaither this season.

There may or may not be an official word from the Giants forthcoming today, but one defensive player confirmed that Spagnuolo is the man. A few returning members of the defense hoped the new DC would have an aggressive game-plan -- well, who's more aggressive than Johnson? I'm sure Spagnuolo, 46, has learned well.

We'll see what else the Giants have on deck today...

Here's a quick summary of Kevin Gilbride's conference call with us scribes:

-- He said he didn't really interview with TC for the offensive coordinator job, that Coughlin told him after the playoff loss that "if things work out, you'll be the coordinator." Assuming Gilbride meant that if TC was retained, Gilbride would stay in the role he had for the final two games of the season.

-- Said that Eli needs more consistency, and that TC's search for a QB coach won't be rushed. Gilbride was both the OC and QBs coach in several of his previous stops, but TC feels a separate QBs coach is needed here.

-- Gilbride was clearly jazzed by his stint as OC for the final regular-season game and the playoff game. "Overseeing (the offense) and just being a contributor are two different roles," he said. "I enjoy overseeing the whole operation because you're the guy who's responsible for the success or failure of the offense."

-- Biggest change for next season has to be in the downfield passing game -- not just in terms of when those plays are called, but for whom. Gilbride made a point of saying that Eli has to trust more than just Plaxico Burress, and that the receivers have to gain Eli's trust. Also said more than once that Jeremy Shockey has to be more involved in the downfield passing game.

-- He said the coaches have high hopes for Brandon Jacobs, but that "you want to have at least two backs who can run the ball. Almost all teams have that now."

-- He doesn't anticipate any coaching changes on offense, other than the QBs coach being added.

-- Need to have better focus and touch in the red zone, even though statistically, the Giants were better in the red zone than in 2005 -- 27-for-51 (52.9 percent) for TDs in 06, 27-for-59 (45.8 percent) in 05. Funny what a few extra wins will do for your perception.

So that's what Gilbride says... I wasn't on the job in 2004, but I always thought it was odd that Gilbride, a guy with vast head-coaching and OC experience, was hired to coach Eli and John Hufnagel, who had been a QB coach with Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, was hired to be the OC... I get the sense that Hufnagel's personality jibed better with Coughlin than did Gilbride's fiery ways, but now we'll all get a chance to see if Gilbride can work with TC.

We'll have a conference call with Kevin Gilbride in a few minutes, but it's official that he will stay on as offensive coordinator.

No other announcements are expected today as far as a quarterbacks coach or defensive coordinator.

Everyone knew Reese was going to be named GM today, and it was a solid press conference -- John Mara and Jonathan Tisch saying the right things, Reese -- one of the very good guys around the Giants -- saying the right things, and Ernie Accorsi, flu-bitten, looking like he wanted to be in bed somewhere.

Oh, TC was there too, saying little -- still no word on a defensive coordinator, and no official word that Kevin Gilbride is the offensive coordinator. Then he left.

Reese spoke enthusiastically about his very humble beginnings in Tiptonville, Tenn., where he worked in his great-grandfather's slaughterhouse, and his wife of 19 years, Gwen, and their two kids were on hand, themselves getting peppered with questions. Here are some of the more interesting quotes, first from Mara, then one from Reese after the crowd had scattered:

Mara on Reese: "i think he can energize our whole organization, and we could use a little of that right now."

Mara on TC: "Any coach in this league can be considered a lame duck, to a certain extent. You have to prove yourself every year. Jerry is very supportive of Tom. GM is a position where we've had a lot of continuity here and we hope to continue that."

Mara on Pioli: "I was disappointed, but I can't say that it was a major disappointment because I felt really good about the people we had in-house. There were some interesting people out there, but at the end of the day, I like the people we have in-house a heck of a lot more than what was out there. Would I have liked to have spoken to Scott? Yeah, but that's because I don't know him that well. I would have liked to have heard what he was all about, but it was not to be."

Mara on scouting: "I think our system is sound, I don't think we need any major changes in that area. We need to bring in some better players. I think, on the second day of the draft, we've gotten some good players, we've missed on some... We can improve in that area. You look at the teams playing now, they've got guys from the second day of the draft that are contributing. They're not sitting on the bench, they're not inactive. That's something we can do a little bit better on."

Reese on scouting: "For the most part, we do a good job. But there are some new ideas I'm going to present to our personnel staff to see if we can get to a different level on the type of players we bring in -- what their history is with injuries, how productive they've been. We've got to be mindful of not just getting a name, we've got to get guys who can contribute right away, especially with free agency."

Now, it's clear that Reese, who will oversee the April draft while a new personnel director is brought in, was talking about free agency -- namely, a certain No. 55, in whom the Giants put a ton of faith and who was just starting to come around when he was lost for the season (and, funny enough, LaVar was in the stadium yesterday, rehabbing his torn Achilles).

Mara, obviously, was talking more about the draft, and the fact that guys like Gerris Wilkinson were inactive for the playoff loss and Corey Webster was hurt after a disappointing season. Mara also said his brother, Chris, would have an expanded role in personnel decisions, so perhaps that's where change will start.

Just confirmed by the Giants after everyone around the team said it was a matter of time until it was announced.

Jerry Reese will be introduced as the Giants new GM tomorrow at 10:30.

As of today, according to the Giants.

No word yet on a new defensive coordinator... Or on whether other assistants will stay or go.

More to come, as always.

Tim Lewis isn't gone, according to Coughlin -- the coach said he'll decide this week who stays and who goes, and he said that the decision is entirely his.

Not much exciting from his conference call, other than him saying that he has changed over his three seasons and continues to do. And -- shocker!! -- he wished that the players who went to the media with their gripes had kept things in-house.

One of those players, Jeremy Shockey, gave this quote today through the team:

"Coach Coughlin deserves to be the head coach of the New York Giants. I’m glad he’s coming back and I have told a lot of people over the past couple days that I hope he comes back. He and coach Pope, all they want is for me to be the best player I can be. I know they know how hard I work at it, and I know how hard they work to get the most out of me. We all need to do a better job together to get ready for another season. Everyone on this team, no matter what anyone from the outside says, understands that nothing is more important to Coach Coughlin than winning and that’s what you want from your coach.”

Michael Strahan had a similar statement:

"I’m excited to hear that Coach Coughlin will be returning this season. He has led us to back to back playoff appearances for the first time in my 14-year career. Unfortunately, because of my foot injury, I wasn’t able to be much of a help down the stretch this season. I know the perception is that he is unapproachable and distant from his players, but that’s not the case. I had some of my best conversations with him this season, and he showed me how much he cared about me as a person and as a player when I went to him and pleaded with him to let me play against Dallas and then against Philadelphia, and he knew the smart thing to do was to let me heal up some more because I wasn’t ready. I look forward to a healthy return for the ’07 season and helping the Giants organization make a third straight playoff appearance with a better outcome than the past two seasons. Tom is the man to lead us to do just that."

So there you go... Basically, everything is exactly the same as yesterday, but the coach has a 1-year extension.

That's on top of this last year of his original contract... So he got the Jim Fassel 1999 extension. John Mara pointed out on the just-concluded conference call with the owners that the current situation is more Fassel '99 than Dan Reeves '96 -- Mara said Reeves didn't really want to be here and had serious differences with late GM George Young.

There are no ideological differences now.

Some bullet points from the owners' call:

-- There is still no GM, which could fuel speculation that Pats' exec Scott Pioli is still in the running but waiting until the Pats are done. John Mara said the decision on a GM would be made before the playoffs ended, and that any incoming GM will have TC as the coach. "That's the final decision, and whoever is our GM will have to accept that," he said.

-- Mara and Jonathan Tisch say they did not insist TC fire any assistants, but Mara said TC understood that changes had to be made.

-- Mara has talked to numerous players and heard "more positive than negative" comments about TC over the season... He was specifically asked about Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey. "Do I wish sometimes they would hold their tongues? Yes," Mara said. "But they are guys that are very important for our team and they want to win."

-- As for the fans' ire, Mara said: "I'm aware there will be a number of fans who will not be pleased... I'm certainly sensitive to what the fans think, and I've received a lot of mail, particularly over the last 8-10 weeks, voicing some strong feelings. But you can't make decisions off of what the fans' desires are."

-- TC did not have to win his job back in discussions with Mara and Tisch the past two days. "He didn't have to save his job," Tisch said. "He didn't talk us into anything. There wasn't a lightning bolt, just a continuation of a plan he set out three years ago."

-- The owners still believe in Eli. "He needs to play more consistently," Mara said. "Nobody in this building doubts his ability, but he has to do it more consistently."

That's about all... I wrote in my story in the paper today that the wild speculation -- Belichick, Parcells, Cowher, Lombardi, you name it -- usually ends up having a rather vanilla truth behind it. TC is back, with a one-year extension. That's all.

I'll be back after what's sure to be a fun, happy conference call with TC in about 15 minutes... Oh, and Mara did say he wished TC had a better relationship with us scribes. There's something to hope for -- maybe a nice Easter dinner with the coach?

Anyone?

We'll hear the official word in about 20 minutes from team president John Mara and co-owner Jonathan Tisch, but Tom Coughlin will be back for the 2007 season. The rest of the details will be forthcoming.

Didn't blog yesterday because... Well, there was no news, just a ton of BS in the air.

Anyway, the Giants will seemingly have a conference call today, in the next few hours, to announce some slightly important matters... Whether Tom Coughlin is back, for how long, and with how many of his current assistants.

One of those assistants in limbo, defensive coordinator Tim Lewis, may be interviewing today with Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga for their vacant head-coaching spot... Heard that the Dolphins asked for and received permission to speak with Lewis, though in a few hours, they may not need permission. Anyway.

There could also be an announcement on the new GM.

Lots to discuss, and hopefully soon.

After hearing plenty about the Giants and Patriots' VP of Player Personnel Scott Pioli having mutual interest in making Pioli the Giants' GM, a Giants official just told me that the Giants asked the Pats for permission to talk, permission was granted...

And Pioli declined to be interviewed.

Word is that even Bill Belichick placed a call to the Giants to tell them how good Pioli is. This is a bit of a shocker, I think, but the guy has a good job with a good team and might not want to be the one to overhaul the Giants.

Just speculating on that. But it's not speculation that Pioli said no to an interview.

Everyone was present and accounted for -- everyone who played yesterday, at least -- so that's a start. Plaxico Burress didn't feel much like chatting with us; neither did Antonio Pierce, though both guys rarely turned down a request to talk this season, so we'll cut them some slack.

Plax did get off a good line, as usual. While a horde of us trailed him to his car, I asked if a new coach or offensive coordinator wanted him to work out in NJ, what he would say. "Tell him I'll see him in training camp," he said.

There was no word as of this writing, 1:50 p.m., on the fate of Tom Coughlin or his assistant coaches. I do know that TC had all the assistants line up and the players shake hands with each assistant in the team's final meeting, which sounds a like a final farewell for at least a few of the assistants.

I won't speculate yet about the fate of the head coach or his defensive coordinator, but it seems certain that special teams coach Mike Sweatman will retire. A couple of special-teamers said Sweatman hasn't had the same fire this season, and it reflected in an elite group from 2005 being one of the worst units in the league this season.

Anyway, if I hear anything new -- on GM discussions, TC's fate, assistant moves -- I'll be back later. This stuff is hour to hour.

CB Frank Walker and LB Gerris Wilkinson aren't dressed... Guess TC decided he doesn't want a late hit from Walker to determine the coach's fate. So R.J. Cobbs is the fourth CB and Kevin Dockery's ankle better hold up.

As for Wilkinson, a bit of a surprise. He had played well at times this season in spot duty, but Tyson Smith gets the nod as the sixth LB.

So Tiki Barber, reportedly on the verge of becoming an ESPN/ABC talking head, sits down with Tom Jackson this week for an interview Barber knows will air today, game day. So he candidly says that he doesn't appreciate being treated like a child, that he's "demeaned and talked down to."

Also today, in my buddy Steve Serby's column in one of those other NY papers, an "unnamed player" says that Coughlin treats the Giants like "adolescents." Now, I don't mean to blow up Serby's spot or anything, but the number of Giants who would toss out the word "adolescents" is in the low single digits... You all can make the connection.

Tiki can say what he wants, and he usually does. He dislikes Tom Coughlin intensely, and now the ESPN-watchers of the world know.

That he would do today, before the biggest game of the season and maybe the game that helps determine Barber's own legacy, is insane. Completely (bleeping) insane... There's no other way to put it.

If Barber fails today and Coughlin gets fired, you think someone might say that No. 21 tanked it to get the guy he hates canned? That'll be some legacy. And if you're a Giants fan, you know you need Barber to have a strong day today.

I'd be scared.

And this is from the Newsday football picks champion... I think. I know I beat Blauber and T-Rock, so that's not bad right there.

OK, this big game tomorrow:

-- The Eagles will win because they have more weapons on offense. Correll Buckhalter really softened the Giants defense up with some big runs the last time the teams met, because the Giants weren't really looking run when Brian Westbrook was either out or lined up as a WR. Between those two, a variety of workmanlike receivers and TE L.J. Smith, there are too many guys to keep track of for the Giants' worn-out defense.

-- The Eagles will win because their defense is on a roll. That can change, of course, but Brian Dawkins is having a truly amazing season, considering his age and the fact that the rest of the secondary is fair at best; and Trent Cole, groin-kicking aside, has really softened the loss of Javon Kearse.

-- The Eagles will win because they will routinely have better field position. Special teams always play such a pivotal role, and I'm not saying Jeff Feagles or Jay Feely will make a monumental mistake. Just saying that the Giants' coverage has been shaky this season, and KR Sinorice Moss is still growing into the role.

-- The Eagles will win because the Giants aren't really 0-0. They're the same inconsistent, occasionally indifferent bunch that swooned through the second half of the season. They still think they're better than their record, which will be their downfall. I almost wish that Tom Coughlin, who can't be looking forward to Monday even if he keeps his job, would just rip these guys to pieces and remind them that they're a .500 team who squeaked into the playoffs, not a bunch of media darlings who just got caught short a few times.

Eagles 31, Giants 17.

I can't say what will happen on Monday. I trust the people whom I talk to that say nothing has been decided on TC's fate... He could be fired based on what happens tomorrow, he could be fired based on what's happened the last eight games, he could stay based on the back-to-back playoff appearances, he could stay provided he hires new assistants... There are a lot of scenarios still to be played out.

Kind of a big game tomorrow. Don't break anything.

This is not me talking, it's Antonio Pierce, who sells his lines awfully well. The team appeared quite loose in the pre-practice drills reporters watched today, though not in an inattentive way. They looked like a bunch of guys happy to still be playing, which they have every right to feel.

Pierce is taking the low-key approach, even if no one's buying his rap this week. A few other Giants have been asked about their underdog status, but it's hard to sense whether confident guys like Tiki and Plaxico really believe it.

Shockey and Seubert practiced and both will play, it seems. Somewhat disturbing is CB Kevin Dockery's addition to the injury report today with an ankle problem. He didn't practice. Who'd have ever thought losing Dockery would be an issue?

But it is now, with Corey Webster on IR. That would leave Frank Walker as the third CB, and as entertaining a guy as he is, he's pretty much a personal foul waiting to happen on the field. Forget his ability to cover a WR, his discipline is not a top priority.

Also one interesting note from Saturday's game that I never did get to address until today: Jared Lorenzen's QB sneak against the Redskins. Lorenzen said the play was added to the offense before John Hufnagel was canned, so Kevin Gilbride can't take full credit for it; the other interesting thing that I admittedly didn't catch was that Eli Manning was also on the field.

Lorenzen said the Redskins were mad because that's an illegal formation, with two in-helmet headsets on the field at once. The officials didn't catch it though. So the next time J-Lo gets on the field, it's his show.

I'll do my game preview tomorrow, but one thing is for certain: The Eagles are a lock. Trust me.

That was today in the Giants locker room, with TV cameras from NYC and Philly gumming up the works. Here's the little we all learned today:

-- Jeremy Shockey's ankle is getting better and TC said Shockey may try to practice tomorrow. Shockey, who spoke to reporters during the week for the first time in months, said it killed him not to even make the trip with the team last weekend. "You have to deal with the injuries. It’s the one thing I don’t deal with very well." Truer words were never spoken.

-- Antonio Pierce took his latest tack with the media, trying the "Everybody knows we can't win" approach. He does like the gamesmanship, and he does adapt well when something isn't working. Three weeks ago, he tried dumping on Eagles LB Jeremiah Trotter. That didn't go so well, so now it's on to the Giants can't win. OK.

-- Rich Seubert did practice today and, if he's healthy, would be the LG next to David Diehl.

-- Nick Saban left the Dolphins for Alabama. How does this impact the Giants? Not at all just yet, but it might free up a couple assistant-coaching candidates. QBs coach Jason Garrett could be a hot commodity if he's free to leave Miami, and defensive coordinator Dom Capers worked with TC in Jacksonville. If the Giants decide to keep TC but have him find new coordinators and a new QBs coach, Garrett and Capers could figure in the plans. It's all still up in the air, except for the part about Saban leaving.

No, not the Giants -- they were surprisingly low-key today. A few guys said privately that they're quite pleased the Eagles fired the first volley of nonsense this week, with some Philly defensive players saying they feel they can dominate the Giants offense and rattle Eli Manning with pressure.

"We'll let them talk and we'll shut up and play," said one Giant.

"For a change," I said, trying to be snarky.

"Yeah. Isn't that nice?" he said.

Brandon Jacobs did address some of what the Eagles had said on Sunday, namely that Manning could be rattled. "If we protect him, he'll respond," Jacobs said.

Tiki Barber spoke at length today, mostly about how Kevin Gilbride's presence and Jeremy Shockey's absence made Barber the focal point of the offense once again. Even though the offense didn't exactly accomplish that whole balance thing on Saturday, the Giants did try some new stuff -- namely, Eli airing it out into single coverage for receivers who don't wear No. 17.

And the hustle and bustle of the playoff berth had me and my brethren completely overlooking Jared Lorenzen's first NFL snap, when he burrowed for two yards and a first down near the end of the half. It wasn't earth-shattering, but hey, the big kid can do that kind of thing -- even though no one thought of it before Saturday.

Anyway, the news of the day has already leaked out before the Giants had a chance to release it: CB Corey Webster is on injured reserve with turf toe, which he aggravated against the Skins. His starting role was lost when he returned from a month-long absence, and he was the nickel CB partially at fault on Santana Moss' 48-yard TD catch on Saturday.

Webster can't be declared a failure after only two seasons, but he has a lot to learn. Kevin Dockery becomes the nickel and R.J. Cobbs was added off the practice squad.

Even though I really, really believed that the Giants weren't getting off the mat on Saturday, clearly my picking the opposite worked again. What is it now, 14 weeks in a row?

Not to worry, Giants fans. I'm definitely picking the Eagles on Sunday.

Before we get there... A little playoff-week hype is in order. First bulletin-board fodder comes from Eagles DE/GK (defensive end/groin-kicker) Trent Cole: "We can get him rattled. You've seen it for yourself. You get him rattled and his game starts going downhill…That's what we want to do – dominate. We want to stop the running game and get us into a pass-rushing mode. That's what we do best. Like I said, we want to go back out there and expose them again…If we can take Tiki away, I think we have a good enough defensive backfield to stop their passing game."

Now, forget for a moment the fact that Cole is pretty dead on, except for the time in Philly when the Eagles sacked Manning eight times and the Giants still won. That was this season, even though it feels like a decade ago.

Cole pretty much lost that game for the Eagles with his groin kick late, so he should know about doing or saying silly things. He's now done both. Antonio Pierce, captain of the Giants' debate team, will offer the rebuttal tomorrow, I'm sure.

Now, I apologize for not answering BB's questions. I'll try here, even though there's another week of football to go:

On the thigh injuries... Can't say I know the record, but these guys lead the league in injuries to one position every year, it seems.

On Osi-Kiwanuka... We'll see what Umenyiora can do when he's healthy. But you can see for yourself: Without Strahan, the pass rush is non-existent.

On a draftable RB... I doubt they'd spend a first-round pick on a running back, but maybe a late-rounder or a mid-level FA -- Ron Dayne, anyone? Could he and Brandon Jacobs be Thunder and Thunder? Just kidding.

Not touching that last one.