T-Rock's Take on the Giants

Good evening Giants fans! I'm Chris Mascaro and I'll be bringing you all of tonight's live game action, as the Giants take the field at the Meadowlands for the first time in the 2008 campaign, against the Cleveland Browns.

Tonight's Monday Night Football matchup will be a run-through of sorts, because these teams will meet in the real thing on October 13 in Cleveland.

The Browns are coming off a surprising 10-6 season (same as the Giants, by the way), and anything short of a playoff berth (which they fell just shy of last season) will be a disappointment in Cleveland. So the heat is on for the Browns, especially their All-Pro quarterback Derek Anderson, who was signed to a three-year deal worth $24 million this offseason. Last year's first-round pick Brady Quinn is waiting in the wings, putting even more pressure on the incumbent. Both will see action tonight.

But enough about the Browns, let's talk about the G-Men. First off, they will be busy for the rest of the preseason, as tonight's exhibition will be the first of three in the next 11 days (Cleveland and New York are the only two teams in the league that haven't played a second preseason game yet — both teams lost their openers).

Obviously, most of the attention being paid to football in New York is on that quarterback the Giants beat last January on that team that hasn't won a Super Bowl since 1969 ... the same year another important thing happened in this country. Sorry, I'll stay focused...

Here are some things to keep an eye on tonight for the Giants:

-Coach Coughlin said he expects the starters to play about 25 plays tonight. Expect the offense to be rather elementary, since the teams meet relatively early in the season (Week 6). Manning was in for 16 snaps (the entire first quarter), but the offense was far from elementary, as Manning found Hixon for two TDs.

-Tonight we'll get our first look at rookie quarterback Andre Woodson, a sixth-round pick out of Kentucky, who is expected to man the third quarter after Anthony Wright and before David Carr. Woodson only had one pass attempt because he came in halfway through the fourth quarter with the Giants up by 10.

-Also, Lawrence Tynes is out with a knee injury, so the Giants brought in old friend Josh Huston for tonight's game — not to battle Tynes for the starting role like they did last year, but rather to keep his seat warm for the time being. Huston is looking at it as an opportunity for exposure to hopefully latch on with another team. Huston was 5-for-5 on extra-points, but missed his only field-goal attempt from 42 yards out — and missed it pretty badly.

-Still plenty of injuries at the wide receiver spot. Plaxico Burress is dealing with orthotics, Amani Toomer is old (and has a knee injury), and rookie Mario Manningham (third round out of Michigan) can't seem to find the field. Steve Smith (hamstring) and David Tyree (still on PUP list) won't play either. So Domenik Hixon and Sinorice Moss will start, with Michael Jennings, Brandon London, Craphonso Thorpe and D.J. Hall waiting in the wings. (Just a note, Braylon Edwards is out for the Browns. Donte Stallworth accidentally stepped on his foot at a recent practice.) Obviously Hixon was awesome, with his two receiving touchdowns. But the rest of the corps made just seven catches for 52 yards. London had none of those catches, as he saw limited action after injuring his shoulder.

-The defensive unit is much more healthy, but Mathias Kiwanuka, Jonathan Goff, Sam Madison and R.W. McQuarters are not expected to play. Kiwanuka actually played and was in on a tackle. But the others weren't missed. The first-team defense played wonderfully.

-Look out for the Giants' two rookie defensive backs: safety Kenny Phillips (first-round pick) and cornerback Terrell Thomas (second-round choice), who impressed at training camp. Phillips made three tackles, while Thomas made one (but it was important, as it saved a TD on the 90-yard return by Steptoe).

-And finally, check out Coach Coughlin's Sunday Conversation.

Obviously there's plenty more to talk about tonight, so let's get the conversation going in the chat box below.

Okay, we're about 15 minutes from Monday Night Football on ESPN (nationally)/MY9 (locally). Stay tuned for updates after every quarter.

First quarter recap:
Giants 23, Browns 3

Scoring drive for the Browns: 7 plays, 26 yards, 3:19
Scoring play: 56-yard field goal by Phil Dawson (his regular-season long is 52)
Key play: Well, a 56-yard field goal is pretty long.

Scoring drive for the Giants: 4 plays, 79 yards, 1:28
Scoring play: Domenik Hixon, 11-yard completion from Eli Manning (Huston kick)
Key play: 53-yard pass interference on Eric Wright, who grabbed Sinorice Moss after he was beat deep down the right side of the field

Second scoring drive for the Giants: 3 plays, 49 yards, 1:11
Scoring play: Hixon, 24-yard completion from Manning (Huston kick)
Key play: The Hixon catch, which was a beauty, as he dragged both his feet in the back of the end zone. A spectacular grab.

More Giants scoring: Reuben Droughns blocks a punt for a safety and Hixon returns the ensuing free kick 84 yards for the Giants' third touchdown (plus a Huston kick).

Players who impressed for the Giants:
-Hixon, Hixon and more Hixon. He had two catches and two touchdowns — not a bad ratio. His speed and separation at wide receiver looked wonderful, and he is cementing the No. 3 WR spot. The 82-yard kick return after the block punt was simply spectacular, with Hixon outrunning everyone to the end zone. This guy can really fly!
-Eli Manning was just 4-for-7 for 52 yards, but two of his throws went for TDs. Hixon made him look good, but Eli looked comfortable throwing the football and made a nice scamper to pickup a first down on a 3rd and 4 one play before the first touchdown.
-Sinorice Moss forced the 53-yard pass interference using his pure speed, something the Giants would love to see more of.
-The Giants defense held the Browns to just 26 yards, and helped force the blocked punt by pinning the Browns back at their own 1.
-Even though he's not a Giant, special kudos to Dawson. You don't see a 56-yard kick every day.

Players who struggled for the Giants:
-Brandon Jacobs had 24 yards on four carries, but fumbled once (the Giants recovered) and got into an altercation (he's becoming famous for that).
-The Giants special teams had issues with kick coverage, allowing 158 kick return yards on three attempts. And the second extra-point got partially blocked, but still went in.

What to look for in the second quarter: Thirty more (combined) points?!

End of the 1st Half
Giants 30, Browns 17

Scoring for the Giants: 95-yard fumble recovery by James Butler (Huston kick)

-The Browns had a 1st and goal from the Giants' 9-yard line after a 90-yard return by Syndric Steptoe (great name). But two plays later, Anderson and Jamal Lewis botched a handoff and Butler was there to recover it and sprint down the field.

(Just a quick note, Terrell Thomas made the touchdown-saving tackle on Steptoe. Nice hustle by the rookie.)

Scoring drive for the Browns: 6 plays, 69 yards, 2:28
Scoring play: Steptoe 7-yard "rush" (swing pass from Quinn behind the line of scrimmage) with a Dawson kick
Key plays: Jerome Harrison rush for 23 yards on 2nd and 10 from the Giants 30, and Quinn to Steptoe for 26 yards on 1st and 10 from their own 31 (first play of the drive)

More scoring for the Browns: Eric Wright, who made the 53-yard pass interference penalty on Moss earlier in the game, picked off Anthony Wright's duck (he was hit on a corner blitz by safety Mike Adams) and took it 15 yards for a touchdown (with a Dawson kick) to close the lead to 30-17.

Players who impressed for the Giants:
-Sure, Butler was in the right place at the right time, but he showed nice speed outrunning everyone into the end zone.
-The defensive line looked possessed, as they had two sacks (including one that knocked Derek Anderson out of the game with a concussion) and held the Browns to minus-10 yards on two drives in the second quarter before giving way to the second unit.
-Though his series ended in a punt, the third back in the Giants' committee, Derrick Ward, had rushes of 8, 7, 2 and 6 yards on one drive. Not bad.
-Jeff Feagles pinned the Browns at their own 8 on a 33-yard punt. What a great coffin corner punter.

*Another special kudos for a Brown special-teamer. Dave Zastudil had a 60-yard punt in the quarter. (51 net)

Players who struggled:
-Anthony Wright was 4-of-8 for 34 yards, which isn't terrible. But he held the ball very long on the play he was intercepted.
-Jacobs fumbled again, and again it was recovered by the Giants. Like to see more ball control from the big fella.

*Not many guys struggle when you have 30 points in the first half.

What to watch for in the third quarter: The pro debut of rookie QB Andre Woodson.

Recap of the 3rd Quarter:
Giants 37, Browns 24

Scoring drive for the Browns: 5 plays, 63 yards, 2:13
Scoring play: Steptoe (the Browns' version of Hixon apparently) 44-yard completion from Quinn. It was a play-action pass that Quinn threw into single coverage. Kevin Dockery nearly picked the ball off, but he bobbled it right into the hands of Steptoe, who step-toed (sorry, i couldn't help it) his way into the end zone for the score. Dawson's extra point made it 21 straight points for the Browns.
Key play: The Steptoe catch, of course.

Scoring drive for the Giants: 10 plays, 41 yards, 5:38
Scoring play: 1-yard plunge by Ahmad Bradshaw on 4th and goal (plus a Huston kick)
Key play: 59-yard kickoff return by backup running back Danny Ware

Players who impressed for the Giants:
-David Carr did a nice job of engineering the Giants' 10-play scoring drive. He didn't complete a pass longer than nine yards, but when you start on the opposition's 41-yard line, that's al you have to do. For the quarter, Carr was 6-of-9 for 39 yards.
-Danny Ware had the key 59-yard kickoff return to setup the touchdown drive, and the fourth-string back had a two-yard gain to convert a 3rd and 1.

Players who struggled:
-Kevin Dockery should have made the interception on the Steptoe touchdown.
-Craphonso Thorpe and Michael Jennings each had multiple catches in the quarter, but didn't do anything spectacular with the ball after the catch against a weak secondary. I'm nitpicking, but still...

What to watch in the fourth quarter: Woodson? We'll see.

End of Game: Giants win, 37-34, to improve to 1-1 on the preseason. The Browns fall to 0-2.

Scoring drive for the Browns: 6 plays, 40 yards, 2:56
Scoring play: Jason Reda 44-yard field goal
Key play: Ken Dorsey to Efrem Hill for 34 yards on 1st and 10 from their own 23.

Final scoring drive for the Browns: 8 plays, 85 yards, 2:53
Scoring play: Lance Leggett 8-yard reception from Dorsey (Reda kick)
Key play: Dorsey to Leggett for 38 yards on 2nd and 11 from their own 49

Players who impressed for the Giants:
-Danny Ware had a solid third quarter (see above), but a spectacular fourth quarter with 95 yards on nine carries in the final 15 minutes. He converted three first downs on the final drive to ice the game.
-The second-team secondary loosened up a little in the final quarter, allowing Ken Dorsey to throw for 143 yards on 9-of-11 passing with a touchdown.

Players who struggled:
-Woodson, but only because he got one opportunity to throw (it was incomplete). He came in late with the Giants milking the clock.
-Kay-Jay Harris had four carries for 15 yards, but he suffered a knee injury on the last carry, which unfortunately may cost him a spot on the roster with the abundance of running backs on the team.

As always, it was my honor and pleasure to bring everyone tonight's live game action. Be sure to check above, where I updated on some of my keys to the game for the Giants. See ya'll real soon! Goodnight!