Sports Limelight Podcast - Episode 14

Bill and Drew take one last look back at the remarkable 2011-12 Giants, with a "season in review."

Champions

Where to even begin?

The Giants have done it again. Four years after a run that appeared to be once in a lifetime.

24 hours later and I am still trying to fully digest what has happened, but here are a few thoughts.

Eli Manning now has a legacy. Beyond "super clutch" I don't know quite what it is, but I know he no longer deserves being compared to his brother, or anyone. He's his own man, and has his own special chapter in NFL history.

Tom Coughlin is a Hall of Fame coach. I say that for lack of a better term, because the Hall of Fame itself is so arbitrary and has Peter King voting on it. But needless to say, Coughlin isn't on the hot seat anymore. Nor can anyone question whether his players love playing for him, and can still be reached by his methods.

Like I said, for me it's still sinking in, but there is a strange feeling at this point. After being all-in for an entire season that was never short on drama, there is no game next Sunday. No heavily favored opponent. No confident yet nervous feelings leading up to the game. No superstitions. (I can now cut my hair, wash my Sunday t-shirt, and not insist certain people are seated next to me while watching the game.) It's really over. 32 teams, and the Giants were the ones left standing. Again.

Yes, there is no game next Sunday. No game for about six months, in fact. Somehow though, with the tape of this game that I'll probably watch a few times over again, I think I'll make it through the long spring and summer.

(Actually, I'll be able to enjoy it more the second time, after having been too on-edge to do so while it was happening.)

Finally, on another personal note, I couldn't have picked a better year to really immerse myself in a Giants season like never before. I tried to write almost every week, and by the 2nd half of the season, Drew and I had the podcast going almost every week. This all has been a blast, and thanks for coming along on the journey with me.

They got it right

I was quite critical of the Pro Football Hall of Fame last year when Curtis Martin, the NFL's 4th all-time leading rusher, was passed up for enshrinement. And while it's still a year late, they deserve a small amount of credit for doing the right thing and voting him in this year.

Curtis was remarkably consistent and durable, a great all-around back who could catch and block with the best of them, and according to just about anyone who knows him, is a great human being.

Congratulations to Curtis Martin for now being recognized as one of the greatest players who ever lived - a distinction that most of us who watched him play, knew all along.

Sports Limelight Podcast - Episode 12

Bill and Drew look back on the AFC and NFC Championship games, preview Super Bowl XLVI, make their final predictions, and count down their top 5 Super Bowls of all time.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Battle Tested

After being taken to the brink by a remarkably tough opponent, on the road, in terrible weather conditions, the Giants are Super Bowl bound.

It wasn't pretty, and I credit the 49ers for that, especially their defense. And it took some really heads-up special teams plays by Jacquain Williams and Devin Thomas, off of gaffes by 49ers' punt return man Kyle Williams. But championship teams find a way to win, and this team did exactly that, while minimizing their own mistakes.

I can still hardly believe it, but I've got plenty of time to come to grips with it now - as much as I wish this game could be played tomorrow, the Super Bowl is 13 days away. For now, I'll just say I like the Giants' chances. They open as 3 1/2 point underdogs, but I was more afraid of the 49ers than I am of the Patriots.

The Giants have faced so many challenges this year, and I believe those challenges have toughened them up to become what they have become, over the past 5 games.

What a season it's been...but there is still one more game to win.

Sports Limelight Podcast - Episode 10

Bill and Drew preview and predict the AFC & NFC Championship games, and rank their top 5 favorite conference championship games.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Astounding

37-20 over the 15-1 Packers. That's not just a big road win, that's domination.

Watching this team make nothing look easy over their first 14 games, I still almost can't believe what I'm seeing.

In the 2nd quarter in Week 16 against the Jets, the Giants trailed 7-3, when Eli Manning hit Victor Cruz on a 3rd and 10 from the Giants' own 1 yard-line. Since Cruz sidestepped two Jets defenders and went the remaining 99 yards for the TD, the Giants have outscored the Jets, Cowboys, Falcons, and Packers, by a combined score of 118-43. It's as if they were sparked into becoming a completely different team.

Now, on to San Francisco for a rematch. The 49ers are awfully tough, and not to be overlooked. When watching their matchup with the Saints the day before, I was struck by how physical they are, and how well they tackle. I'll be shocked if the NFC Championship is a blowout for either side. But the way the Giants are playing, they can beat anyone.

And a last note - I don't usually get into the "bulletin board material" kind of stuff because at this point in the season, no player needs extra motivation. But I was amazed at what I heard from Vernon Davis when he was interviewed during halftime of Giants-Packers.

Davis was asked if he was rooting for the Packers or Giants. Every time I've previously heard an athlete asked this question, they have been diplomatic and not answered it. But Davis flat out said, he wanted the Giants to win. I understand he likes to play at home, but after what he saw done to the Packers yesterday, as the saying goes, "Be careful what you wish for."

The goal now? Finish it.

Shameless promotion

I have not yet pimped the Sports Limelight podcast with Bill and Drew in this space, so please allow me to do so here.

Both of your esteemed hosts, while very raw at their craft, picked the Giants to defeat the Packers yesterday.

And now back to your regularly scheduled programming. Obviously, more on the Giants thrilling victory still to come.

LOL HOF

If I may interrupt the awesomeness of a Giants playoff week...Barry Larkin was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 86% of the vote. Okay, fine, 86% seems super high for a guy who, while good, wasn't a superstar, but whatever, he's in...

And Bernie Williams received just 10% of the vote? And still no Don Mattingly? Really? I have vowed to no longer give Halls of Fame the time of day in the past, but this seems especially ridiculous and anti-Yankee. Larkin was pretty good with his career 116 OPS+, played good defense at an important position, and has a ring. But then to mostly ignore Williams with his career 125 OPS+, also good defense at an important position, and 4 rings? And if the voters think Larkin's 3 gold gloves are meaningful...Williams had 4.

But then I guess I'm sleeping on Larkin for his 1995 MVP award. Williams never won one. Larkin's MVP season: .319/394/492, 133 OPS+, gold glove. Williams' best year, 1998: .339/422/575, 160 OPS+, gold glove. He finished 7th in the MVP voting that year.

Also, while Larkin didn't have control over playing on teams as good as Williams did...not for nothing, just look at where Williams ranks in the following lists for all-time playoff numbers:

Runs - 2nd

Hits - 2nd

Total bases - 2nd

Doubles - 2nd

HR - 2nd

RBI - 1st

Walks - 3rd

Halls of Fame don't really matter, we know this. But come on baseball, if you're going to pretend your Hall of Fame is important, at least try to get it right.

Thrill ride continues

Like the motto they have seemed to adopt for 2011-12, I am "All In" with these Giants.

After a nightmare start with one injury after another to key players, they're the healthiest they've been all season.

The offense, after a hiccup against the Redskins and Jets (pre-Cruz 99 yard TD), is back to its explosive self, and now with finally a threat to run the ball well.

The defense is playing as well as it has all season, after Perry Fewell simplified things towards the end of the season after the secondardy had been leaving gaping holes all year. I'd ask, "Where have these adjustments been the first 14 games?" but that would just be nit-picking at this point. All that matters is the present.

I've been critical of Gilbride and Quinn, and super critical of Fewell, but that's in the past, and I'm 100% behind them for this game, and believe they'll each be prepared with a good scheme for their units. And above all, I believe Coughlin will have them ready, down to every detail, to play a competitive game against a Packers team with an almost unstoppable offense...but a defense that can be scored upon.

Will it be enough? We'll see. A playoff run can end suddenly, so I'm going to enjoy it for however long it lasts. But I'm about as confident as I can possibly be in a 9-7 team going on the road to face a 15-1 team as 9 point underdogs.

This team believes, and they have me believing too.