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Fast-talking fine print voice: Offer not valid in New England.

Inside Madness: A Live Blog

I hope to truly "live blog" at least one Giants game this season - I still haven't gotten around to it yet with just 6 games left - but in the meantime, here's the next best thing, a rundown of every comment I made on NJ.com's live blog during the Giants' 17-10 loss to the Dream Team Sunday night.

Some of the comments lack context as I'm replying to people, but if you watched this game you will understand anyway. (And also if you watched this game...I'm sorry.) So, if you want to relive the 2nd worst regular season loss in Giants' franchise history,* read on!

*I don't know how official any of these rankings really are.

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WELCOME TO THE NFL PRINCE AMUKAMARA! WOOOOO!

8:46PM

For 9 weeks we were saying "Kevin Who..." Suddenly I miss Boss.

9:57PM

Plenty of football left to be played, including this drive. Get some points here!

9:58PM

Injuries seem to sweep through the Giants by position...looks like it's RB now.

10:01PM

F for the offense, F for special teams, and D- for the defense. (Grading on a curve because Young is horrible...a halfway decent QB would be up 28-0 right now the way the Giants played in the 1st half.)

10:03PM

Silver lining...as horrible as the Giants have played in this first half, they're only down 7. They play a decent 2nd half, and can win this game running away.

10:11PM

For the life of me I cannot understand how the Giants are the only team this year that can't run on the Eagles. 120 yards per game for the Eagles' run defense, and the Giants can't do a thing on the ground tonight.

10:17PM

7 more games left in Jacobs' Giants career. I don't know if it's a physical breakdown at his advancing age, or a lack of will, but he's a shell of his old self. If we can see this from our couches, surely the Giants coaching staff sees it.

10:21PM

Was just thinking on that last run...eventually, while McCoy's fighting for extra yards carrying the ball like that, the Giants have got to punch it out.

10:24PM

Might have been a season-saving INT there for Ross.

10:36PM

True to form in the 4th so far! 10-10, let's go Giants! Keep the momentum now defense.

10:53PM

No pass rush whatsoever tonight. Even VY will find someone open eventually.

11:00PM

How many times have we seen a 2nd and 15 or so, Giants rush 3, opponents picks up 12 or more yards. Don't make it so easy for them to get chunks back.

11:03PM

Just can't get off the field on 3rd down. Iggles are what, 4-for-4 on this drive?

11:04PM

Annnnnd Kiwanuka's down...just perfect. That's the 2011 season in a nutshell, eh?

11:08PM

Back in...huge sigh of relief.

11:11PM

And the Giants turn another scrub QB into a hero. To update list: Grossman, Whitehurst, Smith, Young.

11:18PM

One for the "You're gonna wish you could have it back" column

A brutal loss for the Giants Sunday, 27-20 in San Francisco. They committed way too many mental mistakes, something you just can't do against a playoff team on the road.

But here's the positive outlook. In spite of all of the following:

-Being unable to stop Alex Smith

-Allowing a surprise onside kick recovery

-Leaving Vernon Davis uncovered for an easy 31 yard TD

-Mario Manningham running the wrong route leading to Eli Manning's 2nd interception (a 3rd was nullified when the defender didn't get both feet down in bounds)

Again, all of this on the road against a 7-1 team...

The Giants didn't quit, fought back, and had a 3rd and 2 from the 49ers' 10 yard line before being stuffed on a draw to D.J. Ware for no gain (nice call, Gilbride), and a batted down pass on 4th down to seal their fate. It takes a talented team to be that close to a win in spite of all those maddening mistakes. Call me a delusion homer if you must, but although the 49ers are legit, I came away with the sense that the better team didn't win.

Going forward, I want to see less zone defense and more man-to-man, and more plays for Da'Rel Scott and less for D.J. Ware. To quote Jerry Maguire, when it comes to Ware and his skill set, "That's not what inspires people." This loss isn't the end of the world, but it's one that could really come back to haunt the Giants when they're losing out an a tiebreaker for playoff positioning at 10-6, or 9-7 or whatever.

They've got the Eagles this week, a game that has suddenly become crucial. The now 6-3 Giants can deliver a knockout blow to the 3-6 "Dream Team" and essentially make it a two team race between them and Dallas, while staying one game ahead of a Cowboys team that has a much more favorable remaining schedule than the Giants do.

Not Afraid

Giants 24, Patriots 20. What a game, what a win, and what a nice 6-2 start. And can the Giants play the Patriots every year? The Giants keep winning close games, and give fans blood pressure tests in the process.

I try not to put too much into one game, win or lose, but with all the injuries, this was really a character-building type win. It wasn't perfect, but like the other 5 wins the Giants had banked against lesser opponents earlier in the year, they did what it took to get the W. The (depleted) secondary had their hands full but for the most part kept a top tier passing attack bottled up. The fumble by Ross on the punt return hurt, but the Giants didn't quit when they had seemingly lost all momentum. Jacobs ran like the Jacobs of old - and like he should have been running all along. Eli Manning continues to play like an elite QB...as one NJ.com commentor wrote, "I wonder if Tom Brady thinks he is in Eli's class?" Ramses Barden looks to belong, and Jake Ballard and Victor Cruz continue to prove they do. And the Pats had a 20 game home winning streak coming into the game. Again, the Giants seem to be pretty good at ending Patriots streaks.

As my friend Matt often points out, the Giants played to the level of their competition. Another theme to come from this win, is I am no longer afraid. Firstly with regards to anyone getting injured - with the only exception being Manning. This team really has a "next man up" quality to it. I'm also no longer afraid of the remaining schedule. Antrel Rolle is just about my least favorite Giant, but he produced the season's best quote last week and it's now even more meaningful..."We're not worried about our schedule, our schedule should be worried about us." Really, after beating a good team on the road without your #1 receiver, running back, and center, is there any reason to be afraid of the 49ers, Cowboys, Saints, or Jets? I think not. They are capable of beating anyone. There could be something special about this team.