With Super Bowl week upon us, I’ve been thinking about this team. It’s amazing how little recognition this team gets among Giant fans. It really goes to show you no one remembers the Super Bowl loser, but there were some really nice things about that team:
1. 3-0 against Philly. Imagine that after the last decade against Philly for us? The Dixon return for TD to open the game with Summerall & Madden calling it.
2. 41-0 in the NFC title game.
3. A dominant regular season which yielded the #1 seed & 2 home playoff wins on the way to the Super Bowl.
However, losing the SB puts a damper on everything I just mentioned unfortunately.
Also, that season was on an island with regards to any ‘sustainable’ run of success. The preceding 2 seasons were 8-8 & 7-9, the season following the SB appearance was 7-9.
Compare that to 2005 - 2012 where the Giants were consistently in the mix. You can’t say that about the Fassel/Collins era.
Has 18 years made you reflect differently about the 2000 team?
I was able to go to all the home games that year as well, and I will never forget the whooping of that Vikings team.
The Ravens were everyone's albatross that year. That defense was simply amazing. Those guys made a very good Giants offense look pathetic, and did the same to the Raiders in the coliseum 2 weeks prior.
It was my opinion then, and still is now, if the Raiders won that game, we would be 5-0 in Super Bowls as I strongly believe we matched up incredibly well with the Raiders.
I'm lucky enough to have witnessed all 5 Giants Super Bowls, and saw all 5 of those teams play almost all of their games; that 2000 team, with its talent on both sides of the ball, and how hot they were most of the season, was, again in my opinion, the second best Giants team to get to the Super Bowl (second to only the 86' team) - they were THAT good. It also speaks volumes about how good that Raven defense was also.
What's most difficult about that year is that you don't feel as though the Giants put their best foot forward in the Super Bowl. Collins wasn't up to it, and neither was Fassel if you listen to what Toomer has had to say about it.
Everyone remembers that Ravens defense, but they could be had if you spread the field and threw the ball. In week 17 that season the Jets threw the ball 69 times and were sacked only once. They jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead before a 98 yard pick 6 and two punt return TDs flipped the game around for Baltimore.
That Ravens team could have been beaten, but it would have required a better coach than Fassel and a tougher QB than Collins.
What's most difficult about that year is that you don't feel as though the Giants put their best foot forward in the Super Bowl. Collins wasn't up to it, and neither was Fassel if you listen to what Toomer has had to say about it.
Everyone remembers that Ravens defense, but they could be had if you spread the field and threw the ball. In week 17 that season the Jets threw the ball 69 times and were sacked only once. They jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead before a 98 yard pick 6 and two punt return TDs flipped the game around for Baltimore.
That Ravens team could have been beaten, but it would have required a better coach than Fassel and a tougher QB than Collins.
They had TWO WEEKS to come up with a Jets and Jax gameplan..They obviously thought what they did against the Vikes would carry over. Awful preparation imo
The Ravens were everyone's albatross that year. That defense was simply amazing. Those guys made a very good Giants offense look pathetic, and did the same to the Raiders in the coliseum 2 weeks prior.
It was my opinion then, and still is now, if the Raiders won that game, we would be 5-0 in Super Bowls as I strongly believe we matched up incredibly well with the Raiders.
I'm lucky enough to have witnessed all 5 Giants Super Bowls, and saw all 5 of those teams play almost all of their games; that 2000 team, with its talent on both sides of the ball, and how hot they were most of the season, was, again in my opinion, the second best Giants team to get to the Super Bowl (second to only the 86' team) - they were THAT good. It also speaks volumes about how good that Raven defense was also.
Except that changes history and we probably don't get the next two if we won that one.
That's as far as the good memories will go for me.
A very good team, but they got their asses kicked in XXXV. That puts a damper on things for me.
In the second quarter Collins blew up with two picks in Baltimore territory (including the Kerry Collins special...a pick in the Baltimore end zone), and it was clear he wasn't leading a TD drive if the game lasted 16 quarters. Conversely, late in the second quarter of his game Delhomme threw the most perfect TD pass to Steve Smith that you could imagine. It opened things up and he had a fantastic second half, bringing the Panthers back a couple times before losing a heartbreaker.
Similar situations. Delhomme was tough and fought through the bad moments (and he had many in the first half). Collins was weak (Accorsi even said so in his book) and crumbled.
The Super Bowl... well....
I too was just barely too young to remember the 1990 season, so the Giants were awful for most of my early childhood memories, and then in 2000 I got to witness the Eagles Div game, Vikings NFCCG game, AND the Super Bowl all in person. The first 2 were amazingly refreshing are still to this day are my favorite Giants games I have attended in person. The 3rd one made me cry hysterically (I was 12) all the way home. Just devastating.
Second, the star of that team was the defense, and a lot of people (myself included) were worried about losing Fox. He had the defense playing pretty darn well.
Third, although I thought we had an outside chance of beating Minny in the NFCCG, I never thought we would blow them out. I had a coworker who was a die-hard Vikings fan who kept begging me to bet him on the outcome. With young children and no room in the budget, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Obviously I should have bet the house, but my point was that I never expected such a lopsided victory.
Next - the Baltimore team was interesting. They went something like 14 quarters or something like that without an offensive TD, and iirc they won every game. By the time the playoffs rolled around their defense was playing so incredibly well that I didn't think anyone could beat them. If you can't remember those playoffs, you should check out not just the scores but the drive charts. I particularly remember Denver (which had a still very good running game and was only a year or so removed from the SB themselves), could not even get a drive going onto the Baltimore side of the field. Reminded me of some of the absolute domination of the Giants defenses in '86. Teams just couldn't do anything against Baltimore in the playoffs.
Finally, the super bowl itself was obviously a let-down, but especially if you let the NFCCG fool you into thinking we were a much better team than Baltimore. I didn't expect to move the ball well against them at all. Like many others I felt the spark we got from the Hamilton hold nullified pick-6 really deflated the team. For a minute, we were back in the game but that was really it.
The Fassel NFC Championship ring was a bit of a disgrace. I remember buying a NFC 41-0 t-shirt and wearing that around the house a bit, but never took it out. I think it became a shirt I wore to paint and do other household chores in.
Last thought on the Fassel run. I really thought he had something going in 2002. We had been close before, and with Shockey were playing as tough as anyone in the league halfway through the 3rd quarter against SF. I had no fear whatsoever of playing TB, and was pretty certain we had another SB in front of us. Who knows what would have happened had we gotten there. My guess is had we held on to beat SF, we would have gotten to and won the SB. But then I don't know if we really collapse in such grand fashion and who knows if we are ready to move on from Fassel and Collins just two years later. In truth, the SF debacle is what got us Coughlin and Eli, and then the football gods rewarded us for the theft in SF with two miraculous, story-book perfect SB runs with those two.
The offense really wasn't that good for most of the year but had a couple fun outbursts - the defense kept them afloat. We won something like 5 games when they scored less than 20 points which is nearly impossible now. Defense allowed 186, 114 and 244 yards in the playoff games.
We've been to 3 Super Bowls this century & won 2 of 'em. I'm sure fans of the Bills, 'Fins, Jets, Bengals, Browns, Texans, Colts, Jags, Titans, Broncos, Chiefs, Chargers, Raiders, Cowboys, Eagles, Skins, Packers, Bears, Vikes, Lions, 49ers, Seahawks, Cards, Rams, Falcons, Panthers, Saints, & Bucs would all take 3 appearances & 2 Super Bowl wins this century in a heartbeat.
What's most difficult about that year is that you don't feel as though the Giants put their best foot forward in the Super Bowl. Collins wasn't up to it, and neither was Fassel if you listen to what Toomer has had to say about it.
Everyone remembers that Ravens defense, but they could be had if you spread the field and threw the ball. In week 17 that season the Jets threw the ball 69 times and were sacked only once. They jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead before a 98 yard pick 6 and two punt return TDs flipped the game around for Baltimore.
That Ravens team could have been beaten, but it would have required a better coach than Fassel and a tougher QB than Collins.
Someone on the Ravens D....might have been Ray Lewis...claimed he could see the fear on Kerry's face during game warm ups and he knew it was over before it even started
Also I heard that Collins got hurt early in the game, possibly his shoulder, and instead of putting Jason Garrett in or whoever the back up was, Fassel stuck with him.
Toomer has been pretty vocal about how much he didn't like the game plan coming into that game. Said all the things they did right on offense all season coming into that game were ignored.
I just rationalize that no team was going to beat the Ravens that season. Unfortunatly it had to be us walking into the meat grinder
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That team shows that if you make it to a championship game, you'd better win it. The gap between winning and finishing in second is so big and can be a real fork in the road for a lot of careers.
What's most difficult about that year is that you don't feel as though the Giants put their best foot forward in the Super Bowl. Collins wasn't up to it, and neither was Fassel if you listen to what Toomer has had to say about it.
Everyone remembers that Ravens defense, but they could be had if you spread the field and threw the ball. In week 17 that season the Jets threw the ball 69 times and were sacked only once. They jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead before a 98 yard pick 6 and two punt return TDs flipped the game around for Baltimore.
That Ravens team could have been beaten, but it would have required a better coach than Fassel and a tougher QB than Collins.
Someone on the Ravens D....might have been Ray Lewis...claimed he could see the fear on Kerry's face during game warm ups and he knew it was over before it even started
Also I heard that Collins got hurt early in the game, possibly his shoulder, and instead of putting Jason Garrett in or whoever the back up was, Fassel stuck with him.
Toomer has been pretty vocal about how much he didn't like the game plan coming into that game. Said all the things they did right on offense all season coming into that game were ignored.
I just rationalize that no team was going to beat the Ravens that season. Unfortunatly it had to be us walking into the meat grinder
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In comment 14279400 Go Terps said:
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That team shows that if you make it to a championship game, you'd better win it. The gap between winning and finishing in second is so big and can be a real fork in the road for a lot of careers.
What's most difficult about that year is that you don't feel as though the Giants put their best foot forward in the Super Bowl. Collins wasn't up to it, and neither was Fassel if you listen to what Toomer has had to say about it.
Everyone remembers that Ravens defense, but they could be had if you spread the field and threw the ball. In week 17 that season the Jets threw the ball 69 times and were sacked only once. They jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead before a 98 yard pick 6 and two punt return TDs flipped the game around for Baltimore.
That Ravens team could have been beaten, but it would have required a better coach than Fassel and a tougher QB than Collins.
Someone on the Ravens D....might have been Ray Lewis...claimed he could see the fear on Kerry's face during game warm ups and he knew it was over before it even started
Also I heard that Collins got hurt early in the game, possibly his shoulder, and instead of putting Jason Garrett in or whoever the back up was, Fassel stuck with him.
Toomer has been pretty vocal about how much he didn't like the game plan coming into that game. Said all the things they did right on offense all season coming into that game were ignored.
I just rationalize that no team was going to beat the Ravens that season. Unfortunatly it had to be us walking into the meat grinder
what was off about the game plan? What strengths did they move away from in the playcalls ? The reality is Baltimore had two beasts in Adam and siragusa to clog up all running lanes and a hall of fame monster in ray Lewis at LB. in the secondary they had reed starks and mcallister three pro bowlers.
I don't know. Ask Toomer, he said it I didn't!
lol
This. It would be different if we have competed in the biggest game of them all. We got embarrassed and I had to here shit about it for several years until TC and Eli saved us.
That game plan played right into the Ravens hands.
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The Giants have 1 home playoff win since that 2000 Vikings game. 1. That is absolutely despicable. And that 1 win was a wild card game against the Falcons. How about this: aside from the 2000 season, the Giants have 2 home playoff wins since 1990. The last 28 years!?! That is a disgrace. But, my point here is that we do have good reason to remember that 2000 season fondly: for many of us those were far and away the most exciting and memorable home playoff games of our lives.
We've been to 3 Super Bowls this century & won 2 of 'em. I'm sure fans of the Bills, 'Fins, Jets, Bengals, Browns, Texans, Colts, Jags, Titans, Broncos, Chiefs, Chargers, Raiders, Cowboys, Eagles, Skins, Packers, Bears, Vikes, Lions, 49ers, Seahawks, Cards, Rams, Falcons, Panthers, Saints, & Bucs would all take 3 appearances & 2 Super Bowl wins this century in a heartbeat.
That's why I specifically said HOME playoff games. You think I don't appreciate those super bowl wins? I just watched the XLII full game DVD last night and the 2 hr NFL Network postgame show for the 1000th time last night. 2 Super Bowl titles since 2000 has absolutely made up for the Giants' awful home playoff record.
But setting those Super Bowl wins aside, since 1994, the way the Giants have played AT HOME in playoff games over the years has been a disgrace ASIDE FROM that 2000 run. I'm saying that's the exact thing about the 2000 run that we should celebrate!
-Blowing that huge lead against the Vikings in 1997
-The Panthers absolutely embarrassing us with a shutout at home in 2005
-The Eagles upsetting us at home in the divisional round when we were the 1 seed in 2008
I know I'm being picky, but we didn't get to send our Giants off to those super bowl wins in 2007 and 2011 with a great home win in the NFCCG. The only times we've gotten to do that were in 1986 and 2000. I know very few fanbases get to experience that in general, but that's the exact reason I'm saying we should appreciate 2000. There have been exactly 2 Home NFCCGs in NYG history and we're lucky that we were 2-0 in those games. Winning a home NFCCG, while not as great as winning a super bowl by any stretch of the imagination, is still a very special feeling in the moment and that's why we should appreciate 2000. For all I care I just like to imagine the 2000 NFCCG and then immediately remember the 2007 super bowl. We sent our Giants off to the super bowl, it's just that it took them 7 years to actually win it :)
They gave up 191 points ALL SEASON. They had FOUR shutouts that season, and 8 other games with single digits.
The Raiders scored 506 points that season (including the playoffs), and Ravens held them to 3 points. THREE! In Oakland! Raiders averaged 355 yards of offense, and Ravens held them to almost half (191). Ravens won their last 11 games, by a combined score of 240-83.
Let me repeat. NOBODY WAS BEATING THE RAVENS IN THE SUPERBOWL, a "weak" Kerry Collins or not.
I would have gone to the game if the Raiders won; once they didn't, I knew NYG was running into a buzzsaw so I didn't even bother.
Years later, I went to the game in AZ against the mighty undefeated Pats because I knew NYG had a chance; no team had a prayer against the 2000 Ravens defense.
I agree the Jets were the only team to get any traction against that D and did it by throwing the ball everywhere but I doubt Collins pulls that off. Still I agree I would have tried to isolate Barber and Shockey on LBs.
The jets did lose by 14 points too. The ravens lost a few games scoring less than 13. We just needed to play better D and get a few bounces. We got none and the O folded.
Second, the star of that team was the defense, and a lot of people (myself included) were worried about losing Fox. He had the defense playing pretty darn well.
Third, although I thought we had an outside chance of beating Minny in the NFCCG, I never thought we would blow them out. I had a coworker who was a die-hard Vikings fan who kept begging me to bet him on the outcome. With young children and no room in the budget, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Obviously I should have bet the house, but my point was that I never expected such a lopsided victory.
Next - the Baltimore team was interesting. They went something like 14 quarters or something like that without an offensive TD, and iirc they won every game. By the time the playoffs rolled around their defense was playing so incredibly well that I didn't think anyone could beat them. If you can't remember those playoffs, you should check out not just the scores but the drive charts. I particularly remember Denver (which had a still very good running game and was only a year or so removed from the SB themselves), could not even get a drive going onto the Baltimore side of the field. Reminded me of some of the absolute domination of the Giants defenses in '86. Teams just couldn't do anything against Baltimore in the playoffs.
Finally, the super bowl itself was obviously a let-down, but especially if you let the NFCCG fool you into thinking we were a much better team than Baltimore. I didn't expect to move the ball well against them at all. Like many others I felt the spark we got from the Hamilton hold nullified pick-6 really deflated the team. For a minute, we were back in the game but that was really it.
The Fassel NFC Championship ring was a bit of a disgrace. I remember buying a NFC 41-0 t-shirt and wearing that around the house a bit, but never took it out. I think it became a shirt I wore to paint and do other household chores in.
Last thought on the Fassel run. I really thought he had something going in 2002. We had been close before, and with Shockey were playing as tough as anyone in the league halfway through the 3rd quarter against SF. I had no fear whatsoever of playing TB, and was pretty certain we had another SB in front of us. Who knows what would have happened had we gotten there. My guess is had we held on to beat SF, we would have gotten to and won the SB. But then I don't know if we really collapse in such grand fashion and who knows if we are ready to move on from Fassel and Collins just two years later. In truth, the SF debacle is what got us Coughlin and Eli, and then the football gods rewarded us for the theft in SF with two miraculous, story-book perfect SB runs with those two.
I agree about that 2002 team... that game in SF... ugh... but if we won that, I'm convinced we roll through Tampa and the SB.
They gave up 191 points ALL SEASON. They had FOUR shutouts that season, and 8 other games with single digits.
The Raiders scored 506 points that season (including the playoffs), and Ravens held them to 3 points. THREE! In Oakland! Raiders averaged 355 yards of offense, and Ravens held them to almost half (191). Ravens won their last 11 games, by a combined score of 240-83.
Let me repeat. NOBODY WAS BEATING THE RAVENS IN THE SUPERBOWL, a "weak" Kerry Collins or not.
I would have gone to the game if the Raiders won; once they didn't, I knew NYG was running into a buzzsaw so I didn't even bother.
Years later, I went to the game in AZ against the mighty undefeated Pats because I knew NYG had a chance; no team had a prayer against the 2000 Ravens defense.
May I repeat? The Jets and Jags with their 4 (5?) receiver sets and their pursuant gameplans SHREDDED this vaunted defense you speak of. SHREDDED. The Giants had TWO WEEKS implement a similar type gameplan. They really didn’t have to be as talented as the Jags’ and Jets’ receivers, simply spread them out as those teams did. AT LEAST TRY IT..No, a cocky, idiotic Fassel thought their O was enough as it had been with the Vikes. He made no adjustments to the O at halftime (probably because they never practiced it), even after seeing we went nowhere that first half.
Stupid
...is the Giants became enamored with throwing the ball and forgot about Tiki Barber running the ball.
...is the Giants became enamored with throwing the ball and forgot about Tiki Barber running the ball.
Fassel went into the game scared to run the ball because they were such a great run d. Ive never seen a coach so intimidated.
What's most difficult about that year is that you don't feel as though the Giants put their best foot forward in the Super Bowl. Collins wasn't up to it, and neither was Fassel if you listen to what Toomer has had to say about it.
Everyone remembers that Ravens defense, but they could be had if you spread the field and threw the ball. In week 17 that season the Jets threw the ball 69 times and were sacked only once. They jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead before a 98 yard pick 6 and two punt return TDs flipped the game around for Baltimore.
That Ravens team could have been beaten, but it would have required a better coach than Fassel and a tougher QB than Collins.
That ravens defense wasn't a big pass rushing defense (they only had 35 sacks). They specialised in turnovers. The game you referenced the jets turned the ball over six times. So, yes you could move the ball against the Ravens through the air a bit, but sooner or later they were more than likely going to get their turnovers. That is part of what made them special, they were so good at stopping the run they made the opponent one dimensional.
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I agree about that 2002 team... that game in SF... ugh... but if we won that, I'm convinced we roll through Tampa and the SB. [/quote]
People really underrate that Bucs team, I see this kind of comment all the time and it never makes sense if you forget the feeling you had up 38-14 in San Francisco. I'll admit at the time my father and I were very optimistically talking about Tampa the next week, but it all falls apart when you analyze it objectively.
The Bucs pressured QBs and forced turnovers. That's a recipe for a Kerry Collins disaster.
Giant's biggest mistake was letting Ravens score early. Shawn Williams got looked off by Dilfer and left Sehorn thinking he had deep support that wasn't there.
Bad call on Armistead butdoubt Giant's offense would have doen much with the ball. Giant's OLine was decent, but certanly not up to the challenge of Rave's DLine.
They lost - got beat by a better team.
...is the Giants became enamored with throwing the ball and forgot about Tiki Barber running the ball.
Their first 7 running plays gained 10 yards. Their 8th gained 12 on 3rd-and-19.
The only really successful running play they had in the entire 1st half was in the hurry up when Barber gained 27 with the Giants spread out and in the shotgun. Collins threw a pick into double coverage on the next play to let everyone know the Giants had no shot.
Giant's biggest mistake was letting Ravens score early. Shawn Williams got looked off by Dilfer and left Sehorn thinking he had deep support that wasn't there.
Bad call on Armistead butdoubt Giant's offense would have doen much with the ball. Giant's OLine was decent, but certanly not up to the challenge of Rave's DLine.
They lost - got beat by a better team.
Not disputing in the least who was the better team. That’s why, at the very least, you try to emulate what worked against them before, even if, ultimately, it doesn’t make much of a difference. The Giants had to know, should have known, that their O was a poor match against the Ravens’ D. You didn’t have to be a Belichick to be aware of what gave the Ravens’ D the most trouble and what didn’t. 2 weeks to follow the Jags’ and Jets’ template or at least attempt to.
I agree the Jets were the only team to get any traction against that D and did it by throwing the ball everywhere but I doubt Collins pulls that off. Still I agree I would have tried to isolate Barber and Shockey on LBs.
The jets did lose by 14 points too. The ravens lost a few games scoring less than 13. We just needed to play better D and get a few bounces. We got none and the O folded.
Shockey wasn't on the team yet.
Agreed. The 49ers had all kinds of momentum coming off that win over the Giants, and Tampa beat the hell out of them. The Bucs were the best team in the NFL that year and had an absolutely elite defense, the Giants were not going down there and winning.
I don't know about that - the offense was clicking. Shockey was a huge reason why. Having a great passing TE is key to beating the Tampa-2 defense, and I think we matched up well on offense against that very good defense.
Defensively we were a good team that got tired chasing Jeff Garcia. I'm pretty sure we contain Dilfer a bit better than that.
I was obviously up on the Giants chances at 38-14, but it was more than that. The Giants were playing very well. Going into that game we had won 7 of 9, with the two losses being by a total of five points.
For a comparison, the Bucs ended their season going 3-2 in their last five, with two of their wins against the lowly Lions (3-13) and Bears (4-12). They weren't exactly a "scary opponent, even though they had a first round bye. At least not to me.
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And their 32nd ranked red zone offense more than likely wasn't going to beat Tampa. I don't think it would have even been close.
I don't know about that - the offense was clicking. Shockey was a huge reason why. Having a great passing TE is key to beating the Tampa-2 defense, and I think we matched up well on offense against that very good defense.
Defensively we were a good team that got tired chasing Jeff Garcia. I'm pretty sure we contain Dilfer a bit better than that.
I was obviously up on the Giants chances at 38-14, but it was more than that. The Giants were playing very well. Going into that game we had won 7 of 9, with the two losses being by a total of five points.
For a comparison, the Bucs ended their season going 3-2 in their last five, with two of their wins against the lowly Lions (3-13) and Bears (4-12). They weren't exactly a "scary opponent, even though they had a first round bye. At least not to me.
The 02 bucs qb was brad Johnson who was a much better qb in my opinion than dilfer
The 02 bucs qb was brad Johnson who was a much better qb in my opinion than dilfer
Sorry, you're correct. Just the same, I think my point is that the key to SF's comeback was our defense tiring out chasing Garcia all over the field. Wouldn't have happened against Johnson, a pocket QB.
I still liked our chances very much against that team. Their strength offensively was the running game with Alstott and a forgettable RB.
For a comparison, the Bucs ended their season going 3-2 in their last five, with two of their wins against the lowly Lions (3-13) and Bears (4-12). They weren't exactly a "scary opponent, even though they had a first round bye. At least not to me.
Brad Johnson was hurt in mid-December, the game they lost at home to Pittsburgh was started by Shaun King, who completed 9 of 26 passes and threw a pick-six before being replaced by Rob Johnson.
Maybe you weren't scared of them, and maybe a lot of teams weren't, but they annihilated three very good opponents in winning the Super Bowl.
They were a terrific zone defense.
Giant's biggest mistake was letting Ravens score early. Shawn Williams got looked off by Dilfer and left Sehorn thinking he had deep support that wasn't there.
Bad call on Armistead butdoubt Giant's offense would have doen much with the ball. Giant's OLine was decent, but certanly not up to the challenge of Rave's DLine.
They lost - got beat by a better team.
Yep their DL was killer and our OL was barely average. Collins was not good under constant pressure and that was the ball game.
Honestly though, my biggest problem with that game was the Giant crap that the Ravens offense took on our defense. I expected the offense to suck, but I really thought our defense would keep us in that game, and they completely shat the bed.
Honestly though, my biggest problem with that game was the Giant crap that the Ravens offense took on our defense. I expected the offense to suck, but I really thought our defense would keep us in that game, and they completely shat the bed.
That's really unfair to the Giants defense. The Ravens first two possessions started at the 37 and the 49, and they didn't get a first down on either.
Their first TD started at the Giants 41 after a 43 yard punt return. At that point in the game the Giants offense had run 11 plays for 19 yards. So yeah, the defense broke first on the Stokely TD, but the offense wasn't doing anything.
Baltimore's next five possessions netted less than 40 yards. While that was going on, the Giants started possessions at their own 39 and their own 40 twice - which resulted in zero first downs, ONE total yard of offense, and an INT that gave Baltimore the ball at the Giants 47.
With all of that, the Giants defense held once again. Unfortunately Dave Thomas was scorched for a 44 yard pass on the next BAL drive and they got a FG.
2nd half was more of the same. Baltimore punted after getting only one first down on their opening drive, but Collins was picked off by Kim Herring at the Giants 41. The defense held BAL to a FG attempt that was missed, and it remained 10-0 with less than four minutes to go in the 3rd after both teams again failed to move the ball on their next possession.
Finally, the dam broke and it wasn't the defense to blame. Collins threw ANOTHER INT, this one the pick six by Duane Starks to make it 17-0. The exchange of kick returns made 24-7.
Baltimore's offense didn't score again until midway thru the third on a 38-yard TD drive (thanks to a 34 yard punt by Brad Maynard). They added a FG for the final scoring margin after Ron Dixon fumbled the kickoff and they recovered at the Giants 34.
The Ravens offense was BAD in this game. Their TD drives were 41 and 38 yards. Their other two TD's came on defense or special teams. They hit 38 and 44 yard passes and that accounted for more than half of their passing yardage. Jamal Lewis had 67 yards on 20 runs before it was 24-7, and 19 of those yards came on a meaningless play before the half when BAL was running out the clock.
Agree with this, yes Baltimore was good, but they could of been had.
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Honestly though, my biggest problem with that game was the Giant crap that the Ravens offense took on our defense. I expected the offense to suck, but I really thought our defense would keep us in that game, and they completely shat the bed.
That's really unfair to the Giants defense. The Ravens first two possessions started at the 37 and the 49, and they didn't get a first down on either.
Their first TD started at the Giants 41 after a 43 yard punt return. At that point in the game the Giants offense had run 11 plays for 19 yards. So yeah, the defense broke first on the Stokely TD, but the offense wasn't doing anything.
Baltimore's next five possessions netted less than 40 yards. While that was going on, the Giants started possessions at their own 39 and their own 40 twice - which resulted in zero first downs, ONE total yard of offense, and an INT that gave Baltimore the ball at the Giants 47.
With all of that, the Giants defense held once again. Unfortunately Dave Thomas was scorched for a 44 yard pass on the next BAL drive and they got a FG.
2nd half was more of the same. Baltimore punted after getting only one first down on their opening drive, but Collins was picked off by Kim Herring at the Giants 41. The defense held BAL to a FG attempt that was missed, and it remained 10-0 with less than four minutes to go in the 3rd after both teams again failed to move the ball on their next possession.
Finally, the dam broke and it wasn't the defense to blame. Collins threw ANOTHER INT, this one the pick six by Duane Starks to make it 17-0. The exchange of kick returns made 24-7.
Baltimore's offense didn't score again until midway thru the third on a 38-yard TD drive (thanks to a 34 yard punt by Brad Maynard). They added a FG for the final scoring margin after Ron Dixon fumbled the kickoff and they recovered at the Giants 34.
The Ravens offense was BAD in this game. Their TD drives were 41 and 38 yards. Their other two TD's came on defense or special teams. They hit 38 and 44 yard passes and that accounted for more than half of their passing yardage. Jamal Lewis had 67 yards on 20 runs before it was 24-7, and 19 of those yards came on a meaningless play before the half when BAL was running out the clock.
You are right, crapping the bed was WAY to strong of a description... lol. I get heated when I think about that game. I guess it was because I was expecting as much domination and as many takeaways from our defense. Fair or not fair I have always felt like the whole team gave up after the KO TD return including the defense. And after they called back Jesse Armstead's INT/TD I almost put a beer bottle through my friend's TV. Really that loss was on coaching more than anything, but Collins didn't help.