Can’t quibble with this one, especially the high drama at the end. Between Kawika Mitchell and Justin Tuck stopping Ladell Betts on third and fourth down at the 1, and the total defense holding the Skins to just 11 plays before that drive, it appears that much-maligned unit has vindicated itself.

Well, for a week, at least. Who knows what the rest of the season holds. But for this one game, the defense came up HUGE in the second half after faltering yet again in the first half. The best thing that came out of today, besides the win, was that cornerback Corey Webster may finally have lost his job. Kevin Dockery was in at cornerback with Aaron Ross playing the slot in the nickel alignments, and Ross then went over to play some corner.

Sam Madison had a very good game. Physical, aggressive. The kind everybody expected to see out of him the last two years but never happened.

Also, hand it to Plaxico Burress for not getting down on himself after a perfectly disastrous first half. He didn’t catch a single pass in the first half. The one he did appear to have for a first down was overturned when a replay challenge revealed the ball touched the ground as he was trying to gain control of it. Burress came back in the second half to catch what turned into the game-winning touchdown pass, a 33-yarder where he put moves on Carlos Rogers and Sean Taylor, and grabbed five passes for 86 yards total.

Maybe the guy could care less about practicing. But he proved he’s a gamer. Not that we’re forgetting his give-up last year on Pacman Jones’ interception. But he looks like he’s turned an attitudinal corner on that.

So the Giants basically saved their season by going 1-2. Ought to be a happy week for everybody involved.

Ciao for now.

Another touchdown by a tight end. A wide open tight end at that.

Chris Cooley proved the Giants defense still hasn’t solved their problems covering the tight end. There was no one, absolutely no one, in the same frame as him when he caught that second-quarter touchdown pass just over the goal line.

Other than that, though, this one would be a lot closer if not for Eli Manning’s fumble off a sack and Clinton Portis’ ensuing touchdown run. The offense isn’t doing a thing, and if it stays like this the blame for the loss may well be shared equally. Maybe more by the offense considering Manning threw a late interception, albeit off a deflection, to set up Shaun Suisham’s 47-yard field goal as the half expired.

Not a good situation.

Talk to you guys after the game.

Ciao for now.

The Giants DO NOT want to go 0-3 today against the Redskins.

More history. Since the NFL went to a 12-team playoff format in 1990, 85 teams have started 0-3. Three have made the playoffs.

So, with that 500-pound gorilla sitting on the Giants’ shoulders, we proudly give you the five questions for today’s game.

1. So, what’s with Strahan?

Michael Strahan is still looking for that one sack that will put him past Lawrence Taylor for the franchise career sack record. While he’s been searching for that, he’s looked very much like a 35-year-old man who isn’t in football shape. Tom Coughlin admitted as much this week, asking for patience. But hey, the season’s slipping away quickly. Strahan needs a big game today, needs to look like the Strahan of old and make an impact, otherwise the Giants are going to be in huge trouble. For his part, Strahan says he feels great, feels energized. Now it’s time for him to show it.

2. How much will Plaxico Burress play?

Who knows? It’s starting to look like that right ankle sprain that kept him out of the preseason schedule is going to be a season-long issue. That kinda stinks, since Burress leads the NFL with four touchdown catches and is Eli Manning’s favorite deep threat. The more snaps he misses, the less effective Manning has a chance to be. And let’s face it, Anthony Mix may look like Burress, but there was a reason the kid was a longshot in camp. Were it not for Michael Jennings blowing his Achilles in the preseason and Steve Smith fracturing his shoulder blade last week, Mix wouldn’t be getting a sniff of any quality receptions. And Sinorice Moss has more questions surrounding his talent and durability than any other receiver on the squad. If Burress leaves at the half, look for an offensive folderoo in the second half.

3. Will the defense fool the Redskins’ offense?

See, the plan is to have Antonio Pierce bring his airhorn on the field. Just as Jason Campbell starts calling the signals, Pierce toots the horn. Campbell, young quarterback that he is, thinks the drill is over, steps out, and heads for the sidelines. Joe Gibbs then gives Campbell one of those “You should have had a V-8” head slaps as the delay of game flag goes down. It may take that, considering how badly this defense is playing. If Chris Cooley runs through the middle like the tight ends before him, and if Santana Moss has cornerbacks chasing him, it’s going to be a long day. Look for Aaron Ross in for Corey Webster early if Webster whiffs a tackle or two, and possibly starting. And please, can somebody jam a receiver? Any receiver?

4. Can Manning keep it up?

He hasn’t played badly the first two games. In fact, he was downright excellent in the opener. Not so much against the Packers. But if he continues making plays, and if the eminent Jeremy Shockey catches a few imperfectly-thrown balls, he might be able to put up enough points to balance off the defense. You’d still hate to see him get into a shootout. But don’t discount a fourth-quarter comeback if they can keep the game within a touchdown.

5. Can they feed off last year’s victory at FedEx Field?

No. Different team. Derrick Ward isn’t Tiki Barber, though he’s looked awfully good in place of Brandon Jacobs the last two games. Burress is hurting, and the Redskins have a new, hard-hitting first-round safety in LaRon Landry to go along with Sean Taylor. About the only thing similar between the games is a Giants defense that could well allow the Redskins to run up and down the field on them. Without Barber (yeah, I know. He’s got a big mouth and everybody hates him now, but he was a great back), they’ll have nobody to bail them out if the defense doesn’t shape up real fast. And you know what that means. 0-3 and a descent into the abyss.

Prediction: There’s no logic involved here. No basis of fact that leads me to this one, except I just don’t believe the Giants are going to end their season this early. Giants 30-28.

Also, if you thought you were going to see the dawn of the Marquies Gunn era, forget it. They waived the defensive end and signed fullback Robert Douglas from the practice squad. That gives them two fullbacks, with Madison Hedgecock. Guess they want to bang today.

Enjoy the game.

Ciao for now.

Looks like wide receiver Plaxico Burress will be a gametime decision after taking just half a practice today.

Burress missed the first two days entirely with his sprained right ankle. But he did say he’d be back for the game. Right now he’s questionable, but there’s a good chance he’ll at least start Sunday against the Redskins.

How long he’ll be able to go is the question. A quarter? A half? Anything short of a full game would certainly be detrimental to the Giants’ offense, considering his four touchdown catches not only lead the team, but co-lead the league with Carolina’s Steve Smith as well.

If he has to come out, the Giants will be relegated to using Sinorice Moss or Anthony Mix opposite Amani Toomer. That will create other problems, given neither of those guys are particularly experienced. It’s significant, too, that injured rookie Steve Smith had beaten out Moss in training camp for the third receiver spot.

It’s not a good situation for an offense trying to equalize a struggling defense.

Thoughts?

Ciao for now.

A little news first. Plaxico Burress did miss practice for a second straight day, but Tom Coughlin said he expects his No. 1 wide receiver to practice tomorrow. Burress, who ran and cut on the side while trying to get the soreness out of his re-sprained right ankle, didn’t seem too concerned about getting back to work. He simply informed everybody interested that he’d be there Sunday.

Good enough. Clearly, the guy doesn’t give a fig about practicing, and he doesn’t seem to need it. Certainly no one will call him on it if he continues to catch touchdown passes, of which he has four so far.

Meanwhile, David Tyree appears ready to get back after taking two full days of practice with the offense and special teams. If the doctors clear him, he’ll play with a protective cast around his left forearm to keep that surgically-repaired navicular bone intact. Tyree said he can make a tackle with the cast, as well as catch a pass. It’s awkward, but he can get by.

It also appears LB Gerris Wilkinson (dislocated kneecap) is ready to go after taking two full practices. That could clear the way for Kawika Mitchell’s move back to the strong side and Mathias Kiwanuka’s return to fulltime defensive end. Don’t count on that happening this week, though.

And now for the Book of the Month Club motivation method, brought exclusively to you by defensive captain and middle linebacker Antonio Pierce. Seems he waded through a book on leadership—actually Gen. George Patton’s leadership—in an effort to pick up a few pointers himself. I love AP. But I don’t quite know what the liberation of those “Battlin’ Bastards of Bastogne” will add to any gameplan trying to stop Santana Moss and Clinton Portis, but the Giants are going so bad right now that anything could help.

Pierce also took off on the media for its abject negativity in light of all those bad numbers the defense has put up.

“You know what? I was actually looking for some applications from some guys who know anything about how to play defense,” said Pierce in his first comments to the media since Sunday. Well, first unpaid comments, anyway. He did make two paid radio appearances this week.

But I digress.

“I guess y’all have the Xs and Os and answers for us, and you know what our problem is,” he continued. “Everybody knows what our defense runs, so we’re asking the media and fans. If you could please help out the New York Giants defense, we’d really appreciate it.”

Funny. If Pierce had shown up Monday or Wednesday, I’d have given him a whole list of plays to run. Lesson for Antonio: You snooze, you lose.

Later, Michael Strahan called a question about a lack of intensity on the defensive sideline “crap.” Give a listen.

Download:

See, everybody gets touchy when you’re losing. And when you’re losing with historically horrible numbers like the Giants, things get even more testy.

Oh, well. They’ll go down to FedEx Field like they did last year, put up 35, and beat the Redskins. And everybody will be happy once again. Or they won’t and everybody will not be happy.

Enjoy the sound.

Ciao for now.

Just got back from practice, or more accurately the portion we’re allowed to see.

Some encouraging news surrounding David Tyree and his fractured navicular bone in his left wrist, though I’m not sure it’ll translate into playing time this week. But he was out there trying to make tackles on punt return drills, and he went out on a number of pass routes for backup Anthony Wright.

Tyree still may be a week away, but at least he’s working.

Jared Lorenzen took some snaps on his sprained left ankle and looked okay. But wide receiver Plaxico Burress still appeared to be struggling with his sprained right ankle. He had it stretched and did some agility drills on the side, but no apparent work in practice.

We’ll get a better idea on all after we talk to Tom Coughlin in an hour or so.

Also, no apparent changes in the defensive starting lineup, leading me even more to believe that Coughlin will probably start off with his regulars and switch in midstream to Aaron Ross if Corey Webster misses an early tackle or two. Could be the same situation for Kawika Mitchell at weak—side linebacker, who could be replaced by Gerris Wilkinson. The backup moved well in unit drills and appears ready to get back into action this week.

Now for your part. Tell me what the best thing that could happen this Sunday that will get the defense going. A quick score off a turnover? An early three—and—out. Set up a scenario for me that will result in a shutdown of the Redskins’ offense.

Be back later with any breaking news.

Ciao for now.

Remember that bold statement Tom Coughlin made in his introductory press conference in 2004 when he called injuries a “cancer” in the locker room? Remember how that was a direct shot at his predecessor, Jim Fassel, who was perceived as a coach soft on players? Well, Fassel had been quiet all these years until this morning.

Just thought you’d be interested in hearing his take on those comments, as told to Boomer Esiason and Craig Carton on the radio. I’m not in the habit of plugging WFAN, or any other radio or TV station for that matter. But they seem like appropriate comments given the state of Coughlin’s injured reserve list. Fassel has some pretty strong feelings about them, too.

Download:

Don’t think they’ll be sharing Christmas dinner anytime soon.

Feel free to share your opinions.

Ciao for now.

First-round cornerback Aaron Ross said he hasn’t been apprised of any changes in his status as nickelback, but coach Tom Coughlin hinted that he may be on his way up the depth chart.

Whether that happens this week in Washington or at some other point soon remains to be seen. Ross said he continued practicing as the nickelback today, with Corey Webster and Sam Madison taking first unit snaps. Ross did come in with the starters for snaps in his regular practice rotation, however.

But Coughlin’s comment that he wanted to “accelerate” Ross’ development showed he definitely has something in mind for him. If Ross shows he can handle the outside spot—“but then, he has to hold up his end of the deal as well,” Coughlin said—don’t be surprised to see him at least enter in midstream in place of either Webster or Madison.

Meanwhile, Gerris Wilkinson said he took his first full practice load since dislocating his kneecap the second week of training camp. He said he’s pain-free and feels he can cover a receiver and rush the passer. That could clear the way for Kawika Mitchell to move back to strongside linebacker, where one would think he’d be more comfortable. What that means for Mathias Kiwanuka is anybody’s guess, though. Kiwanuka continued to practice with the linebacker unit, so it doesn’t appear he’ll be switching back fulltime to defensive end yet.

“I’m eager to see what I can do,” Wilkinson said today, adding that he expects to be available for Sunday’s game. “My role will be whatever the coaches want. I’d like to be a starter, and the sooner that happens, the better.”

Mitchell, by the way, played both the middle and strong side in Kansas City.

The way I see it, the Giants might as well stop wringing their hands about taking Kiwanuka off the field. They’re already doing it, anyway, in certain third-down packages. And he’s not doing much to merit his starting spot at strong-side linebacker, either. Might as well return him to the defensive front and work him in as much as possible on passing downs, removing Michael Strahan if necessary until Strahan proves he can move like he needs to.

Ciao for now.

Tom Coughlin got a tad snippy at his press conference this morning, and isn’t that a refreshing change from the kinder, gentler Coughlin of the past couple of months.

Guess he got a little tired of the negative tone of some of the questions being asked about the 0—2 start. Personally, I don’t know what all the sour pusses are about anyway. Tight ends running free, wide receivers killing cornerbacks? It’s all correctable, right?

Anyway, Coughlin took exception to a couple of questions, in particular a followup on whether the players were getting all they could out of practice.

"The one way I know we’ve improved is coming off the practice field feeling we accomplished what we set out to accomplish," Coughlin said.

"So, has your team not had that feeling?" the questioner asked.

"I just said what I said, okay?" Coughlin shot back, clearly annoyed. "I don’t know how to explain it any better. We need to improve."

He got testy again a bit later when yet another question about covering tight ends down the field was brought up.

"We gonna argue about coverage now?" Coughlin said.

Can’t really blame Coughlin for his attitude, though. Another loss, and he might as well head for the beach, where he can watch his job float off into the sunset. It’s hard for any team to dig themselves out of an 0—3 hole, much less a Giants team that seems undermanned and outgunned on defense.

The media’s time at practice showed no changes in the defensive lineup, though Coughlin hinted that there might be some in the offing. Aaron Ross certainly seems like a prime candidate to replace either Corey Webster or Sam Madison.

Meanwhile, WR Plaxico Burress was on the sidelines wearing a baseball cap. Didn’t look like he and his sprained right ankle would do anything today, but Coughlin said he’d try to get back to practice tomorrow. My bet is he plays Sunday.

LB Gerris Wilkinson did look like he was ready for a full workload after missing much time with a dislocated kneecap. He could be available Sunday if he has no setbacks.

RB Ahmad Bradshaw (sprained elbow) was back taking punt returns, and QB Jared Lorenzen did a few things on his sprained left ankle, but not much. I’ll update after the official injury report comes out.

And that roster vacancy created by DE Adrian Awasom going on IR? It went to practice squad DE Marquies Gunn.

That’s it for now. Looks like the old Tom is back.

Didn’t take long, did it?

Ciao for now.

And it goes on and on with injured reserve. Backup defensive end Adrian Awasom was the latest to hit the season-ending list today with a fractured transverse process in a neck vetebrae. That makes seven on the list since Jim Finn started the parade in the offseason.

The Giants will fill Awasom’s roster spot today, possibly with 10th-year safety Artrell Hawkins, who was cut by the Patriots. He was in for a look-see today, though he is said to be coming back from an injury.

Now, if Gerris Wilkinson’s kneecap is okay and Steve Spagnuolo is smart, the defensive coordinator might at least consider using this opportunity to move Mathias Kiwanuka back to defensive end, where he belongs. Then he’ll have the pleasant headache of getting Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, and Kiwanuka on the field consistently to generate that non-existant pass rush while Strahan rounds into shape after missing training camp.

Just a thought. What do you think?

Ciao for now.