Giants

New York Giants at San Francisco 49ers: Week 6 NFL Pick

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Picks, 2012 Week 6 NFL Picks, 49ers, Giants

New York Giants (3-2) at San Francisco 49ers (4-1)

The San Francisco 49ers are the best team in the league. At least that’s what yards per play differential says and it’s not even really close. They are gaining 1.9 yards per play more than they are allowing and they rank in the top-5 in both yards per play and yards per play allowed, something no other team in the league can say. In fact, no other team has a yards per play differential higher than 1.0. The Giants, meanwhile, are even at 0.0 yards per play. An old gambling formula says to divide the difference by .15 and add 3 points either way for home field advantage. Given that, the 49ers should be -15.5 point favorites this week.

If that sounds absolutely ridiculous to you, you’re not alone. That sounds absolutely ridiculous to me too and I love that formula. This is one of those instances where it’s necessary to use a human element. In the last 2 weeks, the 49ers have outgained their opponents by 2.7 yards per play and 3.5 yards per play respectively, translating, not surprisingly, to a 34-0 win and a 45-3 win.

Before the last two weeks, however, the 49ers were outside of the top-5 in yards per play differential. They weren’t bad or anything, but they didn’t look nearly as impressive as they do now. What they’ve done the last 2 weeks is incredibly impressive. I don’t want to take anything away from them. But I don’t think it’s fair to put so much stock into 2 games against crappy teams that a team goes from being good to being miles and miles away better than everyone else and deserving of being 15.5 point home favorites against a worthy opponent. I do think we’re getting some line value with the 49ers, but not 9 points worth. Remember, the 49ers have yet to beat a team who currently has a winning record.

However, the public seems to think we’re getting line value with the Giants and they have made the Giants public underdogs. In spite of that, this line keeps climbing, which is indicative of a trap line. Between the line value and the likely trap line, you’d think this would be an easy pick for me, but it’s not because there are some very good trends on the Giants’ side.

I mentioned how well the 49ers have done the last two weeks. Well, that may have made them overvalued and overconfident. Teams are 18-34 ATS since 1989 after back-to-back wins of 24 or more. The Giants, meanwhile, are in a “nobody believes in us” spot, which they normally do well in. Since Tom Coughlin took over in 2004, they are 38-21 ATS as underdogs.

Since Coughlin took over in 2004, they are also very good on the road and in the 1st half of the season. Since 2004, they are 48-25 ATS on the road, as opposed to just 34-37 ATS at home. As road dogs, they are 31-16 ATS. In that same time period, they are 45-18 straight up and 39-24 ATS from weeks 1-8 and 35-39 straight up and 39-35 ATS after week 8. They’re also in a good spot as dogs before being favorites. Teams tend to be extra focused on that spot, going 73-48 ATS since 2011.

At the end of the day, I’m taking the 49ers because the combination of line value and a potential trap line, while betting against a public underdog is too good to pass on. However, it’s not a big play at all. The Giants thrive in this exact situation (and have 2 other trends in their favor), even if the 49ers do appear to be the significantly better team.

Public lean: NY Giants (new thing I’m adding, siding with the odds makers on bets is not a bad thing to do since they make so much money, so I’m listing this here to allow readers to “fade” the public, if they so choose, in this example, the odds makers win if San Francisco covers)

Sharps lean: SF 16 NYG 10

Final update: Sharps like San Francisco, but I still can’t put more than a unit on either side.

San Francisco 49ers 27 New York Giants 20

Pick against spread: San Francisco -6.5 (-110) 1 unit

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New York Giants: Week 6 NFL Power Rankings (#13)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 6 NFL Power Rankings, Giants

Last week: 14 (+1)

Record: 3-2

It was between the Cowboys and the Giants for the final playoff spot in the loaded NFC in these Power Rankings. I have Atlanta, San Francisco, Chicago, and Philadelphia winning the divisions, Minnesota making the playoffs as a Wild Card and being this year’s team that goes from 5 wins or fewer to the playoffs. I gave Dallas the edge because they have the Head-to-Head victory and because they have the superior yards per play differential. Also, the Cowboys would serve as the 5th new playoff team and there have been 5 new playoff teams every year for the past 16 years. The Giants have all the talent of a playoff team though and Eli Manning is behind only Matt Ryan and Tom Brady as the league’s MVP through 5 games. He’s holding together an injury plagued bunch and having as good of a year as he did last year.

Studs

RB Ahmad Bradshaw: Rushed for 200 yards (70 after contact) and a touchdown on 30 attempts, 4 broken tackles, 1 fumble, 1 penalty, 4 catches for 29 yards on 5 attempts

QB Eli Manning: 25 of 37 for 259 yards, 3 touchdowns, 1 interception, 4 dropped passes, 1 hit as thrown, 101.9 adjusted QB rating, 7 drop backs on 37 drop backs (no sacks, 4 of 7, 1 drop, 1 hit as thrown)

LG Kevin Boothe: 1 quarterback hit on 41 pass block snaps, run blocked for 21 yards on 2 attempts

FS Stevie Brown: Was not thrown on, 1 interception, 1 solo tackle, 2 assists

TE Martellus Bennett: Run blocked for 92 yards on 5 attempts, caught 3 passes for 30 yards on 4 attempts

Duds

MLB Chase Blackburn: Allowed 3 catches for 86 yards and a touchdown on 5 attempts, 1 interception, 4 solo tackles, 1 stop, 3 missed tackles

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Cleveland Browns (0-4) at New York Giants (2-2)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Picks, 2012 Week 5 NFL Picks, Browns, Giants

Cleveland Browns (0-4) at New York Giants (2-2)

In my weekly Power Rankings, I had the Browns in last for the 3rd straight week, but I didn’t feel comfortable about. Yes, the Browns are one of two remaining 0-4 teams and compared to the other one, New Orleans, they’re much less likely to turn things around. They’re the only 0-4 team that isn’t really a surprise. Everyone predicted they’d be bad, as they had been for years, and that’s been the case.

However, I really didn’t feel like they’ve been awful. They have lost a single game by more than 10 points and they’ve had a fairly tough schedule, playing Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Buffalo, and then Baltimore. Jacksonville has a win, but I don’t feel like they’ve looked good in any of their games, even their win, and their 2nd year quarterback appears to be much more of a bust than the Browns’ 1st year quarterback Brandon Weeden, who has improved as this season has gone on.

The Browns, meanwhile, rank just 23rd in the league in yards per play differential, which is not horrendous at all. If I were to compare then to Minnesota, Miami, Indianapolis, and St. Louis, all of whom started last year 0-4, I think they’re closer to Miami, who eventually finished 6-10, than the other three, who all got top-3 picks in the NFL draft.

So yes, the Browns are bad, but I they’re not awful and I feel like they’re underrated. Also, given that they have only lost 1 game by more than a touchdown and none by more than 10, I like that we’re getting 9 points with them this week. They’re 2-1-1 ATS this year and should be able to keep this one close again and improve to 3-1-1. On trend that works in Cleveland’s favor, teams in their 2nd straight road game as dogs off a loss are 59-38 ATS since 2008.

I also like that the public is betting the Giants, yet the spread is still falling. Also, even though the spread is falling, there is line value here. Going back to the Browns’ 23rd ranked yards per play differential, they have a differential .4 yards worse than the Giants. An old gambling formula tells says to divide that by .15 and add 3 for home field either way. By that logic, this line should be -5.5 in favor of the Giants, so we get 3 points of line value, which is significant. They’re also rested coming off 10 days rest, a situation teams are 111-89 ATS in since 1989.

Now, onto the Giants. They’re in a very tough spot this week. They’re coming off a loss to the Eagles as dogs and looking forward to a trip to San Francisco, where they will certainly be dogs. This is a classic breather game for them against the “lowly” Browns. Teams in that situation are 52-78 ATS since 2008. They’re also incredibly banged up. Kenny Phillips is expected to miss this game, which will hurt a pass defense that already ranks dead last in the league in YPA. An improving Brandon Weeden should be able to move the ball on them, just like everyone else has.

Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden are also expected to miss, though that’s not as big because Eli has proven he can put up big numbers in spite of banged up receiving corps. On top of that, two starting offensive lineman might not play. Eli is one of the best in the league at avoiding sacks when under pressure, but like any quarterback, his completion percentage does drop under pressure. Finally, this team is just 22-30 ATS at home since 2006 and 40-18 ATS on the road. I love exploiting these road/home disparities. Banged up and in a breather game situation, the Giants could find themselves in a game very similar to their week 2 game, needing a comeback to beat an inferior opponent.

Public lean: NY Giants (new thing I’m adding, siding with the odds makers on bets is not a bad thing to do since they make so much money, so I’m listing this here to allow readers to “fade” the public, if they so choose, in this example, the odds makers win if Cleveland covers)

Sharp lean: CLE 8 NYG 2

Final Update: The LV Hilton sharps seem very afraid to bet this game for some reason, but when do they, they pick Cleveland. No one likes the Giants this week. I feel pretty confident about this one.

New York Giants 31 Cleveland Browns 27

Pick against spread: Cleveland +9 (-110) 4 units

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New York Giants: Week 5 NFL Power Rankings (#14)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 5 NFL Power Rankings, Giants

Last week: 14 (+0)

Record: 2-2

This is the league’s 2nd worst defense in terms of yards per play allowed, thanks to a pass defense that ranks tied for last allowing 9.0 YPA. Their secondary simply cannot seem to beat the injury bug, much like last year, and it’s getting worse as safety Kenny Phillips is expected to be out for a few weeks after leaving last week’s loss to the Eagles. He was one of the reliable players in this secondary last year, along with Corey Webster, an aging cornerback who is really struggled this year, compared to his normal self. In a loaded NFC, that could be enough to keep the Giants out of the playoffs. The 9 wins they had last year won’t cut it this year and it feels like we’re headed for somewhere around there.

Studs

LT William Beatty: Did not allow a pressure on 49 pass block snaps, 1 penalty, run blocked for 8 yards on 3 attempts

C David Baas: Did not allow a pressure on 49 pass block snaps, run blocked for 18 yards on 3 attempts

WR Victor Cruz: Caught 9 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown on 13 attempts on 48 pass snaps, 4.2 YAC per catch

WR Domenik Hixon: Caught 6 passes for 114 yards on 11 attempts on 46 pass plays, 4.6 YAC per catch

FS Stevie Brown: Allowed 2 catches for 6 yards on 2 attempts, 6 solo tackles, 1 assist, 2 stops, 1 missed tackle, 1 quarterback hit on 2 blitzes

Duds

LG Kevin Boothe: 1 quarterback hits and 3 quarterback hurries on 49 pass snaps, run blocked for 20 yards on 7 attempts

TE Martellus Bennett: Caught 1 pass for 2 yards on 3 attempts on 38 pass snaps, 3.0 YAC per catch, 1 interception when thrown to

CB Corey Webster: Allowed 5 catches for 85 yards and a touchdown on 7 attempts, 2 solo tackles, 1 stop

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New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles: Week 4 NFL Pick

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Picks, 2012 Week 4 NFL Picks, Eagles, Giants

New York Giants (2-1) at Philadelphia Eagles (2-1)

Wow, the public has really soured on Philadelphia. A week ago they were heavily bet as road favorites and now one week later, the public is pounding the Giants in this one with the Eagles being just 1 point favorites at home. Dogs after losing as road favorites are 23-11 ATS since 2008. I know the Eagles aren’t technically dogs, but being 1 point home favorites and having the public betting heavily against you is about as close to being dogs as you can be. By the way, when you add in teams that were 1 point favorites to that aforementioned stat, it’s 24-12, so not much difference. Besides, the public is getting killed this year, especially on bets like this, as the public is 4-12 on heavy leans, which is what this is in favor of the Giants. I like to fade heavy leans as much as I can.

The Eagles have gotten killed with turnovers in their first 3 games, with a league worst -6 turnover ratio. However, that tends to even out on a week to week basis. Going back to 2002, looking at teams with every turnover differential from -5 to +5 in a single game, they all average a turnover differential of about +0 in their next game. This is still one of the most talented teams in the league and they rank 4th in the league in yards per play differential, a much more consistent stat. I expect them to eventually get their act together and finish as one of the best teams in the league.

Speaking of yards per play differential, Philadelphia’s yards per play differential is 1 yard better than New York’s and an old handicapping formula says to divide to that by .15 and add 3 either way for home field advantage to determine the “real line.” That suggests that Philadelphia should actually be favored by 9.5 points. It’s more accurate to use that a few more weeks into the season, but it’s worth noting. The Eagles’ only glaring flaw so far has been ball security, but the Giants have an equally glaring flaw and it’s their dead last ranked pass defense. Pass defense is not as inconsistent on a week to week basis as turnovers are, so the Eagles should be able to take advantage, especially now that they’re healthy in the receiving corps with Jeremy Maclin returning.

Besides, this is the type of atmosphere the Eagles thrive in. As dogs or favorites of 1, the Eagles are 49-30 ATS since 1999, which was when Andy Reid took over. Coming off a loss as a favorite, they’re 23-17 ATS. When you combine those two, they’re 7-3 ATS coming off a loss as a favorite as a dog or favorite of 1. The Giants are in a few situations they normally thrive in as well. They are 33-15 ATS on the road since 2007 and Giants are 41-27 ATS (49-19 SU) in weeks 1-9 since 2004 and they’re coming off 10 days rest. Teams are 109-89 ATS on Sunday off of Thursday Night football. However, they’re also just 1-5 off a win of 28 or more in the Coughlin era and the Eagles have owned this rivalry of late, winning in 7 of their last 8 matchups.

This really feels like the type of game the Eagles are going to win. It’s one of those things that tough to explain in numbers (though I definitely tried), but when you watch enough football you develop a 6th sense for this kind of thing. Everyone is doubting the Eagles, who, the important numbers say are the more talented, while the Giants are in a situation where they can’t play the “nobody believes in us card,” which they might do better than anyone in football. They also zig when you expect them to zag and zag when you expect them to zig and right now, everyone expects them to win. There are things working in both sides’ favor, but it’s still a significant play on the home team.

Public lean: NY Giants (new thing I’m adding, siding with the odds makers on bets is not a bad thing to do since they make so much money, so I’m listing this here to allow readers to “fade” the public, if they so choose, in this example, the odds makers win if Philadelphia covers)

Sharps lean (sharps is defined as anyone with a 66.7% winning percentage or higher in Las Vegas Hilton): PHI 13 NYG 8

Philadelphia Eagles 31 New York Giants 24

Pick against spread: Philadelphia -1 (-115) 3 units

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New York Giants: Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#14)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Giants

Last week: 17 (+3)

Record: 2-1

The Giants are certainly talented enough for a playoff spot, but in spite of their win over the Panthers, this team still has some obvious flaws, much like they did last year. Last year, they won just 9 regular season games and had a negative point differential. Right now, they rank just 13th in yards per play differential, so they’re right about where they were last regular season. That’s not going to cut it in a loaded NFC.

Studs

QB Eli Manning: 27 of 35 for 288 yards, 1 touchdowns, 2 drops, 1 hit as thrown, 107.2 adjusted QB rating, pressured on 5 of 38 drop backs (1 sack, 1 scramble, 1 of 3, 1 hit as thrown)

RB Andre Brown: Rushed for 113 yards (83 after contact) and 2 touchdowns on 20 carries, broke 2 tackles, allowed 1 sack on 6 pass block snaps, caught 3 passes for 17 yards on 4 targets

LG Kevin Boothe: Allowed 1 quarterback hurry on 41 pass block snaps, run blocked for 12 yards on 2 attempts

RT Sean Locklear: Allowed 1 quarterback hit on 40 pass block snaps, run blocked for 31 yards on 1 attempt

WR Ramses Barden: Caught 9 passes for 138 yards on 10 targets on 40 pass snaps, 5.1 YAC per catch

CB Prince Amukamara: Allowed 1 completion for 9 yards on 4 attempts, 1 pass deflection, 1 solo tackle, 1 penalty

RE Jason Pierre-Paul: 1 sack, 1 quarterback hit, and 2 quarterback hurries on 34 pass rush snaps, 2 batted passes, 2 solo tackles, 2 stops

Duds

CB Corey Webster: Allowed 3 catches for 50 yards on 3 attempts, 2 penalties, 4 solo tackles, 1 stop

MLB Chase Blackburn: 1 solo tackle, allowed 2 catches for 35 yards on 3 attempts

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Giants’ Andre Brown has earned a time share with Ahmad Bradshaw?

stevenlourie Giants, News

Andre Brown is having a nice week or so. On Sunday, Ahmad Bradshaw went down with an injury midgame against the Giants and because Tim Coughlin didn’t trust 1st round rookie David Wilson because of ball security and pass protection issues, he put the more veteran Andre Brown in the game. Brown impressed, rushing for 71 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries and he earned the start on Thursday Night Football with Bradshaw being ruled out on a short week.

Brown impressed even more last night, rushing for 113 yards and 2 touchdowns on 20 carries. Brown’s two starts have come against bad defenses, but there’s no way that you could have watched his two performances and not come away impressed, especially given his history. The powerful 227 pound back has been cut 7 times in his NFL career after being a 4th round pick in 2009 out of NC State by the Giants. He’s dealt with an Achilles tear and a ton of adversity, but now he’s burst onto the scene and it appears he might be here to stay. Bradshaw is expected back next week, but Brown could have earned a time share with him. He’s the power back compliment to Bradshaw that they were previously lacking with Brandon Jacobs going to San Francisco.

People who picked Andre Brown up for the week for a spot start should not cut him even when Bradshaw returns and if he’s still available in your league, go grab him. It’s entirely possible that Brown earns a weekly role, especially around the goal line, and Bradshaw’s injury history is noted. Bradshaw owners, meanwhile, should considering trying to trade Bradshaw now for a more consistent starter if you can get one, because a time share will make Bradshaw no longer worth a weekly start. David Wilson owners, meanwhile, should just cut him. Tom Coughlin doesn’t trust rookies and he’s well behind both Brown and Bradshaw now. He may still have some value in leagues that don’t redraft, but don’t expect much of any impact from him this season. Even with Bradshaw out, he saw just 3 touches against Carolina.

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New York Giants at Carolina Panthers: Week 3 NFL Pick

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Picks, 2012 Week 3 NFL Picks, Giants, Panthers

New York Giants (1-1) at Carolina Panthers (1-1)

If you haven’t read Jason Whitlock’s article about how hypocritical Roger Goodell is pretending he cares about player safety, while simultaneously expanding Thursday Night Football to a season long thing and trying to expand the season to 18 games, here it is. It’s a very good read and yet another reason to hate Thursday Night Football. You may be thinking, how can you hate Thursday Night football? It’s another night of football. Yes, but it’s also sloppy football and if it’s a good matchup, it’s cheating us out of the opportunity to watch it under normal circumstances.

Last week it was Packers/Bears, two bitter rivals and two of the better teams in the National Football League, and what we got, because it was on Thursday, was a sloppy mess of two tired and unprepared teams. If that game had been on Sunday Night football or Monday Night football or time slot other than Thursday Night Football, it would have probably have been one of the best games of the week. Instead, it was painful to watch.

If you don’t believe me, look at the over/under record for as far back as there is data (1989). Since 1989, the over has won 50 times and the under has won 66 times. These are typically games that are much lower scoring than they are expected to be and than they probably should be, and on top of that, it risks injury for players playing tired. Roger Goodell has never played football. He doesn’t understand that, or maybe he just doesn’t care.

The one good thing about Thursday Night Football, it’s pretty easy to make money off of if you’re a bettor. I mentioned the over/under trend, I’m basically going to be betting the under on every Thursday Night game for the rest of the season and history suggests I’ll win at a rate of about 57%. The total for this game is a whopping 51 and I don’t give these teams much of a chance to reach that, especially with the Giants playing banged up offensively (more on that later). I rarely bet over/under, but I’m putting a unit on the under this week.

The other easy way to make money off Thursday Night Football is just to bet the home team. It makes sense. When you have just 3 days to prepare for a game, every day counts and if you have to spend half a day or a full day travelling, you’re at a huge disadvantage. Since 1989, the home team has covered 66 times, to 46 for the road team, which is about a 59% clip. I loved this trend last year and I went against it last week, only because I had a good reason. The Packers had really struggled the week before and the Bears had not, so the Packers would have more to work on during the week and be at a bigger disadvantage on a short week. Apparently not. From now on, I’m taking the home team on Thursday Night unless I have a very good reason not to and even then, I wouldn’t bet heavily on the road team like I did last week.

So do I have a good reason this week? Well, there are a few things working in the Giants’ favor. For one, they’re a much better road team than home team over the past few years. I love exploiting home/away disparities. I very rarely bet on the Seahawks on the road and almost always bet on them at home. Before last year, I did the opposite with the Dolphins, though that seems to no longer be the case. The Giants, meanwhile, are 38-18 ATS on the road since 2006 and 22-30 ATS at home. On top of that, they’re a much better team in the 1st half of the season than the 2nd. They’re 41-26 ATS during the first 9 weeks of the season under Tom Coughlin, and straight up, they’re 48-18 in their first 8 games under Tom Coughlin, as opposed to 27-37 in their last 8. The other good thing working for the Giants is that they’re road favorites here and road favorites are actually 23-20 ATS on Thursday Night.

However, this is a tough spot for the Giants on a short week as favorites before being dogs, going into Philadelphia next week. Favorites before being dogs are 43-59 ATS since 2011. The Giants could be very flat this week on short rest against the “lowly” Panthers with a huge game in Philadelphia on the horizon. The Giants are also incredibly banged up. Ahmad Bradshaw is out and Tom Coughlin doesn’t trust the rookie David Wilson yet, so Andre Brown will start at running back for them. Meanwhile, wide receivers Hakeem Nicks and Domenik Hixon are both out and Coughlin doesn’t trust the rookie Reuben Randle, so Ramses Barden will draw the start opposite Victor Cruz. The injury situation is not nearly as bad for the Panthers. Jonathan Stewart is looking like a game time decision, but they have plenty of running back depth to compensate.

Leading off of the Giants’ injuries, there’s also a lot of line value here. The line has barely moved in spite of all these injuries and I think there was line value to begin with. The Panthers should probably be something like -2 or -3 here at home, especially on Thursday Night. I don’t think the difference between the Panthers and the Giants, when banged up this bad, is that different. Yards per play is the single most accurate measure of how a team is playing. The Panthers rank 2nd in yards per play differential, while the Giants’ yards per play differential is negative. I know it’s been just two games, but the schedules have been pretty even between these two teams. Both have played Tampa Bay, but Carolina went to Tampa Bay and New York got them at home, while Carolina has hosted New Orleans and the Giants have hosted the Cowboys.

I’m not necessarily saying the Panthers are a better team than the Giants, but they’re pretty equal with them right now with the Giants having all of their injuries and they should be able to cover as home dogs on Thursday Night, with the Giants possibly being more focused on the Eagles in Philadelphia next week. One final thing, rather than putting 3 units on the spread and 1 on the money line as underdogs, I’m putting all 4 on the money line. 1 point games account for about 2% of NFL games and even then, it’s a 50/50 chance that the Panthers win by 1. I don’t want to pay the extra 20 cents to get protection from a 1 point Giants win, which has about a 1% chance of happening.

Public lean: NY Giants (new thing I’m adding, siding with the odds makers on bets is not a bad thing to do since they make so much money, so I’m listing this here to allow readers to “fade” the public, if they so choose, in this example, the odds makers win if Carolina covers)

Carolina Panthers 24 New York Giants 20 Upset Pick +105 4 units

Pick against spread: Carolina +1.5 (-115) 0 units

Over/Under: Under 51 (-110) 1 unit

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New York Giants: Week 3 NFL Power Rankings (#17)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 3 NFL Power Rankings, Giants

Last week: 18 (+1)

Record: 1-1

I already talked about how much of a disadvantage the Giants have this week as a road team on Thursday Night football, so I’ll say something about the Buccaneers/Giants game that I didn’t have room to say in the Buccaneers’ section. I agree with Greg Schiano on going all out against a victory formation. The Buccaneers went 4-12 last year and lost 10 straight games because they gave up on their coach. They fired Raheem Morris and brought in the more intense, more disciplinarian Greg Schiano and he’s got these guys playing football the right way, through the whistle, until the clock strikes 0:00. I love the culture change in Tampa Bay.

Studs

WR Hakeem Nicks: Caught 10 passes for 199 yards and 1 touchdown on 15 attempts on 52 pass plays, 7.6 YAC per catch

WR Victor Cruz: Caught 11 catches for 179 yards and a touchdown on 15 attempts on 53 pass plays, 6.8 YAC per catch, 2 interceptions when thrown to

RE Jason Pierre-Paul: 1 sack and 3 quarterback hurries on 28 pass rush snaps, 5 solo tackles, 2 assists, 4 stops

DT Linval Joseph: 3 quarterback hits on 16 pass rush snaps, 1 solo tackle, 1 assist, 1 stop

Duds

C David Baas: Allowed 1 quarterback hit and 2 quarterback hurries on 54 pass block snaps, 1 penalty, run blocked for 30 yards on 5 attempts

LE Justin Tuck: Did not record a pressure on 25 pass rush snaps, 3 solo tackles, 3 stops

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Giants list Marvin Austin as probable, Prince Amukamara as questionable, and Keith Rivers as doubtful

stevenlourie Giants, News

The Giants lost two key defensive players, Chris Canty and Terrell Thomas, before the season started and in the opener, they were without their replacements, Marvin Austin and Prince Amukamara respectively. Both are, however, expected to play this week, though the latter is listed as questionable. The two players were their 2nd and 1st round picks in the 2011 NFL Draft respectively.

Austin, the 2nd round pick, has not played in a football game that counted since December of 2009, missing all of 2010 with suspension and the missing all of last season with a torn pectoral, before missing the opener with a back problem. He’s expected to go this week and will either start at defensive tackle or figure heavily into the rotation behind starter Rocky Bernard.

Amukamara, meanwhile, missed most of his rookie year with injuries and opened the year as the slot cornerback. However, when Thomas tore his ACL for the 2nd straight season, Amukamara was set to step into the starting lineup, before suffering an injury of his own, a high ankle sprain. In his absence, Michael Coe and Justin Tyron saw significant action in the opener. Ironically, neither of them was as bad as Corey Webster, an entrenched starter, who was torched repeated by the Cowboys. He’ll need to clean that up this week. With Amukamara and Austin coming back, things are looking up defensively for the Giants, now close to 11 days removed from their week 1 loss.

The bad news, however, is that Keith Rivers is listed as doubtful with an injury. However, the Giants use so much rotation at linebacker that it doesn’t really matter much. Rivers had a nice debut, but 5 Giants linebackers played 24 snaps or more in the opener. In fact, Rivers played the fewest, playing 24. He won’t be missed too much as the Giants take on the Buccaneers this week. Chase Blackburn will start in the middle, with Michael Boley and Mathias Kiwanuka on the outside, and Jacquian Williams will continue to rotate in on passing downs.

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