Five Questions w/GMenDen’s Mike Farley

I had the pleasure of exchanging a few e-mails with Mike Farley (Fanball.com’s New York Giants correspondent at GMenDen.com) for his weekly ‘five questions’ piece.  My first three questions were all in regards to whether or not Mike was really in charge of all the Kwik-E-Marts, but then we got down to discussing Sunday night’s big Cardinals-Giants tilt.  Mike’s answers to my queries are here, and my answers to his questions should be up on his site by tomorrow.

1. So, best to just get this out of the way first….what in the world happened against the Saints last week?  I think you saw the effects of the Giants being really banged up on defense…it wasn’t as evident against teams like Tampa, KC and Oakland, but against the Saints they were exposed, and they didn’t have their typical pass rush going.  And offensively, while the Giants are considered by some to now be a “juggernaut,” they just couldn’t play from behind all game, and wound up making some mistakes because of that pressure.  And let’s face it, the Saints are awesome

2. Even in spite of what Drew Brees did last week, the Giants still lead the NFL in pass defense, averaging only 147.3 pass yards allowed per game.  Who is the unsung hero of the New York secondary and what can they do against Arizona’s receiving corps?  I like watching Terrell Thomas develop….he’s become a ball hawk, and though it’s ridiculous to use this name, he’s playing the same attacking style Ed Reed plays.  But also, the pass rush has something to do with that too….even though the sacks aren’t up, they are pressuring QBs relentlessly.

3. Brandon Jacobs seems to have become the second option behind Ahmad Bradshaw in the NY backfield (much to my fantasy team’s chagrin).  What’s the reason behind Jacobs’ slow start and do you think he can have a breakout game against the Cardinals?  I am not sure anyone knows the answer to that, not even Jacobs.  He’s just not exploding off the line of scrimmage as he has before.  And if you argue that the line is focusing more on protecting Eli Manning, that doesn’t explain Bradshaw’s emergence.  I think he’s just having an off year, and I don’t think he’ll get things going Sunday against a tough run defense.  In fact, you might see 60/40 pass plays to run plays.

4. The Redskins are a mess, the Cowboys are inconsistent bordering on a mess and the Eagles (while good) are still prone to bizarre losses like last weekend in Oakland.  Even if the “Giants can only win against underachievers” trope is true, are they still the favorites in the suddenly-weak NFC East?  Yeah, they have to be by default I guess.  But we’ll really find out what they’re made of next week against the Eagles.

5. What is Kareem McKenzie’s status for Sunday?  He’s been practicing and all indications are he will play.  It’s a big deal to the Giants because their line has a 38 game starting streak together and has been a big reason for their overall success.  Rookie Will Beattie is good but he’s very green…I am pretty sure he’ll get some playing time but Tom Coughlin has indicated McKenzie should be ready to start.

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