Keidel: Simply No Excuse For Seasoned Sages Eli And Tom To Blow That One
By Jason Keidel
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While the Giants lick their scabs, nearly everyone who loves football is mauling Tom Coughlin for Sunday night's numbing loss to the Cowboys -- a game New York owned until it didn't.
When you're up 23-13 in the fourth quarter, you need to win.
But there's there's ample blame to spread across Big Blue -- especially Eli Manning, who spent the offseason denying he said he should be the richest QB in the NFL, then came pretty close last week, signing an $84 million contract extension over four years.
You don't pay Eli just to win a Super Bowl, for his epic equanimity in the sport's biggest game, for his "Aw, shucks" refrain under the anvil of pressure that comes from playing in America's media vortex.
You pay him to make the right play in his ancestral sweet spot -- crunch time, whether it's in September or December. We've parsed the particulars, but it bears repeating. On the final drive. he should have run the clock down once the refs reset it to 40 seconds, rather than snap it with 17 seconds still left.
And, on the final play before the field goal to go up, 26-20, he should either have taken the sack -- as he admitted -- or had some epiphany and change the call at the line of scrimmage. We all know a running play was the play on third down. And if anyone has the authority to change an inexplicable pass play that sailed long past the end zone, it's Eli Manning.
Boomer and Carton mused over Eli's brain cramp, turning it into a parody, with the Mayberry music in the background. They also pointed out that the G-Men's defense was way too pliable, if not laughable, while allowing Tony Romo to lounge in the pocket, scanning the field for targets.
Certainly, there are a myriad of villains here.
Keeping with his old-school coda, Coughlin is taking the entire hit, shouldering the blame from an ornery city that may not have slept Sunday night. More than a few Big Blue devotees were rocking the Rolaids on Monday. The Cowboys galloped up and down the field on their final two TD drives sans Dez Bryant, who injured his foot. And the Giants just watched.
And sure, we get it, the coach gets an inordinate amount of the glory and the gory. But so does the quarterback. Particularly one of Eli's heft. There isn't a one act in the theater of football that Manning hasn't seen. Name the time, down and distance and Coughlin has coached it and Manning has seen it.
Sure, this is just one game. But you had the recently 12-4 Cowboys, whom many picked to be in this year's Super Bowl mix, on the ropes. And you blew it. Not only was it a chance to start your season with a win, but also on the road, in the division, and to create a one-game bottleneck between you and the 'Boys, who are heading to Philadelphia next week.
Before the collapse, Chris Collinsworth said everyone dismissed the Giants, pointing to age, wage, and injuries. The one thing they forgot, declared the analyst, was Coughlin, who can turn garbage into gold.
No doubt Giants fans, tumescent from a surefire victory, agreed. But it turns out there are two coaches on the field, including the quarterback, who should have known, and done, better.
Follow Jason on Twitter at @JasonKeidel
