"all the teams left have their blemishes, except the Giants when they are on...

[zephirus]

I was curious about my rushing theory so I looked up the numbers during the 07 post-season run.  I think they bear out that while the Giants had a balanced attack, they didn't rush the ball well.  I consider 4 yards per carry the standard you want to meet, 5 would be phenomenal.

Tampa Bay - Bradshaw (17-66), Jacobs (13-34) = 30 carries for 100 yards, 3.3 average
Dallas - Jacobs (14-54), Bradshaw (6-34) = 20 carries for 88 yards, 4.4 average
Green Bay - Jacobs (21-67), Bradshaw (16-63) = 37 carries for 130 yards, 3.5 average
New England - Bradshaw (9-45), Jacobs (14-42) = 23 carries for 87 yards, 3.7 average

Good stuff Zeph...except one minor problem with the comparison: None of the abovementioned have a front 7 within the same galaxy of this year's Niners....If Eli is going to have the opportunity to do what he can do without getting Killed...the Giants are going to need a good running day (BTW I don't think it's unattainable)

I think the Giants need an OK running day.  Something in the neighborhood of 20-25 total carries for 75-90 yards.  Enough to pick up a couple first downs, turn 2nd and 10 into 3rd and 6 and keep the defense honest.  If we have one of those days where we have 25 carries for 50 yards we will be in trouble.  I don't think we need 100+ yards rushing to win this game (but I wouldn't turn it down of course).

[PSUBeirut]

I was curious about my rushing theory so I looked up the numbers during the 07 post-season run.  I think they bear out that while the Giants had a balanced attack, they didn't rush the ball well.  I consider 4 yards per carry the standard you want to meet, 5 would be phenomenal.

Tampa Bay - Bradshaw (17-66), Jacobs (13-34) = 30 carries for 100 yards, 3.3 average
Dallas - Jacobs (14-54), Bradshaw (6-34) = 20 carries for 88 yards, 4.4 average
Green Bay - Jacobs (21-67), Bradshaw (16-63) = 37 carries for 130 yards, 3.5 average
New England - Bradshaw (9-45), Jacobs (14-42) = 23 carries for 87 yards, 3.7 average

 
Good stuff Zeph...except one minor problem with the comparison: None of the abovementioned have a front 7 within the same galaxy of this year's Niners....If Eli is going to have the opportunity to do what he can do without getting Killed...the Giants are going to need a good running day (BTW I don't think it's unattainable)

I think the Giants need an OK running day.  Something in the neighborhood of 20-25 total carries for 75-90 yards.  Enough to pick up a couple first downs, turn 2nd and 10 into 3rd and 6 and keep the defense honest.  If we have one of those days where we have 25 carries for 50 yards we will be in trouble.  I don't think we need 100+ yards rushing to win this game (but I wouldn't turn it down of course).

Agree with this.  We just need enough to make 2nd/3rd manageable for Eli, because I don't think any QB can stay as hot as he's been with 3rd and longs. 

And I must say it would be soooooo nice if we had an OL and RB that could convert a 3rd and 1!!!!  I have a bad feeling at some point on Sunday we're going to be in that situation and it's going to be a make or break kind of deal.  Sure would be nice to have some consistency there (errrr GOOD consistency, I should say, instead of the kind of consistency we have there right now).

[T200]

Agree with this.  We just need enough to make 2nd/3rd manageable for Eli, because I don't think any QB can stay as hot as he's been with 3rd and longs. 

And I must say it would be soooooo nice if we had an OL and RB that could convert a 3rd and 1!!!!  I have a bad feeling at some point on Sunday we're going to be in that situation and it's going to be a make or break kind of deal.  Sure would be nice to have some consistency there (errrr GOOD consistency, I should say, instead of the kind of consistency we have there right now).

Be nice if they bring in Hynoski and Jacobs on 3rd and short and then run play-action.

[CAGiantFan]

People put so much emphasis on the running game.  It DOESN'T matter if you rush the ball effectively, it just matters that you rush the ball.  This was pretty evident last week when the Giants averaged under 4 yards per carry, and if it hadn't been for a long run by Jacobs at the end of the game, and a long run by Bradshaw before the half, the stats would have been even worse.  It only matters that you rush to keep the defense honest. I don't seem to remember the Giants rushing the ball all that well in the 07 post season either.  Teams are too good in the post-season to put too much emphasis on this.

Good call.  We averaged under 4 in each of the 4 games and over 3.5 in only the Dallas game, 3.9.

[McGIANTS]

If it's going to rain the rest of the week in SF and make for sloppy field condition, doesn't this favor running games? If a sloppy field will slow down a defense, I can see it helping the running game, granted if the RBs aren't slipping in the mud. I don't know about you guys, but I'm actually a bit nervous about this game.

[Section 101 Steve]

49ers offense still stinks. after capitalizing on saint mistakes and being up early 17-0 49ers did nothing until last 3 minutes against horrible saint defense. our d is better and playing on all cylinders. If we score 20 or more and we will we're going to indy. In Eli I trust

[spiderblue43]

There is absolutely no way I'm more afraid of the Niners than the Saints. The Niners have Alex Smith, the Saints Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees, which the Giants would have played in the Thunder dome now, and got destroyed before this year. The Saints have weapons all over the place on offense, the Niners really don't. What they have is a lot of emotion from the Montana era feeling of being important again when it began for them as a legit franchise in the Supe mix. That defense, too, that hits hard, but the Giants are a different team. How could they not be? They just waxed the number #1 seed after talking big and bold. 

The Niners aren't as good as our heroes playing in that division. They've overachieved with Alex Smith and plenty of David Akers. What they need is a mistake-prone game from the Giants-or the usual ref debacle to stay with us. Donte Whittner? Carlos Rogers? Not sure. The Giants? I'm sure. They have essentially won four elimination games in a row (Jets, Pokes, Falcs, Pack) and are best as underdogs always.

I'm sorry, but if we can just avoid mistakes, the plays are there. This Niner team reminds of a college squad in their enthusiasm, but the Giants are cold-blooded now, and have a trusted coach against a rookie one, and a QB in Eli that is excellent.

All of that said, it will be tight, but I love how the team acted last week and wasn't afraid of the vaunted Packers. Keep your head on a swivel, Alex Smith!

[GiantFan67]

Cid in dupont-The Patriots group of Welker, Gronkowski, Hernandez, and Branch isn't too bad.

[CAGiantFan]

People put so much emphasis on the running game.  It DOESN'T matter if you rush the ball effectively, it just matters that you rush the ball.  This was pretty evident last week when the Giants averaged under 4 yards per carry, and if it hadn't been for a long run by Jacobs at the end of the game, and a long run by Bradshaw before the half, the stats would have been even worse.  It only matters that you rush to keep the defense honest.  I don't seem to remember the Giants rushing the ball all that well in the 07 post season either.  Teams are too good in the post-season to put too much emphasis on this.

I'd agree with that, with the caveat of "as long as your QB is consistently red-hot at converting long third downs".  Eli is right now and we can only hope he stays that way, if our rushing struggles persist (and against the Niners, odds are good they will).

I'm actually more frightened of the Niners than the Saints after last week.  I've not seen a pass defense that good for quite some time- the Niners really did an amazing job of covering receivers. Brees had all day to throw many times and simply had trouble finding anyone.  It doesn't show up in the stats because of how heavily the Saints rely on the passing game, but what I saw with my eyes was pretty incredible stuff- guys blanketed everywhere.  If the Niners can pull that off again, this could be a very low scoring affair...

I don't get all of the love for the Niners pass defense.  I just don't.  Take away Smith's last minute heroics and the story coming our of this game is the collapse of the Niners defense, giving up 462 yards passing (yeah, that is just stats, but some stats - that is a lot of yards to give up even to the Saints, who averaged 342, especially in your own house) .  And  this is with the Saints having no running game to play off of.  We crucified our own pass defense for giving up 360 yards passing.  And even of we want to disregard these facts because they are just stats, the Nners also gave up late 4th quarter TD drives of 79 and 88 yards.  That is not just stats, that is real points losing the lead.  THIS is a defense to fear?  I don't think so.  This was a defense in collapse that had its chestnuts pulled out of the fire by Alex Smith.

[Rambo89]

49'er run defense is excellent.  Their pass defense not so much.  The Giants moved the ball through the air on them in the first game with Eli throwing for 311 yards.  They also ran the ball for 93 yards actually out rushing the 49'ers in that game (they only had 77 yards) with Gore being a non factor due to injury.

The difference in the game IMO was Eli's pick early in the 4th quarter that put the Giants down by 2 TD's.

[CAGiantFan]

49'er run defense is excellent.  Their pass defense not so much.  The Giants moved the ball through the air on them in the first game with Eli throwing for 311 yards.  They also ran the ball for 93 yards actually out rushing the 49'ers in that game (they only had 77 yards) with Gore being a non factor due to injury.

The difference in the game IMO was Eli's pick early in the 4th quarter that put the Giants down by 2 TD's.

I agree with you about their rush defense.  Even our 93 yards is a pretty pale accomplishment considering it took 29 carries giving us a 3.2 average, which is not exactly robust.  My issue is with all of the adulation being given to a pass defense that in actuality was pretty sucky.

[PSUBeirut]

People put so much emphasis on the running game.  It DOESN'T matter if you rush the ball effectively, it just matters that you rush the ball.  This was pretty evident last week when the Giants averaged under 4 yards per carry, and if it hadn't been for a long run by Jacobs at the end of the game, and a long run by Bradshaw before the half, the stats would have been even worse.  It only matters that you rush to keep the defense honest.  I don't seem to remember the Giants rushing the ball all that well in the 07 post season either.  Teams are too good in the post-season to put too much emphasis on this.

I'd agree with that, with the caveat of "as long as your QB is consistently red-hot at converting long third downs".  Eli is right now and we can only hope he stays that way, if our rushing struggles persist (and against the Niners, odds are good they will).

I'm actually more frightened of the Niners than the Saints after last week.  I've not seen a pass defense that good for quite some time- the Niners really did an amazing job of covering receivers. Brees had all day to throw many times and simply had trouble finding anyone.  It doesn't show up in the stats because of how heavily the Saints rely on the passing game, but what I saw with my eyes was pretty incredible stuff- guys blanketed everywhere.  If the Niners can pull that off again, this could be a very low scoring affair...

I don't get all of the love for the Niners pass defense.  I just don't.  Take away Smith's last minute heroics and the story coming our of this game is the collapse of the Niners defense, giving up 462 yards passing (yeah, that is just stats, but some stats - that is a lot of yards to give up even to the Saints, who averaged 342, especially in your own house) .  And  this is with the Saints having no running game to play off of.  We crucified our own pass defense for giving up 360 yards passing.  And even of we want to disregard these facts because they are just stats, the Nners also gave up late 4th quarter TD drives of 79 and 88 yards.  That is not just stats, that is real points losing the lead.  THIS is a defense to fear?  I don't think so.  This was a defense in collapse that had its chestnuts pulled out of the fire by Alex Smith.

I'm just telling you what I saw, and yes they broke down at the end....against the record-breaking, Super Bowl winning Drew Brees....  But they played lights out in the secondary for a huge portion of that game.  And that gives me pause because I hadn't seen their back end play like that, or anyone else's for that matter, all year long.

It may have been a one-game wonder, and of course I hope it was....but there's no denying that it happened- go back and watch the game if you don't believe it.

[vette]

I was curious about my rushing theory so I looked up the numbers during the 07 post-season run.  I think they bear out that while the Giants had a balanced attack, they didn't rush the ball well.  I consider 4 yards per carry the standard you want to meet, 5 would be phenomenal.

Tampa Bay - Bradshaw (17-66), Jacobs (13-34) = 30 carries for 100 yards, 3.3 average
Dallas - Jacobs (14-54), Bradshaw (6-34) = 20 carries for 88 yards, 4.4 average
Green Bay - Jacobs (21-67), Bradshaw (16-63) = 37 carries for 130 yards, 3.5 average
New England - Bradshaw (9-45), Jacobs (14-42) = 23 carries for 87 yards, 3.7 average

I agree with you 1000% Zeph. It doesn't matter what the yards per carry are, it's the respect to the run that's important. Also there is a big, big difference from Ron Dayne and Tiki Barber to the punishing Jacobs and Bradshaw combination. Last time these two teams faced off the Giants ran 29 times and passed 40 times. That was a mistake. The Giants pass better and Eli is more effective with a more balanced approach. Eli will work in more play action this time. Those deep passes may not be open, but he can look off the safety and hit Cruz, Ballard, Bradshaw and Hynoski on short routes, it will eventually open up a couple of deep routes.

The Niner's had no respect for the Saints running attack and were willing to give them the run all day. Brees was passing way too much and they were an obvious one dimensional team. It was stupid how they gave that game up playing a speed passing game in a swamp.

Run to pass or pass to run, it doesn't matter. Just run the damn ball!

[Rambo89]

49'er run defense is excellent.  Their pass defense not so much.  The Giants moved the ball through the air on them in the first game with Eli throwing for 311 yards.  They also ran the ball for 93 yards actually out rushing the 49'ers in that game (they only had 77 yards) with Gore being a non factor due to injury.

The difference in the game IMO was Eli's pick early in the 4th quarter that put the Giants down by 2 TD's.

I agree with you about their rush defense.  Even our 93 yards is a pretty pale accomplishment considering it took 29 carries giving us a 3.2 average, which is not exactly robust.  My issue is with all of the adulation being given to a pass defense that in actuality was pretty sucky.

[/b]

The 49'ers in the regular season ranked 16th in passing yards allowed.  Against teams with legit QB's this is how these QB's fared against them:

Week 2 Tony Romo: 20/33 345 2 TD's 0 INT
Week 4 Mike Vick: 30/46 416 2 TD's 1 INT
Week 6 Matthew Stafford: 28/50 293 2 TD's 0 INT
Week 10 Eli Manning: 26/40 311 2 TD's 2 INT's
Week 15 Ben Rothlisberger: 25/44 330 0 TD's 3 INT's
Divisional Round Drew Brees: 40/63 462 4 TD's 2 INT's

All of those QB's moved the ball with ease against the 49'ers pass defense including Eli Manning.  What the 49'ers defense does better than any team in the league is force turnovers.  They forced the most in the league at 38 tied with the Packers.  And they only turned over the ball 10x's all season giving them a +28 in the turnover department.  That's the key to this game.  If you don't turnover the ball against them they are very beatable.  It took 5 Saint turnovers for the 49'ers to beat them on a last second TD.  The Giants need to take note and be as careful and patient as possible.

[CAGiantFan]

I'm just telling you what I saw, and yes they broke down at the end....against the record-breaking, Super Bowl winning Drew Brees....  But they played lights out in the secondary for a huge portion of that game.  And that gives me pause because I hadn't seen their back end play like that, or anyone else's for that matter, all year long.

It may have been a one-game wonder, and of course I hope it was....but there's no denying that it happened- go back and watch the game if you don't believe it.

It wasn't just the 4th quarter, they gave up 193 yards passing in the first half, well above their proportional season average despite not being in their pleasure dome.  That is not lights out defense in my book.  I think you may be too influenced by a few hard hits.  The fact is that enough receivers held onto the ball to keep NO in the game DESPITE 4 turnovers in the first half.  For the game they were +4 in turnovers and it took a miraculous last minute drive to win.

And I still say that without that final drive the big story out of this game would have been the COLLAPSE of the Niner defense.