Saturday, November 19, 2011
New York Stock Exchange
The Giants and Jets both lost last week, and while the New York Jets followed up their loss to Patriots with a 4th-Quarter collapse against the Tim Tebow led Broncos, the Giants look forward to Sunday Night Football where they can end the Philadelphia Eagles season, but more importantly put themselves in prime position to make a second half run at the post season in a surprisingly tough NFC.
The New York Jets season is all of a sudden in jeopardy. With high hopes coming into the season, the Jets running game hasn't lived up to Rex Ryan's proclamations. The Jets defense has sputtered here and there, but they are a solid group. And while most fans were looking for growth from their third year quarterback, Mark Sanchez has become stagnant in his progression as a playmaker and a leader. It was easy to mask Sanchez's shortcomings when they had one of the premier rushing attacks in all of football , especially before Thomas Jones left town. Now that Shonn Green hasn't exactly lived up to his potential that he showed in the playoffs two years ago, Mark Sanchez has been asked to do more with, in my opinion, less. The blame does not just lie on Sanchez's shoulders. Brian Schottenheimer has been nothing short of horrendous with his play selection. If you ask most fans, the Jets strengths on offense would be their running game (although it has been lackluster), play action, and slant routes. Why does Schottenheimer continue to abandon this? To get this season back on track, Schottenheimer needs to go to what works. And what works is this: screen passes, slant routes, play action passes, stout defense, solid special teams, and a smash mouth running game that somehow is ranked as 25th in the NFL. I don't believe for one second that the Jets season is over. I actually still believe they have a great shot at making the playoffs. The Jets last six games are all reasonably winnable games. If they run the table, they should have no problem wrapping up at least, and probably at most, a wild card slot. I, however, see the Jets finishing at 9-7. Whether that is good for a playoff slot, we will have to wait and see.
Buy or Sell?
While most Jets fans almost always say that I hate their team and am biased, I am not. As proof, I am going to say BUY! Just kidding. Sorry Jets fans, but while 2 losses in a row is not the end of your season, a loss to a Broncos squad with absolutely zero on offense could send this team into a tailspin. Sell.
The Giants lost a tough game last week to 8-1 49ers. Eli Manning threw two costly interceptions, which led to 10 points. No one expected the Giants to be at the top of the NFC East this far in to the season, especially with the self proclaimed Dream team that the Eagles (3-6) were supposed to be. In fact, most analysts predicted the Giants to finish third, behind Philadelphia and Dallas. On Sunday, the Giants need to put the final nail in the Eagles coffin, and look forward to three more divisional games (2 vs. Dallas, 1 vs. Washington), 2 NFC powerhouses (New Orleans, Green Bay), and their in-state rival, the New York Jets. Simply put, the Giants do not have an easy road. Being a Giants fan and watching every game this year, I can tell you the Giants haven't had an easy win yet this season. Their running game has been atrocious, their secondary has been mediocre, and at times the Giants still baffle you with some unspeakable turnovers. There are quite a few surprises as well. Victor Cruz has been a revelation this year, leading the team in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. Most Giants fans have forgotten all about Steve Smith nowadays. Jason Pierre-Paul has become one of the league's most feared pass rushers. Combine him with Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, and Matthias Kiwanuka, and the Giants have the premier pass rush in the NFL. The Giants biggest surprise to some, but not all (ahem, me), is the stellar play of Eli Manning, who earlier in training camp referred to himself as a top 5 quarterback in the league. A very bold, and out of character statement from the Giants soft spoken leader. While some laughed at this statement, Manning has proven himself the entire season. He's averaging 300 yards a game, has 17 TD's on the year to just 8 INTs, and he has the 5th best QB rating in the NFL (97.0). If the Giants are to continue their winning ways, they need to avoid their annual second half slump. The cold months are coming, and with them comes snow, wind, and rain. With that comes a reduced passing attack, unless you're Tom Brady. The Giants need to do better than their 29th ranked rushing attack which averages a pitiful 89.2 yards per game.
Buy or Sell: While I was continually pessimistic about the Giants chances this year to make the playoffs, Eli and company have proven me wrong most weeks. Quality wins against the Eagles and Patriots show me that the Giants have what it takes to stick with some of the best teams in the game. Only thing left to say is: Buy
Shout out to OWS: "the people, united, will never be defeated"
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