Exposed?

By Mark Halpern

     What I witnessed Sunday evening was nothing more than a pee-wee team trying to beat the 49ers. From the kickoff, things seemed bleak for some reason. Brock Purdy led a touchdown drive on the first drive and was perfect 4/4 and a TD. What did Dak do on the first drive? He threw two incompletions, and Dallas punted. The atmosphere felt like the 1994 NFC championship game, where the 49ers spanked Dallas in the first half and eventually won the Super Bowl against the Chargers.

      The 49ers did something that no team has been able to do: stop Micah Parsons from getting going. Whether he was on the outside or inside, he was double, and the rest of the Cowboy defense couldn’t get to Purdy cause of excellent protection (which I said was where this game was going to be won) up front and when you have as much time as Purdy had to throw it explains his 17/24 252 yards and 4 TD’s. Purdy found his BFF George Kittle for three scores—his first three touchdowns of the season and his first career three-touchdown game. Christian McCaffery scored yet another TD and kept most drives going.

    The most impressive thing from the Dallas offense was the continued emergence of young star Kevonte Turpin. Turpin got the Cowboys on the board with a 26-yard touchdown reception. Turpin blasted through the 49er defense like a lightning bolt, and before the secondary could react, Turpin had a 5-yard lead and made a nice over-the-shoulder catch. Turpin has been doing it all lately, playing Special Teams and more Offense. Turpin later left the game and has been diagnosed with a high ankle sprain and will miss some time.

       The Cowboys will have an extra day to prepare for another tough offense as they will face Justin Herbert and likely a healthy Austin Ekeler next Monday night.

2023-24 NHL Predictions

By Mike Rifkin

With the 2023 NHL season upon us, here is how I see the season playing out with playoff teams, Stanley Cup predictions, and awards. NOTE: PLAYOFF TEAMS ARE THE TOP THREE IN EACH DIVISION AND TWO WILDCARDS

EAST

METROPOLITAN 

  1. Hurricanes – They have one of the best rosters in the league. They are deep on the blue line and eventually will get their best offensive player, Andrei Svechnikov, back in the lineup. Sebastian Aho is the most underappreciated superstar across the NHL. They also have three outstanding goalies. 
  2. Devils – The Devils had a breakout year in 2022, and they continue their success this season. Their forward group included Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Timo Meier, and Dawson Mercer. Now they add Tyler Toffoli; that’s deep. They still have a question in goal, but if Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid can hold down the fort, they have a real chance. 
  3. Rangers – A good core led by Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, and Adam Fox. Suppose Kappo Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere take the next step in their development that would make this team deeper. The additions of Blake Wheeler and Nick Bonino give them versatility throughout the lineup. Peter Laviolette comes in as an established Stanley Cup-winning coach looking to win the Rangers first cup since 1994. 

ATLANTIC

  1. Maple Leafs – They won’t be judged until April, but they should have a great regular season. There is not a team under more pressure to win this year; they’ve already changed coaches and General Managers. They might have to change the core if they don’t win this year.
  2. Lightning – They’re going to miss Andrei Vasilevisky to start the year, but they have found ways to win before and will do so now. I also think losing in the first round last season was the best thing to happen to this team. Now they have an entire offseason to recover. They also lost some vets, Corey Perry, and Pat Maroon, but replaced them with some speed with Tyler Motte and Conor Sheary. When Vasilevskiy returns, they’ll charge to the top of the Eastern Conference. 
  3. Panthers – They had an unbelievable run to the Stanley Cup Final last season. If they do that again, they need Sergei Bobrovsky to be what he was in the playoffs. The same goes for Matthew Tkachuk, but this team can score goals with the best of the league. 

EAST WILD CARDS 

  1. Penguins – They had a tremendous offseason. Yes, most people will look at the Erik Karlsson trade, but adding Ryan Graves, Lars Eller, Noel Accari, and Reilly Smith are significant adds for this team. The ultimate X factor remains Tristan Jarry; if he plays well and stays healthy, the Penguins are a threat in the East. If he struggles again, who knows what they look like?
  2. Sabres – THIS IS THE YEAR THE DROUGHT ENDS. They had a phenomenal season last year and missed the playoffs by a point. Another year with a core led by Tage Thompson, they made solid additions on the blue line with Erik Johnson and Connor Clifton to help 21-year-old goalie Devon Levi. 

WEST

CENTRAL

  1. Stars – This is the year when the rest of the Central looks up at the stars. They added Matt Duchene to a forward group led by Jason Robertson, Joe Pavelski, Roope Hintz, and Wyatt Johnston. If Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn find the scoring touch, look out. Jake Oettinger has a legitimate chance at the Vezina. I am very high on the Stars.
  2. Avalanche – They’re still a force despite losing Gabe Landeskog. Nathan Mackinnon and Mikko Rantanen lead a deep team. One thing they missed last season was a number two center. Enter Ryan Johansen and Ross Colton to add depth.
  3. Wild – Kirill Kaprizov (if healthy) will be in the Hart conversation. They have Marc-Andre Fleury and Filip Gustavsson, one of the best goaltending tandems in the league last season. 

PACIFIC

  1. Kings – After acquiring Pierre-Luc Dubois, the Kings have arguably the best center depth in the league. They have one central question, which is in goal with Cam Talbot and Phoenix Copley. If that is a problem, I expect Rob Blake to address it, but this team is prime for a run.
  2. Golden Knights – Mostly, this is the same team that just won the Stanley Cup. They were able to retain Playoff heroes Ivan Barbashev and Adin Hill, but how will Hill and Logan Thompson perform in goal is a question. 
  3.  Oilers – Here’s the biggest question facing the Oilers: How many points will McDavid have this year? They’re in the same boat as the Leafs, and this is about how they perform in April. A year of Mattias Ekholm on the Blue Line should help them there.

WILD CARDS

  1. Jets – Let me be honest: I said the Preds on the podcast, but I changed my mind when the Jets extended Connor Hellebuyck and Mark Scheifele on Monday. Hellebuyck is one of the best goalies in the league, and even with the loss of Dubois, I like this team. 
  2. Kraken – They upset the Avs in the first round last year. With great power comes great responsibility, and if Philipp Grubauer plays like he did in the playoffs, they’ll be tough again. Bringing in Kailer Yamamoto and Pierre-Eduoard Bellmare should help their bottom six. 

PLAYOFFS 

EAST

HURRICANES DEF SABRES 6 GMS

RANGERS DEF DEVILS 7 GMS 

MAPLE LEAFS DEF PENS 6 GMS

LIGHTNING DEF PANTHERS 7 GMS

HURRICANES DEF RANGERS 6 GMS

LIGHTNING DEF LEAFS 7 GMS

HURRICANES DEF LIGHTNING 7 GMS

WEST 

STARS DEF KRAKEN 6 GMS

AVS DEF WILD 7 GMS

KINGS DEF JETS 6 GMS

OILERS DEF GOLDEN KNIGHTS 6 GMS

STARS DEF AVS 7 GMS

OILERS DEF KINGS 6 GMS

STARS DEF OILERS 6 GMS

STANLEY CUP FINAL

STARS DEF HURRICANES 6 GMS

AWARDS

VEZINA : Jake Oettinger (STARS)

JACK ADAMS: Don Granato (Sabres)

HART (IF NOT MCDAVID): KIRILL KAPRIZOV (WILD) 

NORRIS: Victor Hedman (Lightning) 

Calder: Connor Bedard (Blackhawks) 

LET’S MAKE A DEAL 

BY Mike Rifkin and Mark Halpern

On Monday, the Mets introduced David Stearns as the new President of Baseball Operations. One thing Stearns discussed was that while he has Steve Cohen’s resources, he will only sometimes utilize it on the most prominent names every offseason. Here are some names that the Mets should target 

Shohei Ohtani is the head of the free agent class. The likely AL MVP just had surgery on his elbow, and his agent said Ohtani will not pitch in 2024 but plans to return to the mound in 2025. So we will leave Ohtani off the list because anyone can sign him, and look smart. 

STARTING PITCHING

FREE AGENTS

  1. Yoshinobu Yamamoto – Let’s start with the fact that he is 25 years old, and with the Mets saying they’re looking at 2025 as a real competitive team, Yamamoto could be a big part of that. Yamamoto had a 1.21 ERA this season in Japan and struck out 165 batters in 164 innings. The Mets will have some stiff competition from other teams for his services. 
  2. Lucas Giolito – Giolito had an up-and-down year for the White Sox, Angels, and Guardians this year. Giolito has had an ERA near 5 for the last two years, so he might be someone the Mets could buy low on. 
  3. Aaron Nola – A few positives about Nola. He’s pitched in big games, and he’s pitched in a big market. Nola went 17-6 with a 2.37 ERA in 2018. He has never replicated that season, but he is durable and has made 32 starts each of the last three seasons. One thing to watch is Nola is already 30 years old, so how much term he’d get is to be determined. 

TRADES

  1. CORBIN BURNES: This makes a lot of sense for both sides. Burnes played for Stearns in Milwaukee, and with one year left on his contract, the Brewers are likely to move their ace. Burnes has won a CY Young and ERA title, so he’d fit right in at the top of the rotation. 
  2. LOGAN GILBERT/GEORGE KIRBY – The Seattle Mariners have one of the better rotations in all of Baseball, but they need more offensive punch. If the Mets can make a deal sending one of the younger players and a Starling Marte, there’s a possible match. 
  3. Dylan Cease – Cease was on the block at the deadline, but the White Sox didn’t move him. I wonder if they still have him on the market at the Winter Meetings to get something done. Everything depends on the White Sox and the direction they are trending toward. 
  4. Alek Manoah – After a disappointing season, Manoah was sent to Triple-A in August but never reported. If that was a last straw for the Blue Jays Front Office, the Mets could get a top three guy in CY Young voting in 2022 for a lower cost than expected. 

RELIEVERS

  1. Josh Hader – Let’s start with a pipe dream idea. Imagine a backend of the bullpen with Hader and Edwin Diaz that’d be very imposing. Hader pitched for David Stearns in Milwaukee and was one of the best closers in Baseball. Hader had 33 saves and a 1.28 ERA this season in San Diego.
  2. David Robertson – Robertson was brought in before this season to be the setup man for Diaz. After Diaz’s injury, Robertson was asked to be the Mets closer and was solid before being traded to the Marlins, where Robertson struggled. But a return to Queens would be best for him and the organization.
  3. Matt Moore/Andrew Chafin – Outside of Brooks Raley, the Mets don’t have another lefty in their bullpen. Unless they view David Peterson as someone they want to put in the pen, they need another lefty in the pen is a need. Moore had a 2.66 ERA for the Angels before being put on waivers. Chafin had a 5.82 ERA in Milwaukee this season but has a 3.40 ERA in his career. 
  4. Ryne Stanek – Let me preface by saying if the Hader pipedream doesn’t occur, Stanek would be a top target of mine. Stanek had a 4.09 ERA this year after posting a 1.15 ERA in 2022. But who has played in bigger games over the years than the Astros? Nobody, so taking someone from their pen could be very beneficial. 
  5. Yimi Garcia – Garcia’s 4.5 career strikeout-to-walk ratio can play in the pen. One of the most significant issues the Mets had in their bullpen was walks. Garcia had 15 walks in 66 innings pitched. 

POSITION PLAYERS

So before I go over who I would go after if I was David Stearns, let’s address Shohei Ohtani. Who wouldn’t go after the best player in the game and the unicorn we’ve never seen before? That being said, Ohtani will be 30 years old next July, and we know how these big double-digit year deals work. That being said, the Mets should talk to Ohtani. Whether they sign him or not is up in the air. But he would fill a vital role on this team as the DH, a position the Mets were atrocious at this season. However, we won’t sign Ohtani for this exercise and spend money elsewhere. 

FREE AGENTS

Rhys Hoskins/Joc Pederson – How about pulling off what the Mets failed at during the 2022 trade deadline, acquiring two DH’s. Hoskins missed this season with a torn ACL but did have 30 homers in 2022. Hoskins also has a career .353 On Base Percentage. Pederson hit 15 homers and drove in 51 runs for the Giants this season. He’ll never hit for a high average, but he has a .336 career On Base Percentage. Also, both guys can spot guys in the field on certain days. Now, these two guys would fill a big void, but I also expect the young players to be able to play a significant role on the team. 

Trades

Juan Soto: Juan Soto is one of the best players in all of Baseball. With him having one year left on his contract, the Mets would have to trade the prospect capital they built at the trade deadline and pay him big money. Soto has a career slash line of .284/.421/.524, but his defense could have been better. He has a -14 DRS (DEFENSIVE RUNS SAVED). Soto is 25 years old and could fit the long-term plan, but the price on both money and prospects would be critical. 

Mike Trout: Now, this one is a pipedream. But depending on the situation the Angels find themselves in, now is the time to explore the Trout trade. Trout’s recent injury history does scare me. But if one owner could take the 250 million dollars left on Trout’s deal, it’d be Steve Cohen. And if the Mets were to eat that money, it could lessen the prospects they have to give up. 

Jade Cargill Dream Matches

As of today, Jade Cargill is officially with the WWE as she first appeared in the Fastlane pre-show. With this in mind, there are so many dream matches we could see with Jade Cargill. Here are 10 dream matches I want to see Jade Cargill have in the WWE Universe.

  1. Charlotte Flair- Jade Cargill even commented that she always wanted to face Charlotte. It would be interesting to see her debut tonight at the Fastlane PPV and go face to face with the Queen and be a part of the SD roster.
  2. Becky Lynch- I originally thought Jade Cargill was going to debut last week after the main event of NXT No Mercy. However, we know the Man will have her feud with Jade, but it won’t that soon.
  3. Bayley- If we see Jade Cargill start out as a babyface, then Bayley would be a great first opponent for Jade. Currently, Bayley is being the hype-woman for Iyo and she needs a feud like should have had with Shotzi.
  4. Rhea Ripley- 2 of the strongest women in modern wrestling that need to have an epic rivalry. If this was to happen, we have to see Jade vs Rhea in a stipulation match for one of their matches.
  5. Asuka- Both women had incredible undefeated streaks in their previous rosters. It would be interesting to see what WWE does with them if Jade feuds with Asuka.
  6. Bianca Belair- Another woman with an undefeated streak, Bianca and Jade can put on a feat of strength. However, I can also see them becoming a tag team and possibly going for the “cursed” womens tag team titles.
  7. Natalya- Although a dark horse for a feud, seeing Natalya face Jade Cargill would help Jade start her WWE legacy she deserves.
  8. Raquel Rodriguez- Same as Rhea, combined with her height, we could see an epic rivalry between Raquel and Jade. If Raquel finishes her feud with Rhea and if Jade goes to Raw, I can see this being Jade’s first feud.
  9. Tiffany Stratton- Although Tiffany isn’t ready for a WWE call up, her athleticism is growing as a WWE superstar. Both her and Jade could put on an excellent match if Jade chooses to go down to NXT for a few matches.
  10. Lita- Same reason as Natalya, if Jade could have a feud with a WWE legend/Hall of Famer, this could legitimize Jade as a big superstar in the women’s division.

RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE

by Mark Halpern

      Once a week, you can make a metaphor about a game being played. The Lions will face off against the Panthers Sunday in what should be another chance to show why they are Kings of the Jungle cats when they face a team’s 0-4 kittens. 

     The Lions have had a great start to the season at 3-1. Jared Goff has shown why his trade is paying off in spades, and the team gets better every week. The Carolina run defense is a little stingy, but Montgomery should lead the team in attempts, and Gibbs will be in and out to give him a break. This week, the Lions return an essential part of their offense when Jamerson Williams returns. Williams was initially suspended for the first four games due to betting on sports (Not his team) games while inside the Lions NFL complex. The NFL re-defined its rules regarding gambling. The changes reduced his suspension from 4 games to 3, and he will be available this Sunday. This is a massive weapon for the Lions. Amon Ra St. Brown, Josh Reynolds, and Marvin Jones have made Goff’s life easy, but teams are starting to key in more on St. Brown lately. With Willam’s speed and hands, he will quickly draw coverage, and now, with Sam Laporta being a significant threat, it will be hard to put extra coverage on St. Brown because someone will be wide open. Josh Reynolds is questionable this week but is expected to play. Look for Williams to make a significant impact, whether running or receiving the ball, but expect him to play only some of the game. Williams will probably play about 70% of the snaps.

    The Defense has been vital in the wins the Lions have. This Panthers offense, run by Bryce Young, has yet to find its rhythm, and neither has the team as a whole by the show of their record. The Lions Defense, led by Adian Hutchinson, Jerry Jacobs, and Alex Anzalone, has stopped some formidable offenses. They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, So I am judging this one by the looks of it and that a mauling will happen, and this Defense will eat up Young and make tons of trouble for Miles Sanders. If the Panthers want to make any attempt to win this game, the Defense is going to have to come up big, but the way this team is rolling like a Torah is all most god mode.

Giant Bounce Back

By Mike Rifkin

One week after putting up 70 points, the Miami Dolphins gave up 48 to the Buffalo Bills. The Bills’ defense was the first to give the Dolphins issues, but they could still put up 20 points. Now the Dolphins return home to play the New York Giants, who have been struggling, and that’s putting it lightly. On Friday, the Dolphins got good news and bad news. The good news is they acquired receiver Chase Claypool from the Bears for a 2025 sixth-grade pick. Claypool has been away from the Bears since he said they weren’t using him right. The Dolphins have some injuries at receiver, so getting Claypool cheap makes sense. The bad news is the Dolphins placed Left Tackle Terron Armstead on injured reserve with a knee injury, so he’ll miss the next four games. 

They have put up a combined 15 points in the Giants’ three losses. If we’re being honest, the Giants have only played well for one half against the Cardinals, and they’ve been abysmal outside of that. Daniel Jones, whom the Giants committed significantly, has been dreadful. He has two touchdowns and six interceptions and has been sacked 22 times. Darren Waller, who the Giants got to be a big-time target, has 15 catches in four games but zero touchdowns. This could be a get-right game for Vic Fangio’s defense. The Giants’ defense, though, is giving up 341.5 yards per game, has yet to have a takeaway on the season, and has only generated four sacks. 

The Giants were a playoff team last season, so the Dolphins should not overlook them. That said, this should be a game where the Dolphins offense takes advantage of two rookie corners, and the defense exposes the flaws on the Giants offense. Please don’t take it lightly, but this should be a bounce-back game for the Dolphins.

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME PREVIEW 

By Mark Halpern

        Few matchups in the NFL are considered legendary matchups. One of those matchups this Sunday is the Dallas Cowboys take on the San Francisco 49ers. No love is lost for these teams as they have faced off plenty during the regular season, but their matchups in the playoffs set this rivalry apart from others. Overall, the record between these two teams is 19 and 19. Cowboys points wide over these matches by 39 total points.

      The Cowboys vs. 49ers is the Game of the day this season, and it’s on Sunday Night Football. After the Cowboys win last Sunday against the Patriots, Dallas Owner was asked about his thoughts on the upcoming 49ers game, and he said, “They are the best team in the NFC to go to the Super Bowl. However, they have to beat us twice to do it.) It’s not as Bold as Jimmy Johnson saying, “We Will Win The Game,” but Jones didn’t sugarcoat it and said the only way the 49ers go into the Super Bowl is that they will have to beat them to do it.

    What can’t be said about this San Francisco team that hasn’t been said all season? They are currently the best team in the NFC, with Philly, Dallas, and Detroit not far behind. The running game that Christian McCaffery displays is pure brilliance. Since he was drafted, he has been one of my favorite players in the NFL to watch. He is the key to winning this Game for the 49ers; however, Dallas knows this, and when you try to take one guy away, more targets emerge. I am sure Dan Quinn has a plan to try and contain him, but then you talk about the Wide Receiver/TE core of Samuel, Aiyuk, and Kittle. You can key on one guy. The Dallas Defense has to get to Purdy and often in this Game and try to rattle this kid’s cage. Purdy has been exceptional to start the year and has been meticulous in how he passes not, forcing it into defenses and being given time by their excellent offensive line. The Dallas defense faces its most formidable challenge of the first half of the schedule in this Game. The name that is going to be tested again is Deron Bland. Even though he had a stellar game last week, he has to prove again why the Cowboys should not try and make a trade for a cornerback with the trade deadline rapidly approaching.

     Let’s flip the coin to the other side. The Dallas Offense is as good if not better than the 49ers offense, but the 49ers Defense is almost as good as the Dallas Defense. Dak Prescott has to have an errorless game like last week. The Dallas offensive line has to slow down this fast 49er defense and give Prescott at least 3 seconds to get rid of the ball and find Lamb and Gallup. I have supported the move to sign Brandin Cooks, but Cooks has yet to show us love. He has had a tough time to start the year, and if there is any game for him to kick it into the next gear, this is it. Tony Pollard will also get a heavy workload this week, as I suspect he will surpass 20 carries and tack on 4-5 receptions. Jake Fergusson needs to keep doing what he is doing and giving Dak a wide target when most needed on short downs and some play actions. Cee Dee Lamb will have a Hufanga time this weekend as the Conor Back has been great to start the season. Time of Possession and pushing drives will be crucial in winning this Game.

     I expect this Game to garnish the biggest audience of any game yet and expect a rough and tough matchup on the field.

THE KING OF THE DEN

BY MARK HALPERN

      The jungle, known as the NFC North, has a new leader. The Detroit Lions this past Thursday faced off with a Divisional Battle against the Packers. Once again this season, the Lions have proved it is not a joke, and everyone is starting to take notice of that 3-1 record.

     The Lions offense got a vital piece back this week with the return of Running Back David Montgomery. Montgomery left in the second game of the season due to a deep thigh bruise that kept him out of week three but not week 4. Montgomery, who regained the #1 status, didn’t waste any time rushing 32 times for 121 yards and 3 TDs. What was an almost 60/40 split between Montgomery and Gibbs? Gibbs only saw eight carries but didn’t waste them, as he averaged 5 yards per carry. Jared Goff was good but not errorless as he threw for 260 yards and a 24-yard score to Amon-Ra St.Brown but also threw an interception. Goff has had a great start to the season, even though he throws interceptions every game. When you have a high-power offense that can take shots down the field, balls will be tipped, dropped, or just plain intercepted. As long as you are winning and winning big, you can look past the interception. If the offense keeps rolling like this, there will be some surprises come playoff time.

    When I wrote my pre-game article on this game, I said there was one particular person on defense who was going to have to come up big, and did he ever. Jerry Jacobs had a career day with five tackles, 4 Pass Deflections, and two interceptions. Love had a favorite target on the day; he was on the wrong team. The defense did everything to stall this Packer offense, and it did so by keeping them under 300 total offense yards for the game. They also got 5.5 sacks in the game as well. This team is complete and should not be taken lightly from now on. Next week, we will see the Battle of the Jungle Cats when the Lions take on the Panthers.

NOTHING BLAND ABOUT THIS WIN

By Mark Halpern

     The Cowboys hosted the New England Patriots at AT&T Stadium this past weekend. The Cowboys seasoned the Pats to 38-3, and Daron Bland proved to be the spice that this team needed in a big way. 

    Bland, a second-year cornerback, came on the scene fast last year in Dan Quinn’s scheme, was the primary backup to Diggs, and played in the nickel and dime sets. Bland got the call when Diggs went down with the ACL injury and flourished on Sunday. The defense owned the second quarter, and right after a Leighton Vander Esch fumble recovery for a TD, Bland picked off Mac Jones for a pick-six and, throughout the game, had a few pass deflections and played great coverage. He will be tested in the upcoming battle between Dallas and San Francisco next weekend. The Dallas defense and the rest of the Cowboy Nation can rest that Micah is okay after a brief scare that saw him limp off towards the end of the first half.

     The offense had a complete day. Dak had 261 yards, one TD, and no turnovers (YAY!!!!!!!) and spread the ball nicely. Jason Fergusson had a big game with seven receptions for 77 yards, and Cee Dee got his first TD of the season in the first quarter. I am disappointed in the running game, as even though Dallas was up, they abandoned the run and kept the game through the air. Pollard had 11 carries for 43 yards and tacked on three receptions. Rico Dowdle did leave in the second half, and Dallas might not have wanted to risk an injury to Pollard and be down two running backs they might have elected to go this way. The offensive line returned to form but not complete form as Tyron Smith missed today’s game, but Zack Martian and Tyler Bidaz returned. The O-Line will have an arduous game next Sunday at San Francisco and will need all hands on deck to try and contain a defense built like theirs. This moves Dallas to 3-1 on the season and second in the NFC East behind the 4-0 Eagles. 

NOTE: THE COWBOYS DID SET A RECORD DURING THIS GAME WHEN THEY CONVERTED A TWO-POINT PT CONVERSION FROM THE 15-YARD LINE.

Week 4 Giants Vs Seahawks

By Jeff Knapp

The Giants were at home with a sense that this game could either propel the team forward or expose them as a team that will leave the fans waiting for the 2024 draft. Well, after the o-line gave up 11 sacks, yes, ELEVEN SACKS, the defense forgot that tackling is allowed in the NFL, and our 2019 1st-round pick QB, Daniel Jones, who is a tough SOB but fumbled twice, only threw for 203 yards on 24 attempts and threw two ints, one of which was run back for 97 yards by rookie Devon Witherspoon.

I understand that Barkley is out, but if your name isn’t Lamar Jackson, how can our QB also be our leading rusher? Jalin Hyatt and Darren Waller, who can be explosive, were only targeted five times between them. That is not acceptable.

The Giants were in the game as long as they were because of the eight penalties on the Seahawks. The Giants, at times, either forgot how to tackle or were too scared to tackle. Don’t start on the horrible Noah Fant reception and run where the Giants looked like a one-legged man in a butt-kicking contest.

If Brian Daboll didn’t go off on the team like Robert Loggia’s character in Necessary Roughness, then I’m not sure what to say. Giants ownership should have gone into that locker room after the game and read them the riot act.

I say something positive after a loss, and I was going to mention Bobby Okereke and his ten tackles, including his two tackles in the backfield. Still, I’m taking that away for his horrible attempt at tackling Noah Fant on that 51-yard gain.

Fans are already talking about what to do with Jones next year. Guess what? He’ll be our QB next year, too.

Next week, the Giants head into Miami, where they must face Tua Tagovailoa, who has only been sacked five times and has 1306 passing yards, 9TDs, and 3 INTs (Jones, who has 765 passing yards, 2 TDs, and 6 INTs) and the dynamic combination of Waddle and Hill. By the way, they go into Buffalo the following week. I’m saying they will go 0-2 over those two games.