The Giants Gave Up Against the Eagles! Yet Another Attempt to Dismiss Vick's On-The-Field Success

I read a blog at lehighvalleylive.com, which shared a comment from a reader with regard to the Eagles/Giants game this past Sunday. It said the following:

giant3 writes:

"Conjure up a new miracle"? I don't know what game you were watching Brad, but the one I was watching showed the Giants gave up! I don't know why or the reasoning for it, but they just stood there and let it happen. The worst was the winning touch down. I saw at least 3 giants players let Jackson run right past them. No effort or a slight sign of first half Giants. I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that the Giants were the better team yesterday, and that the Eagles did not out play the Giants at any given time. I do believe the Giants (for a reason only known to them) stopped playing. (http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2010/12/meadowlands_miracle_giants_vick.html)

Seriously? The Giants gave up? At home, in a game that would likely decide the NFC East Champion and potentially a spot in the playoffs (possibly a first-round bye)? They gave up? Give me a break! Yeah, and the New York Yankees gave up at Yankee Stadium against the Red Sox when they lost the rubber game of a 3-game series, which placed Boston in first place in the A.L. East. Uh-huh.

Did the Giants execute as well in the second half as they did in the first? Well, no. Was the playcalling as good? No. But, was this a result of the New York Giants giving up at home for possibly a spot in the playoffs? I don't think so.

It's true, the Giants were the better team Sunday, for 52 minutes, but last time I checked, it's a 60-minute game, which makes the Eagles' comeback that much more amazing. For a team to find themselves down by three touchdowns after 52 minutes of a 60 minute game and find a way to score four touchdowns in the final 8 minutes en route to a victory? That's incredible!

Look, the fact is the Giants played aggressively on defense all game. As the saying goes, "live by the blitz, die by the blitz." They lived in the first half, but died in the 4th quarter. While Michael Vick wasn't taking off much and using the blitz to his advantage by finding holes and running with the football in the first half, he did this in the 4th quarter. He used that very aggressiveness that worked so well for the Giants for 2.5 quarters against them.

Also, it's common for a team to become a bit complacent when they have a big lead. This doesn't mean that they give up, but coaches may not call plays in the same manner as they did before they got the lead. They may opt to run with the football and chew up clock, to make both the score and the time left as enemies of their opponent. They put the game on their defense, whom was very successful to that point, while the offense does all it can to not turn the ball over and to run time off the clock. This works most of the time, but there are times when the offense will play it conservatively and get stopped on three, four, five consecutive three-and-outs. Due to this, not much time was taken off the clock and if the opposing team's offense starts to click and move the football, this may wind up wearing down your defense, which could in turn lead to some big plays and points.

To go along with the Eagles' unbelievable execution in the final 8 minutes, the two factors I listed above were also factors in the outcome of the game. The New York Giants didn't give up. That claim is completely and utterly ridiculous. They did what a lot of teams/coaches in that predicament do, try to drain the clock and win the football game. Unfortunately for them, Philly ran off 8 minutes which won't be replicated for some time in the NFL, if ever. Giant3 can say all day that the New York Giants are better than the Philadelphia Eagles, but at the end of the day, the Eagles are 2-0 against the Giants this year, beating New York 27-17 at home and 38-31 in New York. People can talk all day about how their team is better than another. That talk doesn't mean a darn thing if they lose the game.