The New York Giants take the field

Brandon Jacobs power run

Antonio Pierce tackles Ben Patrick

Eli Manning signals touchdown

Hakeem Nicks runs in for a touchdown

Steve Smith catch and run

Terrell Thomas interception

Fred Robbins tackles Larry Fitzgerald

NY Giants football took a big hit this past Sunday after the New Orleans Saints won 48-27. Here are the game pictures brought to us by PINKUS. New York will bounce back, enjoy the photos.

New York Giants wide receiver Steve Smith has been referred to as "the other" for the last 3 years.

In 2009 however #12 of the NY Football Giants has outshined the better known Smith from the Carolina Panthers, as a matter of fact he has outshined every WR in the NFL. He is ranked as the number one pass catcher in all of football as the season heads to week 5. It is still early in the season but Big Blue seems to have found an aggressive aerial attack led by a more confident Eli Manning. Anchoring the young receiving core and considered the veteran is Smith who is entering his 3rd year in the league..

The departures of long time Giants WR Amani Toomer and Plaxico Burress opened the door of opportunity for all pass catchers in the team. General Manager Jerry Reese was adamant about keeping his core of young and unproven wideouts this past off season. He refused to get into a bidding war or trade talks for any proven veterans available throughout the league. The gamble has paid off and other players at the position have stepped up to fill the void. Mario Manningham has had a great start to this season and Hakeem Nicks has been impressive in very limited action due to injury.

Smith is still the standout for the G-Men and the league with 34 receptions, 411 receiving yards and 4 touchdowns. Compare his ranking at this time to "the other" Steve Smith from Carolina who currently ranks in the 40th position at wide receiver. The comparison for this 4 game stretch is not meant to diminish the accomplishments of the Carolina veteran who has been one of the best at his position throughout his long career. He is by far one of the toughest players in the league and has been a big play threat for the Panthers for many years.

NY Giants fans can only hope that their version of Steve can have a similar career to the Panthers version. There have been glimpses of such a possibility. Smith came out of USC and was considered a good wide receiver who was drafted by the Giants in the second round (51st pick) of the 2007 draft. He has always received credit for being a good route runner but this season he has been much more than a route runner. He has displayed toughness, speed and intelligence on the field. I have watched all the Giants games this season and have seen Smith take some very hard shots and somehow he has been able to keep possession of the football. His crisp and sharp cuts have left defensive players completely defenseless during coverage and Eli Manning has been able to take advantage of these opportunities.

When asked about his and the Giants success, he said "That is why everybody was here in the offseason workouts in the spring and we had some good days and some tough days in training camp and the preseason. We are just glad it's coming together now.".

The future looks bright and promising for New York and their standout pass catcher. I think the time has come to refer to him as The NY Giants Steve Smith instead of "the other", he has earned it.

Carlos Caicedo
GiantsKickoff.com - Copyright 2009

GiantsKickoff.com

The NY Giants go 4-0 after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs 27-16 on Sunday 10/04 (week 4) at Arrowhead Stadium.

This football game was a relatively easy win for Big Blue but in my opinion it was a sloppy win. At no point during this matchup was New York in danger of losing the game but they made several mental mistakes which prevented them from nailing the coffin shut early in this contest.

Wide Receiver Steve Smith had another very impressive game with 11 catches for 134 yards and two touchdowns. He has become our number one WR and a favorite target of Eli Manning who played a good game. He completed 20 of 34 pass attempts for 292 yards and threw for 3 touchdowns. He did not play much of the 4th quarter as the game was in hand but also because he sustained an injury to his foot. It does not seem to be anything serious as the Giants staff informed the media that he was available to play if needed during the fourth quarter but was held out for precautionary reasons.

Brandon Jacobs had on OK game, he seems to be running a bit harder than past games, he ended with 92 yards on 21 carries for an average of 4.4 yards per carry and no touchdowns. Brandon has not been the dominant force we are used to seeing in past seasons. Ahmad Bradshaw ran for 64 yards on 12 carries for an average of 5.3 yards per carry. The running attack combined is impressive but I still think Bradshaw is a better option. Ahmad is a dynamic runner that can change pace, use his speed or run you over if need be.

Hakeem Nicks was back for this game and had one catch but that one reception went for a 54 yard touchdown. He caught the ball ran towards the end zone and evaded a tackler by stopping on a dime allowing the defender to miss and then continued his run for the score.

Lawrence Tynes missed another field goal, he may be the weakest link in this New York team. Tynes has a good leg but misses easy scores which will eventually bite us in the you know what. Let's not forget what happened during our Superbowl run a couple of years ago when we faced Green Bay and Lawrence missed two key field goals that would have sealed the win. Eventually he received a third opportunity which he converted but his inconsistencies are a huge issue that needs to be addressed.

The NY Giants are now 4-0 and face the Raiders next week at home, another game versus a lesser opponent which should be an easy win.

Carlos Caicedo
GiantsKickoff.com - Copyright 2009

New York still experienced many issues in the Red Zone and truly made this a closer game than it should have been. Lawrence Tynes missed an easy field goal and NY failed to score touchdowns in the red zone on 3 occasions coming away with only field goals.

Tony Romo was not sacked but did feel the pressure which led to 3 interceptions. His stats were terrible 13-29 for 127 yards. Surprisingly enough Dallas was able to stop the Giants potent running game but they could not stop Eli Manning and his young receiving core most notably Mario Manningham and Steve Smith who both had 10 catches and over 100 yards and each scored a touchdown.

Eli Manning was 25-38, threw for 330 yards and 2 touchdowns. He led Big Blue down the field in the last two minutes and helped position them for the game winning field goal by Lawrence Tynes. Let us not forget the great job the New York offensive line did in this game, they created very nice pockets and provided ample time for Eli so that he could pick the Cowboys defense apart.

Kenny Phillips was a standout on the defensive side with 2 interceptions and so was Bruce Johnson who intercepted a ball from Tony and ran it back for a defensive touchdown.

This was an impressive win for the Giants, they were missing 6 starters, including key players in Aaron Ross, Kevin Dockery and Chris Canty. They silenced 105,000+ in Dallas on Sunday night.

Carlos Caicedo
GiantsKickoff.com - Copyright 2009