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Remembering Tom Coughlin's frozen red cheeks and face at Lambeau Field when the New York Giants play the Green Bay Packers in the divisional playoffs, about 4 hours away from game time! GO GIANTS!

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Here is the official Tom Coughlin singed New York Giants Inactive List against the Atlanta Falcons this Wild Card Playoff Sunday. Let's GO GIANTS!

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Video: New York Giants Jason Pierre-Paul A.K.A. JPP blocks Cowboys kicker Dan Bailey's game tying field goal attempt week 14 to preserve the win for Big Blue.

It must have been a Deja Vu moment for the Dallas kicker and coach finding themselves once again in a field goal attempt situation late in a game to decide the outcome. Last week against the Arizona Cardinals Jason Garrett Iced His Own Kicker and received a ton of criticism by fans and the media.

Week 14 New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin was the one doing the icing. Reminiscent of the scenario which played out week 13, Dan Bailey makes his first attempt only to have the play blown dead as Coughlin called a timeout right before the ball was snapped.

The Cowboys kicker attempts the game tying 47 yard field goal again but this time Jason Pierre-Paul (JPP) leaps and blocks the kick preserving the 37-34 victory for the New York Giants. Here is the video.

Video: Jason Pierre-Paul JPP Blocks Dan Bailey FG Attempt

This was a great game which came down to the wire. Ironically coach Tom Coughlin may have helped the Cowboys by teaching their coach Jason Garrett the proper way to ice a kicker. Well, an opposing kicker that is not your own! Jason Pierre-Paul's contributions are many and this one ranks as one of the most important of his young career.

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New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin may be fired after this 2011 season. He is highly respected among coaches, general managers and owners but players seem to feel differently about the 65 year old coach.

He was recently voted the least desirable coach to play for by NFL players. Giants safety Antrel Rolle has been critical of Coughlin since he arrived in New York, citing too much control as an issue. Other players have had their fair share of issues in the past with the coach including former Giants WR Plaxico Burress.

Despite being a successful head coach in the NFL with a career record of 139-111 his tenure with the New York Giants has been up and down. Hard to say that about a coach who led the team to a Super Bowl in 2007; but there is reason to believe this could be his last season with Big Blue even though he has a 71-51 record with New York.

Reasons for Tom Coughlin to be Fired After 2011?

It's simple, if the New York Giants have another second half collapse in 2011 and fail to make the playoffs Tom Coughlin will most likely be fired. His time with Big Blue has usually produced impressive starts, his combined record during the first half is 47-17. The problem is how the GMEN have finished under the head coach, their second half combined record during his tenure is 24-34.

They currently have a 6-4 record and find themselves in a tie for first place in the NFC East with the Dallas Cowboys. Just two weeks ago the Giants were 6-2 and holding a two game lead on Dallas but as it has become customary they start their second half 0-2. Under Tom Coughlin the GMEN have been 6-2 four times and failed to make the playoffs twice.

The playoff chances for 2011 are starting to look a bit grim, New York faces a brutal second half schedule, they just recorded back to back close losses against the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles. They still have to face the New Orleans Saints, Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys twice, New York Jets and the Washington Redskins. They have wasted ample opportunities to be in a different position, losing against the Seattle Seahawks was a surprise but the Giants seem to make every game a difficult one. They have yet to have an easy win this season even when they face teams of a lesser caliber. New York tends to play up or down to their competition and it has come back to bite them in the rear end, especially this past week where they failed to show up against a team without their star QB Michael Vick and WR Jeremy Maclin.

Should The Coach Be On The Hot Seat?

Tom Coughlin is a quality coach and it would be sad to see him get fired if a second half collapse does occur. After the week 11 loss against the Eagles twitter chatter went through the roof, some folks asking for a firing while others tried reasoning as best they could with their 140 characters. A coach can only do so much, he cannot go out on the field block, run, catch and rush the opposing quarterback.

Most people forget the great job this head coach has done this season. Big Blue has a winning record despite a high number of injuries to important players. Terrell Thomas is out for the season, Osi Umenyiora didn't start until week 4, Justin Tuck has been hurt, Ahmad Bradshaw also hurt, wide receivers, linebackers, offensive lineman, you name it the Giants have suffered through it. They have even won games in-spite of their offensive coordinator Kevin "KillDrive" Gilbride's play calling. Also worth mentioning is the tough schedule the GMEN have faced and major changes to the offensive line.

There are many factors which have hurt New York this season but through it all Tom Coughlin has held the team together and made them viable. Many so called "experts" picked the Giants to end dead last in the NFC East, going into week 12 they find themselves tied for first place. It's going to get interesting, a second half collapse seems possible. New York extended Coughlin's contract through 2012 which leads one to believe they wanted to keep their options open by not offering a long term deal. If the Giants can entice a big name coach like Bill Cowher or John Gruden it may lead to coach Tom Coughlin being fired.

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"It's about as pathetic as you can get". The words of coach Tom Coughlin who rips the NY Giants during his post game press conference after a 17-10 loss against the Philadelphia Eagles week 11.

He looked angry, frustrated and confused while answering questions from the media. He called out his players and questioned their discipline and effort for such an important NFC East game. When asked about the pass rush in classic Tom Coughlin form he replied

I didn't see much of that either

You have to feel for the fiery coach as he tries to keep calm during the press conference, here is the video.

Tom Coughlin Post Game Press Conference Week 11

It only gets harder from here, this was a must have game which was very winnable. New York will now face some of the best teams in the NFL including the Saints next week, the Green Bay Packers, Jets, Cowboys and Redskins. It will be interesting to see if the Giants can avoid another second half collapse but they are off to an 0-2 start which puts them in a familiar position under the Tom Coughlin reign.

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The New York Giants fail to show up and embarrassed themselves against the Philadelphia Eagles at home in one of the most important games of the season, final score 17-10.

A win versus their divisional opponent would have practically destroyed any aspirations the Eagles had for the playoffs. It would have also meant that the Giants would be in sole possession of first place in the NFC East. New York now has company in the form of the surging Dallas Cowboys.

It's almost inconceivable to think New York could lose this game. Two of the Eagles best players were out, QB Michael Vick and WR Jeremy Maclin. The Giants stopped LeSean McCoy holding him to 53 yards until he broke a 60 yard run in the last seconds of the game which was pretty much inconsequential. Vince Young threw 3 interceptions during the game and Philadelphia scored only 17 points. If you knew all this information but had yet to watch the game, I'm sure most would have thought the Eagles lost the contest. Unfortunately for Giants fans anything and everything is possible.

What Went Wrong for The  Giants Against The Eagles?

Pretty much everything went wrong for the Giants against the Eagles, they didn't catch, run, block, protect or apply pressure on QB Vince Young who had all day to throw the ball. The GMEN did actually stop the run for about 59 minutes of the game but then that too changed in the blink of an eye.

Lets start with pass protection, Eli Manning was harassed all night, the Giants offensive line was manhandled  by the Eagles defensive line. Manning was sacked 3 times but was hit, pushed and knocked down a ton of times. He seemed to have someone in his face almost every pass play and was never allowed to get comfortable. You can credit Philadelphia's D line to some degree but you cannot excuse New Yorks offensive line.

On the opposite end New York's defensive line went MIA - Missing in Action recording only 1 sack by Jason Pierre-Paul and rarely getting in the face of QB Vince Young. As a matter of fact Young looked uncomfortable the first half due to rust and lack of playing time but once he realized the Giants defenders weren't pressuring he became comfortable and began throwing the ball much better. Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck were held in check by Philadelphia's "O" line. Despite the lack of pass rush there did not seem to be adjustments by defensive coordinator Perry Fewell. The lack of pass rush seems to be an ongoing thing now, it began in the last quarter against Tom Brady and the Patriots week 9, continued against Alex Smith and the 49ers week 10 and now in week 11.

Perry Fewell continues to send his front 4 and sprinkles in a blitz here and there and even if it doesn't work there doesn't seem to be a sense of urgency to try something different. I'm sure this makes Giants fans miss the aggressive style Steve Spagnuola.

The Giants receivers also had some huge drops. The usually sure handed TE Jake Ballard dropped 3 catchable passes from  Eli Manning including one in the first quarter where he was wide open and would have given the GMEN a first down. Hakeem Nicks was unable to hold on to a ball which he had in his grasp, it would have been a great catch that would have continued the drive. The refs completely missed an obvious pass interference call on Asante Samuel who practically mugged the NY WR. Victor Cruz also dropped and easy catch with about 40 seconds left in the 1st half. Cruz did have a solid game though with 6 receptions for 128 yards and TD.

The Giants running game was non existent, it's almost comical to say that Brandon Jacobs led the way with 21 rushing yards on 12 carries, Darrell Scott had 11 yards on 2 carries.

Kevin Gilbride and Brandon Jacobs Continue Hurting New York

Once again Offensive Coordinator Kevin "KillDrive" Gilbride and his favorite running back Brandon Jacobs hurt the New York Giants. As stated in my previous article on Gilbride, he tends to fall in love with plays and becomes incredibly predictable.

Against the 49ers last week on a crucial 3rd and 2 he called a draw play for Brandon Jacobs which got stuffed. So what does he do this week? In the 3rd quarter after RB Darrell Scott runs for 9 yards and puts Big Blue in a 3rd and 1 situation Kevin Gilbride calls a draw play for Brandon Jacobs. The result is the same as last week, Jacobs gets stuffed! Any reasonable person would think that maybe it would be a good idea to call another play and to allow Scott to continue running. Why would that make sense though? Scott is just faster and more elusive than Brandon Jacobs and running a more talented rusher would probably mean a first down which would hurt Kevin Gilbrides reputation as "KillDrive".

Tom Coughlin addressed the media after the game and was visibly upset and disappointed. His team did not show up to play on Sunday night. There were ample opportunities to win this game yet New York as usual made mistake after mistake. Coach Tom Coughlin cannot afford another second half melt down by the Giants, I am certain he will be fired if that were to happen. The NY Giants embarrassed themselves against the Philadelphia Eagles week 11 and this loss may turn out to be the one that starts that dreaded second half collapse.

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Oh oh, week 3 has the NY Giants facing the Philadelphia Eagles.

New York Giants fans remember the last time we played Michael Vick along with the explosive Desean Jackson. The Philadelphia Eagles have our number the past few seasons, no matter how good the G-Men play they always have found a way to lose the match ups at the end. Last years.

Last seasons second game was reminiscent of the previous year when Eli Manning ran for a first down but managed to fall awkwardly to the ground and fumbling the ball. So many things went wrong in that game last year.  The football God's just did not cooperate, the Giants probably played the best 3 quarters anyone had vs Vick, we exposed weaknesses and harassed him with an aggressive defensive front but mistakes started kicking in and adding up.  There was just too many of them to overcome, from Eli's fumble to a dumb penalty and then of course the infamous Matt Dodge punt!

This year the New York Giants will be facing a banged up Eagles team which is still most likely more talented than last years squad. Both teams have injuries but the G-Men have definitely lost key starters who are irreplaceable at this time Quarterback Michael Vick will be playing in week 3 which makes the chances of pulling out a win that more difficult.

The only way Big Blue stands a chance in this game is if the secondary finally steps up and plays a full game. Antrel Rolle who has spent more time talking trash about Tom Coughlin than actually playing has had a horrific start to this season. It has been so bad that in last weeks game the Rams QB was picking on Rolle, testing him and exposing his weak play. You better believe Michael Vick will be doing more of the same in week 3. I know the Giants are decimated, especially on the defensive side but they still have professional football players in their roster with experience who should be able to pick up the slack. Two weeks in a row defensive players have allowed opposing receivers to catch a ball, fall to the ground, get up and continue running. Both of these instances are aggravating because the receivers were surrounded by defensive players who were just to lazy to reach down and touch the downed receiver. That's Unacceptable!

Eli Manning must play a better game as well, he has been floating balls up instead of firing them to his receivers. Manning got away with a few floaters last week. Our wide receivers need to simply make the catch! last week Mario Manningham ended up making an acrobatic catch. In reality it shouldn't have been so difficult, it should have been a touchdown as Eli hit Manninghan in stride but for some inexplicable reason Mario decided he wanted to hop and catch the ball instead of catching it on the run. He ended up making the catch but falling to the ground.

I am truly worried about this week 3 game between the NY Giants and Philadelphia Eagles, as a fan I am hopeful but the reality is that it isn't looking very good for the G-Men if they do not step up!

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Tom Coughlin seems to agree and admit that the last set of play calls after the Terrell Thomas interception were not ideal. Eli Manning as always is positive during the post game press conference after the week 9 loss against the San Diego Chargers.

I cannot emphasize enough how important this game was, the win was within grasp the NY Giants found a way to lose a game which was for all intensive purposes won! Very disappointing loss to say the least.

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The NY Giants season may be over. They shoot themselves in the foot by giving away a football game which was practically won vs. the San Diego Chargers in week 9.

They start the game with a good drive but like in previous weeks mistakes and mental lapses lead New York to a field goal attempt which they fail to convert. It's almost comical but for fans it hurts so much to watch this team just self destruct week after week.

The defense played much better than in past weeks, you could see the front four truly pushing and fighting in the trenches to try and apply pressure on Phillip Rivers.

The game goes into the 4th quarter with the Giants down 14-7. The defense stepped up in a huge way in this quarter, Justin Tuck was a beast and after a field goal and a touchdown Big Blue is up 17-14. It even gets better when Terrell Thomas intercepts a pass from Rivers and runs it back to the 4 yard line. The game at this point seems out of reach if New York scores a touchdown but the question loomed, could the G-Men put this game away or would they lack the killer instinct which has plagued them in the past?

The next set of play calls by Kevin Gilbride were horrendous to say the least. They run Brandon Jacobs who is still running like a ballerina, he rushes to the right and runs into his own offensive linemen who in turn holds the defender in order to open a hole for the big back. The penalty costs New York 10 yards of field position and my head starts spinning knowing that the G-Men may actually find a way to mess this up. The second down play gets us no where. Now it is 3rd down and we are in the red zone. You would think that Gilbride would take a shot at the end zone to put this game out of reach but instead he calls Brandon Jacobs number and the one time bruising back runs and gets stopped short of scoring. This call is absolutely ridiculous even if Phil Simms claims to understand the play call during the CBS broadcast. Why would you not take a shot at the end zone? Why wouldn't you try to do everything possible to win the game? The Giants settle for another field goal in the red zone and now lead 20-14 with 2 minutes to go.

The defense who had played so hard and applied so much pressure ran out of gas and Rivers exploited the secondary with short, crisp passes to his wide receivers. Corey Webster was outmatched all game long by Vincent Jackson and on the last Charger offensive play Rivers throws a ball to the corner of the end zone to a wide open Jackson for the winning touchdown. The San Diego Chargers drove the ball on the Giants defense with one timeout left and only 2 minutes on the clock to break our hearts! This was a MUST WIN game, the players played like it especially in the 4th quarter but the coaching staff did not.

Tom Coughlin and/or Kevin Gilbride displayed zero confidence in Eli Manning on that last 3rd down play where we could have sealed the game. New York is a team that is coming off 3 straight losses and has a chance to win a game by being aggressive instead they call a safe play which results in a field goal which leaves the Giants in a position to lose the game by 1 point. This has to be the most frustrating game I have watched all year.

Every week the NY Giants find a new way to lose a game, this week the players came ready to play and gave it all they had but the coaching staff let us down. The season seems like a lost cause at this point in time, even Tom Coughlin said we had to win this game and play as if it were a playoff game. Great way to show confidence in the players and Eli Manning by calling that "safe" 3rd down play in the red zone. Where is the killer instinct needed to be a Champion?

Carlos Caicedo
GiantsKickoff.com - Copyright 2009

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Eli Manning and coach Tom Coughlin hold a post game press conference after the horrible loss in week 8 versus the Philadelphia Eagles.

The NY Giants lose 40-17 and play another terrible football game on both sides of the field. The defense looked confused and Eli made several mistakes. We were beat on every phase of the game including special teams. We face another tough team with a good aerial attack in week 9 when we play the San Diego Chargers.