Giant Football Blog

Boley suspended 1 game for personal conduct

Are the squeaky clean Giants becoming a little more like the Raiders?

With the Plaxico Burress mess recently behind them, the Giants learned from the NFL Friday that new LB Michael Boley, who signed a five-year, $25 million contract in February, will be suspended for one game, the season opener, under the league's personal conduct policy.

Reasons for the suspension were not announced, but the league later confirmed it stems from a May 3, 2008 incident when Boley was with the Atlanta Falcons. Boley was arrested that day, and according to Gwinnett County records, was charged with three counts of domestic battery for allegedly beating his wife, Chantelle. Continue

Sinorice Moss seeks breakout year

It happened just the way it was supposed to. Too frequently has not. The ball fell from the air into the waiting hands of Sinorice Moss yesterday, ushering in the first day of the Giants' mandatory mini-camp and perhaps finally sparking a dull career.

Moss, after three nondescript seasons, is hoping for a fourth and surely will get it if he performs like this. Twice in the morning he sprinted past the coverage for long completions and all of a sudden he was back in school at Miami, making plays, no longer a bystander saddled with the burden of unfulfilled expectations. Continue

LB Boley will be more than situational

The prevalent thinking when he signed with the Giants was that free agent Michael Boley was brought in to cover people. Tom Coughlin said that's not entirely true.

"That's not the only reason he is here," Coughlin said. "He is here to be a linebacker and a physical linebacker, who does have the asset of great speed. We are looking forward to seeing him get further involved."

That's quite a change for Boley, who seemed fast-tracked for stardom in Atlanta before a new coaching staff decided to rein in his athleticism. Eventually, after starting for most of his career, he became a third-down linebacker, a role player. Continue

Pierce raising bar on his performance this season

When asked about last season, Antonio Pierce silently shrugged and shook his head for several moments.

"That's my answer," he said Friday.

But it's foolish to think that the disappointment of a season in which the Giants earned home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, only to squander it with an early exit and loss to the Eagles, isn't having an impact on this offseason.

Just as it's clear that Pierce himself is looking to rebound from a season in which his tackles diminished - not to mention his role in the Plaxico Burress shooting incident in late November. Continue

Giants take advantage of new practice facility

The pass thrown by Andre Woodson went airborne with a tight spiral and seemingly hung in the air forever before rookie receiver Ramses Barden, never breaking his long stride, hauled it in after having gained one step on another rookie, cornerback Bruce Johnson.

It was an eye-catching play during yesterday's Organized Team Activity practice and one that might never have been able to be completed last year or in any of the previous years inside the crammed practice bubble. Continue

Manningham expecting to make an impact

Mario Manningham may have exceptional speed, but last year there were things not even he could catch up to. The routes, the splits, the plays, all of the mumbo-jumbo involved in an NFL receiver's responsibilities. When Manningham missed most of his rookie training camp due to a quad injury, it set him back for the entire season. Rookie receivers are notorious for developing slowly in the league. Those who miss the bulk of the preseason face an even bigger struggle.

Out of the blocks, and he was already falling behind.

But Manningham is no longer a rookie. Even if that first season consisted of only four receptions and action in just nine of the 17 games, it's over. Manningham is in Season Two. And this time he's ready. Continue

88 of 89 Giants attend OTA

As Tom Coughlin was addressing the media after practice yesterday morning, all 11 wide receivers on the Giants' roster were off to the side, catching passes from one another.

Elsewhere, all six tight ends put their hands up together and broke their post-practice huddle.

And linebacker Antonio Pierce and defensive end Osi Umenyiora laughed with teammates as they walked off the field.

Even Nos. 17 and 80 were there. (Okay, they were Jeff Feagles and Derek Hagan, respectively, instead of Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey. But you get the point.) Continue

Expensive seats still available for Giants

The Giants used to be the toughest ticket in town. Reasonable prices, too. Clearing their waiting list would take a lifetime, or two. Season tickets were passed down from generation to generation.

Think about this: In a typical year, the Giants would reach only about 100-200 deep into their waiting list, representing 200-400 tickets, the numbers fluctuating slightly depending on price increases and how the team did the previous season. For so many years, the waiting list was 20,000, which meant for those at the back of the line, the wait was at least 100 years. Imagine slowly moving up all the way to No. 1,000. And then it still would take another five years.

Now, as a result of the dreaded PSLs, nearly 4,000 of the best and most expensive Giants seats are still available with 16 months remaining before the Giants and Jets open their $1.7 billion stadium. And the Giants have gone through their entire 140,000-member waiting list. The list  increased by 120,000 in the seasons since 2003, when the Giants initiated the ticket exchange program that allowed fans to buy individual game tickets from season ticket holders. In order to take part in the program, fans had to add their names to the season ticket waiting list. Continue

Beckum took unique path to TE

The whole idea is just "crazy" when Travis Beckum really thinks about it. Here he is, an offensive weapon so promising for the Giants, GM Jerry Reese said he could be a "nightmare" for opponents. The coaches are already drawing up plays just for him.

Yet until three years ago he had never played offense at all.

In fact, after the 2005 season, when he first approached Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema, who had just been promoted from defensive coordinator, and suggested switching from linebacker and defensive end to tight end, Beckum wasn't exactly given a ringing endorsement.

"At first he kind of giggled at me," Beckum said. "So I said, 'Coach, no, I'm being serious.' That following year I made the transition during spring ball and I'm at where I'm at now." Continue

Gaints are a team off the field as well

What happened yesterday with the Giants never happened in C.C. Brown's four years in Houston.

More than 40 players got together for a friendly round of paintball, a team-bonding excursion arranged by Rich Seubert and Chase Blackburn.

"In Texas, we never did that kind of thing," Brown said this week during the off-season conditioning program. "The closest thing we ever did was go to practice. Stuff like that pays off in the long run."

 As a newcomer, Brown almost immediately noticed a sense of esprit de corps with the Giants, and it's a welcome change. He started 47 of 50 games at safety and in four seasons in Houston won only 24 times, never reaching the playoffs. At the still-young age of 26 there's a new team and new challenge. As a free agent, Brown signed a one-year contract for $1 million. Continue