By Ed Valentine

– Regional Editor

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Oct 19, 2011 – New York Giants’ running back Ahmad Bradshaw has been named NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his play in the Giants’ 27-24 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. Bradshaw carried 26 times for 104 yards and three touchdowns.

So, who needs Brandon Jacobs, anyway?

With Jacobs out due to a knee injury Bradshaw shouldered most of the load and the Giants had their most effective game of the season running the football on Sunday. The 104-yard game was the team’s first 100+ yard rushing performance of the season. He had four a season ago.

Bradshaw had three one-yard scoring runs and a 30-yard run on the Giants’ final drive that set up the game-winning field goal.

Bradshaw is the second Giant to win Offensive Player of the Week honors this season. Quarterback Eli Manning was honored for his performance in a victory at Philadelphia in Week 3, when he completed 16 of 23 passes for 254 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in a 29-16 victory.

Read More: Ahmad Bradshaw (RB – NYG), New York Giants

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By Jay_King

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Oct 12, 2011 – New York Giants’ first-round draft pick Prince Amukamara practiced today for the first time since breaking his foot in August, according to an ESPN New York report.

Coach Tom Coughlin said the cornerback still is not expected to see game action until after the week seven bye.

Reporters got to see Prince do some special teams punt coverage drills. It was the first time we have seen Prince do anything other than some light backpedaling and cornerback-type drills on his own on the side. That was the only work we saw Prince work in a group. Coughlin reiterated that Amukamara likely is out until after the bye week.     

The Giants selected the 6-foot, 206-pound Amukamara out of Nebraska with the 19th pick overall after he was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year as a senior. He underwent surgery to repair the broken foot in August, after which he said he “let my team down” by getting injured. 

Brandon Jacobs, Chris Snee, Justin Tuck, LS Zak DeOssie and Henry Hynoski were all expected to miss practice due to various ailments, though center David Baas was expected to practice after missing Sunday’s game.

For more Giants coverage, visit our team page, or our blog Big Blue View.

Read More: David Baas (C – NYG), Brandon Jacobs (RB – NYG), Chris Snee (G – NYG), Justin Tuck (DE – NYG), Zak DeOssie (LB – NYG), Henry Hynoski (FB – NYG), Prince Amukamara (CB – NYG), New York Giants, Buffalo Bills at New York Giants, Oct 16, 2011 1:00 PM EDT

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PHILADELPHIA – It’s a game the New York Giants can’t forget, and one the Philadelphia Eagles are trying not to rely upon.

On a practical level, Philadelphia’s 38-31 win late last season in one of the more remarkable comebacks in recent league history sent the Eagles to the playoffs and kept the Giants out.

But the result goes deeper than that for the Giants, whose loss to the rival Eagles was their sixth in a row, and made all the more insufferable because the Eagles scored four touchdowns in the last 71/2 minutes to do it, capped by DeSean Jackson’s game-ending punt return.

“Last year will linger with me until I die,” New York defensive end Justin Tuck said earlier this week.

As the teams get together for the first time this season today at 1 at Lincoln Financial Field (TV-Fox; Radio-WEEU/830 AM), the Eagles are doing their best to distance themselves from that game, aware that talking about it only fuels New York’s fire.

“It may have some effect, but in reality it shouldn’t carry over at all,” said wide receiver Jeremy Maclin. “It’s a new season; it’s a new year. We understand that that’s all in the past.”

That’s what New York coach Tom Coughlin believes, too, quickly moving on when asked if the game is still an issue for his team.

“That was last year and this is this year and we’re trying to be prepared for this year,” said Coughlin.

But several Giants have referenced the game this week, and said they want quarterback Michael Vick to return from his concussion to play for the Eagles.

“I don’t want any excuses at the end of the day,” said New York safety Antrel Rolle.

The Giants will get their wish with Vick, who returned from the concussion he suffered at Atlanta last Sunday to practice Thursday and Friday, and barring a setback will be under center today.

Rolle also said he has “handled” Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson “one-on-one before and I don’t see why I can’t handle him again.”

Jackson didn’t want to get into the back-and-forth between the teams, and said the Eagles aren’t really worried about the Giants’ plans.

“It doesn’t really matter what they do,” said Jackson. “We just kind of focus on what we do here.”

They have been of late against New York, averaging 37.5 points in their last four games against the Giants, whose six-game skid against Philadelphia is their longest since losing a dozen in a row to the Eagles from 1975-81.

“Let them do whatever they want to do,” said Maclin, “but at the end of the day you have to go out there and try to cover us and try to stop our offense.”

Contact Steve Patton: 610-371-5097 or spatton@readingeagle.com.

By TOM CANAVAN  AP Sports Writer

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – Eli Manning wasn’t searching for  answers earlier this week when he said the New York Giants were  looking for an identity after a season-opening loss.

The 2008 Super Bowl MVP knows exactly who the Giants are when  they have the ball. So do the St. Louis Rams, who will face them  Monday night at MefLife Stadium in the first coaching matchup of  Tom Coughlin and former pupil Steve Spagnuolo.

The Giants are a run-first offense. The passing game is set up  by the rushing of Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs and the  blocking of a hard-noseä offensive line.

Inexplicably, the Giants (0-1) lost that identity in their 28-14  loss to the Redskins. The running game produced 63 yards on 13  carries in the first half. New York rushed seven times for 12 yards  in the second half and was shut out.

“They’re not going to try to trick you or anything like that,”  Rams defensive end Chris Long said. “They’re going to run the ball  at you and say stop it if you can. They’ve got a nice power running  game and Eli can make plays when he has to. I’m pretty sure they’re  going to try to run the ball on us, and with good reason. We didn’t  stop the run real well last week.”

The Rams (0-1) didn’t stop the run, period, in a 31-13 loss to  the Michael Vick and the Eagles. Philadelphia rushed for 236 yards  with LeSean McCoy collecting 122 and Vick 97.

While many might expect the Giants to be saliva 5/8ing at the  prospect of rebounding against the Rams, they aren’t for two  reasons.

Despite his 2-yard touchdown run last week, the slow-footed  Manning isn’t Vick. McCoy’s numbers also need to be looked at  cautiously since he gained 95 yards in the fourth quarter.

“They are going to be coming in here fighting,” Giants center  David Baas said. “They don’t want to be 0-2 and we don’t want to  be 0-2. We’re not underestimating them at all. But definitely we  are going to come out and be aggressive and do what we do.”

Bradshaw said the Redskins put eight men in the box in an effort  to force Manning to throw the ball. It worked, partly because New  York putting itself in too many third-and-long situations that took  away the run option.

Left tackle Will Beatty expects the Giants to be themselves.

“We know the defense is going to put eight in the box,” Beatty  said. “They want to force us to pass the ball. We know we can run  against eight in the box because teams have been showing that  against us week after week. We just have to do what we have to do  and things will fall in place.”

The Giants have no doubt that Spagnuolo will try to pressure  Manning and the offense. After all, he was the Giants’ defensive  coordinator in the Super Bowl championship season in 2007, and  again the following year before taking the Rams’ job.

His game plan was always to bring the pressure.

Spagnuolo said that many of the things the Rams use on defense  are the same as what he did with the Giants. However, he added  there are some things the Giants won’t recognize.

“I still live by the theory, if you could exchange each others  playbooks during the week and go and play the game, it still comes  back to the players,” Spagnuolo said. “You don’t know what they  are going to call and on what down. I think there are some  advantages on both sides maybe and being familiar with personnel  and scheme but it really comes down to how the players execute on  Monday night.”

Both teams will again have to deal with injuries.

The Giants expect two-time Pro Bowl Justin Tuck to play this  week after sitting out the opener with a neck injury. Leading  receiver Hakeem Nicks also expects to play with a bruised knee,  although New York signed veteran Brandon Stokley as an insurance  policy this week.

Fellow Pro Bowl DE Osi Umenyiora remains out with a knee injury  for a defense that has lost two starters and its second-round draft  pick for the season with injuries. Cornerback Prince Amukamara is  out with a broken foot.

The Rams are not as sure about running back Steven Jackson  (quad) while receiver Danny Amendola is doubtful with an elbow  injury. Quarterback Sam Bradford is expected to play with a bruised  index finger on his throwing hand.

Defensive end C.J. AhYou (wrist) is out. Cornerback Ron Bartell  is out for the season with a neck injury.

“Like I told the team, you just get a foxhole mentality, get in  there, regroup, get the next guy up, come out the hole fighting,”  Spagnuolo said. “So that’s what we’ll do.”

This is somewhat of a must-win game for both teams.

Since 2000, only nine of 98 teams that have started 0-2 have  made the playoffs. In the past two years, 17 teams have started 0-2  and none has made the playoffs.

“That’s a characteristic of this business. You have to win,”  Jacobs said. “You win to keep jobs. That’s just what it is. You  don’t want to be one of those teams at the end of the year that’s  playing the last couple of games for absolutely nothing.”

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Eli Manning wasn’t searching for answers earlier this week when he said the New York Giants were looking for an identity after a season-opening loss.

The 2008 Super Bowl MVP knows exactly who the Giants are when they have the ball. So do the St. Louis Rams, who will face them Monday night at MefLife Stadium in the first coaching matchup of Tom Coughlin and former pupil Steve Spagnuolo.

The Giants are a run-first offence. The passing game is set up by the rushing of Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs and the blocking of a hard-nosed offensive line.

Inexplicably, the Giants (0-1) lost that identity in their 28-14 loss to the Redskins. The running game produced 63 yards on 13 carries in the first half. New York rushed seven times for 12 yards in the second half and was shut out.

“They’re not going to try to trick you or anything like that,” Rams defensive end Chris Long said. “They’re going to run the ball at you and say stop it if you can. They’ve got a nice power running game and Eli can make plays when he has to. I’m pretty sure they’re going to try to run the ball on us, and with good reason. We didn’t stop the run real well last week.”

The Rams (0-1) didn’t stop the run, period, in a 31-13 loss to the Michael Vick and the Eagles. Philadelphia rushed for 236 yards with LeSean McCoy collecting 122 and Vick 97.

While many might expect the Giants to be salivating at the prospect of rebounding against the Rams, they aren’t for two reasons.

Despite his two-yard touchdown run last week, the slow-footed Manning isn’t Vick. McCoy’s numbers also need to be looked at cautiously since he gained 95 yards in the fourth quarter.

“They are going to be coming in here fighting,” Giants centre David Baas said. “They don’t want to be 0-2 and we don’t want to be 0-2. We’re not underestimating them at all. But definitely we are going to come out and be aggressive and do what we do.”

Bradshaw said the Redskins put eight men in the box in an effort to force Manning to throw the ball. It worked, partly because New York putting itself in too many third-and-long situations that took away the run option.

Left tackle Will Beatty expects the Giants to be themselves.

“We know the defence is going to put eight in the box,” Beatty said. “They want to force us to pass the ball. We know we can run against eight in the box because teams have been showing that against us week after week. We just have to do what we have to do and things will fall in place.”

The Giants have no doubt that Spagnuolo will try to pressure Manning and the offence. After all, he was the Giants’ defensive co-ordinator in the Super Bowl championship season in 2007, and again the following year before taking the Rams’ job.

His game plan was always to bring the pressure.

Spagnuolo said that many of the things the Rams use on defence are the same as what he did with the Giants. However, he added there are some things the Giants won’t recognize.

“I still live by the theory, if you could exchange each others playbooks during the week and go and play the game, it still comes back to the players,” Spagnuolo said. “You don’t know what they are going to call and on what down. I think there are some advantages on both sides maybe and being familiar with personnel and scheme but it really comes down to how the players execute on Monday night.”

Both teams will again have to deal with injuries.

The Giants expect two-time Pro Bowl Justin Tuck to play this week after sitting out the opener with a neck injury. Leading receiver Hakeem Nicks also expects to play with a bruised knee, although New York signed veteran Brandon Stokley as an insurance policy this week.

Fellow Pro Bowler Osi Umenyiora remains out with a knee injury for a defence that has lost two starters and its second-round draft pick for the season with injuries. Cornerback Prince Amukamara is out with a broken foot.

The Rams are not as sure about running back Steven Jackson (quad) while receiver Danny Amendola is doubtful with an elbow injury. Quarterback Sam Bradford is expected to play with a bruised index finger on his throwing hand.

Defensive end C.J. AhYou (wrist) is out. Cornerback Ron Bartell is out for the season with a neck injury.

“Like I told the team, you just get a foxhole mentality, get in there, regroup, get the next guy up, come out the hole fighting,” Spagnuolo said. “So that’s what we’ll do.”

This is somewhat of a must-win game for both teams.

Since 2000, only nine of 98 teams that have started 0-2 have made the playoffs. In the past two years, 17 teams have started 0-2 and none has made the playoffs.

“That’s a characteristic of this business. You have to win,” Jacobs said. “You win to keep jobs. That’s just what it is. You don’t want to be one of those teams at the end of the year that’s playing the last couple of games for absolutely nothing.”

The Giants are a run-first offense. The passing game is set up by the rushing of Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs and the blocking of a hard-nosed offensive line.

Inexplicably, the Giants (0-1) lost that identity in their 28-14 loss to the Redskins. The running game produced 63 yards on 13 carries in the first half. New York rushed seven times for 12 yards in the second half and was shut out.

“They’re not going to try to trick you or anything like that,” Rams defensive end Chris Long said. “They’re going to run the ball at you and say stop it if you can. They’ve got a nice power running game and Eli can make plays when he has to. I’m pretty sure they’re going to try to run the ball on us, and with good reason. We didn’t stop the run real well last week.”

The Rams (0-1) didn’t stop the run, period, in a 31-13 loss to the Michael Vick and the Eagles. Philadelphia rushed for 236 yards with LeSean McCoy collecting 122 and Vick 97.

While many might expect the Giants to be salivating at the prospect of rebounding against the Rams, they aren’t for two reasons.

Despite his 2-yard touchdown run last week, the slow-footed Manning isn’t Vick. McCoy’s numbers also need to be looked at cautiously since he gained 95 yards in the fourth quarter.

“They are going to be coming in here fighting,” Giants center David Baas said. “They don’t want to be 0-2 and we don’t want to be 0-2. We’re not underestimating them at all. But definitely we are going to come out and be aggressive and do what we do.”

Bradshaw said the Redskins put eight men in the box in an effort to force Manning to throw the ball. It worked, partly because New York putting itself in too many third-and-long situations that took away the run option.

Left tackle Will Beatty expects the Giants to be themselves.

“We know the defense is going to put eight in the box,” Beatty said. “They want to force us to pass the ball. We know we can run against eight in the box because teams have been showing that against us week after week. We just have to do what we have to do and things will fall in place.”

The Giants have no doubt that Spagnuolo will try to pressure Manning and the offense. After all, he was the Giants’ defensive coordinator in the Super Bowl championship season in 2007, and again the following year before taking the Rams’ job.

His game plan was always to bring the pressure.

Spagnuolo said that many of the things the Rams use on defense are the same as what he did with the Giants. However, he added there are some things the Giants won’t recognize.

“I still live by the theory, if you could exchange each others playbooks during the week and go and play the game, it still comes back to the players,” Spagnuolo said. “You don’t know what they are going to call and on what down. I think there are some advantages on both sides maybe and being familiar with personnel and scheme but it really comes down to how the players execute on Monday night.”

Both teams will again have to deal with injuries.

The Giants expect two-time Pro Bowl Justin Tuck to play this week after sitting out the opener with a neck injury. Leading receiver Hakeem Nicks also expects to play with a bruised knee, although New York signed veteran Brandon Stokley as an insurance policy this week.

Fellow Pro Bowl DE Osi Umenyiora remains out with a knee injury for a defense that has lost two starters and its second-round draft pick for the season with injuries. Cornerback Prince Amukamara is out with a broken foot.

The Rams are not as sure about running back Steven Jackson (quad) while receiver Danny Amendola is doubtful with an elbow injury. Quarterback Sam Bradford is expected to play with a bruised index finger on his throwing hand.

Defensive end C.J. AhYou (wrist) is out. Cornerback Ron Bartell is out for the season with a neck injury.

“Like I told the team, you just get a foxhole mentality, get in there, regroup, get the next guy up, come out the hole fighting,” Spagnuolo said. “So that’s what we’ll do.”

This is somewhat of a must-win game for both teams.

Since 2000, only nine of 98 teams that have started 0-2 have made the playoffs. In the past two years, 17 teams have started 0-2 and none has made the playoffs.

“That’s a characteristic of this business. You have to win,” Jacobs said. “You win to keep jobs. That’s just what it is. You don’t want to be one of those teams at the end of the year that’s playing the last couple of games for absolutely nothing.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Getting two-time Pro Bowl defensive end Justin Tuck back on the field isn’t the main issue for the New York Giants defense on Monday night against the St. Louis Rams.

Perry Fewell’s group has to stop giving up big plays and making mistakes.

In the season-opening 28-14 loss to Washington, the defense allowed eight plays of 22 yards or more and safety Antrel Rolle kept the Redskins’ final touchdown drive alive with a late hit after tight end Fred Davis was stopped two yards short of a first down with eight minutes to play and New York down 21-14.

Fewell said that five of the eight long plays were the result of either miscommunication on the field or players making a mistake.

“We had to put that game to bed,” defensive end Chris Canty said. “That game is over. There is nothing we can do about that ballgame. What we can do is come to work. We can come to work focused, intense in our focus, be sharper in our practices, be sharper in our meetings so we can give ourselves a better opportunity to be successful on Monday.”

Veteran Aaron Ross, who took over as the starting cornerback after Terrell Thomas suffered a season-ending knee injury in the preseason, said watching the videotapes of the game didn’t reveal any major surprises.

“We basically shot ourselves in the foot,” said Ross, who seemingly had one of those communication problems on a 39-yard pass to Jabar Gaffney late in the first half to set up a game-tying touchdown. “We have to correct it this week hopefully.”

Injuries and lineup changes have led to some mistakes, and it seemed Redskins quarterback Rex Grossman capitalized on every one. The injuries though are taking a toll.

Since training camp opened, the Giants have lost Thomas and middle linebacker Jonathan Goff to knee injuries. Thomas’ injury made Ross a starter and Goff’s injury last week forced rookie Greg Jones to start at middle linebacker.

An injury to first-round draft pick Prince Amukamara early in camp also cut the depth at cornerback, and injuries to Tuck (neck) and fellow Pro Bowl defensive end Osi Umenyiora (knee) have cut the pass rush, even though the Giants had four sacks in the season opener.

Tuck practiced on a limited basis the past two days and seems to be ready to make his season debut.

Umenyiora looked good working out with the trainers on Friday but he appears to be a week or two away from playing.

“The big plays we gave up last week were nothing they did,” linebacker Michael Boley said. “It was mostly us. It was little things, like being out of the gap, not getting the right leverage in coverage, just the little things. We’re trying to pay more attention to that this week. It’s not something that we can’t correct.”

Veteran cornerback Corey Webster believes the unit is going to improve after giving up 332 total yards to the Redskins.

“I think we are going to keep pressing forward and getting better and better,” Webster said. “We’ll help the young guys and the older guys will have to play great and led like we’re supposed to do. We just have to keep holding everyone accountable.”

____

NOTES: Receiver Hakeem Nicks (bruised left knee) practiced on a limited basis. He took part in individual drills but not the team portion. He expects to play Monday. … WR Brandon Stokley, who was signed on Wednesday, practiced for the second straight day and should be ready for the Rams. … Members of the Giants 1986 Super Bowl championship team will be honored at halftime. … The team is advising fans to arrive early on Monday because of enhanced security procedures for fans entering MetLife Stadium.

The Washington Redskins will host the New York Giants in Week 1 of the NFL season this Sunday, also known as the first day of the rest of your fantasy lives. The Redskins should have some intriguing plays in Week 1 because the Giants have lost a number of important players on their defense to injuries at different points throughout their preseason campaign. Let’s take a look at some of the more prominent players on the Redskins offense and how they might fare this weekend, fantasy-wise of course.

Rex Grossman: Maybe he’ll get some extra mojo from winning his battle against John Beck for the starting quarterback job in the preseason, but when it comes down to it, I wouldn’t play him unless I didn’t have a better option. Not that I think he is going to do a crummy job, I just think that you probably have a better quarterback option on your team for this week/season.

Tim Hightower: Hightower is someone I can actually see having a pretty good game in this one. He had a very impressive preseason, and a lot of the losses the Giants suffered this preseason were along their front seven. I know Shanahan gave Grossman the rock, but I still don’t expect him to throw the ball all over the field. I think Hightower will get a steady workload in this one, and when trying to pick a running back, that’s all you can ask for.

Santana Moss: It doesn’t take a fantasy genius to know that if I don’t like the quarterback in this one because I expect a minimal passing attack, then I also won’t like the main wide receiver. Because of who he is he is probably a must-start for you, but I wouldn’t expect him to win your week.

Chris Cooley/Fred Davis: Cooley is coming off an injury and we have no idea how much Fred Davis will be involved. You need to have a better tight end option than these guys.

For more on fantasy football and who you should try to play this week, head over to new SB Nation partner NumberFire.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The Chicago Bears’ offensive line couldn’t protect Jay Cutler against the New York Giants last season, and there are doubts whether this time will be any better.

Forgotten last year? Well, in another nationally televised game, the Giants registered nine first-half sacks and sent Cutler to the sideline early with a concussion in a 17-3 win that handed the Bears their first loss of the season.

The teams will meet in a pre-season game at the New Meadowlands Stadium on Monday night and the Bears’ line hasn’t shown much improvement so far this year.

How bad has the line been? Well, it gave up nine sacks in a 10-3 win over the Buffalo Bills in the opening weekend of the pre-season.

Bears coach Lovie Smith said there was a lot blame to go around for the sacks, which included four by the first team unit of J’Marcus Webb, Chris Williams, Roberto Garza, Lance Louis and Gabe Carimi.

Smith said all the linemen made mistakes, and the quarterbacks held the ball too long. Not having much time together because of the lockout was another issue.

“Again, you get to the first game, you see where you are and you start making adjustments from there, which we’ll have to do,” Smith said. “It’s good to come back and play a good Giants team that we didn’t have a lot of success against last year.”

After playing only one series last week, Cutler will see more action against New York, which lost 20-10 to Carolina in its pre-season opener. He isn’t worrying about last year.

“You know, it’s a pre-season game so we’ve got to take it for what it is and do our job and hopefully we won’t have a repeat of last year,” Cutler said.

New York had four sacks in the pre-season opener, including two by impressive second-year pro Jason Pierre-Paul, who will be taking on a greater role with two-time Pro Bowler Osi Umenyiora expected to be sidelined at least a month following arthroscopic surgery this week.

“I didn’t know I was going to get two sacks, but I went out there and played good football,” Pierre-Paul said. “I kept rushing the quarterback and that’s what happened. The expectations are going to be high, I just have to play to my full ability.”

Justin Tuck, who had three sacks against the Bears last year, told everyone to forget about that game.

“Us beating up their quarterback didn’t help us get our job done,” Tuck said. “We didn’t make the playoffs and we didn’t win the Super Bowl, so I really don’t care about last year. I’m focused on what we are going to do this year.

“Obviously, they will have a chip knowing that we killed and embarrassed them as far as O-Line and things like that,” Tuck added. “I know Coach (Mike) Tice is going to bring that up and they are going to come in here ready to play.”

The Giants’ offence is coming off a dismal performance. New York’s lone touchdown against Carolina came on an interception return by linebacker Michael Boley, who has battled a sore back this week.

New York coach Tom Coughlin plans to have his starters play about 25 plays with David Carr following Eli Manning at quarterback. Free agent Ryan Perrilloux will finish up.

Both teams might rest some players.

Lance Briggs has been ruled out by the Bears, and fellow linebacker Brian Urlacher could be held out because he has had some “camp soreness,” Smith said. Return specialist Devin Hester also is a question mark.

Besides Umenyiora, the Giants are not sure whether starting cornerbacks Corey Webster and Terrell Thomas will be available. Webster missed the last two practices while attending the funeral of an uncle. Thomas watched Saturday’s workout because of a sore knee.

The Giants’ kicking will be handled by Rhys Lloyd, while Lawrence Tynes rests a bruised thigh.

The teams will meet in a preseason game at the New Meadowlands Stadium on Monday night and the Bears’ line hasn’t shown much improvement so far this year.

How bad has the line been? Well, it gave up nine sacks in a 10-3 win over the Buffalo Bills in the opening weekend of the preseason.

Bears coach Lovie Smith said there was a lot blame to go around for the sacks, which included four by the first team unit of J’Marcus Webb, Chris Williams, Roberto Garza, Lance Louis and Gabe Carimi.

Smith said all the linemen made mistakes, and the quarterbacks held the ball too long. Not having much time together because of the lockout was another issue.

“Again, you get to the first game, you see where you are and you start making adjustments from there, which we’ll have to do,” Smith said. “It’s good to come back and play a good Giants team that we didn’t have a lot of success against last year.”

After playing only one series last week, Cutler will see more action against New York, which lost 20-10 to Carolina in its preseason opener. He isn’t worrying about last year.

“You know, it’s a preseason game so we’ve got to take it for what it is and do our job and hopefully we won’t have a repeat of last year,” Cutler said.

New York had four sacks in the preseason opener, including two by impressive second-year pro Jason Pierre-Paul, who will be taking on a greater role with two-time Pro Bowler Osi Umenyiora expected to be sidelined at least a month following arthroscopic surgery this week.

“I didn’t know I was going to get two sacks, but I went out there and played good football,” Pierre-Paul said. “I kept rushing the quarterback and that’s what happened. The expectations are going to be high, I just have to play to my full ability.”

Justin Tuck, who had three sacks against the Bears last year, told everyone to forget about that game.

“Us beating up their quarterback didn’t help us get our job done,” Tuck said. “We didn’t make the playoffs and we didn’t win the Super Bowl, so I really don’t care about last year. I’m focused on what we are going to do this year.

“Obviously, they will have a chip knowing that we killed and embarrassed them as far as O-Line and things like that,” Tuck added. “I know Coach (Mike) Tice is going to bring that up and they are going to come in here ready to play.”

The Giants’ offense is coming off a dismal performance. New York’s lone touchdown against Carolina came on an interception return by linebacker Michael Boley, who has battled a sore back this week.

New York coach Tom Coughlin plans to have his starters play about 25 plays with David Carr following Eli Manning at quarterback. Free agent Ryan Perrilloux will finish up.

Both teams might rest some players.

Lance Briggs has been ruled out by the Bears, and fellow linebacker Brian Urlacher could be held out because he has had some “camp soreness,” Smith said. Return specialist Devin Hester also is a question mark.

Besides Umenyiora, the Giants are not sure whether starting cornerbacks Corey Webster and Terrell Thomas will be available. Webster missed the last two practices while attending the funeral of an uncle. Thomas watched Saturday’s workout because of a sore knee.

The Giants’ kicking will be handled by Rhys Lloyd, while Lawrence Tynes rests a bruised thigh.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP)—The New York Giants might be welcoming more
than Osi Umenyiora(notes) to training camp on Monday. They could be getting a new
kicker, too.

Lawrence Tynes(notes) bruised his right thigh in Saturday night’s preseason loss to
the Carolina Panthers, and coach Tom Coughlin said Sunday that the veteran
kicker will be spending a lot of time with the team’s medical personnel this
week.

“I’m not going to predict how long he’ll be out,” Coughlin said. “He’ll be a
fulltime participant in the training room. That’s for sure.”

Tom Coughlin will be retained as head coach of the Giants after a 10-6 season.
(Evan Vucci/AP Photo)

Coughlin was not sure whether the Giants would sign a kicker this week but
it seems unlikely that Tynes will be able to play a week from Monday against
Chicago. He was on crutches after the game, the result of being run into on a
blocked second-half field goal.

“We have one solid option if we decide not to do that, but if we decide
(that) then it will be relatively early in the week, obviously,” said Coughlin,
who indicated he didn’t want to burden punter Matt Dodge(notes) with kickoff duties
because the second-year player is competing with Steve Weatherofrd for a job.

The update on Tynes came a little more than an hour before Umenyiora told
The Associated Press that he will return to work on Monday despite not getting a
new contract.

Umenyiora said the Giants offered to put incentives in his deal, which will
pay him $7.1 million over the next two seasons, but he rejected them.

“No deal has been reworked,” Umenyiora told the AP. “What has been offered
has been unacceptable and shows they don’t really respect the fact I sacrifice
my health for the franchise. I will play under my current deal because I love
and respect my coaches, my teammates, the fans, and myself. Not for those
incentives.”

The nine-year NFL veteran hasn’t practiced since reporting to training camp
on July 30, a day late. He failed to report on time because he alleged that
general manager Jerry Reese told him after last season that the team would
rework his contract.

The 29-year-old Umenyiora shared the team lead with 11.5 sacks last season
and he had a league-high 10 forced fumbles.

The return of Umenyiora comes two days after second-year pro Jason
Pierre-Paul(notes) recorded two sacks and played well filling in at right end for
Umenyiora.

“JPP obviously played well,” Coughlin said. “He was a force with two sacks
and he missed another one. He made some tackles and was a force against a good
left tackle, so I was pleased with the way he played.”

For the most part, Coughlin was disappointed in the Giants’ play,
particularly on offense. The unit failed to register a touchdown, and Tynes
missed three field goals. One was blocked and another just missed from 56 yards.

While the defense played well, it gave up a couple of big plays and there
were way too many missed tackles on defense and special teams.

Coughlin said the team lacked a sense of urgency in its preseason opener.
Linebacker Michael Boley(notes) gave New York a 7-0 lead with an interception return,
but didn’t build on it.

“You’re up 7-0, why can’t it be 14-0?” Coughlin said. “Why isn’t it 10-0.
The ability to recognize and capitalize on the circumstance as it presents
itself to you. That’s more of what I’m talking about. There was energy. There
was effort. There is a ton of people playing in their first professional game.
You don’t think they were excited and a lot of times they don’t really know how
to express themselves or even express it in a team way. That’s what I’m after.”

With no games until Monday, Coughlin believes this week will be an important
time for the team to focus, communicate and to start executing.

Coughlin feels new center David Baas(notes) is going to be good once he gets
settled. He said that Will Beatty(notes) played well at left tackle, and that
second-year defensive tackle Linval Joseph(notes) can be a force in the middle. He was
impressed by Domenik Hixon’s(notes) first game in more than a year since a major knee
injury.

“I’m not going to predict how long he’ll be out,” Coughlin said. “He’ll be a fulltime participant in the training room. That’s for sure.”

Coughlin was not sure whether the Giants would sign a kicker this week but it seems unlikely that Tynes will be able to play a week from Monday against Chicago. He was on crutches after the game, the result of being run into on a blocked second-half field goal.

“We have one solid option if we decide not to do that, but if we decide (that) then it will be relatively early in the week, obviously,” said Coughlin, who indicated he didn’t want to burden punter Matt Dodge with kickoff duties because the second-year player is competing with Steve Weatherofrd for a job.

The update on Tynes came a little more than an hour before Umenyiora told The Associated Press that he will return to work on Monday despite not getting a new contract.

Umenyiora said the Giants offered to put incentives in his deal, which will pay him $7.1 million over the next two seasons, but he rejected them.

“No deal has been reworked,” Umenyiora told the AP. “What has been offered has been unacceptable and shows they don’t really respect the fact I sacrifice my health for the franchise. I will play under my current deal because I love and respect my coaches, my teammates, the fans, and myself. Not for those incentives.”

The nine-year NFL veteran hasn’t practiced since reporting to training camp on July 30, a day late. He failed to report on time because he alleged that general manager Jerry Reese told him after last season that the team would rework his contract.

The 29-year-old Umenyiora shared the team lead with 11.5 sacks last season and he had a league-high 10 forced fumbles.

The return of Umenyiora comes two days after second-year pro Jason Pierre-Paul recorded two sacks and played well filling in at right end for Umenyiora.

“JPP obviously played well,” Coughlin said. “He was a force with two sacks and he missed another one. He made some tackles and was a force against a good left tackle, so I was pleased with the way he played.”

For the most part, Coughlin was disappointed in the Giants’ play, particularly on offense. The unit failed to register a touchdown, and Tynes missed three field goals. One was blocked and another just missed from 56 yards.

While the defense played well, it gave up a couple of big plays and there were way too many missed tackles on defense and special teams.

Coughlin said the team lacked a sense of urgency in its preseason opener. Linebacker Michael Boley gave New York a 7-0 lead with an interception return, but didn’t build on it.

“You’re up 7-0, why can’t it be 14-0?” Coughlin said. “Why isn’t it 10-0. The ability to recognize and capitalize on the circumstance as it presents itself to you. That’s more of what I’m talking about. There was energy. There was effort. There is a ton of people playing in their first professional game. You don’t think they were excited and a lot of times they don’t really know how to express themselves or even express it in a team way. That’s what I’m after.”

With no games until Monday, Coughlin believes this week will be an important time for the team to focus, communicate and to start executing.

Coughlin feels new center David Baas is going to be good once he gets settled. He said that Will Beatty played well at left tackle, and that second-year defensive tackle Linval Joseph can be a force in the middle. He was impressed by Domenik Hixon’s first game in more than a year since a major knee injury.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP)—The New York Giants might be welcoming more
than Osi Umenyiora(notes) to training camp on Monday. They could be getting a new
kicker, too.

Lawrence Tynes(notes) bruised his right thigh in Saturday night’s preseason loss to
the Carolina Panthers, and coach Tom Coughlin said Sunday that the veteran
kicker will be spending a lot of time with the team’s medical personnel this
week.

“I’m not going to predict how long he’ll be out,” Coughlin said. “He’ll be a
fulltime participant in the training room. That’s for sure.”

Tom Coughlin will be retained as head coach of the Giants after a 10-6 season.
(Evan Vucci/AP Photo)

Coughlin was not sure whether the Giants would sign a kicker this week but
it seems unlikely that Tynes will be able to play a week from Monday against
Chicago. He was on crutches after the game, the result of being run into on a
blocked second-half field goal.

“We have one solid option if we decide not to do that, but if we decide
(that) then it will be relatively early in the week, obviously,” said Coughlin,
who indicated he didn’t want to burden punter Matt Dodge(notes) with kickoff duties
because the second-year player is competing with Steve Weatherofrd for a job.

The update on Tynes came a little more than an hour before Umenyiora told
The Associated Press that he will return to work on Monday despite not getting a
new contract.

Umenyiora said the Giants offered to put incentives in his deal, which will
pay him $7.1 million over the next two seasons, but he rejected them.

“No deal has been reworked,” Umenyiora told the AP. “What has been offered
has been unacceptable and shows they don’t really respect the fact I sacrifice
my health for the franchise. I will play under my current deal because I love
and respect my coaches, my teammates, the fans, and myself. Not for those
incentives.”

The nine-year NFL veteran hasn’t practiced since reporting to training camp
on July 30, a day late. He failed to report on time because he alleged that
general manager Jerry Reese told him after last season that the team would
rework his contract.

The 29-year-old Umenyiora shared the team lead with 11.5 sacks last season
and he had a league-high 10 forced fumbles.

The return of Umenyiora comes two days after second-year pro Jason
Pierre-Paul(notes) recorded two sacks and played well filling in at right end for
Umenyiora.

“JPP obviously played well,” Coughlin said. “He was a force with two sacks
and he missed another one. He made some tackles and was a force against a good
left tackle, so I was pleased with the way he played.”

For the most part, Coughlin was disappointed in the Giants’ play,
particularly on offense. The unit failed to register a touchdown, and Tynes
missed three field goals. One was blocked and another just missed from 56 yards.

While the defense played well, it gave up a couple of big plays and there
were way too many missed tackles on defense and special teams.

Coughlin said the team lacked a sense of urgency in its preseason opener.
Linebacker Michael Boley(notes) gave New York a 7-0 lead with an interception return,
but didn’t build on it.

“You’re up 7-0, why can’t it be 14-0?” Coughlin said. “Why isn’t it 10-0.
The ability to recognize and capitalize on the circumstance as it presents
itself to you. That’s more of what I’m talking about. There was energy. There
was effort. There is a ton of people playing in their first professional game.
You don’t think they were excited and a lot of times they don’t really know how
to express themselves or even express it in a team way. That’s what I’m after.”

With no games until Monday, Coughlin believes this week will be an important
time for the team to focus, communicate and to start executing.

Coughlin feels new center David Baas(notes) is going to be good once he gets
settled. He said that Will Beatty(notes) played well at left tackle, and that
second-year defensive tackle Linval Joseph(notes) can be a force in the middle. He was
impressed by Domenik Hixon’s(notes) first game in more than a year since a major knee
injury.