THERE’S something about Mathias Kiwanuka that makes you think he could be a Supreme Court justice once his playing career is done. He’s an Alan Page type, more cerebral and even-keeled than you would expect in a second-year player.
It helps that he’s a good soldier, too, willing to do what the coaching staff feels is in the team’s best interests even though it might not be in his own, like this move from defensive end to strong-side linebacker, a move that needs some rethinking.
Kiwanuka was credited with the Giants’ only two sacks in Sunday’s 24-17 victory at Washington. Both came when he went from a stand-up linebacker to a hand-in-the-ground defensive lineman, the position he played at Boston College, where he was good enough to be a first-round round pick in 2006, the 32nd overall pick.
Both sacks were critical, the first coming on third-and-10 at the 35 with 3:37 left in the fourth quarter and the Giants leading 24-7. Kiwanuka, who played most the second half on the defensive line, broke through and slammed into Washington quarterback Jason Campbell, jarring the ball loose. Redskin tight end Chris Cooley recovered, but Washington lost 11 yards and was forced to punt.
The second sack came on Washington’s next and final possession of the game. On second-and-10 from the Giant 35, Kiwanuka trapped Campbell for a one-yard loss and he would continue to apply pressure during the dramatic goal-line stand that salvaged the game. In the end, Kiwanuka had a game-high eight tackles, one forced fumble and one assist to go along with the two sacks.
It was by far his most productive game of the season.
The question the Giants face is whether it was returning Kiwanuka to the defensive line that helped him impact the game, or is his growing familiarity at linebacker helping him to play the position more instinctively?
“As a linebacker, he came down hill and hit the run with good power and force,” Giant coach Tom Coughlin said. “He was basically where he should have been the majority of the time. The two sacks he was credited with, he was down, playing inside as a matter of fact, and he made good rushes.”
The Giant pass rush in general had more impact than it did in the first two games, and it doesn’t take Vince Lombardi to figure out that the more opportunities to get Kiwanuka and starting defensive ends Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora in the game together, the more effective the Giant pass rush is going to be.
“We were playing situations,” Kiwanuka said. “We’re playing their formations and things like that, so a lot of people were asked to do different things and it worked out. We’ve got a lot of people who are versatile, a lot of people who can contribute in different ways.”
The strength of the Giant defense is its defensive line, which only now is starting to resemble the unit envisioned before the season. Strahan’s training-camp boycott left him rusty the first two weeks, and Umenyiora was injured in the season opener.
Now that the coaching staff is willing to use Kiwanuka and hard-working Jason Tuck on the D-line, the Giant defense could go from being maligned to menacing.
Coaches can be stubborn, and turning Kiwanuka into one of the game’s top linebackers would be a badge of honor. But it’s smart not to discount what he can do on the defensive line.
Figuring out a way to get the most out of Strahan, Umenyiora, Kiwanuka and Tuck is about the best problem the Giants have.