ALBANY — The Giants are not going to kill the quarter back this season, they are going to overkill the quarterback.
They have a healthy Osi Umenyiora returning to a defense that was fourth in the 2008 in sacks, and have spent $42 million to sign defensive end Chris Canty away from the Cowboys and $16 million on defensive tackle Rocky Bernard from the Seahawks.
General manager Jerry Reese also dropped another $25 million for linebacker Michael Boley and $1.6 million against the cap for safety C.C. Brown, two guys who actually should pay for the privilege of playing behind what might be the deepest defensive line in NFL history.
Adding Umenyiora and Canty, a three-year starter in Dallas, to Justin Tuck and Mathias Kiwanuka on the ends — plus Bernard to rotate inside with Patriots slayers Fred Robbins, Barry Cofield and Jay Alford — will make a defensive line fresher and more relentless than Terrell Owens’ mouth.
Yes, the Giants will come in waves, much like the criticism if Brandon Jacobs or Ahmad Bradshaw breaks down and Eli Manning spends the season dinking and dunking. Despite the loss of 1,025-yard running back Derrick Ward and Pro Bowl receiver Plaxico Burress, Reese had enough money left on offense to sign just Tutan Reyes, a backup offensive lineman.
“Last year we lost Michael Strahan to retirement and Osi in the preseason, and three-quarters of the way through the season, we were still rushing the passer really well,” Reese said. “But Kiwi got worn down from playing way too many snaps, Justin was playing hurt, Fred broke his hands and got worn down too, like Barry.
“We didn’t have enough manpower. Give [Donovan] McNabb credit, he made a phenomenal play on third-and-20, but if everybody is fresh we might get him.
“At the time, we didn’t know how significant Cofield’s and Robbins’ injuries were. After the season we got a medical report, and that played a little into our decisions. But our philosophy is: You get the best players available no matter the situation and then make the adjustment. There were good defensive linemen available. And Ernie Accorsi taught me you can’t have enough pass rushers.”
When the Colts won, it was because they couldn’t have enough receivers. Then again, the Pats were three-time champs when their best pass catcher was Deion Branch and haven’t won again with Randy Moss.
“We did get new receivers, got [Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden] in the draft,” Reese said. “There were a couple veterans [Anquan Boldin, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Braylon Edwards] we looked into and things didn’t work out.
“We would love to have a Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Andre Johnson or Randy Moss, but none of them have Super Bowl rings. There are different ways to win Super Bowls. Our quarterback probably has seen everything at this point so we’ll put some of the onus on him. At Ole Miss, Eli made people around him better, and at this stage we expect the same here. We do have quality receivers we have a lot of confidence in.”
The Giants have a quality general manger, and their fans should have a lot of confidence in him. This might be their most talented team ever, including a receiving corps with too much talent to leave David Tyree, Super Bowl legend, taking snaps.
Mario Manningham is unproven, unlike the philosophy that dominant defense wins. The better the Giants can withstand injury at the position the draft tells us year-in-year-out is up there with quarterback as the most coveted, the better Reese will withstand second guesses until a receiver steps up. Considering the options, the Giants put their money in the right place.