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Giants back new defensive coordinator Spagnuolo
BY ARTHUR STAPLE
September 7, 2007
When coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's defense took the field for the first time about a month ago, the players felt prepared. They knew the scheme, they knew where to be.
But the results were awful. It was only the preseason, but the Giants looked off. The Panthers marched down the field and easily scored on their first series.
It could have become a lot worse than that. Spagnuolo had been positive and instructive in his sessions with the players. If he'd gotten too negative after the poor showing against the Panthers, they could have tuned him out, the way many of them tuned out former defensive coordinator Tim Lewis, whom many Giants thought was condescending and far too negative. Perhaps worse, the starters could have put the blame on Spagnuolo, the untested coordinator.
But neither of those things happened. Even as the Giants' defense was hit with injuries and waited for Michael Strahan to return, Spagnuolo's crew tightened up its game and looked very sharp in extended duty during the next two games.
"When he showed us his way wasn't to -- -- and complain and yell, that he was still leading us instead of demeaning us, we responded," cornerback Sam Madison said. "And we ultimately as players knew that [the lousy performance] was on us."
The season opener is two days away, and even Spagnuolo is a little curious as to what his defense will do against the Cowboys in prime time when the games count. But the way his players responded to their first bit of adversity told him a lot.
"The guys took it upon themselves after that game to really show what they were all about when we went down to Baltimore," Spagnuolo said. "They embraced the things we were trying to do."
What the Giants -- especially Spagnuolo's defense -- will try to do Sunday night is create havoc. Lewis' crew did that in Dallas last season in a 36-22 Monday night win that featured four interceptions as the Cowboys began the Tony Romo era. But injuries that night - a season-ending Achilles tear for LaVar Arrington, Osi Umenyiora's torn hip flexor, Justin Tuck's season-ending sprained foot - made the Giants' defense different and more tentative when the teams faced each other six weeks later.
Romo threw two more picks in Giants Stadium but was sacked only once and was allowed time to move and throw. Spagnuolo and the Giants want Romo on the run, but not at his own pace.
With Madison, who practiced fully for the second straight day, still a question mark, the secondary isn't as strong as it could be. "There's no pressure on the secondary if the aggressive guys up front are making the quarterback heave it or tuck it, so it works both ways," Spagnuolo said.
With Strahan likely to be in the mix, Spagnuolo doesn't think there will be any hiccups with the crew that worked through training camp. Tuck may cede some time at left end, but Spagnuolo will find room for his best players. "We're going to need everybody," he said.
Spagnuolo's upbeat attitude started from his first day with his players during Organized Team Activities in March and continued through minicamp and training camp. He put in a few requirements that might have seemed odd or silly to veterans or even fans -- insisting that all his players "scoop and score" loose balls, even incomplete passes, for instance.
"Hey, we had no right to say anything about any of that," linebacker Antonio Pierce said. "Until we become a defense that's respected and feared, you do everything you can to get better."
Pierce, who is playing for his sixth coordinator in seven NFL seasons, has seen all different styles from his coaches. He didn't have as big a problem with Lewis as some teammates, but he has applauded Spagnuolo's style from the beginning.
"When you come after a bad game like we had in the preseason and you're positive," Pierce said, "that's a guy you want to go to war for."
http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/giants/ny-spgiants075362289sep07,0,7593134.story
BY ARTHUR STAPLE
September 7, 2007
When coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's defense took the field for the first time about a month ago, the players felt prepared. They knew the scheme, they knew where to be.
But the results were awful. It was only the preseason, but the Giants looked off. The Panthers marched down the field and easily scored on their first series.
It could have become a lot worse than that. Spagnuolo had been positive and instructive in his sessions with the players. If he'd gotten too negative after the poor showing against the Panthers, they could have tuned him out, the way many of them tuned out former defensive coordinator Tim Lewis, whom many Giants thought was condescending and far too negative. Perhaps worse, the starters could have put the blame on Spagnuolo, the untested coordinator.
But neither of those things happened. Even as the Giants' defense was hit with injuries and waited for Michael Strahan to return, Spagnuolo's crew tightened up its game and looked very sharp in extended duty during the next two games.
"When he showed us his way wasn't to -- -- and complain and yell, that he was still leading us instead of demeaning us, we responded," cornerback Sam Madison said. "And we ultimately as players knew that [the lousy performance] was on us."
The season opener is two days away, and even Spagnuolo is a little curious as to what his defense will do against the Cowboys in prime time when the games count. But the way his players responded to their first bit of adversity told him a lot.
"The guys took it upon themselves after that game to really show what they were all about when we went down to Baltimore," Spagnuolo said. "They embraced the things we were trying to do."
What the Giants -- especially Spagnuolo's defense -- will try to do Sunday night is create havoc. Lewis' crew did that in Dallas last season in a 36-22 Monday night win that featured four interceptions as the Cowboys began the Tony Romo era. But injuries that night - a season-ending Achilles tear for LaVar Arrington, Osi Umenyiora's torn hip flexor, Justin Tuck's season-ending sprained foot - made the Giants' defense different and more tentative when the teams faced each other six weeks later.
Romo threw two more picks in Giants Stadium but was sacked only once and was allowed time to move and throw. Spagnuolo and the Giants want Romo on the run, but not at his own pace.
With Madison, who practiced fully for the second straight day, still a question mark, the secondary isn't as strong as it could be. "There's no pressure on the secondary if the aggressive guys up front are making the quarterback heave it or tuck it, so it works both ways," Spagnuolo said.
With Strahan likely to be in the mix, Spagnuolo doesn't think there will be any hiccups with the crew that worked through training camp. Tuck may cede some time at left end, but Spagnuolo will find room for his best players. "We're going to need everybody," he said.
Spagnuolo's upbeat attitude started from his first day with his players during Organized Team Activities in March and continued through minicamp and training camp. He put in a few requirements that might have seemed odd or silly to veterans or even fans -- insisting that all his players "scoop and score" loose balls, even incomplete passes, for instance.
"Hey, we had no right to say anything about any of that," linebacker Antonio Pierce said. "Until we become a defense that's respected and feared, you do everything you can to get better."
Pierce, who is playing for his sixth coordinator in seven NFL seasons, has seen all different styles from his coaches. He didn't have as big a problem with Lewis as some teammates, but he has applauded Spagnuolo's style from the beginning.
"When you come after a bad game like we had in the preseason and you're positive," Pierce said, "that's a guy you want to go to war for."
http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/giants/ny-spgiants075362289sep07,0,7593134.story