Post by GordonG on Oct 20, 2017 0:49:13 GMT -5
First, I want to thank everyone who submitted questions. I read all of them and I appreciate them very much.
As I explained to Gordon, some of the questions received were covered in the Inside Football subscription product. I hope you understand, but I have to draw a line as to what I share for free and what I reserve for the folks whose financial support helps to offset the expenses.
I will be setting up a specially priced package for the BBWC community that would give you access to the weekly issues and which would include a free trial issue. I really think you’ll find those issues very in-depth as we break down every player and we also break down strategy and other things related to the team and the game.
Here is a link to a full sample issue for anyone that might be interested. insidefootball.com/inside-football-full-sample-issue/ (Note from Gordon: I will be posting a separate thread with the ordering information and discount code)
In the offseason I devote issues to the salary cap and free agency and of course the draft. I know a couple of you submitted questions about those areas and to that I say it’s too early to address those. Covering a pro team is a 7-day a week affair so I have done no work on the salary cap or the draft to where I can even offer speculation.
Lastly for those who missed the cutoff on the weekly questions, you can always submit them to me on Twitter (use hashtag #AskPat to @patricia_Traina). I usually open my general mailbag starting Wednesday with a goal of getting the mailbag up by Saturday.
You can also send your questions via the READER INTERACTIVE form on InsideFootball.com.
Thanks again for the feedback and the questions—and above all, for being so welcoming of me on this community!
Here are my answers to this week's questions:
Does Orleans Darkwa have a RB he modeled himself after? How does he feel about his current opportunity and what comments might he have about the work he has put in as a guy that has stuck around the roster for a few years?
I wrote a feature on Orleans when he was a rookie for Bleacher Report when he was a rookie. He spoke about Eddie George as being one of his role models.
Darkwa has since that he’s grateful for the opportunity and that he intends to make the most of it. People need to remember he dealt with injuries the last two years and this year for the first time he’s fully healthy. He also credited Rashad Jennings for teaching him how to prepare like a pro, so it’s been nice to see how far he’s come along.
With the success albeit only 1 game at the running game.... will they stick with Jones @ Center and not let Richburg back into the lineup? Do the Giants consider him undersized? How do you see his presence affecting free agency negotiations with Richburg?
My guess is that when Richburg comes back, Jones will move to left guard. If I’m the Giants coaches, I leave the line as is until such time when there’s an injury or I don’t see the consistency building. I like this current configuration and while I don’t believe in Wally Pipping a guy, it would be a shame to upset the apple cart in this instance.
Is Pugh at Right Tackle for the rest of the season? Eli looks much more comfortable in the pocket in the games that Pugh has played at RT compared to how he's looked with Hart out there...
I think this is a very strong possibility. They love Pugh’s versatility—the best way I can describe the situation is they look at him much how the previous coaching staff looked at David Diehl when he was in his prime. (Diehl moved where ever they needed him without fanfare and he played well.)
I think we also need to remember that after showing signs of having turned the corner, Bobby Hart struggled when the regular season began—he also struggled through his ankle injury. The line has been playing much better without Hart, who I’ve never thought was a good fit for tackle, and I really like how the run blocking has improved on that side. I would leave Fluker and Pugh there if it were my call, but we’ll see if the coaches agree.
Who/what was key to getting the team in such a positive mood.
Being in a good mood as a team starts with an individual being in the right frame of mind. Speaking for myself here, there are days I wake up and everything just goes smoothly and that puts me in the best of moods. I’m sure the same thing happens with everyone else on the face of the planet.
With all that said, I think McAdoo’s “Us vs. the world” speech might have been just enough to fire up the right people in that locker room who then went and fired up the rest of the locker room. When you’re down and out and you have someone making an impassioned speech professing how much they believe in you regardless of what has happened, I think that would be more than enough to put anyone in a positive mood.
How well do Sullivan and Spags work together?
Both men have very pleasing personalities and demeanors—seriously, you couldn’t ask for two friendlier and easy-going people on that staff. I find both to have warmth and caring ways about them and each has a good enough sense of humor.
With that said, both have totally different jobs to where they don’t really have to intermingle with one another, so I suppose even if they hated each other, it wouldn’t really matter since they’re equals and they have their own staffs and responsibilities to worry about.
Does the Giants organization under Reese seem to be too vertical to you? There seems to be too many layers between the scouts and Reese.
Not at all. Jerry used to be a scout. He understands the work they put in and has a greater appreciation for it than most. To that end, I think he’s also a little more, shall we say, accepting of when they miss on prospects because again, he’s been in their shoes and he understands the drill.
Do you think Vereen is underutilized?
To the naked eye, yes. But I think there is a reason for that: his durability. Vereen is never going to be an every-down back in this league because he’s shown he can’t hold up to the beatings an every-down back takes. And let’s be real here—he is an asset on third downs—too valuable to lose to an injury when you have other guys who can pound the rock on first and second down. The result is Vereen appears to be “underutilized” but, they’re getting just enough out of him.
McAdoo said that the team worked very hard in the week leading up to the Denver Game. What does that mean?
There was no hidden meaning in Ben’s words, so I’d take McAdoo’s comments at face value within the context of what it means for a football team to work hard, e.g. paying attention to details, dotting the Is and crossing the Ts, and doing all the little things necessary to put themselves in the best position to win.
As I explained to Gordon, some of the questions received were covered in the Inside Football subscription product. I hope you understand, but I have to draw a line as to what I share for free and what I reserve for the folks whose financial support helps to offset the expenses.
I will be setting up a specially priced package for the BBWC community that would give you access to the weekly issues and which would include a free trial issue. I really think you’ll find those issues very in-depth as we break down every player and we also break down strategy and other things related to the team and the game.
Here is a link to a full sample issue for anyone that might be interested. insidefootball.com/inside-football-full-sample-issue/ (Note from Gordon: I will be posting a separate thread with the ordering information and discount code)
In the offseason I devote issues to the salary cap and free agency and of course the draft. I know a couple of you submitted questions about those areas and to that I say it’s too early to address those. Covering a pro team is a 7-day a week affair so I have done no work on the salary cap or the draft to where I can even offer speculation.
Lastly for those who missed the cutoff on the weekly questions, you can always submit them to me on Twitter (use hashtag #AskPat to @patricia_Traina). I usually open my general mailbag starting Wednesday with a goal of getting the mailbag up by Saturday.
You can also send your questions via the READER INTERACTIVE form on InsideFootball.com.
Thanks again for the feedback and the questions—and above all, for being so welcoming of me on this community!
Here are my answers to this week's questions:
Does Orleans Darkwa have a RB he modeled himself after? How does he feel about his current opportunity and what comments might he have about the work he has put in as a guy that has stuck around the roster for a few years?
I wrote a feature on Orleans when he was a rookie for Bleacher Report when he was a rookie. He spoke about Eddie George as being one of his role models.
Darkwa has since that he’s grateful for the opportunity and that he intends to make the most of it. People need to remember he dealt with injuries the last two years and this year for the first time he’s fully healthy. He also credited Rashad Jennings for teaching him how to prepare like a pro, so it’s been nice to see how far he’s come along.
With the success albeit only 1 game at the running game.... will they stick with Jones @ Center and not let Richburg back into the lineup? Do the Giants consider him undersized? How do you see his presence affecting free agency negotiations with Richburg?
My guess is that when Richburg comes back, Jones will move to left guard. If I’m the Giants coaches, I leave the line as is until such time when there’s an injury or I don’t see the consistency building. I like this current configuration and while I don’t believe in Wally Pipping a guy, it would be a shame to upset the apple cart in this instance.
Is Pugh at Right Tackle for the rest of the season? Eli looks much more comfortable in the pocket in the games that Pugh has played at RT compared to how he's looked with Hart out there...
I think this is a very strong possibility. They love Pugh’s versatility—the best way I can describe the situation is they look at him much how the previous coaching staff looked at David Diehl when he was in his prime. (Diehl moved where ever they needed him without fanfare and he played well.)
I think we also need to remember that after showing signs of having turned the corner, Bobby Hart struggled when the regular season began—he also struggled through his ankle injury. The line has been playing much better without Hart, who I’ve never thought was a good fit for tackle, and I really like how the run blocking has improved on that side. I would leave Fluker and Pugh there if it were my call, but we’ll see if the coaches agree.
Who/what was key to getting the team in such a positive mood.
Being in a good mood as a team starts with an individual being in the right frame of mind. Speaking for myself here, there are days I wake up and everything just goes smoothly and that puts me in the best of moods. I’m sure the same thing happens with everyone else on the face of the planet.
With all that said, I think McAdoo’s “Us vs. the world” speech might have been just enough to fire up the right people in that locker room who then went and fired up the rest of the locker room. When you’re down and out and you have someone making an impassioned speech professing how much they believe in you regardless of what has happened, I think that would be more than enough to put anyone in a positive mood.
How well do Sullivan and Spags work together?
Both men have very pleasing personalities and demeanors—seriously, you couldn’t ask for two friendlier and easy-going people on that staff. I find both to have warmth and caring ways about them and each has a good enough sense of humor.
With that said, both have totally different jobs to where they don’t really have to intermingle with one another, so I suppose even if they hated each other, it wouldn’t really matter since they’re equals and they have their own staffs and responsibilities to worry about.
Does the Giants organization under Reese seem to be too vertical to you? There seems to be too many layers between the scouts and Reese.
Not at all. Jerry used to be a scout. He understands the work they put in and has a greater appreciation for it than most. To that end, I think he’s also a little more, shall we say, accepting of when they miss on prospects because again, he’s been in their shoes and he understands the drill.
Do you think Vereen is underutilized?
To the naked eye, yes. But I think there is a reason for that: his durability. Vereen is never going to be an every-down back in this league because he’s shown he can’t hold up to the beatings an every-down back takes. And let’s be real here—he is an asset on third downs—too valuable to lose to an injury when you have other guys who can pound the rock on first and second down. The result is Vereen appears to be “underutilized” but, they’re getting just enough out of him.
McAdoo said that the team worked very hard in the week leading up to the Denver Game. What does that mean?
There was no hidden meaning in Ben’s words, so I’d take McAdoo’s comments at face value within the context of what it means for a football team to work hard, e.g. paying attention to details, dotting the Is and crossing the Ts, and doing all the little things necessary to put themselves in the best position to win.