Rangers Land C/F Chris McCarthy from Vermont

The Rangers have "signed" Vermont C/LW Chris McCarthy.  I say "signed" because they are currently at the 50 contract limit, so they'll have to give him a Hartford ATO for now, then officially sign him when room becomes available.   He scored more than a point a game this year, has good size and is known for his leadership abilities.  The Sharks had tried to sign him last year, but he decided to finish school.

As we mentioned the other day, the Rangers are down a bunch of picks at this point and must really shop the UDFA market now that the college season is ending a kids are free to sign.  Wouldn't be surprised if they hit it two more times.

Giants Second Rounders of Note

I mentioned yesterday that the Giants have been historically great in the second round (overall better than any of their other rounds) and today, for fun I thought I'd list some of them, starting off with #92 Michael Strahan but just off the top of my head, so some will be in order and some will be out of order, but I'm just listing them as a group, not rating their careers or anything.

Okay so it's:

Michael Strahan

Leonard Marshall

Chris Snee

Tiki Barber

Amani Toomer

Jason Sehorn

Brad Van Pelt

Mark Collins

Erik Howard

Pepper Johnson

Jumbo Elliot

Linval Joseph

Cornelius Griffin

Terrell Thomas

Steve Smith

Corey Webster

Osi Umenyiora

Joe Jurevicius

Scott Gragg

Phillipi Sparks

Mike Fox

Little Joe Morris

Earnest Gray

Buddy Dial

Sam DeLuca

There are a few more, but the Giants superior seconds really started with George Young.  Interestingly, in the early years of the draft, the Giants must have been routinely trading their seconds because they'd have 1st and 3rds and no seconds listed in the record books.

Anyway, the list I showed you comprised much of the core group of 5 NFC champions and 4 Super Bowl Winners.   We got Mark Collins, Erik Howard, and Pepper Johnson all in the same round and also got Greg Lasker who looked good at first and flamed out, in the 1986 draft.

So this is why it's important not to squander seconds as the Giants did on Sinorice Moss,  Clint Sintim and Marvin Austin.

Giants Re-Sign Mike Patterson

Jerry Reese continued his running re-build today by re-inking DT Mike Patterson to a new deal.  That means they have scotch guarded the DT rotation as well as the defensive backfield.  This really both protects them going into the draft, and ideally allows them to go BPA, but I think they will end up doing that within certain position groups, this year.   They really, really need a big draft, and picking in the top half of the draft should help them.  But they'll need health luck, and to stop defaulting to taking major college/conference stiffs in the late rounds.

Giants Sign CB Zack Bowman

Wow!   The Giants had been rumored to be about to sign Bowman a week and a half ago.  Then it seemed like it could have just been a rumor, but they have indeed added Bowman.   Bowman's a good depth CB and a terrific special teamer.    Man, are the Giants ever deep in the backfield going into the 2015 season.

I'd like to see them extend Prince Amukamara while they're at it so that they don't have to take any CB's during the draft.  They may not anyway, but Prince is in his walk year, so they either have to sign him or think about replacing him.

The Giant Pass Rush

For decades, and through their last two Super Bowl wins, the Giants have been known for their pass rush.   However; over the past two seasons, the pass rush has been largely absent.    Two of the major reasons, have been the injury related decline of JPP, and the departure of Osi Umenyiora, who was always good for 6-10 sacks, even in a bad year and had to be accounted for whenever he was on the field.

Tuck rallied late in 2013, but now he's gone, too.  Still there were other reasons why the rush declined.  First, other teams were committing to shorter drops and more protection, allowing them to get their throws off before the rush could get them.  Second, the Giants didn't supplement the front four with many effective blitzes.  And thirdly, the Giants had a dearth of coverage sacks.

During free agency, the Giants haven't added anyone who can rush the passer from a basic set, but they really have strengthened their coverage, which should buy the pass rush some extra time to get there, and lead to more turnovers, if not more sacks.   Also, maybe one of the new DB's will be a good blitzer.   I remember Sehorn being a great one back in `96 and `97.

Also, they probably have to find another pass rusher in the draft.   There are a bunch of good pass rushing LB's in the draft, starting with Barr.  But the Giants don't use their LB's to rush passers, so unless they think they can make one into a Simeon Rice type 4-3 weak side end, they should look among the DL's.

The one who might be at 12 is Pittsburgh's Aaron Donald.  He's listed as an undersized DT, at 6 feet and 286 or so, but he runs like a fast linebacker or a safety.   Though, I would still rather get an OL in the the first, Donald would really fill a couple of holes for the Giants.

They have long sought a 3 tech DT who could play next to a big nose, these days, to put next to Johnathan Hankins on passing downs.  Donald could do that. And that would save the Giants from having to move JPP or Moore or Kiwi inside on passing downs, like they used to with Tuck.    So there really is a role for Donald if he's the pick.

There are some other DE's who can rush the passer who will be available later, like Crichton, Jeffcoat, DeMarcus Lawrence and, my small school favorite Elhadje Ndiaye out of Nebraska-Kearney, so we should be able to still fortify the rush even if we pass on Donald or if he's not available at 12.

Talbot Shuts Out Oilers

Cam Talbot recorded the third shutout of his rookie season as the Rangers scored a 5-0 victory over the oilers tonight.    Nash had two goals, both assisted by Stepan and MZA also had two goals, one of which was assisted by Stepan.   MZA also assisted on a Brassard goal.   One of both Nash and MZA's goals were shorties.   Just a great bounce back effort coming off of the disaster in Calgary.   Stepan now has 37 assists and MZA has 36.  You have to wonder how many they might have had with normal off seasons and no injuries.  Nash seems to really be stepping back up, hopefully it carries through the post season.     St. Louis is still searching.   It could have been an even bigger blow out but for some weird bounces and reffing in the first period.

Giant Drafting Problems

This month, the Giants had to make a huge cash outlay to start bandaging a roster beset by injuries and bad players.   The injuries might just be bad luck, but the bad players have been on the roster because, between the two recent Superbowl wins, the Giants stopped maximizing their picks and dancing with what brung them.

Let's take a look back, starting in `07.   We'll start there because that was Jerry Reese's last year as board meister in the Giants Draft room.   Since then, Marc Ross has been setting up the big board, and he's either been unlucky or just sort of unsuccessful in keeping the Giants stocked with the sorts of players they need to win Super Bowls.

2007

2007 marked the year that Jerry Reese took over as GM.   That year he did double duty running the draft board as well.  After the 2007 season,  the Giants won the Super Bowl, so that draft was hailed as a great one.   In actuality, it wasn't that great.   They took Aaron Ross with the 20th pick of the first, because they couldn't work a trade up to get Revis.  Ross was an older prospect, who was sort of okay, but never played like a first round corner.  Steve Smith was the second round pick.  He made a great play in Super Bowl 42, then went on to have a Pro Bowl year, and nice career with the Giants.  His career was ruined by injuries.  That was bad luck.  In the third, they took Jay Alford.  He had a crucial sack in SB 42, then had his career derailed by injuries.  More bad luck.  In the fourth they took Zack DeOssie and he's still with the team.   We've won two SB's with him anchoring the punt coverage team, and he'll probably go down as the all time Giant long snapper.  In the fifth, they took Kevin Bosss.  Great pick, derailed by injury.  In the sixth they took Adam Koets, sort of the first of their late round OL flyers.  They were trying to make him a C when his career was cut short by injuries.  In the seventh they took S Michael Johnson (injury shortened) and Ahmad Bradshaw - their best pick in the draft, and a huge contributor to two titles.

Now, though that draft is historically overrated, it is really only that way because Ross wasn't a great pick, and so many of the other good to great picks had their careers cut short. But they got solid to outstanding value/production from each spot, so the picking was good, even though the health luck was not.

2008

This was where Marc Ross took over the board.  We've won another SB since then, because he hit on some first rounders, but our depth has been crappy because he's had bad luck and missed outside of the first.

In 2008, the Giants were picking last.  It was actually the second time in 2 years that they had the last pick in the first round.   That was because in 2006 they traded down and took Kiwi.  Then they screwed it up by trading back up for Sinorice Moss.   Yikes!  

So, with their first pick they took Kenny Phillips.   And he really looked the part of a first rounder till he got hurt and his career fell apart.  In the second round, they to Terrell Thomas, another guy who looked like a fantastic pick -- big physical corner -- until his knees went to hell.  The Giants actually won Super Bowl 46 without T2, which sort of seemed unimaginable when he got hurt.    In the third round, the Giants took Mario Manningham.  Great pick, huge Super Bowl hero and back with the team now.   In the fourth round, they traded up a bit to take Bryan Kehl.  This was a terrible wast of two picks.  I think he may still be in the league, but as a Giant he was, perhaps, the least physical LB in Giant history.  Just embarrassing.   In the fifth, they took Jonathan Goff, who was much better than Kehl, till he got hurt and declined.  In the sixth, they took Andre Woodson, the first of their squandered QB picks that could have been depth picks.  And with their second 6th rounder they took Robert Henderson and big DE with a quick first step.

In all, the 2008 draft was a nice effort under the new board guy.   Phillips, Thomas, Mario and Goff all looked like big time, winning type Giants at times.   But things were about to get bad.

2009

This is really where our current problems started.  2009 was that rare year, where they Giants had 2 2nd round picks and 2 third round picks.  George Young would have absolutely cleaned up with those four picks.   Marc Ross went 1 for 4 and the one is Will Beatty, so it sort of depends on what you think of him.

With the 29th pick of the first, they took Hakeem Nicks, who was on course to be the Giants greatest receiver of all time, till injuries and alienation ended that hope.  Still, a huge reason we got to and won Super Bowl 46.   Drafted to address the loss of Plax -- he was better than Plax.  Great pick.

Then the disaster started.  In the second, they took Clint Sintim over Masx Unger.  I've written endlessly about that awful pick.  It was even awful when it happened as both of the Giants sites I pay attention to exploded with discontent.   Sintim had none of the measurables the Giants favor in their prospects and the pick seemed to have been plucked from someone's butt.  Just a terrible, franchise blasting pick.

Later in the second, they took Will Beatty.   Beatty has started at LT for the Giants, and at times looked good.  In general, it took him too long to unseat Dave Diehl, and when he did he got injured.  He's injured again now, but he did play well enough for awhile to earn a second contract.

In the third, where they still had chances to hit some other areas, they drafted Ramses Barden and Travis Beckham.   These were disastrous picks that did nothing to help the roster either in 2009 or going forward. They should have gotten at least 1 and probably 2 Giants out of this round but they got none.

In the fourth, they got Andre Brown.   He got hurt, got cut, got picked up by other teams, then came back and did alright.  He's currently he's a free agent with an injury history and a fumble history.

They blew their 5th, 6th and 7th picks on Rhett Bomar, another wasted QB pick,  DeAndre Wright, a DB and Stony Woodson another DB.   Three more horrible, depth defying picks.

By the way, there is some thought that the 2009 draft was just sort of universally bad as a talent pool. Still, that does not excuse taking Clint Sintim over Max Unger, or the squandering of the thirds.

2010

The Giants had a great set up for 2010, starting with the 15th pick of the first round.

As you recall, the Giants harkened back to their "draft physical freaks" credo and did a really good job.   They took Jason Pierre Paul out of South Florida in the first, and before his health and conditioning went South, he was looking like the Next Great Giant Defender and contributed hugely to the last championship season.

In the second, they struck gold again, with Linval Joseph out of East Carolina.  He turned out to be a more than worthy successor to Barry Cofield at DT, and, had bad drafting not forced us into all these free agent deals this offseason, Linval's deal with Minnesota probably would have gotten us a decent pick next year.

In the third, tragedy struck.   The Giants drafted Chad Jones, a super athletic S prospect out of LSU.  He'd also been a baseball draft pick, and looked like a really good pick.  Unfortunately, he was badly injured in a car accident on the way home from mini-camp and never played a down for the Giants.   Just awful.   Can't fault the Giants at all for the pick.

We can fault them for picking Phil Dillard in the fourth down.  He was a craptastical MLB from Nebraska, whom, at the very least they reached like crazy to get.   This brings up one of the areas where either Marc Ross or the scouts have gone wrong - actually it's two of the areas.  First, they seem to have a preference for big schools over the smaller schools that Jerry used to use to find gems.        For some reason they feel more comfortable failing with brand name school picks, than doing a little more work and finding an under scouted kid. That's been one of the big factors in our current roster dilemma.

Of course, the second big problem has been their absolutely awful record of drafting linebackers.  Holy crap, have they ever lost their historically deft tough at LB's and it goes way back.   But Dillard was yet another guy they took for the position who just couldn't play.  Awful pick, and the Giants had, at least for awhile, been a good round 4 team.  Historically, they've been a great round 2 team, btw.

In the fifth they took Mitch Petrus.  Strongest guy in the draft, other than Linval Joseph and a former full back who just kept growing or injecting.   There used to be a video on Giants.com of Jerry Reese just raving about what a nasty Rich Seubert-like guy Petrus was.  The video disappeared almost immediately, but Jerry kept dropping his name, and had a lot of us thinking that we had a guy.  Alas, he looked okay at first, then came back and stunk and got cut. Not a Dave Diehl fifth round value at all, not so much as a Kevin Boss.

In the sixth, the took Adrian Tracy.  He had a quick first step as a pass rusher, but instead of using him as a specialist on passing downs, they idiotically tried to make him a SAM for awhile.  When they finally decided to let him use his first step, he got hurt.

In the seventh they took Matt Dodge.  They did that because he had a big leg, and they thought Feagles could teach him to directionally kick.  He couldn't.  No value.


2011

In 2011 the Giants were picking 19th on their way back to the SB.   With the 19th pick, they took Prince Amukamara, a falling prospect who represented big value and has played like a first round corner over the past two seasons.

In the second round, they outsmarted themselves.  They too DT Marvin Austin, out of UNC.  He was actually out of UNC before he should have been, having missed an entire season under suspension for meeting with an agent.   On his old tape, he looked like Warren Sapp.   Of course, he hadn't played in forever, and got hurt as soon as they picked him.   He never locked up a spot in the rotation and was not able to be that under tackle to Linval's nose that the Giants were dreaming of.

This turned out to be a terrible pick both for the 2011 team and every team since.   The Giants have historically been a great second round team, and whiffing on a 2 like this, just as with Sintim has had brutal repercussions.

In the third they took Jerrel Jernigan out of Troy.   He ran into bad luck with injuries and the meteoric rise of Victor Cruz in the slot.  The coaches didn't seem to like him, and that might have caused friction between the coaches and the front office and ownership, as John Mara brought up Jernigan in his end of the season postmortem.    Jernigan finally got to play WR down the stretch this year and looked like a weapon.  Could still turn out of be a good pick.

In the fourth, they took James Brewer, a big tackle out of Indiana, who had long arms and decent feet. Looked like a guy, but has not played like one at all.  In fact, he's been moved inside to guard and failed to distinguish himself.  Another big reason we have to rebuild the offensive line.

They had no 5th, I think that might have been the Keith Rivers pick.

They had three 6ths, and in a nutshell, revealed that big school/conference flaw in their thinking.   They took Greg Jones, a mike from MSU, then, Tyler Sash, a safety from Iowa, then Jacquian Williams from South Florida.  Williams is the only one who could play at all, and he was from the smallest program.  It took them three tries in a single round to get a guy.

In the seventh they took, Da'Rell Scott, a really fast RB who looked like he might be a guy, but got passed on the depth chart when they drafted another fast RB in the first the following year.

2012

In 2012, the Giants were picking last again thanks to another thrilling Super Bowl win.   They won that title because they had three good WR's, still had Bradshaw and big Jake, got a late season rally from their declining OL, their young DL's and FA Chris Canty, and because Eli Manning is one of the greatest big game QB's of all time.

With the last pick of the first round in 2012 the Giants took David Wilson first, he's been electrifying when not injured or in the coaches' dog house, but now may be at a career crossroads after spinal fusion.

In the second, they took Rueben Randle.  He's been up and down so far, but reminds no one of Hakeem Nicks, and they probably shouldn't be counting on him to replace Nicks.  He could still have upside, but a scary percentage of his targeted throws last year ended up going to other way.

In the third, they took Jayron Hosley.  He's looked okay at times, but I don't think he can beat out Thurmond for slot corner, and may not be able to beat out Holliday or Demps on returns this year, if they let him compete there.

In the fourth, they took the JPP of TE's in Adrien Robinson out of Cincinnati.   We're still waiting on him to get his first catch, and are currently in a stated of  TE panic as a fan base.

With their second 4th, they took Brandon Mosley.  He looked horrible before getting DL'd in his first camp.  He then looked somewhat encouraging before getting hurt last year.   They sort of really need him to be a guy, but they'd be foolish to think he's part of the solution going into the draft.

They didn't have a 5th here, either, so that might have been the Keith Rivers pick.

In the sixth they took Matt McCants, who didn't make the Giants but was playing for the Raiders as a tackle last year.

In the seventh, they took Marcus Kuhn, an overage prospect out of Germany at DT.  He got right into the rotation, but was pushed around a lot before succumbing to injury.   He'll be back to to compete for a spot this year.


2013

2013 saw the Giants finally return to some of their classic values.  

With the 19th pick in the first, they took Justin Pugh.   This was the highest they had taken an OL since Luke Petigout.  He was able to step in and start at RT as a rookie, and looked just like the guys we have always won with.  Earlier this offseason I said he was the model for the rebuild and we needed to get back to the classic archetypal  OL's we'v traditionally won with.

In the second, they took a big DT in Johnathan Hankins as insurance against Linval leaving. He was able to get into the rotation last year and looked good against double teams.  Could be another Linval, and they didn't screw up the pick by trying to find a 3 tech.

In the third, they took a long pass rushing DE in DeMontre Moore out of Texas A&M.   Moore needs to gain some lower body strength, but he made big plays when given chances as a rookie, and that's never a bad thing.  Still, he may not be ready to step in for Tuck quite yet.

In the fourth, they either lost their minds a little or made a good move by picking QB Ryan Nassib.   Opinions are divergent on this guy, and he did nothing to distinguish himself in his first training camp.  Still he has a good arm, and a great Wonderlic, so he should have no problem learning, and could even become useful as a back up or trade chip in the future.

In the fifth, they went for Cooper Taylor, a super athletic big safety, who looked like he might be a player before getting hurt last season.  He'll compete for a spot this year.

In the sixth, they took big guard Eric Herman from University of Ohio.    He was relegated to the PSquad last year, but since he was from a lower level, he might still have upside and could still be a guy.   Snee mentioned that he was working out with Herman and Pugh this offseason (where's Mosley?) in his Giants.com article this week.  Don't know if that means anything, but I think all young Giant OL's should hang out with Snee as much as they can before he is gone.

In the seventh, the Giants took RB Michael Cox, an athletic guy, who didn't play much in college, and didn't look at all instinctive when given chances as a rookie.   His roster spot is probably up for grabs.

Okay, so what have we learned about these past several drafts?  The jury is still out of a few of them, but these drafts are the big reason we had to shell out for so many FA's this offseason.

We've never had had top 10 picks during these years, and have generally drafted pretty late - even last on two occasions.

Clearly, there have been huge injury problems and in some cases tragedies, as otherwise good solid picks have seen their careers cut short, or in the case of Chad Jones, destroyed by health problems.  We cannot blame the Giants for those.

But they've also blown two huge second round picks, with Sintim and Austin.  The Giants just can't afford to do that, and yet they've done it twice under Ross.

What's more, they seemed to get away from the small school picks that yielded players like Osi and Shiancoe, in favor of going for major college/conference "sleepers" like Dillard, Brewer, Jones and Sash, all of whom missed.   This preference was seen very clearly in the 6th round of the 2011 draft where they took Jones and Sash before getting their one guy who could play with Williams from a smaller, but ascendant program.

They have been horrible at drafting LB's and, until Pugh, OL's for a long time.   They have never been able to hit on a 3-tech DT, nor have they been able to successfully convert a 3-4 LB into either a 4-3 LB or DE, though they've wasted picks trying.   Also, they have thrown 4 picks at QB's Andre Woodson, Rhett Bomar and Ryan Nassib, none of whom has come close to being worth it, though Nassib could still redeem his cost.

So there you have it, the last several draft,s and some disconcerting patterns, have created the roster problems that the Giants have now tried spending their way out of.

Meanwhile, because of the cap the Giants can't get all the way out of their roster issues now.   And they may not be able to draft their way out of them this year, even starting with nice pick placement at 12.   They really do need more picks, or at least to make better picks than they have generally over the era that stared in `08.     We'll see if they do, or if we're headed for even better draft position next year.

Rangers Tonight

Tonight the Rangers move onto Edmonton with Cam Talbot finally in net.    After that disaster Friday, they had to do something.   Needless to say, the play hard for 60 rule is still in effect.  And, really, any time would be a good time for Martin St. Louis to start contributing.  And Nash needs to pick it back up given the injury to Kreider.  Let's go, Rangers.

This Week on the Blog

This should be a fun week on the blog.

Yankees:  The Yanks will open their season Tuesday in Houston.  They've looked good on the mound, but the infield is still sketchy.  We'll see if they can get off the a good start.   They still have to make a move on the 40 man roster for Solarte.  And I'm sure they'd still like to trade Ichiro.

Rangers:  The Rangers still look like they're making the playoffs.  Meanwhile, they could also make another signing or two from this seasons undrafteds, a few more of whom will become available as their college teams are eliminated.

Giants: At some point, the Giants will probably make a few more signings to bandage some spots and allow them their BPA preference during the draft.  Maybe some of the will happen this week.

Knicks:  As unlikely as it should be the Knicks are still in the playoff hunt.  But they really won't get interesting again until Phil Jackson starts making some moves.  In the meantime, they could actually stumble into the post season.

So it should be a fun week here, and I hope it's also a fun one for all of you.

Solarte Makes the Yanks

The unheralded and largely unknown Yangervis Solarte has made the Yankee roster out of camp.   That means the perennially disappointing Eduardo Nunez is going to camp.   I like that they this represents a meritocracy rather than rendering camp competition null and void, because Solarte had the the much better Spring.   He and Dean Anna both made the team to star the year, and that's fair.   Betances and Nuno also made it in the pen.  I think have Phelps, Warren and Nuno who are all starters, in the pen to start the season, could become problematical.

They need to find a spot of the 40 man roster for Solarte, before the actual games begin.   They still haven't hit on any trades, but maybe they will by Monday.

Yanks Setting Roster

The Yanks are currently in meetings to try to figure out their first 25 man roster for the season.    We should soon know if there will be more or less of Nunez, and whether or not Betances has made the team.   Unfortunately the infield still looks a mess, and Ichiro is still hanging around.   Sub optimal, but it feels like the Yanks rotation should keep them in a lot of games from the start.    Let's hope they have the right BP.

Rangers Tonight

First things first, Chris Kreider is having surgery on his injured hand today and we wish him the best. Seems he'll be out indefinitely, thus everyone else has to step it up.   They can't just roll into Calgary and expect to be handed two points, though this should probably be a Talbot game.    Still waiting for St. Louis to wake up, and still concerned about both ticks we punted for him.    The Rangers are going to have to keep shopping the UDFA market if they want to make up for their lack of picks.   Anyway, no excuse for not making it 6 straight if they play hard.   Let's go, Rangers.

The Giants Need More Picks

The Giants have signed a bunch of guys in free agency, and more or less bandaged things up so they don't have to reach in the draft.  Still, the team's talent level hasn't soared with the signings, and the draft remains the place where they can get their hands on the most unsullied talent.

Right now, the Giants have 7 picks in rounds, with 2 5th's and no 7th.  Now they need more picks.  There are a few ways to get more picks.   First, they can trade down from 12, probably during the draft.  That would be optimal, giving them another second day pick, and allowing them to hit OL twice and TE and WR once in those first 4 picks.

The next way is to trade roster players.  They don't do that often and their roster doesn't have the spare talent it usually does.

Finally, they can trade future picks.  They almost never do this during the offseason -- usually saving those picks for someone like Beason, who comes up in season -- and I don't expect them to start now. That said, the way they have gone after FA's this year makes me think they're looking for a big turnaround this year, so they might.

It's going to be a very attractive red chip draft and the Giants can really help themselves if they get more picks, especially for Day 2.

Rangers Win Again!

Man, Ryan McDonagh is great.  He scored again tonight on what turned out to be the game winner.   That's two in a row, as the Rangers beat the Flyers 3-1.  Hank was very good again and had a shutout going till late in the third (he must hold the Rangers recored for those as well).  Meanwhile, the 4th line had another good game as Dorsett and DMoore both scored.   Miller played and took a penalty.   Diaz played again and drew one.   Big win down a couple of horses.   Huge 2 points.   Let's go, Rangers!

Rangers Tonight

JT Miller returns for the billionth time tonight as the Rangers take on the Flyers.   This should be a high intensity game, so even with the injuries and flu, the Rangers will have to come put flying.  Hank is back in the net, and it's an 8 pm start for some reason.  Usually, they start at 7 on the East Coast.   Anyway, still waiting on a St. Louis goal, and we need our remaining players to step up.  Let's go, Rangers!

Rangers: Kreider Out, Could be Long Term

Chris Kreider, the Rangers dynamic young forward, will mist at least tomorrow night's game with a thus far undisclosed injury.   It was originally said to be a broken hand and a 4 week injury, but that hasn't been confirmed by the team.  They will probably call up JT Miller if it's long term. I cannot tell you how many late season injuries the Rangers have gotten that hurt their playoff chances in just my lifetime, but the number is big and this is just the latest.   Godspeed in your recovery, Chris.

Yankees: Pineda Named 5th Starter

27 Months after the deal that rocked the Yankee System, Michael Pineda is finally joining the Yankee rotation.   This gives the Yanks yet another mid-20s starter with upside to go along with Nova and Tanaka.   If they pitch well, we can call them the "Ahs."   But this is actually a pretty exciting time to be a Yankee fan, outside of the abysmal infield situation, because if CC is anything like CC or just adjusts to diminished stuff like a lot of big lefties have over the years, we could have an rotation that keeps us in games most of the time.    The pen hasn't been announced, but it should be strong and getting stronger as the season progresses and some of the power relievers from the minors graduate.

It still would not surprise me if the Yankees did something about the infield in the next few days.

Rangers Win in OT!

The Rangers came from down 2-0 then 3-2 to tie the game and send it to OT, before Ryan McDonagh, who already had two assists on the night, scored the game winner.   People, he is turning into a superstar before our very eyes.  If there is nothing else to remember this year for, it will be that McD went from good to great.    Richards, Brassard and Girardi had the other three goals.  Pouliot had 2 assists, and so did Hagelin.   MZA and Girardi also had assists.    Bit two points on a night when Philly finally lost in regulation.   McD really should be the next captain.   Thought it should be Staal, but now I really think this is turning into McD's team.   Let's go, Rangers!

Giants Receive A Compensatory 5th Rounder

The Giants today received only one compensatory pick for the coming draft.  It's a fifth rounder.  As you know, compensatory picks cannot be traded.   I put up the picture of David Diehl because he's the least really great 5th rounder that we've taken. Boss was good, too, till injuries.   Probably before the draft I'll try to take a look at our diminishing draft returns of late.  Some of it has been bad health luck, in some other cases it's just been bad picks.     I've probably gone one enough about the Clint Sintim Blunder.   So I'll pull up some other examples.  I think they common thread we'll find will be places where they forced picks instead of taking BPA which is their avowed model, Phil Dillard, I'm looking at you.  

Anyway, the Giants now have 7 picks, having given  their original 7th rounder for Beason last season.

This Week on the Blog

Sorry I didn't get to this over the weekend -- tournament.   Anyway, should be a pretty interesting week for at least a few of our teams.

Yankees:  The Yanks have to strart finalizing their 25 man roster to start the season.   They're trying to trade Ichiro and could still use infield help.   They will also name the 5th starter tomorrow.  Joe Girardi has already listed CC, Kuroda, Nova and Tanaka as the first 4.    They could also still make a trade or two to clarify things/get infield help.  And it will be interesting to see how they compose the bullpen.   Some of the kids like Betances and Lewis have been great.

Giants:  The Giants will keep working on their roster.  Today they will learn which comp pick or picks they will be getting for the draft.  Could be an extra 4 or 5 and maybe a 7.   They need as many as they can get, because they still have a roster problem.

Rangers: The team is battling the flu and their way into the playoffs.  They have to just minimize the effects of the bug, get contributions from those who can go, and keep chugging.

Knicks:  Knicks finally lost last night, and their playoff hopes dimmed even more.  Doesn't seem like Phil will add anyone to the front office or staff this week, but, you never know.

So all and all it should be a compelling week for everyone but the Knicks.

Rangers Tonight

The Rangers play Phoenix tonight, but Derek Stepan and Martin St. Louis are both down with the flu.  Could that mean Ryan Haggerty will make his debut?  Perhaps.   Anyway, this is a game where they should be playing Talbot.   Some of the writers are saying now is the time to ride Hank, but we've all see Hank tire out in the playoffs after having been asked to do too much to get them there.   The Rangers should be finding a game or two for Talbot down this stretch, he won't get one in the playoffs.    They'll probably move Dom Moore to the first line to replace Step if he can't go.    Let's go, Rangers!

UPDATE:  JT Miller has been called up for the game.  Let's hope he scores a hat trick and they have to keep him.   They're a better team with him.

Rangers Win 2-0 as Hank Sets the Franchise Shutout Record

Hank was perfect tonight and we needed him to be, as the offense was back in the tank.   No goals were scored till the middle of the second when Nash scored from Stepan and Kreider.  Then in the waning seconds of the third, Stepan scored and empty netter.  He now has 50 points.  Not so bad considering his horrible start after holding out.   This is another huge 2 points for the Rangers, and boy did they need them.   Philly won again today.   Sheesh.   Okay, if they just keep beating whoever is in front of them, they will make the playoffs.   Let's Go, Rangers!

Rangers Tonight

Rangers play the Devils tonight and they've got to get 2 more points.  The Devils are another team that will try to hit the Rangers more than the Rangers hit, but the Rangers need to step up and keep showing the fire they showed in the third period last night.  But, they have to start the game doing it.  They wait around for big thirds too often, though they often get them.   Still waiting on Marty St. Louis to score a goal.  Tonight would be a good time.   Let's go, Rangers!

Rangers: Huge Win

In a sort of wild, physical game against the Blue Jackets, the Rangers came away with 2 huge points. The game was scoreless through 2 but then Columbus went up one nothing off a bad turnover in the first minute or so of the third.  The Rangers, though, answered right back with a goal from Stepan which was assisted by McD and Stralman.   Later, Brassard would put them ahead with a goal from Stralman and MZA.   Finally, Hagelin sealed the win with an unassisted empty netter.  Tonight, it was nice to see Rangers stand up for each other as Pouliot and Kreider did for Stepan and McD, and for themselves, as Nash finally did.    Could this be the game that really gets them going?  It sure was a test and they passed it.   Huge win.  LGR!

Giants Sign John Jerry

After talking to three or four other spare part OL's in FA, the Giants signed former Dolphin John Jerry.   He's was involved in that whole bullying scandal with Incognito, so we're not getting a high character guy.  What's more, he hasn't played well yet at the pro level after being a third rounder out of Ole Miss.   He's just 27, though so maybe he can improve a bit.  Otherwise, who needs him?  Let's hit OL 3 more times in the draft.

Rangers Tonight

The Rangers will be fighting for their playoff lives tonight as they head to Charlotte to play against the remnants of their 2009-2012 teams and others.    Listening to it on radio must be maddening because all of the names sound like Rangers.  Now, Nash got two goals last game and he's got to keep it up agains his old team.  And St. Louis has to score a goal some time, doesn't he?  The relative kids are playing well, and they've got to keep it up.   Huge game.  Probably a must win.  Let's go, Rangers!

Giants Are in No Man's Land With Pick 12

The more I think about this draft -- and the NFL has given us an extra month to do so this year -- I think the Giants are in no man's land having the 12th pick in the first round.  I've written a lot about the various draft our teams take part in over the years, and this one is yet another that features a relatively small number of blue chip players (Watkins, Mack, Clowney, Robinson) and then we get into a vast area of red chip players.  Now the red chip players are valuable because some of them will turn into blue chip pro's but you're getting them with less valuable picks than it would take to get a Clowney or a Watkins.

The players that are being projected to the Giants at 12 are guys like Lewan, who I've posted about, Mike Evan, Aaron Donald and Eric Ebron.  Lewan, aside, the others all come with risk more risk than a #12 pick should come with.  Donald is the best player of the bunch, but he's undersized and may or may not be able to stop the run.  The Giants have whiffed on a lot of three techs, too.   That said, if they have a conviction on Donald, that could be a good pick.  Ebron is also talented, but then he didn't post the 4.4 they thought he was going to at the combine and just didn't blow the doors off it as expected.  He has a high ceiling, but a Shiancoe floor, and you probably shouldn't spend the #12 pick on a guy like that.  Evans may not be able to separate at the next level and he also almost makes more great plays than he actually makes.  Too risky.

Anyway, as I look at is now, I think the Giants should try to trade down into the 15-20 range, and pick up an extra day 2 pick.  That would give them 4 picks in the great big red area instead of just three.  They could then start their picks with Zach Martin, the versatile OL from ND, and then go with a Davante Adams or other physical WR in the second, then a Troy Niklas and maybe the Center from USC or one of the RB's (Shankey, Seastrunk, Hill) with the other pick.  

Thus, with the uncertainty around the likely prospects at 12, the Giants should try to trade down.

Hank Sets the Wins Record!

Though the final was 8-4, Hank was better than his GA would indicate.  The D was simply lousy tonight.  Fortunately, the O finally came back.   Nash had 2, Brassard had 2,  Step had one, McD had another, Pouliot and John Moore also scored.  Nash's second was an empty netter, his first was a shorty on the kill.   Moore and Pouliot were both unassisted.  Brassard had an assist, so did MZA and MSL.   Sloppy game, but a very necessary 2 points for our boys.  Play better D, but keep scoring, Rangers!

Pineda Looking More Like a 1 Than a 5

Michael Pineda continued his resurgent Spring today by shutting down the Red Sox over his allotted 60 pitches, featuring velo from 91-94 and a knockout slider.  This is starting to look like really good news for the Yankees.   What with the way Tanaka is also pitching and the stuff Nova is showing, we could have three good starters on the right side of 30 to open the season.    CC finally pitched well in Panama, but remains a cause for concern.   But everyone else has looked at least promising and that's very good news, especially if the under-30s are ready for prime time.

Phil is Officially Back

The Knicks finally corrected their longest term mistake today by welcoming former championship era Knick, Phil Jackson back to the fold as basketball czar.    Sure he gained his early fame as a player then even more fame as a coach, but he really is one of the great basketball minds, and a disciple of the great Red Holzman, who was the only coach to ever get the Knicks to win!  

At his presser he spoke about establish support for players and playing team ball.   I got misty years ago when Larry Brown talked about team ball at his presser, but that went South in an instant.  But Phil Jackson is a True Knick, with both rings, who not only played within the team concept, but coached it to 11 titles for other teams, while he should have been coaching the Knicks.   Something in the universe has finally been corrected.

Phil said he believes in systems.   It would be nice if the Knicks finally had a comprehensive one.  Let's see what he comes up with.

Rangers Tonight

They are playing in Ottawa.  Same deal as every night, skate hard, get two points and stop this collapse.   Nash has to wake up and so does St. Louis, not to mention Richards who's been back in the tank.   Stepan and MZA have to remember to shoot the puck.   C'mon, Rangers!

Mario Returns

Mario Manningham rejoined the Giants today on a one year deal.  If he's healthy, he can sure help.   Though, he is their third #3 type receiver, if we go multiple a lot in this new offense, he should get open, and he should still be a willing blocker.   Welcome back, Mario!

Giants Remaining Needs

The Giants have shored up the defensive backfield, added two top return specialists, solidified the LB core, added a new thunder back and brought in a starting guard and probably a starting center thus far in FA.   So what else do they need?

First off, as I mentioned months ago, fixing the OL is job 1.   They've gotten two guys in free agency, and I expect them to draft a tackle, a guard and a C or a C/G when the draft rolls around in May.  Schwartz might be a medium term fix, but besides he and Pugh, everyone else including Snee, Beatty and Walton will be coming off of injuries, and must prove viability.   They just let Boothe go do the Raiders tonight, so they will probably hit it hard in the draft.

Tight End:  They have Adrien Robinson and Larry Donnell who are both big athletes but unproven, and cut a little high for the inline work.   They also have Daniel Fells who's bounced around for 5 years, and he could take the Bear Pascoe roll, but may or may not be able to start.   So they need another player or two there.

Wide Receiver:  Mario may be back tomorrow, but that still leaves them without a true number 1, unless you consider Cruz a #1.   He's still more of a unique guy, while Jernigan, Mario and Randle are all three different models of #3 receivers.  I haven't seen what I was expecting from Randle yet.   So they might be in the market for a clear #1 or clear #2 receiver.

Running Back:  They added Rashon Jennings and re-signed Hillis, but Wilson is still a medical mystery and they might want to pick up yet another RB who can be developed into an every down guy.

Defensive Line:  They are unusually thin here right now.   JPP is a mystery,  Kiwi has been underwhelming for a while now, and though Hankins and Jenkins look like they'll be solid, the DL is almost as thin as the OL at this point.  That cannot stand.

Linebackers:  They have two solid inside players in Beason and McClain, but Williams hasn't proven himself a three down guy yet, though he could and Paysinger and Herzlich still look best suited for depth.   They could use even more young talent here.

Defensive backs:  They're fine.  No worries.  Might have to extend or lose Prince next year, but still more than solid.

So that's what it looks like now.   What looked like a two offseason rebuild may only be a one offseason rebuild, especially of they can trade down from 12 and add more picks.

Trindon Holliday is a Giant

The Giants just added another explosive return man to go along with Demps.  Trindon Holliday, the shortest man in the NFL and a one time world class sprinter.    Another FA who's been around a bit and will have to make it in camp.  He may be too small a target for Eli, so he'll have to prove he can take it to the house in camp.

DRC is a Giant!

Holy crap.   Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie will now join Prince Amukamara as the starting corners for the New York Giants.  Giants are spending 5/35 for the well travelled 27 year old.  Guaranteed money seems to be 15M.   How funny is it that the John Mara called the offense broken, but they've thrown most of the FA money and spots on defense?   Get ready for a highly offensive draft.    The Giants now have what can only be considered a stacked defensive backfield.    DRC may not be as physical as we'd like, but Prince and the safeties are, and DRC is an elite cover guy whose turnovers should go back up in Fewell's system.  This is the best backfield Fewell has had since Buffalo, and with Beason on hand to run his D on the field, it should be much improved.   The Giants may have had to go to Antrel Rolle or Eli to make this happen.  We'll have to wait and see.

Giants Tomorrow

Tomorrow could be a big signing day for the Giants.  By the time I wake up on the west coast, they could have 0-4 new players.  Who knows?  Maybe more.  Most will be low dollar guys like Mario Manningham and Anthony Spencer.   One could be DRC.  He won't be low dollars but will tip the back seven into a force.   So the news could be fast as furious while I'm in dreamland.   So, just post what you're seeing, and I'll write it up when I catch up.   Have a great day!  Go Giants!

This Week on the Blog

Should be pretty interesting.

Knicks:  They'll see if they can keep the win streak going and on Tuesday they will re-introduce Phil Jackson as a member of the organization  he left in 1978.   Should be interesting to hear what he plans or whether he just plans to take it in for awhile.

Giants:  The Giants will continue their free agent program.  Currently, they're talking to DRC and Anthony Spencer.  Tomorrow they'll talk to Mario Manningham.   They are really getting after it and we could even hear DRC and/or Spencer news tonight.

Yanks:  The rest of the Yanks will return from Panama, and hopefully the pitching will continue to shine.   They must be getting close to making their trade for an infielder...  They can't got to war like this.

Rangers:  Rangers will have to really skate and scrape to stay in the playoff race.  They've looked bad since the Olympic break and St. Louis and Nash have both been pretty useless.   Nice work, Team Canada.

Should be fun.  Feels like a great week.

Rangers Get Reffed: Lose 1-0

The refs said there was no conclusive evidence of a second period goal where there was conclusive evidence and the Rangers just couldn't overcome it.   They gave up a short handed goal in the first, cause Brad Richards was a "safety."   And even though they outshot and outplayed the Sharks they just couldn't win.  They are now in a bit of danger regarding their playoff hopes.   St. Louis still hasn't justified the picks that were given up to get him.

Rangers Today

Rangers are set to play San Jose at the Garden today.   Last time they met, San Jose crushed them, so the possibility of more embarrassment is there.   So they have to play for 60 to make sure that doesn't happen again.   And it would be nice if the guy in the picture scored a goal.  Also, there's an apb out on Rick Nash.     C'mon, Rangers.  Win!

Giants Sign Walter Thurmond

The Giants have signed Walter Thurmond from the Seahawks to a 1 year 3.5M deal.   Same money Nicks got, and also this is the first FA they have signed who will only be on his second team.   Like Schwartz he went to college at Oregon and they probably know each other.  He's not a big corner but he's 5'11 so he's taller than some of the guys we already have.   No clue what this means for DRC, but obviously the till is getting smaller.

Giants Sign Quintin Demps

Sort of late here on Saturday Night, the Giants seem to have signed Quintin Demps, the 28 year old return guy whose also a safety from the Chiefs.  He was originally drafted by the Eagles out of UTEP.  I think, as with the rest of our FA's this will be his third or fourth stop.  Anyway, he should help on specials and guard against Will Hill's legal woes and Cooper Taylor's development curve.    Nice signing.    Now let's see if we get a corner.  

Giants: Rodgers Cromartie On The Way for a Visit

Well travelled but somewhat elite cover corner Dominique Rodgers Cromartie will visit with the Giants tomorrow and discuss joining them.  He was unable to make a deal with the Jets today.   DFC was most recently been on the Broncos, who may or may not have offered him a big deal in the past few weeks.   So, how can the Giants fit a guy in who might require a big deal?   They've kept their powder dry for the most part, so they still have room this year.  What's more, they have room coming up, so adding a big salary would only be a matter of structure, and they've had no problem doing that under Kevin Abrams.    So this is a pretty interesting situation, as it would give us a really solid pair of corners against the pass.   The Giants are already happy happy with Rolle, Hill and Brown at safety with Cooper Taylor also looking promising.    It would also shorten the demands that our talent strapped roster are placing on the draft.   This is a pretty interesting development.

Rangers Win!

Carl Hagelin sure picked the right night for his first career Hat Trick.  Wow!   After giving the Rangers the two goal lead in the third, he also saved a goal the other way by blocking a shot.  Just a huge game from the home grown kid.   Chris Kreider had the other goal, back with Stepan who had yet another assist and has been on a point a game pace for the last 12 or so.   Things started out well, when Hagelin tipped in a Pouliot deflection to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead fast.  But just as quickly the Jet scored two of their own and the Rangers were reeling again.   Thank goodness Kreider tied it up, and then Hags scored two more times.   St. Louis seems to have assisted on one of Hags goals, but he still hasn't scored one of his own.  And Rick Nash seems to be taking the week off, as the rest of his line keeps churning.   McD almost had another one of those long empty netters as time was running out, but it hit the post.     HUGE WIN.

Nicks Signs with Indy

What a strange journey it's been for Hakeem Nicks over the last 24 months.  He's gone from the core #1 WR of the World Champion New York Giants to a member of the Indianapolis Colts on a make good one year contract.   His decline over the last two years has exactly mirrored and greatly contributed to the Giants concurrent decline.  What a sad day for both parties.   He could have been a career Giants and broken all the records.  Now, instead he's a Colt and hoping to bounce back.   Never would have believed it two years ago.

In other news, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie is visiting the Giants who are in the market for another corner.

Rangers Tonight

They were horrible again last night.   Hank is back in net against the Jets.   Meanwhile they need goals.   St.Louis hasn't provided one yet and Nash has been back in the tank.  Hopefully, they snap out of it.  They are not as bad as they've looked so far this week.   They really aren't, though they have to get back to hitting some folks.  Last night 11 of them had no hits!   Yikes.    Let's go, Rangers?

Giants Get Jameel McClain

Jameel McClain, whom the Giants met with a few days ago has shopped the market and is on his way back to sign with the Giants.    This gives us another sort of slow LB who knows how to play.  He was undrafted out of Syracuse before making a name for himself in the Ravens rotation.   I guess they will use him to stand up TE's, and use Williams on the week side.     Who knows how much he has left in the tank?    I'd guess it's a one year deal, but not sure yet.

Giants: Core Meltdown

By now we know Linval Joseph is a Viking, Justin Tuck is a Raider and Hakeem Nicks seems destined to by a Colt, a Panther or a Charger.   Not too long ago, all three of these former Giant draft picks, was a core member of the Super Bowl 46 winning squad.  And Tuck was also a core member of the Super Bowl 42 winning squad.   Tuck and Nicks especially won playoff games for us...   Anyway, the core has been degraded and we might be heading to meltdown

Eli's not getting any younger and on O only he, Cruz and Pugh can be considered core.    Wilson is a question mark and so's Beatty.  Snee is no longer Snee, and Mosley hasn't proven anything.   The young TE's have yet to impress.   Randle looks like a 2 or a 3 instead of a Nicks replacement.

On defense, JPP looked like core, but now he needs a bounce back after two subpar seasons.   Beason, I guess, is now core, but his knees will always be a cause for concern.  Hankins hasn't played yet. Will Hill looks like core when he's not suspended.  Prince is core.   Rolle is core, but his expiration date is probably on the way.  Hosley has underwhelmed.  And that's about all the core guys we have these days.

This team used to be stacked!   Now it seems like it will be a two offseason job just to get close again, and that's if the kids keep developing, JPP bounces back and no one else's career falls off a cliff.   Sheesh.

Meanwhile in free agency, the Giants brought back Henry Hynoski on a 1 year deal, most likely to compete with Cooper in camp.  

Rangers Tonight

The Rangers are in Minnesota tonight, and Cam Talbot is finally getting another start in goal.   Hopefully, that will get the Rangers back up on their toes.  They were awful the other night in Carolina and there was absolutely no excuse for it.   They can't just show up and win.  They are not that good.   Meanwhile, Ryan Haggerty won't join the team till this weekend.  It's unclear if he'll be anything other than a scratch this year.   Just the same, the Rangers have to skate for 60 minutes tonight.   They've been good on the road all year, and it's no time to backslide with the playoffs in sight.

Phil Jackson Returns to the Knicks

Twitter is exploding because Phil Jackson is officially coming back to his original team, the Knicks, to run  basketball operations.   I have no idea if he'll be good at a job he's never done before, but his hiring sure does make the Knicks more intriguing.    They've now won 5 in a row since these rumors started percolating.    Don't know anything about the deal or when it starts, but this should be another interesting era for the Knicks, in not necessarily and winning one.  But, I do have a good feeling about it.   Now go to YouTube and study up on the triangle offense.

Rangers Sign Ryan Haggerty to an NHL Contract

The Rangers, who have been pissing a lot of us off lately by trading draft picks, today were able to add good young talent that usually would cost a pick in RPI RW Ryan Haggerty.   He's currently 3rd in the nation in goals.  He's also going right to the Rangers, though who knows if he'll play at all.  Apparently some other teams were in the bidding.  But the kid is from the tri-state area as is a lifetime Ranger fan.    He's 6 feet tall and 200 pounds.  So this gives the Rangers yet another good forward prospect to go with their ever growing collection.    I suspect we'll be seeing more trades.