The recent retirements of Tiki Barber and Michael Strahan marks a noticeable change in this era of the New York Giants. As many will notice, being a fan is marked by unmistakable periods of time; some good, some bad. These moments that are so readily identifiable, the recollection of some of them carry unique feelings and nostalgia. So where will these changes affect the Jints and what will the alignment look like next season?
Sad to say, but the removal of Tiki Barber from this team was a large contributing factor to the development of Big Blue’s offense. Eli, who apparently was tired of futility, had that breathing room to criticize himself and turn it on when needed. We all loved Barber, but late in his career he carried the label of a cancer more than of a Giant; oh well, old news. More of a loss is the day-old retired, Michael Strahan. This guy had been so special to this team that if you sit and think about him just not being there this year, it is rather surreal and confusing. And when I talk about “identifiable stages of Giants football”, this guy bridged the gap (no pun intended) between this era and the last.
For me, the period of time following the retirements of Simms and LT was pretty uneventful. Strahan was the guy who brought it back; and by “it”, I mean that Giants football that we all recognize. The resurgence of the New York Giants, in all do respect, was not due to Jesse Armstead, Amani Toomer, Kerry Collins, or Tiki Barber. It was Strahan who brought that physicality back to Big Blue. However, this renaissance took much too long. So, as the next tiers of Giant’s defensive players get ready to bridge the next gap, what are their chances? In my opinion, their chances are much better than they might be given credit for.
Last season the world was introduced to the D-Line of the New York Giants; and what an introduction it was! The league knew that Chief Osi would be an unstoppable force up front for many years to come, but it was suspected that the left side would be a liability while they experimented for a season or two in the event of Strahan’s retirement…nope. I don’t think that many expected a little-known DE out of Notre Dame might be just what the doctor ordered for the position. In fact, I know many a Giant fan who were lobbying to trade Justin Tuck for Al Wilson a while back. If Wilson had passed his physical at The Meadowlands there would be a great chance that Tuck would be donning a horse on his helmet and high-fiving Ian Gold and John Lynch. Here we are two seasons later and Tuck is becoming one of the NFL’s brightest stars. Radio hosts such as Jim Rome and Freddie Coleman mention this guy weekly and Tuck is becoming nationally identifiable.
The ceiling for Osi and Tuck to grow together is very high and instead of being depressed about Strahan, I look forward to the future of this line. In addition to that, another versatile, young, athletic and extremely intelligent player will be back for the G-Men. Mathias Kiwanuka came on strong in his rookie campaign in 2006. His ability to break the O-line with his speed and athleticism, then chase the QB down from the other sideline got many excited about this kid. After a less than stellar, but respectable showing at SAM last year many are still excited about the guy we call “Kiwi”. However, I am seeing more and more that Giants fans are excited about the possibility of Kiwi moving back up to the front four and contributing there. The idea of depth, especially of this caliber, would get any sack-hungry fan going. However, are current ‘Backers that we have skilled and experienced enough to afford that move? Will Wilkinson make the jump for sure? Are our newly-drafted guys physically and mentally adequate? Is Pierce still good enough to pick up the responsibilities of a MIKE? And other questions concerning the line will surface such as how much will Renaldo Wynn contribute before he learns the system? Will Dave Tollefson pan out as a solid D-lineman? Will DT’s such as Alford play in and out? All of these questions are answered by tentative responses and will vary with every person you speak with.
So where does that leave the new-age Jints? I feel in better position that ever following a huge retirement. We have the physical players to get to get this done and fill this new void. Even if that void is not filled in the locker room right away, I don’t feel we will suffer much on the field. Despite what Spags decides to do with the line and LB corps, we have been proven to be more than resilient and have the players to be at the top of the league in certain defensive categories. We will always love and miss Michael Strahan…let’s just hope this new era ushers in the same results as the ones in Strahan’s last year.
(Guest column by Giants 101 alum, Dan Murphy)