The NY Giants racked up a nice win. You can put up an asterisk on playing vs backup Shaun Hill but it was arguably the best win of this 2014 season for the Gmen. The Offensive Line did very well vs a very good St. Louis Defensive Line. Eli was kept clean (1 sack, which Eli blamed himself for). Perhaps the signature play of the entire evening was the 80 yard bomb to Odell Beckham. But OBJ put a double move on his deep route and Eli had plenty of time to launch the strike that put the game away. The OL did their job in enabling the playcall.
Each week OBJ is targeted by the defense and each week the rookie gets better. No, we do not like the showboating that seems to be an early byproduct of his play, but in this game it may have been some sort of bounty because STL players were more than eager to make late hits on the WR. The bottom line is that Odell Beckham has single-handedly lifted this franchise out of the 2014 scrap heap. He will be All-Pro and Rookie of the Year. And he has probably saved Reese’s and Coughlin’s jobs.
Here is one relevant statistic- Beckham is 3rd in the NFL in yards per game, closely behind Julio Jones and Antonio Brown. And when one looks at receptions per targeted attempt (71%), he is also among the NFL elite. Considering his first 3 games yielded 44, 28 and 34 yards, this is incredible ‘on the job’ training. His last 8 games are a torrid 156, 108, 93, 146, 90, 130, 143 and 148 yards.
Beckham gets sick separation from his routes. We tweeted during the game that on a simple square-out pattern in the end zone, he put on such a move that there was no defender in the SAME ZIP CODE. On the 80 yard TD, he was bracketed by two players and went past the Safety on the double move like child’s play. He draws so many penalties because we have not seen a single defender who is able to stay with him.
During last week’s telecast, we learned that Hall of Famer Harry Carson said that Beckham’s 2014 rookie season for the Giants offense was on the same order as Lawrence Taylor’s 1981 rookie season for the Giants defense. That just about sums up the superlatives for Beckham right now when a Hall of Famer is drawing parallels to one of the best players to have ever played the game. Yes, Odell Beckham is that good. And when you consider that he did not even have a training camp and missed the first four games of the season, his explosion in these 11 games has been ridiculously amazing. If Odell Beckham keeps his priorities straight, takes care of business and stays healthy, his career will be off the charts. Jerry Rice is the gold standard, but even Rice did not play with the current rules, which handcuff the secondary. For me to be using guys like LT and Rice in the same sentence as Beckham is not hype. He’s that good and is only going to get better. To all of those that say that opposing defenses will adapt and scheme to contain him, my retort is that (1) Cruz is coming back (2) the OL will get better (3) OBJ will have his first training camp next summer (4) the Giants will only be getting better in this NEW offense (5) OBJ is going to hone his craft and improve from here. So if this is an arms race, he’s going to overheat the competition. When LT surfaced, the opposition quickly schemed to thwart him. LT adjusted and overcame. Beckham will do the same, and if his other 10 teammates are competent, as an 11 man unit they will dominate. That is what happened to the Giants defense of the 1980’s and this is what will happen to the Giants offense here in 2015+. This is precisely what Carson is talking about.
Guys like Hankins, Moore (?, ejected) Williams, and Kennard are the core of a new round of younger players. Add Beckham to that mix and this team has some high octane competitiveness coming. Today we saw some good work from Reuben Randle. His performance this season has been wildly inconsistent. But if he can build off this game, it will go a long way toward punishing defenses when the first (Beckham) or second (Cruz) option is doubled.
If the defense can improve and if players can stay healthier next year, there is little reason why the Giants cannot compete on a very high level. If Coughlin stays, I’d like to see a new strength and conditioning coach and a new Defensive Coordinator. The Giants need plenty of help this offseason, but with the offense ignited by Beckham, less is needed to get over the top.
Summary: The Giants offense ripped apart a very good St. Louis Defense. In many respects, this game’s outcome is the best validation of the future of the team we have seen this season. Week after week, team after team is unable to stop OBJ. It’s only going to get better for the Giants Offense next year when players like Pugh, Schwartz, Jennings and Cruz come back. This means that while the Defense needs improvement, it will need less because the Offense has the potential to be excellent.
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