The New York Giants 2009 Defensive Strategy: Blitz. A Lot.

Strategically, the most interesting thing to watch for this season will be the development of the Giants defense under new coordinator Bill Sheridan.  The former coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo, has joined the St. Louis Rams organization as their head coach, much to the dismay of Giants fans everywhere (remember Tim Lewis, the guy that preceded Spagnuolo? Yikes. Don't want to see that again).  

Sheridan has promised the same aggressive, blitz happy style, but with a few new wrinkles.  While it will be hard to deduce what those wrinkles are until the preseason is fully underway, we can take a look at the personnel to try and figure out what he might do.

The defensive backfield is intriguing, because of its extreme youth.  With a projected lineup that looks like Aaron Ross and Corey Webster at the corners, and Kenny Philips and Michael Johnson as safeties, Webster becomes the most senior and experienced defensive back.  Additions like C.C. Brown and the maturation of Terell Thomas add considerable depth, enough that savvy veterans Sam Madison and Sammy Knight were both released in the off-season.  

We will see how they perform in training camp; but if they are able to avoid young mistakes, this group has the talent to be one of the best in football.  So far, we are hearing rave reviews about these guys, so expect Sheridan to trust them to do their jobs, playing less zone and more man to man, leaving the linebackers with less coverage responsibility.

The linebacking core is considered the weakest point of a very strong defense.  It seems at the end of the year Antonio Pierce had lost a step; and ten year veteran Danny Clark is no longer a three down player.  The Giants have made strides in making the group stronger, though, with the additions of free agent Michael Boley and the drafting of Clint Sintim from Virginia.  Boley is a proven veteran who is still only twenty six years old.  Sintim grew as the senior leader of Virginia's defense last year.  

What makes Sheridan lick his chops is the superb athletic ability of these 'backers. Combining them with the depth of Brian Kehl, Jonathan Goff, Chase Blackburn and Gerris Wilkinson, the Giants actually have a stronger (and very athletic) group of linebackers than many think.  Add in the fact that defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka can play standing up, and the Giants have a group of linebackers that can rush the passer like a 3-4 defense.  Keep that in mind as Sheridan sends the linebackers on blitzes from the corners, up the middle, and on stunts all season long.

It has been duly-noted that the Giants have an incredibly deep defensive line, and it has only gotten deeper since the departure of Spagnuolo.  Now there is a stable of lineman who can play multiple positions.  An end can play tackle (Tuck), a tackle can play end (Canty), and as mentioned before, Kiwanuka can play standing up.  With a plethora of young quarterbacks on the schedule (Kansas City, Oakland, Minnesota and Tampa to name a few), expect the lineman to be moving around all over the place.

This year I see more of the same from the Giants in terms of defensive scheme--that being blitz, blitz, and blitz some more--but the added depth and maturation of this young defense gives Bill Sheridan some new toys to work with.  If Corey Webster blitzes off the corner, Sheridan doesn't have to worry about stepping back into a sagging zone--there is enough youth and athletic ability on the field to pick up a player in man, or at least a man zone hybrid.

A few years ago the Giants were successful on offense when they ran a lot of pre-snap movement, trying to catch the defense off guard.  This year, expect that from the defense, as depth, youth, and athleticism should serve Bill Sheridan well in his first year as the Defensive Coordinator of the Giants.