The Giants After Week Two: Miles Ahead Of Last Year

With two weeks of this 2008 NFL season in the books, will someone please break up the New York Giants before they run away with the NFC and another Super Bowl title?

Okay, okay, I'm just kidding. Hey, a guy can dream can't he?

All kidding aside, this year's 2-0 start has Giants fans thinking playoffs again, and with good reason. Think back to this time last year, pundits and fans alike were calling for Tom Coughlin's head, as well as Steve Spagnuolo's. The defense had given up 80 points, the offense was out of sync, and prospects for any kind of successful season were looking grim.

So what makes this year's team different from last years at this point? Two words: one is confidence, the other is maturity. It's pretty amazing what a Super Bowl victory can do for a franchise.

Despite the retirement of Michael Strahan and a season ending injury to Osi Umenyiora, the entire defense is playing inspired football, and the offense, with an awesome ground attack has been a model of efficiency.

Some reasons for Giants to be optimistic about after Week Two:

First, the level of confidence and improvement the defense has shown. They've been tough against the run, holding their first two opponents to an average of 76 yards per game.

And we're not talking about a couple of bums here but Clinton Portis and Steven Jackson, a pair of Pro Bowl caliber guys. Also, despite the loss of 24 sacks from last year, the pass rush has been great with seven sacks in the two games.

But it's the play of the secondary that has provided the biggest surprise. For a unit that was supposed to be the weak link, they are giving up only 129 yards per game through the air, with a lot of that coming during garbage time.

In the second year of playing Spagnuolo's scheme, everyone seems more comfortable. They all seem to know where they're supposed to be and what they're supposed to be doing. And giving up a meager average of 205 yards per game shows that it's working.

On offense, increased maturity is the difference. Eli Manning has become the leader of this team, and the team is responding to him. His decision making has improved and he looks and acts more comfortable in the pocket, more willing than in the past to let a bad play go instead of forcing the ball.

For the receivers, Plaxico Burress is happy with his new contract and finally healthy. Through the first two weeks he is tied for second in the league with 15 receptions, and is fourth in yardage. And he isn't the only receiver defenses have to deal with. Over two games nine different players have caught passes, showing the deepest receiving corps the Giants have had in years.

But it is the running game that really powers this team. The three headed monster of Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw has rushed for over 300 yards and a 5.6 yard per carry average, and they look to get better as the season wears on.

They perfectly compliment each other. Jacobs, the impossible to tackle brute at 265 pounds, Bradshaw, the speed back who gets the edge, and Ward, powerfully built like Jacobs, but with speed like Bradshaw. Teams are having a hard time dealing with and defending the completely different looks and plays each runner brings when in the lineup.

All in all, it seems clear that the Giants are miles ahead of where they were last year after two games, and improving. And while lot of people are looking past them to Dallas and Philadelphia, for my money the road to the Super Bowl runs through the Meadowlands and I ain't talking about the New York Jets.