Giants Defeat The Bengals 26-23

To quote my father who attended the game today in East Rutherford: "It was a painful game to watch but Eli Manning made the plays he needed to win the game." Many experts predicted the Giants to be able to do as they pleased with the Bengals, but the Giants had to struggle and rely on 4 John Carney field goals.  The running game didn't look as polished as some might thought it would be but they still managed to run for over 100 yards.  Most of those yards coming from Derrick Ward, which really shows the depth that this team has.

The pass rush was spectacular and Fred Robbins had two sacks for the second straight week, not bad for a Defensive Tackle. Carson Palmer felt pressured all day but despite being knocked down he got back up each and every time.

The Giants played sloppy football and had a lot of undisciplined penalties including off-sides  and fall start penalties.  Eli Manning though led his team what looked to be the go-ahead score with 1:50 left with a touchdown strike to Kevin Boss.  Kevin Boss had 3 catches today and all of them mattered. Steve Smith had 7 catches including a pivotal one on the scoring drive on 3rd down late in the 4th quarter.

And as always Eli Manning found a way in the clutch to make the plays to win the game.  He now has 37 wins as a starting Quarterback including post-season play. He now has 11 game tying or game winning drives in the fourth quarter or OT.

The Giants now have 2 wins at home, one less than all of last year.  The Giants at 3-0 are off to their best start since 2000 when they played in Super Bowl XXXV and lost to the Ravens.

The Giants have a bye week next in which I will find out what the rest of the country does while I watch the Giants.  They will then resume their schedule when the defending NFC West Champs visit New Jersey and play the Giants.