Giants improve to 9-1 after running all over the Ravens, 30-10
BY RALPH VACCHIANO
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Sunday, November 16th 2008, 6:39 PM
Brandon Jacobs was laughing on his way out of the locker room after he had helped steamroll another defense.
Every week, it seems, the Giants are faced with another daunting challenge. Then every week they go out and bully another opponent out of their way.
The Giants have turned the most brutal stretch of their schedule into a cakewalk and they are running away with the division and possibly the conference. Yet the worst news for the rest of the NFL is that after Sunday's dominating, 30-10 win over the Baltimore Ravens at the Meadowlands, the defending Super Bowl champions might just be getting started.
"We're capable of doing anything," Jacobs said. "You might see one of us fly one day, you never know."
The Giants (9-1) certainly are flying high after their fifth straight win inched them closer to locking up the NFC East and securing a first-round bye. The win also ran their home record to 6-0 and earned them their best start since 1990, when they won their first 10 games.
And the Giants did it with power, physically dominating one of the toughest teams in football on both sides of the line of scrimmage. The Giants' "Earth, Wind and Fire" backfield ripped through the NFL's best rushing defense for an amazing 207 yards, while their defense held the Ravens' dangerous running back trio to just 47.
When it was over, Jacobs said, "It could have been a lot worse," and he wasn't kidding. He was held to 73 yards on 11 carries against the Ravens (6-4) "due to technical difficulties" - a knee injury that limited him to two second-half carries. In fact, that was all that stopped the Giants from snapping the Ravens' now 29-game streak of not allowing a running back to break 100 yards (Ahmad Bradshaw led the Giants with 96).
The Ravens were also helped by the fact that the wind (19 mph at kickoff, with gusts up to 30) took some of the air out of the Giants' passing game. Eli Manning (13-for-23, 153 yards) was left to throw mostly short, and the Giants were forced to do most of their damage on the ground. For most teams, against a Ravens defense that was allowing only 65.4 yards per game this season, that would be a problem.
But the Giants were never worried.
"We knew what we were supposed to do," Bradshaw said. "And we knew that no one could stop us from doing it."
The Giants, who now have rushed for 200 yards in three straight games and five games overall this season, started quickly.
On Jacobs' first carry, he bounced off defensive tackle Trevor Pryce and cut left for a 36-yard gain. He also helped stake the Giants to a 13-0 lead by barreling up the middle for two 1-yard touchdown runs.
The Giants had 103 yards rushing in the first 21 minutes. After a 1-yard touchdown pass from Manning to tight end Darcy Johnson, the Giants were on the verge of turning things into a rout. But Manning was picked off by Ray Lewis at the Ravens' 6 with 12 seconds remaining in the first half, keeping Baltimore alive.
Then the Ravens opened the second half with a brilliant drive by rookie quarterback Joe Flacco (20-for-33, 164 yards passing, 57 yards rushing). He was 9-for-9 for 68 yards on the series and rushed twice for 12 yards, setting up a 10-yard touchdown pass to fullback Le'Ron McClain that cut the Giants' lead to 20-10.
But Flacco threw the game away late in the third when he was picked off by Giants cornerback Aaron Ross, who returned his second interception of the game 50 yards for a touchdown. Then, early in the fourth, Bradshaw broke loose for a 77-yard run but was caught from behind by cornerback Fabian Washington at the 2.
The Giants had to settle for Lawrence Tynes' 19-yard field goal, and Tom Coughlin said he was "a little disappointed with that."
There wasn't much disappointment inside his locker room. In fact, some players shook their heads in disbelief at the stat sheets. No team had gone over 100 rushing yards against the Ravens since Week 16 last season.
"It's crazy," said center Shaun O'Hara. "We were definitely talking about getting 100 yards. To get 200, that's the cherry on the top. It's crazy. That doesn't happen in the NFL. That doesn't happen against the Baltimore Ravens."
"I think these guys are truly a great defense," Jacobs said. "They just ran into different kind of monsters here."
BY RALPH VACCHIANO
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Sunday, November 16th 2008, 6:39 PM
Brandon Jacobs was laughing on his way out of the locker room after he had helped steamroll another defense.
Every week, it seems, the Giants are faced with another daunting challenge. Then every week they go out and bully another opponent out of their way.
The Giants have turned the most brutal stretch of their schedule into a cakewalk and they are running away with the division and possibly the conference. Yet the worst news for the rest of the NFL is that after Sunday's dominating, 30-10 win over the Baltimore Ravens at the Meadowlands, the defending Super Bowl champions might just be getting started.
"We're capable of doing anything," Jacobs said. "You might see one of us fly one day, you never know."
The Giants (9-1) certainly are flying high after their fifth straight win inched them closer to locking up the NFC East and securing a first-round bye. The win also ran their home record to 6-0 and earned them their best start since 1990, when they won their first 10 games.
And the Giants did it with power, physically dominating one of the toughest teams in football on both sides of the line of scrimmage. The Giants' "Earth, Wind and Fire" backfield ripped through the NFL's best rushing defense for an amazing 207 yards, while their defense held the Ravens' dangerous running back trio to just 47.
When it was over, Jacobs said, "It could have been a lot worse," and he wasn't kidding. He was held to 73 yards on 11 carries against the Ravens (6-4) "due to technical difficulties" - a knee injury that limited him to two second-half carries. In fact, that was all that stopped the Giants from snapping the Ravens' now 29-game streak of not allowing a running back to break 100 yards (Ahmad Bradshaw led the Giants with 96).
The Ravens were also helped by the fact that the wind (19 mph at kickoff, with gusts up to 30) took some of the air out of the Giants' passing game. Eli Manning (13-for-23, 153 yards) was left to throw mostly short, and the Giants were forced to do most of their damage on the ground. For most teams, against a Ravens defense that was allowing only 65.4 yards per game this season, that would be a problem.
But the Giants were never worried.
"We knew what we were supposed to do," Bradshaw said. "And we knew that no one could stop us from doing it."
The Giants, who now have rushed for 200 yards in three straight games and five games overall this season, started quickly.
On Jacobs' first carry, he bounced off defensive tackle Trevor Pryce and cut left for a 36-yard gain. He also helped stake the Giants to a 13-0 lead by barreling up the middle for two 1-yard touchdown runs.
The Giants had 103 yards rushing in the first 21 minutes. After a 1-yard touchdown pass from Manning to tight end Darcy Johnson, the Giants were on the verge of turning things into a rout. But Manning was picked off by Ray Lewis at the Ravens' 6 with 12 seconds remaining in the first half, keeping Baltimore alive.
Then the Ravens opened the second half with a brilliant drive by rookie quarterback Joe Flacco (20-for-33, 164 yards passing, 57 yards rushing). He was 9-for-9 for 68 yards on the series and rushed twice for 12 yards, setting up a 10-yard touchdown pass to fullback Le'Ron McClain that cut the Giants' lead to 20-10.
But Flacco threw the game away late in the third when he was picked off by Giants cornerback Aaron Ross, who returned his second interception of the game 50 yards for a touchdown. Then, early in the fourth, Bradshaw broke loose for a 77-yard run but was caught from behind by cornerback Fabian Washington at the 2.
The Giants had to settle for Lawrence Tynes' 19-yard field goal, and Tom Coughlin said he was "a little disappointed with that."
There wasn't much disappointment inside his locker room. In fact, some players shook their heads in disbelief at the stat sheets. No team had gone over 100 rushing yards against the Ravens since Week 16 last season.
"It's crazy," said center Shaun O'Hara. "We were definitely talking about getting 100 yards. To get 200, that's the cherry on the top. It's crazy. That doesn't happen in the NFL. That doesn't happen against the Baltimore Ravens."
"I think these guys are truly a great defense," Jacobs said. "They just ran into different kind of monsters here."
