Some great info on Sam Madison (including lots of quotes), Brandon Jacobs (looks bigger and says we'll see him more involved in the offense), Chas Blackburn (fully recovered), and more.
Wellington Mara had legislation passed in his honor by the House of Representatives. The Giants.com press release I've linked to also has some biographical data on Wellington Mara.
So the Giants will be playing the Colts:
Eli vs. Peyton didn't happen in the Super Bowl, but it will happen the first week of the 2006 season in the prime-time Sunday night opener on Sept. 10 at Giants Stadium.Should be a good test of the Giants new secondary, eh?
It appears that one of these guys will be the #3 receiver for the Giants now that Tim Carter has been resigned (2 years, 2 million, 1/2 million bonus). There all fast, and there's a good chance one of them can do the job. Tim Carter is the best bet if he stays healthy. Though last year he didn't do much.
Harry Williams is fast and can catch, but may have a bad knee. Jamaar Taylor was the "great value" 6th round pick with 2nd round talent who hasn't done much and has also had some injury problems.
Who knows, maybe it'll be Tyree as the Giants 3rd receiver.
Everyone who is anyone is gearing up for the 2006 NFL season. My first step will be to buy premium New York Giants seats for their first game at Giants Stadium. It is a tradition in my family to pile in the car and head down to Giants Stadium for tailgating before the game and tons of Sunday football fun. It is also fun to get Buffalo Bills tickets and take the kids to visit Grandma for the weekend.
The 2006 NFL schedule looks really fun and I am planning to travel to some away games this season. Of course that means I will need Philadelphia Eagles tickets for games at Lincoln Financial Field, Pittsburgh Steelers tickets because they are going to be the team to beat and Washington Redskins tickets because I can’t resist a chance to visit our capitol city. Traveling to New York Giants away games is fun for the kids too because we always try to soak up the local culture as much as possible and sometimes end up buying concert tickets and theater tickets for our weekend outings as well.
If you love New York you know we have a great many sporting events to keep a football fan busy in the off season as well as during the football season. I like to buy New York Rangers tickets, New York Yankees tickets, Mets tickets and Knicks tickets too. My brother lives in Jersey so sometimes we’ll go to New Jersey Devils games or New Jersey Nets games. Sometimes I even buy Red Sox box seats when I want to keep an eye on the competition but don’t want to be seen wearing my Yankees jersey.
Not only is New York a sports fan’s paradise, but it is host to many other forms of entertainment as well. You can get Broadway show tickets, go to a museum, buy concert tickets or even opera tickets. You can’t go wrong buying Wicked tickets at the Gershwin theatre or tickets to Hairspray at the Neil Simon Theatre. I am going to see the Gorillaz in concert and I’ve got tickets for Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden.
Sports and entertainment junkies love to attend games and concerts in person. We all can use the services of a good ticket broker when only the best seats will do! Check out the links above for premium sports tickets and the best entertainment tickets you can find.
The Giants have signed (or are signing) Tyree to a 5 year contract. With him and Jason Bell downing all of our punts inside the 20 our punt coverage team looks be insane. #1 in the NFL insane.
Don't get me wrong, the other special teams will be good too. But I'm really excited about punt coverage!
Will Allen has signed with Miami for 4 years, 12 million, 5 million guaranteed. It's interesting how Will Allen's contract is similar to Sam Madison's. Who got the better part of this "trade"? Well the Dolphins get someone who is young enough to perform for 4 years while one really has to wonder if Madison has 4 years left.
Of course, it got to the point where throwing at Will Allen basically involved no risk since he never came up with an interception. Madison should do better there, though he may be a bit slower and less able to play man coverage.
The Giants have agreed to terms with safety Will Demps (from the Baltimore Ravens). Demps will sign a 5-year, $12 million contract today with a $3 million signing bonus. A nice quote from Len Pasquarelli:
Demps will start at free safety and team with strong safety Gibril Wilson to give the Giants one of the best young interior secondary tandems in the league.
The Giants have agreed to terms with Tim Hasselbeck (three years, $2.25 million) and kick returner Chad Morton (four years, $3.9 million).
The Giants also added cornerback R.W. McQuarters. McQuarters got a three-year, $6 million contract with a signing bonus of $2 million. McQuarters, 29, is an eight-year veteran who played last season with the Lions.
The Giants also signed Cardinals safety Quentin Harris, 29. Harris is good on special teams but should only be a backup safety.
Primary source here is the New York Post.
I like these moves because with the exception of defensive tackle and WLB, the Giants no longer have any obvious holes. In other words they won't have to reach for a CB or a safety in the draft.
Sam Madison is a Giant. His contract is a bit longer than I expected: 4 years and $7.4 million with a signing bonus of $2 million. The Giants will pay Madison base salaries of $900,000 in 2006, $1.2 million in 2007, $1.5 million in 2008, and $1.8 million in 2009. There apparently is also an annual incentive of $250,000 for four or more interceptions.
Personally, I find it unlikely that Madison has 4 years left so I'm not sure I like the 4-year deal. The Giants should still be about $8 million under the $102 million salary cap. That means that something might happen when the giants meet with Arrington soon.
Newsday reports that Will Allen will not be resigned and that Sam Madison will replace him. Madison will cost the Giants 1.5 to 2 million/year. Assuming a 2 year contract (I hope it's not longer) that seems fair.
The article also says that the Giants are close to resigning defensive tackle Kendrick Clancy and speculates on possible cornerback draft picks (Clemson's Tye Hill, Ohio State's Ashton Yobouty and Miami's Kelly Jennings) and linebackers (Buckeyes Bobby Carpenter and Florida State's Ernie Sims). Out of those guys I would take Yobouty. We'll see.
According to Pat Kirwan, here are some defensive players who might be available in the second round. Interestingly, many mock drafts have the giants taking Simms, Watson, or Youboty at #25.
Defensive tackle: Gabe Watson and Oshinowo Babatunde.
Linebackers: Ernie Sims, Thomas Howard, D'Qwell Jackson and Abdul Hodge.
Corners: Kelly Jennings, Ashton Youboty, Dee Webb, Johnathan Joseph, and the safeties could be Ko Simpson, Darnell Bing and Donte' Whitner.
The NFL has pushed free agancy back a few days as they try to work out a new agreement with the Player's Association. The Giants are said to be around 3 million under the cap by most sources. Allowing about 1.5 million for the draft class, the Giants barely have money to tender their restricted free agents and resign a defensive tackle, much less play with all the free agents liekly to be cut...