Uncork the wine, light the beer lamp, smoke 'em if you got 'em and listen up! It's time for the Professor to pontificate with his prescient predictions.

Regular Season
Sep 4	Redskins	W	16	7
Sep 14	at Rams	W	41	13
Sep 21	Bengals	W	26	23
Sep 28	Bye
Oct 5	Seahawks	W	44	6
Oct 13	at Browns	L	14	35
Oct 19	49ers	W	29	17
Oct 26	at Steelers	W	21	14
Nov 2	Cowboys	W	35	14
Nov 9	at Eagles	W	36	31
Nov 16	Ravens	W	30	10
Nov 23	Cardinals	W	37	29
Nov 30	at Redskins	W	23	7
Dec 7	Eagles	L	14	20
Dec 14	at Cowboys	L	8	20
Dec 21	Panthers	W	34	28
Dec 28	at Vikings	L	19	20
Playoffs
Jan 11	Eagles	L	11	23

Well, hello Professor. Come on in and sit right down. What is on your mind? Another season of football is upon us, and we eagerly await your uncannily accurate predictions for our beloved G-Men.

View all of the Professor's Favorite and Unfavorite Games.

January 12, 2009: The Day After

Dr. Jim, It is the day after. Having been present to view the demise of the G-Men's season, as per your request, I would like to offer my impressions as to what went wrong.

As you remember from my last installment, I was not filled with confidence going into this game against Philly. My prediction was 23-17. There is more than one reason for the failure of a Giants repeat. I didn't like what I saw going into the playoffs. The Giants lost three of their last four games. They seemed to lack the momentum necessary to be successful in a sport that is so driven by emotion. You go from 10-1 to 12-4 to end the season. It is not necessarily how many wins, once you have enough to qualify for the playoffs, as opposed to when you get those wins. The old cliche applies of getting hot at the right time.

So what was the causes for the lack of momentum. First of all, the defensive pass rush. The defense did not sack McNabb once in the three games this year. The comparisons of defensive sacks earlier in the year versus the number of sacks the Giants defense recorded over the last five games is significant. How many times, of late, did we witness the Giants give up key third down plays to their opponents instead of forcing a punt. We witnessed a key third down yesterday. It was a third and twenty. McNabb drops back to pass, almost get sacked, releases a nice pass against the wind and gets a key first down. I believe it eventually led to a field goal.

Secondly, Eli Manning. He has always had a problem throwing in the winds at The Meadowlands. His passes, yesterday, fluttered against the wind, and were inaccurate with the wind. Eli has to change the way he throws a ball under windy conditions. There was a big difference in the balls thrown on the same field between the two quarterbacks.

The next reason for the slide, although hard to admit, is the fact that the Giants won only one game after the Plaxico hand gun incident. In the last five games of the season, how many touchdown passes did Eli throw? The answer is, two! How many were thrown to a wide receiver? None! The tight-end caught the two touchdown passes. I do not care how great a running game you have. If the opposing defenses do not have to worry about your passing attack, they will put eight men up close to the line of scrimmage and stuff the run. We saw that yesterday. Twice the Giants were stopped in short yardage situations, fourth and inches and fourth and two. The first one Eli failed. The second time Jacobs failed. Brandon did gain 92 yards on 19 carries. If you remove one of his runs, which was about 24 yards, he had 18 carries for 68 yards. That averages a mediocre 3.7 a carry. There was no receiver that the Giants put onto that field yesterday that the Eagles had to consider double coverage. The Giants coaching staff must also shoulder some of the reponsibility for the lack of a passing attack. They did not come up with any successful ways of compensating for the loss of Burress. Maybe they thought, as I and many fans did, that the Giants could get by with the personel still available. However, the facts don't lie. The offense was not as effective without Burress on the field.

A top priority for next year is to get a wide receiver that opposing defenses need to double cover. As a matter of fact, the Giants better get a couple of wide receivers. Did you notice the diappearing act of Amani Toomer over the last five game?

As far as the defense goes, they do not need to be revamped. Osi returns to help the pass rush. With Osi in the games, Tuck and Kiwanuka do not wear out as the season progresses. Maybe another defensive lineman, and a linebacker of quality and the defense will be very solid.

Please Mr. Reese draft a kick-ass place kicker. That will eliminate the need to carry two kickers on a playoff roster. Karney is the more reliable field goal kicker and Tynes gets the kick-offs deeper to help with field position. Try to combine both traits into one individual. Overall, I do not see the need for drastic changes for next season.

My prediction for the Super Bowl, Pittsburgh meets the Eagles. Oh, but another championship for the city of "Brotherly Love " is not to be. Pittsburgh's defense doesn't allow McNabb to be happy-goofy. He gets a good old ass-whoopin' and doesn't get to pick up the phone on the sidelines of the Steelers, as he did yesterday with the phone of the Giants. JERK!

By the way, speaking of jerks, I have never been surrounded by more jerks at Giants stadium in my life. Between the Eagles fans behind me, who didn't shut their mouths all game(they were under the mistaken impression that the louder and longer you speak the wittier you become), to the moron next to me that insisted I was in his seat. This occurred when coming back to his seat after his sixth trip for beer and hot dogs. I had to point out to him the distinct difference in appearance between the number 8, to which I casually pointed, and his seat with the number 9, which was the place to park his dumb-ass. His witty retort? "Boy am I bad." None of these fans will ever have to worry about a request to attend a meeting of the "Algonquin Round Table".

See you next season with a pre-season prediction. The Professor has left and demolished the building.

January 5, 2009: The Professor and The Playoffs

Dr. Jim, You asked for this pontification and I am now ready to oblige.

I do not think you will be very happy to read this blog, but here goes.
It was a vision I received one evening. There was a man on a flaming pie and he said,.... Wait a minute.

That was how John Lennon said he got the inspiration to name the group The Beatles with an A. Now I remember. The Giants are going to lose to the Eagles by a score of 23-17. It pains me to say it. I hate the Eagles. Their fans are the obnoxious Boo-Birds. As I watched the Eagles beat the Vikings yesterday, I begged, pleaded, bribed the Football Gods to make the Eagles lose. Alas, it was not to be.

Allow me to explain my prediction. There is no other team, at present in the NFC that seems to have Ol' Momentum going for them as much as the Eagles. Since McNabb was benched he has had this happy goofy look to him as he plays. I have learned to recognize that look from previous seasons. When he has this look, it means he is at the top of his game. He is making good decisions with the ball, he is seeing the field well. In other words, he is a dangerous player who can carry his team and defeat anyone. Westbrook is dangerous. The Eagles coaches always seem to be able to isolate him on a linebacker when playing the Giants. That is problem number two.

Thirdly, I do not see the momentum going for the Giants, into the playoffs. They have lost three of the last four games. Granted, they didn't really need the last game and rested key players, but I see in the Eagles the type of "us agaist the world" attitude that was previously possessed by Big Blue. Fourth, I also hate to say this but not having Plaxico is going to hurt the Giants. Don't get me wrong, this is not a statement made to justify any attitude of football players being above the law. He got what he deserved. Plaxico has always given the Eagles fits. He demands defenses to double cover him.

Now the Eagles can single cover the wide receivers with the corners, who are good one-on-one cover guys, put a safety on the tight-end, and have eight men up in the box to press the Giants' run attack. This was a strategy employed by Philly when they beat the G-Men in Giants stadium a few weeks ago. They are going to dare the Giants to run, get them into third and long situations, and then blitz Eli when he has to throw. That is when Eli tends to make those dopey choices and throws into double coverage or gets sacked, fumbles the ball, etc. etc. Fifth, the Giants defense has not been stopping opponents lately on key third downs. McNabb has been completing passes in key third down situations.

With all that said, the only way the Giants go on in the playoffs rests on Brandon Jacobs's shoulders. Hopefully his legs are healthy. If he can break runs early in the game, as he did against Baltimore, then the Eagles have to respect the run. Brandon will wear the defense down and then here comes Ward and Bradshaw. That will make the passing game more affective for the Giants. Play action passes will freeze the Secondary. This will compensate for not having Plaxico. Eli is very good at play action passing as well as handing off to the runningbacks out of the shotgun. I think we will know early if the G-Men will be able to run the ball. If they cannot, the Eagles will be sky-high with confidence, McNabb will be super-happy-goofey and I will be in a huge depression. Eagles fans will then say the Super Bowl will be won by Philly because they won the World Series, and on and on and on and on the fans will go.

The Professor has left the bulding and perhaps the planet. P.S. At least the Cowboys were totally humiliated.

December 1, 2008: The Three-quarters Mark

Hi Dr. Jim, Three-fourths of the season are now in the books. What a season it has been.

The Giants have achieved a level that few people expected. We all felt that the Giants would be in the playoff hunt at this point. How many of us felt theG-Men would be 11-1 with four to play? They have a seven game winning streak, and have won six in a row against teams with winning records. I believe a win against Philly and they tie the record of seven straight against teams with winning records. That is an amazing run, considering the schedule the Giants have had to play.

This team is on one heck of a ride. All Giants fans should sit back and enjoy this ride. It may be quite awhile before we see this again. So, where do we go from here? How about a win at the Meadowlands on Sunday. Then, the G-men go to Dallas. What an opportunity. A win in Dallas accomplishes many wonderful things. It will most certainly give the Giants home field advantage throughout the playoffs. If Dallas loses to Pittsburgh, which they will, the Giants win eliminates Dallas from the playoffs. How sweet is that prospect?

Are you as tired as I am of hearing about how Dallas is back now that Romo is at quarterback? All the Dallas fans are again saying how they are a better team with more talant than the G-Men. How Dallas has a great chance to knock off the Giants in the playoffs because they are peaking at the right time. How about a 20 point win in Dallas against Romo to shut the Dallas fans cake-holes once and for all! Didn't we all here the chatter before last Sunday's game against Washington that the Redskins would be high on emotion and it was a must win. A couple of the experts on the Fox pre-game picked Washington to upset the Giants. How did that work out? A 23-7 victory that could have been 31-0 easily. Oh yeah, less we forget, the victory was achieved without Mr.Moron, a.k.a. Plaxico. This is the same Plaxico that experts said the Giants would dearly miss because of injury and various suspensions this year. It looks like the Giants will miss ol'Plax about as much as they have missed Shockey. By the way, I see the Giants cutting Plaxico, maybe as early as today, and voiding his contract. Way to go Plaxico. You have blown an opportunity almost as badly as what Mclean Stevenson did when he decided he could leave M*A*S*H* and be a hit with his own show, "Hello Larry." How did that work for Mclean? About as good as it will for Burress. He will do a few years of jail and a loss of his 35 million. The only way that doesn't happen is if he gets special treatment. Not only did he screw himself, he almost took a couple of valuable teammates down with him.

Thank goodness no person was seriously injured. Good-bye to you Plax. Hixon may not be as talanted, but he will get the job done, thank you very much. Remember, the Giants are the best team in the NFL. The emphasis being TEAM. The bottom line why the Giants will be fine going into the playoffs is defense. They have the ability to stop whatever is the offensive strenght of their opponents. Against Arizona, who gave us a big scare, Spagnolo knew their receiver would get their share of catches. What he emphasized was yards after the catch. He told the defense to limit them to four yards after the catch. The Giants limited them to under four yards a catch. The Giants didn't have Jacobs that game to grind out a ground game to keep Arizona's offense off the field. What was the result? A win that I had predicted to be a loss. Maybe I should have more faith in the Giants team and coaching staff to come up with a game plan that will overcome the loss of key personel. Each week the defense comes up big at key moments. So, how does the season end? Well, I did say the G-Men will finish 6-0 in the division. To accomplish that means a win in Giants Stadium against Philly and a win in Dallas. HOW SWEET IT IS! I have waffled on the Carolina game. I now feel Big Blue will go into that game undefeated at home. There is no way they will let that undefeated season at home slip away. I still feel they will lose to Minnesota away. The season, therefore plays out to be 14-2. The Giants get a bye and homefield advantage throughout the playoffs. I see the Giants in the NFC championship game. We will see who they face and how things feel at that time to predict going to the Super Bowl. Right now, it is hard to bet against Big Blue.

The Professor has left the building.

November 5, 2008: Halfway

Yes, Dr. Jim, we are now at the halfway point in a very successful season, up to this point. The only bump in the road was the game in Cleveland. That game may have been a blessing in disguise. Maybe the Giants were a bit too confident. They were reading all of the glowing reports about how magnificently they go about their business. I think the team was truly shocked at the way Cleveland outplayed them on national television. Since that game, I sense a bit of an edge or a"chip" on their collective shoulders. The team does not seem to take any opponent lightly. There seems to also be a sense of putting a team away early. How many games can we remember where the Giants were favored to win and they played down to the level of their opposition? Too many! Now, there seems to be a resolve to take that ball the first time the offense gets their hands on it and stuff it down the throats of their opponents. If the run with Jacobs doesn't work inside, they take it outside. Or, they put in Ward and run with him. Or, screen pass with Derrick or Bradshaw. If the run still isn't working lets go the passing attack. Plaxico has his head up his butt, no problem. How about passing to the veteran Amani Toomer. Isn't he just the best? Amani doesn't get the recognition he deserves. What about looking for Steve Smith when you need a critical third down and eight? What a reliable receiver. He runs great routs, gets open, and he catches the ball. He also gets yardage after the catch.

How about the the defense folks? Justin Tuck, whom I liked from the day I saw him his rookie year, is probably the best defender in the league right now. Kiwanuka is back where he belongs and coming along nicely, thank you very much.

The linebackers are surprisingly playing well as a unit. They have stuffed the run and covered in pass protection. The rookie Kehl has really stepped right in and played with a presence beyond that of a rookie. Clark has been great. He was all over the Cowboy's running back Barber last Sunday.

The secondary has been solid. Corey Webster has gone from being sent to the bench last year to a possible Pro Bowl cornerback. What an amazing turn of events. Considering, in my opinion, the cornerback position is one of the toughest positions to play in team sports. Corey is playing the postion about as well as you possibly can. The two rookies in the defensive backfield are making serious contributions at safety and at cornerback. Jerry Reese has been so successful finding young talent in the last two drafts. Ernie Acorsi gave him a good team and Jerry has built it into a great one.

As I mentioned in my last installment, the Giants are the best team in the NFL. That also includes being better that the undefeated Titans. This team is playing with a steel resolve to prove every expert wrong that picked them to finish behind Dallas, Washington, and Philly in the East.

Let us not forget the head coach. He has gone through quite a metamorphosis. Everyone was calling for his head before the start of the Super bowl season, including myself. He was put on notice that this job hung from a thin string. He got his players to buy into what he was selling. No small task to do with the athletes of today. I like the way he has handled the Plaxico problem. I truly believe he has isolated his lousy attitude from the rest of the team, and has called on the peer leaders of the team to put the appropriate pressure on Plaxico, to abide by team rules. The idea of no player being more important than the team may be the most important contribution to the Giant's success so far. I think we all have to recognize, and thank Coach Coughlin for that effort.

Oh! Before I forget. Just a few weeks ago, people in the press were chirping about the lack of contribution from the Giant's tight-end position. Do they still feel that way? I wonder if the people in New Orleans have begun to make MIA bracelets for Jeremy Shockey? If they need some I think we can give them a few bracelets leftover from his days in New York.

Now to look at the rest of the schedule, which is tougher than any team schedule in the league. We are looking at eight games, five tough games on the road. My predictions for those road games are: A win at Philly, a win in Dallas, and a win in Wahington. That means six and zero for the Giants in the division. That is a bold prediction. I hope for a win in Arizona, however, I sense a loss. The only way the Giants win is if they get to Kurt Warner with a pass rush. Put pressure on him and he will fold. Give him time, he passes for three hundred yards. The Giants will lose to Minnesota. The Vikings give them fits. The last few years, Eli turns into a mush-head when he plays the Vikings. At home there are three games remaining. The Giants will beat Baltimore, and Philly. I am a bit wary of Carolina. I said previously that the Gaints will have revenge on their mind because of the loss to Carolina in the playoffs. I am now leaning to a loss to the Panthers. That gives the Giants a 12-4 record and a win of the division. I am hoping that one of those predicted losses is wrong. A 13-3 record looks so much better, but I will stick to the 12-4.

By the way Dr. Jim, I eagerly await your video documentaries of the last two home game tailgate parties against the 49'ers and the Cowboys.

The Professor has left the building.

P.S. I predict a big win for Obama of 10 percentage points. This prediction made at 2:03P.M. Eastern Standard. Now The Professor has left the building.

October 7, 2008: Quartile I

Well Dr. Jim, we are a quarter of the way into the season. What a season it has been. The game against Seattle was about as perfect a game a football team can play. If you go by the way the Giants have progressed so far, the season should be quite successful.

If you go back to my beginning of the season predictions, I mentioned that the Giant offense was going to score points. Granted, the Giants are in the midst of the soft part of their schedule, however, do you see the depth of this team at just about every position on the offense? Last week no Plaxico. No problem, put in Hixon. When he goes out with a concussion, no problem, put in Moss. He catches two touchdowns. Let us not forget the passes Amani caught early in the game. How about earth, wind, and fire. I also mentioned the running game at the start of the season. Brandon Jacobs gased Seattle's defense. Then you hit them with Ward and Bradshaw and the running game averages six yards a carry. There wasn't even much offensive contribution from the tight ends and they still scored 44 points. Like I said earlier, you will not miss Shockey. By the way, Shockey is injured again for at least six weeks.

How about Eli? He just seems to be dripping confidence. The senior citizen kicker Carney has been perfect. Now the main reason for the success. The offensive line, in my opinion is the best unit in the NFL bar none!!! Chris Snee I think is the best of the lineman, but what a line, as a unit. I said that offensive line was the strength of this offense and nothing has changed my mind. Karim McKenzie goes out and Boothe comes in a does a good job. He only looked bad when he was beaten around the corner by the densive end which led to a sack.

The defense has been swarming. The interior lineman Robbins and Cofield have done an outstanding job. I expected them to be tough on the run, but look at what they have done to pressure the quarterbacks. I believe Robbins leads in team sacks.

Right now I would say the Gaints are the best team in football. Look at what I am saying, the BEST TEAM. They really don't have the superstars others may have, but their depth, and how they play as a team is why I call them the best in the NFL at present. I don't think they were given the respect they deserve from the experts when they were making the predictions for this season.
After the San Francisco game the Giants should be 6-0. Then the tough part of the season begins and doesn't let up. Ten games to be played and not one patsy in the bunch. I would say the two easiest games will be Baltimore and Pittsburgh. Arizona will be tough playing at their home. Let us hope that Kurt Warner plays the way he played in the first half of the Jets game. I do think the Giants will win two of those three games. That give them a record of 8-1. Minnesota give them fits. Eli has played some of his worst football against Minnesota. It is also an away game. I think that is a loss. Carolina at home will be tough but I think they can win. I think there will be revenge as an incentive. I am sure you remember the drubbing the Panthers gave the Giants in the playoffs. Now we come back to the games in the division. According to my predictions the Giants would have a record of 9-2 before considering the five games to be played in the division. Dallas. Oh, how I hate them! I want to say the G-Men roll over them but I think it is more realistic to predict a split. Not necessarily along home game win, away game lose. I feel more comfortable with a sure split and possible sweep of the Eagles, especially if Philly loses two more game before they play the Giants in Philly. So let us say a split agaist those two teams. Now their record is 11-4. For the big game at Washington I predict a win. Washington has a young quarterback who will choke in a key game. For that matter, the Redskins always seem to choke when the pressure is on. That makes a record of 12-4, an improvement over my pre-season prediction of 11-5. Looking forward to the San Francisco game. Let me know what you would like me to bring besides, Happy Feat wine. The Professor has left the building.

August 30, 2008: The Professor Gets a Clean Slate.

Dr. Jim, My radar at this time is not totally clear regarding the upcoming season. But what the heck. Here goes nothing.

The Giants will score points. They have one of, if not the best, offensive lines in the NFL. I consider the offensive line to be one of the greatest assets of this team. There also seems to be some depth with the offensive line... I like Kevin Boothe. He played in place of Kareem at right tackle against the Patriots. He looked as if he could step in without too much of a drop in quality. This offensive line will amplify another strength of this team, running backs. Brandon Jacobs looks as if he finally figured out how to combine his agility and strength. He could have a monster year. The only thing that bothers me about Brandon is his tendency to fumble. Maybe he can get a seminar from Tiki on how to hold onto the ball. Ward looks strong. Ware has been a pleasant surprise. Bradshaw is fast to the hole. Reuben Droughns cold be the odd-man out. He has rushed for over 1,000 yards twice in his career and may be cut. That speaks to the strength of their backfield.

All of a sudden wide receivers look solid and have depth. Toomer and Plaxico will be solid. Steve Smith has a great pair of hands and runs great routs. I really think he is a great receiver. Hixon is a pleasant surprise and knows how run back kicks. Even Moss has stepped up this pre-season to show flashes of why he was drafted. That kid London has shown some good hands at times, but he may be a victum of the numbers.

They have three tight ends with promise and they are not head cases. Trust me on this, Shockey will not be missed. The tight ends have have to work on blocking but that will come in time. Boss will be the starter.

Eli is no fluke. With all the weapons at his disposal he will just have to manage the game plan and make good decisions. He will do that just fine. I also am pleased with their pick-up of David Carr. He is the best back-up QB the Giants have had since Jeff Hostetler. I guess you get the idea that I am strong on the offense. They will score points and wear down defenses.

Speaking of defense, this is where I am a bit concerned. With the loss of Osi for the year, my concern is greater. Half of the sacks from last season were recorded by players that are no longer with the team. Hopefully, Tuck, Kiwanuka, and the linebackers can plug the loss of that many sacks. You cannot lose your two starting defensive ends from last year and not feel the loss.

I am also skeptical of how this bunch of linebackers will perform. Pierce will be fine. With Kiwanuka move up on the line that puts more pressure on the linebacker corps to perform and adjust. We will have to wait and see.

I love what the Giants have done in the secondary. Last year there were times the coaches could hardly find healthy bodies to put out on the field. Now, it has become a group of young, talented and fast players. Ross will have a great year. Webster looks as though he has finally figured it out. The rookie Thomas at corner and Phillips at safety make the Giants have a talented deep secondary. Sam Madison also supplies the insurance of a veteran to stabalize a young secondary. Let us not forget what Steve Spagnolo can do with a young,fast, and aggressive defense. The Giants have definitely increased the overall team speed of the defense. That may compensate for the loss of people on the line who could record sacks.

The kicking game is the one glaring weakness on the team. Tynes is hurt and wasn't totally consistent at times. Huston doesn't seem to be consistent either. Special teams coverage of punts and kick-offs in pre-season was terrible. The coaches better fix that quickly. The last thing the Giants new defense needs is to be running onto the field after special teams allows the opponents to start around mid-field. Jeff Feagles is great and will continue to be the best directional punter in the history of the game.

So what do all of these assessments mean to a prediction of the 2008 season? The Giants will make it to the playoffs. I see an 11-5 record. I don't see a repeat of another championship. That is hard to do under the best of circumstances. I do think they can go two rounds into the playoffs, but lose in the NFC Championship game.

There it is Dr. Jim. The Professor has left the building.