The New York Giants will likely be without 24-year old TE Jake Ballard and 25-year old TE Travis Beckum when the 2012 begins as they are both recovering from torn ACLs.  Ballard didn’t show much in 2010 when he played in 1 game for the Giants in which he didn’t catch any passes.  But, in 2011, Ballard had a breakout season for the Giants.  He played in 14 games for the Giants last year and he caught 38 passes for 604 yards (15.9 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Ballard really stepped up for the Giants in 2011.  Beckum played in 13 games for the Giants last year and he caught 5 passes for 93 yards (18.6 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has now played in 44 games in his first three years with the Giants and he has caught 26 passes for 264 yards (10.2 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Beckum also has 10 tackles and 2 forced fumbles as he helps out on special teams too.  The Giants might be looking for another TE to help out in free agency of the draft due to the injuries to Ballard and Beckum.

The Giants have re-signed 27-year old WR Isaiah Stanback to a reserve/futures contract.  He spent all of last year on the Giants’ practice squad.  He has played in 16 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has caught 5 passes for 46 yards (9.2 avg).  He also has returned 14 kickoffs for 318 yards (22.7 avg) so far in his NFL career.  Stanback will be an insurance policy in case the Giants lose some WRs to free agency.

The Giants have re-signed  25-year old RB Andre Brown to a reserve/futures contract.  He didn’t play in any games for the Giants last year as he spent the season on the practice squad.  He has now played in 4 games in his first two years with the Giants and he has carried the ball 2 times for -1 yard (-0.5 ypc).  Brown isn’t likely to have much of a role with the Giants if he makes the team next year.

The Giants were ball hogs yesterday and that was a big reason for the win!  They had possession of the ball for 37:05 as their game plan was executed to almost perfection.  Eli Manning was rock solid as he completed 30 of 40 passes (75%) for 296 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  For that, he was named the MVP of the Super Bowl for the second time of his NFL career.  Ahmad Bradshaw led the way on the ground for the Giants yesterday with 72 yards rushing on 17 carries (4.2 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 2 passes for 19 yards.  Brandon Jacobs pitched in with 37 yards rushing on 9 carries (4.1 ypc) in this game.  WR Hakeem Nicks (10 rec, 109 yards) and WR Mario Manningham (5 rec, 73 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Giants yesterday.  TE/FB Bear Pascoe (4 rec, 33 yards) and WR Victor Cruz (4 rec, 25 yards, TD) also pitched in for the Giants in the passing game.  The Giants finished up with 114 yards rushing on 28 carries (4.1 ypc) and they also completed 30 of 40 passes (75%) for 282 yards as they had possession of the ball for 37:05.

The defense gave up a lot of yards to the Patriots, especially when you consider that they only had the ball for 22:55.  But, they made big plays when they had to.  LB Michael Boley led the way for the Giants in this game with 10 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  Safeties Deon Grant (6 tackles) and Kenny Phillips (6 tackles and 2 passes defensed) also had solid games for the Giants.  LB Chase Blackburn had 6 tackles, 1 pass defensed and a huge game altering interception.  DE Justin Tuck pitched in with 3 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks and 3 QB hits as he was putting pressure on Tom Brady the whole game.  The Patriots finished up with 83 yards rushing on 19 carries (4.4 ypc) and they also completed 27 of 41 passes (65.9%) for 266 yards.  THE GIANTS ARE SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS ONCE AGAIN!

The Giants have had the Patriots’ number as they beat them 24-20 earlier this year.  They also beat the Patriots 17-14 in the Super Bowl just five years ago.  That being said, this game is going to be a war.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Giants have the ball:  The Giants are going to try to be a little more balanced than usual this Sunday.  Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs are likely to get a lot of work to help slow the Patriots’ pass rush and keep them honest.  The Patriots have been better against the run lately and they have a decent linebacking corps, so Bradshaw and Jacobs are going to have to fight for every yard they get this weekend.  If Eli Manning has time to throw the ball, he is likely going to have some success as WRs Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz and Mario Manningham have matchup advantages over the corners of the Patriots.  Manning will also look for TE Jake Ballard when things get rough as he has made some big catches for the Giants this year.  Manning will have to be careful with the football though as the Patriots had 23 interceptions during the regular season.

When the Patriots have the ball:  The Patriots are also likely going to run the ball more than usual with BenJarvus Green-Ellis as the middle of the Giants’ D has been rather soft against the run.  LBs Michael Boley, Chase Blackburn and Mathias Kiwanuka are going to have to tighten up the chinstraps this Sunday.  The Giants are going to need DEs Jason Pierre-Paul, Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora to get to Tom Brady early and often in this game, because if he has time to throw, tehy are in big trouble this Sunday.  Brady is going to attack the Giants’ corners with short passes to WRs Wes Welker and Deion Branch, letting them try to get yards after the catch.  Brady is also going to attack the safeties with throws to TEs Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.  The secondary is going to have to step up this Sunday if the Giants are going to win this game.

PREDICTION:  PATRIOTS 31, GIANTS 27

The defensive ends are the keys for the Giants this Sunday, as they won’t win without putting pressure on Tom Brady.  It’s lucky for the Giants that they had two of the best DEs in the NFL on their team right now.  23-year old Jason Pierre-Paul is a flat out beast.  He played in all 16 games for the Giants this year and he had 86 tackles, 16.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 6 passes defensed and 8 tackles for a loss.  He has also played well in the playoffs so far.  In his first three playoff games this year, Pierre-Paul has 16 tackles, 1/2 a sack, 3 tackles for a loss and 2 passes defensed.  30-year old Osi Umenyiora is also a big time pass rusher and playmaker.  He played in 9 games for the Giants this year and he had 25 tackles, 9 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 pass defensed and 1 tackle for a loss.  Omenyiora also has played in all three playoff games for the Giants this year and he has 8 tackles, 3.5 sacks and 1 forced fumble.  The Giants hope that Jason Pierre-Paul and Osi Umenyiora get Tom Brady nervous this Sunday.

The Giants didn’t run the ball too well during the regular season in 2011.  The Giants only rushed for 89.2 yards per game and 3.5 yards per carry during the regular season.  But, Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs have stepped up in the playoffs as the Giants are averaging 117.3 yards rushing per game and 4.2 yards per carry so far.  The Giants need Bradshaw & Jacobs to have one more big game in them this Sunday in the Super Bowl.  Bradshaw has carried the ball 46 times for 200 yards (4.3 ypc) and he also has caught 14 passes for 95 yards (6.8 avg) so far in the playoffs.  Jacobs has carried the ball 28 times for 127 yards (4.5 ypc) with 1 TD run and he has also caught 4 passes for 16 yards (4.0 avg) so far in the post-season.  If the Patriots gang up to stop the Giants’ passing game, look for the Giants to hit the ground running this Sunday.

33-year old kicker Lawrence Tynes isn’t the most accurate kicker around, so the Giants will likely have to adjust the game plan to compensate for that a little bit this Sunday.  Tynes played in all 16 games for the Giants this year and he connected on 19 of 24 field goals (79.2%) and all 43 of his extra points, good for 100 points.  Tynes has now played in 113 games in his first 8 years in the NFL and he has connected on 157 of 194 field goal attempts (80.9%) and 311 of 317 extra points, good for 782 points.  Tynes has now played in 9 games in the post-season in his NFL career and he has made 11 of 16 field goals (68.8%) and all 19 of his extra points, good for 52 points.  Hopefully, Tynes is more accurate than usual this Sunday.

65-year old head coach Tom Coughlin runs a tight ship.  Early this year their were rumors going around that he might get fired.  The Giants snuck into the playoffs with a 9-7 record, but they are red hot right now.  The Giants are 3-0 in the playoffs so far and they have outscored their opponents by a combined score of 81-39!  Tom Coughlin is now 74-54 (57.8%) during the regular season in his 8 years with the Giants.  He also is 7-3 (70%) in the post-season for the Giants and he won the Super Bowl in 2007 over the Patriots.  Tom Coughlin can punch a ticket to Football’s Hall of Fame with a second Super Bowl win and he has had Bill Belichick’s number as of late.

25-year old WR Victor Cruz played in 3 games as a rookie in 2010 for the Giants and he didn’t catch any passes.  In 2011, Cruz was needed due to injuries and he really stepped up.  Cruz played in all 16 games during the regular season for the Giants and he caught 82 passes for 1,536 yards (18.7 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  Cruz had over 100 yards receiving in a game seven times in 2011.  The sky is the limit for Cruz in the future.  He could have a big game this weekend in the Super Bowl as the Patriots have had some issues in the secondary.  He has already caught 17 passes for 244 yards (14.4 avg) in his first three games in the post-season for the Giants, but he has yet to catch a TD pass as Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham have been hogging them up.  I look for that to change in the Super Bowl this Sunday.