Editor: Joe Bryant. Game Recap Contributors: Mike Anderson, Michael Brown, Chris Burtt, J.D. Caldwell, David Dodds, Bobby Elder, Jim Enochs, Joel Faulhaber, Michael Flynn, Kevin Goldblum, Clayton Gray, Bob Harris, Fred Hebert, Jesse Hilsenrad, Drew Kendall, Jeff Lewis, Joey Matusek, Justin Oliver, Steve Prosapio, David Shick, Cody Smith, Scott Smith, Jeffrey Stout. NY Giants 27 at Minnesota 20 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW New York Giants: Tiki Barber is the most potent weapon the Giants have and they used him well today. He finished with 127 yards and a TD on 24 carries. He added 46 more yards on 7 receptions. Ron Dayne only carried 6 times for 40 yards, but one of those runs was a 30 yard TD romp where he wasn't touched. Kerry Collins had a nice day at the office with 300 yards passing, 2 TDS, and 1 INT. He is money in the pocket, but highly ineffective when forced to scramble. His line protected him fairly well today. The Giants kicking game nearly did them in today with muffed snaps and bad holds. Matt Bryant missed two extra points and a field goal. Minnesota Vikings: Again; penalties destroyed this team. They committed 9 in the game and they always seemed to come at the wrong time; sustaining Giant drives. Daunte Culpepper was inaccurate with his passes today and wasn't getting his team into the endzone. He got frazzled at the first sign of trouble in the pocket and scrambled often. Mike Tice benched him in the third and he was visibly upset on the sideline, but kept his composure. Culpepper is still saying he's the QB but be very worried if you're counting on him. Todd Bouman came in to relieve Culpepper, and threw 6 passes. He completed 3 of them for 85 yards including 2 deep completions to Moss of about 40 yards each. One of them was inches away from being a TD. Instead, (vulture) Moe Williams took it in on the next play. The Minnesota pass defense continues to be weak allowing the Giants to throw for 300 yards and 2 TDS. Michael Bennett has improved his play; running 15 times for 167 yards including a beautiful 78 yard TD. Offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie made his Viking debut today. He looked dominant; man handling Kenny Holmes for most of the day. WHAT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW New York Giants QB: Kerry Collins - looked alright this afternoon; but not great. He made a couple of ill advised throws - one turned out to be an interception, and another should have been. When Collins had good protection and stayed in the pocket, he was very accurate. However, when flushed out, he is not good in space. He is slow and can't throw accurately on the run. He did finish with 300 yards and 2 TDs due more to a weak Minnesota secondary than to his good play. RB: Tiki Barber - continues to show he is the real deal. He's quick, shifty, and follows his blocks extremely well. Jim Fassel is calling Tiki's number early and often since he took over the play calling duties. He ended the day with 127 yards and a TD on 24 carries, and 46 yards on 7 receptions. He also had a two yard TD called back on holding. Ron Dayne - Looked pretty good today, hitting the hole faster than usual and having some extra bounce in his step. He made the most of his 6 carries by taking one of them 30 yards for a TD. He burst up the middle and was untouched on the play. He finished the game with 40 yards on the ground. WR: Amani Toomer - caught everything he could get his hands on. His best catch of the day was good for 46 yards and he made the play with cornerback Eric Kelly in his hip pocket. He also had a nice reception on a fade good for an 11 yard TD. Toomer seems to be Kerry Collins' first read on every pass play. Ron Dixon - Is a very fast receiver with good agility and nice run after the catch ability. He consistently got open and made some nice grabs. He led all receivers in the game with 107 yards. He did this on only 4 receptions, for an impressive average of almost 27 yards per catch. Tim Carter tore his Achilles tendon and is out for the year. According to NFL.com, he did it on the area of turf close to where the pitcher's mound is covered up. As if we needed another reason to dislike multi-purpose stadiums� TE: Jeremy Shockey - played today in obvious pain with his toe injury. Apparently, he'll need surgery after the season. He has nice run after the catch ability with his great size and speed, but he drops some catchable balls planning his upfield moves before he looks the ball in. He caught 3 for 19 yards. Dan Campbell - frustrated Jeremy Shockey owners by 'vulturing' 4 catches for 35 yards. He is a poor man's version of Shockey. Pass Defense: The New York pass rush was ferocious today, sacking Viking quarterbacks 5 times today. They didn't have any interceptions. Rush Defense: was not good this afternoon, allowing Michael Bennett some nice runs. He averaged 11 yards a carry. Special Teams: The Giants kicking game nearly did them in today with muffed snaps and bad holds. Matt Bryant missed two extra points and a field goal. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/** Minnesota Vikings QB: Daunte Culpepper - did not play well today. At the first sign of trouble he took off running, and when he did sit in the pocket and throw his accuracy was terrible. He overthrew Randy Moss on more than one occasion when he was locked in single coverage. Mike Tice benched Daunte in the third quarter, and although he kept his cool he was obviously annoyed at being taken out of the game. Culpepper says he's still the QB and that Bouman's role was like a "relief pitcher". We'll see. If you're a Culpepper owner, be very worried. Todd Bouman - replaced Daunte Culpepper in the third to the delight of the crowd at the Metrodome. His first play from scrimmage was a 48 yard completion to Moss. His second play was a 32 yard completion to Moss which took Minnesota to the 1. His 3rd play was a 1 yard handoff to Moe Williams for a TD. I'd call that a spark. He faded after that though finishing 3-6 with a couple of fumbles (recovering 1 himself) Bouman's a local guy from St. Cloud State and seems to be a cool character blowing bubbles walking off the field. He showed nice zip on his passes and definitely has the arm strength. RB: Michael Bennett - ran extremely well. He not only displayed his trademark track speed, but also showed the vision and instincts he has lacked to this point. He had a 78 yard run that was quite impressive. All in all, he compiled 176 yards of total offense and a td. It was his third straight 100 yard game running the ball (15-167). Moe Williams - Only had 2 carries for 2 yards, but vultured one TD on the day. He added 1 reception for 10 yards. WR: Randy Moss - had 1 catch for 5 yards with Culpepper at QB. Bouman hit him on two long pass plays totaling 80 yards on his second series in the game. Moss almost made it into the endzone on one of them. Moss seemed very glad to have Bouman in there. No other Minnesota WR is worth mentioning. That's part of the problem with the team. TE: Byron Chamberlain - was largely underutilized today, catching 2 balls for 11 yards. Pass Defense: Aside from Chris Hovan (1 sack), the Vikings have no pass rush. Their secondary is very suspect; giving up catch after catch and committing a lot of pass interference penalties as well. Rush Defense: The usually stout Vikings run defense gave up 173 yards and 2 TDs on the ground today. Special Teams: The Vikings' special teams are not special. They suffered through bad snaps, and their return men are not good.