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 7 at Arizona 21 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW New York Giants: After a great start to this season, QB Kerry Collins was far from great against the Cardinals. He made bad decisions and followed with poor throws. I hate to bash on one guy, but he killed a lot of drives with overthrows. He overthrew Toomer once on what would have been a sure long TD. Maybe it was the heat. RB Tiki Barber is a million times better than Ron Dayne, but he's still underused. How Barber gets only 13 carries is beyond understandable. Obviously, he's not a 25-carry guy, but he should be handed the ball 20 times (especially when Collins is performing so badly). TE Jeremy Shockey is as talented as everyone says but the production needs to follow. He caught 4 passes for 56 yards. Arizona Cardinals: QB Jake Plummer kept his head and thus (with a lot of help from his defense) kept Arizona from losing. This is the Plummer that makes everyone believe he has the potential to be a very good NFL quarterback. He also completed a pass to himself for a two-yard gain. RB Thomas Jones' ankle didn't let him finish the game, but Marcel Shipp filled in very nicely. The Arizona offense line is a good run blocking unit and wore down the Giants' defense. For his part, Shipp ran hard with every carry. You have to like effort like that. David Boston is frustrating fantasy GMs everywhere. His ankle isn't 100%, but he couldn't get open once against the Giants. Sure, the New York secondary has played well this season, but he's David Boston and more is expected. If the football thing doesn't work out for him, there's always Pro Bodybuilding... WHAT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW New York Giants QB - Kerry Collins (19/36 for 199 / no TDs / 2 INTs) looked horrible all game long. His toss in the flat to Tiki Barber at the end of the first half (intercepted for a game-tying TD) was one for the lo-light reel. Further, Collins was consistently off on his throws all game long. He did have a 76-yard TD to Ron Dixon that was called back for holding. Aside from that one good play, he was just bad. His INT to David Barrett was a throw into a gaggle of white shirts. He basically looked flustered all game. RB - Tiki Barber (13 for 55 / 1 TD / 6 rec for 48) did not get enough carries. With Collins playing so poorly, the Giants should have ridden the legs of Barber. Ron Dayne (3 for 2) needs out of New York. If he is to ever succeed as an NFL running back, it will have to be with a fresh start somewhere else. He simply doesn't look good with the ball. Sean Bennett (1 rec for 7) is an afterthought in this offense. He also dropped one. WR - Ike Hilliard (4 for 56) had a couple of big plays for the Giants. Amani Toomer (4 for 32) caught nothing but short passes. Collins did over throw him while wide open. It would have been a sure TD. Ron Dixon had no official catches, but hauled in a 76-yard bomb that was called back for offensive holding. Dixon was also overthrown once by Collins. TE - Jeremy Shockey was targeted three times in New York's first seven pass attempts. He caught all three. He then pretty much disappeared while making one more catch the rest of the game. This guy gets a ton of hype, but he is something to behold in the open field. It's not because of his moves (but he does have a few). It's because he runs so hard and fast and is so much bigger than opposing DBs. It's too bad the Giants don't go to him with consistency. Dan Campbell was targeted a few times but had no receptions. Pass Defense - The Giants didn't allow many big plays and controlled the Cardinals for most of the game. However, they failed to create the big play. They almost shut down David Boston (two receptions) but allowed MarTay Jenkins, Marcel Shipp, and Freddie Jones to each catch five or more balls. Overall, this is a much improved unit from a year ago. They have already faced Terrell Owens, Torry Holt, Isaac Bruce, Darrell Jackson, and now David Boston. Only two WRs has gone over 60 yards against them (both of the Rams), and none have reached the 100-yard mark. Rush Defense - For most of the game, New York stuffed the Cardinals rushers. The Giants did, however, wear down by the fourth quarter and ended up being unknown invitees to the Marcel Shipp breakout party. You really can't fault the defense here as the New York offense continually put them in bad situations. Individually, Dhani Jones looks like an excellent playmaker as he made tackles all over the field. Special Teams - Punter Matt Allen showed off his wheels in a failed attempt to run for a first down. Allen made the decision to run after fielding a bad snap. It was a poor decision. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/** Arizona Cardinals QB: Jake Plummer (23/32 for 168 / 1 TD / no INT) actually looked good in this contest. Sure, you'd like to see more yards on 32 pass attempts, but that percentage is quite nice. His TD pass was intended for Frank Sanders, but Shipp made the good grab for the score. Cool stat of the day is Plummer's one reception (of a deflection off of RG Raleigh Roundtree's helmet). The Giants declined the illegal touching penalty so the reception stood. You know, somewhere out there, someone scored a point on that reception and won their fantasy game this week. RB: Thomas Jones (11 for 10) started but was obviously still hobbled by the ankle sprain. He gave a great effort but had no power. He gave way to Marcel Shipp. Marcel Shipp (17 for 92 / 1 TD / 5 rec for 39 / 1 TD) ran hard with every touch. He's certainly not the most talented back around, but he runs with determination and gave full effort today. It was very exciting to see a young guy play so hard. WR: David Boston (2 for 18) was almost nonexistent for the 2nd straight game. Maybe it's the ankle injury, but this is not the David Boston everyone else knows. He was never open today. Never. He had a couple drops as well and juggled one throw out of bounds. He must do better than this. MarTay Jenkins (6 for 33) saw a ton of action, but the Giants kept him from making the huge play. Frank Sanders (3 for 28) is still alive. Brian Gilmore (1 for 14) caught his first ball since arriving on Earth. He must be one Happy Gilmore. TE: Freddie Jones (5 for 34) had his second straight 5-catch day. The bad news is that he had his second straight 30-something-yard day. A six yard average just doesn't get it done (unless you get 1 point per reception in your league). Still, it's nice to see Jones involved in the offense. Pass Defense: Arizona made Kerry Collins look bad for most of the game, and he finished with a pitiful 45.9 QB rating. They were unable to contain Jeremy Shockey after the catch, but they did keep him quiet for most of the game (held him catch less from midway through the first quarter until the final New York drive). This was a good effort by a pass defense that wasn't supposed to be very good. Maybe the heat was on their side. Rush Defense: Arizona wasn't horrible defending the run (allowing Barber a 4.2 ypc average), but lucky for them they weren't called upon the stop Barber very often. The Cardinals did keep Dayne's number down as if that's tough to do.