Federal prosecutors in Philadelphia say a man has pleaded guilty to trying to blackmail Giants coach Tom Coughlin.

Prosecutors say 30-year-old Herbert Alex Simpson of Philadelphia pleaded guilty to two counts of mailing threatening communications. Simpson sent Coughlin letters threatening to expose a fictitious sexual tryst with two women. Court papers say the letters demanded the coach pay ,000 to ,000.

Prosecutors announced the guilty plea in a news release sent late Monday night. A message was sent to defense lawyer Nialena Caravasos seeking comment.

Sentencing is scheduled Feb. 26.


How about that.  What a whack job

Giants middle linebacker Antonio Pierce was diagnosed with a bulging disc in his neck this afternoon and will be sidelined indefinitely, according to the team's medical staff.

Pierce underwent an MRI today at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan and was examined by team physician Dr. Russell Warren and Dr. Frank Camissa, Chief of the Spinal Surgical Services at HSS.

Pierce originally suffered a burner in the Arizona game on October 25 and experienced very little discomfort until practice this week, at which point the team's medical staff scheduled this afternoon's MRI.

"I'm shocked with what I heard from the doctors this afternoon," said Pierce. "I had no idea that what happened a few weeks ago could keep me off the field. I didn't think it was that serious. I'm going to do everything the doctors tell me to do so I can get back out on the field as soon as possible."


OMG! Just when we finally get key players back our D captian goes down.WTF?!?!

ESPN article on how to fix the giants

After a 5-0 start and talk of another Super Bowl run, the Giants have seen their fortunes change. Everyone knows they have issues. We dissect their biggest problems -- and fix them.






Front-Four Failings
Once upon a time, the defensive line was a pass-rush nightmare. Now it struggles to apply pressure without support. It doesn't help that Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora -- two premier pass-rushers -- are dropping into coverage on the zone blitz.

Solution: Cut down the blitzes and rely on the four-man rush. Use presnap movement and stunts up front to create confusion.

Slumping Back Seven
With Kenny Phillips and Aaron Ross injured -- and their replacements being less than stellar -- lumbering 'backers like Antonio Pierce are covering backs and tight ends in man coverage.

Solution: Play more zone schemes and keep opponents' passing plays in front of the secondary to avoid trouble.

The Forlorn Identity
So much for the smashmouth run game. Brandon Jacobs averaged less than 4 ypc through Week 5, and the Giants gave up on him. Even though he's recently improved, he's still splitting carries with Ahmad Bradshaw.

Solution: Like most big backs, the 264-pound Jacobs gets better with more action. Give him 20-25 touches per game.

Youth Gets Served
The Giants like the vertical passing game. But defenses recognize young wideouts Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham struggle breaking the jam against tight coverages. That means Eli Manning's stuck waiting until they get open, throwing off the QB's timing. His 60% completion rate is 20th in the league. The upside: Steve Smith is getting a lot more looks and, through Week 9, led the league in receptions.

Solution: Fix the separation problems in the off-season but, for now, go to a pitch-and-catch, underneath passing game with quick hitches and easy reads.

Seeing Red in the Red Zone
Fantasy alert: The Giants have converted just 15 of 36 red zone chances into TDs (28th in the NFL). And D's know Manning zeroes in on Smith -- 3 TDs inside the 20 -- the only Giant who ranks among his position's top 10 in fantasy points.

Solution: Instead of making Smith the primary target, let Jacobs have a shot. Or throw to tight end Kevin Boss off of play-action. Okay, that would be bad news for Smith owners, but it might make Manning a startable fantasy quarterback down the stretch.

Written by Fred Robbins, Tuesday November 03 2009

Losing three games in a row definitely hurts. We have to get back on track and do it quick. Go back to basics. Not start over, but get back to what we do best.


We’re a little down right now but if we can get a win against San Diego going into our bye week it will go a long way toward getting us on a roll. Then after the bye maybe we can get some guys back healthy and get things rolling. You want to have everyone back, especially for the last stretch of the season.



Mostly we’re killing ourselves. We have to get back to playing Giants football. We haven’t played well in any phase of the game.



But with our backs against the wall, we know we have to come out fighting.



We can do a better job up front as far as rushing goes, contain the quarterback more and make him get rid of the ball quick. Our defense has not done a good job overall, but you can’t blame one position. It all goes hand in hand.



Right now we’re not playing well in any of the three phases of the game. We’re playing hard, but not consistent. We’re giving up too many big plays. We made some good plays but we didn’t make enough. A good team like Philly will expose your weaknesses. We have to do a better job on third down and in the red zone.



This is our last game before the bye week and you always want to go into the bye with a win, otherwise you have to think about it for two weeks. You want to have that winning taste in your mouth during your time off. Then you can rest up and get right back on track.



It would be tough if we lost four straight to have to think about it for two weeks. You have to go into the bye with a win.



I can’t remember the last time we lost three in a row. But this is a good group of guys. I know we can do it. I know what we’re capable of, we just haven’t been doing it lately

Chris Canty, who hasn’t played since the opener, says he’s feeling better and progressing in the right direction with what he calls an unusual type of calf injury.
“This is something that’s a little bit different of an injury, it’s something that’s a little bit new,” he said of his problem. “We’re trying to learn as we go along. I’m not going to give you the details, but it’s a little unique and the doctors have had to be creative in a way they treat this whole process. Thus far they have done a great job.
“This thing has made significant progress and we’re headed in the right direction. We went through a few different treatment process to hasten the recovery time. I don’t think we’ve rushed anything, but we’ve tried to be smart about it. We’ve done our due diligence as well