Good morning, all. I hope your week is off to a terrific start.
When FOX sideline reporter Erin Andrews asked New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley if he was aware what kind of welcome the team would receive, when it returned to the tri-state region, following Sunday’s playoff win at Minnesota, she knew the right question to ask.
The Giants had just defeated the favored Vikings, to win their first playoff game since 2011, the last season they won the Super Bowl. This NFL legacy franchise, a laughingstock for more than a decade, has been shown the way by first-year coach Brian Daboll. They are the talk of New York. (Yes. I know. The team plays its home games in New Jersey, but you know what I mean. Heck, the San Francisco 49ers play their home games in Santa Clara, 45 miles from San Francisco.)
With all the publicity given New York’s two MLB teams, the reality is, when the Giants win, they own the town. And this Giants team, at the very least, will be the talk of the town for the next week, as they prepare for Saturday night’s NFL Divisional playoff game at Philadelphia, where they will once again be underdogs.
Whatever happens, Daboll and GM Joe Schoen have done a remarkable job in their first year, guiding the franchise. First, this dynamic duo, who came from the Buffalo Bills, changed the culture. That included hiring a now highly respected coaching staff. Second, Daboll and his staff worked hard to make Daniel Jones into the quarterback he should be. Face it, the number one draft pick out of Duke was a bust his first three years with New York, but now the Giants will slap the franchise tag on him. Third, the players have bought into what the coaching staff has sold them. Always a good sign.
Who knows what will happen in Philadelphia? But what Giants fans want is a sustainable franchise. In other words they want the team to be the New England Patriots. Even though the Giants have won four Super Bowls, they have never been perennial contenders, usually flopping after their Super Bowl victories. Fans want a team that competes for a playoff spot every season and there is no reason that cannot be achieved. If it does, all other conversation on New York sports radio will play second fiddle, even the Yankees and Mets.
Don’t think so? Just look at Boston, where Patriots talk dominates the airwaves year round, even with the Red Sox, Celtics and Bruins.
With the Giants poised to turn things around, the metropolitan region will be in a New York state of mind, but it will be a state of mind about the Giants.
One more New York thing
I cannot help it. Everytime I hear Frank Sinatra’s version of “New York, New York,” I break out singing. When Sinatra’s version became a big hit in 1981, I started singing along with the song every Tuesday morning after the 8:30 news, on the morning radio show I co-hosted with “Captain” Jay Sheldon on WSNG radio. It became such a popular bit, if someone knew I was in a bar (which I was known to frequent on Friday nights), they would pop the song on the jukebox (Remember those?) and I would lead the contingent in a sing-a-long. And this was before karaoke.
So it was, as I was in Big Y Supermarket on Monday morning, the intercom system, which always plays music, had Sinatra’s “New York, New York,” blaring away. And sure enough, I started singing along. Not as loud as those Friday nights, I might add, but singing along nonetheless. “Start spreading the news…”
I am surprised, they are surprised
Much is being made how the Vikings did not comeback to beat the Giants on Sunday. After all, say the surprised, Minnesota had not lost a one-score game all season long, going 11-0 in that category. They had numerous fourth quarter comebacks. How could this happen?
Believe it or not, I am hearing if Tampa Bay has the ball with under two minutes to play against Dallas down by one-score (Obviously, I am writing this newsletter before the Monday night game), QB Tom Brady will drive the Bucs down the field and lead them to victory, because that is what he always does.
What if that does not happen? What if Brady is stopped? Why the surprise? Are the odds in Brady’s favor? Were the odds in Minnesota QB Kirk Cousins’ favor? Perhaps, but if the outcome was so predictable, why play the games? Why watch the games?
This is what makes sports so exciting. No outcome is predictable. Miami almost beat Buffalo. Baltimore almost beat Cincinnati. The Hall of Fame hitter does strike out with the bases loaded on occasion. Sometimes the QB does throw the INT on the last drive of the game. Nothing is for certain, even with a GOAT at the controls.
Did you know this?
Speaking of GOATs, I leave you with this. Arguably, two of the greatest, current baseball players are teammates: Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani of the Angels. Although both players have been beset by injuries, they have played in the same starting lineup for 339 games. According to Brian Menendez of the website FiveThirtyEight, the Angels are 164-175 with both players in the starting lineup.
Since Ohtani joined the club in 2018, the Angels have yet to produce a winning season. Los Angeles has made upgrades to its roster for 2023. Only time will tell if the changes work, but remember, nothing is certain except death, taxes and media hype of the most mundane story.
That is it for this week’s newsletter. Thank you for your support and have a terrific week.
SPORTSCASTER DAN
A New York state of mind
Great article today, Dan … so true. That is indeed why the games are played ‘cause we don’t know who will win. Even the Vegas bookies have to pay sometimes! Ah, Captain Jay … those were, indeed, the days my friend!