Michael StrahanFor those of us that are fans of the New York Giants, this upcoming season will be one of the toughest in many years. True we are still all riding high off a Super Bowl win but we will now be minus the guy who has entertained us the most over the past decade, Michael Strahan. He’s been the heart and soul of this team and the first player most of us name when talking about the team. This year we’ll have a new look on the defensive line, minus Strahan the cast is the same but it will have an all new feel. Let’s take a look at the NEW Giants new defensive end tandem.

Osi Umenyiora - Right Defensive End - Undeniably Osi has been the most dominate force on the line the past couple seasons, now he also becomes this defenses leader. Osi and Strahan were best friends, both fed off each others energy, and from that it would spark the rest of this defense. Is he ready to do all by himself? I have no doubt in my mind that he can handle the leadership role. He doesn’t have the complete outgoing personality as Strahan, where you wait on every word to see what he’ll say next. BUT, he does scream FUN! This guy loves football, he loves being out there every down, and he brings tremendous energy to EVERY play.

During games this year, there is no doubt Osi will experience more double teams then he ever has before. While this may affect him initially, I don’t think it will have a huge impact. Osi has so much talent that he’ll figure out how to get the job done. The best thing thou is to avoid the double teams all together, and that job will fall on the new starting left defensive end ….

Justin Tuck - Left Defensive End - Tuck will take over the role formerly occupied by Strahan. The pressure will definitely be on Tuck this year. He fully expects it to, but he’s not letting it get to him. Tuck is going to let the media play that game, while he goes out and does his job on the field.

“Pressure? No,” Tuck said. “I’m smart enough to realize there’s only one Strahan and there will always only be one Strahan. I’m not trying to replace Michael Strahan. I’m just trying to fill in and do my best to help this football team win. I’m not pinning that pressure on my back, as far as going out there and getting 22 sacks in a season.”

Statistically, Tuck had a better season then Strahan last season. Taking fewer snaps he had one more sack and a few more tackles. Don’t get me wrong in no way I’m saying he’s better thou! I’m a Giants fan Strahan is just the best, plain and simple. Tuck was granted starters money at the end of the season, and he will get his chance to prove he deserves it.

“I considered myself a starter last year so it really doesn’t matter,” said Tuck. “I think it would add more reps and that’s more exciting. You know your role better. Last year it was kind of hard, one day you’re a starter, the next day you’re backing up Stray and Osi. It was all over so it’s harder to prepare.

Part of the reason Tuck was so successful last season was how the Giants used him. The team used him to spell Strahan and Osi, but where he did his most damage was actually lined up as a defensive tackle. While being grossly undersized as a DT, Tuck used his speed to his advantage in passing situations. Teams were so worried about Strahan and Osi in those situations that Tuck was able to blow right by over weight and sloppy guards and centers. Most people think this is where Strahan’s retirement will hurt the most. They think that Tuck will remain solely at the end position as the team plans on keeping Mathias Kiwanuka at strong-side linebacker. I disagree.

Here’s the reason. Kiwanuka is not a good pass defender at all, he’s pretty weak at it. After missing a good portion of the 2007 season due to injury, he never got to improve on this. So till he shows he can be a good pass defender, he’ll be benched during passing situations, mainly nickel defenses. Kiwanuka is mainly a pass-rushing specialist, playing in only 10 games last season he tallied 4.5 sacks. Why not slide him back to his original role of defensive end, when in nickel situations? “I’ve been through that whole ‘What position I’m going to play’ thing,” Kiwanuka said. “The only way I can approach it is wait until I hear something. If they come to me in mid-game I could switch back.” The team could let Kiwanuka take up the left defensive slot on those downs, and let Tuck shift over to defensive tackle. While Kiwanuka is not half the player Strahan was, it would still leave the Giants would three legitimate pass rushers on the line. That was in fact, when the team’s defense was most dominant.

The loss of Strahan will also hurt the team’s depth. Tuck was also used in the backup role for both guys last season. The team will look internally and scour the free agent wire for more guys who can come in and just take a few snaps. Just last week, they signed Renaldo Wynn to compete for the back-up role. That again is another reason, I believe Kiwanuka should get some snaps on the d-line as well as linebacker next season.

“Whenever you take a Hall of Fame player out of your defense, it’s going to affect you tremendously,” Umenyiora said. “He’s a great football player, period. . . . I don’t know if anybody is going to be able step up the way he played, but we have good football players . . . but we’re talking about Michael Strahan here.”

Couldn’t of said it any better myself. Thats why even with the rest of the same cast in place, this is a NEW Giants defensive line. It’s still formidable, still explosive but it will take some time to create a new identity. One of its own, that doesn’t center around, arguably, the best defensive player in Giants history.


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