Keys to the Steelers - Giants game

BATTLE OF 2004

FIRST ROUND QBS

The Steelers and Giants face off against each other in New Jersey today.  Isn’t their name the New York Giants.  I’m confused.  Not really, but I always find it funny when they call themselves the New York Giants.  What are the keys to a win against New Jersey?

1.      Contain Cruz:  Victor Cruz stock has risen meteorically since he joined the Giants.  He was an undrafted free agent out of UMass in 2010 and there aren’t too many teams that aren’t regretting the missed opportunity to take him in the draft.   Last year, in his second year he had 82 catches and has 52 already this year.  It may fall upon Ike to contain him, but the safeties need to keep their eyes on him also.

2.     Have Ben’s Back:  Max needs to continue to keep Ben clean.  It is amazing that he has played as well as he has this year coming off knee surgery.  I’ll keep saying it time and again, the Steelers made a wise decision to bring him back and it’s hard to believe no one else picked him up.  He’s gone through his ups and downs with the Steelers and he continues to cover Ben’s back.  He has his work cut out for him today against Jason Pierre Paul.  Oui Oui.

3.     It doesn’t look like Jonathan Dwyer will be playing today, so the workload falls on the guy that we thought would start the season as the starter,  Isaac Redman.  Hopefully Redman will be able to carry the load as well as JD.  The running game has been extremely effective in the last 2 wins and it wouldn’t hurt to continue that effectiveness in this game. 

4.     It’s not all about Max:  Max has got Ben’s back, but the rest of the line has helped to make JD look and be compared to JB.  They’ve got their work cut out for them today against a premium defensive line.  It will be a good test, but if they continue to improve they should be effective against the Giants.

5.     No. 1:  The secondary is, by rank, number 1 in the league against the pass.  Going up against Eli will be a major challenge unless the line and backers get some pressure on him.  Unfortunately Eli’s O-Line have done a great job of keeping him clean too.  So, don’t count on pressure to Eli.  It will be up to Ike, Ryan and the boys to keep the passing game under control.

6.      Beat the wrath of Sandy:  Hurricane Sandy devastated New York and New Jersey and also has had an influence on New York Sports.  The NYC Marathon finally succumbed to pressure to cancel.  The Steelers could not find a hotel that had power, so they flew in this morning and will leave tonight.  It’s hard to tell what effect this will have on the team, but maybe a change will be good.  They couldn’t keep the Titans and Raiders games under control flying in the day before, so maybe another day of home cooking will be a positive.  To win they must beat Sandy and the Giants.