Patriots-Giants Preview

 

SCOUTING REPORT

Patriots won't hold anything back against GiantsThe only team standing between the Patriots and a perfect regular season is the New York Giants. The combination of QB Tom Brady and WR Randy Moss has been unbelievable all season long and the Patriots are not going to take it easy even though they have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs locked up. The Giants, who clinched a playoff spot with an impressive Week 16 win in Buffalo, could rest key starters for this game. Will DEs Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan and Justin Tuck be able to get pressure on Brady? Look for Pats offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to continue to spread the field while creating mismatches against a suspect Giants secondary. The Giants need to continue to rely on RB Brandon Jacobs, Reuben Droughns and Ahmad Bradshaw to take pressure off QB Eli Manning.

· Full Scouting Report

Matchup
	W-L	PF	PA	HOME	ROAD	DIV	CONF
NWE	16-0	589	274	8-0	8-0	6-0	12-0
NYG	10-6	373	351	3-5	7-1	3-3	7-5
· Complete Standings

Individual Leaders

New England Passing   CMP% YDS TD INT Brady 65.7 4398 28 13 Hoyer 70.4 142 0 0

NY Giants Passing   CMP% YDS TD INT Mannin... 62.3 4021 27 14 Carr 63.6 225 1 0

New England Rushing   CAR YDS AVG TD Marone... 194 757 3.9 9 Faulk 62 335 5.4 2

NY Giants Rushing   CAR YDS AVG TD Jacobs 224 835 3.7 5 Bradsh... 163 778 4.8 7

New England Receiving   REC YDS AVG TD Welker 123 1348 11.0 4 Moss 83 1264 15.2 13

NY Giants Receiving   REC YDS AVG TD Smith 107 1220 11.4 7 Mannin... 57 822 14.4 5

Full Player Stats: New England | NY Giants

TEAM AVERAGES & NFL RANKS
TEAM OFFENSE	TEAM	PER GAME AVERAGE
Total Yards	NWE	411.0
	NYG	331.0
Yards Passing	NWE	295.7
	NYG	197.1
Yards Rushing	NWE	115.6
	NYG	134.3
TEAM DEFENSE	TEAM	PER GAME AVERAGE
Yards Allowed	NWE	288.3
	NYG	305.0
Pass Yds Allowed	NWE	190.1
	NYG	207.3
Rush Yds Allowed	NWE	98.3
	NYG	97.7

HEAD TO HEAD MATCHUPS (SINCE 2001)
New England leads 2-1
Oct 12, 2003	NWE 17, @NYG 6

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) -- The Patriots will get help from plenty of fans instead of a video camera when they return to the scene of "Spygate."

Those who aren't at the Meadowlands can still watch the final step in New England's bid for an undefeated regular season on the channel of their choice.

Interest in the potential history-making event convinced the league to allow NBC and CBS to simulcast Saturday night's game against the New York Giants nationally. It had been restricted to the NFL Network and local stations in the Boston and New York areas.

Win, and the Patriots become the first team to finish a regular season at 16-0. Lose, and Patriot-haters throughout the country can celebrate in front of their TV sets.

"It will be like the State of the Union address," an unusually cheery Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. "You can flip to every channel and see it."

New England fans who just have to be there can pay exorbitant prices online for tickets. Some are being offered by Giants fans who don't care to attend an event that has no bearing on their team's playoff status.

New York plays a first-round game at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the following weekend.

"We definitely appreciate the support of the fans. We definitely hear them when we're on the road," Patriots safety Rodney Harrison said. "We always have a lot of support on the road, but at the end of the day the game is won or lost between the lines."

The Giants (10-5) clinched a wild-card berth last Sunday with a win at Buffalo. That improved their road record to 7-1. They're 3-4 at home, where fans -- like those selling their tickets for Saturday's game -- may not be very supportive.

"That's probably one of the reasons why we are better on the road than we are at home," running back Brandon Jacobs said. "If it is that way and (the Patriots) got more fans, then so be it."

At least one person won't be there the way he was three months ago -- the Patriots' video assistant who got caught taping the New York Jets' defensive coaches with a sideline camera in the season opener, costing Belichick and the team $750,000 in fines and a first-round draft pick.

That, too, was at the Meadowlands where the Patriots beat the Jets 38-14.

Now, New England, still without a loss, will end its regular season on the same field in front of cameras the NFL wants to be there.

Then the Patriots get to rest during their bye week. They have home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.

"We're not looking at the playoffs right now and we're not really thinking about being undefeated," linebacker Tedy Bruschi said. "There's a simple way how we got here, and that's focusing on the opponent that we happen to have in front of us. This week we've got a formidable one in the New York Giants."

The Giants lead the NFL in sacks and have the fourth-most productive running game in the league, led by Jacobs.

"He's 270 pounds," said Harrison, who will have to tackle him. "So that's like a Ferrari meeting a Mack truck."

The Patriots would be helped if the Giants play their regulars sparingly, since the outcome of the game has no bearing on their playoff position. Coach Tom Coughlin hasn't said what he'll do.

Belichick said he'll use his players according to what he feels is best for the team.

"This has been a very special season," Tom Brady said. "I'd hate to think that we'd go out there and not put our best out there this week."

The Giants would love to stop New England from being the first team to go undefeated in the regular season since the Miami Dolphins in 1972, who won the Super Bowl to finish at 17-0.

They'd also like to keep Brady from breaking Peyton Manning's single-season record of 49 touchdown passes and Randy Moss from passing Jerry Rice's mark of 22 scoring receptions. Each needs two more to set the records.

"Nobody in the NFL wants to see them go undefeated," defensive end Osi Umenyiora said. "If they do go undefeated, they are going to be known as that team that was just that much better than everybody else. I don't want to see that."

The Patriots need six points to break Minnesota's record of 556 in a season set in 1998 when Moss was a rookie with the Vikings. They've outscored opponents by a record 312 points with a margin of 36.7-15.9 per game. They're tied with Tampa Bay for fewest points allowed, 239.

"The good thing about those records is all those didn't come against us," Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce said. "Those 551 points, those 15 wins, that wasn't against the New York Giants. This is just one game. It isn't our fault the guys before decided to give up all those points."

The Patriots are trying to make history. The Giants want to stop them.

"It would definitely help just knowing that you're playing a good team and having the opportunity to end on a high note," New York quarterback Eli Manning said. "The outcome doesn't ultimately matter, but you still want to go out there and play good football."

It matters to the Patriots and all the fans around the country who will be tuning in.

So what does Belichick think of the widespread TV coverage?

"We're just trying to get ready for the game," he said. "I'm not planning on watching it."

Reiss mailbag: A Patriots potpourri

Mail call: A potpourri on Patriots' problems and plans for 2010.

Wickersham: The future of the NFL

Seth Wickersham looks at the labor dispute that is hanging over the NFL and what the future may hold for the league.

Brady's bonus could speed up extension talk

Tom Brady and the Pats are expected to negotiate an extension that will likely make him one of the highest paid players in the NFL.

Super Schadenfreude reigns among Pats fans

Day after Colts loss, Schadenfreude reigns among Patriots fans.

Rodney Harrison set to tackle NBC gig

Rodney Harrison [ stats ] is ready to begin the next phase of his life. One of the most storied players in Patriots [ team stats ] history, Harrison will be introduced as the newest member of NBC's broadcast team during a conference call tomorrow, according to a source with knowledge of Harrison's plans.

Jim Donaldson: It's okay to to be optimistic about the 2009 Pats' offense, but let's be realistic

They are more than merely workouts, these sessions in which the Patriots are participating on the grass field in the southern shadow of Gillette Stadium.

Vince Wilfork a no-show again

Patriots [ team stats ] nose tackle Vince Wilfork [ stats ] is scheduled to appear at an event in support of his diabetes charity tomorrow.

Patriots.com News Blitz

Maroney talks about being healthy and Crable and Springs reflect on being back in action.

Patriots re-sign punter Tom Malone

The Patriots announced that they have re-signed punter Tom Malone today. Malone joins veteran Chris Hanson on the roster at the punter spot.

Traffic charges against Plaxico Burress dismissed

Four Broward County traffic tickets have been dismissed against former New York Giants football player Plaxico Burress , who still faces another case in which he's accused of cursing several times at a sheriff's deputy, the athlete's attorney said this morning.

NFL Putting Off Plaxico Punishment

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said today there is no timetable for making a decision on league disciplinary action for Plaxico Burress.

GIANTS: Updated: Boldin hires Eli's agent

KTAR Radio in Arizona reports that Cardinals WR Anquan Boldin has hired Tom Condon to be his agent.

Moving the Chains: Giants' Umenyiora takes aim at Eagles

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. A special buzz is building around the 2009 football season in Philadelphia, and a lot of it has to do with the rivalry between the Eagles and Giants.

Canty happy to be part of 'tremendous defense' in New York

CHAREAN WILLIAMS The movers were at Chris Canty's new home last week. He is starting to feel at home in the New York Giants' locker room, too.Canty left the Dallas Cowboys almost three months ago, the Giants' six-year, $42 million offer too rich for Dallas to beat.