It's time for the annual bold predictions thread. Now some of you will make some not-so-bold predictions... "Beason will get hurt," or "the Giants will lead the league in injuries!" Well, those are givens... not exactly bold. You'll have to look to yours truly for some genuinely bold predictions since the rest of you are lilly-livered pansies for the most part, now that Wizdum hasn't been around in a few years.
Anyways, as usual, you can take these to the bank:
Kennard will be the best linebacker we've had since Jessie Armstead. This kid is making me into a believer... he's got strength, decent enough speed, but most of all he's smart. I was very impressed with him this preseason; he's going to be a bona fide star for us. If he doesn't make the Pro Bowl this year, it'll be due to a snub and not because of his play.
JPP will never again be an impact player for the Giants. Dude basically had his hand blown off, and has pins in his thumb. He's been on painkillers for two months... chances are he's skinny, out of shape, doped up, and constipated. He's got burns, nerve damage, and is missing a digit. This isn't the kind of injury that you just "come back" from... he's finished as a difference-maker for the Giants, contract year or not.
We'll once again have no running offense. Schwartz looks serviceable in this department but he probably won't play more than six games. Jerry and Newhouse are both pretty bad, and Richburg/Pugh haven't done much this preseason to make me think they can be road-graders. Jennings will get hurt, that guy from the Patriots will disappoint, and Williams has no vision... none. I think of everyone on the line, Flowers will be the guy we run behind when we need a yard on third and short... which brings me to...
Flowers will buck the "football name" trend and be a stud. He's going to grab and hold a lot and occasionally frustrate, but overall Flowers is going to turn out to be a great pick. He's big as a truck and even when he's caught out of position, his huge frame and long arm can wall out defenders. Some of the NFL's elite are going to give him a hard time but by midseason I think he'll be the best O-lineman on the team.
Eli will miss significant time with an injury. It happened to his brother right around this time in his career... Eli can't last forever... and while this line is decent in pass-blocking, we're going up against some very aggressive defenses this year. I'm thinking the BIlls game is when we get to see the debut of Ryan Nassib in a real game. When you can't run the ball, your offense becomes one-dimensional... and Rex Ryan is going to tee off on that and crush our one hope for the season.
Honorable mention: the Giants get to seven wins, and Coughlin is gone at the end of the season. The Giants go into full-rebuild mode and keep Reese, even though it's JR himself who should go.