New York Giants Tickets

Don't write off the New York Giants' defense just yet. For that matter, don't write off the defending division champions, either. Shrugging off intense criticism and the always treacherous bye week, the Giants rediscovered the team that won a division title a year ago. For at least a week, New York also renewed its own hopes that this team is still capable of big things.

The New York Giants have said repeatedly this week that their bye could not have come at a better time. What a mistake! The bye week never comes at a good time for the Giants (1-2). Since the NFL started giving teams off for a week during the regular season in 1990, the Giants have rarely done anything right in the week after they return.

Terrell Owens has created a circus-like environment around him, but he's not the first player to become a major distraction.

By John Pezzullo SportsTicker Pro Football Editor

Turns out David Letterman isn't the only guy with a Top 10 list. Ben Roethlisberger has one, too. Roethlisberger's list isn't as witty or comical as Letterman's -- unless, of course, the slapstick-like offensive play of the winless Oakland Raiders is taken into account. It exists only in his mind, and it includes the 10 teams that passed him over in the 2004 draft.

The Eagles have some question marks on offense, but should get a key member of its defense back for the Dallas game.

The New York Giants are going to find out quickly whether the bye week helped them discover why opposing receivers are running free in their secondary. Santana Moss and the Washington Redskins coming to town. "If you're smart, you look at the scouting report on the Giants and say if you throw the ball, there's a higher percent chance of winning," Giants middle linebacker Antonio Pierce said.

Three unbeaten teams remain, but their schedules show it won't be long before one of them takes a loss.

Bears DE Adewale Ogunleye spent an off day discussing his aching hamstring and TV show "Nip/Tuck."

After dismantling the Seahawks on Sunday, the undefeated Bears are atop the rankings for the first time.

Seattle coach Mike Holmgren delivered the speech early in training camp, almost as an obligation, and then he...

Tom Brady and Eli Manning are among the players that need to step up their games.

Before taking the head coaching job with the New Orleans Saints, Sean Payton called an old friend for advice. On Sunday, Payton's buddy will be on the other sideline when the Saints face John Fox's Carolina Panthers in an important NFC South game. There were no phone calls this week. "It's hard during the season to ask for advice.

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) -- New York Giants linebacker Carlos Emmons likely will miss three weeks with a strained and partially torn left pectoral muscle, coach Tom Coughlin said Wednesday.

The surprising thrashing of the Falcons on Monday night has catapulted the Saints into the rankings' top 12.

Tim Lewis is no Jeremy Shockey. Instead of pointing the finger elsewhere, as the Pro Bowl tight end did last weekend, the New York Giants' defensive coordinator took the blame for the team's current position as one of the worst defenses in the NFL. "I can't screw it up, and right now I am screwing it up," Lewis said in a bye week interview, one of the rare times coach Tom Coughlin allows his...

The Saints stymied the Falcons' rushing attack by clogging the running lanes and disrupting Michael Vick.

A seemingly contrite Jeremy Shockey said Monday that his emotions got the best of him when he criticized Tom Coughlin and his staff for being outcoached in a blowout loss at Seattle. Coughlin talked with his Pro Bowl tight end and the team Monday, but the coach would not discuss either what was said or "decided." He conceded he was surprised and extremely disappointed by something that should not...

If the Giants continue to struggle with their pass rush, it will be a long season for the defense.

Once again, Qwest Field was loud on Sunday -- close to airport-runway loud. Unlike last year, it didn't have a significant impact on the New York Giants. They were making mistakes on their own. "Let's not talk about that as if it was the game," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. "That was not the game." But it was a major focus going into Sunday's 42-30 Seattle win -- including a memo from the NFL about...