Giants Daily Blitz Blog

RB Brown learns to be a pro

During the assistant coaches’ usual bye week availability to the media, Jerald Ingram stood in the hallway of the Timex Performance Center last year talking about his running backs. Andre Brown’s name eventually came up.

At that time, Brown was a member of the practice squad with the primary responsibility of preparing the defense for its next opponent. It’s an integral role on the team, but Brown was waiting for more. Ingram, a 21-year assistant to Tom Coughlin, knew he had to keep him motivated.

So he laid out the example of Ryan Grant, a former scout teamer for the Giants who went on to have back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and win a Super Bowl with Green Bay.

Fast-forward to Monday and there Ingram stood in the same corridor in between the weight room and locker room with his pupil tied for second in the NFL in rushing touchdowns. The other NFL backs with seven scores: Adrian Peterson, Ray Rice, and Doug Martin.

Not bad for a 25-year-old who has been waived eight times by five teams.

“We’ve seen him develop in our program for the last three years or so,” Ingram said. “And that’s the reason we drafted Andre because when he came out of N.C. State, we thought he could be an every-down kind of guy. He caught the ball well there. He has the great size. He’s got good speed. He just had to have time to learn our offense, and he’s a young rookie out there that’s developing.”

While he’s technically a third-year player, Brown, the Giants’ fourth-round draft choice in 2009, had played in just four games with minus-one rushing yard heading into the season. Through 10 weeks this season, Brown has 60 carries for 321 yards (5.4) and 12 receptions for another 86.

Like all backs in the system, he had to first earn the trust of the coaches. He learned how to do that from Ahmad Bradshaw, who learned from Brandon Jacobs, who learned from Tiki Barber and so on.

“He’s a little brother to Ahmad Bradshaw,” Ingram said of Brown. “Ahmad has taken him underneath his wing, and he’s learning the game now as opposed to just cards in practice and situations and how to help the offensive line and little techniques that Ahmad uses. There are subtleties that never get spelled out that you see that Ahmad does that defenses are like, ‘I don’t want to get cut by him, I don’t want to get chipped by him.’ There are little things as a pro that these guys are learning through Ahmad.”

Week 10 Fantasy Football Grades

The views expressed in this article are not of the New York Football Giants but those of an independent Fantasy Expert.

Jake Locker QB Titans

Last Week: 122 YDS, 2 TD

Locker had a productive game back in the Titans’ starting lineup, taking care of the ball all afternoon by not turning it over once.  He also was able to throw two touchdown passes and had 36 yards rushing.
He isn’t Cam Newton or Andrew Luck, but this quarterback is a nice substitute not named either of those two.

Arrow: Up

Steelers Defense

Last Week: 13 points against, interception, 2 sacks

Pittsburgh had a prototypical game on Monday Night Football, allowing only 13 points and one touchdown in their 16-13 OT winning performance.  Still searching for their first touchdown on defense, the Steelers hope their quarterback of the defense, Troy Polamalu, will make his first start of the season vs. Baltimore in Week 11.

Arrow: Up

Alex Smith QB 49ers

Last Week: 72 YDS, TD

Smith was knocked out of Sunday’s contest against the St. Louis Rams early in the second quarter. Smith was 7 of 8 passing with 72 yards and a touchdown before getting a concussion on a designed quarterback rollout.

Arrow: Neutral

Heath Miller Steelers TE

Last Week: 4 REC, 47 YDS

Miller added 47 yards in Week 10 and now has 431 yards on the year, which is on pace to break his career high of 798 back in 2009.  Ben Roethlisberger’s early exit in Monday night’s game clearly didn’t help Miller’s stats, but should be back to one of the best tight ends next week vs. Baltimore Ravens.

Arrow: Neutral

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Power Rankings Roundup

With their 31-13 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, the Giants dropped to 6-4 but maintained sole possession of first place in the NFC East.

Here’s a look at what outlets across the nation are saying about the Giants and how they stack up in our weekly power rankings roundup:

NFL.COM POWER POLL

NYG: 10
Previous: 6
Comments: Voters include Gil Brandt, Bucky Brooks, Charley Casserly, Heath Evans, Daniel Jeremiah, Michael Lombardi, Willie McGinest, Shaun O’Hara, Gregg Rosenthal, Darren Sharper, Kurt Warner, Brian Webber, Steve Wyche.
NFC East: No. 14 Cowboys (previously 18), No. 21 Redskins (23), No. 23 Eagles (20)

FOX SPORTS

NYG: 14
Previous: 9
Comments: “Whatever the reason, Tom Coughlin and the Giants struggle in November. They are 13-21 and have now lost five in a row in the month. They still control their destiny in the division, but the gap is closing quickly.” – Brian Billick
NFC East: No. 16 Cowboys (16), No. 20 Redskins (20), No. 22 Eagles (22)

CBS SPORTS

NYG: 12
Previous: 9
Comments: “What the heck is wrong with that offense? Eli Manning has to get it going — soon. The bye is important.” – Pete Prisco
NFC East: No. 16 Cowboys (19), No. 22 Eagles (20), No. 26 Redskins (25)

ESPN

NYG: 10
Previous: 5
Comments: “The bye comes at the perfect time for the reeling defending champs, who look like they need a reboot.” – Dan Graziano
NFC East: No. 15 Cowboys (18), No. 21 Redskins (19), No. 24 Eagles (21)

Daily Blitz: Eli searches for the “right style”

Eli Manning is excited.

Despite the two-game skid, despite the lull in the offense, despite having teams like Green Bay, New Orleans, Atlanta and Baltimore on the other side of the bye week, this is when the quarterback feels he and his team have a great opportunity to prove themselves.

“That’s what you want to get excited about,” Eli Manning told Mike Francesa on Monday during his weekly report on WFAN. “You want to get excited about, hey, where do we stand in this league, in the NFL, and you want to play these good teams and see if we can go out there and win some big games. That’s when you get excited. You play a good team and you earn that win, you get excited about those. We’re going to look forward to that.”

The 6-3 Packers, winners of four straight, are the first on the slate after the bye. Until then, the Giants will try to recapture that winning style.

“I feel very confident about this team,” Manning continued. “I think we’ve got great character guys, guys who have great passion for football and their commitment to their craft and getting better and they want to have a big year. They want to have a great season. We want to make the playoffs, and whatever it takes we’re going to commit to it and we’re going to find it.

“Hey, we’re searching for that right style, for that right way for us to win football games. And we’re going to keep grinding away until we find it.”

QUICK HITS

» DT Kuhn suffers injury vs. Bengals

» Giants look to regroup for stretch run

» WATCH: Head Coach Tom Coughlin meets the media a day after the Giants’ Week 10 loss to the Bengals

» Giants News Flash: Giants.com brings you the latest news as the team returns from Cincinnati

Top 10 Tuesday: Passing Leaders

In this edition, Giants.com takes a look at the top 10 passers in franchise history based on yards:

CLICK TO VIEW TOP 10 PASSERS PHOTO GALLERY