As the New York Giants drove down the field on a last drive that resulted in a game winning field goal, bell tolls at State Farm Stadium in Glendale were heard. Usage of a bell can represent multiple things: A beginning, an ending, a call to order or a warning.
One thinks of the Undertaker of WWE fame entering an arena to the sound of a bell tolling. Or Ernest Hemingway’s classic, For Whom the Bell Tolls, which is set in Spain, 1937, with the Spanish Civil Ware as the backdrop to the story. In all three examples is the pairing of a bell with the toll sound – not bong, chime or jingle, mind you – but a toll. As in death is in the air and imminent.
Bell Tolls
Yes, the Arizona Cardinals lost, as Graham Gano kicked the game winning field goal with nineteen seconds left on the clock. But the tolling of the bell was just as well for the Giants. As written earlier this past week, the chances of the Giants making the playoffs are remote. A caveat is that with the expanded playoff system currently in place, more and more teams are making the playoff than ever before, so one never knows. Let us not be absolute with our dire projections, and leave a sliver of a chance of the playoffs happening.
Sunday’s game validated that the Giants are not good. Joshua Dobbs, Zach Ertz, and James Connor spearheaded a 20-0 Cardinal halftime lead. That is James Connor who was replaced in Pittsburgh by Najee Harris. Harris currently averages a banal 3.9 yards a carry. Highly doubtful that any of the three Cardinals make the Pro-Bowl this year.
Opening up in the 3rd quarter, the Giants were down 20-0. The Giants scored a touchdown, only to have the Cardinals score and convert a two-point conversion. The last time the Giants came back from a 19-point deficit was 1970 against the Washington Redskins. And a 21-point deficit was last overcome in 1949 against the Cardinals. The Chicago Cardinals that is. After 40 years in Chicago, the Cardinals moved to St. Louis in 1960. In 1988 the St. Louis moved to Arizona. Seventy-four years since a 21-point Giant comeback.
The Emergence of Jalin Hyatt
As the 2nd half opened, the Giants were looking for a spark. Shut out for 6 quarters of play, the Giants had yet to effectively implement their newly designed vertical offense. Then quarterback Daniel Jones hit the precocious rookie Jalin Hyatt for a 58-yard reception. Can’t teach speed. Not 4.24 speed. All of a sudden, the Cardinals became fearful of the speed of the Giants wide receivers. The Giants had found a little Edge. Edge be everything. The Giants went on to win 31-28.
Keep the sound of that bell tolling deep in the recesses of your hippocampus. The Giants have safeties that can’t cover a tight end. An inside linebacker who has difficulty tackling. A highly touted outside linebacker who just isn’t making plays. A defensive front that has no pressures, leave alone no sacks of opposing quarterbacks after two games. An offensive line that is in total disarray. And a star running back with a sprained ankle.
I have a friend, whose English is not his native language. And he says “just show teeth” when facing difficult times. Meaning, just smile.
The Giants play the San Franscico 49ers this Thursday. Just show teeth.
Barry Schustermann
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