The Giants' defense came in having ended the season of one quarterback and putting major dents in the season of a number of others in their last few games. How to pour fuel on that fire? Put 5 year veteran Charlie Whitehurst as the starter for Seattle in his first NFL game, add 12 new players to the roster for good measure and roll the dice.
The first quarter did not go as planned for Seattle coach Pete Carrol. When the clock hit zero the Giants had scored 3 touchdowns and took a 21-0 lead, taking the normally raucous Seattle crowd out of the game almost completely. Ahmad Bradshaw, the NFL's fourth leading rusher after a bye week allowed 3 players to pass him, started the scoring with a 2 yard touchdown run for Big Blue.
On the Giants' next possession Hakeem Nicks dove for a 44 yard touchdown reception made possible by third down penalty on the Seahawks defense. The Giants scored their third touchdown on Bradshaw's second of the game, a 4 yard run, to give them a 3 touchdown lead as the clock hit zero. The three touchdown lead put them well on to their first win in Seattle since 1981.
The Giants came into the game knowing that Seattle's Leon Washington is the most dangerous return man in the league. In order to counteract him the Giants kicked the ball a variety of ways, none deep. The first few kicks were punt-like, short pooch kicks that hung in the air long enough for the Giants coverage to corner him. The last kick of the first quarter was a line drive squib kick he almost returned for a touchdown before he was caught from behind by Aaron Ross at New York's 32 yard line. He would not touch the ball again for the rest of the game.
Seattle looked to be in position to finally answer the Giants. Whitehurst ended the drive throwing an interception to the Giants' Terrel Thomas in the end zone on the first play of the first quarter. At this point he had 5 yards passing to Eli Manning's 109.
After the Giants took another 5:31 off the clock, they led 28-0 on a 6 yard touchdown pass to Steve Smith over the middle with 9:19 left in the 2nd quarter. Almost every pass Eli Manning threw was in the direction of Seattle's Marcus Trufant. He did not do anything to discourage them.
Imagine, for a minute, being in your first NFL start down 28-0 midway through the second quarter against a defense that eats quarterbacks for lunch. Close your eyes and visualize having to abandon the running game and try to mount the greatest comeback of the 2010 season against a defense that knocked 5 quarterbacks out of the last 3 games they played, ending the Cowboys' Tony Romo's season in the process. What to do?
Come out firing pass after pass after pass to open receivers and prove you belong on the field. He started because Seattle's first string QB Matt Hasselbeck was deactivated after being sacked 13 times in the Seahawks' last two games. He was not sacked once leading his team up the field. Whitehurst stood toe to toe with the best defense in the game until he threw a terrible pass that was intercepted by a diving Corey Webster to end the drive.
"It was a young quarterback in his first start, we had an idea of how they would attack," said Giants coach Tom Coughlin.
The Giants took a 35-0 lead with 47 seconds left in the half on a touchdown catch by Kevin Boss in the back of the end zone, his first of the season. It was their largest lead at the half since November of 1959 against the Washington Redskins. They dominated the Seahawks in every facet of the game.
"It was good...I wanted one pretty bad playing back here in front of friends and family," Boss told WWOR's Duke Castiglione.
At the end of the first half, Manning was was 17-31 for 232 yards and 3 touchdowns with no interceptions. Whitehurst was 9 of 19 for 64 yards with no TDs and 2 INTs. The Giants had 66 yards rushing, led by Bradshaw's 42 yards and 2 TDs. Seattle had 17 yards rushing from three running backs combined. Although the Seahawks offensive line did not allow a sack, they did not open any passing or running lanes either. 298 total yards to 81, 19 first downs to 6, 3 takeaways to 1, 18:05 of possession to 11:55. Total domination.
"I thought he was really sharp. I thought he managed it, the whole first half was done really, really well. he made some outstanding throws," said Coughlin. "He directed the run, he directed the pass, he kept everybody poised."
New York took a 38-0 lead 4 minutes into the 3rd quarter on a field goal by Lawrence Tynes that was set up by a 38 yard run from Jacobs. Later in the quarter Tynes would make another field goal, but it was waived off after a penalty on the Seahawks that gave the Giants a first and goal on the 7. Hakeem Nicks limped off the field on the next play, also a penalty on the Seahawks. The ball moved to the 3 on the penalty and Eli Manningham
"The only way to calm down their crowd noise is to move the ball, get first downs and get the crowd out of it," Manning said. "That's exactly what we did today...we never gave the crowd a whole lot to cheer about."
That marked the end of the day for the majority of the major skill players on the Giants offense with Sage Rosenfels helming the team the rest of the way. Seattle's Charlie Whitehurst was just beginning. His first career touchdown pass came on a floater down the right sideline to a wide open Ben Obomanu for 36 yards, also the first of his season. The pass was set up on the previous play by Marshawn Lynch's emphatic 26 yard run that took half the defense to bring him down by the time it ended. The Seahawks ended the shutout and made it 41-7.
Eli Manning ended the day 21 of 32 for 290 yards and three touchdowns. Hakeem Nicks' led all Giants receivers with 6 catches for 128 yards and a touchdown. Nicks injury ended up being a simple rolled ankle that will be a non-factor next week against the Cowboys.
"My focus was to come out here and play great team ball...that's what we did," Nicks told WWOR TV after the game. "As a group we are definitely getting better."
The Giants ended the game on an impressive drive that started on their 20 yard line. They literally ran 17 plays and ate 13 minutes off the clock. 6 first downs, a fourth down conversion and 73 yards rushing without a single pass attempt. Danny Ware accumulated 60 yards rushing on the drive, Jacobs gained the rest. Ware had 15 yards on two carries for the whole season coming into the game.
"I know we can play a lot better, you know. We're just going to keep pushing," Bradshaw told WWOR's Duke Castiglione. "We're a hard working team, we're just looking to be the best."
When the clock expired Whitehurst jogged over to Manning to shake his hand. He may have been thinking that he will one day be the veteran franchise player wishing good luck to the young quarterback his team just dismantled. That day was not today and will not be soon. That doesn't mean it will not happen, just not today.
Before they ended Tony Romo's season the next game would have been much bigger. 6 wins, atop the NFC East and looking like the best team in the NFC, if not the NFL. The quarterback still isn't satisfied.
"We're still hungry...we have to get better," said Manning. "We just got to keep hungry and play like we're desperate for a win every week...we've only played one game in the NFC East, we know we have a lot of big games left."
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