The Monday night game between the Giants and the Jets should be an interesting one to watch.  Normally, these teams meet in the third week of preseason but tonight the new home stadium for both teams is being unveiled so the game was moved up to opening week.  The past five preseason meetings have been decided by a total of 20 points with the Jets winning the last three SU after the Giants took the two before that.

You might disagree, but I don't like that the Jets are on the HBO "Hard Knocks" series.  The series debuted in 2001 with the Ravens being the team of choice and continued the following year with the Dallas Cowboys.  It wasn't broadcast until 2007 with the Chiefs, then the Cowboys again in 2008, and last year with the Bengals.  I don't have preseason records readily available going back to 2002, but the "Hard Knocks" teams the past three years have all lost their opening preseason game, both straight-up and ATS.  Sure, it is a super-small sample set, but the logic behind it is the teams are initially not as focused to play football the first week after having cameras around them since the start of camp and seeing themselves on TV. 

The Giants don't like what they perceive as "arrogance" by the Jets on the cable show.  The Jets, backed by coach Rex Ryan, aren't afraid to be vocal and appear to be a team that will be riding with a chip on their shoulder all season. 

The Giants were horrendous on defense last year.  A lot of that was due to injuries, but also due to the loss of their defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo, who left to coach the Rams.  Last year's DC is gone and the new one is Perry Fewell, the Bills' DC the past three seasons.  Fewell is installing a new scheme, the Tampa-2, and there will be a learning curve.

The Jets are the better team.  In doing research, it was very interesting to see how important CB Darrelle Revis was to the Jets' success on defense.  Revis is holding out and won't be on the field. 

As for QB's, Sanchez had off-season knee surgery.  It will be interesting to see if the level of play he showed in the playoffs was a continuation of his improvement or will he return to the poor decision-making he showed earlier in the season.  Mark Brunell is the back-up with Kellen Clemens #3.  Eli Manning will probably play a quarter followed by long-time Peyton Manning back-up, newly acquired Jim Sorgi, and then second-year man Rhett Bomar.  I lean to the Giants's rotation but not by much. 

The situation favors the Giants, the fundamentals favor the Jets.  I will be on the betting sideline.  No play.

GL,