The Giants Defense: The Past, The Present, and The Future

Originally the plan was to look at who played well and who played poorly this year on the D. A Super Bowl later, it's time to scrap that plan and look at how each defensive group began the season, ended it, and what the future holds:

DEFENSIVE LINE

The Past: Strahan was out of shape, Osi was invisible, and Justin Tuck was the only guy who showed up through the first few games. Until the Skins and Eagles games, these guys were being completely pushed around.

The Present: Best D Line in football. Spagnuolo did what Tim Lewis never could: play Tuck, Osi, and Strahan in such a way to maximize their pressure. They pressured Romo, got to Brady, getting past two of the best O-lines in the game. They rid themselves of the well-deserved reputation that dogged the Strahan-era defense of disappearing in crunchtime. Osi and Tuck should have been co-mvps of the Super Bowl.

The Future: My guess is that Strahan is done. He hasn't shut up since the Super Bowl ended and looks ready to ride this to a career in broadcasting. That leaves Osi, Tuck, Cofield, Lil' Fred, Alford and Tollefson, all of whom are signed for next season. This unit has always underwhelmed when Strahan didn't play in the past, but they should be fine next year with Osi and Tuck anchoring the ends. And the three solid DT's.

LINEBACKERS

The Past: Kawika Mitchell didn't have a clue, Mathias Kiwanuka was running around like a chicken with his head cut off, and Antonio Pierce blew an airhorn every time reporters asked him a question. Yeah, there's a reason that this team gave up 80-something points to begin the season.

The Present: Antonio Pierce has become one of the more recognizable faces in the game, as the quarterback of this defense. No one looked happier at the parade, and no one took more pleasure in refuting the nay-sayers. (RESPECT as my old roomate would say.) Kawika Mitchell turned into a force on the defense, including a great Super Bowl. And while Kiwanuka became the charter member of the fractured tibula club, Reggie Torbor filled in pretty well. (Did anyone else not notice Torbor on the field for the entire game? That's a good thing, right?)

The Future: Some drunk guy who I don't respect or trust told me that Lance Briggs wants to come to the Giants because he and Pierce are boys. I'm ok with this. Kawika Mitchell is also a free agent. I'm ok with bringing back Kawika, but I'm also ok with bringing in a pro bowler. And Kiwanuka should return to form next year.

SECONDARY

The Past: Even when our defense was good, this unit was awful. Sam Madison was smart but old and slow, Dockery played hard but was a midget, and Corey Webster was simply a tackling dummy with a #23. Not to mention that Gibril Wilson was becoming overrated and James Butler was unknown, which might be the nicest thing you could say about anyone on this unit.

The Present: Everyone talks about how it all made sense to Eli Manning; no one was saying the same thing about Corey Webster who went from being godawful to being a pretty good cornerback. Aaron Ross played as well as anyone could expect from a rookie in the playoffs. (Was I just drunk, or did he pull a Torbor and basically disappear from the Super Bowl. This is a good thing though for a CB, assuming he played.) Sam Madison, after being hurt, did a damn good job in the Super Bowl, and Kevin Dockery, who should have been covering Wes Welker did a good job of getting healthy in time for the super bowl and not making an ass of himself.

The Future: With the exception of Madison, this is a very young group. Webster is entering his 4th year, Ross his 2nd, and Dockery his 3rd. The big question with this group is whether Corey Webster will continue his rise among the top 20 cornerbacks in the league. (This shouldn't be an accomplishment, but consider that he began this season as the worst starting cornerback in the league.) I'm thinking he'll continue to improve. Oh, and Gibril Wilson is a free agent. He's pretty good against the run, and it'd be nice to see the Giants sign him. It may not be a bad idea to draft a cornerback, but we'll leave that for another time...