Giants' Secondary Licking Its Chops Over Injured Stafford
By Will Burchfield
Matthew Stafford is wounded and the Giants' secondary is beginning to lick its chops.
Safety Landon Collins told the New York Post on Thursday that he expects Stafford to be limited by his dislocated middle finger when the Lions and Giants square off on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
"I think it's going to slow the zip down on the ball and give us more opportunities to make plays," Collins said. "Our secondary, we always try to make big plays. That's going to be something we key in on if [his throwing] is not the same [as] we watch on film."
The Giants' secondary is coming off its best performance of the season in a 10-7 win over Dallas last Sunday. Against the likes of Collins, Janoris Jenkins and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, quarterback Dak Prescott threw for just 165 yards and one touchdown and was picked off twice.
The Giants are tied with the Packers and Dolphins for the seventh most interceptions (13) in the league. Collins has five of those picks, including one he ran back for a touchdown.
Stafford has cut down on the turnovers this season, but some of his bad habits creeped up last Sunday after he injured his finger and was forced to wear a glove on his throwing hand. From that point on, he completed just nine of 20 passes and threw two interceptions.
"You need all your fingers to grab [the ball]," Collins told the Post. "He has to play with four fingers now. I think this finger thing will slow him down just a tad, but he'll still be the same quarterback."
It remains to be seen whether Stafford wears any kind of protective garment on his hand on Sunday. Throughout practice this week, he has worn a specialized glove that covers just his right middle finger, but Jim Caldwell said on Friday the quarterback is still experimenting with several options.
Either way, offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter doesn't expect the Lions' game plan to change.
"I think we're doing everything we can to win the game and I don't think anything major will change anywhere," Cooter said on Thursday. "There's always a million factors that go into plays I call and formations we use."
Giants' defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is taking the same approach in regard to Stafford's injury, but said that could change based on how the quarterback looks early on.
"If he is functioning differently, then maybe we will change things," Spagnuolo told the Post.
Cooter said he isn't sure how much the Giants will target Stafford's finger, but knows a lot happens on the field - beneath pile-ups, along the line of scrimmage - that spectators don't see.
"None of us know half the stuff that goes on inside there, all those guys," Cooter said. "I'm sure those guys got the scouting report just like we do."
