GIANT NOTES
When the Giants walk from their locker room to the trainer’s room and vice versa, they can’t help but notice the signs of disrespect. Jim Fassel had all the preseason predictions touting the Eagles as The Team to Beat in the NFC East posted on the bulletin board, and underlined.
The reminders come every day:
Was last year a fluke?
Are you guys one-year wonders?
“We as a football team have used that as motivation; I would think that we probably will this year again,” Kerry Collins said. “I think this team has a lot of fun proving people wrong, and that’s what we’re trying to do again this year.”
“It’s like I said last year, everybody’s had their say. Now we’re gonna play,” Fassel said. “And then now we’ll have our say, and if we do our job and everything else, I think this team’s gonna compete.”
They haven’t forgotten their 34-7 Super Bowl XXXV pasting by the Ravens. “I’m not personally gonna try to use it as incentive, although I think it’s left a bad taste in everybody’s mouth, including mine,” Collins said.
*
Collins on the jarring hit by Broncos LB Bill Romanowski that broke his jaw when he was Panthers quarterback: “So much of the way I played quarterback prior to that was being big and strong in the pocket; after that happened I lost like 15 pounds,” Collins said. “Enough time has gone by now where it really hasn’t had much of an effect on me. It was a perfect shot; I was turned the right way. He had a free shot and look, I’ve played defense before; I know what it’s like to have a free shot on the quarterback. You take it.”
Collins faced Romanowski a year later and spoke to him after the game. “I told him that I never had a problem with the hit that he gave me,” Collins said.
*
Ike Hilliard (soreness) did not practice yesterday. “I’m nowhere near where I want to be realistically,” Hilliard said, “but we’re in the season right now. This is a time period right now where we’ll just have to make as much progress as we can in a short period of time and try to get back out there as soon as we can.”
Hilliard remains questionable, at best. “Let him rest today, then practice tomorrow,” Fassel said . . . DT Cornelius Griffin (ankle) left practice early for ice treatment. Lefty PK Morten Andersen (right knee) says he is available to kick off. “We got the swelling out of there; I’m good. I think I can do all of it,” Andersen said.
*
Fassel didn’t like it one bit when KR Ron Dixon nonchalantly muffed a ball. “I don’t want any one-handed stabs, you understand? That’s horse[bleep]!” Fassel raged. CB Emmanuel McDaniel worked with the first unit as Jason Sehorn (right knee) practiced but was limited . . . Giants practiced with loudspeakers pumping up the volume to simulate the hostile Denver environment. “We just need to get our composure,” Fassel said . . . Amani Toomer and rookie Will Allen engaged in a brief scuffle.