The New York Giants (1–0) will head to Soldier Field Saturday night to take on the Chicago Bears (0–1) for their second game of the preseason.
The Giants will be facing new Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, who will be doing his best to rebound from last week’s disappointing performance against the Buffalo Bills, in which his team lost 27–20.
After being traded to Chicago in the offseason from the Denver Broncos, many saw Cutler as a huge upgrade at the position. With a rifle arm and good accuracy, he brings an added dimension to the Bears offense and immediately puts pressure on opposing defenses.
As the second game of the season gives each starting quarterback more playing time, Cutler will have extra chances to prove last week’s outing was just a blip on the radar.
Facing the Pro Bowl quarterback will be a Giants secondary without starter Aaron Ross, who is still sidelined with a hamstring injury. Terrell Thomas will most likely line up across starting cornerback Corey Webster. Also expect to see a lot of rookie Stoney Woodson, who figures to be on the field during passing downs.
After Cutler, the Giants will have to worry about Chicago’s running attack led by 1,000-yard rusher Matt Forte. Forte sat out of last week’s game with a hamstring injury.
The Giants defense may again be forced to start backups along the defensive line as key players Rocky Bernard (hamstring), Chris Canty (hamstring), Fred Robbins (knee), and Barry Cofield (knee), will likely be sitting out.
However, the Giants backups played admirably in their opener and put plenty of pressure on Carolina’s offense. Expect to see more of Anthony Bryant and Maurice Evans, both of whom contributed to multiple forced turnovers and made the night miserable for Panthers quarterbacks.
Another player to watch is rookie linebacker Clint Sintim who had a sack and a fumble in that game.
If the Giants front seven can again bring the heat, their young secondary could profit with a lot of chances for turnovers.
When the Giants offense takes the field, expect to see them utilizing more power running plays with Brandon Jacobs, Ahmad Bradshaw, and Danny Ware.
Bradshaw ran for 35 yards on five carries and steamrolled over Carolina corners Chris Gamble and Dante Wesley Monday night on two separate plays.
The Giants will also try to get their young receiving corps involved this week. Manning will probably play into the second quarter against the Bears and will have more time to throw to Dominik Hixon, Mario Manningham, and rookie receivers Ramses Barden and Hakeem Nicks.
If there is one area of concern for the G-Men heading into this game, it’s their special teams.
Kicker Lawrence Tynes made one of two field goals in Monday night’s game and his accuracy remains a question mark. Another concern is his leg strength. As the game waned, so did Tynes’s leg strength on kickoffs.
The punting game, usually solid for the Giants, was subpar. Jeff Feagles had a blocked punt that was returned for a safety.
The special teams unit must improve this week against the Bears.
Another sore spot for the Giants was the backup offensive line. After the starters left the game, their backups were largely dominated by Carolina’s defensive line.
