There's an article in Wednesday's Post that calls Keith Bulluck the key to the Giants defense in 2010. It's a pretty big stretch to get to a place where Bulluck is playing that significant a role, but if a newly signed, aging linebacker coming off a devastating injury actually were so important it would be a great indictment of Jerry Reese's 2009 draft.
After all, Bulluck is only starting because Clint Sintim couldn't handle the job. The 2009 second round pick was supposed to provide a jolt of athleticism to the linebacking corps, but now he's just an athletic benchwarmer trying to find a way onto the field for a team that was desperate for a new look at the position. Some argue that he should be in a 3-4 defense and others say that you can't judge a player this quickly, but it's never good when you hand a player a position in the starting lineup and he hands it right back.
The rough thing for the Giants is that he isn't the only player from the 2009 draft to do that. Other than David Diehl, there wasn't a soul associated with the Giants that didn't want William Beatty to be the starting left tackle this season. He couldn't get the job done, however, and now the Giants enter the year with the same flawed, injury ravaged offensive line that helped sink the team last season.
As outlined well by Big Blue View, the hits just keep on coming. Tight end Travis Beckum might actually exist, but it would be news to anyone who actually watches Giants games because we've never seen him do a single positive thing on the field. Wide receiver Ramses Barden is named after a pharaoh but he's been more of a fraud in his two seasons. His size and jumping ability are supposed to make him a force in the red zone, but his next big catch will be his first. His next catch of any kind will be the second of his career.
At least those guys are still on the team. Andre Brown, Rhett Bomar, DeAndre Wright and Stoney Woodson have all been sent packing without making an impression. If it wasn't for Hakeem Nicks, this would be in the running for the worst in Giants history. Given how well Reese did in his first two drafts, that's really surprising. Maybe we're calling the fight a little bit early, but it's not like this doesn't have a real and serious impact on the 2010 season.
The Giants look eerily like the team that collapsed down the stretch last season because they haven't gotten any infusion of new talent from the players making their way up the pipeline. The presence of Beatty or Sintim in the lineup would say that the Giants have turned over a new page and are heading in a new direction. If Brown was pushing Brandon Jacobs for carries, it would signal the chance for a new wrinkle in an offense that needs one. None of that has happened, though, and now you have to hope that trying the same thing a second time leads to a different result.
Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City and is a contributor to FanHouse.com and ProFootballTalk.com in addition to his duties for NBCNewYork.com. You can follow him on Twitter.
