His numbers aren’t awful, with a career completion percentage of 63.5 and 6 TDs to 1 interception over five seasons.  But all of that was in garbage time, and if you saw the guy play, let’s face it…he’s not very good. Of course, the durable Manning only comes out of games when his team has a huge lead in the game or in the standings.  Come to think of it, the same is true of Eli Manning, so Sorgi is going from backing up one Manning to another, and probably will see the field as a Giant in meaningful situations as much as or less than he did with Indy.

Plus, Sorgi will have to earn the #2 job as the Giants plan to have him compete with Rhett Bomar for the direct backup to Manning position.  What do you think?  Do you like the move, not like the move, or feel indifferent due to Manning’s durability?

In other news, the Giants lost two players over the weekend, when QB David Carr signed with the 49ers and DT Fred Robbins signed with St. Louis.  Neither is a huge loss.  Carr was Eli Manning’s backup and he would have remained in the backup role indefinitely in New Jersey.  Of course, he’s still going to be a backup in San Francisco, but chances are better he can beat out Alex Smith for the job there.  As for Robbins, he didn’t play well in 2009 and the Giants’ run defense was atrocious.  Maybe former DC Steve Spagnuolo can turn Robbins around. 

So now the G-men are scrambling for a backup QB, and among the names being thrown around are Mark Brunell, who played for Tom Coughlin for several years in Jacksonville; Jeff Garcia, who has tortured Giants’ fans while playing for the Eagles and 49ers; and Jim Sorgi, who backed up Peyton Manning in Indy for several years, and has never impressed anyone when put into real game action.  Personally, I’d love to see Garcia be the guy–he can start, he’s pesky and he’ll get the job done when you need him to. 

We’ll keep a close eye on this situation and other potential signings as the week goes on.

Rolle, a first round draft pick in 2005, had 72 tackles (61 solo) in 2009 as well as 4 interceptions, one of those coming against Eli Manning and the Giants on that Sunday night game in October.  He began his career as a corner but moved to safety in 2008. 

Rolle is not only a talented athlete, he is a smart one too.  Proof of that is that he was ACC Male Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2005 while at the University of Miami before graduating with a bachelor’s degree in sports administration.  But you don’t need a degree to appreciate the 5-year, $37 million deal Rolle signed last night, making him the highest paid player at his position in the NFL right now. 

Of course, the Giants did not sign Julius Peppers, who went to the Bears, or Karlos Dansby, who signed with Miami.  But signing Rolle fills a glaring void and also indirectly upgrades their pass rush, because quarterbacks will not have as quick a trigger with Rolle roaming around the field.  It’s just a really solid signing and a great way to start the off-season revamping of the G-men.

What do you all think?

The G-men are also still interested in LB Karlos Dansby, who is visiting the Dolphins today.  Miami and the Giants are the only two teams believed to be in serious contention for Dansby. 

We’ll do our best to keep you abreast of any breaking news over the weekend, and let’s hope the G-men significantly improve their team over the next few days.

The Giants would be wise to try and grab a guy like Darren Sharper too.  You know, the guy who has about as many catches from Eli Manning playing for the other team than some receivers have playing for the Giants.  Aside from Sharper, there are other strong secondary options, like CB Dunta Robinson.  And there are a few linebackers available, like Kirk Morrison and Keith Bulluck, the latter of which is a New York native. 

Team president John Mara promises that the G-men will not spend recklessly, like last season when the overspent on a defense that mostly tanked.  This year, it appears they will be more selective, and starting with Peppers would be a beautiful thing.

Of course, my thought was, as I said, fleeting.  I didn’t hear or read about the possibility of LT to the Giants until today in Jock Life.  They listed the Giants as a possible suitor for Tomlinson, mostly because of the collective question mark that is our backfield.  He wouldn’t be expected to come in and start, but really, how valuable would a guy like that be off the bench, for the right price?  He’s only a few seasons removed from 2323 yards from scrimmage and 31 total touchdowns.  Sure, he’s had his share of injuries and dealt with a lack of playing time and inconsistency, but is he done?  I don’t think so.

Of course, LT to the Giants would be a problem to at least one former Giant–Lawrence Taylor, the real LT.  Would we be able to call Tomlinson LT?  In fairness, I don’t think we would.  The real LT is so much a part of Giants’ lore that we would have to resort to calling the running back by his first or last name.  Either way, I’d love to have him….how about you?

But Coughlin also said what makes sense…that there will be a competition in camp like there should be every year, and that defensive end is no exception as far as positions up for grabs.  In other words, Osi has to earn that job.  But still, it’s also likely that it’s Osi’s job to lose, especially with new defensive coordinator Perry Fewell coming in.  I mean, if I was taking over the DC position for the Giants, and saw Osi sitting there, I’d try to get back that sack machine from a few years ago before discarding him.  This will also depend on what the G-men do in the draft or through free agency. 

But for now, Osi is a Giant, and he’s going to have to shut up and play for his job.

What I’d like to see them do is grab a beast of a left tackle first, the kind of guy that will protect Eli Manning’s blind side for the next decade.  David Diehl is good, but he’s not a natural tackle.  Kareem McKenzie is gimpy and Will Beatty is good but still unproven.  But having a certified stud, and one that is, well, a beast. 

Maryland’s Bruce Campbell (6′7″, 310), Oklahoma State’s Russell Okung (6′5″, 303), Rutgers’ Anthony Davis (6′5″, 322), and Iowa’s Bryan Bulaga (6′6″ 312) all fit the bill.   Bulaga is a bit risky because of a thyroid condition, but there is no question about his ability.  And the other guys are all big, physical specimens too. 

I read somewhere recently that the key positions in the NFL, now that it’s become a passing league, are QB, LT, DE or other pass rusher, and secondary.  And these skill positions are usually top-heavy in the draft as far as the best talent.  And you can sometimes grab a good starting receiver deep in the draft (the Saints’ Marques Colston was a seventh rounder), but a beast of a left tackle would never fall that far.

First of all, the rumors flying around about the G-men signing MLB Karlos Dansby are not only real, but assuming the financials work out, very likely that the Giants will win the bidding over Miami for Dansby, the kind of defensive leader that Pierce was.  But even if that were to happen, I was still intrigued about Alabama ILB Roland McClain, the best available interior LB in the draft.  Then lo and behold, Stu Rosenberg with RaidersRadar.com grabbed McClain with the 8th pick.

I could have reached for Florida’s Brandon Spikes, thought by many to be rated higher than McClain, but there have been too many concerns about Spikes’ off-the-field issues.  And the Giants don’t need any more of that.

My next thought was to grab our left tackle of the future to protect Eli Manning’s blind side for possibly the rest of his career.  But after Russell Okung, Bruce Campbell and Anthony Davis all flew off the board, I was staring at Iowa’s Bryan Bulaga, a beast at 6-6, 312.  But Bulaga missed a few games in 2009 with a thyroid condition, and our doctors advised me against making this pick. 

And then I remembered how bad our pass rush was in 2009, and how it’s regressed quickly since we won the Super Bowl in 2007.  And there was Derrick Morgan of Georgia Tech, the best available defensive end in the draft, still sitting there at number 15.  Morgan was the ACC’s defensive player of the year (yeah, I know, all you SEC and Big-12 snobs will say that doesn’t matter very much),  and he had 18.5 tackles for negative yardage as well as 12.5 sacks.  Morgan is a fierce pass rusher, but he can also play the run, and the Giants were also awful at doing that in 2009. 

So whether or not Osi Umenyiora comes back, whether or not Justin Tuck can become more consistent and stop getting hurt, we felt that we couldn’t pass up a playmaker at defensive end like Derrick Morgan.  Welcome to the Meadowlands, Derrick.

An introduction message from Bryan Douglass, Managing Editor of the Fanball Sports Network:
 
The 2009 season is in the books and the football universe has turned their eyes towards tomorrow. The Fanball Sports Network has put their first NFL season in the books as well and, like the faithful fans they support, our correspondents emerge with a desire to keep that momentum moving forward.
 
With that in mind and with the 2010 NFL Scouting Combine lurking in the distance, we have brought the group together for the launch of our talent evaluation season marked by the first annual Fanball Sports Network NFL Mock Draft.
 
Each of the team correspondents from our NFL family will take the reins of their particular franchises as we construct our own version of the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft… and for those of you in Chicago and Charlotte, while the fates have pushed you out of that moment of glory this season, we will not let you go without. ALL of our correspondents will be taking part as those teams relinquishing first-round selections will offer thoughts on what their teams may have done.
 
To enhance the experience we’ve opened multiple avenues for you to follow our progress.
 
Each selection will be announced and our progress will be updated throughout on a unique thread at RotoJunkie.com, the preeminent sports community on the net and the home of Fanball’s message-board mavens, and we would like to invite each and every one of you to comment, question, debate, and lobby for your NFL hopefuls right there in the thread with us. We’ve asked all of our correspondents to track that thread and if you have questions or thoughts to share, we’ll make sure the boys are there to answer.
 
That’s not all… during the draft our correspondents will be offering brief commentary following their selections at RotoJunkie.com. However, you will also find an adjoining link attached to those selections on the thread. Those links will steer you back to our blogs where you will find extended commentary and analysis on those selections. Our correspondents have worked hard to give you thoughtful insights from the local scene throughout the season and we’re looking to step up our game for our first-ever NFL mock draft. You’ll find that extra effort on each of our blogs following each selection, and you’ll have quick and convenient access to those offerings through our draft thread at RotoJunkie.com. We want to thank you for your support over this, our first year on the sports blog scene, and we keep that appreciation going by inviting you to enjoy this mock draft with us. Come check out the discussion at RotoJunkie, hit up the blogs to read what your team’s correspondent is thinking, and let us know what you think.
 
Enough is enough… let’s get to it. Will Horton from RamsHerd.com will kick us off shortly with the first pick on behalf of the St. Louis Rams. Follow us on RotoJunkie HERE and make sure you hit up the links for extended analysis on each pick.
 
Thanks for tuning in, and enjoy.