NFL New York Giants

New York Giants Need Strong Finish From Jason Pierre-Paul For Christmas

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By @mturnerny

Jason Pierre-Paul New York Giants

Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

The defense of the New York Giants hasn’t been all that great this season. For the year, they’re among the worst teams in the league in terms of total yards per game allowed, but lately they’ve been picking it up. Leading their defense has been Jason Pierre-Paul – the man you’d expect to do so, but not always the man who’s done it.

Six of JPP’s 9.5 sacks in 2014 have come in the Giants’ last three games (of which they’ve won two), and a strong finish to the season is exactly what the Giants need for Christmas.

Neither the offense or defense of the Giants has played very well, so they certainly have needs on both sides of the ball. Unlike the defense, Eli Manning and the offense were given a new coordinator and playbook prior to the start of the season. That gives them some slack – for now. The most noticeable difference between this Giants team and that of years’ past was their lack of a ferocious defense. They were playing soft, bend-but-don’t-break defense that wasn’t getting it done at any level.

Three weeks ago, however, Pierre-Paul and the remainder of the defense picked it up. Including JPP’s six sacks, the Giants as a whole have 23 sacks in their last three games. That gives them 41 on the season, good for fifth in the league. Obviously, sacks are a very important stat, but JPP has done so much more recently than just rack up his sack total.

He has been entirely dominant against the rush. In his last three games, Pierre-Paul has 13 tackles, or nearly one-third of his total on the season in one-fifth of the games. As a defensive end, he has a great ability to get to running backs and stop the run game. In 2014, he’s rated among the best run-stopping ends in the NFL.

This Sunday, the Giants will travel to the St. Louis Rams, where they will be pitted against another elite defense. Manning will certainly have his struggles throughout the game due to the Rams’ defensive line, which is among the best in the league, so Pierre-Paul will need to lead the counterattack for the Giants when they’re on defense. He has the ability to be a game-changer and he’s showing it now.

A strong finish from JPP should lead to a strong finish from the Giants, and then there’s this little tidbit that Pierre-Paul is a free agent after the season. New York has some good linemen returning in Damontre Moore and Robert Ayers Jr., but neither are Pierre-Paul. By showing the Giants that he hasn’t lost anything and that he may in fact be getting better, JPP will demand the Giants to re-sign him. Letting him walk would simply be foolish.

By continuing his dominance as the season concludes, Pierre-Paul puts everyone in a good position – his teammates, his coaches, his GM and owners and most of all, himself.

Matt Turner is a New York Mets writer for www.RantSports.com. “Like” him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter @MturnerNY, or add him to your network on LinkedIn or Google.

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