In 2007, the New York Giants became SuperBowl champs after beginning the season 0-2. The Giants finished the regular season with a 10-6 record and qualified for the playoffs as a wild card. The Giants punched their ticket to the Superbowl with playoff victories over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys, and Green Bay Packers, all on the road.

In the SuperBowl, little brother Eli Manning led the Giants to one of the biggest upsets in SuperBowl history. Tearing himself away from the grasp of several Patriot defenders, Manning completed an unbelievable pass inside the Patriots 20. He then hit Plexico Burris for the winning touchdown in the corner of the end zone with less than a minute to play destroying New England’s perfect season.

If the Giants are to repeat as Superbowl champs, they will need to have a better start. Four of the Giants first six games are at home. The difficult stretch of the season will come at the end, when the Giants go on the road for four of their last six games.

Thursday September 4 Washington Redskins @ New York Giants 7 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($192-$1,470)

The Giants begin the season against the division rival Redskins. The Redskins finished the 2007 regular season 9-7. The Redskins season ended with a 35-14 wild card playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks. The Redskins did not have a first round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft. Ticket sale price range ($192-$1,470)

Sunday September 14 New York Giants @ St. Louis Rams 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($74-$441)

Game 2 should be a cheap win for the Giants. The Rams finished the 2007 regular season 3-13, which is the worst record since the team moved to St. Louis. The Rams selected defensive tackle Chris Long from Virginia Tech University (son of Hall of Famer Howie Long) with the 2nd pick in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday September 21 Cincinnati Bengals @ New York Giants 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($138-$735)

In week 3, the disorganized Bengals visit Giants Stadium. The Bengals finished the 2007 regular season 7-9, and missed the playoffs. The Bengals players have had lots of problems off the field and star receiver Chad Johnson has asked to be traded. The Bengals selected linebacker Keith Rivers from USC with the 9th pick in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday September 28 Bye Week

Sunday October 5 Seattle Seahawks @ New York Giants 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($138-$686)

In week 5, the Seattle Seahawks come to town. The Seahawks finished the 2007 regular season 9-7. The Seahawks defeated the Redskins 35-15 in the wild card round, and then lost 42-20 to the Packers on a snowy day in Green Bay. The Seahawks selected defensive end Lawrence Jackson from USC with the 28th pick in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Monday October 13 New York Giants @ Cleveland Browns 8:30 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($94-$613)

The Browns can no longer be discounted, as the Giants should have a Monday night showdown with the much improved Browns. The Browns finished the 2007 regular season 10-6, and missed the playoffs. The Browns did not have a first round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday October 19 San Francisco 49ers @ New York Giants 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($147-$637)

Week 7 should be another cheap win for the Giants. The 49ers finished the 2007 regular season 5-11, and missed the playoffs. The 49ers selected defensive tackle Kentwan Balmer from The University of North Carolina with the 29th pick in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday October 26 New York Giants @ Pittsburgh Steelers 4:15 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($127-$826)

Heinz Field is one of the most difficult places in the NFL to win. The Steelers finished the 2007 regular season 10-6. The Steelers season ended with a 31-29 wild card playoff loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Steelers selected running back Rashard Mendenhall from The University of Illinois with the 23rd pick in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday November 2 Dallas Cowboys @ New York Giants 4:15 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($216-$1,029)

The hottest ticket of the year will be for game 8 against the Cowboys. The Cowboys finished the 2007 regular season 13-3. The Cowboys season ended with a devastating 21-17 defeat at the hands of the New York Giants. The Cowboys selected running back Felix Jones from Arkansas with the 22nd pick and cornerback Mike Jenkins from South Florida University in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday November 9 New York Giants @ Philadelphia Eagles 8:15 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($166-$837)

The Giants buy a Sunday night game against the Eagles. The Eagles finished the 2007 regular season 8-8, and missed the playoffs. The Eagles did not have a first round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday November 16 Baltimore Ravens @ New York Giants 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($138-$735)

The Giants look to deal a blow to the only team to beat them in a Superbowl, the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens finished the 2007 regular season 5-11, and missed the playoffs. The Ravens selected quarter back Joe Flacco from The University of Delaware with the 18th pick in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday November 23 New York Giants @ Arizona Cardinals 4:15 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($58-$637)

The Giants return to University of Phoenix stadium for the first time since Superbowl XLII to face the Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals finished the 2007 regular season 8-8, and missed the playoffs. The Ravens selected cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie from Tennessee State University with the 16th pick in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday November 30 New York Giants @ Washington Redskins 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($93-$980)

The Giants will try to punch their ticket to an NFC East title with a victory in Washington.

Sunday December 7 Philadelphia Eagles @ New York Giants 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($147-$735)

Tickets prices are always high when the Eagles come into Giants Stadium.

Sunday December 14 New York Giants @ Dallas Cowboys 8:15 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($122-$19,980)

There won’t be any cheap tickets for the rematch of last year’s playoffs.

Sunday December 21 Carolina Panthers @ New York Giants 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($113-$735)

The Carolina panthers and star receiver Steve Smith cannot be discounted. The Panthers finished the 2007 regular season 7-9, and missed the playoffs. The Panthers selected running back Jonathan Stewart from The University of Oregon with the 13th pick and offensive tackle Jeff Otah from Pittsburgh in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Sunday December 28 New York Giants @ Minnesota Vikings 1 p.m. ET Ticket sale price range ($35-$324)

The Giants finish the regular season against the Vikings who are hoping the price they paid for receiver Bernard Berian was worth it. The Vikings finished the 2007 regular season 8-8, and missed the playoffs. Vikings did not have a first round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Since the Giants are from New York, fans pay a high price to buy tickets in normal seasons. With their team coming off an exciting Superbowl winning performance, Giants fans can expect New York Giants tickets to be expensive this season. Ticket price ranges above are as of the time this article was written.

Justin Diamond is Director of Marketing at Swickets.com

Steve Slaton fumbled a pitch on one play and got his helmet knocked off on another during the second day of Houston Texans minicamp on Saturday. Later, he dodged three would-be tacklers and sprinted down the field.

The former West Virginia star, drafted by the Texans in the third round, is getting plenty of snaps to show coach Gary Kubiak what he can do. Now if he can only memorize the complicated playbook.

“I’m just trying to learn the system, trying to get the plays down so that I can make an impact right now,” said Slaton, the 89th overall pick. “The pass plays and the pass protections, that’s where my biggest trouble is coming from.”

The 5-foot-9, 197-pound Slaton rushed for 3,923 yards for the Mountaineers and is third in career rushing in the Big East. But that means nothing to the Texans, who have six running backs on the minicamp roster.

Ahman Green and Chris Brown are the top two on the depth chart. Green missed most of last season with a left knee injury and Brown signed as a free agent after five seasons in Tennessee. Chris Taylor missed last season with a knee injury, Darius Walker played in only four games and Arliss Beach spent last season on the Dallas Cowboys’ practice squad.

They all have more NFL experience than Slaton, but he doesn’t think that’s a disadvantage.

Former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry will be released from court-ordered electronic monitoring and house arrest so he can try out for another NFL team.

Hamilton County Municipal Court Judge Richard Bernat issued the ruling Tuesday, when Henry’s attorney Perry Ancona said the player has an offer to try out for a team. Ancona did not identify the team.

The 24-year-old has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges of assault and criminal damaging dating to March, when a University of Cincinnati student told police Henry punched him in the head and damaged his car.

Henry was suspended by the NFL for eight games last season because of earlier arrests. The Bengals released him last month.

Henry will be required to show the court a letter from the team he’s trying out for before he’s permitted to travel.

Improving Your Youth Football Defense, Punting Tips For Youth Football

Coach Kohl from the Kohl’s Kicking Camps presented three times at the Chicago Glazier Clinic and did a great job. Kicking is an area we admittedly have yet to develop a core excellence in and Coach Kohl showed us why or better yet, maybe why not. Like most youth football coaching staffs, we used some common sense, trial and error and hoped for the best. As you might expect, we had better than average results when we had good “natural” kickers and weaker results when we had average natural kickers.

Punting Goals For Youth Football

Obviously the goal of a youth coach should be to have good results with just average players and great results with better than average players and I’m firmly convinced that this a reasonable goal when it comes to the kicking game as well. I’m more firmly convinced of that now after listening to Coach Kohl and other kicking coaches this clinic season. At every clinic I went to I sat in on the kicking sessions, often they were the lightest attended sessions in the clinic.

Progression Punt Teaching

I was pleased to come to the conclusion that like any teachable football skill, the punt is best taught in a progression. Like many poorly taught football skills, many youth football coaches teach a player to perform multiple fairly difficult tasks nearly simultaneously and that certainly describes how most of us teach the punt.

The punt consists of a number of very specific and coachable tasks: the lineup, the stance, the readjustment, the catch, the grip, the ball “mold”, the “drop table”, the approach, the plant foot, the drop, the contact fit and lock, the extension and follow through. The youth football player can be taught every one of these concepts and we can even link them together into an integrated movement. We as coaches just have to teach each specific step and perfect each step in our kickers, one step and concept at a time.

Coach Kohl has kicking camps all over the country and has no problem if coaches want to attend and watch free of charge, those are listed on his web site. He also has two kicking DVDs that I bought and highly recommend. They can be purchased through “Championship Productions” you can find them on the web.

While coach Kohl and others aren’t coming out with anything brand new, it is important to understand the intricacies of punting, the key points and how to teach it in an easy to understand progression based manner. I’m not going to spell out all of his coaching points and methods here on the blog, but we certainly plan on applying coach Kohl’s concepts next season with both our punters and kickers.

The Drop Table

Two simple to understand and implement concepts is the “Drop Table” and the “Drop Angle”. These are commonly agreed upon kicking terms, the drop table refer to the height the ball is kept at from the time of the catch to the time of the drop. It is an imaginary “table” that the ball should never go below. The drop angle refers to what angle you drop the ball at to your kicking foot. All the experts do agree that the drop table should never go below the waist. If the ball is constantly moved to various elevations after the catch, the ball is often thrown out in front of the kicker where he has to catch up to the ball or even tossed up rather than down if the ball height is varied with the punters stride.

Smooth and consistent is what you are looking for here, arms fully extended, the drop table never varying or going below the waist.

The Drop Angle

The drop angle is very important and very easy to correct. The drop portion, like any other progression move is isolated and practiced and coach Kohl and other kicking coaches have a plethora of drills to practice this portion of the kick. One of the key coaching points of the drop is that you want to drop the ball at 11:00 if you are right footed kicker, not in a straight line or 12:00. If you drop the football straight down and not at an angle, quite often the back tip of the ball is going to strike your shin first before it touches your foot and you get what punters call a “double hit”. When you “double hit” the kick will be a short end over ender, with the ball not receiving the full force of the punters foot, ankle, leg and hips. By dropping the ball at 11:00, the back tip of the ball just misses the shin on the drop and the first contact of the ball is to the top most portion of the face of the foot, the protruding hump bone on the top of your foot “the sweet spot” for all punters.

Our goal as coaches is to make sure our players have the tools necessary so that they will maximize their potential while playing for us. For my teams this means the kicking game too. We will excel in this very important part of the game next season, I assure you.

Don’t be intimidated by kicking, it is something you learn to teach just like anything else.

Remember, field postion is a key factor in developing a solid defense in youth football. While we have not had to punt very often in the last 8 seasons due to our prolific offense, we need to establish competency in it for when we do need it and for the benefit of the kickers. We aren’t going to settle for mediocrity in any part of our game or just hope some natural Ray Guy Jr. type player shows up on our field for our first practice.

Dave Cisar-

Dave has a passion for developing youth coaches so they can in turn develop teams that are competitive and well organized. He is a Nike “Coach of the Year” Designate and speaks nationwide at Coaches Clinics. His book “Winning Youth Football a Step by Step Plan” was endorsed by Tom Osborne and Dave Rimington.

With over 15 years of hands-on experience as a youth coach, Dave has developed a detailed systematic approach to developing youth players and teams. His personal teams to using this system to date have won 94% of their games in 5 Different Leagues.

To Sign up for his free tips newsletter or to see his 325 free tips go to: Football Plays

Dan Klecko signed a 2-year contract Monday with the Philadelphia Eagles, who plan to convert him from defensive tackle to fullback.

The 275-pound Klecko has played defensive tackle and special teams and served as a short-yardage fullback for the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts. The Eagles will use Klecko as a full-time fullback.

“Everything I’ve ever done at fullback has been very raw,” Klecko said. “This is going to be a whole learning experience.”

The Eagles did not re-sign last year’s starting fullback, Thomas Tapeh. Also under contract is Jason Davis, who spent last year on the practice squad.

Klecko said he will need to lose about 20 pounds to play fullback.

“I have to come to camp thinking I don’t have a job,” he said. “I have to work for it.”

In 47 games, Klecko has 39 tackles and three sacks and has caught four passes for 20 yards and a touchdown. He also had a touchdown catch in the Colts’ 2007 AFC championship game win over the Patriots.

A native of nearby Marlboro, N.J., Klecko played at Temple and was a fourth-round pick by the Patriots in the 2003 draft.