It might sound immature to say this, but the Seahawks should win easily if the Giants do not get help from the zebras, which they almost certainly will. The blantant Oregon robbery of Oklahoma has me seriously questioning officiating in general. The ability of the Cardinals to get away with horse-collar tackles and Larry Nemmers slowing down the Seahawks offense makes me only more wary of the growing problem of poor officiating to the point of actually questioning the integrity of the officials (something I really want to avoid). The pass-interference call on Ken Hamlin didn't help either. Maybe I am a little jaded after the Super Bowl and watching Pittsburgh continue to get every call go their way over the first two weeks.
As far as the Steelers go, in Week One it was consistent blocks in the back by the Steelers, especially downfield by the receivers, without any calls, while Miami got penalized several times on key third downs on ticky-tack calls so the Steelers could continue to move the ball. In Week Two it was Max Starks blatantly holding Rob Meier on about half of the plays and then shoving him in the back to clear him from Roethlisberger on several other plays, while Jacksonville got called for some ticky-tack holding calls on the interior of the line. The numbers don't lie, through the first two weeks the Steelers have been flagged 4 times for 35 yards, while their opponents have been penalized 16 times for 149 yards.
The Giants received two touchdowns as gifts from Nemmers last year. Jay Feely did miss three field goals that could have won the game, but it should not have been that close to begin with. The Giants did not score a legitimate touchdown in the game last year. Plaxico Burress, Jeremy Shockey, and Amani Toomer are all banged up heading into Sunday's rematch. The key to stopping that offense will be putting pressure on Eli Manning and stopping Tiki Barber with the front seven. The Hammer did not play last year, and the secondary should be able to handle Shockey and the receivers (that is unless they get help from the zebras again).
Deion Branch will make his debut, and it could mean a big day for the running game and for Nate Burleson. Burleson has looked terrible so far, dropping balls and not making an impact. However, he will be the fourth receiver in some four-wide sets, meaning that he will be drawing single coverage by the fourth-best guy in the Giants secondary. He has been getting covered by the top corner on the opposing team as Darrell Jackson was being underestimated by opponents coming off his knee injury. The weakness of the New York defense is the secondary, so the passing game could have a nice day if Hasselbeck gets time to throw.
Shaun Alexander should be able to find more room to run from spread formations. The offensive tackles, especially Sean Locklear, need to direct Osi Umenyiora and Michael Straham to the outside. If they can get those pass-rushers wide, then the middle will be wide-open for the running game. Maurice Morris could have some long runs on draws in third-down situations.
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