FanHouse Aaron Ross

Giants starting cornerback Aaron Ross missed a good deal of the team's training camp with a nagging left hamstring injury. So the last thing New York wanted to see in its final camp practice was Ross drop to the ground and grab at that same hamstring.

Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.

The New York Giants were an afterthought in 2007, but made their way to a Super Bowl title. In 2008, the Giants found a way to earn home-field advantage in the NFC playoffs, only to last one game. Their playoff loss to Philadelphia was certainly disappointing, but the fact that they earned the top seed after the drama they went through was impressive in itself. Now, it's time for the Giants to re-tool, reload, and get back to the Super Bowl.

Each week in the NFL, there are players that impress and players that distress. One week a certain quarterback might toss four touchdowns and run around with his finger in the air while the next he's laying on his back, holding his facemask as the other team returns one of his three interceptions for the game-winning score. With that in mind, here's Studs and Duds.

Here's Week 11 at a glance, where we point out the horses destined for the Kentucky Derby and jeer those headed to the glue factory.

Studs

Justin Gage, WR Tennessee (4 catches, 147 yards, 2 TDs) -- The biggest (and only, it appears) knock on the Tennessee Titans was that they cannot throw the ball because they have no wide receivers. After this outing by Gage, who caught some great balls thrown by Kerry Collins, maybe we can drop that for a week. This was the second straight game Gage snagged a ball in the end zone and his fourth touchdown of the year, moving the Titans to 10-0 and making people everywhere wonder if there is any way they can continue to win these scrappy contests. The pass-catch at the end of the game between Collins and Gage even got a reaction out of Vince Young, who I thought was pronounced dead a few weeks ago.

We learned several things during the Super Bowl. Among others, we learned Eli Manning isn't going to get booed at Giants Stadium any more, we learned that its not a good idea to trademark perfect season phrases before you win all your games, we learned David Tyree's name and we learned that signing Asante Samuel isn't a good idea for the New York Jets.

That last one might take you by surprise, so I'll explain. The Giants dominated perhaps the best passing attack in league history with a cornerback crew consisting of the rookie Aaron Ross, the achy Sam Madison, R.W. McQuarters, James Butler Corey Webster and Kevin Dockery. No slight on any of those guys, but there's not a Lester Hayes in that group. The Giants dominated because of the way their defensive line and linebackers got after the quarterback. Take away a QB's time and protection and you take away a good chunk of his effectiveness.

That's why the Jets should forget about forking over heaps of cash for Samuel and concentrate on upgrading their anemic pass rush this offseason. He's a fine corner but the Jets could have a dozen of them and it wouldn't make a whit of difference if they don't start treating offenses the way the Giants treated the Patriots on Sunday. Samuel is a fine player but he shouldn't be wearing a Jets jersey next season.

Yesterday, NFL Network's Adam Schefter reported that in addition to a gimpy ankle, Tom Brady was also suffering flu-like symptoms during the AFC Championship game. (That explains a lot.) Luckily, his awesomeness was enough to overcome his icky feelings and the Patriots are back in the Super Bowl.

The flu bug hit the Giants a few days later -- during the bye week between the conference finals and Super Bowl Week -- but it's not expected to keep anybody out of the Big Game. Still, things were so bad that the team flight to Arizona was delayed for an hour while rookie cornerback Aaron Ross puked his guts out. No worries, though: New York will be ready by Sunday.

"It's not a sign," defensive end Michael Strahan said, making sure Giants fans don't take Ross' sickness and others as omen.... "Guys are taking medicine and doing everything they can do," linebacker Antonio Pierce said. "We're still talking about Monday. We've got six days left for the game. If those guys have to be out there, I think they'd be out there. If we had a game to play, they'd be able to play."

New York Giants cornerback Aaron Ross dislocated his shoulder twice in Sunday's 21-17 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, but that won't be enough to keep him down. The rookie insists he'll be on the field this weekend when the Giants take on the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game.

"It kept popping out, but I'll be out there. As long as it's not broke I'll be out there," Ross said. "It was painful, but it's the playoffs."

Now that's an NFL player right there!

Although he's just a rookie, Ross is quickly developing into a top NFL cornerback. And while no one is going to mistake him for DeAngelo Hall or Asante Samuel, opposing teams have made it a point to know where he lines up on the field.

And perhaps it's just coincidence, but the Giants turnaround (week three) began the very moment Ross was made a starter.

When Tom Coughlin and the New York Giants refused to lie down for the undefeated New England Patriots, they knew and understood the potential consequences. Unfortunately, those consequences landed three key starters on the sidelines.

Although the news on center Shaun O'Hara and linebacker Kawika Mitchell seems positive, it's the news regarding starting cornerback Sam Madison that has everyone worried.

According to Mike Garafolo of the Star-Ledger, Madison didn't suffer an abdominal strain as previously reported; he actually suffered a pulled muscle in his rib cage. It's an injury that supposedly causes tremendous pain and has kept the veteran out of practice all week.

In addition to Madison, cornerback Kevin Dockery (hip) missed practice again yesterday, leaving Aaron Ross and Corey Webster as the primary starters and R.W. McQuarters as the backup.

Should Madison and Dockery both find themselves on the sideline this weekend in Tampa Bay, the Giants will be forced to start Webster as they did in practice. And unfortunately, that's exactly what Buccaneers quarterback Jeff Garcia wants to hear.

There is no denying it now; the injury bug that has plagued the Giants for the last four seasons is back.

After a relatively healthy start to the year, New York suddenly finds themselves riddled with damning injuries that could spell disaster from here on out.

In addition to Brandon Jacobs, who will miss his second consecutive game due to a hamstring injury, the Giants are likely to be without safety Gibril Wilson (knee), cornerback Aaron Ross (hamstring) and wide receiver Plaxico Burress (ankle/knee) tomorrow against the Chicago Bears.

Wilson and Ross are both listed as doubtful, with Burress securing his normal place on the injury report under "questionable."

Rookie Michael Johnson is the leading candidate to replace Wilson at safety, while R.W. McQuarters would get the starting nod against his former team if Ross doesn't make an amazing 24-hour recovering. Additionally, Sinorice Moss would replace Plax if he does end up missing his first game of the season.

If you've watched the New York Giants this year, you have to wonder if they have the most talented defensive line in the game. Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck, Mathias Kiwanuka and Osi Umenyiora are some of the most athletically gifted players you will ever see -- and they proved it again today. The four of them combined for 13 tackles, four sacks, one pass deflection, one forced fumble and a touchdown.

The 49ers and their offensive line knew what to expect coming into the game, and they were still unable to stop it. In addition to the numbers put up by those four, San Francisco allowed another sack by Aaron Ross and turned the ball over two more times -- the Giants scored 24 points off turnovers.

However, not everything was a ray of sunshine for New York. The team, and Antonio Pierce specifically, made entirely too many boneheaded penalties. In addition, their running backs appear to have stone hands -- five drops this afternoon. And that's really unfortunate, because anyone just looking at the box score would assume Eli Manning didn't have a very good game, when that was not the case at all. You can bet that Tom Coughlin will address both of those areas this week.

For San Francisco, they fall to 2-4 and their frustrations continue. Their offense was unable to find any rhythm, and their defense showed some glaring weaknesses. But there were some positive signs as well. Ashley Lelie really seemed to step up when a play was needed, while Arnaz Battle had his best game since week one. It looks like building blocks are certainly there, and maybe with time and health, the 49ers can return to dominance ... it just won't be this year.

Final Score: Giants 33 - 49ers 15

Let's face it; rookie cornerback Aaron Ross has stolen the show. There's no debating it, no ignoring it and certainly no way to avoid it. He's become the apple of New York's eye, and because of that, veteran cornerback Sam Madison has gone completely relatively unnoticed.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Ross is undeserving by any means. Hell, he's anything but that. I am saying, however, that he's completely overshadowed the 180 done by the 33-year-old Madison.

"I've been talking about Aaron Ross for five weeks," Madison told a group of reporters, his voice suddenly rising almost to a shout. "I'm not answering any more questions about him."

Who can blame him for being a bit bitter? He's taken it in stride for five weeks now, all while doing everything he could to tutor and guide this young and upcoming star. Meanwhile, on the field, he's been completely shutting down everyone who has crossed his path with little to no recognition.