The Giants believe they’ve drawn the blueprint for how to defend Michael Vick, and they’re looking to continue to add pressure.
While many teams are hesitant to rush any athletic quarterback for fear of what happens when they break containment, the Giants want to put the pressure on the Eagles quarterback for the cumulative effect.
“As a quarterback who runs a lot, you should expect to get hit even more even when you stand in the pocket. You’re going to get hit,” Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul said, via Jorge Castillo of the Newark Star-Ledger. “We’re coming; we’re going to hit you regardless so whether you throw the ball or you run the ball, we’re going to hit you. If you throw the ball and release it, as long as we get there before he releases the ball, we can hit him.
“The ref’s the only one who can tell us no.”
The last time the Giants played him, they broke his right hand, knocking him out of the game briefly. He complained that many teams, including the Giants, were hitting him late. But he’s taking enough legal hits to necessitate a different plan.
“He’s not inhuman,” Giants defensive tackle Rocky Bernard said. “You can’t take that many hits and survive in this league, so they’re going to have to change something.”
Of course, teams are hitting Vick early and often this year. He’s been hit 29 times and sacked nine in three games, with 13 hits and five sacks by the Cardinals last week.
“A lot of teams took what we did,” Pierre-Paul said. “I was watching the Arizona game. Whew! They were killing him out there, man. He needs to get rid of the ball faster.”
At the rate he’s taking shots, if he doesn’t get the ball out quicker, he may not make it through another Giants game, or many other ones.