Ravens Steve McNair Goes 4 of 5; NY Giants Steal Show 17-16

Giants boot the Ravens, 17-16

NFL.com wire reports

BALTIMORE (Aug. 11, 2006) -- The first quarter belonged to Steve McNair, who produced a touchdown on his first series with the Baltimore Ravens before sitting out the rest of the game.

McNair didn't get a win to savor, however, because the New York Giants dominated the fourth quarter and rallied for a 17-16 victory.

In his lone drive, McNair moved the Ravens 80 yards in 12 plays. He went 4 for 5 for 45 yards and ran for a 6-yard touchdown.

"It was what we were looking for, offensively, to start us out," McNair said. "That's the kind of drive we want to establish during the course of the season."

Baltimore built a 16-7 lead before Michael Jennings returned a punt 57 yards for a touchdown with 8:44 left. The Giants then forced a punt and moved 62 yards behind third-string quarterback Jared Lorenzen before Jay Feely kicked a 29-yard field goal as time expired.

"It's always nice to win, and we were very happy to come back and win the game," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. "Jennings, with a big punt return, kind of gave us a shot in the arm there."


Steve McNair carried three defender into the end zone on his only drive.
McNair was obtained in a June trade with the Tennessee Titans to provide direction to an offense that struggled for three seasons under Kyle Boller. The 2003 NFL co-MVP made an immediate impression, completing his first pass to tight end Todd Heap for 17 yards.

On third down from the New York 6, McNair burst from the pocket and carried Corey Webster and Chase Blackburn into the end zone.

"I had an opportunity, I got flushed out of the pocket, I saw the end zone and I just tried to make the best out of something," McNair said at halftime. "This is my style of play. I play to win, regardless of it's a preseason or a regular-season game. Once the blood gets flowing, you can't shut it off."

Unless your coach tells you to, and Brian Billick decided one series was enough for McNair -- especially after watching his star quarterback take off in the open field.

"I told him he and I are both too old to do a whole lot of that," Billick said with a chuckle. "But it's what he does. He's an incredible competitor."

Offensive coordinator Jim Fassel didn't need to see anything more, either.

"Steve managed the game well and made good decisions," Fassel said. "It was crisp for an opening drive in the first preseason game."

The Giants' No. 1 defense, conversely, was left smarting.

"I was disappointed in the way we came out defensively," end Osi Umenyiora said. "We really allowed them to make too many plays, and we weren't making any plays. We have a lot of things we need to get back to work on."

Eli Manning led the Giants to a touchdown on his third and final series, the key play a 43-yard pass to Plaxico Burress. After Derrick Martin was called for pass interference in the end zone on a third-down play, Brandon Jacobs scored from the 1.

"For the first group, we got in the end zone, which was kind of our goal," Manning said. "I would have liked to have done it on our first or second possession rather than our third, but that's just the way it goes."

Giants running back Tiki Barber, who ran for 1,860 yards and nine touchdowns in 2005, was held out by Coughlin despite being healthy. New York was also without tight end Jeremy Shockey (concussion).

Manning went 4 for 7 for 74 yards. His backup, Tim Hasselbeck, was 7 for 13 for 79 yards before leaving late in the third quarter.

Boller, now No. 2 on the depth chart, completed 12 of 18 passes for 100 yards.

Matt Stover kicked field goals of 27 and 43 yards in the second quarter to give Baltimore a 13-7 halftime lead, then added a 43-yarder in the third quarter.

Notes: Ravens LB Ray Lewis did not play (coach's decision). ... Baltimore WR Derrick Mason left after one series with a mild concussion. ... The Giants had 10 players catch passes, led by Tim Carter with three for 36 yards. ... Feely missed a 44-yard FG; Stover clicked on all three of his attempts.