WATCH VIDEO: Postgame Coach & Players Comments

The New York Giants started its game against the hated division rival, the Philadelphia Eagles not having won a game. At 0-4, its season was at DEFCON 5 and with no help in sight, with a patchwork offensive line and a non-existent running game. The defensive line hasn't been much help either (the overall defense giving up a league leading 37 points per game) failing to put pressure on opposing quarterbacks. So it appeared to be a good omen for Big Blue when they were able to stop Michael Vick on 3 downs the first time the Eagles had the ball. It was even a better sign when they marched down the field the first time Eli Manning and the offense took possession.

Starting on its own 38, Manning set out to exploit the Eagles secondary. After wide receiver Rueben Randle drops a long pass, his teammate Hakim Nicks picks him up by hauling in a 49-yard pass to the Philly 12-yard line. Two plays later, David Wilson runs it in from the 5 giving the Giants a 7-0 lead. The ever elusive Vick runs for 48 total yards but it only led to an Alex Henery 40-yard field goal the first of four he would connect on in the first half.

The Giants offense, which started with much promise, staggered the next four times it got the ball failing to put any points on the board. Running back Brandon Jacobs, who was brought back by the team to help improve the running game, fumbled in the second quarter. The look on head coach Tom Coughlin's face said it all. Making matters worse, Wilson was lost for the game with a neck injury. The injury bug hit the Eagles as well with Vick having to leave the game with a hamstring strain but backup QB Nick Foles came in and completed 7 of 8 passes for 68 yards that put the final points on the board and 19-7 Philadelphia lead.

With the boos raining down on the home team, the Giants continued to hurt themselves on both sides of the ball. Another three and out began the third quarter then a costly challenge resulted in them losing two timeouts. Foles' short pass to LeSean McCoy on the Eagles sideline is challenged by Coughlin but not before he called a timeout. The replay upheld the call so the Giants get burned losing its second timeout with more than 12 minutes remaining.

Said Coughlin on his decision to call the timeout, "we thought the challenge would be reversed. I just took a time out to settle the team down."

As bad as things were going, Manning gets them into the end zone on their next two possessions with Randle redeeming himself catching a 26-yard touchdown pass to get them within 5 (19-14). Manning and Randle would hook up again, this time for a 6-yard touchdown pass giving the Giants a brief lead 21-19 as Foles puts the Eagles in position for Henery to kick his 5th field goal of the day and a 22-21 lead. Then the 4th quarter came and just about ended the season for the New York Giants.

Manning's second possession of the 4th quarter was a microcosm of his season. He entered the game having already thrown 9 interceptions many of them of the head-scratching variety. His next three were in the same vein. Trying to get a short pass to Jacobs, the ball hits off his offensive lineman's helmet before Eagles Mychal Kendricks comes down with the ball. The refs failed to notice that Manning was slapped in the helmet or the fact that a pass can't be caught after hitting an offensive player not eligible to catch a pass. One play later, Foles finds tight end Brent Celek in the corner of the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown pass putting the Philly up by 8. Plenty of time left for the Giants to score, convert the 2-point conversion and tie the game or simply get a stop hoping for a game winning drive. It would not happen.

At their own 20, Manning looks deep for wide receiver Victor Cruz who is double covered. As both he and Brendan Boykin tumble to the turf as the ball arrive, it is Boykin that comes away with the interception.

"I know I can play better," said Manning, who was 24 of 52 for 334 yards. "Sometimes, things are going to go wrong, but you've got to make the best decision. Throw it away, take a sack. I know I can't keep turning the ball over every time."

Four plays later Foles puts the final nail in the coffin with a 5-yard td pass to Jackson. Manning's final interception gave him 12 on the year.

A thoroughly confused Eli Manning admitted his struggles five games into a lost season.

"I know I can play better," he started. "I know I can't keep turning the ball over every time."

As positive as Coughlin and his players sounded after the game, the reality of the matter is that their record is 0-5. Making matters worse is they are faced with a short week traveling to Chicago to play the Bears Thursday night. There is not one aspect of their game that is working. It may get a lot worse before it gets better.

Teams in all sports talk about familiarity of the opposition. It could be sibling rivalries among the players or coaches. It could be the history of franchises. Who has the advantage when they face each other? It's a high stake game of poker when the match ups occur. That's exactly what took place Sunday at MetLife Stadium, when the New York Jets hosted the New Orleans Saints on a crisp and windy afternoon. Jets head coach Rex Ryan going against the high flying offense of Sean Payton. The Saints defense orchestrated by Rob Ryan, brother of Rex. You know there was a lot of trash talking (and a big bet) between the two prior to kick-off.

After some confusion as to who won the coin toss (Saints had to correct the ref), the Jets elected to give New Orleans the first possession. New York did everything to help the Saints get on the scoreboard first. They committed 2 penalties and gave up a 25-yard Drew Brees pass play getting them within field goal range. Fortunately for the Jets, Saints kicker Garrett Hartley missed the 43-yard attempt. After going three and out on their first possession, the Jets came up with the first turnover of the game. Brees, looking for tight end Jimmy Graham didn't see safety Dawan Landry blanketing him. Landry tips the pass and linebacker Demario Davis dives for the interception before the ball hits the turf. Running back Chris Ivory breaks a run for 27 yards leading to a Nick (AutomatNick) Folk 39 yard field goal.

The Jets next chance to get their second interception failed and it cost them in a big way. Saints Wide receiver Robert Meachem has a Brees pass bounce off his chest. Davis has the ball tip off his hands as Meacham has the concentration and presence of mind to haul in the ball. Four plays later, Brees strikes with 51-yard touchdown pass to Graham and a 7-3 lead. New York could not get anything going in the first quarter and began the second deep on its own 4-yard line.

Jets rookie QB Geno (Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde) Smith missed on 7 of his first 9 pass attempts but his running back Chris Ivory (18 rushes for 139 against his old team) picked up the offensive slack. His 52 yard run resulted in Folk's second field goal from 21 yards out. Brees extended the lead to 14-6 by picking on veteran cornerback Antonio Cromartie who first trips over Meacham's foot as he hauls in a 60 yard pass. Graham comes up with his second touchdown outreaching the shorter Cromartie for a 10 yard touchdown. Cromartie would get a little redemption as he picked off Brees right before the half. This time Smith lets his legs do the talking. After connecting on passes of 13 and 21 yards getting them down to the 3-yard line, Smith fakes the handoff and runs it in for the 20-14 lead.

RB Chris Ivory destroyed his former team on Sunday. Photo Credit: Mike Henringuez

Said Smith of the play, "we had an opportunity to score right before the half. It really elevated us. Not only did we get points, it gave us some momentum."

Both teams lost key players to injuries. The Jets wide receiver Jeremy Kerley (elbow) and Saints running back Darren Sproles (concussion) would not return.

Smith's hot hand continued (8-19, 115 yards) as they got the ball to begin the third. He hooked up with wide receiver Greg Salas for a 44-yard completion as Folk nailed a 47-yard field goal extending the lead to 23-14. The onus now fell on the defense as Brees lit them up for 230 and 2 touchdowns in the first half. Although the Saints dominated the time of possession, they could only come up with 3 points after a 9-minute drive resulted in a booming 55 yard field goal by Hartley getting within 6 at 23-17. Folk added to the lead with yet another field goal, this time 47 yards to begin the final quarter. The Saints answered after Hartley's field goal (43 yards) but needed 11 plays to get on the board as the defense held for the 26-20 win.

After getting their doors blown out last week against the Bengals, the Jets in their up and down, win one lose one year won't have to worry about losing next week as they have a bye.

"I beat my brother again," kidded Rex at the start of his postgame press conference.

The defense did give up 366 yards in the air but Ryan was still impressed to holding the Saints high powered offense to only 20 points.

"It's a great sign for us. Looking at this game, we knew it was going to be tough. I've got a team that believes and will fight to the end."

Bronx, NY - 1971. I was a 12 year old parochial school student at St. Jerome's when the biggest fight of the century would take place between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. All week long, leading up to the fight, the debate raged on with fellow students as to who would win. I lobbied for Ali only because he was the better known fighter of the two. My classmate ( I can't recall his name) was convinced that Frazier was the better fighter. We made a $5 bet (a lot of money at the time) and I had to duck my school mate for the next couple of weeks after Joe Frazier put Ali on the canvas in the 15th round, leading to a unanimous decision. It would be the first of 3 classic fights between the two. Ali would win the next 2 but he would never face a fighter that had a bigger heart than Frazier. When he passed away late Monday night at the age of 67, Smokin' Joe Frazier was 1 of only 8 fighters to win an Olympic Gold Medal and a World Championship. He was part of a heavyweight era that will never be duplicated.

Fast forward to 1995. Atlantic City, New Jersey. Joe Frazier, long retired and a member of the International and World Boxing Hall of Fame, is sitting ringside of the Lennox Lewis, Shannon Briggs championship bout. Next to him, is one of the greatest middleweights of all time, Marvin Hagler. Both are watching the early rounds intensely. I am sitting to the right of Frazier. After the 3rd round, with Briggs trying to connect with wild punches, Frazier turns to Hagler and says, "we could knock both those guys out right now." Hagler smiles and nods in agreement.

Last year, Madison Square Garden celebrated the 40th Anniversary of the Ali/Frazier fight. Looking a little frail and walking with the help of a cane, Joe Frazier was given a standing ovation when introduced to the New York Knicks crowd. Speaking with him at halftime, he shook my hand as if he remembered me from that night in Atlantic City. He talked about life in Philadelphia, gave me his card and insisted I contact him if I ever came to his city. He did not look or sound like a guy who's life would be over in less than a year.

Joe Frazier was a man of the people. He didn't have the physical size of most of the heavyweights during his time. What he did have however, was a left hook that crushed opponents like a wrecking ball. His jab was non-existent but his constant bobbing and weaving style was relentless.

No fighter of his era had a bigger heart than "Smokin'" Joe Frazier. R.I.P!

New York, NY - The most anticipated rematch in recent years will take place December 3rd at Madison Square Garden when WBA Super Welterweight World Champion Miguel Cotto (36-2, 29 KO's) defends his title against 3 time World Champion Antonio Margarito (38-7 27 KO's). When they faced each other for the first time in July of 2008, both fighters had been at the top of their games and dominating their divisions. Cotto was undefeated coming off impressive, convincing wins over Zab Judah, Sugar Shane Mosley and Alfonso Gomez. Margarito rebounded after losing the WBO World Title in a unanimous decision to Paul Williams. He captured the vacant WBO Intercontinental World Title by knocking down Golden Johnson 3 times in the first round on the under-card of Cotto/Mosley, setting up the IBF Welterweight World Title against Kermit Cintron. Margarito stopped Cintron in the 6th round thus setting up the fight with Cotto.

No one thought the outcome of their fight would have lasting effects on both fighters. Neither have been the same since. Cotto had established himself as a fighter who could not only take a punch, but could inflict damage as well. He showed that he could adjust to his opponent, evidenced by how he out jabbed Mosley the entire fight. Even though many questioned Margarito's chin, his relentless style and punching power was something to watch.

The fight turned out to be one of the most action packed fights of 2008 with Cotto taking the early rounds. Margarito's patience paid off as he pressed Cotto with powerful right uppercuts sending Cotto to the canvas twice in the 11th round. Cotto's corner would throw in the towel as a bloodied and swollen Cotto would lose for the first time in his career.

Thinking and hoping that win would catapult Margarito to the next level, he faced Mosley in what would be the start of controversy regarding the wrapping of Margarito's gloves. Prior to the fight, members of Mosely's team discovered Margarito's gloves were wrapped with illegal substances. No one knows if that gave Mosely added incentive, but Mosely went on to knock Margarito down in the 8th round and ended the fight in the 9th on a TKO. Cotto went on to win 4 of his 5 next fights but just as Margarito took a beating against Mosely, they both took a beating against Manny Pacquiao.

Both fighters attended the press conference last month at the Edison Ballroom in midtown and the focus of the questions were about the first fight and whether or not the outcome had to do with Margarito's gloves possibly being doctored. Said Cotto, "the only people that can tell you if they use it (illegal wraps) that is him and the people on his team." Cotto refused to use that as a possible excuse for his loss but at one point, he showed a picture on his i-phone. One that was very revealing. In it, clear as day, is a picture of Margarito's hand without the glove on. The wrapping appears worn and chipped across parts of the knuckles. Cotto was incredulous in describing the picture as it was shown to the media. "I'm a boxer and I have never seen broken gauze broken like that. You don't have tape over your knuckles."

Antonio Margarito has always maintained his innocence going back as far as the first match with Cotto. After the revelations came to light in the Mosely match, he was suspended for 1 year by the California State Athletic Commission. He claims to this day that he had no knowledge that the substance his trainer was using was illegal. The trainer, Javier Capetillo, took the blame claiming Margarito had nothing to do with what the gloves were wrapped with. Still, the damage had been done and many questioned Margarito's victories after the Cotto fight, especially after getting hammered by both Mosely and Pacquiao.

"The people have the right to their opinions but I know that I am a clean fighter," he said. When asked if he took this fight to prove that his gloves were not tainted, he said, "not at all. This is a great fight for the fans. This is an opportunity for myself to become world champion again."

Miguel Cotto has never seen the first fight against Antonio Margarito in its entirety. He plans to sit down and watch the fight during his training camp in order not to make the same mistakes. He never used the fact that Margarito's gloves may have been doctored as an excuse for losing the fight. "I never said anything about it. I just accept my defeat as a true defeat."

Antonio Margarito admitted that the beating he took at the hands of Pacquiao was the worst of his career. "He fractured my eye socket, he was the cause of me having me to stay out such a long time. I had to have surgery on my orbital bone." Still, he believes he can win another championship. "I've had some time off. I've been back in the gym. I feel mentally strong and physically strong."

Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito were at the top of their boxing games when they met 3 years ago. No one could have ever imagined the paths their careers would take after the outcome of that fight on that July night. One is fighting for revenge and the other is fighting for his reputation.